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“It’s the truth. Also, she’s kind of fragile.”
He cut a look from the side of his eye. “Autumn?”
“Yeah, she doesn’t show it, but she has no one in the world. No family. And I think my parents kind of sensed that.”
“I hadn’t thought of it that way. Both her parents died during the fighting, right?”
“Yeah. So Mom and Dad have treated her like one of their own.”
He nodded. Changing the subject, he said, “The guy Adam suggested, that first one on the list, says he’ll talk to us. He’s the one who used to be in tight with arms dealers.”
“Sounds good.”
Keeping her mind focused on the investigation was most important. There was no need to rehash a relationship that was dead and long buried.
ChapterFive
Marcus and Tamilya walked side-by-side up to the door of a small house in the Salt Lake area. He’d looked at a few houses in this area when he first moved to Oahu, but he’d wanted to be connected to the bustle of Honolulu. Plus, depending on where your house was located in Salt Lake, you rarely got a good view. The traffic was horrific also. He liked that he could be at work in less than ten minutes.
It sat close to several of the bases and was definitely an easier commute to Honolulu than anywhere on the West End. Still, it wasn’t something he wanted for himself. As they approached the little green house, the scent of plumeria hit him. No matter where he lived in the world after this, he would always associate the smell with his time in Hawaii.
He glanced at his companion and inwardly sighed. He never thought they would cross paths again until he’d found out she’d transferred to Hawaii herself. The first time they came face-to-face, he had understood what a dumbass he had been. Giving her up had been so damned stupid and cowardly.
Now, he was stuck in the friend zone. There just didn’t seem to be any way to get through to her. Doing it on the job was off limits. While he didn’t mind dating women he worked with, the strict line between work and personal needed to be definitive. No woman should have to deal with that on the job, especially when their lives were on the line.
From the first time he had seen her, he had wanted her. It had never happened like that for him before. Attraction was one thing. His need to have her almost overwhelmed his better judgement. He’d had a lot of affairs over his life, but none of them had been so combustible. It had been some kind of primal connection. Over these last few months, he’d come to know her even better. Tough as nails, with a soft center. She didn’t put up with anyone’s shit, but she could also show compassion. The story about Autumn was a prime example.
“You think this guy can help?” she asked.
Marcus had made a few contacts since he moved to Hawaii, but it was proving to be tougher than he’d thought it would be. Hawaii was a state, but it was also different than any state he had been in. They were a bit on their own out in the Pacific, and since they were the most geologically isolated place on the planet, they tended to be distrustful of outsiders. Not that he blamed them. Every time Hawaiians trusted another country, they ended up getting shafted.
“Maybe. He does have a good number of contacts within that world. He doesn’t work with them anymore, but he has family.”
“And we’re going to trust him?”
Marcus shrugged. “Not like we have much choice. You know how this is. I also trust Adam.”
“Right.”
He hated that this guy wasn’t his informant. Marcus didn’t know him and while he trusted Adam, it didn’t mean that either of them had to trust this guy. Or that he would be that truthful with them. Marcus just didn’t like depending on other people’s leads, and he knew Tamilya was the same way. That was what had left her out to dry in the Virginia Star Mall bombing.
Marcus leaned on the doorbell and they waited. A commotion of voices, several of them being children, erupted. A short, portly Asian man opened the door. He was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and board shorts. “Floyd?”
Marcus nodded. “Dennis?”
The man nodded as he looked between the two of them. “This is my associate Tamilya Lowe.”
Adam must have given both of their names to Dennis because he nodded. “Francie, I have to talk to some people.”
“Okay, babe,” a woman called out.
Then he stepped out on the stoop and shut the door behind him. “I try to keep my family out of this and normally, I’d have you come in, but my youngest made the honor roll, so we’re doing a cookout. Come on around to the back.”
They followed him as he walked, barefooted, to the back of the house. There, a large grill was set up. He walked over and started the fire.
“Adam told me you want to know who to look for in a murder?”
“Yeah. He’s a Russian, Golubev. Do you know of any hitmen Russians would hire?”
