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My lips kicked up at the corner, but he didn’t pull a full-fledged smile out of me.
A few minutes passed while I told him about what had happened that day, and what I suspected happened with that woman.
“She’s still in a coma, so I can’t confirm my suspicions,” I admitted. “Zach is supposed to call me if she wakes up with anything to say.”
“What’s your gut telling you?” Miller pushed.
The truck lights from another vehicle showed, announcing Sammy’s arrival.
Watching them emerge from the vehicle, I said, “I think that her working at the DMV and giving me information was only a coincidence. The girl was a long-distance runner. She runs ultra-marathons. She also looks a whole lot like Sierra if you don’t look at her face. Same body type. Same hair color. Same freckles. Juniper had been wearing a mask that covered the lower half of her face, too, to ward off the sun. I think that her being out there where Sierra lives made her the perfect target.”
“And the kid’s alibi?” Miller asked as Hastings broke off and headed to the house while Sammy lumbered his way toward us.
“Parents gave him one,” I said, then I went on to tell him about the car, and what had already been done to it by the time I’d arrived that morning.
Sammy heard the end half of my statement and grunted in annoyance.
“I asked about that kid, too,” he said. “I visited his ‘work’ that he has listed down. It’s his parents’ family farm, though it’s not actually owned by the father of the kid. It’s owned by the grandfather who, to be quite honest, isn’t very fond of the kid. According to a couple of hands that I just so happened to run into on their lunch break in town, he only shows up when he absolutely has to—i.e. the school is looking for him because he’s on work program to get him out of class early.”
“He’ll mess up,” Miller stated firmly. “He’s already taken that first irrational step by hitting that woman. Now it’s time to do a little reconnaissance and keep everyone abreast of what we’re learning.” He turned to his son. “It’s time for you to go kiss ass with your sister. You’ve allowed yourself to be butthurt over Mark for quite long enough.”
Sammy sighed. “I know. Fuck. I ran into Mark today, and he didn’t even ask about her. He was honestly surprised as fuck when I brought her up and mentioned that she was seeing someone new and pregnant. Like the thought of her not waiting around for him had never even occurred to him.”
My lip curled at the thought of Sammy mentioning Sierra to her ex at all.
“I know.” Sammy rolled his eyes. “It just pissed me off that he didn’t say anything. I won’t do it again.”
I wasn’t mollified, but it wasn’t like I could argue with him about his methods. If I was friends with someone, I would want to know that I’d done everything there was to do for my friend, too.
At least, that was what I told myself, anyway.
Miller was about to hand Sammy a beer when he waved his father off. “I’m not going to drink tonight. Head’s been bothering me.”
Sammy had suffered a head injury last month that had nearly taken him away from his family, which immediately had his father looking at him with concern.
“Because of your concussion?” I found myself asking.
“Nah.” He shook his head. “It’s this switching back from cold to hot back to cold again. A couple of days ago it was sixteen out. And now it’s sixty. Tomorrow it’s supposed to be forty again. Shit’s always messed with my head.”
I let out a relieved breath.
I didn’t know any of the SWAT team members all that well, but Sammy I’d known less than most. He was too ‘happy’ for me.
But when he’d gotten hurt, I’d ached just as badly as the rest of them at the thought of him no longer being there.
And now that he was my girl’s brother? Sierra, despite her anger at her brother, loved him. She wouldn’t like it if anything happened to him.
Which meant I should probably give more of a shit about him, too.
“Do you care about me, Malachi?” Sammy teased.
I looked at him through narrowed eyes. “I care that, for some reason, I care. Caring leads to mistakes. Mistakes lead to other more deadly things that I’d rather not think about.”
Miller grunted. “Dinner’s probably about ready. Let’s head inside.”
We all turned to go when Sammy’s words stopped Miller in his tracks. “So did he ask you for her hand in marriage yet?”CHAPTER 17I hope I’m married by the time I’m 40. If not, hoewell.-Sierra to MalachiMALACHI“Can you switch shifts with me?” Peterson, another officer at the KPD, asked.
I shook my head. “No can do. Tomorrow I’m having dinner with my girl’s family. I’m sorry.”
