“Connor, it’s okay. Take a deep breath.”
He slams his fists down onto the metal table between them, and the clang rings through theair. Before I can see what he does next, I’m out of my seat, swinging open the door and pushing aside the officer who tries to stop me. My fingers grip the handle of the room Katie currently sits in. The light above the door is on, indicating that an interview is taking place. My pulse is in my throat, my body growing hotter by the second. I need to get my hands on Katie and yank her out to safety. Regardless of how I feel about her. Regardless of the fact that she annoys the hell out of me. I don’t want her to be hurt. I’d never want that.
A large hand yanks my hand back, pushing it behind my back and slamming me against the wall. Detective Biceps calmly bends my wrist behind my shoulder blades, threatening to snap it if I don’t stop.
“She is more than capable of doing her job. You cannot go in there.”
“I thought you liked her. Leaving her in there with no protection at all. What kind of man are you?” I hiss through clenched teeth.
“The kind of man who trusts her to do her job. If you go in there guns blazing, you’ll undermine her authority in front of the suspect. He’ll only ever see her as a damsel in distress. I have more respect for her than that. Do you?”
I blow out a big breath, and my shoulders sink. Having won the battle, the detective loosens his hold on my wrist.
The dickwad is right. I hate that.
I head back into the room behind the mirror and throw the chair out of the way. The harsh clang of metal scraping against the floor before crashing into the wall rings through the air. I’m standing now. And if that little murdering prick threatens her again—if he so much as sneezes in her direction—I’m hauling her out of there.
???
It’s twenty minutes later when my phone vibrates in my pocket, and I have to step outside to take my call. I’m slightly concerned about leaving these idiots to watch Katie, but what can I do? Sergeant Major Tilly is on the line, and I can’t exactly ignore my boss right now because I have a sudden urge to watch the girl who has an intense dislike for me like a hawk so that the suspect who may or may not have murdered a woman in cold blood doesn’t also murder her.
And breathe.
I might be losing it.
I press the green button on my phone. “Jones,” I answer.
“Jones, how are you getting on?” Sergeant Major Tilly’s lyrical voice sings through my phone.
“Dr. Murphy is interviewing the suspect as we speak, sir. Can I call back later?”
There’s a muffled sound as if he’s covered themicrophone with his hand. I wait for him to respond, but after another thirty seconds of silence, the colonel’s booming voice enters the conversation.
“You’re on speaker, Jones.”
“Colonel.”
“It’s the third day. Are we any closer to getting this under military control?”
I’m not exactly sure how he wants me, someone who has never even worked a murder case, to get a police investigation under military control. But this is my boss, and anyone who has been in the military understands that when the higher-ups want something done, it gets done. But that’s usually internally. It’s different when there are civilians involved.
“Colonel, with all due respect, they aren’t going to hand over the case to the army. The investigation is in full swing, and I don’t have any leverage here.” I keep my voice low as police personnel hurry down the corridor.
“What about the girl? You could persuade her. You’re friends.”
I suck in a deep breath, a sharp twinge niggling between my shoulder blades.
“Dr. Murphy is contracted here. She doesn’t have sway over who is involved in cases.”
He sighs. I imagine his mustache bristling with annoyance as I await further instructions.
“I’ll speak to the judge again. But on your end, I want this wrapped up quickly. I don’t see whythey’re wasting their time investigating when it’s obvious he did it.”
Why is the colonel pushing this so much? Sure, I get that someone has been murdered, but something feels off. The fact that he’s trying to pull this under military control is odd. It’s clearly a civilian matter. Sure, he’s in the army, but the crime took place at a bar—the victim was a civilian. I’m contributing very little here, and honestly, Katie has it handled, so I can see why Detective Biceps is grumpy about my presence here. Even if it’s mostly because he wants to get into Katie’s panties and sees me as a threat to that. I’m not, but I’m not going to correct him.
“Sir, can I be frank?”
There’s a pause before I hear a heavy sigh. “Go ahead.”
