Page 26 of Red, White, and BearCat Blue

Mars smiled, looking almost shy. He struck me as being a really humble guy; it was super sweet. “Amongst other things,” he said casually.

“What do you do…specifically, I mean? I guess you have specialized roles on the team or something? Explosives and other shit?”

“Other shit?” Mickey asked.

They both laughed. “We’re trained in all aspects of SWAT tactics,” Mars said. “That’s what a Tac Team is…it stands for tactical team. We all know explosives, rappelling, and the like, but most of the time, my job is to drive our BearCat.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s our tactical vehicle, similar to an armored car. Our team rides in the back and I drive, usually to and from a scene with our boss riding shotgun up front.”

“Mars is also one of our team’s snipers.”

I felt my eyes widen. “Holy shit!” I glanced around, noticing I’d said that pretty loud. I cleared my throat. “I mean that’s cool.” I tried to sound nonchalant, but it was pretty hard to hide the awe in my voice. It really was cool. These guys were not only FBI agents but like super cool, action hero types. “So, I guess that means you all work out a lot, right?” I couldn’t help staring at their bulging biceps, and the way their pecs stood out under their muscle shirts was sooo hot.

They nodded in unison. “When we’re not on a case, we’re in training,” Mickey replied.

Mars’ phone suddenly vibrated, and he picked it up, glancing at Mickey. “It’s Candy. ‘E probably wants an update.” He scooted out of the booth as he swiped the phone, looking right at me. “Be right back.”

I nodded as his hand landed on my shoulder, squeezing right before he walked away. I swallowed hard, feeling the weight of that squeeze like he’d taken my balls in hand.

I was so screwed.

Chapter Seven

MARS

“’Ey, boss,” I said, nipping outside in the Vegas heat so I could speak to him privately.

“Clifford,” Candy said in a clipped tone. “I hope you have an update for me. I told Mickey to call me as soon as you were finished watching Demarco steal a car.”

I nodded to myself, knowing he couldn’t see me. “Yeah, uh…’e’s done. ‘E pulled it off like clockwork…really knows what ‘e’s doing.”

“Okay. Did he deliver it to Josiah Sterling?”

I stopped pacing. “’E’s doing that tonight, boss. Apparently the tosser’s got some kind of rule about delivering a stolen car during the day.”

“I suppose that tracks. So, what’s he done with the car? Please tell me he’s not driving a stolen vehicle around Vegas in broad daylight.” From Candy’s tone, I had no doubt he was rubbing his hands over his face in frustration. He had that “give me the details right fucking now” tone in his voice.

“Not yet, boss,” I rushed to say. “’E’s storing it in a mate’s garage for a couple of hours. We ‘ave to wait ‘til after dark. I ‘ave a feeling this Sterling guy is bad news, though.”

“What makes you say that? What has Mr. Demarco told you about Sterling?”

“Not much to be ‘onest, boss. It’s just the way Cam talks about ‘im. I get the idea ‘e’s scared of ‘im.”

“He sounds like a bastard.”

“Yeah, ‘e does. Is there any more news from Lincoln?” If the agents in Vegas had already scooped him up, having Cam deliver the car was redundant.

“I’ll bring you up to speed. Lincoln’s team is working hand in hand with our motor vehicle theft unit now. SAC Clara Bowman is the head of the unit. She filled Lincoln in on an investigation they’ve been running into a group who’re trafficking in high value automobiles across not only state lines but also our borders. They’ve been investigating Josiah Sterling in relation to that case for a long time, but so far, they haven’t made big inroads. Once Lincoln brought her up to speed with his team’s case against the drug trafficking ring, she agrees Josiah Sterling has to be the same man they’ve been after.”

If this Sterling guy was the same character, Mickey and I might’ve just stumbled into something big. But the idea that Cam was wrapped up in a drug and auto trafficking ring felt all kinds of wrong. I really didn’t want to think of the repercussions he might have to face when Sterling got caught.

“Mars?”

I shook myself out of my own thoughts. “Yeah, boss, sorry. I was just thinking. What else did the SAC tell Lincoln?”

“Bowman says Josiah Sterling is also being investigated for murder. He’s a really bad guy, Mars.”