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I glance at my bag. If Sadie knew the whole truth, her lecture would’ve been much different and a whole lot harsher.
Face your fear. Attack your attacker.
Not only am I facing my fears; I’m embracing them. Inside my canvas tote, Quinn’s backup gun is sealed within an evidence bag. I used a pair of gloves to dislodge it from underneath his dresser.
No matter what we decide, when I see the Alpha, when I’m close enough to glimpse his eyes…this ends.
* * *
The hum of the overhead lights is too loud, the florescent glow too bright. An ache builds behind my eyes, forcing me to look away from the victim. I snap my latex gloves off with a smack, and toss them into the bin.
Sadie notices my ire and comes around the autopsy table. “Need a break?” she suggests.
“I’m fine.” I rub the back of my neck, working out the kink. “There’s not much to record, anyway. Bullet to the head. Dead.”
Looking down at one of my kidnappers, his skin pale and lifeless, I wonder why I feared them so much. Huh. I guess that’s easy to say now that they’re dead. Robbed of all the vileness that made them a threat in life.
“Still, you could probably use tea.” Her sincere smile lessens some of my anxiety. She hasn’t left my side since the transfer crew delivered the bodies.
I take a seat and prop my feet up on my tool cart. “If you’re offering, I won’t complain.”
Her features draw together for a second as she looks to the front doors.
“Carson’s here,” I assure her. “Besides, there hasn’t been a reply. No activity from King or the Alpha.” If the Alpha is counting on me coming to him…there’s no reason for him to come to me. Why chance it now?
Less than five hours…
“I’ll be back soon, then.”
I watch her head through the doors into the main building. I should’ve asked Carson if he wanted anything. Damn. I’ve tried so hard to pretend he’s not around, I’ve blocked his presence entirely.
As I stand and stretch, a clatter sounds from outside the lab. I start toward the outside corridor where Carson is stationed. The double doors swing in, and I stop midstride.
14
Detection
Quinn
Colton Reed is planted on a barstool on the main level of The Lair. Same black shirt he always sports in the club. Becoming the owner of The Lair since his brother’s death apparently hasn’t changed his style. He turns up a shot glass as I approach.
“Do I need a warrant for your surveillance log?”
He sets the glass down and nods toward the spiral staircase. “Figured you’d send your protégé to hit me up for security footage. Like last time.”
Three a.m. and Reed don’t mix well. I’m already irritable. “Who do you have to hogtie to get a coffee in this place?”
We pass a petite girl in patent leather on our way up the staircase. “Onyx,” Reed addresses her. “Could you get the ornery detective a coffee, please?” He glances back at me. “Black, I assume?”
I nod, and the girl winks at me as she sets off.
“Guess being the boss has its perks,” I say, meeting him on the second floor.
He produces a key ring from his pocket. “You’re better than lame puns, Quinn.” He opens the door to his office and steps inside. “I’m the one who should be in the foul mood. Shootings aren’t so good for business.”
I close the door, shutting out the chaos. I’ve never disguised the fact that Reed rubs me the wrong way. Hell, he was once my number one suspect in the serial killer case. But his recent efforts have been selflessly motivated. He cares for Sadie, but that doesn’t mean he has to offer up his club to help Avery. For that, I take it down a notch.
“You’re the only classy perv joint in the city,” I say, pulling a chair up to the desk. “You’ll recover.”
