AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I let the day pass before I came to the station. No need to cause a scene in broad daylight. With it being past eight o’clock, most citizens would be home with their families by now, leaving only a few stray officers patrolling the streets. This way it’ll leave no one but Sloan or Cameron at the station with the few dispatchers tucked away in the back.
Tonight, I came alone. Teddy is off doing god knows what, and I didn’t want the twins or Carl shadowing me. One, I don’t want to make anyone more nervous than they should be, walking in with three men who don’t know the definition of play nice. And two, I’m trying to keep my distance with Lucas. Without a doubt I know Teddy is the one who is responsible for his beat-up face and outburst toward me. I don’t want to add any fuel to the already burning inferno that is Teddy’s anger.
I step out of my car and close the door. The creaking hinges send out a high-pitched squeal into the night. I revel in the sound. This old GTO has been mine since I was sixteen. It’s one of the only things I have left from my dad. I smooth out my dress and move my purse to my shoulder.
I’ve been here a million and one times growing up, but this time isn’t the same. I’m not here bearing a late dinner or exciting news; tonight I’m here to find answers so I can finally avenge my father.
I push through the doors and take in the small space. It’s dimmer than normal with the overhead fluorescent lights cut down. A desk with the police seal on the front is to my left, a small room behind it filled with computers and a couple of people with headsets. A single holding cell in the back-right corner, and desks and computers scattered in the center.
I spot Sloan hunched over a desk, going through paperwork, with a lamp flipped on casting a dull yellow hue around him.
“Sloan,” I state, stopping in front of his desk.
He looks up, startled. “Jesus, Charlie. You’re going to give this old man a heart attack.” He clutches his chest.
I don’t bother with formalities. I get straight to the point. “Where’s Snyder?”
He looks at the gold watch on his wrist before he darts his eyes back to me. “He left yesterday evening. Was supposed to be back for the night shift, but…” He stretches his arms around the empty room.
I chew on my lip. “Well, I’m waiting until he gets here.” I plop onto the chair next to his desk.
He raises his eyebrow. “What’s going on, Charlie?” I can hear a hint of concern in his voice.
I huff. “Family business, Chief.”
As much as I want to give him all the information I have, I don’t even know if I can trust him. He’s worked alongside Cameron as long as he did my dad. Sure, he helps Teddy with small things here and there, but who’s to say he isn’t helping Cameron too? I can’t risk spilling the small info I have and him running with it.
He shakes his head and rolls his eyes. “I see those boys are finally rubbing off on you. Teddy trained you well.” His voice lowers and sounds almost pained. “It’s a shame he isn’t here to see it.”
For a second his comment catches me off guard. I’d almost forgotten no one knows Teddy is back. That his entire death was a lie.
I look to the floor and feign grief, wiping a fake tear from my cheek. “Let’s not go there. Please,” I beg, hoping my pitiful excuse of hurt will fool him.
He nods in understanding before patting my back and walking to the small room tucked away at the front of the station. Relief floods me when he’s out of sight. I almost feel guilty lying to Sloan. He’s been nothing but a rock to me for so long. When my dad couldn’t make it in time to pick me up from school, or knew he’d miss a dance recital, Sloan was always the man who took his place. He’s been like a dad to me in a way, but the one thing I’ve learned over the past few months is people aren’t who they seem. Lies and deception linger beneath the surface for everyone. It’s just a matter of what they’re covering up. I can’t risk letting Sloan in, letting him know what’s going on.
The door opening grabs my attention. I look and see Cameron strolling in, dressed in a wrinkled uniform with his sandy hair a mess. Sloan appears from the dispatch room where they exchange a few words before he walks out the door.
I stand, making sure the strap of my bag is still in place on my shoulder. When Cameron doesn’t notice me, I make my presence known. “Snyder,” I call out softly, not wanting the few women in the dispatch room to hear me.
His hazel eyes meet mine and immediately light up. “Charlotte.” He smiles, wasting no time to shrink the space between us.
He stops in front of me, his worn work boots almost stepping on my toes. He leans in, no doubt to kiss me like he does every time he sees me, but I back away.
When the back of my knees hit the edge of the chair, I hold up my hand. I’m done playing nice with this prick. “You’re going to tell me what you know.”
His eyes flash darkly before he slips his fake friendly mask back in place. “What are you talking about?”
I reach in my bag and pull out his file I found in my dad’s storage unit. I throw it on the desk, then reach back inside and grab my gun. I sit back down and urge him to do the same with the chair opposite of me, nodding my head in its direction. I cross one leg over the other, then lean back, removing my hand from my bag and letting it rest in my lap.
Cameron reaches for the file, keeping his eyes on my gun the entire time. He flips through it, then looks to me with bewilderment in his eyes. “What’s this?”
“You tell me.” I keep my voice impassive. No need to give him any hints that I have no clue what it means. All I know is he knows. But what does he know is the real question here. My dad didn’t leave that answer.
He shakes his head, then throws the file back onto the desk. “I don’t know what any of that is.”
I take in a deep breath through my nose, then stand up quickly. I lean over him. The sick fuck can’t even look into my eyes. He’s too worried about sneaking a peek down the low dip of the front of my dress.
I drag my gun up his knee to his thigh and let it rest by his groin. With the barrel pointed directly at his dick, I click the safety off. “You know something, Cameron, and I want to know what. And I want to know why there’s an ATF agent snooping around my warehouse.”
He leans his head back and lets out a sinister laugh while grinding into my gun slightly. “Look at you, Charlie. Finally, you have some steel in that floppy backbone. Maybe fucking all those Hale men did you some good. Is that how you got to claim that old run-down warehouse as yours too?” His face contorts achingly like he didn’t mean to say what he did.
I laugh. How weak. If you’re going to say something, say it without apology. “What, jealous it wasn’t you? That it wasn’t your hands skimming all over my naked body. Not your cock pushing into me, making me cry out in ecstasy?” His lip flicks up, and his hands ball into fists in his lap.
I moan into his ear. “Upset I wasn’t screaming out your name?” I flick my tongue over the shell of his ear. I can see the bulge growing in his pants. Good. He’s right where I want him.
Lucas said the only thing I’m good for is my pussy, and maybe in a way he’s right. I can make men do things other men can’t. I can use my body and the fantasy of sex to get what I want. Teddy said it best. Where a man can’t go, he’ll send a woman.
I stand back straight and put my foot on the edge of the chair between his legs. I give him a seductive smirk before pushing as hard as I can, sending him falling to the floor. I stand over him and aim my gun at his head. “Next time I come, you’ll have answers. And as far as the warehouse, it’s none of your fucking business. It’s mine and that’s all you need to know.”
I turn and walk out of the station before he can ask anything more.
