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“Probably not,” the lawyer said, “that’s not how things work. You will need to make this decision on your own. You’re practically an adult now, Stone, and this has to be your choice.”
He really didn’t have much of a choice, but he wasn’t about to tell his lawyer that. He could tell by the smirk on the guy’s face that he already knew that fact. “Fine,” Stone grumbled, “I’ll do it.”
“You’ll take the deal?” he asked.
“I will,” Stone agreed, “I’ll turn on the El Diablos, but I need to know that they’ll never find my mother.”
“You’ll both be put into the witness protection program as soon as you sign your statement,” the lawyer said. “Then, you’ll be taken into protective custody and sent out of town.”
“Will we be able to go home to pack before we leave town?” Stone asked.
“No. You won’t be able to go home to pack. We’ll have all your belongings packed up and sent to your new home. We’ll also issue you both new identities.”
“New identities?” Stone asked. “I don’t want to change my name.”
“All right, but it’s the only way to keep you safe, Stone,” the lawyer said, “it doesn’t have to be forever. You’re a minor and your records will be sealed until you turn eighteen and then, you can do whatever you’d like. You’ll have a clean slate, so to speak.”
“And my mom?” Stone asked.
“She’ll be able to leave witness protection with you or stay in the program. You’ll be able to get a better feel for her safety at that point. For now, just let the program help you both. This is a good thing, Stone,” the lawyer said. He didn’t feel as though any of this was a good thing, but he had to clean up his mess and if it meant giving up some of himself to do it, he would. Getting his life back on track might be the only way to make all of this up to his mother, and that’s what he planned on doing.
* * *
Stone Granger wasn’t sure what day it was, let alone where he was. He had woken up to what felt like drums beating on the inside of his skull. He tried to open his eyes and groaned from the pain that the sunlight caused him. He’d gone out last night and from what he could remember, he partied fast and hard with his new brothers-in-law. His only consolation was that they were both probably suffering as much as he currently was. The problem was that he had to pull a twelve-hour shift today while his brothers-in-law were planning on taking the day off. He guessed that was what happened when you owned your own business.
He loved his job as a Texas Ranger. He put on that badge every day and he was damn proud to wear it. But hearing his sister’s husbands talk about their security business made him long for a dream that he had forgotten about. When he got into the Rangers, he planned on sticking around until early retirement became available, and then, he wanted to ride out the rest of his years working in security. With each passing year in the Rangers, that dream seemed to drift further and further away. Running his own firm was a pipe dream that always seemed so far out of reach though, he just gave up on it.
Stone quickly showered, chugged down two cups of black coffee, and pinned his badge on his belt. By the time he holstered his gun, found his cowboy hat, and grabbed his keys and wallet, he was only running about ten minutes behind schedule. He’d have to skip breakfast this morning and that made his stomach roil in protest. God, if he didn’t spend the rest of the day puking out the window of his truck, he’d count himself damn lucky.
He was running late, and wouldn’t you know it, he got stuck at every light and by the time he pulled into the parking lot at work, he was a full thirty minutes late. “Granger,” his boss huffed. Apparently, his tardiness hadn’t gone unnoticed.
“Boss,” he said, “I’m sorry I didn’t make it to the morning meeting. What did I miss?”
“Tell me that you’re not hungover,” his boss insisted.
“Not at all,” Stone lied, “I just slept for crap last night. I’ll be fine—nothing a few dozen cups of coffee won’t fix.” He was hoping that he was right about coffee because he was planning on sucking down a few pots today, just to get through.
“Fine,” his boss said. “Wallace has called off sick today,” he said. “So, you’re riding with the new guy.” Shit—he hated when his partner, Wallace, called off. He wasn’t sick. Hell, if Wallace was sick, then Stone had the same illness. His partner had problems at home and when he and his wife got into a fight, he’d walk out and head to the corner bar. He usually stayed there until closing time and then stumbled home. He was hung over more often than not lately, but he wouldn’t rat out his partner. Stone liked working with Wallace and turning him in for showing up to work hungover, would only end badly for both of them.
“I’d rather be on my own,” Stone grumbled. He knew that his boss would never let that happen—especially given the bad shape he was in today. His boss might not challenge him when he said that he wasn’t hung over, but he certainly wouldn’t send him out on the streets alone today.
“You’re taking the new guy,” his boss repeated. “I’ll expect a full report on how he handles himself out in the field, on my desk by tomorrow morning.” Well, shit—his day just went from bad to worse in the blink of an eye.
“Have a nice day,” his boss said, walking past him to his office. He had a feeling that there was going to be nothing nice about his damn day.
* * *
He had listened to the rookie yammer on about how wonderful his fiancée was for about two hours now. To say that today was the slowest fucking day of his life was an understatement. Stone had another ten hours, and he wasn’t sure how he was going to make it through them.
He popped two Tylenol into his mouth and chased them down with a swig of his cold, black coffee. “I’d kill for a greasy breakfast at a bad diner,” he whispered to himself, and his rookie laughed.
“Rough night?” he asked.
“No, Jamison,” he lied. “I just didn’t get much sleep. I’m tired and hungry—not a good combination.”
“No,” Jamison agreed. “That’s not a good combination at all. When my fiancée gets like that, I always take her out to eat. How about we stop at that diner on Ninth Street?” he asked. “It’s just up here, around the corner.”
“Sounds good,” he grumbled, happy about the prospect of food. His rookie pulled into the diner’s parking lot and the place was empty. “I’ll call in that we’re taking lunch,” Stone offered.
