AllFreeNovel
Share Us
As he stepped outside the interview room, he found Joe Kingsley and Brock Greer standing there.
“You sure she’s not hiding anything?” Joe asked.
He could tell Brock had given Joe an earful. “Anything is possible, but I find it difficult to believe she’d hold back from us knowing her baby is at risk. She doesn’t have any love for her ex-husband either.”
Joe nodded thoughtfully. “Yeah, I heard enough to agree with you. Brock, as you know, still has his doubts. Pull together those mug shots and see if she can identify anyone.”
“Sure thing.” He knew Brock had trust issues from events in his personal life, so Steele let it go. For his part, he couldn’t help but feel bad about her situation. Maybe because he was still grieving the loss of his girlfriend, Monique.
He found Raelyn putting the mug shots together for him on the computer. It was easier and faster than using paper or lineups.
“I heard the perps got away,” she said without looking at him. “I have Gabe Melrose our tech guy searching street camera footage for the vehicle.”
“Thanks.” He appreciated Rae’s chipping in to help. Despite being a talented cop, she was always willing to offer her assistance in any way.
Jina, on the other hand, balked at doing what she called scut work. Unless, of course, Joe or Rhy personally assigned tasks to her. He didn’t mind working with the handful of female cops on their team, but Jina had a chip on her shoulder the size of Everest.
He grabbed the closest laptop and booted it up. Within five minutes, Rae had sent him the six-packs she’d put together. He brought each of the three groupings up on the screen, then minimized two of them.
Carrying the laptop to the interview room, he placed it in front of Harper. She looked surprised, then leaned forward with interest to study the first group of six men.
She took her time, studying each face for a long moment before moving on. But at the end, she sat back. “I’m sorry. None of these guys look familiar.”
“That’s okay, let’s try the next one.” He hadn’t expected her to identify Tommy Grotto, the guy was a chameleon, blending into his surroundings. He brought up the next group of six faces.
“That’s Ellis Starkey.” She pointed at the face in the middle of the bottom row. “I guess I didn’t realize he’d been arrested.”
“He hasn’t, we just happened to get a good picture of him.” He minimized that screen and brought up the last six pictures.
She studied them again, then shook her head. “Nope. Never saw any of these guys before.”
He shouldn’t be surprised that she hadn’t been able to identify Waylon Brooks. He glanced up at the one-way glass and gave a small shrug.
Disappointed that they hadn’t learned much from this interview, he closed the laptop. “Okay, thanks for your help.”
“Does this mean I can go back to work?” She looked surprised and a bit apprehensive.
He hesitated. Joe hadn’t mentioned getting approval for a safe house for her. “Yes. I’ll drive you back to the law offices. However, you really shouldn’t go anywhere alone.” Team members would continue keeping an eye on her, but that wasn’t foolproof. If they’d been a few yards farther back, they may not have been able to rescue her in time.
“Okay.” She stood and reached for her coat. He found himself holding it for her so she could slip her arms in the sleeves. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” He cleared his throat, reminding himself that she was a victim of a crime, not a potential date. And pregnant to boot. He wasn’t interested in going down the relationship path again. gave himself a mental shake as he opened the door for her, glad to see both Joe and Brock weren’t still hanging around.
“This way.” He still had the keys to the squad, so he didn’t bother to find Brock. It didn’t sit well with him to drop Harper off at the law offices, but he escorted her outside anyway.
She didn’t say anything until he pulled up to the skyscraper housing the prestigious law offices of the Gibson and Roberts. Ironically, their specialty was criminal defense. They made their money defending people like her ex-husband. “Off—er—Steele, will I be safe going home tonight?”
“Do you have friends or family you can stay with?”
“Not really. My parents passed away last year.” She grimaced and reached for her door handle. “Never mind. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Hold on.” He slipped out from behind the wheel, raking his gaze over the area as he went around the back to her side. He opened her door for her. “I’ll walk you inside.”
As she emerged from the squad, the sound of gunfire reverberated around them.
“Get in! Keep your head down!” He shoved her back down inside the squad and used his radio to call for backup. When another bullet shattered the windshield, he hunkered down behind the vehicle, trying to pinpoint the location of the shooter.
The answer to her question was a big fat no. Harper Crane was far from safe. And he still wasn’t sure why she’d been targeted.
