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He opened the door and once again gestured for her to precede him, his big body almost taking up all the available space in the doorframe. Silently she slipped out of the bright hall, inadvertently brushing against him as she passed in front of him. The physical contact set off a flurry of electric sensations within her, and she felt him tense. Without looking at him, she entered the room, trying to curb her sudden sensual thoughts. Business first…business now, she amended, feeling her cheeks heat. There was no talk of pleasure later, but had she been completely innocent when she’d invited him over?
He stared at her, the rugged angles of his face set, his full mouth clamped in a hard line, but there was something in his eyes that made her heart skip a beat. “Business,” he said with an intractable tone in his voice as if he was reading her mind or reminding himself.
Swallowing hard, she dismissed her guilty conscience and gave in to the determined tone in his vice. Her own voice wasn't quite steady when she gave him her answer. “All the way.”
Mickey was agitated and spooked. He gave Kodiak another wary look, then focused on her. “It’s about time, mate. I’m starving, and it’s hot in here,” he groused. Mickey was like a brother to her, but it had often been in her head that the man could be a movie star. He was so attractive.
“Simmer down, mate.” She signaled to the officer at the door. “Could you get him some water and something from vending? No soda, sugar ramps him up.”
“Gah, Kai, you’re a full-on arsehole.”
“Shut it, Mickey. I don’t need you bouncing off the walls.” She looked at the officer and he smiled and nodded. “Ta,” she said as he closed the door.
She turned to Kodiak who seemed to take up a good chunk of the interrogation room all by himself. “Michael Jones, aka Mickey, meet special operator for the US Military, Jayesh “Kodiak” Lyta.”
“Special operator? What are you…Delta or something?”
Kodiak scoffed and it was clear that he took offense to Mickey’s statement. “I can either be your best friend or your worst nightmare.”
“Hey,” Kaiya said, “let’s all play nice.” She realized that he couldn’t help that fierce aura he projected. It was part of him, but it was making Mickey nervous. Kodiak’s hands were rock steady as he rolled up his cuffs, flashing his muscled forearms. Then he leaned back against the wall. He held his hands up in a supplicating way, and she didn’t know how he did it, but he transformed himself into this benevolent male, allowing her to do the talking.
She saw Mickey visibly relax and gave Kodiak a grateful look.
She pulled out one of the chairs and sat down as the officer came back into the room. He set some water in front of Mickey, along with a bag of chips, then handed a cup of tea to her, and to Kodiak.
“Good man,” she said, blowing on the hot beverage before taking a sip. “Mickey let’s start from the beginning. Tell us what happened last night. Don’t leave out any details.”
“I was standing outside Jackson’s Junkyard. A lot of homeless people squat there in between the junk piles. It makes them feel safe. Anyway, I heard this shout and turned to see two of Lenny’s thugs, Allambee Mitchell and Billy Coen, surging toward this homeless guy.”
“Archie was the name you gave me over the phone,” Kaiya said.
“Yeah, Archie something. He saw them and bolted, ran right past me with those bastards in pursuit.”
“What do you know about him?”
“Not much. He’s a skinny guy, about five-ten, black hair, brown eyes. He used to be some kind of musician, likes hanging around the opera house, frequents a soup kitchen down the street and lives in the junkyard. That’s about all I know.”
“So, what’s strange about what happened last night?” Kodiak asked.
“Lenny is big time, and no one crosses him, but you’ve got to have scratch to deal with Lenny. Archie didn’t have a pot to piss in, let alone any cash.” He looked from Kaiya to Kodiak. “So, what’s your interest in this guy?”
“We have a situation, Mickey,” Kaiya said.
Mickey groaned. “Terrorists?” He shook his head. “This guy isn’t a terrorist, Kai. He’s just a broken soul.”
“We don’t think he’s a terrorist.”
“Then why are you looking for him?”
“Because it’s something odd.”
“Right, like you were telling me about outliers. I get it. So, terrorists?”
“Yeah, but not your typical ones. These people have been in the news. They attack Americans.”
“Oh, yeah…Paris and Bolivia. No Safe Haven. That’s some bad shit, mate.”
“I want you to keep your eyes and ears peeled for anything that seems out of the ordinary,” Kaiya said.
