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I follow the two officers into Traynor’s office, even though I want to take them down so I can run to Viper’s aid. Only two things stop me. The first is that losing my job means I can’t work to clear Viper. The second is because Viper can take care of herself. She’ll likely kick my ass if she discovered I sacrificed my job to protect her. She has the entire club behind her. Puma’s a smart son-of-a-bitch. He’ll outwit Traynor without breaking a sweat.
“Take a seat. Doubt it will be long before the Lieutenant brings in that bitch,” Officer Johnson sneers at me. “About time he put you in your place. Fucking dirty cop.”
I bark out a humorless laugh at his ridiculous statement. Little does he know what I’ve sacrificed to stay clean.
“You deny it?” he presses.
I just roll my eyes, unwilling to get into an argument with someone who has already decided about me. I glance at the other cop, Officer Marshall, who, up to this point, has remained silent.
“Can’t deny it is more like it,” Officer Johnson mutters.
I ignore them both and sit back in my chair, my mind on Viper and what’s happening at the clubhouse. Glancing at Traynor’s desk, I see two folders, one of which has Viper’s legalname, Ashley Turner. But I see another folder with the name Gerald Michelson. Something about the name creates a glimmer of recognition, but I can’t place it. I make a note to research him later.
I also consider my next steps. With Barry Jones’s statement, I can clear Viper’s name. If Traynor won’t listen to me, I’ll go over his head to the captain or even straight to the District Attorney. My biggest problem is Traynor. He’s dead set on charging Viper for the murder of her father. Why? His fixation on her feels personal. Or maybe he hates her because of the club. I realize I know little about Traynor or his background. I remember the expensive red sports car he drives. Where did he get the money for it? I need to connect with Spark to see if he’s discovered anything on Traynor.
Two hours later, Traynor returns to the office. He seems surprised to see me but recovers enough to bark at the two officers to leave. They do, and Traynor turns his attention to me. “You warned her!”
I stare at him without responding.
“Where is she?” he demands.
“Where is who?” I ask.
“You know who. Don’t fuck with me. You warned her I was coming, and now she’s in hiding. That bastard Puma said she was camping, but I know he’s lying. If you want to keep your job, you’ll tell me where she is.”
“No idea. Besides, even if you arrested her, you would have to let her go. I have a witness statement that proves she couldn’t have murdered Wayne Turner,” I tell him. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a murderer to catch.”
“No, you don’t,” he says with a smug grin. “You’re off the case. I’m taking it over. We’ll see if her alibi holds up.”
Fighting to keep my mouth shut, I leave his office and the building. I don’t trust myself to not go back into his office anddeck the asshole. He’s hellbent on arresting Viper for this crime. I need to find out why. The only people who I know will help me sort this out are the Demon Dawgs. They’ll do whatever they have to in order to protect one of their own. As I pull out of the precinct parking lot, I make a call to my union rep and update her on the situation. I may not need her help right now, but I’d rather she be aware of the facts before it all gets out of hand.
When I reach the clubhouse, I find Viper waiting for me inside. She throws her arms around me, and I return the hug. Feeling her safe in my arms allows me to release the tension I didn’t know I was carrying.
“You’re okay?” we ask together, causing us both to chuckle.
“I’m fine,” she says.
“I won’t ask how you avoided Traynor, but just know I’m glad you did. Something is off with that guy. He’s obsessed with arresting you for Wayne’s murder. I have Barry’s signed statement, but Traynor still insists you’re the prime suspect. He’s even taken me off the case.”
“What the fuck?” Puma asks, joining us. “He took you off the case? What does that mean?”
“It means that he’s coming for Viper. I’m sure of it. We need to figure out who killed Wayne before he decides on his next move. He’s likely watching the clubhouse, although I didn’t see anyone when I got here. Could have someone watching the traffic cams.”
“He’ll know you’re here,” Puma says.
I nod. “He will, but I don’t care. I need to be here with Viper. We need to figure out who killed Wayne. It’s the only way to keep Viper out of prison. But I also think we need to do a deep dive into Traynor. He’s dirty. I can feel it.”
Puma leads the way into Spark’s domain. “I already asked Spark to run a background search on Steve Traynor. He didn’t find any obvious red flags, but his financials don’t jibe.”
“What do you mean?” I ask.
“He spends more than he earns, but he doesn’t carry any debt. I checked into his flashy car. It’s not listed under his name. Neither is his house. He only has a handful of expenses that come out of his personal account. We’re talking about food and a few minor purchases. That’s it.”
I frown at Spark, not understanding his meaning. “He doesn’t have any other expenses? Not sure how that helps us.”
“No, you’re not getting it. He has an automatic deposit into a checking account that looks to be his salary. That checking account only has a handful of withdrawals against it. Everyone has expenses. Living expenses, utilities, bills, insurance, and taxes. He has less than five hundred dollars a month in outgoing expenses. That includes a two-hundred-dollar monthly payment to a credit card. All of his major expenses, including his insurance, utilities, bills, and taxes, go to this same credit card.”
“So you’re saying he’s building up his debt?”
