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An hour later, Caden stopped by, wearing a dark suit and tie, on his way into the office. “I might have found something on the murderer.”
Luke led him into the kitchen where he offered him a cup of freshly brewed coffee. Orly was already holding hers, enjoying the heat of the mug as it seeped into her hands. “What do you have?” Luke asked. Orly had made a spinach and egg quiche that morning and served Caden a generous serving.
“Thanks,” he said. “I actually skipped breakfast.” He took a bite, then looked up at Orly, his eyebrows shooting up almost comically. “Now I see why you want to keep her around. This is delicious.”
“Enjoy,” Orly said with a grateful smile, but Luke remained stoic, drinking his coffee.
“You were saying,” Luke said, clearly more interested in whatever information Caden had than hearing him compliment her cooking. Luke had already told her it was the best quiche he’d ever had, so it had nothing to do with the food. He was just intent on Caden getting to the point.
“There’s a new drug hitting the streets. It doesn’t have a name yet, but reports are coming in saying it heightens and intensifies a user's senses. It’s also said to affect someone’s brain activity, possibly tapping into the cortex that affects premonitions and psychic abilities.”
“Sounds like the drug he may have been on,” Orly said. “It did all those things to me. I imagine he was feeling it even more.”
“How does this help us find him?” Luke asked.
Caden sighed. He’d obviously been hungry because he was already polishing off the last of the quiche on his plate. “I’m not sure yet. Maybe it doesn’t. But at least it’s something. And it’s definitely more than we had yesterday.”
Luke took Orly’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before returning his attention to Caden. “Thanks. It means a lot that you’re looking into this.”
Caden pushed his plate aside and moved to stand from the table. “I’m not just looking into it. I’m going to find a way to take this guy down. And if I have to chase this drug to the ends of the earth until I find who’s making it, I will. Then I'm shutting down its production. Permanently.”
There was a finality to Caden’s words that made something settle in Orly. No one had ever gone out of their way to help her, but here she had a champion in Luke, and to her surprise, his friends weren’t just embracing her, they were prepared to defend and protect her. After living her entire life without ever having someone in her corner, Orly was overwhelmed by the care and concern from Luke and his friends.
As soon as Caden stood, she went up and hugged him, uncaring how unexpected it was. “Thank you,” she said, then pulled away and met his gaze, needing him to know she meant every word of what she said next. “Even if you can’t find him or shut down the production of that drug, it means the world to me that you’re trying.”
“It’s what friends do,” Caden said, catching her hand in his. “I’m amazed at what you can do, and I will personally take down anyone who takes advantage of that or tries to hurt you. Now, I have to get to the office, but I’ll be in touch.” He gave Luke a chin lift then turned back to Orly. “And thank you for breakfast. I might just have to stop by at this hour more often.”
“Anytime, my friend,” Luke said.
“Absolutely.” Orly added. “I try to make breakfast special since Luke doesn’t always make it home in time for dinner.”
At that, Caden gave Luke a glance she couldn’t quite read, then let himself out.
“You’ve got some pretty amazing friends,” Orly said, still thinking about Caden’s declaration.
Luke wrapped his arms around her from behind, pulling her close. He kissed the top of her head and let his lips linger in her hair. “We sure do.”
Chapter 20
The next day, Orly was doing much better, and Luke decided it was time to put out his own feelers on the drug. Besides, he needed to check in with Ricky Bellario who’d been expertly avoiding him. The sneaky bastard had evidently moved out of his grandmother’s basement and it had taken Luke a while to find him again. It turned out he was now staying with an uncle across town. Luke had no idea if Ricky’s cousin knew about this development, but he planned to use that against Ricky, and anything else he could throw at him until Ricky gave him exactly what he needed to find the drug that had almost killed Orly.
Luke pulled up to the house and right away noticed it was a far cry from the one Ricky lived in with his grandmother. The place was a mini mansion complete with a picket fence, a wreath on the door, and evenly trimmed rose bushes lining the driveway. Luke knocked on the door, his badge in hand. The door flung open and an angry man at least a decade older than Luke glared at him with dark, menacing eyes. “What?” He ground out.
“Dallas Police,” Luke said. “I’m looking for Ricky Bellario.”
“Not here,” the guy said, about to slam the door in Luke’s face.
Luke stuck his foot out, letting the door hit his steel toe boot. “Where is he?”
“Why the hell should I tell you?”
“Because if you don’t, I’ll arrest you for aiding and abetting.”
“My nephew isn’t under arrest.”
“Yet,” Luke said. “Only because I’ve been playing nice. But that stops the second you slam that door in my face without giving me an answer.”
The guy sighed. “He signed up for classes at the community college. Look, he’s trying to turn his life around. How about you leave him alone?”
