Sworn to Protect (20 page)

Stupid. Meddling. Fucker.

So hard to get good help these days, and all that shit. Sanders had been bitching about the product ever since the NFL star had dropped dead. Of course, two other clients had died since then. The papers just hadn’t picked up on those, since they were nobodies. But they were nobodies with the money to buy the lie, and that’s all Carl cared about.

So what if their illustrious clients were killed by their own stupidity? Who in the hell were they going to complain to? The law of averages ensured one simple thing.

There would always be one dumb-ass more than ready with the cash.

“So, what’s the scoop on you and Daisy?”

Shane glanced at the office door beyond Taylor, making sure it was still firmly closed. His relationship with Daisy was now the worst-kept secret in the department, and he was surprised they hadn’t been called in to Austin’s office yet. He figured it was only a matter of time, though, and one of them would end up reassigned. Or worse.

Wouldn’t that be fun?

He considered lying to his friend for about one second. “I guess the rumors are flying thick and fast, huh?”

“Uh, yeah,” Taylor responded, arching a dark blond brow. “The question is, are they true? Don’t put me off this time. I want an answer.”

He sighed. “If you’ve heard we’re going at it like rabbits and trying to figure out what exactly to label our status, then yes. All true.”

“Jesus, when you decide to complicate your life, you really go balls to the wall. Has Rainey said anything to either of you?”

“Not yet, but I doubt it’ll take him long once he decides this isn’t going away.”

“It’s not? This is the real deal?”

“For me it is,” he said. “But I hurt her pretty bad once before, and that’s not something any woman forgets easily, especially Daisy.”

“True. She doesn’t strike me as the type to play games. Unlike Leslie.”

“Ugh. Don’t mention her name to me. I’m having a hard enough time trying to shake her off my trail as it is.”

“She harassing you?”

“Not as such. She’s not offering anything I didn’t welcome before, so I can’t really blame her.”

“Which I’m sure thrills Daisy to no end. Where is she, by the way?”

“She went home. The captain put her on half-days for the week until her stitches come out and she gets a doctor’s note. Of course, she insisted she was feeling well enough to work full shifts, but he put his foot down.”

In fact, she’d gone to her home, not his. He wasn’t very happy about it, but he had no real say in where she stayed. There was Drew to think of, too, and even though the boy said he was cool with Daisy staying there all the time if she wanted, he was determined to build a real family environment for them all. One based on love and commitment.

Even if his ideals twisted his libido into a pretzel in the process.

“Well, if anyone deserves to be happy, it’s two of my favorite people,” Taylor said. “I hope everything works out.”

“Thanks. It’s starting to look like it just might.”

A knock sounded on the door, and the captain poked in his head. “Am I interrupting?”

Taylor turned in his chair and grinned. “Indeed you are. Come back later so we can continue to pretend to be extremely busy.”

Austin snorted, pushing inside. “Listen up, slackers. We got a call from one of our informants. Claims he knows something about the body out on I-49. I need you two on this now, so get your lazy carcasses up and go talk to him.”

Shane rose, checked his weapon in his holster, and grabbed his jacket. “On it, Cap. What’s his name and where can we find him?”

“He’s a street kid named Blake who likes to hang around down by the river, under the bridge. Petty thief with a rap sheet consisting mostly of misdemeanors for stealing food. Keeps his ear to the ground to give us tidbits so he can earn a little money for a meal without having to swipe it.”

“Sounds like you know him pretty well,” Taylor observed.

“He went to the high school, graduated last year right before his parents kicked him out. His parents were never stellar examples of kindness and understanding, but when he came out as gay, they came unglued.”

Taylor practically growled. “That sucks. People like that shouldn’t be allowed to breed.”

Shane frowned. “He doesn’t have friends he can stay with? Any other family?”

“Not that I’ve been able to learn, and, believe me, I’ve tried. He’s not one to accept handouts, either.”

“He’d rather steal than swallow his pride?” Taylor shook his head. “That’s a teenager for you.”

“I don’t think it’s pride so much as he’s afraid. He honestly doesn’t trust very easily, so it’s safer for him to keep to the shadows.”

Until someone hurt him, or worse. They were all thinking it, Shane knew. “We’ll touch base with him. And if we can get him to go to a church or the city shelter, we will.”

“Good luck with that.” The captain left, waving a hand, off to see to other business.

Shane and Taylor made their way out to Taylor’s car, and Taylor headed in the direction of the old bridge. The kid was supposed to be waiting, but Shane was skeptical. Informants tended to be skittish, given their poor life expectancy if any of the criminals they were ratting on found out. If they caught a whiff of anything different or wrong, they vanished like smoke.

Downtown, they turned at the square and started down the road leading to the bridge. As they got closer, he kept an eye peeled for Blake. Shouldn’t be tough to spot, as there wasn’t anyone else in that area in the middle of the week and nearing sunset. How the boy had managed to survive the worst of the winter was beyond Shane. He shuddered to think of Drew in the same situation.

“There,” Taylor said, pointing to the opposite bank. Just underneath the arch of the support beams, where the strong metal met the concrete pillars, stood a lone figure.

As the car drew closer and crossed to the other side, Shane lost sight of the boy for a few seconds. But as Taylor brought them around to park next to the riverbank, Blake stepped from the protective shadow of the bridge.

At somewhere around nineteen, he was smaller than Drew. Slim and fragile-looking, as though he might shatter at a cross word, much less a fist or some other weapon. His jeans were dirty, his coat in tatters. His shoulder-length brown hair was tangled, and his eyes were huge in his face. Also brown, Shane saw as they approached. Big, sad doe eyes that had already seen the worst his world had to offer.

“I’m Detective Shane Ford, and this is my partner, Detective Taylor Kayne,” he said in what he hoped was a pleasant tone. He showed the boy his badge, and Taylor did the same. “Our captain, Austin Rainey, sent us here to speak with you. Said you may have something interesting to tell us.”

Some of the fear left the boy’s face, but he was watchful. Not just of them, but of their surroundings. He scanned the entire area before relaxing some. “I heard these guys bragging last night outside by the Waterin’ Hole. They didn’t see me, ’cause I was around the side of the building.”

“What were you doing there?”

The boy gave Taylor a sharp look. “Not selling my ass, if that’s what you were thinking. I’m homeless, not stupid.” He took a deep breath. “The manager there is cool, gives me a burger or sandwich when he’s on shift in the evening. That’s all.”

“We believe you,” Shane soothed. “What did the men say?”

“They were talking about the man that was found with the bullet in his head. Which isn’t unusual, since stuff like that is big news. But these guys were saying how it was too bad he got his squeaky wheel greased, and the rest of them should keep their mouths shut and do their jobs. They were talking about receiving a shipment, taking their shit on the street. Here in town, specifically.”

Excitement sparked along Shane’s nerves. “You got a name, a time, or a place?”

“No names. But they set up a meet with the supplier for tonight, midnight, down by the dam where the barges go through.”

“You mean the lock,” Taylor clarified.

“Yeah.”

Shane exchanged a look with his partner. “Shit.”

The lock was in a state park not too many miles from where they were standing. The land around it was wide open, very few trees, with a swimming area and several parking lots for recreation seekers during the day. There was one road in and only that way out—and from the lock, anyone would be able to see them coming.

Anyone attempting to spy on the meeting would have to park and hike through brush. The terrain was rugged beyond the park, bordered by a sheer cliff. They’d chosen the perfect place to meet.

Which meant they’d have to get there first and hide somehow.

“Anything else you can tell us?” he asked.

The boy shook his head. “That’s it. They didn’t stay but a couple of minutes.”

“They didn’t see you?”

“If they had, I’d be floating facedown out there,” he said, gesturing to the river.

Shane’s stomach clenched. Reaching into his back pocket, he took out his wallet and removed one hundred twenty dollars—everything he had on him. Then he held it out to Blake. “Here. Get yourself a room and something to eat.”

Eyeing the money, the boy swallowed hard. “This is way too much.”

“It’s not charity. What you told us could help get some dangerous criminals off the street and put their operation out of business. That money isn’t nearly enough to compensate you for that and the risk you took.”

“Okay. Thanks.” His eyes were shiny as he folded the bills and shoved them in his jeans.

“Take this, too.” Taylor extracted a business card and handed it to the boy. “This is my card, and it has my cell phone number on it. You decide you’ve had enough of the streets, you want an actual life, call me. I’ve got friends who can help you get a job, get on your feet.”

“I don’t know. I don’t want to owe anyone.” He looked uncertain.

“There’s no shame in letting someone give you a boost. Hell, everyone has to start somewhere, right? How you pay those folks back is by doing a good job, being a good friend, and getting your life on track.”

For a long moment, he stared at the card. Then pocketed it, too. “I’ll think about it. Thanks.”

“Call anytime, day or night. I mean that.”

Blake gave them a small smile, then turned and started walking in the direction of town. Back across the bridge. Hopefully to find a motel room and be safe, at least for one night.

Shane’s heart was heavy as he watched the boy go. “That Bambi thing he had going was not an act. We see some bad seeds in our line of work, but that’s one of the good ones.”

“God, that makes me sad,” Taylor said quietly. “Makes me want to pummel somebody. How can anyone just throw away their own flesh and blood? I hope he calls.”

“He was giving it some thought, I could tell.”

“Hope so.”

Shane walked with him back to the car. “What time do you think we should be at the park? Eleven?”

“You, my friend, have a family to get home to. Why don’t you let me and Chris handle this one?”

He thought about that. It was a very tempting offer. But . . . “No. If I can help get the bastards who sold that poison to Brad, then that will give me and Drew something to celebrate. I’ll call Tommy, have him pick Drew up. Those two are getting pretty tight, so I know neither of them will mind.”

They got in the Chevelle, shut the doors. Taylor started toward town, and they crossed the bridge, passing Blake. The boy didn’t acknowledge them as he walked, nor did they acknowledge him. Not when a mistake like that could be fatal to him.

“So how are we going to hide the car?” Taylor mused. “Even in the dark among the trees, the lights from the lock house will shine on the chrome and give us away.”

He thought about that. “I’ve got an idea. Let’s run over to the feed store.”

“Say what?”

“Just trust me.”

Sugarland Feed and Tractor Supply was on their way, not far off the square. When Taylor pulled up and parked, he shook his head. “I must have the nuttiest partner ever.”

Ignoring him, Shane walked in and began looking around for what he wanted. Any respectable feed store in this part of Tennessee had supplies for deer hunting. And in that area, he found what he wanted.

“Here we go.” Grabbing a large package off the shelf, he showed it to his friend. “You were saying?”

“A camouflage tarp.” His brows furrowed, then he got it. “To put over the car! You’re a friggin’ genius. What’d I tell you?”

“That’s what I thought you said.”

After Shane paid for their item, he stepped outside and called Tommy, who was glad to pinch-hit again. He hoped Drew wasn’t feeling abandoned from being sent over there so much this past week, but from the boy’s happy smiles whenever his brother-in-law came up, he didn’t think so. It gave him peace of mind to know they had family next door with whom they shared a close relationship. Something Drew needed.

“We’ve got some time. What to grab something to eat at the diner?”

Shane’s stomach grumbled. “Sounds good.”

The diner on the square was one of those old-fashioned mom-and-pop joints with the best home cooking around, made from scratch. Nobody could touch their food, certainly not the chain restaurants with their premade crap.

He and Taylor found a table, and in minutes Taylor had ordered a burger and Shane the meat loaf special. Might as well be full if you had a late stakeout.

Pulling out his phone, he saw he had a text from Daisy. “I’m gonna make another call,” he said, sliding from the booth. “Be right back.”

“Do I get three guesses who it is?” His friend batted his eyelashes and made smooching noises.