Vile (21 page)

“You’re putting words in my mouth, Chief. I’d be a fool not to recognize your intelligence level as well as the caliber of cop you are.”

“Then there must be something else making you act like a fool, Lieutenant, because that’s exactly how you’re behaving. Foolhardy. That will not keep you on this team. There’s no place for grandstanding on my team.”

“You’re overreacting. I followed my instincts. I took a risk. Don’t tell me you’ve never taken one. Or opted not to trust someone you should have.”

Did the man have no concept of when he should shut up? “Are you under the mistaken assumption the secret you figured out somehow gives you an advantage over the others?”

“Again,” he pointed out in that arrogant manner only those trained to be an attorney could pull off, “you’re putting words in my mouth.”

He wasn’t taking this or her seriously. “You’re done for the day, Lieutenant.”

“Hold on a minute, Chief.”

“You hold on a minute,” she cautioned. “At this particular minute I am madder than hell. I’m trying to give you the opportunity to let me cool off before I write you up for disobeying orders and insubordination.” She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. “We’ll talk when I’m back at the office. Now, go, Lieutenant, before I show you what it looks like when I really do overreact.”

As her newest detective walked away, Jess did some slow, deep breathing in an effort to calm down.

Everything was unraveling way too fast. For the first time in her life, she was almost afraid to even think what would happen next.

“Don’t borrow trouble, Jess.”

21

Birmingham Police Department, 5:00 p.m.

Dan stood at the window overlooking the city he loved. He should call Jess and warn her about the latest charge against him. He hated like hell to give her anything else to worry about. She had more than enough on her plate already. This one would really get to her. She would probably be required to give a statement.

Lieutenant Valerie Prescott had filed an EEO complaint against him related to her transfer from SPU. In retrospect, Dan fully understood he hadn’t handled her reassignment as diplomatically as he would have had he not been operating on emotion. Jess had warned him there could be trouble over his rash decision.

What was done, was done.

He’d tried to contact Meredith twice but she hadn’t returned his calls. His attorney had warned him not to do that either, but Dan hadn’t listened. He couldn’t fathom why she would do this. Prescott he understood. The woman was pissed at being passed over for the position he offered to Jess, and Prescott wanted to get even. There was nothing like that in his history with Meredith. What did she possibly hope to gain?

Dan shoved his hands into his pockets. After the breakup with Jess more than two decades ago, he’d been back in Birmingham barely a year when he and Meredith married. He closed his eyes. God, he had missed Jess so damned bad. Every part of him had been aching. He’d needed someone to fill that void. Meredith had been right there in front of him. Two years older, she’d been such a good friend. Things had escalated from there. No more than a year after their hasty marriage, she had known what he should have known all along, he was still in love with Jess.

He and Meredith had parted on good terms. For several years more, they had continued to work together. She’d moved to Montgomery and the governor’s staff about the same time he became chief of police. He’d run into her from time to time since, but not recently. Not until this week.

Pratt had to be behind her decision to launch this abrupt smear campaign. The question was what did Pratt have on Meredith? Dan couldn’t believe she would do this without pressure from someone.

A knock at his door dragged him back from the troubling thoughts. “Come on in.” He fully expected it to be Black with even more bad news.

Clint Hayes walked in and closed the door behind him.

Another line of apprehension joined the others furrowing Dan’s brow. “Is Chief Harris back in her office?”

Hayes shook his head. “She dismissed me for the day.” He shrugged. “I have a feeling I’m barely hanging on by a thread with her and the team.”

Dan exhaled a frustrated breath. “I warned you not to give her any trouble. That chip you carry around isn’t conducive to making friends, Lieutenant.” What the hell? He needed this guy keeping an eye on Jess.

“You told me to watch her, but the others didn’t want me horning in too close to the boss. I can safely say that, this time, my attitude had little or nothing to do with my current dilemma.”

Dan had his doubts about that. “What’re you going to do about this, Lieutenant?”

Hayes turned his hands up. “I’m open to suggestions on how to get back in her good graces.”

Dan wasn’t fixing this for him. “I’m confident you’ll figure it out if you want to remain a part of the SPU.”

Hayes nodded in acknowledgment. “You’re the boss.” He started to go but then hesitated and faced Dan once more. “Buddy Corlew paid a visit to the crime scene today. He and Chief Harris had a lengthy private meeting. It seems you’re not the only one keeping secrets.”

For about two seconds, Dan weighed the ramifications of punching the lieutenant in the face. Why give Pratt more ammunition? “I suggest you follow the order Chief Harris gave you, Lieutenant. We have nothing further to discuss.”

When the door closed, Dan kicked his chair. It banged off the credenza but he didn’t care. If he thought for one second Hayes had intended the comment as informative he might not have wanted to punch him.

What the hell was Corlew meeting privately with Jess about? Was he going to join the cause and go to the press with his own theories of how Dan had handled cases in the past? He’d already tried to make Dan and the department look bad on several occasions. What was one more? Or maybe he’d file a complaint against Dan too. After all, he was the one to fire Corlew.

If he was filling Jess’s head with his delusions, Dan would…

He laughed. “What’re you going to do, Burnett? Kick the guy’s ass?”

He plowed a hand through his hair. How did he fight this? Prescott’s complaint would amount to nothing more than her word against his—a nuisance, at best. If Corlew had ever had any real evidence against Dan or the department, for that matter, he would have brought it forward long ago. Pratt was annoyed that he wasn’t getting his way.

Meredith and Allen were the two unknown variables. His attorney had his work cut out for him because Dan sure as hell had no idea where this was coming from.

Unless it was Spears.

If it was, how was he supposed to fight a ghost?

Dan checked his cell. Somehow he kept hoping he’d hear from the son of a bitch. Now that Spears had him where he wanted him there was no need for Spears to bother, Dan supposed. Spears was a coward. He wasn’t man enough to do this himself.

As if to refute his assertion, he felt a twinge in his side. Dan gritted his teeth. Even when the bastard stabbed him, he’d waited until Dan was restrained.

Another knock drew his attention to the door. He’d sent Sheila home early. He’d gotten a heads up about Prescott’s announcement in time to see that his secretary as well as his receptionist were out of the building before the press gathered outside for a statement.

Harold Black stuck his head in. “You have a few minutes, Dan?”

Dan had a feeling things were about to get worse. “Of course.” He motioned to the chairs in front of his desk. “Make yourself at home.”

Four years ago when Dan was selected for this position, Harold had been greatly disappointed. His unhappiness had been public knowledge in the department. The tension had lasted a few weeks. Ultimately, Dan had invited him to knock back a few beers and they’d talked it through. From that moment, he and Harold had worked closely together. Never any trouble. They’d gone back to being the kind of friends they had always been.

Until Jess came home.

Dan suddenly understood how hard it must be for her to deal with all this. She felt as if it was her fault.

It wasn’t her fault.

Harold passed a file to Dan before taking his seat. “That’s the Fire Marshal’s report on the fire at your home. He’s officially calling it arson. The fire started in the kitchen. The accelerant was charcoal starter.”

Dan tossed the report aside. He didn’t need to see it. He’d known it was arson. What he hadn’t known was the source. “The same stuff I keep in my garage for the occasional family barbecue, am I right?”

Harold nodded solemnly.

“You know this is so damned contrived that it’s laughable.” Dan shook his head. “Why would I set my house on fire—to destroy evidence—” he pointed out “with an accelerant I keep in my garage?”

Harold sighed. “I said the same thing to the Mayor just before I came over here.”

Dan did laugh this time. “I’ll bet he’s eating this up.”

“He’s not happy.”

As if Dan gave a damn. “He can go to hell, Harold. You can tell him I said so.” The man was trying to take Dan down and he wasn’t going to go down without a fight. “There are things I could be taking to the press about Pratt, but that’s not the way I operate. He’s counting on that.”

“Dan.” Harold held up his hands in a stop sign gesture. “It’s not going to do anybody any good to start this kind of back and forth with the mayor. What we need is containment. We need to shut this down not fuel it.”

Fury whipped inside him. “You’re telling me this?” He leaned forward and slapped his palms against his desk. “Who do you think kept Joe Pratt out of trouble all those years?”

“You don’t have to convince me, Dan.” He shook his head. “I’m grasping at straws trying to find reason in the unreasonable.”

Dan’s rage withered. There was more. “I appreciate you delivering the Fire Marshal’s report, but clearly you have something else on your mind.”

“Internal Affairs is asking questions. This was not a good situation in the first place, Dan, and it just got worse. Pratt is pushing hard for action. The Dority and Prescott business lends credence to the stand he’s taken against you.”

“So this is it.” Dan got it now. “He wants me gone that bad.”

“If you choose not to take a leave of absence, as I suggested, you will eventually be placed on administrative leave. You know how this works, Dan. You can’t run this office during an investigation of this magnitude.”

Jess needed him to be smart about this. Their child needed the same. Whatever he did at this critical juncture could come back to haunt them all. He didn’t want his child to come into this world with him in prison.

Dear God. There was no stopping this.

So be it. If he was going down, he might as well be here for Jess as long as possible. If he were out of the loop, he would be blind to what was going on with Spears. He couldn’t take that risk. Jess needed him here, doing all he could to keep her safe. Their child needed him.

“You tell Pratt I’ll be in this office until they escort me out.” With that out of the way, Dan stood. “I think we’ve both said all there is to say.”

Harold pushed to his feet. “Dan, please, take the evening and think about this. Talk it over with Jess. Every move you make is going to be weighed in this investigation. Don’t give them anything else to use against you.”

Dan smiled for his old friend. “I appreciate your advice, but my mind is made up.”

“Moving forward,” Harold said soberly, “I won’t be able to discuss the case with you. I hope you understand.”

That was the one thing Dan could say without reservation. He completely understood. “I understand completely.”

The door closed behind Harold, the sound echoing in the silence.

Dan exhaled a heavy breath. He was going home. He could stop by the market and pick up something nice for dinner and flowers for Jess. She would be exhausted when she came home. Maybe a nice dinner followed by a hot bath and a long, slow massage to help her relax.

He locked up and headed out of the building. Better to get an estimated time she would be home before preparing dinner. He tapped her name in his contact list and waited through the four rings.

Outside, the heat and humidity hanging in the air had him loosening his tie. When the greeting for her voicemail was finished, he left her a message. “I know you’re busy. Let me know when you’re heading home. I’ll have dinner waiting.” He checked the street before crossing. “I love you, Jess. Be careful out there.”

He tucked the phone into his jacket pocket and removed his keys. The brisk walk to the parking garage cleared his head a bit. Or maybe it was just hearing Jess’s recorded voice when he’d called. Keeping perspective was particularly important right now. There was no room for emotions in this situation. He was down a few points, but the match wasn’t over yet.

As he entered the level where his parking space was reserved, he hit the clicker and started the engine so the interior of his SUV would start to cool. His mother had called today to apologize again for her behavior last night. Dan was grateful she was making the effort. He hoped one day she and Jess could be friends in the truest sense of the word.

A laugh rumbled in his chest. “Miracles happen.” He hit the unlock button as he reached his SUV and climbed in. He fastened his seat belt and backed out of the parking slot. Somehow focusing on the mundane felt comfortable. As he exited the garage, a strange odor had him frowning. Maneuvering into going home traffic, he sniffed a couple of times. What the hell was that smell? Coppery. Metallic…

Blood
.

Before his foot reached the brake, something cold and hard jammed into the back of his skull.

Gun
.

“Keep driving.”

He glanced at the rearview mirror. Didn’t immediately recognize the female face staring back at him. Then he knew…

Amanda Brownfield
.

“Hello, Chief Burnett.” She grinned. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“What do you want?” He dropped his left hand into his lap. His cell phone was in his pocket.

“Both hands on the wheel, Chief,” she warned with a nudge of the barrel of her weapon.