Lace and Bullets(38)
“No.”
“Don’t shut me out.”
“Don’t risk your life. If you go back, Marcelo might find you.”
“Where are you meeting?”
Damien exhaled. “Some mall in Hastings. The food court.”
“That settles it.” She turned and grabbed her jeans off the floor. “I’m definitely coming.” She fished her shirt out from under the bed. “I could use some more clothes.”
Four hours later, Damien pulled into the parking lot of the mall. Bringing Mia along was a terrible idea, but what other choice did he have? If Rick’s news was as serious as it sounded, he’d probably seen the last of Mia’s sweet body.
Leaving her at a giant mall in the suburbs would be the best for everyone. He could deal with Marcelo and she could get on with her life without him. Damien just had to convince Rick to go to bat for her.
He parked in a crowd of other cars and killed the engine. “I’m meeting the cop alone. If he’s got news about Marcelo, the guy could have been tailed. It could be a set-up.”
“I thought you said he was on the up and up?”
“Things change. He might not be a good guy anymore.”
Mia nodded. “Okay. I’ll be shopping. Call me when you’re done.”
Damien reached out and dragged her over the console. His lips landed on hers and he kissed her until she moaned. “You have your phone, right?”
She nodded. “Stay safe.”
“You, too.”
He opened the door before the sight of her swollen lips made him change his mind. Mia deserved more than this.
More than him.
Damien made his way through the parking lot, scanning the cars and every passerby as he went. The food court wasn’t hard to find. Neither was Detective Rick Johnson.
The man screamed cop from a mile away. High and tight haircut, close-fitting jacket to hide the piece under his arm. Look on his face that said been there, seen that.
Sliding into the seat opposite the man, Damien cut to the chase. “What’s going on?”
“Hello to you, too.” Rick looked him up and down. “You look good.”
“Talk.”
Rick leaned over the table. “First of all, I didn’t go looking for this, okay? It fell into my lap. Second of all, I can’t help your girl. The precinct is overrun. I’d never pull it off without Marcelo’s thugs finding out.”
Fuck. Damien forced his voice to stay low. “If it’s not about Mia, then what’s so fucking critical you have to see me in person?”
“It’s about Melanie.”
Every part of Damien’s body snapped to attention. He gritted out the words. “She’s dead. What’s there to talk about?”
“She didn’t overdose.”
“Yes, she did. I saw her body. She had all the signs.”
“You remember what you said when it happened?”
“I said she didn’t do it herself. Someone had to force her. You said I was wrong.”
Rick nodded. “And I’m sorry about that.” He shifted in his chair and leaned closer. “I should have listened to you.”
Damien froze. Had he been right all along? “Did Marcelo order it? Shit, Rick, I knew it.” He scooted his chair forward. “I went to the DA’s office that night to try and find something on her. Anything. One of the guys told me a grand jury had been called over her death.” He swallowed. “That it had been murder, but the DA and the cops hushed it up.”
Rick’s voice edged barely above a whisper. “It was murder. But it wasn’t by Marcelo.”
Damien blinked. “Then who…?”
“She was an informant for the FBI.”
Damien gripped the table. It wasn’t possible. “You’re lying.”
“I’m not. They were close to taking down the whole cartel. She was the key. The star witness.”
Damien thought back to his meeting with Marcelo the night she died. The taste of butter and syrup was fresh on his tongue. “Marcelo didn’t know. He’d have killed me on the spot.”
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you.” Rick reached across the table, his hand out in a warning. “It was the District Attorney, Damien. That chick you’re so hung up on? Her father killed your sister.”
Damien rocked back in the chair like he’d taken a punch to the gut. “No.” It was all he could say.
“If the FBI kept digging into the cartel’s activity they would have found him out. Davenport was already in up to his elbows with Marcelo at that point.”
“How’d he even know?”
“The FBI had been keeping the state in the loop. The DA’s office knew about the indictments coming. He had her killed before they made it public.”