Protect & Serve(28)

Still, I couldn’t help but shift uneasily as I thought about the witness transfer that was taking place today. It wasn’t just the bulky Kevlar vest making me uncomfortable. There’d be plenty of cops around to protect Nathan, but what if it wasn’t enough? What if he got hurt and couldn’t testify? What if he got hurt period? Wallace wasn’t known for being kind to witnesses. I was angry with Nathan, sure, and even more angry at myself for thinking that billionaire asshole could ever change his stripes, but I didn’t want anything bad to happen to him, either.

I convinced myself that was all it was—a healthy, professional obligation to an innocent—as I turned the key and listened as the cruiser stuttered to life. I put on my shades to block out the glare of the sun as another officer hurried out of the station’s doors.

This was a guy I didn’t recognize. Cutbacks meant forced retirement for some of the old guard, but this guy didn’t look like a rookie. Something about him—maybe the way he walked, or the scar on his face—set off warning bells. I was about to get out of the car when I saw him shake hands with Officer Kimball, a man I did know pretty well. From the expression on Kimball’s face, there was nothing to worry about.

You’re being paranoid, I told myself, letting out a breath to get rid of the jitters coursing through me. The department’s done everything right. You’ve made some mistakes, but getting out of there was the right move. You probably saved Nathan’s life, and you definitely saved your career.

Somehow, that didn’t feel like enough. It didn’t quell the part inside me that wanted to be part of his life, not just the woman who’d made it possible for him to have a shot at living it.

How could I ever be with a man so out of touch with reality? I thought to myself. There was no way I commit myself to someone who put his selfish needs above everyone else’s.

Maybe you should’ve given him more than seventy-two hours to change his entire personality. I took a moment to try and silence the little voice in my head as I shut my door and put my cruiser in reverse. Maybe you weren’t being entirely fair.

That wasn’t an issue I could contend with today. That was something that could be dealt with later after the transfer was complete. Until then, I needed to focus on keeping Nathan alive and putting Peter Wallace’s sorry ass away for good, and then maybe finding the guy who’d waltzed into Nathan’s mansion with a gas can and four groupies ready to kill me to get their way.

“Sounds like a plan,” I muttered out loud, blasting my A/C as I followed the other cruisers onto the highway.

There was no rush today. We were making good time, and Nathan was secure with two officers at the safe house. In fact, we’d been ordered to keep our lights and sirens off so as not to announce the fact that we were picking up the most valuable witness this trial had to offer. No need to broadcast our intent to any unsavory characters that might be waiting for the opportune moment to strike.

What happened next went against all of that wisdom. Kimball’s cruiser turned on his lights, broke left into the emergency lane, and took off ahead of us. I felt the hairs on my nape stand up.

Something isn’t right.

I picked up my radio. “Kimball,” I said, tuning into his frequency. “What’s up, man? I thought we were coasting, K.”

A voice crackled through the speaker. It was Kimball, but he didn’t sound like himself. “Change of plans. Captain Pierce’s orders.”

I frowned, waiting on him to end transmission. “K” was what we said to let the other officer know we were done speaking. It was simple protocol, and protocol was something Kimball always followed without question. As the seconds passed in silence, I felt a twinge of fear rising inside me.

“Really? I didn’t hear anything about that, K,” I said into the CB.

“It’s no big deal,” Kimball assured me over the crackling radio. “Captain Pierce’s orders. They want the transfer to happen now.”

No “K.” No “over.”

“Ten-four, K.”

I still couldn’t shake the feeling like something didn’t quite add up, though, and as minutes passed, that sense of impending doom rose up my spine, breathing on the back of my neck like some dark and lethal menace until I couldn’t take it anymore. Call it a detective’s intuition, call it my own personal bullshit detector, but I had to be sure.

I pressed the accelerator down, sweeping into the emergency lane. Kimball was nowhere in sight as I dialed the Captain’s direct line on my cell. If something was going on I couldn’t risk sending a message out over the radio.