Chapter Eleven Brad
Chapter Eleven
Brad
Seven days had passed since Bree had been run off the road—and five days since we’d spoken. I had called and left messages, but she’d never returned any of them. I knew she was pissed with me trying to pull rank, but she’d almost died, and for what?
I hopped into my car and headed toward the station. My phone buzzed. I saw it was Sherry, and I declined it, only to have her call again. I hit answer. “What!”
“Hi, honey, no need to be so short with me. I’m only calling to see how Bree is doing.”
Will the woman never listen? I thought I’d gotten through to her at the restaurant. I’d only met up with her because I’d wanted to talk to her about Ginger. I knew she only liked to have her as a link to me. “Last I heard, she was fine.” I pulled into my parking spot and took a deep breath.
“I’m pleased to hear that. Now, Bradley, I heard you at dinner, but I’ll never stop caring about you. I also just want to make sure that Bree being back doesn’t trigger some dark memories for you.”
“I’m fine—back off, Sherry. I just got to work, and I have to go.” Before she could speak again, I hung up and got out of my car.
When I went inside, I heard some commotion and saw Ray laughing and talking with some of the guys in the main work area. He’d been avoiding me. For his sake, I was glad, because I’d wanted to rip his throat out for leaving Bree alone.
“Ray.” My tone was sharp as I walked toward him on the way to my office. The guys he had been with suddenly got busy, and one scooted away toward the copy room. It immediately grew quiet. “A word?” I stepped aside and motioned for him to join me privately.
He reached for his duffle bag that hung over the back of a chair and swung it over his shoulder. “Gotta be somewhere.”
“This’ll just take a sec.” He stood his ground, and I gave him a chance to save himself from embarrassment in front of the others, but he either didn’t care or didn’t think I’d say much in front of everyone.
“All right, here then.” I tucked my hands into my pockets and leaned against the wall for fear I’d punch the guy.
“When we were partners, I had your back no matter what. I listened, I learned, I became a better detective with your guidance.”
He scratched his nose. “Then you ditched me and left,” he growled.
“I did, yes.” I nodded. “But only because I began to disagree with some of the things you did, but I always had respect for you, Ray, until now.” A few of the guys whispered something, but I didn’t react—this was between Ray and me, and he’d been the one to make the conversation public.
“I didn’t pull rank often when I became lead detective, but I did tell you to walk one of our fellow employees to her truck.
Instead, you left her alone, and Miss Jaminson was almost killed.
You totally disregarded her safety and left her vulnerable. ”
“If the killer wanted to get to Bree, he would have—with or without me.” Ray rolled his eyes at the others.
“Maybe, but I guess we’ll never know, will we?” I stared hard at him. “I spoke to the chief. I told him you disobeyed a direct order, and that decision left a fellow employee in the hospital. He agreed with my concern. You’re suspended for the week.”
He blinked at me in shock. “What the hell? That’ll go on my record—”
I cut him off. “You need to understand the gravity of what happened.”
“Gravity?” He spat. “That’s absurd! If she hadn’t been dressed like a damn whore, she’d have had no problem getting to her truck. Whose fault is that!”
I saw red.
I didn’t even think as I pushed off the wall and went for him, but then Kennedy was suddenly in my face.
“That’s exactly what he wants, Stone”—Kennedy held me back—“for you to get written up along with him. Don’t let him suck you in.”
“Ray!” Cap barked across the room. “You got an order. I suggest you take it. If you disagree, call the chief.”
Ray lifted the bag he held and shook it. “Yes, sir.” He held my stare for a beat, then left.
“You good?” Kennedy stepped aside.
“Yeah.” I was furious and knew I had to get out of there. “I’ve got somewhere to be.” I grabbed my coat and headed out to my car.
“Detective Stone.” Officer Smith caught me as I opened the door to toss my jacket into the passenger seat. “I just heard from Bree. She thinks she may have found something.”
“Something?”
“On Maria’s footage. I guess it was dropped off to Bree the other day, and she’s been combing through it.”
“I see.” I checked my phone and saw no missed calls or messages. “I’ll swing by and see what she’s got.”
“Cool.” He held up a hand, and his young face brightened. “Tell her I hope she’s back soon.”
“Yeah, sure.” I slipped behind the wheel and threw a wave at Hank as he pulled in with his UPS truck. Maybe the coffee maker I ordered had arrived. I figured Bree would appreciate that I was feeding her addiction. I headed toward her place. I had a couple of stops to make along the way.
By the time I arrived at Bree’s cabin, it was dark, the temperature had dropped, and the warm glow from the windows was comforting. It was only early in the season, but it felt cold enough to snow.
I knocked and heard her move around. A moment later, the door opened, and I took in her sweatpants that sat low on her hips and the crop top that barely covered her bra. Her hair was down and wavy, and she was makeup free. She was unbelievably gorgeous.
“I come with a peace offering.” I held up her favorite coffee and a bouquet of bright-orange Chinese lanterns.
She hesitated and chewed on the inside of her lip before she stepped back and let me pass.
I set both items on the table and snagged one of Bree’s mom’s cookies—they were legendary when we were in high school.
“You’re looking better,” I said when she stayed quiet. “How’s the head?”
She eased onto the couch and covered herself with a blanket, even though it was toasty warm inside the little storybook cabin. “Better.”
“These are really good. Did your—”
She cut me off. “What can I do for you?”
I swallowed the rest of the cookie and brushed my fingers clean. “I can’t come and visit you?”
“Or did you visit because you spoke to Adam?” She folded her arms, which drew my attention to the bit of lace that now showed. God, she had great breasts. “Yeah, okay.” She mistook my silence for something else. “Maybe it’s time you left.” She got up as if to see me out.
“What? No.” I blocked her path to the door with my body.
“Yes, I spoke to Officer Smith, but I was on my way over regardless. I want to know what you found.” She stared straight ahead, not meeting my gaze.
I’d seen Bree ticked off before, but I’d never seen her like this.
She seemed sad more than anything else. Maybe Sophia’s death played with her head.
“You’ve been dodging my calls all week, and I wanted to make sure you’re all right.
If it wasn’t for Patrick or Lainey, I’d think you left town again. ”
“You came, you saw, I’m fine.” She looked down, and I used the tip of my finger to raise her chin so I could see into her eyes.
“You don’t seem fine.”
“Well.” She clenched her jaw.
I studied her. “What’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?” A flash of emotion flickered across her face, and her eyes went glossy. “Hey, Bree, speak to me.” I moved closer, but she stepped back. I closed the distance between us and used the couch to trap her. “Bree?”
She looked away as she sank to the couch. She gave me a painful expression, and I stepped back, confused.
“I’ve been going through Maria’s footage,” she said quietly, totally ignoring my question.
I sat across from her and took a deep breath.
“The last thing I said to Sophia was to try to get a picture of his face.” She looked stricken.
“It’s probably what got her killed.” Her voice cracked, but she swallowed and went on.
“Maria and Sophia had been trying to do what I asked.” She opened her laptop.
“I didn’t catch it until now, but Sophia mentioned that she started to back up her files to an iCloud account.
It got me thinking, and after a phone call to Maria, it turns out that they share the same account.
” She turned the laptop toward me. “It’s just the first few minutes, but this is right before she’s killed.
” The video started, and in a quick flash a hand could be seen.
It looked like it unclipped the camera from her, then it swung upward and flickered off. She replayed it a few times.
“So, the killer knew how to remove the GoPro camera from the holder and turn it off before it showed his face?”
“Yes, and when I called Maria an hour ago to check in on her, I asked about the mechanics of the case the GoPro sits in. She said they were a real struggle to work with and you’d have to know how to open it to have removed it as easily as this person did.”
“Really?”
“Not only that, but look at his wrist.” She backed up the video and pointed at a zigzag scar. “It looks fresh. I know it’s not much.”
“But it’s a start!” I nodded, impressed, but wished she hadn’t been making calls and would just rest. “Can you send that to me?” She nodded. “Okay, Detective Bree, anything else?” It was just this attention to detail that made her so valuable.
“I saw one more thing, and I still have five more hours to go.”
“And what about the doctor’s orders not to watch any kind of screen while you heal from a major concussion?” I knew my voice betrayed how frustrated I was, and I didn’t like it.
“Between Maria and another girl, there’s fifteen hours of footage.” She looked at me for the first time. “I’ve been locked in this cabin for five days. You do the math and see if I’m overextending myself.”
I rubbed my face with both hands. “Fine.” I dropped my arms, knowing she was too stubborn for her own good. “What else did you see?”