18. Addison
CHAPTER 18
ADDISON
I can’t let them take the fall when they did nothing wrong.
“What the hell are you doing here? I thought you had the flu.”
I tighten my hold on Kenny’s handcuffed wrists as I walk through the precinct toward my dad. Last night, when Crow agreed to let me take Kenny in, I honestly thought he’d change his mind. But he didn’t, and I’m grateful.
Maybe he really isn’t all bad.
“I did,” I say. “But I’m feeling much better.”
“And who do you have here?” Dad asks, nodding to the man in my grasp.
“His name’s Kenny. He beat a woman almost to death.” That’s not entirely true, but close enough. “Says he was hired to do it but won’t give up any more information than that.”
Dad stares at me for a long moment, and I half expect him to call me on my bullshit, but instead, he simply nods. “Put him in room two. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”
Wisely, Kenny doesn’t say a word as I drag him down the hall to the interrogation room. Gary steps out of the men’s bathroom as we pass it and stops in his tracks.
“Addi?”
“Hey, Gary,” I greet. “Wanna help me interrogate this scumbag?”
Kenny stiffens in my hold and opens his mouth, but Gary speaks before he can.
“What’d he do?”
“Beat a woman,” I say matter-of-factly. “She almost died.”
I mean, Sunny could’ve died.
Gary’s expression hardens. “Yeah, I think I’ll join you.”
“I want a lawyer,” Kenny blurts, and Gary and I swivel our heads to stare at him. “I have the right to a lawyer, right? Those Miranda rights or whatever say so.”
“Should I call the public defender’s office, or do you have another attorney in mind since, according to you, you recently came into a lot of money.”
Kenny doesn’t hesitate. “Get me the number to the most expensive criminal defense attorney in Marble Falls.”
Seriously?
Gary heaves a sigh. “I’ll get that number for him, Addi. Go ahead and have him booked for now.”
Several hours later, Kenny is walking out of the precinct a free man. The entire time he was here, I thought for sure my goose was cooked. Surely, Kenny was going to throw me under the bus and blab all about the club and the Nightmare Room. But he didn’t.
Why?
“You were supposed to be sick,” Gary says after Kenny’s gone. “How’d you end up with a perp while you were off for the week?”
“I was sick,” I insist. “But all my neighbors know I’m a cop, and the woman two doors down called me saying she thought she heard screams. I went to check it out and found him attacking the lady three doors down.”
Why the hell am I lying to him?
Because… something in the last few days changed for me. I know that the Soulless Kings didn’t hurt Sunny, but the bone-deep hatred for the club is strong among law enforcement.
Sometimes good people do bad things for good reasons.
I can’t let them take the fall when they did nothing wrong.
“Why don’t we go to the hospital and get the woman’s statement?” Gary asks.
Shit. Shit, shit, shit.
“I can handle that,” I assure him.
“I know you can, but you’re just coming off of the flu. Let me help.”
Now what?
“Okay. Just give me a few minutes, and I’ll be ready to roll.”
“I’ll meet you outside in ten.”
Gary walks away, and I race to my office and close the door. After pulling out my cell to call Crow, I realize I don’t have his number. Instead, I dial the next best person.
“Hey, girl, what’s up?” Mona asks when she answers.
“I need Blain’s number,” I blurt.
She laughs. “He’s mine, Addi.”
“Mona, please, just give me the number. It’s an emergency.”
No doubt sensing my desperation, she caves. Without so much as a thank you, I hang up and call Blain.
“Uh, who is this?” he asks after the third ring.
“Blain, it’s Addison. I need to talk to Crow.”
“He’s not here, but I’ll give you his number.”
It’s not lost on me that he does so, no questions asked.
“Thanks.”
I disconnect the call and dial the digits he gave me.
“What’s up, Ace?” Crow says with a smile in his tone.
“How’d you know it was me?”
“Because I programmed your number into my phone.”
“Oh.”
“So, miss me already?”
I groan. “No, I don’t miss you. But we have a problem.”
“Let me guess, your buddies want to interview Kenny’s victim.”
“Well… yeah.”
“Then head to the hospital and conduct the interview.”
“What? How am I supposed to do that? She’s not?—”
“Sunny will be there,” he insists. “You’ve got our back, we’ve got yours, Ace.”
My shoulders slump. “I don’t understand.”
“Just do your thing, detective,” Crow says cheerfully. “I’ll be at your place when you get home to explain.”
At my place?
“O-okay.”
“See ya soon.”
“Yeah, soon.”