Chapter 1 #2
“I don’t know.” Di gave Jarek a dark look. They had never gotten along, and she didn’t appreciate his acting as if the dead guy lying at her feet was somehow her fault. “Do either of you recognize this guy? Could he be involved in one of the local gangs?”
“He doesn’t look familiar to me,” Kent said. “Does he have an ID on him?”
“No ID, no cash, but there’s a gun tucked in the small of his back.
” She shrugged, the disposable cell burning a hole in her pocket.
If Jarek knew she’d taken it, he’d toss her in jail for tampering with evidence.
Yet it was too late to pull the phone out now.
“He was following me, so I confronted him. That’s when the gunshot rang out. ”
“Of course you did.” Jarek’s scowl deepened. “You’re not a cop, Di. Why on earth would you take matters into your own hands?”
She swallowed the urge to snap at him. Keeping her voice calm with an effort, she held Jarek’s gaze. “I had no way of knowing he was armed and that he had a partner. Why wouldn’t I try to talk to him?”
Kent glanced from her to Jarek, no doubt sensing the undercurrent between them. “Do you know why someone wants you dead? Maybe a former boyfriend or an ex-husband?”
“No. My former boyfriend and I split amicably, so I don’t think he’d do this.
I’ve never been married. I noticed this man following me and had wrenched him around to ask what he was doing, then the gunfire rang out.
It was just pure luck that the bullet struck him instead of me.
I thought he was from one of the gangs, but since he has no tattoos or scars, I’m not sure that’s accurate. ”
At the word scar, both men seemed to shift their gazes to her deeply grooved cheek. Jarek hadn’t been there when she’d been knifed by the Afghan soldier. That had taken place toward the end of her second tour. Jarek had already been stateside by then.
She wasn’t going to explain how she’d sustained the wound now; instead, she simply waited for them to get back to the situation at hand.
“I saw what happened.” The white-haired man stepped forward. “I mean, I didn’t notice him following anyone, until Ms.—uh, Milbrath left the café and rushed toward him. The gunfire rang out just as she swung him around to face her.”
“We’ll need you to come down to the station to give us a formal statement,” Jarek said, his gaze holding hers. “Where do you live?”
The very thought of going inside a police station filled her with a sick sense of dread.
Her gut reaction wasn’t at all logical. There was no way Jarek or any of the other Newburgh cops could know about her troubled past. She wasn’t sixteen and living on the streets anymore.
With an effort, she lifted her chin. “I live a few blocks from here on Hollow Hill Road.”
The ambulance arrived along with a detective wearing a suit jacket that was too small for his rotund frame. She didn’t see his partner and wondered why he was working alone. He looked cranky. She could kind of relate. “I’m Detective Andrews. What’s going on?”
Jarek filled Andrews in on the series of events.
His tone was curt, as if there was no love lost between the two men.
When Andrews turned toward her, she quickly reiterated her side of the story as well.
Now that the danger was over, she was anxious for this interview to be over and done so she could get out of there.
If the dead guy wasn’t part of the gang, then she needed to think about who else might have put a target on her back.
Despite her less than charming personality—as Jarek had often described her—she truly didn’t go around making enemies.
Quite the opposite. She lived alone and didn’t have any close friends outside of her sister and her teammates.
But the actions she’d taken as a teenager? That was a whole different story. And if this was somehow related to her past, she needed to tread carefully. If the truth came out, her life would be over. It wouldn’t matter that she’d been fifteen at the time.
There was no statute of limitations on murder.
Jarek Brooks sensed Dina Milbrath was holding back.
Oh, she’d acted as if she were cooperating by answering their questions, but he knew her better than most. They hadn’t been close, but they had served together for six years in Afghanistan.
Her prickly personality had annoyed him.
He’d been the one to give her the “Di” nickname because she was a diamond in the rough.
Emphasis on rough. She hadn’t appreciated it, but the name had stuck.
From what he could tell, her attitude had only gotten worse in the years since he’d last seen her.
He wondered briefly about how she’d gotten the scar on her cheek but reminded himself that Di’s personal life was none of his business. Like his father, he was a cop, and his job was to protect and serve.
Running into Di Milbrath was just an unwelcome blast from the past.
“We’ll give you a ride to the precinct,” he said, when she’d finished with Detective Andrews. He didn’t anticipate getting any pushback from the detective, knowing full well the older cop put as little effort into his cases as possible while counting down the days until he could retire.
Jarek was next in line for the promotion, he’d already passed his detective exam, and Andrews knew it. Oddly, Andrews resented knowing Jarek would be taking over as detective in forty-three days. Jarek didn’t know why Andrews cared one way or the other.
“What about the dead guy?” Di gestured to the fallen man. “It would be nice to know his name. Hopefully, his prints are in the system.”
“The techs will take care of that.” Jarek gestured to the white panel van that had just pulled up. “In the meantime, I’d like to get your formal statement on record.”
“Fine.” Her expression was disgruntled. “But we can talk here. There’s no reason for me to go back to the station.”
He mentally rolled his eyes. Typical Di, being difficult. “The way it works is you provide a statement and sign off that the information is correct.”
“I know how it works,” she shot back. “Doesn’t mean the process isn’t stupid.”
He clenched his jaw and stepped toward his cruiser. “Let’s go.”
Di stalked past him and slid into the back seat. He almost felt bad for making her ride in the cage like a criminal, but then she smirked. “Nice ride. Bet you have a hard time getting girlfriends to sit back here.”
“I use my own personal vehicle for that.” He met her gaze in the rearview. “Since you’re so interested in my personal life, I’m single. No girlfriends to sit back there or in my own car.”
“No surprise there. Any woman with half a brain would avoid you like the plague.” She turned to look out the window. “How long will it take to run the dead guy’s prints?”
“Not long.” While he could understand her curiosity about the dead guy who’d been following her, he sensed there was more behind her question about the prints. He narrowed his gaze. “Don’t even think about working the case on your own. Leave it to the detectives.”
“Andrews?” She scoffed. “Yeah, like he’s going to crack the case.”
The fact that she was right about Andrews didn’t mean he appreciated her comment. Yet pushing would only make her dig in her heels more, so he tried a different angle. “You should consider getting out of town for a while, until we catch this guy.”
“I don’t run from trouble.” There was no hesitation in her tone. “Besides, I’m pretty sure you’ll need my help to find him.”
He could feel Jim Kent’s curious gaze on him and tried not to sigh. Of course, Di wasn’t going to leave town. “I thought you didn’t know who was gunning for you?”
“I don’t know for sure, but it’s possible this is related to a case I worked a few weeks ago.” She frowned. “Although I must say that guy back there doesn’t look like a typical gangbanger.”
Gangbanger? He sought her gaze in the rearview. “Why would a gang member be after you?”
She sighed. “I helped get a nineteen-year-old by the name of Caden Avery escape the K2 Bloods gang. In the process of doing that, I also provided some key inside information to the narcotics officers to get their boss, Terance Warren, arrested.”
Having confirmation that she’d held back just as he’d suspected only fueled his anger. “Why didn’t you mention that sooner?”
Her brown eyes flashed. Even with the scar marring her cheek, Di was beautiful with her straight, long dark hair and tanned skin.
She was well trained and could take care of herself, but he also knew there were plenty of men who would underestimate her because of her looks.
“I already told you, he doesn’t look like he’s from the K2 Bloods gang.
Obviously, anything is possible, but he didn’t have the K2 Bloods tattoo or cash in his pocket. ”
“I thought the K2 Bloods gang disbanded,” Jim Kent said.
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Di shrugged again. “It wouldn’t surprise me if Pablo Hernandez has stepped in as the leader and is attempting to rejuvenate their drug business.”
That she even knew the name of the second-in-command of the K2 Bloods gang bothered Jarek. But he didn’t say anything more as he pulled into the parking lot of the precinct. After pushing out of the driver’s seat, he opened the back door for Di.
Her expression remained stoic as they headed inside.
She didn’t look around curiously, the way most people did when entering a police precinct.
After hearing about her run-in with the gang, he felt certain she’d been in the precinct before.
He led her to an interview room, then stepped back out to address his partner.
“Get her a bottle of water, will you? I can take over from here.”
“Sure.” Jim turned slightly, nodding at the door. “She’s feisty.”
“You have no idea,” he muttered, grabbing a laptop computer off the table. Jarek preferred to type witness statements directly into the system. That way he could print the document and have the witness sign off.
Surprisingly, Di accepted the water with a nod of gratitude, then objectively provided her statement from the beginning, this time leaving nothing out.
She briefly described how she’d infiltrated the K2 Bloods gang to befriend Caden Avery.
“It was clear to me the kid was in way over his head. I helped him get out of there, and he’s back in Yonkers with his father where he belongs. ”
“Who did you work with on the K2 Bloods case?” Jarek asked. “You mentioned someone from narcotics.”
“Ray Bond and his partner, Jeff Schnor.” Di sat perfectly still, not tapping her foot or glancing around, but he could sense her keen desire to get out of there.
“And how do you know Caden’s father?” he asked.
“I don’t really know him. Caden’s father hired my boss, Rex Grayson. Rex paid me to get involved.”
“Grayson is here in New York?” Jarek had served under Captain Rex Grayson.
“I didn’t say that. Rex is in Chicago. But since he knew I happened to live in Newburgh, he hired me to work the case for Bruce Avery, Caden’s father.”
He stared at her. “You’re with Grayson’s Guardians?”
She inclined her head and arched a brow. “Why are you so surprised?”
“I’m not, it’s just . . .” He let his voice trail off.
As a cop, he didn’t appreciate private security groups getting involved in situations that were better off resolved through good old-fashioned police work.
Yet he admired Rex Grayson as a person and an army captain.
He turned his attention to the witness statement. “Anything else you can remember?”
“That’s all I can think of.” She drained her water and set it aside. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to get out of here. I was hoping to get lunch, and I’m starved.”
“Yep. I’ll print this so you can sign it. We’ll also need your phone number in case we have more questions.” He rose to his feet. “After that, we’re out of here.”
Her review of the statement and signing off didn’t take long. She stood and headed out of the interview room.
“I’ll give you a ride home,” he said, following her out.
“That’s not necessary.” She didn’t so much as glance at him. “Thanks anyway.”
Why couldn’t she just go along with the plan? He forced a smile. “Really, Di, I’d rather drive you.”
“Fine.” She walked out the front door of the precinct and paused near the squad.
“You can ride in front.” He opened his driver’s side door, relieved when she followed suit. Once they were seated, he started the car and backed out of the parking space. “You live on Hollow Hill Road?”
“Yes.” She glanced at him. “Would you be willing to share the identity of the dead guy if his name pops in the system?”
He shouldn’t but nodded. “Yes, if you’re willing to help me figure out who he’s working for.”
After a brief pause, she nodded. “Okay.”
He counted her agreement as a win. The rest of the ride was done in silence.
When he pulled up in front of her apartment building, a three-story brick structure that miraculously wasn’t marked up with graffiti, she didn’t hesitate to push her door open.
“Don’t forget to call if you learn something. ”
“Right back at you.” He got out of the car and was about to follow her inside when a crack of gunfire rang out. Di dove for the side of the building, while he ducked behind his squad and used his radio to call for backup.
Grimly realizing the threat to Di Milbrath was far from over.