Chapter 2 #2
But also because he’d rubbed her the wrong way from the moment they first met.
He was classically good-looking and came from a family of cops.
She didn’t put much faith in law enforcement.
Her attempt to get help when she was fifteen had not gone anywhere.
That was mostly due to her stepfather’s wealth and status in the community, but still.
She drew in a slow breath, understanding she needed to stop losing her temper around him, or he might start digging into her past.
And that would only end in disaster.
Jarek watched the myriad of emotions flash across Di’s features.
He truly didn’t understand her hostile attitude.
Okay, sure, he’d given her the nickname Di, but so what?
Everyone on the team had been given nicknames.
His was Jarhead, which was sort of funny because the term more often pertained to the marines. Not the army.
“Fine. I’ll pack a bag.” Di spun on her heel and disappeared into the bedroom. He stood where he was, glancing around the space. Whatever income Di earned from being one of Grayson’s Guardians, she clearly didn’t spend on herself.
Did she send money to her sister? Maybe. To his chagrin, he hadn’t even known she had a sister. Listening to her convince her sister to go away for a while had been admirable. Of course, Di wouldn’t take precautions of her own, but she would for her sibling.
For the first time, he wondered why Di walked around with that giant chip on her shoulder. Back when they were overseas, he had been more concerned with staying alive. Di was always the first to offer to go on reconnaissance missions. He’d wondered if she had some sort of death wish.
But over time, he’d decided her approach had been all about proving herself capable. He could imagine some of the guys she’d encountered through basic training had given her and the other female soldiers a hard time.
Personally, he’d didn’t mind serving with Di or Tegan or any of the other female soldiers. His goal was always to leave the military to become a cop. His background prepared him for having female officers on duty alongside him.
Di strode toward him with a duffel slung over her shoulder. She stopped in the kitchen, opened a cabinet, and plucked a box of protein bars from the shelf and shoved that into the duffel before turning to face him. “I’m ready.”
She’d packed in record time, but she wasn’t like most women. She was fortunate to have an innate beauty that didn’t require much in the way of maintenance. He’d bank his pension that she had only clothes and the basic toiletries in her kit. And protein bars.
He was curious about her scar but sensed she would only take offense to his asking about it. Instead, he nodded. “Where to? The train station or rental car agency?”
“Rental car.” After a beat, she added, “Thanks.”
He accepted the truce at face value. “Let’s go.”
Without so much as a backward glance to the place she called home, Di headed out into the hallway. As she took the stairs down, a door slammed. She froze and spun, her weapon in hand.
“One of your neighbors,” he said calmly, realizing she wasn’t quite as cool, calm, and collected as she appeared. Not that he blamed her for being on edge. He would be on edge too if there had been two attempts to kill him in a matter of hours.
“Will you please consider leaving town?” He stayed close behind her as they made their way to the main floor.
“Nope.” She glanced at him, then shrugged. “If the gang is involved, they’ll just lay low until I return, which defeats the purpose. Better I stay here to draw them out.”
She had a point, but he still didn’t like it. He put a hand on her arm, stopping her from going outside. “Why don’t you stay with me?” The offer popped out before he could think it through. But when she didn’t slug him, he added, “We’ll work the case together.”
Her brown eyes clashed with his, her expression incredulous. “You’ll seriously work the case with me?”
“Why not?” Involving a civilian was against policy, but he knew Di would continue working the case regardless. And besides, he figured it was only a matter of time before the gunman struck again. Di needed backup, whether she liked it or not.
“Okay.” She gave him a curt nod. “We’ll work together.”
“Great.” He shouldn’t have felt such an overwhelming wave of relief. “My tour is almost over. I’ll switch my schedule so that I’m off for the next few days.”
“Whatever works. I can work the case while you’re out on patrol.” The corner of her mouth tipped up in what was the first genuine smile he’d seen from her since their last tour. “I bet I’ll get more intel than your Detective Andrews.”
“I hate to admit you’re probably right.” He released her arm, suddenly all too aware of her toned muscles beneath his fingertips. Under different circumstances, he might be interested.
If Di wasn’t so prickly. And stubborn. And annoying. And . . . never mind. What was he thinking? The only redeeming quality in Di was her skill as a soldier.
She’d make a good cop. But she’d gone the route of working for Rex Grayson instead. No real surprise as she’d always been a loner. Sure, she worked well as a team in the military, but she’d always held herself apart. Never getting too close. Maybe that was what she liked about working for Grayson.
He wondered how many of their other former teammates were part of the company, then decided it didn’t matter. He liked being a cop. He liked knowing the citizens of the area, helping people in need. Keeping them safe from crime.
“I need to drive my squad back to the precinct, so why don’t you meet me at my place?
” He dug in his pocket for the key, removed it from the ring, and handed it to her.
Then he rattled off the address. “It’s only a ten-to-fifteen-minute walk from here.
After I clock out, I’ll grab pizza for dinner. We can eat while we work out a plan.”
She nodded slowly. “That sounds good. But don’t you dare bring home a pie that’s not loaded with the works. Everything but anchovies.”
“Got it.” He couldn’t help but smile. In a way, it was refreshing to have someone who spoke their mind without hesitation. Then he cocked his head to the side. “Considering how close we live to each other, I’m surprised we haven’t run into each other before now.”
She shrugged. “I’ve never needed the cops before. See you in a few.” Rather than heading out the front door, she turned and made her way to the back of the building.
He stood, watching her slip outside. Yeah, he figured she knew a little more than she was telling him.
His goal would be to convince her to trust him and the police process.
Cops, and police work in general, weren’t perfect, but that was a far better option than allowing well-meaning civilians to go rogue.
He suspected Di was firmly in the go-rogue category.
He headed back outside where his colleagues were milling about. Kramer frowned when he saw Jarek was alone. “Where’s the vic?”
“She decided to get out of here since this guy obviously knows where she lives.” He gestured to the area. “Find anything else useful?”
“Just the slug embedded in the mortar between the bricks.” Kramer walked over to the wall to show him the hole made by the slug. The fact that it was so close to where Di had been standing was sobering. The shooter had missed, but not by much. “It’s too mangled to get anything useful, though.”
“Figures.” He turned to look toward the third-floor open window. “I want those crime scene techs to take their time in the apartment. If this guy so much as dropped a bead of sweat, I want them to find it.”
“Understood.” Kramer grinned. “You already sound like a detective.”
“Yeah, well, I’m sure Andrews will tell you the same thing.
” Actually, he doubted Andrews would say anything at all, but he figured it was better to play along.
Forty-three days until he would receive his promotion and gold shield.
“Let’s do a quick canvass of the area. Maybe someone saw our guy going in or leaving the building. ”
It was a long shot, but they had to cover all bases.
He and Kramer took the building itself, leaving the others to work Di’s building.
He and Kramer hit every door on either side of the apartment and across the hall.
Only half the residents were home, and none claimed to have seen anything suspicious.
One guy admitted to hearing the gunshot but hadn’t called it in. When Jarek pressed the issue, the older guy shrugged. “Saw the squad on the street. Figured you already knew about it.”
“Next time, make the call,” he admonished the guy.
If he’d been hit or killed, the shooter would have had ample time to try again to take Di out of the picture.
This wasn’t New York City, but the attitudes of residents choosing to hunker down and mind their own business despite crime happening around them was much the same.
He and his fellow officers cleared the scene, then headed back to the precinct. His partner, Jim Kent, was annoyed that he’d missed the action.
“It doesn’t make sense to me that someone from the gang is doing this,” Kent said, as Jarek finished writing up his report. “They don’t usually hide out in third-story windows to wait for someone to show up. And from what I know, Di’s apartment isn’t anywhere near any gang turf.”
“That’s true.” Those inconsistencies nagged at him too.
Something he intended to grill Di about in detail later that evening.
“Any chance you’d be willing to cover my shift for the next couple of days?
” He knew Kent was off duty but didn’t have any plans.
Kent was married and had a baby. “I’ll take your weekend shift in exchange. ”
“Sold,” Kent said without hesitation. “I’d much rather be off the weekend with Cindy and Lindsey.”
“Great.” He had assumed as much. After scanning his second report of the day, he hit send, then rose to his feet. “Appreciate the swap. Let the CO know about the switch, okay?”
“Sure thing.” Kent eyed him curiously. “Why the sudden urge to be off work?”
“I plan to check in on my old man.” His father, who’d retired as a police captain from the New York City police department eight years ago, was showing the early signs of Alzheimer’s.
It wasn’t too bad yet, but he worried about him living alone.
Jarek’s parents had been married for forty years before his mother died of cancer.
His dad had remained stoic after her passing, but he knew the old man missed his wife.
Jarek had always admired their commitment to each other and to raising their three kids.
Cops had a high rate of divorce, but his parents had attended church regularly and made the sacrifices and compromises needed to make things work.
His sister, Claire, and his brother, Tony, were living on Long Island near his dad.
Jarek was the odd man out, having chosen to live in Newburgh because of the increasing crime rate, and he’d wanted to be where he thought he could make more of a difference.
And sure, it was also an excuse to work without his father’s legacy hanging over his head.
Yet he still made it a point to make the drive down to visit his father on his days off.
This time, though, he’d have to make do with a phone call.
He detoured to the locker room to change out of his uniform.
The Newburgh police department frowned on their officers being in uniform while off shift.
He put everything away in his locker, except for his gun.
That he placed in a belt holster hooked to his jeans.
On his way out, he nearly ran into Detective Andrews.
“Hey, I heard there was a second shooting.” Andrews glared at him. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“I figured you’d hear the call out on the radio.” He strove to sound believable. The truth was he should have notified Andrews but hadn’t really seen the point. “I’m sure it’s the same shooter, but we didn’t find any evidence on scene.”
“You’re not a detective yet, Brooks,” Andrews said in a snide tone. “Next time call me and I’ll decide if there’s evidence worth finding.”
The guy was a piece of work, but Jarek simply nodded. There was no point in fighting with him. Forty-three days and counting, he reminded himself. “Sure. Like I said, I figured you’d have heard the call.”
“I’ll read through your report,” Andrews said, turning away. “I’ll let you know if I have questions.”
He forced a nod, then asked, “Any ID on the dead guy?”
Andrews paused and glanced back at him. “His name is Gilbert Levine. His prints are in the system because of an old weapons charge. He was twenty-five years old. Do you know him?”
“Gilbert Levine.” He played the name through his mind but came up empty. “Never heard of him. Any known gang affiliations?”
“Nope.” Andrews shrugged and turned away. “It’s another dead end.”
Having a name was hardly a dead end, but Jarek didn’t voice his thought. Andrews’s comment only reinforced his opinion of the detective’s lackadaisical approach to the job. The guy had one foot out the door and was coasting along until he would leave permanently.
Taking a quick detour, Jarek went back to his laptop to find the arrest report for Gilbert Levine.
The guy had a Newburgh address listed along with information on the vehicle he’d been using at the time of his arrest. He printed it out, noting the weapons charge had been from two years ago.
Apparently, it was found during a routine traffic stop, so the guy hadn’t done any time.
Now he was dead, killed while following Di through the city. Hired by someone, obviously, but who? And why? Her last case? Or something else?
He folded the report, put it in his pocket, and turned to leave.
He used his phone app to order a large pizza with the works from his favorite pizzeria. As he slid in behind the wheel of his SUV, he hoped Di would be in a cooperative mood after she’d eaten.
It was only after he’d pulled into his driveway that he realized the risk he was taking by working the case with her.
If he messed this up, he’d lose his chance of becoming a detective. And maybe even risk losing his job entirely.