Chapter 3
Di made her way through the side streets in the general direction of Jarek’s house.
She doubled back frequently to make sure she hadn’t picked up a tail.
Jarek’s house was two blocks west of Downing Park.
It was a two-story home with blue siding and white trim that appeared to have been built decades ago.
She didn’t feel right going inside. Personally, she wouldn’t want someone invading her privacy that way. Then again, she didn’t keep many personal items around for anyone to see.
Instead of heading inside to wait for him, she tossed her duffel onto the front porch and walked the neighborhood, making a mental note of the properties around Jarek’s. It couldn’t hurt to be familiar with the area just in case the gunman showed up again.
Although she couldn’t imagine the guy would risk striking out at her this close to a cop’s home.
Better to not take any chances. She’d been stupid enough to head to her apartment while the gunman was still at large. No way would she make that mistake again.
The warm summer weather brought the locals outside to enjoy the afternoon. S eeing several kids riding their bikes toward the park, she found herself hoping the gunman wouldn’t make an appearance. The idea of kids being in harm’s way bothered her.
A couple of Jarek’s neighbors watched her, no doubt wondering who she was. They were the unofficial neighborhood watch patrol, and she thought it was nice that they looked out for each other here.
Unlike those who lived in her apartment building or the one across the street. She would bet money that the residents would be less than helpful when the police knocked on their doors to ask questions.
When she’d finished her self-guided tour of the neighborhood, she sat on the top step of Jarek’s porch and used her cell phone to call Rex Grayson. Normally, she wouldn’t bother him, but if this was related to her previous case, he should probably know. Her boss answered on the first ring.
“What’s up, Di?”
“I was followed from my apartment, and when I confronted the guy, a gunshot rang out. The bullet struck him instead of me. About an hour or so later, the gunman showed up again outside my apartment.” When he didn’t say anything, she quickly added, “I know, it was stupid to go back without taking proper precautions. Thankfully, I wasn’t hurt, but it’s possible this is related to the K2 Bloods gang in some way. ”
“Did the dead guy have gang connections?” Rex asked.
“No, he didn’t have any tattoos or other identifying marks indicating a gang affiliation. But that doesn’t mean he isn’t a new recruit.” She personally had her doubts, but without anything to go on, the K2 Bloods gang was the logical assumption.
“Do you need backup?” Rex asked. “I can free up Cam if needed.”
“No, I’m good. You remember Jarhead? Jarek Brooks? He’s a cop here in Newburgh. I’m going to work the case with him for the next few days.”
“Not surprised Jarhead is a cop. He’d always planned to go that route,” Rex admitted. “His old man and his uncle were both on the job. Did you know he was in Newburgh?”
“Nope. Although, in my defense, I haven’t had many interactions with law enforcement other than the pair of narcotics officers I worked with during the Caden Avery case.
” She scanned her surroundings as she spoke.
Seeing a dark-blue SUV heading down the street made her tense, until the car slowed and turned into the driveway.
She relaxed as she realized Jarek had come home.
“Jarhead seems to know about the Guardians, though.”
“I’m not surprised. He might be in touch with some of the guys.” Rex didn’t sound concerned. Rex Grayson’s private security firm didn’t operate outside the law. She was the only one with secrets that made her wary of cops in general. “What do you need from me?”
“Nothing. I just thought you should know.” As Jarek slid out of the driver’s seat carrying a large pizza box, she rose to her feet. Jarek was dressed casually in jeans and a T-shirt, much the way she was. To her eye, it suited him better than the uniform. “I gotta go.”
“Di, if you uncover information that confirms this is related in some way to the gang, let me know,” Rex said. “In the meantime, I’ll put the Averys on notice that there may be an attempt to seek revenge.”
“Sounds good. I agree. Caden needs to be aware of the potential danger. We’ll talk later.
” She ended the call, tucking the phone into her back pocket.
The burner phone was still in her front pocket, and as she turned to unlock the front door, she realized that she’d probably have to come clean about what she’d done.
Jarek would be upset to learn about the evidence she’d taken, but it was too late for her to go back to change the past.
In more ways than one, she thought with a sigh as she bent to scoop up her duffel bag. Although if she were being completely honest, she didn’t regret what she’d done all those years ago.
And that was the crux of the matter because guys like Jarek would not see it the same way. All the more reason to keep him at arm’s length while they tried to figure out who wanted to kill her.
“Who was that?” Jarek asked as he followed her inside.
“Rex.” She dropped her bag near the front door and glanced around, noting the place wasn’t neat or messy, but comfortably lived in.
Different from her place, which she treated much like an army bunkhouse.
She moved into the kitchen, where Jarek had set the pizza on the table.
“He’s going to put the Averys on notice that the gang might be seeking revenge. ”
“Yeah, that’s smart.” He opened the pizza box, then grabbed plates from the cupboard. “By the way, does the name Gilbert Levine ring any bells?”
“No.” Her pulse kicked up a notch at his question. “That’s the name of our dead guy?”
“Yep. Prints popped in the system from a two-year-old weapons charge.” Jarek arched a brow. “Do you want a soft drink with dinner?”
“Just water for me.” She didn’t sleep well on a good day and avoided caffeine this late. She dropped into one of the chairs, turning the name over in her mind. “No known gang affiliations, huh?”
“No. But the weapons charge is interesting. Could be he’s a newer recruit.” Jarek filled two glasses with water and set one in front of her. Then he sat and linked his hands in his lap. It took her a moment to realize he was praying.
She was a little surprised, even though she knew many of her teammates were believers. She personally didn’t get it, but out of respect, she bowed her head and waited until he’d finished his prayer before digging into the pizza heavily loaded with toppings.
“Looks good. Just the way I like it.” She grinned and took a big bite.
Jarek returned her smile, and her stomach did a weird little flip. She did her best to ignore it. A cop was the last person she’d be interested in seeing on a personal level. Besides, she and Jarek rubbed each other the wrong way. Always had. Always would.
“What kind of weapon did Gilbert have on him when he was arrested?” She strove to stay focused on the case.
She wasn’t going to show Jarek the disposable cell phone until after dinner.
She wanted to have a full stomach before he tossed her out on her butt.
“Was it the same make and model he had on him when he was shot and killed by his own guy?”
“Not sure.” Jarek took a bite of his pizza, then pulled a folded paper from his pocket.
He opened it with one hand, then scanned the page.
Leaning forward, she noticed he’d brought home a copy of the police report.
“Says here he had a Smith and Wesson 9 mm on him during the arrest. Do you remember what weapon he had earlier?”
She nodded. “Same make and model. Doubtful it was the same gun since I assume the police confiscated the illegal weapon.”
“Yeah, according to the report, it was taken.” Jarek took another bite of his pizza scanning the report.
Her fingers itched to snatch it away so she could read it for herself, but she strove to be patient.
After another long moment, he pushed the report toward her.
“It mentions he was driving an older model beige Chevy sedan. Does that sound familiar? Do you remember seeing one around recently?”
“No.” She normally paid attention to that kind of thing but had to admit that seeing an old Chevy wouldn’t raise her suspicions.
She reviewed the information related to Gilbert Levine’s traffic stop.
He’d blown past a stop sign without noticing the cop who was watching the area.
The location where he’d been caught was on the fringe of gang territory, on the corner of Clark and Ann streets.
“Kinda stupid of him to run a stop sign.”
“Nobody claimed criminals were smart.” Jarek shrugged. “No doubt the close proximity to the gang neighborhood was part of the reason he was pulled over.”
“I see he had the gun tucked under his thigh.” She shook her head. “If he’d had it in the glove box, the cop probably wouldn’t have found it.”
“Again, if the bad guys were smart, we wouldn’t have so many of them cluttering up our jail cells.
” Jarek held her gaze. “I stopped at his last-known address on my way home. He lived in a two-story apartment building on Tempest Street. The current occupant of the apartment is a guy in his mid-fifties who answered the door despite me asking for Levine. He’s been there for a year and claims to have never heard of Gilbert Levine. ”