Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
BANNER
When my sister called Wade, I was sitting beside him, eating a burger and putting together a plan of action for Sorrow. Thankfully, we were only around the corner. When we pulled up, I could see things quickly devolving into pandemonium.
I leave Wade to deal with the cops and move straight to Sorrow, ignoring the asshole telling me to back off.
“You okay?” I ask, noticing how pale she is beneath the bruising and paint smeared on her face.
She nods, but winces. I follow my eyes down to her wrists and curse when I see she’s in cuffs again.
“Someone needs to take these off her right fucking now.”
“She’s—”
“Fucking bleeding,” I snarl.
Everyone is quiet for a minute. Eventually, the cuffs are released. She hisses when I turn her around and ease her sleeves up, which are now coated with blood.
“Shit, you’ve torn your stitches.”
“Didn’t know she had stitches,” someone voices. I look over and see the other cops looking at her wrists.
“I’m surprised, as it happened at the station only yesterday,” I snap back.
I look around for Wade, but he’s gone along with Smith, which is just as well. I didn’t like the way Smith was looking at her.
Olivia shuffles forward, her arm around Katy. I offer her what I hope is a reassuring smile.
“As much as I want you to clean those up for her, Banner, I think she should go back to the hospital. We need this on record. I’ll take some photos.”
“Ma’am,” a cop who is standing just behind me starts. I turn, but his attention is on Olivia.
“Don’t ma’am me, Jason. I’ve had you at my dinner table. Hell, a few of you have been there. I don’t invite people into my home or around my daughter that I don’t trust. I thought I could trust my husband’s coworkers, but now I’m questioning how stupid that was.”
“Come on, Olivia, we have a job to do,” Someone else says. I recognize him, but I can’t remember his name.
“Do you see her wrists? Those stitches that are torn were from the rookie putting cuffs on too tightly yesterday and leaving them on for far too long. And the best part is that she did nothing that warranted her being dragged in and detained then, either. Noticing a pattern?”
“We’re just following orders,” Jason tries to interject, but Olivia is having none of it.
“Which is why Wade will likely get busted to desk duty. But at least he’ll sleep at night knowing he’s on the right side of the law.”
Before she can say anything else, Wade is back with Smith.
“Keys,” Smith barks at Sorrow. I grit my teeth, ready to rip this fucker’s head off, but Sorrow reaches into the front pocket of her jean shorts when Wade nods at her. The second she reaches for them, half a dozen guns are pointed our way, making me twitch to pull out my own.
“Olivia, take Katy into the other room,” Wade barks. Olivia does as she’s asked without hesitation.
Sorrow tosses Wade the keys, but the pissed-off cop snatches them out of the air and stomps toward the door leading out to the garage.
“Stay the fuck here and watch her if you don’t like how we’re handling things,” he barks at Wade.
Sorrow shakes her head, wide-eyed, at Wade. It’s clear she doesn’t trust the asshole.
Wade frowns, and before he can blink, his eyes flash with understanding. “I think Banner has it handled. I’ll come with you and make sure everything is done by the book. Can’t be any question asked then, can there?”
The asshole opens the door hard enough for it to slam against the wall. Sorrow jumps, but I pull her back to my chest and wrap my hand lightly around her arm.
I dip my head so my lips are next to her ear. “You got a first aid kit? I need to wrap these until we can get them stitched again.”
She shakes her head.
“I’ve got one,” Jason sighs, turning to leave just as another cop steps forward.
“K9 officer is here.”
Sorrow looks up at me with a frown. I clench my jaw, feeling it click. A K9? Are they for fucking real?
“You guys have another drug bust to take care of? Because I know it ain’t easy requesting a K9 last minute.”
“All I know is the chief called for one,” the vaguely familiar cop says with a sigh.
The dog comes in with his handler and nods to a few of the cops before heading off to search the house. I hope this one has more respect for the woman in my arms than the rest of them, since he isn’t from here.
I maneuver her over to one of the kitchen chairs, ignoring the crash and banging of things falling while the search kicks up a notch. I don’t know if it’s because I’m on fucking edge, but it seems to me they’re being unnecessarily rough.
I focus on Sorrow’s wrists and take the first aid kit from Jason. I pull out some gauze and cover the worst of it before wrapping them in bandages.
By the time I’m done, the cop and K9 are in the kitchen beside us.
The dog sniffs me before moving on to Sorrow, who barely breathes.
The dog moves around the kitchen but doesn’t react to anything until Smith opens the garage door.
He looks at the K9 handler and orders him to follow into the garage.
The K9 handler narrows his eyes at the asshole but follows him out, with Jason trailing behind them, leaving me with Sorrow once more.
“You gonna be okay for a second while I check on Katy and Olivia?”
She nods, and I surprise us both by pressing a kiss to her forehead.
I fire off a text to Blake about what’s happening and head to the living room, which is a fucking mess.
A can of paint lying on its side catches my attention, the brilliant pool of white surrounding it reflects the afternoon light.
A set of sheets lies beside it, along with overturned furniture.
Honestly, it looks like a fight broke out.
I find Olivia and Katy on the far side of the room. Katy looks freaked, and Olivia looks livid. I hurry over to them and ignore a cop when he tells me this is a crime scene.
“Bullshit. This is a setup, and you’re just a pawn,” Olivia snaps at him.
The idiot takes a step toward her but stops when he remembers who she is. “We’re doing our jobs. Just because you’re married to a cop doesn’t give you special consideration. We can still arrest you if you interfere.”
“I’m her legal counsel, you idiot. Not to mention that you guys arrested Sorrow on possession with the intent to supply, yet you haven’t told us what you found in her possession. It better be something good. Because if you’ve turned up here with nothing, I’ll obliterate you all in court.”
The cops look worried for a minute before turning away.
I reach for Katy and tug her into my arms. “Gotta be quick. I don’t want to leave Sorrow alone for long. Just needed to make sure you’re okay.”
“I’m okay, but this is bullshit, Banner. They’re trashing the place on purpose.”
“I know, but I’m here now. I won’t let anything happen to her.”
I look at Olivia. “Your take on this?”
“Like Katy said, it’s bullshit. If they find nothing here today, they’ll still need to take her in because she has been arrested.
My problem with that is I don’t think they had any actual evidence to support the arrest. I think they assumed they’d find something here today, and then the hows wouldn’t matter. ”
“You think they’ll plant something?” I lower my voice, unable to hide my shock.
“Or they already did. That’s the only reason I can think of that they’d call in the K9 officer.
” She lowers her voice so only I can hear her.
“They don’t drop everything for us, so the chief would have had to ask in advance.
My guess is that he called for K9 assistance the day before the rookie brought her in. This stinks of corruption, Banner.”
“Alright, say nothing else while there are too many people around to hear you. Stay out of the way until they’re done. We’ll talk more afterward. Katy, why don’t you go home?”
“They’re not gonna let me leave while they’re raiding the place.”
“They shouldn’t, but they will if you remind them who you are.” I grimace at what that implies.
“I don’t throw my name around to—”
“They know who you are, anyway, Katy cat.”
Before she can argue, Olivia squeezes her arm lightly. “Actually, I have a big favor to ask. Could you collect Mia from preschool and sit with her until I can get home? I don’t want to leave Sorrow without her lawyer.”
“Of course,” Katy mutters, taking Olivia’s keys from her.
“I’ll give them a call so they know to expect you.”
“Okay, can one of you keep me posted?”
“We will,” Olivia answers. I walk Katy out.
Lo and behold, when they see who’s leaving, they not only say nothing, but they clear a path for her.
I get why it pisses Katy off, even though I’m grateful for it right now.
It makes me wonder, though, what would happen if she didn’t have her head screwed on right?
What if she’d grown into a wild teen and thrown the family name around so she could get out of trouble?
That would have been a whole other pile of shit to deal with and makes me look back at some of the stuff Alec got into.
An uncomfortable feeling steals over me.
Once she’s gone, I head back to the kitchen, finding Sorrow where I left her. A cop searching the kitchen is keeping an eye on her as he moves around the room.
I crouch in front of her and take one of her smaller hands in mine. “Katy has gone to pick up Olivia’s daughter. Olivia will be going with you to the police station, and I’ll be following behind you. I know this is shitty, but I need you to hang on for me.”
She nods, a stray tear slipping down her cheek.
I reach up to wipe it away just as the garage door opens, and the K9 handler walks in with his dog. His jaw is clenched as his hands tighten on the dog’s leash.
“Everything okay?” I ask him as Smith stomps through the door and throws a glare at Sorrow. Wade brings up the rear, crossing his arms over his chest.
“I’ll be in touch with your chief,” the K9 officer says before leaving, not sparing Smith a backward glance. I look at Wade, who shakes his head, and feel myself relax somewhat. When Olivia walks in, I wait for her to snark off at him.
“I’m heading to the station with Sorrow as I’m representing her,” Olivia tells Wade.
Smith grunts before looking at Sorrow. “Let’s go.”
She gets to her feet, but when he reaches for her, I step between them. “I think I’ll feel more comfortable with Wade taking her in. She needs medical attention, thanks to your manhandling.”
I wait for him to argue, but he must know to count his losses.
I lean over Sorrow, who looks up at me. “Go with Wade. I’ll come pick you up when you’re done. You got your phone?”
When she nods, I reach into her back pocket, making her gasp. I add my number to her contacts before putting it back.
I look at Wade. “Take care of her. I’m going to wait here until the cops leave so I can lock up,” I add, holding my hands out for the keys that Smith still has.
I half expect him to play dumb, but he doesn’t. He slaps them into my hand before turning and leaving.
“I’ve got her,” Wade tells me as he gently guides Sorrow outside.
“See you at the station, hubby,” Olivia calls out, making Wade look back with a grin.
I wait until they’re gone before turning to Olivia. “Tell me what to expect.”
“I don’t know how deep this hatred goes, but cops are supposed to be impartial, and clearly ours are not.”
She runs her fingers through her hair with a frustrated sigh. “I can’t tell you what I already know. I’ve spoken to Sorrow’s law firm, and we’ve agreed to work in tandem while she’s here. I’m not sure it’s hate that has the cops stirred up, but fear.”
“Fear?”
“Again, I can’t say anything. I only mentioned it because fear makes people do reckless shit, especially when they’re trying to save their necks.”
“Like framing an innocent woman?”
Her breath hitches, making me frown. Isn’t that what she’s implying?
“Come on, that part is obvious. I didn’t think for a second they’d find drugs here or that she was dealing them.”
“Right, the drugs, of course.” For some reason, her flustered answer throws me.
Before I can call her on it, she moves on.
“I didn’t fight them taking her in because I want everything on record while I build a case against the police.
How they’re treating Sorrow is not only unacceptable, it’s illegal.
What I’m hoping for is that this will shake them up and maybe make them realize she’s not such an easy target now that she has me and Wade at her back. ”
“She has me and Price Security at her back, too.”
“Does she? What about when your parents step in and demand you walk away?”
“My parents don’t interfere with my job—”
“Wade told me you’d said as much to him, and I’m telling you now, that might have been true when what you were doing didn’t affect them. This time, it will be different. You need to prepare yourself because things are about to get ugly, and that’s when people show their true colors.”
She leaves before I can ask her what she’s implying.
I lean against the door frame and curse, feeling like I’m in the dark when everyone around seems to know more than they’re letting on.
I straighten up when I see Blake’s truck pull up, followed by Marcus’s. They both climb out, as does Kellen, who was riding with Marcus.
“Hey, I wasn’t expecting you all to turn up.”
“Figure I might as well come to ground zero and see what’s going on,” Blake answers as I let them in.
“Hey, Banner, heard you got caught up in a shitstorm,” Kellen greets me.
“Yeah, and something tells me it’s only just begun.”
After the cops eventually leave, and I’ve filled everyone in on what’s gone down, we all sit on the living room floor, contemplating our next move.
“Hate to say this, but I think Olivia is on to something. This is more than just anger. This feels like a calculated attack. She’s only here to sell the house.
If they left her alone, she’d be gone twice as quick as she would be if they kept pulling shit like this,” Kellen says, pulling out his cell phone and firing off a text.
“Girlfriend?” Marcus teases.
“I think Matilda would beat me if I stole her man. No, I’m calling in reinforcements. We might as well clean up and plan while we’re at it. One less thing for Sorrow to worry about when she gets back.”
“Good idea.”’
“I’ll run out and grab some food and beer.” Marcus stands up and stretches out the kinks.
“Sounds like a plan.”
And even though we all have a million things to do, right now, nothing seems more important than this.