Chapter Twenty
Me: Mayor gave the okay. Find those fuckers.
Kane: On it. But like, what are my limitations?
Me: No one specified so as far as I’m concerned do what you have to do for Sophia.
Kane: You got it, Boss. >
Me: Where did we get with the burner phone?
Kane: Not far. Your girl did a good job destroying them. I’m working on the footage, but since she identified the guy, I can’t get you anything you don’t already have. I’m working on facial recognition to find him. Are you sure we can trust this Ripp guy?
Me: No. But he hasn’t killed me yet so, for now I guess I have to.
Kane: Keep your enemies closer?
Me: Yeah, sure. Let’s go with that. I have to go, let me know what you find.
Wandering over to Sophia and Mayor Williams, I find them staring at the computer.
“I was able to change the message, but someone was in the system that wasn’t an employee. The offices were closed, and there’s no way for them to log in from home.” The mayor clicks on the screen pulling up a log of employee logins. “Besides, I know for a fact that Tiffany wouldn’t do this.”
My eyes go wide. Tiff’s login is right there on the screen for two thirty-three this afternoon. “Are you sure she wasn’t in the office?”
The mayor’s eyes snap to mine. “Wyatt. Please don’t let your personal life get in the way of this. You and I both know she would never.”
“Respectfully, Mayor, I don’t know that.
She’s always found a way to know where I am and what I’m doing.
If she knows I’m dating Sophia, I can’t with one hundred percent certainty know that Tiff wouldn’t do this.
” I hate going against the mayor; realistically, she’s my boss and I could catch some heat for it.
“You’re the cop. I won’t stand in the way of your investigation, but I know Tiff. She was caught up with you, and I can’t deny that. But she’s dating Adam now.”
Sophia’s eyes ping-pong between us. I haven’t told her about Tiff yet, but I’m sure she’s heard the rumors from my family.
“I’ll do my best to clear her. I just need to do that first.”
Mayor Williams pulls up the security footage of the front entrance with no visitors coming in.
The side entrance tells a different story, though.
Someone dressed in all black entered the side door at two twenty-four and left about twenty minutes later.
The time between the entry and the login fits that this is our suspect.
The video is grainy at best, and the person is wearing all black. My hopes are low.
“Can we send this to Kane?” I ask her.
“Yes.” She downloads the video and grabs a thumb drive off the desk. “Here. I don’t want to risk anything on our system. Ask Kane to do a rundown on our security, and tell him to freeze it so he can update anything he sees necessary. We can’t have this happening in our town.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Taking the thumb drive, I hook my hand in Sophia’s. “Would you like us to walk you out? I don’t want you to stay here alone.”
She stands, glancing around her office. “I’d appreciate that. I’ve never felt unsafe until today, and I want you to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”
“Understood.”
We walk out of the offices and back to our cars. I get Sophia settled in before going to the driver’s side. “Sophia.”
“It’s my fault, Wyatt. Not yours.”
Sitting in the passenger seat with her head down, her defeated posture hurts me. I know she feels responsible.
“No. It’s not. It’s whoever that is.” I wave the thumb drive.
“It’s James. Is there any doubt? That’s not a woman’s build. Even you have to admit that.”
“Even if it is James, it’s still not your fault.”
She sits silently and doesn’t answer. I will fix this. I won’t let him get away with hurting her anymore.
Last night, I kept Sophia close, pulling her into my side and not letting her go all night. I’ve been up longer than I should this morning, watching her sleep. The thought that someone wants to—and could—take her from me is startling.
My alarm sounds, signaling that I need to get ready for work and the end of our time in bed. Reaching over, I grab my phone off the charger. Once the alarm is silenced, I see the notification for an email from the detective’s test.
“Is it already time?” She mumbles in her sleep and rolls over to face me, draping her arm across my chest. I swallow hard, which draws her attention to my face. “What’s wrong?”
“I got my detective’s test results.”
She hops up, straddling me and slapping my chest. The speed at which she went from ready to go back to sleep to awake and hitting me in excitement leaves me playing catch up. “Well? Are you going to share?”
“No. I’m afraid to open it.” I hand her my unlocked phone. “You read it.”
I watch her facial expressions as she reads, but her unmoving reactions aren’t giving anything away.
“Oh my God. I failed. I knew it. This is why I didn’t want to tell anyone. Now you know I failed. Shit. Chief is going—”
She leans over me, kissing me hard. “You passed. With a ninety-three percent!”
“Seriously?” I pull my phone back and read it for myself. I don’t believe her.
Dear Wyatt Keaton,
We are pleased to inform you that you have successfully passed the detective’s exam.
Score Needed: 70%
Your Score: 93%
Congratulations.
Maine Criminal Justice Academy
“Holy shit.” I stare in disbelief, re-reading again just in case my eyes were wrong. “Holy shit. I passed.”
“Hell yeah, you did! You more than passed! You killed it.”
Rolling us over in the bed, I kiss her hard, excitement coursing through both of us. But we’re interrupted by my phone ringing.
“I have to go to work,” I whisper.
“Celebrate tonight?” She loops her legs around my waist, holding me close to her.
“Absolutely.” Kissing her forehead, I roll off the side of the bed and call Chief back while I get dressed.
Her eyes are on me the whole time, and it has me ready to call out to celebrate with her all day.
“Keaton.” Chief’s voice comes through the line, and he’s not impressed that I’ve stopped paying attention.
Shaking my head, I look away from Sophia. “Sorry. I’ll be there in a few. Just making coffee then I’ll be there.”
“Coffee my ass. You have ten minutes,” he mutters before hanging up.
Sauntering over to Sophia, I drop a kiss on her lips. “Don’t move all day. I’ll be back, and I want you right here.”
“You’re cute. Like I’m not going to plan something to celebrate you.” She laughs.
“I just need you.” Kissing her once more, I leave.
I skip the coffee I told Chief I was making so I can actually make it to work. The only thing pulling me out of the house is being able to tell Chief I passed the test.