Chapter 26
Chapter Twenty-Six
Maggie let out an annoyed sigh as she rested against the edge of Lieutenant Martin’s desk, waiting. In the chair opposite the lieutenant’s seat was Anatoly, his hands folded neatly on his lap and an unreadable expression on his face.
His patience continued to impress her, especially in moments like this when they were stuck sitting here when they should have been out there tracking down not one, but two killers.
In the last couple hours, they had come closer to unraveling the case, but there was something Maggie was sure she was still missing.
Upon their arrival at the station, Martin had called them into his office, told them not to leave, and then disappeared. That was twenty odd minutes ago and Maggie was trying very hard to follow Anatoly’s calm example.
“Relax, Detective,” Anatoly finally rumbled in response to Maggie’s fidgeting. “Is good opportunity for reflection, da?”
“Nyet,” she replied, far more flippantly than she meant. The word rolled easily off her tongue, feeling good on her lips as she thought of all the times Anatoly had said it. She decided it sounded better coming from him, but the way he chuckled at her suggested he wasn’t offended.
Then she saw it, a flash of mischief in his gray eyes that took her by surprise. His jaw popped beneath his beard and she realized he was holding something back, something she very badly wanted to hear.
Before she could pry it out of him, the office door banged open, destroying the moment and giving Maggie an instant headache. Lieutenant Martin was back and when she looked up, the feeling in her stomach dropped to a whole new low.
Martin wasn’t alone. Standing there with him was Captain Declan.
Maggie nearly choked on her own spit and by some stroke of luck at the same time, she managed not to throat punch her ex for daring to bother her at work.
They had an agreement: he stayed in his lane and she stayed in hers.
This was bull shit, but before she could cuss them both out, Declan threw up his hands in surrender.
It bought him a couple seconds to speak.
“This is a professional meeting, Detective Boone,” he said. “I’m on orders from up the food chain. You know how it goes.”
She glanced over at Martin, her eyes narrowed to sharp slits, refusing to address Declan in the slightest. “What the hell is going on here, Martin?”
To his credit, he had the good sense to at least look displeased.
Whatever was happening, he didn’t seem to be a fan either.
Good, maybe he’d get off his ass and advocate for the night shift for a change, but Maggie doubted it.
For being a cop, Martin had a yellow streak a mile wide.
Or maybe that was just her anger being a bitch.
“They’re shifting the case to an elite taskforce, Maggie,” he answered, unable to quite meet her eyes. “You can still work the copy cat angle, but the other murders are being passed to the day shift.”
Maggie practically vibrated with so much rage she couldn’t see straight. The only reason she didn’t put her fist through the wall was a sudden shift from Anatoly that reminded her of his presence and instantly her good sense returned.
Her jaw tight and hands clenched into fists at her side, the detective imagined his strong hand would be on her shoulder if professionalism hadn’t prevented it, but just the thought kept her from doing something foolish.
This whole thing sucked, but Maggie wasn’t in it alone and she couldn’t afford to get thrown off the case entirely.
And then…
“Lieutenant Martin went to bat for you, Maggie, he really did,” Declan insisted and he reached for her, but seemed to think better of actually touching her.
“But the truth is, this case is bigger than you and it needs a specialized team to bring it home. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you get credit for your input thus far. ”
Her teeth ground together and she squeezed her hands so tight her nails jabbed painfully into her palm.
“My input?” she parroted, grating out every syllable. “I’ve been working this damn case for months, Declan.” It was a struggle to keep her voice even, but somehow, Maggie managed not to scream in the captain’s face.
Like it or not, he outranked her and that meant she had to take his shit, even if all she wanted was to stomp out of this room like a child.
She may have hated this aspect of it, but ultimately she loved her job and for a while, she’d forgotten that.
Thanks to Anatoly, she was starting to remember what it was about police work that she enjoyed and the purpose she originally set out to accomplish; helping people.
“You know what I mean,” Declan shot back, a frown creasing his brow.
Once, that gesture would have shut Maggie down entirely, made her back off lest she actually displease him. She’d learned from her mother that when a man was angry, it was the woman’s job to appease his wrath, but standing there now, she couldn’t for the life of her figure out why.
It had taken losing what she’d thought was a sure-thing and getting knocked off her feet to figure out that the last thing she needed was a man.
She needed a companion, someone to share her life with, but that didn’t mean tiptoeing around their feelings.
She’d never tiptoed around Anatoly and he still showed up for her. That more than anything decided her.
“This is my case and you all know it,” she asserted, just for the record.
“And it was a sick fucking joke sending you down here to take it from me, but I’m not going to whine about what’s done.
If you’re finished screwing me over again, I’ve got a copy cat to catch.
” Maggie started to leave, but Lieutenant Martin cleared his throat, stopping her in her tracks at the door.
“About the padre…” He started to say and she could feel his words hit the back of her neck like the cold blade of an executioner’s axe. “They think he might be better suited to assist the task force.”
Before Maggie could recover from the gut punch, Anatoly was already speaking. “Nyet. I politely decline. If Father Abrams was murdered by copy cat, then I will focus efforts with Detective Boone.”
“I agree,” Maggie quickly added. “It’s not like Father Brusilev is the only clergyman in Anchorage.”
The two men exchanged a glance and Martin openly frowned. “I thought you hated the father…” he blurted.
“Yeah, well, right now, he’s the only one here who doesn’t suck.” Without a backward glance, she thrust open the door and finally stormed out.