Chapter 25
Now that his partner and good friend Hollis Montrose had been indicted with four counts of attempted murder, Finn felt even more pressure to crack this case.
Capes followed him into the office, toward the front desk at the impound lot.
“Tell me again how those idiots managed to get into the impound lot?” Capes asked. “Doesn’t that take a warrant or court order?”
“Not everyone with a badge is righteous,” Finn said. “Some people can be bribed, bullied, or outright bought.”
“I can’t say I’m surprised.”
Finn rolled his eyes. “They’re people. As you know, people aren’t infallible.”
“Ain’t that the truth.”
“I’ll do the talking,” Finn said. “Just follow my lead.”
The pair quickly learned that Finn was best suited to manage other cops, while Capes did better with civilians.
The latter had an easy ability—some might call it charisma—to speak with people from all backgrounds.
They were a bit like improvisational jazz players, each person knowing when to let the other have a solo.
“Officer…” Finn struggled to read the name tag. “Santiago.”
“Something I can do for you?”
“We need access to the impound lot.”
“Who’s asking?”
“Officer Finn Doyle.”
“Don’t know any Doyle,” he said. “What department are you from?”
“Metra.”
Santiago’s expression read of skepticism. Finn was losing ground. “And you need access to the vehicle impound lot?”
“That’s right. Part of a special assignment.”
“You have documentation?”
“Must’ve misplaced it, but you can call my supervisor,” Finn said. “They’ll vouch for me.”
Santiago studied Capes, whose lack of a suit and tie made him seem out of place. “And who’s he?”
“Don’t worry about him. He’s undercover.”
“Nice try, pal,” Santiago said. “Not sure what you’re trying to pull here, but get lost and take your friend with you.”
“Is that what you told Dunham and Rossi?”
“How’d you—”
“My understanding is you gave them access to the lot, and all it took was a smile,” Finn said. “Did you give them the third degree, too?”
“Shit,” Santiago said. “Wait, wait…Is this an integrity check? Are you with IA?”
Finn said, “You’re smarter than you look, Sherlock. Now let us in before your day gets worse.”
“Hold on a sec. I’m not getting written up over fucking Dunham and Rossi.”
“It’s out of my hands.”
Finn started to turn away as Santiago grew more desperate.
“Just hear me out, please? I’ll tell you what you want to know.”
“What did they want?” Finn asked. “Give me details. Otherwise, I go to my supervisors, and you can sort it out with IA.”
“Nothing major. It didn’t seem critical. They just wanted access to the lot. Said something about a lost cellphone. I think it might’ve been Rossi’s. I can’t remember, but they wanted to check a vehicle they had impounded to see if the phone was there.”
“Which vehicle?” Finn asked. “I need a description.”
“I got it right here…” Santiago flipped the blocker until he located the vehicle. “I’ll write the location down for you. It’s no problem.” Santiago wrote the information on an index card and handed it to Finn. “It’s a gray Ford Expedition.”
Hollis’s car. Finn looked at the lot number and put the card in his pocket. “You make it a habit to give cops unauthorized access to the impound lot?”
“No, sir. It was a one-time thing, I swear.”
Finn made an unconvinced noise.
“Are you going to report me?”
“My colleague here will need to take your information: Full name and badge number.”
“Damn it,” Santiago said. “I’m never going to get off desk detail.”
Capes took out his notepad and pen. “Please spell your full name,” he said, trying to emulate Finn’s mannerisms and tone. He’d had enough interactions with police to know there was commonality in how they moved and spoke, and Finn was no different.
Santiago sighed and slapped his forehead. “I can’t believe this shit.”
“And speak clearly, please,” Capes added.
Santiago provided his information between mumbled curses. Once Capes had it, Santiago opened the door leading to the impound lot.
Finn and Capes entered the short hallway leading outside. They walked down the aisle toward Hollis’s vehicle. Capes pulled his cap’s brim lower to shield his eyes from the blustery wind.
“So you went the integrity check route. I can respect that,” Capes said.
“That idiot assumed that’s what we were doing here, so I went with it,” Finn said, squinting from the wind.
“I’m thinking such checks must’ve passed Dunham and Rossi by.”
“Well, unless it’s absolutely egregious, most officers get a slap on the wrist. Hollis’s SUV should be right up here.” Finn pointed to a dark-colored Expedition in the distance.
When they arrived, the door to the vehicle was unlocked. They immediately began searching the floorboards. After fifteen minutes, Finn banged the hood in defeat. “I don’t think it’s here,” he said. “Either it never was, or someone got it before we could.”
“And they removed the license plate,” Capes said.
“Damn it. They must have the plate in evidence,” Finn said.
“You think Caruthers lied?” Capes asked. “Beau Lee said he seemed confident.”
“Maybe Dunham and Rossi lied to him.”
“The stool-pigeon test?”
“You know about that?” Finn asked.
“Who doesn’t? On the streets, it’s the easiest way to tell a friend from a foe. Tell a man a lie and see where it spreads.”
“Exactly! Dunham and Rossi were testing his loyalty by giving the information about the vehicle,” said Finn.
“Then you know what that means,” Finn said. “We might’ve walked right into something. Dunham and Rossi could be watching us right now.”
“We need to go.”
They walked quickly back to the office. Inside, they breezed past Santiago, who looked desperate for Finn not to report him, and exited.
“This is bad,” Capes said. “Dunham and Rossi might know Caruthers is helping us. We need to warn him.”
“The kid brought this on himself.”
“These guys are dangerous.”
“Of course they’re dangerous. They’re cops, and the worst kind at that.”
Capes noticed a Plymouth Duster parked across the street. Two men with unfamiliar faces were inside watching them. “We got eyes on us,” he said. “Older yellow two-door across the street.”
“Don’t make it obvious.”
Finn and Capes casually got in the Crown Vic.
“You think that’s Dunham and Rossi?” Capes asked, staying low in his seat.
“Odds are good that we just verified Caruthers is a rat.”
Capes took out his phone. “We need to tell Beau Lee.” He dialed over the speaker and waited. “Boss, we’ve got a problem.”
“What’s going on?”
“It was a setup. There was no wallet. Dunham and Rossi had eyes on us the whole time. They must know Caruthers has been talking to us.”
“I’ll try to reach Caruthers now,” Beau Lee said.
“Be good if we knew where he lived,” Capes said.
“Is that something you could help with, Officer Doyle?” Beau Lee asked. “I don’t want you to overextend yourself on our account.”
“My hands might be tied on this one,” said Finn. “The best thing is to keep calling him and hope he picks up. If not, I’ll figure out how to get his address, discreetly, by this evening.”
The Duster revved loudly and took off, disappearing down the street and leaving behind a plume of smoke.
“We believe the other officers just took off,” Capes said. “It’s not looking good, boss. They could be going after Caruthers.”
“Stand by,” Beau Lee said. “I’ll see if I can reach him.”
Beau Lee ended the call.
“Can’t believe we got played, and so did Caruthers,” Capes said.
“Believe it. Those officers got plenty of tricks up their sleeves. Besides, Caruthers brought this on himself.”
Capes knew he was right. Caruthers had participated in Hollis’s unjustified shooting, and now he was reaping what he sowed.
But it didn’t make him feel any better knowing that Dunham and Rossi were out there potentially looking to get even.
They had callously shot Hollis, and there was no telling what they were prepared to do to Caruthers.
—
Later that evening Beau Lee and Finn caught up with Rory at a café near their hotel.
When Beau Lee was on the phone with him, he’d seemed ready to share his side of the story, insistent he hadn’t double-crossed them.
Beau Lee thought it was best they all meet in person and chat.
Rory’s jaw was tight as he stared out the window, sitting across from Beau Lee and Finn.
The weight of his decision was heavy in the silence.
“I’m not old enough to retire. I don’t even have the years in,” he said in a low voice.
“But I’m done. I’m putting in for a medical leave and walking away.
Call it stress, call it what you want—they’ve given me no choice. ”
Beau Lee narrowed his eyes. “The union?”
“They’ve made it clear,” Rory said, turning to face them.
“I broke the code. I talked to y’all and somehow they found out.
Now I’m getting threats, unmarked cars parked outside my house, silence from people I used to eat lunch with every damn day.
My parents and my fiancée are scared to open their doors.
My siblings have asked me if I did something wrong.
” He paused, hands clenched. “I did the right thing—and it’s ruining my life. ”
He pulled a folded affidavit from his jacket and slid it across the table like it burned in his hands. “I signed this because it’s the truth. Hollis never touched his gun. Never fired. I’ll testify to that. But you’ll have to subpoena me. I’m leaving the city. I’m not saying where.”
Rory pushed back from the table and stood. His movements showing apprehension as he stated, “I’ve said my piece. You don’t have to agree with me, but please understand—I’m just trying to keep me and my loved ones safe.”
He glanced at both Beau Lee and Finn, eyes clouded somewhere between guilt and defiance. “You want justice? Then get it. But don’t expect me to die for it.”
Without waiting for a response, he turned and walked out, the door closing behind him.
Outside the café, Rory leaned against the cool concrete wall, his breathing shallow. His fingers trembled as he pulled out his phone and dialed. When his father answered, he didn’t say much—just, “It’s done. I’m coming home.” His voice cracked on the last word.
And for the first time in a long time, Rory didn’t feel like a cop. He just felt like a man trying to survive.
Finn exploded in frustration. “What the hell was that? He’s just gonna walk out like that? These new guys—no backbone, no resilience. Just bail when it gets hard.”
Beau Lee tapped in with a calm but sharp voice. “Rory didn’t run. He fired his gun with the rest of them. He’s just as culpable, and he has a lot to lose. But when it came time to tell the truth, he stood alone. That kind of courage doesn’t always wear a badge. Sometimes it walks away from one.”