Terri Reed - Protect And Serve

Officer Marlton sighed heavily and unfolded his arms. “Fine.” He trudged off, mumbling about having to do everything himself.

Shane watched him. His father, a police chief in Flagstaff, would never have stood for such disrespectful behavior from his men. First Harmon not showing up, then Bucks defying an order and Marlton making it clear he wasn’t happy doing his job.

There was a rumor going around that Chief Jones would be retiring soon. Perhaps that was why the chief wasn’t strict with his employees. Or it could be the grief and shock of Veronica’s death.

“I’ve gathered what I can from Gina,” Officer Donaldson remarked as she held on to the evidence bags.

“Thank you, Louise. We’ll get Gina’s clothes bagged. Would you track down Harmon and then start a search for Tim Perry? Build a profile. I want to know where he’s been and what he’s been doing.”

Louise nodded, her usually serious expression even more grim on her pale face. “On it.”

Earl squatted down in front of Gina. “When was the last time you saw your brother?”

Her hazel eyes looked too large for her petite face. “Do you mean before tonight?”

Shane frowned. “So you did see him tonight.”

She kept her gaze on the chief. “When I returned home from the potluck, he was in my bedroom. He had a knife. I ran downstairs hoping to get to the phone but he was too close so I escaped out the front door and ran this way, hoping to make it to the station, but then I found...” She closed her eyes.

“Why were you hiding in the shrubs when Bella and I arrived?”

Her eyelids popped open. “I was afraid you were Tim.”

Or was she hoping she could slip away undetected?

A car pulled up. Shane yanked his gaze from Gina to see Sophie Williams, another trainer at the center, emerge from behind the wheel. Tall, earthy and willowy, the former K-9 cop’s normally confident demeanor was lacking as she hurried over.

Her shoulder-length blond hair was tied back in a messy ponytail, and her hazel eyes were anxious as she took in the scene. She and Veronica had clashed many times during Shane’s weeks of training. He watched Sophie closely. Was her shock real? Could she and Gina have come up with a plan to off their boss?

Sophie halted beside Shane, but her gaze was on Veronica. “Oh, no. Is she...?” She clamped a hand to her mouth. Tears leaked down her face.

“Sophie, what are you doing here?” Earl asked, clearly puzzled by her presence.

“I heard on the police radio that something had happened at the center,” she explained. Her teary-eyed gaze moved to Gina and widened. “Oh, no, Gina. Are you all right? Were you attacked, too?”

Before Gina could answer, Earl filled Sophie in on the details. It was clear by the way his voice shook that he was hanging on to his composure by the tips of his fingers.

A few minutes later, Randolph Drummond, the mortician who doubled as the coroner, arrived wearing a subdued black suit, white button-down shirt and black tie. He carried a medical bag. He stopped a foot away from Veronica’s body to don gloves and booties, then he squatted beside her.

Bella whined. Shane stroked her head. She let out a loud bark just as a commotion broke out near the doors. Two small German shepherd puppies raced out of the center, followed by Titus and Ryder. The older dog circled the puppies, unmistakably in an attempt to corral them.

“Oh, no,” Sophie said.

Gina jumped to her feet. “The puppies are loose. How...?”

Shane snagged Gina by the elbow before she could chase after the puppies. “We need your clothes.”

She blinked at him, then grimaced. “Of course.”

Shane turned to the chief. “Veronica was microchipping the puppies tonight and was supposed to come over to the condo afterward to work with James and Hawk.” K-9 rookie officer James Harrison and Shane shared the furnished condo used by out-of-town rookies. “I’ll call James and let him know what’s going on. Maybe Hawk will be helpful.” James’s bloodhound, Hawk, specialized in crime scene evidence.

The chief held up a hand. “Have him clear Gina’s house before you take her home to change. Bring back her current clothing in an evidence bag.”

“Sir,” Shane spoke up. “Shouldn’t she be taken to the station for questioning?”

Gina let out a small gasp. “You can’t really believe that I...”

The stricken hurt in her eyes stabbed at him, but he couldn’t rule her out as the murderer, not until forensic evidence cleared her. “You had a very good reason to want to hurt Veronica.”

“So did many other people,” she shot back.

“True.” Including the other trainer, Sophie. Could the two women have conspired to murder their boss? Though Sophie had once been a cop, that didn’t mean she couldn’t have colluded with Gina. Hmm. Something to talk to the chief about later.

To Gina, Shane said, “Veronica humiliated you on Friday. And from what I’ve heard, she stole the fiancé of one of your best friends.” He hated throwing the rumor in her face but it went to motive.

“It’s true Veronica did steal Simon from Jenna just to prove she could. It broke Jenna’s heart and caused her to resign and leave, not only the training center but Desert Valley.” Gina squared her shoulders. “And yes, I may have loathed my boss, but I never wished Veronica dead.”

He wanted to believe her. There was something about the young trainer he found very attractive. Even now, she was standing up for herself but not in an over-the-top display of hysterics or viciousness. He respected her quiet confidence in the face of hardship.

Yet his father had always told him that the evidence never lied, only people did. Was Gina lying?

And Dad had said to never make a judgment on innocence or guilt until all the evidence came in. “If your brother is truly after you as you’ve stated, then you should be where you can be protected.”

Earl narrowed his gaze on Shane. “She’s been questioned. She’s innocent until proven guilty. But you’re right, she’s in danger and needs protection. That’ll be your job, Weston.”

Oh, man. He hadn’t expected to be given a protection assignment. What did he know about being a bodyguard? He’d trained to be out on the streets, catching criminals and thwarting the schemes of bad people. Surely the chief would want someone with more experience to protect Gina. “Are you sure—”

Earl arched one eyebrow as he cut Shane off. “Yes.” There was no room for argument in his tone. Then Earl turned his gaze to Gina. “Don’t leave town.”

Gina lifted her chin. “No, sir, I won’t.”

Sophie and Ryder joined them. They’d managed to corral the puppies and now each had one in their arms.

“Where’s Marco, the third pup?” Gina asked.

“He’s probably inside,” Sophie said. “I’ll round him up and put him in the crate with these two.”

“I didn’t see a third puppy when I was inside,” Ryder said. “Just these ones.”

For a moment no one said anything. Then Shane asked, “Could the killer have taken the puppy?”

* * *

Shane thinks I could have killed Veronica! Standing beneath the bright glare of the flood lamps that illuminated the crime scene in garish detail, Gina curled her fingers into fists and pressed them into the sides of her thighs. She stared at Shane as he stepped away to call another rookie—his roommate, James Harrison—and wanted to scream. How could he think she’d do something so horrible?

But it wasn’t as if he knew her, despite their having spent every day together the past twelve weeks. She knew he took his job very seriously, but really?

She inwardly scoffed. What did it matter anyway? So what if the handsome officer had invaded her daydreams over the past weeks. She couldn’t, wouldn’t, allow herself to develop deep feelings for him. There was too much risk involved. And risky behavior was something she avoided. Besides, now that his training had ended, he’d be moving on. As he should.