Susan Sleeman - Dead Wrong

“That would be Senior Trooper Ed Franklin. I tried to talk with him, but he shut me down.” She crossed her arms. “He said I was no longer a police officer and I’d have to go through proper channels for my information.”

“He was just following protocol, Kat.”

“You and I both know he could’ve helped me if he wanted to.” She ended with an adorable little pout that kicked up his pulse, and he knew it was time for him to get out of there before he did something he’d regret.

“Well, he won’t have a choice with me.” He stood and headed for the door before she tried to stop him again. “We’ll start with him first thing tomorrow.”

She rushed ahead as if she thought he was going to change his mind about including her in the investigation and wanted him to leave before he said anything to that effect. Now that her pleading expression had disappeared and he could think straight, he wanted to do just that.

She shrugged out of his jacket and handed it to him with a sweet smile.

The softness took him by surprise. She’d always been so tough. So independent. Not needing anyone. The very reasons he’d been attracted to her. But this vulnerable side of her tugged at something in him that he’d only felt for his family and Lori. He wanted to protect Kat. To take care of her. But that wasn’t the end of his interest and the rest wasn’t at all familial.

He took the jacket and stepped outside. “Tommy and I’ll pick you up at nine. Make sure you lock the door.”

He heard her snort as he walked away and a smile found his lips. She was starting to get a bit of her spunk back. Good. With a killer running free, she’d need every bit of her determination and then some to stay alive.

THREE

Morning sun filtered through the blinds as Kat laid her Bible on the table and got up to see if Mitch and Tommy had arrived yet. Her usual morning devotions reminded her to let go of her fear. God was here, by her side. Walking before her, beside her. He would take care of her.

Just not those you love, huh, Kat? The thought came from deep inside, and she squelched it. She trusted God. She just wanted to help Him to make sure things didn’t go wrong.

She scissored opened the blinds and saw the same squad car she’d spotted when she’d peeked outside around 3:00 a.m. after a noise woke her. Not a pleasant discovery. Tommy knew how she detested her birth father’s iron control, and she rarely tolerated people making decisions for her. So it had to have been Mitch. Still, she wouldn’t ask them to cancel the unit. Her siblings would be more likely to keep their distance if they thought provisions had been made for her safety.

She let the blinds fall and pressed her only sister’s speed dial number.

“Hello,” Dani answered on the fifth ring, sounding sleepy.

“Hey,” Kat said, trying to be cheerful though the loss of her friend weighed heavy on her heart. “I have something I need to tell you about.”

“Does it have to be this early in the morning?” Dani was so not a morning person.

“Sorry, but it does.” Kat launched into a description of the attack and Nancy’s death.

“Thanks for calling me last night.” Her sarcastic reply hurt, but Kat deserved it and more for shutting out her sister. “Are you okay?”

“Fine, and I’m sorry about last night. I couldn’t very well tell you about this and ask you not to tell the others. Then everyone would rush over here, and I couldn’t handle that.”

“So no one else knows?”

“No.”

“You should’ve called Cole first. You know how mad he’ll be when he finds out this happened and you spent the night alone.”

Cole was the last person Kat wanted to tell. With their oldest brother, Ethan, on a month-long honeymoon, the usually quiet Cole had taken charge and was very vocal of late.

“That’s why I need your help,” Kat said. “He’ll want to take me off this case and keep me under lock and key until the killer’s caught.”

“And you don’t think he should do that.”

“I have to work on this case, Dani. Nancy was my friend. Plus I screwed up and have to prove myself or I’ll never be in charge again.”

“I don’t know, sis.”

“C’mon, Dani.” She used her most persuasive tone. “With the way Ethan and Cole want us both to sit behind desks all the time, you of all people should back me up on this.” She and Dani had fought their brothers treating them like helpless females instead of trained law enforcement officials for two years now. Their brothers had only recently started letting them get more involved, but this situation would make them pull back.

“You have a point,” Dani said, although grudgingly.

Kat almost had her cooperation. “I’ve already gotten approval to work with the detectives in charge of the case so I’ll spend most of my time with them. They’ve also posted an officer outside my door for when I’m home. I’ll be perfectly safe.”

“I’m not sure this is a good idea....”

“Please, Dani. I need to do this.”

She sighed. “You’re sure you’ll be okay?”

“Yes. I’m positive.”

“Fine. I’ll tell Cole about it when I get to work, and I’ll try to convince him to stay away. But don’t blame me if he comes after you.”

“Thanks, Dani. I owe you one.” The doorbell rang, and Kat jumped. “Tommy’s at the door. I gotta go.”

“Tommy. Wait. This means you’re working with Mitch Elliot, too. When were you planning on telling me about that?”

Never. “I’ll call you later.” Kat hung up before her sister, who knew all about Mitch’s rejection, had a chance to grill her.

She went to the door and found Mitch leaning on the wall, his legs crossed at the ankle. Her heart did a little free fall as she tipped her head back and ran her gaze up the strong column of his neck to meet his eyes. She was rewarded for the effort with a slow smile spreading across a rugged face with a hint of stubble to match his dark hair. He wore boot-cut jeans, a white dress shirt and tie covered with the same Portland Police Bureau windbreaker as last night. The memory of his scent as the jacket circled her in warmth still lingered in her mind and she had to take a deep breath to clear it out.

“Where’s Tommy?” she asked and stepped back as the ramifications of spending the day alone with him sunk in.

“He’s taking care of something, and he’ll meet us later.”

The only reason Mitch would be so vague on Tommy’s whereabouts was if they thought it would bother her, making it easy to guess his location. “So he’s at the morgue?”

“Yeah.”

She appreciated the two of them trying to spare her from the gruesome details, but she couldn’t let them continue to tiptoe around her. “You guys don’t need to treat me with kid gloves, Mitch.”

“Okay,” he said, and something that looked suspiciously like relief flared in his eyes for a brief moment.

She got it. He didn’t want to be burdened with her fragility brought on by grief. She’d have to make a point today of showing him she could do her job no matter her pain. And that started with making sure Nancy’s parents had been notified of her death.

“Has anyone located Nancy’s parents?” she asked.

“They’re meeting Tommy at the morgue right now.”

So they were at the viewing window for the second time in a few months identifying their child. Kat couldn’t imagine their pain. She offered a quick prayer for them before looking back at Mitch. “I didn’t know them, but I’d like to offer my condolences. I don’t suppose you’d break the rules and give me their contact information.”

“We can get it from Tommy when we meet up with him.” He sounded as sad as she felt. “Trooper Franklin’s expecting us so we should get going.”