Marie Ferrarella - Cavanaugh's Secret Delivery

There was one thing he did know. “She’s not a police officer, sir.” He looked at Daniels, waiting for the man to relent his position.

“She’s anything I say she is,” Daniels retorted, angry at what he felt was a challenge to his authority. “And right now, she has the clearance to be here and to help us in our investigation, so until such time as I decide it’s no longer beneficial to this department, she is going to be working with you. Have I made myself clear, Detective Cavanaugh?”

“Perfectly,” Dugan replied, doing his best to remain civil rather than to challenge the man.

It wouldn’t do him any good anyway. The lieutenant, for reasons he could only begin to guess at, had made up his mind about including Toni O’Keefe in the case. He’d never been all that close to Daniels, who had only been heading up Vice for the last nine months, so maybe there was something he didn’t know about the man—or this woman, for that matter.

For all he knew, maybe the lieutenant was the father of that baby she’d just had two months ago. Dugan was vaguely aware of the fact that the man was married, but that sort of thing might not have mattered to Daniels in this case.

At any rate, he was not about to waste time trying to figure out what was going on.

Instead, he was just going to get out of here and ditch this woman, whatever her game was, the first chance he got.

“All right,” Daniels was saying. “Are there any questions you might have for me?” He was looking directly at the journalist when he asked the question.

On an absolute basis, Dugan could see why the lieutenant might be acting the way he was. The woman, whoever she really was, was a stunner now that he actually looked at her. There was no other word for it. At approximately five foot seven, with long dark-blond hair and eyes the color of the sky at midday, she was gorgeous enough to catch anyone’s attention and make them forget everything, including the end of their sentence.

But they weren’t just “anyone,” they were members of the police department, and as such, they had a duty to perform, one that came before everything else. Or so he liked to believe.

Didn’t matter. All that mattered now was to get out of this room and get on with what he’d been about to do when the lieutenant had called him in. Granted, he wasn’t getting anywhere with his investigation, but he hadn’t given up yet. He certainly wasn’t going to get anywhere by following around a so-called newshound, no matter what Daniels wanted him to do.

“Just one,” Toni said, her voice sounding remarkably like Marilyn Monroe for someone who wanted to be taken seriously.

“And what’s that?” Daniels asked, turning almost into a schoolboy right before his eyes.

“What do I do about Detective—Cavanaugh, is it?” she asked, looking at Dugan with wide eyes.

Before he could answer her, she had turned her attention back to the lieutenant and continued, “If he suddenly decides to ditch me and take off?”

“He won’t do that,” Daniels answered. “Because there would be consequences to pay if he did that and he knows it.” The lieutenant looked at Dugan pointedly. “Right, Cavanaugh?”

“Right, sir.”

“Well, then, I guess we’ll get out of your hair and get started,” she said brightly.

“Remember,” Daniels said to her as he ushered her out of his office. “Any trouble at all, please don’t hesitate to get back to me.”

“Oh, I won’t,” she told him. Then, looking directly at Dugan, she smiled as she added, “As a matter of fact, Lieutenant Daniels, you can count on it.”

Chapter 4

The moment he was out of the lieutenant’s office, Dugan headed straight for the outer doorway leading out of the squad room. He had no particular destination in mind, other than to get away from the woman he had just been saddled with.

But if he’d meant to leave her behind, he found that she had other ideas about that.

The moment he stopped by the elevator to push the down button, she was right beside him.

He decided to ignore her. But that was before she said what she said.

“You didn’t come to the hospital the way you said you would.”

That stopped him cold. Turning to look at her, he saw a completely different expression on her face. It wasn’t that vacant, cheerful look she’d worn in Daniels’ office. The woman from the alley was back.

“Then you do remember.”

“The most important night of my life?” she asked, surprised that he would think otherwise. “Yes, of course I remember. How could I forget?”

“Then why did you just act as if you didn’t know me back there?” Dugan asked.

She looked around. For the moment, they were alone, so she explained her reasoning. “Because I wanted to do this story and I didn’t think your lieutenant would have put us together if he thought we had a history.”

Dugan didn’t have to think about that. “You’re right, he probably wouldn’t have.” Daniels tended to be the type who always had to be on top of everything, otherwise he was jealous.

Dugan got on the elevator. Toni was quick to follow. He moved back, giving her space—although part of him didn’t want to. The thought of getting closer was extremely appealing. “But we don’t have a history,” he pointed out, pressing for the first floor. “We had about forty minutes together in less than perfect circumstances—Scarlet.”

The elevator doors closed. They were alone but that could change at any moment. She talked quickly. “It’s not Scarlet,” she told him.

“I already know that,” he said, annoyed. There was no point in raising any recriminations. But he did want to know one thing. “Why did you lie to me?”

That was simple enough. “Because I didn’t know you from Adam and for all I knew, you weren’t a cop the way you said you were.”

He supposed that was fair enough. He thought of something else. “And that gun on the passenger seat, that was for protection?”

She nodded. “Yes.”

“Midnight’s kind of a strange time to be out joyriding,” he told her, skeptically.

“I wasn’t joyriding,” she informed him. “I was driving myself to the hospital. The baby decided she didn’t want to wait any longer and was earlier than anticipated.”

They had arrived on the ground floor, but he didn’t get out right away. “Why didn’t the baby’s father drive you?” he asked.

Toni walked passed him, getting out of the elevator. “I think you’ve used up your allotment of free questions for the time being,” she told him.

“One more question,” he said, holding up his index finger. “What’s your real name?”

So he thought she was lying to the lieutenant. She supposed she had that coming. Besides, even if she was lying, if he was the detective she thought he was, it wouldn’t have taken him much to find out the truth.

“It’s Toni. Toni O’Keefe, just like your lieutenant said,” she answered.

“And just what are you supposed to do?” he asked. “Shadow my every step while I collect intel and try not to get shot by anyone associated with the drug cartels?”

They were in the police station lobby and the person at the reception desk was looking over at them, obviously curious. Toni ignored him.

“You’ve already asked your one question, but I’m feeling magnanimous so, yes, that’s the general idea.”

Dugan frowned. That was just stupid seven ways from sundown, he thought. “And whose bright idea was it for you to play Lois Lane?”

She raised her chin. “Mine.” He started walking, so she quickly fell into place beside him. Or tried to.

“Does this mean that you think you’re Clark Kent?” she asked.

“Hell, no.” He laughed at the idea. “If I’m going to be anybody, it’d be Superman.”