Ann Peterson - Special Assignment

Hawley started toward them.

They found a weapon…the murder weapon…a gun… She turned to look at Mike, her eyes wide.

Oh, hell.

“What is she doing?” Hawley closed in on them. “She’s reading lips, isn’t she? She’s reporting every word.”

On the sidewalk, the cluster of cops broke up. The LT and Grady stayed on the sidewalk, two deputies headed their way.

Mike held up his hands, trying to head off the thuggish Denver PD officer. “Back off, Hawley.”

Cassie just stared at Mike as if oblivious to Hawley or the sheriff’s deputies, a stricken look on her face.

Hawley reached for Cassie’s arm. “Ma’am, you’re going to have to come with me.”

Mike took a step forward. “She doesn’t have to go anywhere.”

“Who are you to decide a damn thing, Lawson? You’re suspended. You’re not even a cop anymore. If you were ever really a cop in the first place.”

Good. At least Hawley’s focus was on him, not Cassie. “What do you mean by that?”

An ugly sneer twisted Hawley’s handsome face. “Cops don’t sell out their own.”

“Whoa. Hold on.” The county detective caught up to Hawley, shooting him a look as if to remind him he was in the county’s jurisdiction and he’d better know his place. “Your lieutenant wants to see you.”

Officer Ted Hawley might be a jerk, but he had the good sense to retreat, even though all of them knew the LT hadn’t said a word. Mike eyed the county man. “What’s going down, Detective?”

“Lawson, you need to take a trip to the sheriff’s offices with us.”

Mike’s gut plummeted. In his mind’s eye, he replayed the look Cassie had given him. Shock. Fear. He hadn’t been able to pay attention with Hawley homing in, but he thought it had something to do with the gun they’d found. The murder weapon. His gun? The service pistol he’d lost? Was that it? He eyed the detective. “Why? What’s going on?”

“Come with me and I’ll fill you in on the details.”

More like he’d interrogate him eight ways from Sunday. Damn. Mike had been wanting more information, but being the suspect in this investigation was a bit more inside than he had in mind. Next time he really had to be more careful about what he wished for. “Should I call my union representative?”

“You really want to lawyer up, Lawson? Or would you rather clear this up?”

The same question he’d ask if a suspect started making noises about calling in legal representation. Mike glanced at Cassie. Still, if he went willingly and didn’t piss the detective off, maybe he could keep Cassie out of this mess. “I’ll go. But Ms. Allen doesn’t have anything to do with this. Someone needs to take her back to the Prescott Personal Securities office.”

The county detective’s expression was a perfect blank. “Sorry. We need to talk to her, too.”

CASSIE’S FINGERS SHOOK as she signed the same thing to the blank-faced sheriff’s deputy for what had to be the fifth time. Mike Lawson didn’t kill that man.

The deputy shook his head. “I’m sorry, ma’am. I don’t understand what you’re trying to tell me. If you’ll just take a seat, I’ll see if I can contact someone who knows sign language.”

Cassie pushed out a frustrated breath. After a few cursory questions, the deputy who had transported her to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department in Golden had told her she was free to go. In the two hours since, she’d been trying to get someone to listen to her pleas of Mike’s innocence. Meanwhile they were raking Mike over the coals for the murder of a man he’d tried to save.

She forced her voice to work, feeling the uncertain vibration in her vocal chords. “Mike Lawson didn’t kill that man.”

He gave her a gentle smile. No, not gentle. Patronizing. Pitying. The reason she hated to speak out loud.

“You already spoke to a detective, didn’t you?”

“Yes. But he didn’t listen.”

“I assure you, he listened. And he’ll get in touch with you if he has any more questions or concerns. You gave him your contact information? Your home address?” He rounded his mouth with each word, speaking deliberately as if to a frightened child. One who couldn’t speak English. And she’d just bet that his voice was raised to the level of a shout, as well.

Cassie felt like growling. She’d bet that would inspire an interesting response in this guy. “He has my home address, my work address and every other type of contact information known to man. What he doesn’t have is the truth.”

“That is what the investigation is for, ma’am.”

“No kidding.”

“Listen, I don’t know what you expect me to do. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a job.” Another pitying smile and the deputy walked away.

Cassie ground her teeth. She didn’t know what she expected, either. But whatever it was, it didn’t have anything to do with a good man being blamed for a murder he didn’t commit.

The shock that had rocketed through her when she’d read the officer’s lips at the scene was still sending aftershocks through her arms and legs. Mike’s gun found at the scene…Mike’s gun recently fired… Mike’s gun…

It was ridiculous. Mike was an honest cop. Hell, he was the poster boy for honest cops. How could they think he’d killed Milo Kardascian?

A light touch on her shoulder jolted through her. She whirled around and looked into the face of one of the cops who’d been at Kardascian’s cabin. The cop she’d first seen in Mike’s hospital room. Mike’s partner, Tim Grady.

“I’m sorry to startle you.” His lips formed the words, revealing a gap-toothed smile.

Normally Cassie would have smiled back. Today she wasn’t in the mood. “Mike Lawson didn’t kill that man.”

“I know.”

“You know?” Even though she couldn’t hear her own voice, she could feel its tremble. “If you know, why is he still in there? Why are they still asking him questions?”

“This isn’t my case. It happened outside the Denver city limits. The county has jurisdiction. And they don’t know Mike like you and I do. They have to go strictly by evidence.”

“What evidence? His gun?”

Surprise widened Detective Grady’s eyes.

Cassie almost clapped a hand over her mouth. She’d forgotten she wasn’t supposed to know about the gun.

Tim Grady narrowed his eyes, studying her. “His service weapon was found at the scene. Yes.”

“But Mike didn’t even have the gun. It was stolen when he was beaten up. Wasn’t that why he was suspended?”

“The sheriff’s department can’t just take Mike’s word for that. Theoretically he could have reported it missing when he had it all along. In fact, I’m afraid that could make his situation worse.”

“How?” She couldn’t imagine things being worse than this. Or maybe she just didn’t want to.

“It shows premeditation.”

She shook her head. How could this be happening? This was getting out of hand. Way out of hand. “But I was with him at Kardascian’s house. He was trying to save the man’s life, not kill him. And I have no reason to lie. Why can’t they take my word?”

“You were with him the entire time?”

She scanned through her memory. It had all happened so fast. It was all so unexpected. She’d been arguing with Mike about who was going to ask Kardascian about Nick Warner, about the “list,” about the disk she was trying to decode. She’d thought Mike was exaggerating about the possible danger. She’d thought he and Evangeline were merely coddling the deaf girl.

But that was before Mike saw something in the garage. Before he’d ordered her to lock herself in the car and call 9-1-1. Before she’d gone looking for him and found him beside Kardascian…up to his elbows in blood.