by Peyton Banks
“Roxxy.” Mac nodded to her. “Mrs. Sutton.”
“Hello, Mac.” Roxxy smiled. She waved to the other men standing behind him.
These men had somehow jumped a helicopter to come save a member of their team. It was obvious that the men were close and willing to do anything to help their brother when he was in danger.
“Sergeant MacArthur, welcome to my home. I wish it were under better circumstances.” Shelby chortled. She stood and shook Mac’s hand.
“That would have been nice. You all have a lovely piece of land.” Mac gave a dry chuckle.
“Thank you.” Her mother smiled. Shelby was always proud to show off the farm. “Can I offer you fellas something to drink? I made some iced tea this morning.”
Roxxy’s gaze landed on Myles who was motioning for her.
“Excuse me,” she murmured. She stood and walked down the few steps to him.
“Come with me.” He took her hand and guided her around the corner of the house.
“What’s wrong?” She was uncertain why he needed to pull them away from everyone.
She leaned back against the house and waited. He palmed his bald head and stared at her.
“I meant what I said,” he began. He appeared nervous which was rare for someone who was extremely confident and cocky. He stepped near her, closing the gap between them. “There’s so much I want to say, but now isn’t the time.”
“I know.” She sighed. She reached up and caressed his borrowed vest. “But that’s okay, once they’ve all left—”
“That’s the thing. I need to go with them,” he interjected.
She paused her hand. “Oh.”
“The sheriff is going to let us interview the men your father and I tied up. I have to know what is going on. This is more than what we know.”
Roxxy nodded. She understood completely that he needed to finish whatever was started. He wouldn’t be safe until they did. There would be no peace or rest until he’d solved this.
Hell, she wouldn’t rest knowing someone was out there gunning for the man she loved. She leaned against him and took his hands in hers.
“I want you to go and get the answers we need.” She lifted his hand to her lips and pressed a light kiss to the back of it. Those strong hands had given her so much pleasure. She rubbed her face against it. “Then I want you to come back to me and show me how much you love me.”
Myles cupped her cheek and tilted her head back. He leaned forward and covered her lips with his.
“Roxxy, I’ll be coming back for you.”
Myles walked from the men’s room at the sheriff’s department in his newly borrowed clothing. One of the deputies had a pair of gray sweatpants and a sheriff’s t-shirt in his locker that was slightly snug on Myles.
It would have to do for now. There hadn’t been any time for him to run back to his hotel room and get a change of clothing. The clothes he had worn to dinner were ruined.
He walked through the small building toward where his teammates were standing. The sheriff was going to allow them to speak with the men who were apprehended. Myles couldn’t wait to get into a room. He wanted the one who had shared the information about the men being paid to find him. They needed to continue their conversation.
He arrived in the small area to find Mac, Ash, Iker, and Brodie speaking quietly amongst themselves. They were waiting for the green light to interrogate the suspects.
“It’s about time, lover boy,” Ash joked.
Myles rolled his eyes and stopped next to his friend.
“So how did Roxxy love dining then a shoot-out?” Brodie snickered.
Ash and Iker chuckled with him.
“My girl likes shooting shit,” Myles replied. He folded his arms in front of his chest. He winced slightly from the wound on his arm. Now that the adrenaline had worn off, he was feeling the pain.
“You need to get that checked out.” Mac nodded to his shoulder.
“I’m fine.” Myles shook his head.
“I’m not suggesting. That’s an order.” Mac narrowed his gaze on Myles.
He blew out a deep breath. He didn’t want to argue with his sergeant. Mac was like a pit bull, and when he set his sights on something, he didn’t give up.
“Fine, but after we’re done here. I have things to do.” Roxxy’s face came to mind. He hadn’t wanted to leave her, but he had to be involved in the interrogation. Men came gunning for him, he needed to find out why. Roxxy was almost certain the shooting after they’d left the ice cream parlor had nothing to do with her ex, but he wanted to rule everyone out before accepting her reasoning. “What did you find out on Korey Norman?”
“Nothing worth anything,” Brodie answered. He was a whiz when it came to technology. “Stand-up guy, pays his taxes, decent hard worker. Just an average American citizen who don’t know how to keep his dick in his pants.”
Myles’s gaze cut to him. “What?”
“It’s amazing what you find on social media. So apparently the idiot cheated on Roxxy with some waitress. The same woman has now posted all over his social media that he’s been cheating on her with some other chick.” Brodie chuckled.
Myles shook his head. Korey had fucked up, and now Myles was reaping all of the rewards.
“I want in on the interrogation.” Myles turned to Mac. Usually he stayed out of this type of thing. Mac, Declan, and Ash were usually the go-to when it came to getting information out of the bad guys.
But this was personal.
It had been him they were looking for.
Mac paused and stared at him for a second before jerking his head in a nod. “We can tag team. I’m not sure how much time the sheriff is going to give us, so its best if we go in with each other.”
“We missed out on all the fun,” Ash said. “It’s been a few days since I’ve had to fire my weapon.”
“You don’t need any extra action. Deanna would kill us if you were harmed.” Myles laughed. “I’m shocked you’re even here. Baby is due soon. You should be sticking close to home.”
“True, but when I hear my friend and brother came under fire while out to dinner with his woman, there’s no way I could stay away.” Ash turned serious.
Myles nodded, understanding what his friend was saying. They had a bond. The entire SWAT team was close. Myles was actually surprised that everyone didn’t show up.
“No way was I getting left behind.” Iker clapped him on the back.
“Where did y’all get a helicopter from?” Myles asked. He scratched his head, still in shock that his team had shown up in a borrowed bird.
“Don’t worry your pretty bald head about that. You know I know people.” Brodie chuckled.
Myles stared at him for a brief moment then shook his head. Brodie had too many contacts with resources he never understood.
“Sergeant MacArthur?” Sheriff Anderson walked toward them from the area where the suspects were being held. He stopped near their group, clutching some paperwork in his hand. “Sorry it took so long. Been a while since we had to process so many people.”
“Not a problem, Sheriff. We’re patient men,” Mac replied.
“Now I can’t let you in there for long, but seeing how they were on Sutton property, I’ll bend the rules.” The sheriff took his hat off and burrowed his hand into his hair. “The Suttons are a good family and close friends of mine, so whatever you can find out to help you, by all means, go ahead.”
Myles was running on fumes at the moment, and sleep was a long way away. As soon as he could, he was leaving to go back to Roxxy. He was head over heels in love with her. If he hadn’t learned anything else watching his friends fall in love, he’d learned that he needed to scoop up the woman he loved and hold on to her. Tomorrow wasn’t promised, and he needed to use every day he had to show Roxxy how much he loved her.
“We appreciate it, Sheriff.” Mac nodded.
“Here’s what we have so far on the men. None of them are from around these parts.” Anderson handed the pa
pers to Mac.
Myles moved closer to Mac so he could get a good look at them. The papers were the men’s rap sheets with their pictures on them. Mac shifted through them.
“That one.” Myles pointed to the sheet on top. It was the thug from the woods who’d confirmed they were after him. “I want in on him.”
“Brodie, you and Iker will go have a chat with these two. Myles and I will take these two,” Mac announced. He handed two of the rap sheets to Brodie while he passed the other one to Myles.
“Follow me. I have two already in separate rooms waiting. When you want the other two, we’ll bring them out of the holding area.” Anderson motioned for them to follow him.
Myles walked behind Mac, his gaze glued to the paper in his hand.
Whit Green was the thug’s name. His sheet was as long as Myles was tall.
Myles froze and released a curse.
He looked up and found all eyes on him.
“What is it?” Mac asked.
“Let me see the other sheets.”
Brodie handed them to him. He shuffled through them all and instantly picked up a common associate between them all.
Known affiliations: Demon Lords.
“All of them belong to the Demon Lords,” he said. His gaze met Mac’s.
Someone released a curse. The Columbia SWAT team had bad blood between the infamous gang.
“So they are going after members of SWAT?” Iker narrowed his eyes and folded his arms in front of him.
“Well, they know we won’t back down from them,” Brodie replied.
“We go in and find out who wanted Myles dead. Let’s get them talking,” Mac instructed.
They all nodded.
“Then when we’re done in here, Brodie, I want you to find out everything you can about these men. I want to know what they take in their coffee and anything else you can find.”
Myles handed the papers back to Brodie.
He was ready to go in the room and find out what the hell these people wanted.
If they were after him because he was SWAT, the Demon Lords would feel their wrath again.
“Let’s go.” Myles brushed past his teammates and headed in the direction the sheriff had disappeared.
They arrived at the interrogation rooms. The sheriff updated them on which men were in the room. First up was Whit Green.
“Remember we want him talking,” Mac said. He moved next to Myles.
“I know. He already gave me enough information earlier,” Myles bit out. He had to keep his cool. Beating the man to within an inch of his life wasn’t going to get him anywhere but jail himself. Myles blew out a deep breath.
“You good?” Mac arched an eyebrow at him.
“Yeah. Don’t kick his ass. Got it.”
Mac chuckled and opened the door. It was a small room with a table, three chairs, and a two-way mirror. Standard procedure called for the room to be recorded.
“Good morning.” Mac pulled up a chair in front of Whit.
Whit sat at the table with his head resting on the surface and hands cuffed in front of him. He slowly lifted when Myles shut the door. He glanced at Mac and Myles and smirked.
“So they sent the good ol’ boys in here to rough me up?” Whit gave a dry snicker.
“That would be illegal,” Mac replied drolly.
“Like that would stop ya,” Whit taunted.
“You sure didn’t have a problem gunning for me,” Myles growled. He narrowed his eyes on the man, taking in all his features.
“I was lost.” Whit grinned. “Didn’t know where I was. Me and my buddies were hunting.”
Myles had to push down the urge to punch Whit in the face. He was quickly trying Myles’s patience.
“Hunting? That’s your excuse?” Mac took a seat in the chair across from Whit.
He acted cool and aloof, but Myles knew his sergeant, and Mac was anything but. He was a bulldog and had a bite that was just as vicious.
“This is South Carolina. Us country boys like to hunt.”
“But you’re not from around here.” Myles leaned back against the wall. He glared at the suspect.
Whit was lying. Both he and Mac knew it.
“There ain’t no law that says I can’t travel around the state.”
“There’s a law against hunting down someone. A police officer.” Mac rested his forearms on the table. “You think we’re just going to let that go?”
Whit leaned back as far as the handcuffs would allow. “So is this where you play bad cop, good cop to try to get information out of me?”
“Bad cop, good cop is shit you see on television.” Myles huffed. Where did this guy think he was? In a movie? That routine was common in television shows and movies. They didn’t play games like that when interrogating suspects. “How about you tell us why you were after me. You said it yourself in the woods.”
“I didn’t say shit,” Whit denied.
Myles glared at him. “Excuse me?”
“After you knocked me out, I don’t remember nothing. I think I should sue your department. I’m sure I’ll get plenty of—”
Myles pushed off the wall and stalked toward the table. “You son of a bit—”
“Stand down, Burton,” Mac barked. He glanced at Myles and held up a hand. He turned back to Whit, his voice dropping low. “Look, we know you’re associated with the Demon Lords. They don’t have a good history with our squad. You want to go down with them, fine, but I will tell you they don’t protect their own.”
Mac stood from his chair.
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Demon Lords protect their own,” Whit snapped.
“Not sure when you joined, but you should—”
“You think the Demon Lords are after you?” Whit turned his attention to Myles. “Naw, they don’t give a shit about you. But you need to watch your back. You cops say you stand behind each other, but I know from firsthand experience y’all can be just as crooked as criminals.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Myles placed his hands on the table.
“The guy who hired us was a cop.” Whit snickered.
“Why should we believe you?” Mac folded his arms in front of his chest.
“He didn’t have a badge on or anything, but I know a cop when I see one.” Whit sniffed. “Y’all walk around like your shit don’t stink, like you’re above everyone. That dude was a cop, no question.”
Myles stood stall and glanced at Mac.
Shit.
This was fucked up.
“Now that I told you that information, cut me a deal.” Whit chuckled. “Ain’t that what cops do for information?”
“What information? I don’t remember nothing.” Myles turned and stalked out of the room. He ignored the shouts from the prisoner.
It was official. There was not only a mole in the department, but a traitor.
He and his men would find out who it was.
They’d make that person pay.
Chapter 23
“You have got to be shitting me.” Iker shook his head. “I mean, we all kept mentioning it, but this puts the nail in the coffin.”
They all stood outside the sheriff’s building. Myles remained silent while his team discussed what Whit had shared with him and Mac.
“We didn’t get any good information out of the others,” Brodie said. “They didn’t know nothing.”
“So they’re about to go to jail for shit they didn’t understand.” Ash snickered. “Where do they find these guys at?”
“But who would want you dead?” Mac asked.
Myles shook his head. He’d had run-ins with plenty of people. He could think of one cop who didn’t care for him, but he doubted that it went so deep as to put a hit out on him.
“The only person I can think of is Reeves.” Myles shrugged.
“He wouldn’t have the balls,” Iker grumbled.
“What are you talking about? He wouldn’t stand a chance against Myles. A coward would hire som
eone to take someone out,” Brodie said.
“He’s right, but come on. Reeves was pissed at Myles because he felt his chance was blown for SWAT. Is that serious enough to kill him?” Ash looked around at them.
The group fell quiet for a minute.
“Brodie, I want reports on my desk with everything you can find on these men. We need to find out who hired them. Who has a connection with the Demon Lords to put out a hit on Myles.” Mac’s voice was low.
“As soon as I get back home to my computer, I’ll find everything. I can only do so much on my phone.” Brodie nodded. He would, too. Brodie had a way about computers. If it was uploaded on the internet somewhere, he could find it. He was one dangerous man. “Don’t worry. We’re going to get to the bottom of this.”
“When we return, we’re all going to meet. Not at the station. Somewhere safe,” Mac said.
Nods went around. Apparently speaking at the station wasn’t safe. Iker was right. They all assumed and had strong suspicions that there was someone leaking information about SWAT to the notorious gang. The SWAT team had been instrumental in causing chaos within the illegal organization.
It was time for them to find the mole.
This person evidently wanted Myles dead.
There was no telling what else this person had done.
“We should head back now,” Iker said. A yawn overtook him. He shook his head. “I’m beat. I need about a good ten hours of sleep.”
Myles was running on adrenaline at the moment. He hadn’t slept in over twenty-four hours and he would pay for it. But right now, he had something—someone—on his mind.
Roxxy.
He had to go to her.
They had unfinished business.
“Hey, I’m going to take an extra day,” Myles announced.
Mac nodded while the guys snickered.
“Thee mighty hath fallen,” Ash murmured.
Myles glared at his friend. He remembered the day Ash told him about Deana. His friend was pussy-whipped before he’d touched the woman. It took him almost a year to approach Deana.
“I just want to make sure Roxxy and her family are good,” he said.
