Twisted Judgment

by Nora Kane

  Twisted Judgment

  Margot Harris Book 9

  Nora Kane

  Twisted Judgment by Nora Kane Copyright © 2021 by Nora Kane.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission. This book is a work of fiction. Any reference to real people or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the authors imagination and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Books by Nora Kane

  1. Secrets of Woodcrest Manor

  2. Wolverine Harbor Novellas Series

  Book 1 - The Veil of Deceit

  Book 2 - The Veil of Envy

  Book 3 - The Veil of Vengeance

  3. Emmy Grimm Series

  Book 1 - Lured

  Book 2 - Chased

  Book 3 - Blindsided

  4. Margot Harris Series

  Book 1 - Shadow of Greed

  Book 2 - Shadow of Pretense

  Book 3 - Shadow of Suspicion

  Book 4 - Shadow of Betrayal

  Book 5 - Shadow of Misgivings

  Book 6 - Twisted Game

  Book 7 - Twisted Interest

  Book 8 - Twisted Hopes

  Book 9 - Twisted Judgment

  Book 10 - Twisted Redemption

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  When the Patriarch of the Woodcrest Family was found dead in the flowerbed under his bedroom window, the local police department called it suicide. His son hired Private detective Emmy wanting to uncover the real truth behind his father's death. Surrounded by so many individuals who could benefit from his death, now the responsibility is on Emmy to figure out who was responsible. When Emmy starts to talk to the heirs the Woodcrest family's secrets begin to emerge.

  Summary

  “I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do.”

  “That’s very cold-blooded of you.”

  “It seems I’ve learned lately the world is a very cold-blooded place.”

  A drive by shooting leaves Margot’s boyfriend, homicide detective Radcliffe, clinging to his life. His partner and another police officer are dead.

  The prime suspect is disgraced former cop Mal Flynn, Margot’s old boyfriend. Does Mal hate Margot enough to cause her harm?

  The new homicide detective, who is handling the investigations, hasn’t asked for Margot’s help, but there is no way she is staying out of this one. As nice as he may seem, does he have a hidden agenda?

  All this is getting very personal for Margot…

  Table of Content

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Summary

  Books by Nora Kane

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  Prologue

  “Burke knows this is probably nothing, right?”

  Radcliff shrugged. “We didn’t have to come; we could have let him walk through an empty hotel room by himself.”

  “Where’s Myers?”

  “His kid is having a kid. He and the wife went out to Arizona for the birth.”

  “He’s going to be a grandfather so we get to waste our time with Burke’s bogus tip on Mal?”

  “He might be here.”

  “Maybe. Why is Burke getting tips on our suspect anyway?”

  “It makes sense the organized crime task force would want in on this. Mal’s working for somebody.”

  “Yeah, but we’re the ones looking for him. It’s the Sand Piper Motel, so you know the tip came from a scumbag. How did the scumbag know the OC task force was interested in Mal?”

  “I don’t know,” Radcliff said as he looked in the rearview mirror. “This looks like him, you could ask him.”

  “I just might do that.”

  “He didn’t have to tell us, be nice.”

  Burke pulled in behind them in his unmarked cruiser. They were parked a block down from the Sandpiper Motel. Radcliff had got an anonymous tip that Mal Flynn was holed up there. As Burke got out, Radcliff and Ames did the same.

  “I hear your partner is off becoming a grandfather,” Ames said.

  “Yeah, as if it wouldn’t happen unless he was there. I figured the three of us should be able to handle it, though.”

  “Hell, Radcliff and I could have done it without you. Chances are it’s a dead-end,” Ames remarked as he opened the trunk and got out a pair of Kevlar vests.

  “If it’s nothing, why the body armor?”

  “Because if it’s not, things are likely to get ugly. Mal’s not a big fan of cops in general, but he really hates us. Especially Radcliff.”

  “Oh yeah, I heard. You stole his girl.”

  “Stealing implies possession. She was available.”

  “Hey, I don’t blame you. I bet he doesn’t see it that way, though.”

  “Probably not,” Radcliff agreed as he finished strapping on the vest.

  “I’ve got an extra if you want it,” Ames told Burke as he retrieved a shotgun. He checked and found it was loaded and ready to go.

  “I’ll just let you guys go in first. Did you check with the motel management?”

  “Yeah, they get a call like this about once a week. The desk guy is meeting us there so he can unlock the door. That way they don’t have to fix the door after we kick it in.”

  They all piled into Ames’ cruiser and drove around the block into the parking lot of the Sand Piper Motel. Ames parked in front of the office instead of Mal’s supposed room. The clerk hardly looked old enough to drive and he certainly didn’t look happy to see Ames. He looked around, clearly hoping no current residents were watching since they wouldn’t be happy seeing him helping the police.

  “Number eleven,” Ames told him.

  “I heard.”

  “Any chance you could tell us what might be waiting for us behind that door?” Burke asked.

  “All I know is they checked in yesterday, paid for the week, and signed the register Mr. Smith.”

  “You haven’t seen him?”

  “I wasn’t behind the desk when they checked in, and nobody asked for more towels, so why would I?”

  Room eleven wasn’t far from the office. The clerk unlocked the door and then ran away. Radcliff opened the door and they all moved away from the entrance. When no one shot at them, Ames yelled, “Police, lay on the floor and put your hands behind your head.”

  He waited for a second to give anyone inside time to obey his command, and then he racked the slide and chambered a shell. The sound was loud enough to let anybody inside know he wasn’t messing around.

  Ames stepped inside with the shotgun raised. Radcliff was right behind him, brandishing his pistol. The room was dark, the lights were off and the curtains were drawn. Radcliff found the light switch. The bed
was still made and there wasn’t anything else in the room, but an outdated television bolted to the wall and an old chest of drawers pockmarked with cigarette burns.

  Ames motioned to the bathroom. Radcliff opened the door, and they again stepped aside. When nobody shot at them, Ames went in with the shotgun. He looked in the shower and found it as empty as the rest of the place. The window back there was shut and locked. Even if someone Mal’s size could have climbed out of the small window, they couldn’t have locked it from the outside, so no one slipped out this way.

  “I take it Mal wasn’t in there either?” Burke asked.

  “Nope,” Ames told him. “I didn’t figure he would be.”

  “Too bad, I was really hoping to talk to this asshole.”

  “You shouldn’t have got your hopes up. What’s so important about Mal, anyway? He’s an accessory to homicide at the very least so we want him, but as far as organized crime goes, he’s nothing more than a soldier.”

  “Normally, I’d agree, but there’s a serious shakeup going on, and I think somehow your old pal is in the middle of it.”

  “I wouldn’t call him my pal. What kind of shakeup?”

  Burke shrugged. “I was kind of hoping Mal could shed some light on that.”

  “Anybody else find this kind of odd? I didn’t really think Mal would be here, but I kind of thought somebody would be,” Radcliff said. “Bed doesn’t look slept in, and I don’t see any luggage.”

  “Trash cans are empty too,” Ames added.

  “Somebody paid for a room that they didn’t eat or sleep in?”

  “Maybe they changed their mind after getting a look at the room,” Burke speculated.

  “Kind of weird to get a tip that somebody is in an empty room. Maybe we need to talk to the clerk and find out who was working when Mr. Smith checked in.”

  Burke was the first person out, followed by Ames.

  “Should we get somebody to sit on the place for a while?” Radcliff asked. “Maybe Mal just makes his bed really well.”

  Ames turned to reply but stopped when a car pulled up in front of room number eleven. He turned back to see guns poking out of the front passenger window. He couldn’t tell if it was one person holding two guns or two people each pointing what he guessed to be Mac-10s at them. Either way, he swung the shotgun around.

  The sub-machine guns roared before he could get off a shot. The vest slowed down the nine-millimeter slugs coming him his way, but at this range, it didn’t stop them. Even if it had, there was nothing the body armor could do about the bullet he took to the forehead. He and Burke went down immediately.

  Radcliff was spared the initial volley and fired back, but the extended magazines on the machine guns kept spitting out lead. Radcliff took two in the chest and stumbled back into the room. He fired back from his back until his pistol was out of bullets then kicked the door shut. All he could do then was cover his head as the gunman in the car unleashed another series of shots into the door.

  While he ducked, Radcliff radioed the magic words, “Man down,” to the dispatcher.

  The shooting stopped and Radcliff heard the car speed away. He pushed himself to his feet, planning to go out and do what he could for Ames and Burke.

  His legs didn’t seem to be working and his shirt under the Kevlar felt oddly wet and sticky. He ran his hand along his side and saw his palm was now covered in blood. The vest had stopped a few slugs, but something must have got through. Radcliff’s head began to swim, but he tried to keep going. He pushed the door open and then collapsed on the sidewalk next to Ames and Burke.

  Chapter 1

  Margot called Radcliff on the way home, but it went straight to voicemail. This wasn’t unusual; as a homicide detective, he was often unable to answer the phone, and just because his shift ended, didn’t mean the work stopped. Crime didn’t happen on a nine-to-five schedule.

  Margot said, “Call me when you can,” after the beep and then drove home.

  She was hungry but decided to put off eating until she heard from Radcliff. That didn’t mean she couldn’t pour herself a drink. Margot filled a tumbler with ice and then poured some Maker’s Mark over it.

  She was taking a sip when her phone vibrated. She put down the glass and saw it was Radcliff calling.

  “Hey, you still working?” Margot asked.

  A voice that was most definitely not Radcliff replied, “Is this Margot Harris?”

  “It is. Who is this?”

  “Detective Rodriguez. We met a while back. You were in my office.”

  Margot remembered her; the stoic female who was the chief detective in the homicide division was hard to forget. The day they’d met was even harder. Margot, along with Rodriguez, Radcliff, and his partner, Ames, had watched a dirty cop shoot himself in the head.

  “Why are you calling me on Radcliff’s phone?”

  “There’s been a shooting. Radcliff was involved.”

  “Involved how?”

  “I’d rather have this conversation in person. Meet me at the Tri-City Emergency room.”

  “He’s been shot.”

  “Yes.”

  “Is he going to be okay?”

  “I don’t know yet, but as I said, I prefer these conversations to be in person.”

  Before Margot could say anything else, Rodriguez ended the call.

  Chapter 2

  Margot expected more police in the waiting room. While the emergency room was crowded, as far as she could tell, the only cop in the room was Rodriguez. The chief of detectives motioned for Margot to take the empty seat next to her. Margot walked over and sat down.

  “Everyone else is in the surgery center waiting room,” Rodriguez told her.

  “Then why are we here?”

  “You’re not very popular with your boyfriend's colleagues. They’ll want to see you even less right now.”

  “Are you telling me I can’t go up there?”

  “I’m telling you it’d be a bad idea. I’m also telling you there’s not a damn thing you can do up there but cause trouble. I can keep you updated down here.”

  “I don’t like it.”

  “Neither do I, but it’s the right thing to do.”

  “Okay, I’ll play nice for the moment. What happened?”

  “I’m short on a lot of details, but the basics are they were checking a tip over at the old Sandpiper Motel. When they walked out, a late model sedan drove by and sprayed both of them and Detective Burke from the OC task force with gunfire. Given the amount of slugs and shell casings in the scene, most likely it was some manner of automatic weapon. Best guess is a Tech-Nine or an Uzi. They must have suspected trouble because both of them were wearing their vests. It’s the reason Radcliff is in surgery instead of the morgue.”

  “You said both of them, how’s Ames?”

  “He was the first one through the door. Kevlar can only do so much, and it doesn’t do a damn thing to protect your head. Burke didn’t make it either.”

  Margot was silent for a long time before she managed to say, “Damn.”

  “You seem more broken up about that than I would have figured.”