Holding the Truth

by Calle J. Brookes

“I know you don't want me here.” She looked straight at him, so tired of constantly fighting to understand this man next to her. Tired of even caring. Maybe it was time she just laid it all out there and let him know that he didn’t have that type of power over her anymore. “I'm here to do my job. Until I switch to Finley Creek or until I retire. Whatever happens first. And you can shove your attitude toward me up your ass.”

  Chapter 20

  She’d never looked prettier than sitting there in the passenger seat of his SUV and telling him what a bastard he was. Clay wanted to tell her that. To explain that he’d never wanted her to feel like she didn’t measure up. That she was probably the best deputy he had.

  But she was the one he most wanted to protect. Because of him and how he felt about her.

  Hell, he’d known he was in love with Bailey months ago. Those thirty hours she’d been missing had just nailed that into his thick skull.

  They pulled into the Finley Creek TSP’s new parking lot, and he killed the engine. He didn’t speak again until they were on the sidewalk in front of the FC TSP entrance. "I just didn't want you in my precinct."

  "But why? That's all I want to know. Give me one good reason why, then I’ll leave you alone. If it’s good enough, I’ll tell Chief Marshall right now that I accept his offer. Then you’ll not have to deal with me again." Blue eyes the same damned color of the sky stared right at him. Punched him straight in the gut and squeezed his insides.

  He'd put that hurt there. Time and time again, he had hurt her.

  By being a total ass when he didn't need to be.

  He stepped up to her, blocking her with his much larger body.

  He half thought she was going to keep walking, just to prove he wasn't bigger and stronger and in her way.

  Thank God Bailey had that stubborn streak. It had kept her alive all those months ago. Clay wrapped his fingers around her elbow and stopped her.

  When a man got ahold of her, that was when it really sank in just how small she was. Small, brave, beautiful. And hurting. Because of him. It was time he manned up and made things right. "I didn't want you here...because...because you distract me."

  He knew what question was coming before her lips formed it. “What?”

  "It's your perfume. The way you laugh. The way you love kittens and lemonade. The way your hair...it catches the light from the window right over your desk. Sometimes you'd sit there and I'd get distracted by the gold. When you were gone, I had to move your desk. To where I couldn't see that you were not there. You distracted me when you were in the office, and even when you weren't. From the first moment you walked in. You haven’t stopped since."

  He stormed away, leaving her gaping at him. He felt like a damned fool—and like he’d taken that first step over the edge of a great precipice.

  It was going to be his own fault when he finally hit rock bottom.

  Chapter 21

  Bailey followed him. What else could she do? His words had made little sense to her. She wanted to ask him what it all meant, but she wasn’t about to be that stupid. She caught up with him just outside the lobby. It helped that she was familiar with the layout of the building. After the old lab had been bombed, she’d helped with the processing of the forensics. It had been an all-hands-on-deck callout. TSP forensics agents from all over Texas had answered that call.

  Clay had been reticent when she’d asked him if she could be spared to help out. She hadn’t understood why. She definitely didn’t now.

  "Let's just get our answers, Bailey. We can discuss this again later, if you want. You can rip my ass up and down, until you are satisfied that I know what an ass I've been. Hell, I owe you that much."

  "I distract you? I don't think you'll ever make sense to me." Or anyone else, for that matter.

  She followed him into the building, breathing in the cool air. It was much welcome after even the brief time they'd been in the parking lot. It was raining, but that didn’t stop the heat from getting them. It just made them wet and sweltering.

  Bailey saw several familiar faces as they wove their way through the building toward Chief Marshall's office.

  Many actually waved or stopped to greet her. She’d find a home here, if she took the transfer.

  Something else to consider.

  Clay waited impatiently.

  Elliot Marshall met them just outside his office. He extended a hand to Clay. “Clay, nice to see you again.”

  He turned to Bailey and smiled. A very handsome man—she'd always thought so. His wife was a super-sweet woman that Bailey had met at W4HAV. Gabby Marshall was one of the board members at the women's charity, and their paths had crossed often. "Deputy Moore, it's good to see you as well. Gabby's mentioned a fund-raiser you're helping organize?"

  Bailey nodded. "A benefits concert. I'm really just doing grunt work. I believe Mel Barratt is doing most of the heavy lifting."

  He smiled. "Mel's definitely good at it. If not, she has her own army of minions now."

  Chapter 22

  Bailey was cold. It hadn’t helped that she was soaked to her skin. And the air-conditioning at the TSP building in Finley Creek was always blowing full blast. But she didn’t say anything as the two men spoke.

  Bailey understood her assignment. She was to observe, look for patterns, anomalies. Tiny details that would lead to bigger ones.

  We’re looking for any unsolved missing persons. Our victim was about five six and most likely in her twenties, from what initial coroner reports gave us,” Clay said.

  “And you think you’ll find some in my files?”

  “It’s a place to start. There are only three missing persons cases in Barratt County—and one of those was solved with Celia Lake’s identification. The one before that was sixty-five years ago. Our dump site is more recent than that.”

  “The third case?”

  “A twenty-year-old man who took off after a bad break-up fifteen years ago. No sign of him since,” Clay answered. “It was worked by Shawn Jennson and Lou Moore.”

  Bailey felt like a silent lump on a log as they talked. But she was making notes.

  “I’ll have Officer Journey gather what she can. It’ll take us a while.”

  “Of course. Bailey’s going to be the primary contact on this until we find something more immediate.”

  Both men looked at her, finally tuning in to her presence again.

  They ended up with four different possible cases. She'd go over those four files with everything she had, then compare them to any they got from the surrounding counties. By the time she was finished, hopefully, they'd have more from the ME.

  Bailey was ready to get deeper into what they had, but had a hard time focusing.

  Clay Addy had succeeded in distracting her.

  Chapter 23

  “I saw your girl last night.” Glen whispered it to the man next to him. He’d always gotten a kick out of taunting Lou Moore. He’d seen the other man on the bus when he’d stepped on it after his shift at the municipal park system building.

  He couldn’t pass up the opportunity to have a little fun.

  He had no idea where Lou Moore’s daughter had ended up after Lou had almost killed her.

  But that didn’t matter.

  He was getting what he wanted right now.

  Lou was sweating. Probably because of the Finley Creek officer sitting four seats back. It wasn’t all that normal to see a cop on the public metro system, but there one was. On his cell phone.

  Lou kept facing forward. No doubt well aware that he was a wanted man. Ballsy.

  Or maybe he was just stupid.

  Glen settled into the empty seat right next to him. He was going to enjoy this ride. A great deal.

  For a moment, he considered turning Lou in. There was a reward out there, or so he’d heard. It would go a long way toward Glen’s relocation fund. But that would also bring a bit more attention to him than Glen wanted to deal with.

  The world had too many pretty ladies out there for
Glen to want to go back to prison and miss out.

  “What are you doing here?” Lou asked.

  “Same could be asked of you, Lou.” Glen felt power rise in him again. Lou had gotten off on making trouble for Glen when they’d been cell mates. Him and those two buddies of his.

  Now, now the power was in Glen’s hands. And he knew it. “Have you spoken with your daughter lately, Lou? So pretty.”

  Lou’s breathing picked up, but they’d had years in prison together to learn how to control how they appeared in public. Lou was upset, but only Glen could probably tell.

  “So pretty, Lou. So pretty. Blond. Blondes have always been my favorite. You know that.”

  Lou swore. The bus pulled into the next stop. Boethe Street.

  Lou darted over Glen and toward the door.

  Glen just watched the guy run off and shrugged.

  The prick was finally getting what he deserved.

  Glen took comfort in that. If he believed in karma, watching what had happened to Lou Moore would illustrate that principle perfectly. Guy was getting what he deserved.

  Chapter 24

  Lou stepped off the bus, unsure what to do next. His first instinct had been to just kill that bastard Glen Washington right where the man sat. But there had been a little blond girl of about ten across the aisle, watching.

  Lou wouldn’t traumatize a kid like that.

  And with that cop right there...Lou couldn’t go back to prison. Locked in a cage. With scum like Glen Washington there.

  Lou just couldn’t do it.

  But the idea that Glen had been that close to Bailey terrified him. Glen was evil.

  Lou was almost convinced the man was a serial killer who had been killing in this area for decades. But who in the hell was he supposed to tell that to now?

  He had no proof. And if Lou went anywhere near the cops, he was as good as dead. Or back in prison. Which was the same thing.

  And who would watch over Bailey if that happened?

  He only had one person he could turn to.

  Lou had driven the fifty-eight miles in a borrowed car to find his only friend in the world now.

  “I need help.” Lou had his pride, but this was his baby girl’s life that was in danger. And in the situation he was in now—Lou didn’t exactly have many people he could turn to. Not now. “I...Bailey...she’s...I need help, Charlie.”

  The other man just looked at him. The past four months had left their mark on Charlie Lake. Gone were the expensive, immaculately pressed suits. In their place was a man who looked like a common laborer. Charlie had dyed his hair dark brown and streaked it with gray. He wore thick glasses now when he hadn’t before. Even his eyebrows had been dyed. He had grown a beard.

  Far better than Lou had. It was obvious Charlie was making a real effort to blend himself in with the crowds. Lou needed to do a better job himself. Glen should not have been able to recognize him the way he had.

  “What’s going on?” Charlie stepped back, let Lou inside the cabin where he’d been staying since all that shit had gone down back in April.

  Lou had been there a few times. But he and Charlie—they didn’t spend too much time together.

  It just wasn’t safe.

  They’d hidden in Mexico that first month. But they’d both had to go back. To see.

  Lou had had to make certain that Bailey was going to be ok. It was all he lived for.

  But he and Charlie weren’t stupid men. The more they were together, the more likely they would get caught.

  But Charlie...Charlie had stashes of money hidden in dozens of places in this state. And he had shared with Lou.

  All Lou had to do was ask.

  “There’s this man. A former cell mate. He’s no good. No good at all. And he’s been watching my Bailey. I don’t know what to do.”

  “You can’t do a damned thing, Lou. Or you’ll get caught and go right back to jail. For the rest of your life.”

  Lou knew Charlie was right. But the idea that that worm Glen was anywhere near his Bailey sickened him. She wouldn’t even see Glen coming, if the other man targeted her. He had that whole nice guy routine down. She wouldn’t even see a threat.

  And Lou couldn’t tell her himself.

  “He’s a sick bastard, Charlie. And he likes blondes. Likes to hurt them. What if he sees your girl? She’s been at Bert’s. Talking to his son. His physical therapist, I think. Spends a lot of time alone on the roads now. What if Glen sees her? What would you do? If he’s seen my girl, what’s to stop him from going after yours? We have to stop him before he hurts them.”

  Lou laid out everything he knew about Glen Washington and what he suspected the man was capable of.

  Chapter 25

  Clay was pulled away on a string of robberies the next morning. That case and another drug case took his attention for three days.

  Bailey spent most of those three days at her desk with those files in front of her. She’d commandeered a set of whiteboards from the supply closet and had pushed her desk into a corner. With the whiteboards and a small partition she’d asked Jeremy—who denied her nothing, it seemed—to bring up, she’d effectively created herself her own office space with some sense of privacy.

  It was needed, the way people were stopping by to supposedly welcome her back—and get a peek at what was going on with the two dead bodies that had been found.

  Clay understood the frustration she was feeling. He was fielding his own questions almost constantly.

  He tied up the drug case, on the day Bailey finally took a day off.

  And now the mayor was asking questions about the bodies, because he was facing the same kind of inquisitions.

  And Clay wasn’t too happy with how he and Bailey had left their last personal question.

  Since his drug case was less than two miles from the Dillons, Clay knew he had no excuse not to stop off.

  He’d get a quick update from Bailey on the cold cases, warn Bert that some of the possible trafficking had happened on the next property over and to watch himself and his ranch hands, and then head home.

  And he’d pull Bailey aside and apologize for how he’d acted. What he’d said. He owed her that much.

  Even if she did distract him, he hadn’t had the right to treat her as he had. He’d asked Veri just how much of a bastard he’d been to Bailey.

  He hadn’t liked what the older woman had had to say.

  He definitely owed Bailey an apology.

  When he arrived at the Dillons, Bailey was in the kitchen, dressed in short, short, short shorts and a thin tank top. Clay’s heart nearly stopped. Bert smirked at him. "Sorry about the heat. AC went out about two hours ago. I got a repairman on his way to fix it. I don't have the part I need."

  Heat immediately hit him, but it had nothing to do with the Texas temperature and everything to do with how thin her shirt was. Clay stumbled through an explanation of why he was there, doing his best to keep his eyeballs off this side of his deputy he hadn’t seen before. Dewy, peach, and gold. Far too sexy for his peace of mind.

  "We have a window unit in the den," Bailey said. "I've spread everything out in there on the desk. Jake has the baby in his office at the back of the house, with a portable AC, trying to keep Liam cool."

  "We're doing cold sandwiches for dinner. I'll set you a plate."

  Clay nodded, his attention on the woman in front of him. Bailey had pulled all that blond gold up off her neck, clipping it up and leaving her shoulders and neck bare.

  The tank top was pink. He'd never loved the color pink before, but now...

  Bert bumped his shoulder, and Clay looked at him after Bailey had disappeared down the hall. "What?"

  "Ladies don't like being stared at like that, son. You should know that by now. I’m certain I taught you and Jake that lesson at the age of twelve. You like what you see? Tell her. Go on. She doesn't bite."

  Like hell, she didn't. Clay wanted to snarl at Bert, but refrained. "I'm not staring."

 
Bert laughed. "Like hell, you're not. Why don't you just take her out sometime, Clay? We all know how special she is to you. You might find there's something good there. She's a good girl. Any man will be lucky to have her. Why shouldn't it be you?"

  "Why should it? There's not ever going to be anything between Bailey and me, Bert. Just get that out of your head. I’m not exactly the type of man relationships work for.”

  Bert should understand that. He knew Clay’s childhood almost as well as Clay did.

  "If that's the case, then take this as a fatherly warning for my girl. You don't want her like that, then keep your damned eyes in your head. Or I'll clean your clock for you. Understood?"

  Clay understood. Bert was stepping in as a father figure and making certain Bailey had someone to look after her. The way it should be.

  Hell, Bert Dillon had been the closest thing to a father Clay had had, too.

  Bailey returned in time for Bert to shove two plates at her and wave them away. "Go. Get where it's cool before you melt, baby girl. I'll be outside waiting on the repairman and watering the horses."

  Clay was torn. He didn't want Bert to leave him alone with this walking bit of temptation, but damned if he wanted another man there watching every move he made, either.

  He hadn’t felt that awkward since that first time he and Jake had double-dated the Cordson twins when they’d all been fifteen.

  Bert had watched him and Jake like a hawk back then, too.

  Clay manned up and entered Bert's office. Bailey had a whiteboard on a tripod in there, and had taped crime-scene photos to the walls. He had to give her credit—Bailey was probably his most detail-oriented deputy. If there was something there, she'd find it. She was giving her all to the cold cases, just like he’d known she would.

  She’d be one hell of a deputy—anywhere else but his precinct.

  He hated the idea that he’d limited her potential as much as he had. He owed her for that.