by L B Wyatt
“I can do that. Call me Friday,” he said and hung up.
Veronica laid the phone down and opened the bag of chocolate covered peanuts she’d bought at the gas station next to the Subway and nibbled on a few. It was going to be awful cooped up in this hotel room for a week. She would have to relocate, she decided. Maybe more than once just to stay on the move.
She took in a deep breath and went to the bathroom to brush her hair now that it had fully dried from her shower. It seemed as though she wore it in a braid so often now that even after she wet it, the curve of the braid remained in the strands giving it a wavy look. She watched herself in the mirror as stroke after stroke she groomed her mane. A tiny, but powerful memory struck her of her mother doing the same thing when Veronica had been a very young child.
She looked up, catching her eye in the mirror and shaking her head. This was why she didn’t take breaks, she reminded herself. When she took time away from work, her mind started to dwell on things it shouldn’t.
She was about to return to the book again when she heard one of her phones ringing from the desk. Curiously, she went to it, noticing it was a blocked number. Anger coursed through her as she realized it must be Aniya again.
“What?” she answered hatefully. She was beyond understanding how her numbers were always known when all she ever used was burner phones.
“Hello, Veronica.”
The voice on the other end sounded deformed, like something off a Saw movie and it sent chills down her spine. Not because of fear, but because she hadn’t heard that voice in years. She wasn’t even able to speak at first. She didn’t want to let him know how much this affected her emotionally.
“You know I love it when you wear your underwear while working,” the voice teased.
Suddenly her blood went cold. She hadn’t fully dressed after her shower, but had thrown on her usual tank top and panties. After glancing down at her body for a moment in shock, Veronica started looking around the room for a camera.
“Relax,” the voice on the phone ordered. “I’m not watching you, I just know you.”
She stopped in her efforts and let out a breath she hoped he couldn’t hear. Why did those words send a shiver down her spine? Probably because it indicated that even if he wasn’t currently, he had watched her before. How else would he know what she liked to wear when she was doing her best thinking? Was it his intentions to drop subtle hints like that to get her blood boiling? And if so, for what purpose? She ordered her heart to stop pounding loud in her ears so she could hear herself ask him, “What do you want, Arc?”
“I assume you watched the evening news,” he said offhandedly.
“And?” Her tone was harsh, her jaw was clenched, and her brow raised. She had never felt more like a defiant teenager in all her life.
“Going after Ross is a bad idea,” was all he replied.
“Really? Kind of sounds like a golden opportunity to me.”
“Why did you hire Parker?” he demanded.
Veronica needed a second to navigate that curve ball. This conversation was giving her whiplash. “You know why.”
Arc was quiet on the other end of the line for a while. She was waiting for the click that inevitably came with every conversation they ever had.
“Did you get what you were after before she died?”
Veronica felt the rage lapping at her like waves from a vicious ocean. She tried to keep her voice calm as she replied to his insinuation that she herself was to blame for Parker Farris’s death. Veronica was already well aware of that fact and she certainly didn’t need that reminder from the one person whose opinion she regretfully valued more than anyone else’s.
“What do you care?” she whispered.
“I’ve always cared about you, Veronica. I don’t want to lose two Rogues.”
She was biting her lip so hard she thought she might have split it in two. She ground her teeth together, forcing emotions back and trying to remain like a statue. Strong and unbending, just as he’d taught her all these years.
“Is that really why you called me, Arc?” She needed this to be over. She couldn’t keep dragging out this misery.
“I called you because you’re in danger.”
“I’m always in danger.”
“This is a different kind of danger,” he argued.
“It’s all the same to me. I’m handling it.”
“You’re being reckless.”
“It’s my business, Arc. What does it matter to you?” she practically screamed. Veronica was instantly ashamed for showing such a powerful display of emotion, but he was starting to gnaw away at her reserve.
“Once a Rogue, always a Rogue, Veronica. You like to think you don’t belong to me, but you always have. You always will.”
And there was the click she had been waiting for. She pulled the phone away from her ear to gawk at it like it had something to do with the conversation’s abrupt ending. But it wasn’t the phone’s fault. She gave into her rage for split second and threw it as hard as she could anyway. It shattered against the wall, falling to pieces on the carpet. She refused to do the same. His call was intended to shake her up. To get some kind of reaction, she figured. It certainly wasn’t helpful. She didn’t need him to tell her not to go after Ross. Nothing would stop her from nailing that senator to the wall. Him and few dozen of his bloodsucking buddies.
Chapter Nineteen
It was Friday evening before Veronica called Merritt. She had changed hotels twice since she went incognito and was now sitting in a different rental car two blocks down from one of her favorite sandwich shops with her cell phone against her ear.
“Merritt speaking.”
“Hey,” Veronica greeted. “Did you get it?”
“Yup.” Merritt sounded thrilled. “Where am I supposed to be taking it?”
“There’s a sandwich shop on East Third Street,” Veronica answered. “Go in and give it to Soleil, she’s the pretty brunette behind the register.”
“What do I say?” he continued.
“Just order something and when you pay her, she’ll see the fake ID and know to hold it for me. No one will see us cross paths. No one will know you helped me.”
“Soleil?” Merritt echoed after a moment of consideration. “Isn’t that Chuck’s daughter?” he realized. Chuck was a good man. He worked in human resources at the department.
“Yeah. I’m going to miss her when she graduates Austin Peay. She’s a good liaison.”
Merritt sighed heavily on the other end. “I swear you have more connections than anyone else I know.”
“Why does that surprise you?” she inquired, her sharp eyes scanning every individual walking up and down the busy street.
“Well, you’re not exactly friendly.”
His words made her smile. “Oh, Merritt. Friendly is my middle name.”
Her words made him laugh this time. She could hear the soft dinging of his ignition as he got in his car and cranked it. “Only when you want something.”
“Exactly. Now you’re getting the hang of it.”
“Sure.” He didn’t sound convinced.
“You’re too nice, Merritt. Too honest to be in this line of work. You’ll learn.”
“Learn to be crooked? No thanks. I like the way I am.”
She wasn’t going to say it out loud, but she liked him the way he was too. She admired his honesty. His integrity. She knew the force would beat it out of him eventually though. It always did. One lie was easy and it was also a very slippery slope. She feared she might not be the best partner for this officer. Not to train him to be the detective he deserved to be. She would corrupt him—obviously. She was well on her way of doing that right now.
She sighed and hung up the phone, having nothing more to say. She would thank him later and then maybe ask the chief to reassign him to another senior detective. She was a bad influence.
She waited a full half hour after she watched Merritt leave the shop before getting out of her car. She adjuste
d her ball cap and put on a pair of oversized, black-rimmed glasses for a slight disguise. She thought sunglasses might be a bit much with the cloudy day and all. She made her way inside the shop and through the line. Soleil was at the register. She was a very pretty twenty-year-old with long, dark hair and big chocolate colored eyes. She and Veronica had hit it off one day when the girl had come to visit her father at the station. Veronica knew a golden opportunity when she saw one and getting to know young college students and earn their trust had always turned out useful during her line of work one way or another. College kids knew a little bit about a whole lot going on around town. And as it turned out, Soleil had been useful on more than one occasion. She was going to get one hell of recommendation letter from Veronica wherever the girl decided to apply after college.
“Philly cheese steak and potato wedges,” Soleil said and grinned at Veronica. She retrieved the to-go order Veronica had called in about an hour ago and set it beside the register.
“Thanks,” Veronica said with a nod as the girl took her cash. There was fifty dollar bill in there Veronica intended for Soleil to keep. She watched those big brown eyes widen with surprise and gratitude before she placed one bill in the register and the other in the front of her apron pocket. When she gave Veronica her change for the twenty, the media pass was tucked carefully under the bills. The bell on the door chimed indicating a new customer and Soleil called out her usual greeting, but Veronica couldn’t help noticing the young girl’s attention seemed to be staying at the entrance.
“See something you like?” Veronica teased without looking.
Soleil’s eyes jerked back to her customer at hand and her cheeks flooded with color. “Something every female would like, I think,” she muttered and tucked her hair behind her ear in a very juvenile gesture.
Veronica rolled her eyes and took her food and change. When she turned, she was staring right into the chest of Quinn Murphy.
What the hell is with him? she thought savagely. He was completely inside her personal space bubble, so Veronica took a step back and hardened her gaze as she met his intense glare.
“Normally I can’t get women out of my bed. I don’t usually have them take off and steal my car.”
Veronica heard Soleil gasp a little and it occurred to her that this place was entirely too public to be seen with Quinn or talk to him for that matter.
Without another word, Veronica ducked by Quinn and headed out the door. Her mind was busy trying to think of ways to shake him so she could finish her job. She could feel him, though, as he followed her out the door and down the sidewalk. She wasn’t even going to waste her breath asking how he found her. She didn’t care. She just wanted him to get lost.
“Veronica, stop,” he ordered. His voice was harsh and demanding. It pricked at her pride causing her to square her shoulders and walk a little faster.
“I said, stop!” And he meant it. He grabbed her roughly by the arm and she came to a halt. Taking his efforts one step further, he pushed her into the side of a brick building.
“What?” she barked at him.
His jaw muscle was working with anger and she could feel his fingertips digging into her flesh.
“Take those stupid ass glasses off. I can’t talk to you like this.”
She raised a brow. “In that case, I’ll keep them on.”
She saw the flash of red hot anger sweep across his features and it took everything in her not to flinch when he reached up and ripped the eyewear from her face. She watched him as he apparently realized how foolish and rash his actions were—not to mention how public.
He let her go completely and stepped back. He raked his hands through his hair and then settled them on his hips, staring intently at her. “Did you read it?” he asked, a bit more calmly.
An image of that envelope in his wardrobe flitted through her brain. “Why do you care?”
“Answer me, damn it.”
She took a while, but she started to shake her head no. “I’ve been busy with other things.”
“Where is it?” he continued.
“Why didn’t you turn it in?” she countered.
“I didn’t know what it meant. I needed to see it first.”
“Why? To make sure I wasn’t the killer?”
He narrowed her eyes as though she were stupid for asking such a question. “To see how involved you were.”
“Why would you try and protect me, Quinn? I can take care of myself.”
“Are you sure about that? I just now scared off the slum dogs and pimps stalking your apartment. What the hell are you doing?”
“I’m working. As usual. But I have this giant pain in my ass who keeps hindering me from doing my job,” she growled.
Quinn laughed sardonically and dropped his hands to his sides heavily. He battled with himself for several minutes before letting out a deep breath and deciding what to say. “Don’t read it.”
She slanted her eyes at him as she processed his words.
“Just give it back to me,” he continued.
Well, that was laughable. But she was too pissed to giggle. “It has my name on it.” Not to mention how much trouble she’d gone to get that information or how someone had died while trying to deliver it.
“And it’s best you don’t know why.”
“That just makes me want to know more.”
He should know that if he knew her at all. What kind of game was he playing really?
“Listen, this whole cat and mouse thing is great and everything. But I have something really big going on right now. Thanks for scattering the watchdogs from my apartment, but I didn’t need you to do that. I’ve been making it just fine. I just need a couple more days and this will all be over.”
Quinn had starting shaking his head before she could even finish her statement. “I’m going to be in deep shit if my boss finds out I lifted that evidence,” he reasoned and she saw a flicker of concern flash over his usual stony expression.
“That was your call,” she pointed out mercilessly. “It wasn’t my fault you were dumb enough to keep it around.”
Her words set fire to his eyes and she saw his temper flare. Suddenly, he backed away from her a few steps with his hands up in a defenseless, helpless gesture. “I tried,” he mumbled. “You really can’t say I didn’t.”
She wasn’t sure what the hell that was supposed to mean, and she didn’t have the opportunity to ask either. Quinn promptly turned after his cryptic words and walked away with long, deliberate strides. She watched him until he rounded the corner and then she doubled back to her car. Whatever had his panties in a twist would just have to wait. She had too much to do at the moment.
First things first, though, as she got back in her vehicle—she ate the entire Philly cheese steak without taking a breath.
Chapter Twenty
Why not go straight to the department and turn the evidence in to the chief?
Veronica asked herself this question as she looked at her reflection in the full length mirror in the elegantly decorated hotel conference bathroom. It was truly a sight to behold. She hadn’t brushed elbows with such pompous asses like these in a while. Truthfully, she hadn’t missed it one bit. This was the part of her profession she disliked the most. She hated smiling and laughing and pretending to be one of the Jones’. She most certainly wasn’t.
You need a confession, Veronica. She reminded herself of this. It was important. A name inside a ledger wasn’t going to be enough to convict someone of murder. There probably wouldn’t be any evidence, circumstantial or otherwise to pin a true crime on the senator. All Veronica had with that book was a connection. Nothing else. She needed more. She needed him to spill the beans.
Her stomach turned a little as she straightened the blonde bob wig perched atop her head. She frowned deeply as she realized it was her crown of shame. She adjusted her large purple rimmed glasses and tugged a little at the tight black pencil skirt she wore. She looked the part of a sassy journalist on the outsi
de, but she felt like a steaming pile of hypocrisy on the inside. She was afraid her inner discomfort might show through her outer guise.
Veronica piled some pink gloss on her full lips and decided she couldn’t look any more like a valley girl if she tried. She dumped the gloss in the purse hanging off her shoulder and let out a deep breath. As long as she succeeded in looking as vacant as possible, this might not go as south as she was thinking. Usually she had more confidence than this, but she was slightly out of practice considering her surroundings, her attire, and her company.
The media pass had worked beautifully and she made a mental note to do something nice for Merritt in the future. According to her badge, she was Suzie from WKDL radio in downtown. It sounded legit enough, she decided, and turned from her two-faced reflection. She walked out of the powder room and into the hallway. In the distance she could hear the live band playing soft music and the chatter of the crowds filled the air.
She bravely made her way out into the banquet room. It was decorated tastefully with red and gold. Large round tables were strategically placed throughout in front of stage that the band now played from. The entire place smelled like the fresh cut elaborate flowers that adorned the center of each table and the podiums around the dais. The entire place was gorgeous and filled with people who had thick wallets, but Veronica only needed to speak to one. She scanned the room for him, standing by the back wall so she could focus from a distance. She stood there for probably ten minutes before she felt someone approach her from the side.
“Looking for Ross?” a male voice asked.
Veronica was slow to turn her attention to her unwelcomed company. The first thing she noticed after the nice suit was the name tag. Cameron, from the City Paper. She finally craned her neck back far enough to look into the dark eyes of a man probably in his late twenties. His caramel colored skin was smooth and clean shaven and Veronica found herself admiring how his top lip was slightly bigger than his bottom. It sounded weird, but it worked on him.
“Maybe,” she said coyly earning a smile from the young reporter.
