by Margaret Kay
“Thank you, your Honor,” Bobby said.
“Thank you,” Sherman echoed.
The judge glanced between the two Sherman men. “Pay the cashier and you may take Bobby with you. I’m releasing him to your custody as a federal lawman. There will be paperwork for you to sign accepting him into your custody. You must have him checked into the facility within twenty-four hours. All the contact information for that facility must be left with my Bailiff. Do you understand these instructions, Agent Sherman?”
“I do. Thank you, your Honor.”
The Bailiff followed them out of the courtroom. “Mr. Sherman, you are to stay with me while your brother completes the paperwork and pays the cashier.” He pointed Sherman in the direction of the cashier, handing him the piece of paper to submit with it. “We’ll be in this holding room, waiting for you. I have the paperwork you will fill out before I release Bobby to you. Please join us with the receipt after you’ve made payment.”
“Thank you,” Sherman said.
He watched the Bailiff lead Bobby, the PD, and Madison into the room. Then he went to the court cashier. He paid the eight-hundred-fifty dollars on his credit card, a way over-inflated price to repair a cut fence. Then he returned with the receipt to the holding room. There he filled out the paperwork accepting Bobby into his custody. If he failed to check Bobby into the named drug rehab facility within twenty-four hours, there would be arrest warrants for both Bobby and him.
Echo
Sherman could see the questions all over Bobby’s face as they walked out of the courthouse. Bobby could barely contain himself from asking about Brielle. As soon as they were in the car, Sherman turned to gaze at Bobby, who sat in the backseat. “She’s fine. We’re taking you there now.”
“Oh, thank God!” Bobby said. “I’ve been so worried about her.”
Madison turned the engine over. “She’s been worried about you. If you really care about that girl, you’d never have agreed to let her break into that place.”
“There’s no stopping Brielle from doing anything she wants to do, and I do care about her. She’s been my best friend forever.”
Madison gave Sherman a sideways glance. He could read the question that flashed through her eyes, just a friend?
“That’s right, even Miss Jarboe says that she is just Bobby’s gal-pal, nothing more. That wouldn’t happen to be because you’re gay, would it Bobby?”
Bobby shot Sherman a scowl. “No, just because she’s only a gal-pal doesn’t mean I’m not doing her, doesn’t mean I’m gay.”
Sherman laughed out loud. “Come on, Bobby, like I’d care? You’re my brother and I love you, no matter what. I just want you to clean your act up and be happy. That’s it.”
“Didn’t Brielle tell you? I haven’t used in months. I don’t even drink no more. That was all a diversion to help Brielle get away.”
“Yeah, she did tell me all that and also that you’re gay. It’s not a big deal, Bobby. And I should have known. You’ve never spoken with me about a girlfriend and I’ve never seen you with a girl before, not even Brielle. She says you two have been best friends forever. How come I didn’t know anything about her?”
“How come I didn’t know anything about your girlfriend?” Bobby demanded, pointing at Madison.
“Oh, I’m not Sherman’s girlfriend,” Madison said.
“Yeah, that was a cover story for the Sheriff, long story. Madison is just a coworker.”
“Oh, that’s too bad,” Bobby said.
Madison chuckled, but said no more.
Sherman let the topic of Bobby’s sexual persuasion go. The car was quiet for a few minutes. “What were you thinking? Setting yourself up to get arrested again?”
“It just seemed like the best way to protect Brielle. She was going in to snoop around that place, if I helped her or not.”
“And calling me down was to help her, not you.”
“Well, us both, but I figured she could use your help. Brian, the Sheriff has been all over her shit. It’s blatant harassment. If she wasn’t right, he wouldn’t be targeting her like he is.”
“Yeah, well, I’m no fan of the new Sheriff down here. He boarded my boat twice since I got here. I know he was looking for Brielle.”
“You kept her hidden, didn’t you?”
“Of course, I did,” Sherman said. “As soon as I found her and figured out what was going on, I knew I had to hide her.”
“You’re not really sending me up north and into drug rehab, are you?”
“Bobby, yeah, duh, of course I am. It is court mandated. You have to be checked in within twenty-four hours.”
“I won’t go and leave Brielle. Plus, I don’t need drug rehab. I’m clean, Brian.”
Sherman blew out a loud breath. “Bobby, I am a law enforcement officer. I have to obey a court ruling so yes, you have to go to drug rehab. I’m going to pay cash for it, and the place I picked isn’t cheap. But it’s out of the Parish and you’ll be safe there, which I can honestly say I don’t think you will be down here.”
“I don’t have a drug problem no more.”
“Then think of it as a vacation,” Sherman said. He was losing his patience. “What don’t you get? You set yourself up and now you have to pay the piper.”
“And you can’t get me out of it?”
“Not yet. Maybe if we prove there’s something illegal going on and we explain to the court the circumstances, but there’s no guarantee.”
“Well, fuck, thirty more days in rehab.”
“I think you’re getting off pretty easy,” Madison spoke up. “You should have called Brian before pulling this stunt. He maybe could have helped you on the front end of this.”
“Like you’d have taken me seriously and come down if I told you what we were going to do?”
“If you’d told me they have trailers full of Chinese out there and that Brielle has been harassed for writing articles about BioDynamix, yeah, you damned-well better believe, me and my coworkers would have come down. My boss has brought in the FBI, CIA, and Homeland Security. We’re taking this pretty damn serious.”
Bobby shifted in his seat. He didn’t know what to say to that, so he said nothing. A deep frown set on his face and he gazed out the window.
They arrived at the marina and went to the boat. Cooper sat in the sun on the seating area at the back of the boat. Bobby was startled seeing him there. “He’s one of my teammates,” Sherman whispered to him. “I wouldn’t leave her unprotected while Madison and I were at court.”
Bobby nodded.
“Cooper, my brother, Bobby,” Sherman introduced.
Cooper presented his hand. The two men shook. Sherman opened the door to the cabin and motioned Bobby inside.
“Brielle,” Bobby said, the relief apparent in that one word. They swallowed each other up in an emotional embrace. “I was so worried about you.”
As they pulled apart, Brielle ran her fingertips over the bruise by his eye. “Sheriff Henderson or Deputy Downey?”
“Does it matter?” Bobby said. “The questions about you never stopped.” Then he made eye contact with Sherman. “Thank you for coming, Brian. I’m sorry I didn’t reach out to you for help before.”
Sherman nodded. “Me too, could have saved you a trip to jail. But we’re here now and we’ll get to the bottom of this.”
Bobby embraced Brielle again. He held her tightly.
“Can you two give us a few minutes?” Cooper asked, his eyes on the embracing pair.
“Sure,” Brielle said. She pointed at the master cabin. “I’m working on a blog post about a protest I’m going to use as a cover for where I’ve been,” she told Bobby as she led him that way. “You can read it and let me know what you think.” Bobby often read her work before she posted it.
Once the cabin door was closed, Cooper spoke. “We have a tight timetable, less than twenty-four hours to get Bobby up north and checked into rehab. And we need to decide if we’ll allow Brielle to be involved going
forward, that’s after we sneak her off this boat.” Cooper spoke in whispers.
“She does have the local contacts and knows the area even better than I do,” Sherman pointed out. “The bayou changes from season to season. She works as a tour guide and is a better local resource than I am. It’s been too many years since I’ve lived here.” He told himself it was only for that reason that he wanted the lady to remain with them.
“We get her to New Orleans as planned,” Madison said. “Then figure it out.”
“I’d sure like to solidify a cover for her for the next few weeks,” Sherman said. “Even if she is down here with us.”
“I think we can do that,” Madison said. She tapped out a text message to the digital team. “We can establish a cover for her up north, near Bobby for the duration of his rehab.”
“I like it,” Sherman said.
“What aren’t we thinking of?” Cooper asked.
“Nothing. We’re on hold until Sloan gets down here. We have to keep Brielle covered, can’t sneak her off until he’s here to take her,” Sherman said.
“Moving under the cover of darkness is preferred, anyway,” Cooper said. “We can’t do anything until Shepherd gets back to us, so I say let’s take this boat out and cruise around the lake.” He smiled. “You did invite me down for a boat ride.”
Sherman moved to the master cabin door. He rapped once and then opened it. His mood instantly turned sour. On the bed, Bobby and Brielle were snuggled up, reading the computer tablet screen together, practically cheek to cheek. Upon closer inspection, Bobby was reading, Brielle was wrapped around him like a snake constricting its prey.
“Hey, we’re going to take the boat out.” He pointed to the shorts he’d worn the previous afternoon, which were folded and on the shelf near the bed. “I’m wearing those. I want you up top with me, Bobby. Sorry, Brielle, you have to stay hidden down here.”
She rolled off Bobby and sat up. “I’d sure love to be topside if even for a minute.”
“Too risky,” Sherman said.
“He’s right,” Bobby told her, coming to his feet. He kissed the top of her head.
“Give me a minute with Brielle, will you?” Sherman asked Bobby.
Bobby nodded and left the cabin, closing the door behind himself.
Sherman took a seat beside Brielle. He had an irrational anger surging through him, seeing her and Bobby all snuggled up. He knew it was irrational. “We’re working on a long-term cover for you, so the Sheriff won’t be looking for you down here anytime soon. Know that everything we’re doing is to keep you safe.”
She smiled and nodded. Then she placed a chaste kiss on his cheek. “Thank you, Brian, for everything.”
Sherman’s hand was drawn to push back the section of hair that hung over her cheek. He tucked it behind her ear and then lightly caressed her exposed jawline with the back of his fingers. “My brother is very lucky to have you as his friend.”
“Yeah, he got arrested helping me, very lucky.” When she and Bobby had closed the door, he nearly broke down, worried about her, worried about himself and stressing about this trip up north into rehab. She didn’t feel like a very good friend.
“He wanted to help you because he’s so loyal to you. There aren’t many people who’d get arrested to help a friend. That’s a strong friendship.”
“Bobby’s fragile, more than you’d think. You need to go easy on him, Brian. Him walking into rehab is gonna take its toll on him.”
That was when Sherman realized that the cozy little scene, he’d interrupted, was Brielle giving Bobby what he needed, physical comfort. If Bobby was gay or not, there was a strong relationship between Bobby and Brielle. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that. “I will, don’t worry.” Sherman came to his feet. He nodded at the door. “Go on and let me get changed into these shorts.”
Brielle rose and left the room, rejoining the others in the main cabin area. Madison came out of the bathroom a second later. She’d changed back into her shorts and tank top. When Sherman rejoined them, Cooper’s phone rang.
“It’s Shepherd,” he announced before answering it. He stood by the glass door, gazing out as he listened. “Very good,” he said after a lengthy pause while Shepherd spoke. “Thanks. I agree.” He disconnected the call and then turned back to the others. “Shepherd secured us a safehouse down at Port Fourchon. He’s sped up the timetable. Sloan is in the air right now, headed into Golf-Alpha-Oscar. After he deplanes, our bird will fly into Mike-Sierra-Yankee and wait for you there.” His eyes were focused on Sherman. “Sloan will pick up a rental car at GAO and then call for instructions.”
“Good,” Sherman said. “There is a spot he can meet us at, south of here, where we’ll transfer Brielle to him.”
“What do you mean transfer me to him?” She demanded.
“Sneak you off this boat, so the Sheriff won’t see. The man flying in, Sloan, is my best friend. I trust him to protect you, Brielle.”
She nodded. That was good enough for her and truth be told, she was anxious to get off this boat.
“And you will fly out with Sherman and Bobby this evening. We’ll establish a cover for you that you are up north near Bobby for the duration of his treatment,” Cooper said.
“Fly out? I’m not leaving,” Brielle insisted.
“It’s just for twenty-four hours to get Bobby checked into rehab and establish a cover for you. It’s best if the Sheriff thinks you are up north for the next month.” Sherman knew that it would be up to Shepherd if she would be allowed to return or not.
“How exactly will this work?” Brielle asked, skeptical.
“We’ll take the boat out and meet Sloan on the south side of the lake. We’ll sneak you off the boat, and he’ll take you to New Orleans. Our digital team has already secured your cover at a hotel. You’ll get dropped there in time to do your blog post with pictures and video, and you will check out of the hotel. You’ll want to mention in your blog that you’ll be going up north for the next month,” Madison said.
“Once we get back to the marina, I’ll button the boat up and the four of us will drive to New Orleans. Bobby and I will pick you up on the way to the airport,” Sherman said.
“And Cooper and I will check into a hotel to enjoy the sights in New Orleans as our cover, but we’ll drive to the safehouse our boss has established for us at Port Fourchon.” She paused, and her eyes shifted to Sherman. “Kaylee is on the plane, so Sloan will fly back out with you to get her home and get her settled. Then Cooper and I will set up recon on that BioDynamix facility,” Madison said.
“You’re going to want to get a bayou view of that place. I was thinking, since nothing is coming in or going out through the front doors, maybe they’re using the bayou as cover.”
“HQ is trying to get a satellite dedicated to the area,” Cooper said. “Shepherd’s pulling Alpha and Delta back in. Garcia and probably Jackson will stay at Ops. He’ll deploy the remainder of the team to help with this case.”
Even though Sherman felt relieved that his team would be on the ground, he knew pulling them early from the DEA Partner Mission was not good. They had a contract with the DEA that they were breaking by cancelling this mission. Sure, mission priorities dictated coverage, and with trailers full of Chinese, that ratchetted the priority on this one way up, over a suspected meth lab.
“You can’t be out in the bayou without a guide. It’s dangerous out there,” Brielle said.
“I’m sure we’ll be fine,” Cooper replied.
Brielle’s face instantly showed she was annoyed with her advice being discounted the way it was.
“You know, she’s probably right,” Sherman said. “There are seven different venomous types of snakes in this area, venomous spiders, and the gators to watch out for.”
“I’m a bayou and swamp guide,” Brielle said. “Another reason I shouldn’t go up north, even for twenty-four hours if y’all are planning to venture out into the bayou.”
“We won’t go wanderin
g around too much without you,” Cooper said.
“Brian, who’s paying for this airline ticket. I can’t afford a last-minute flight,” Brielle said. “Hell, the hotel charge alone will max out my credit card.”
“We’ve got it, don’t worry,” Sherman assured her. He wouldn’t go into the company Lear. She assumed they’d be flying out on a commercial airliner. He didn’t need to correct that right now. Nor would he tell her the cost of the hotel room was covered. He could see the wheels in her head turning. “Are there any other objections or reasons you can’t go that you want to throw out?”
