by Margaret Kay
Shepherd nodded.
She took a seat beside Brian. Fifteen minutes later, the remainder of the team that had been in Louisiana entered the room. They all took seats at the table. Brielle glanced around, taking in the sight of them all. She held great appreciation for each of them. She wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for them. And Brian may not be either, if it weren’t for Gary and Doc. This was a very special group of people. She felt herself becoming emotional as she thought about it. She had to purposefully suppress her feelings, or she would have cried.
“Good job in Louisiana, team,” Shepherd said. “To bring you up to date, neither Sheriff Henderson nor Deputy Downey are talking. They are in FBI custody. The charges will be many against them. There is no doubt bail is off the table. The FBI is still digging into all the evidence that was collected at the BioDynamix plant as well as at Sheriff Henderson’s residence and his office. A search of Deputy Downey’s residence, yielded nothing.”
“Were the two suitcases recovered from the back of the police car?” Burke asked.
“Negative. We believe he dropped them at Galliano Airport as soon as he left the BioDynamix facility,” Garcia said. “The flight plans of all the aircraft that departed that airport after the Sheriff picked those two bags up are being scrutinized,” Garcia answered.
“So far there is no evidence implicating Mayor Stuart concrete enough for a judge to issue a warrant. The FBI will stay on it. They have him under surveillance but have decided not to interview him at this time until there is more evidence and an arrest warrant can be obtained. There are no leads on Madam Butterfly. Garcia, the FBI, and the DEA will continue to look into her. We all agree she is the link between the New Jersey crew and the Chinese.”
“What about the captive workers?” Madison asked. “The women I spoke with were kidnapped from several different countries, as well as from here in the U.S.”
“Their statements were all taken from them and they are safely in a government facility, segregated from other detainees. It’s one of the nicer ones, more like a college dormitory than an ICE detention facility. It is realized their testimony may be needed to convict those who were running the operation,” Garcia advised. “So, they won’t be deported anytime soon. They’re safe, and I’m told, very relieved they were liberated.”
“This was a win for the agency,” Shepherd said. “We did good work. The DEA sends their thanks. Those heroin laced stickers had just been identified in New York, New Jersey, and several other east coast cities, but no one knew where they’d come from. Now that they know about them, closer scrutiny has found that they have been distributed to all major cities.”
“When do we resume the DEA Partner Mission in New York?” Lambchop asked.
“Tomorrow. We’ll have a briefing at eleven hundred and the team will leave shortly thereafter. All of Delta team minus Sherman, plus Jackson, Burke, and Cooper are slotted for this mission. You’re all dismissed until then.”
“What about Bobby? Can you do anything to get him out of that rehab facility? He doesn’t have a drug problem and doesn’t belong there,” Brielle insisted.
Shepherd’s eyes focused on Sherman. “Do you agree with that assessment?”
“Yeah. He was stupid to set himself up, but according to both him and Brielle, he doesn’t have an addiction problem and I’ll be around to observe him. If he uses, I’ll put him right back into that facility.”
“I’ll reach out to the appropriate federal authorities to assist with influencing that judge in Louisiana. He has to approve the vacating of that plea bargain,” Shepherd said.
“Thank you,” Brielle said, her eyes locked with Shepherd’s dark eyes.
Shepherd nodded. Then his gaze went to Sherman. “You have a meeting with Lassiter.”
“I want Sherman in bed, lying down,” Sloan said. “He’s been upright way too long. I’m going to settle him and Brielle in the apartment for a few days. It’ll make it easier for Doc and me to check in on him.”
Shepherd nodded. “I’ll let Lassiter know to see you there,” he said to Sherman.
“I’ll bring your bags up before I head out,” Lambchop said.
“Thanks.” Sherman struggled to stand even with Gary’s help.
Brielle followed behind Brian as Gary led him to the elevator. He moved very slowly. She wasn’t sure who Lassiter was or why Brian was meeting with him. The other members of the team were heading home, dismissed. She didn’t understand why Brian wasn’t. She could take care of him at his place. Certainly, he’d be more comfortable at home.
At the bed within the apartment, Brielle watched as Brian set his phone onto the bedside table. Then he put his wallet into the drawer. He reached his hand to his hip and then around to the small of his back. “That’s right, no weapon while on painkillers.”
“Do you have to hit the head before I help you lay down?” Sloan asked.
“Probably a good idea,” Sherman agreed.
“I’ll be around all night in case he needs to get up,” Sloan told Brielle after Sherman was closed within the bathroom. “You won’t be able to help him, so don’t try.”
Brielle was about to argue that she could when Brian came back into the room. He inched his way to the bed with small steps.
“Drop your pants and I’ll help take them and your shoes off after you sit,” Sloan said, pulling the bedcovers back.
“You can take my shoes off, but I’d rather have the visual of Brielle depantsing me,” Sherman said with a cocky grin.
Brielle watched as Gary helped Brian sit on the edge of the bed. They moved slowly, and it was obvious that Gary supported Brian’s weight. Gary took his shoes off and then stepped back to allow space for Brielle to come in close. She smiled in a flirty way at Brian as she slid his jeans from his knees and off his feet. Next came pain-filled moans that coincided with the smallest of movements as Gary helped Brian to recline on the bed.
“Help swing his feet up, will you, Brielle?”
She came in and lifted his feet, swinging them onto the bed as Gary painstakingly lowered Brian to the mattress with small, deliberate movements. When he was finally reclined, Brian let out one last moan. And Gary had piled pillows three high, so he wasn’t lying flat. Now she understood why they stayed here and didn’t go to Brian’s place.
Sloan pulled the blankets over Sherman’s lower body. “If you need anything, you let Brielle get it or call me. Don’t even try to get up without my help tonight.”
A scowl set on Sherman’s face. “You know I hate this.”
“Let us take care of you. You’ll be moving around better in a few days,” Sloan said.
Just then the door opened and Lambchop and Mother came through, carrying several bags, including Brielle’s backpack. They sat them on the floor near the foot of the bed. “Let us know if you need anything,” Lambchop offered.
“Thanks,” Sherman acknowledged. He wished everyone would stop fussing over him.
The room cleared out. Brielle crawled into bed and laid on Brian’s right side. She held him.
Fifteen minutes later, two sharp raps on the door got both Brielle and Sherman’s attention. “That’s probably Lassiter,” Sherman said. “Come on in, the door is open.”
Brielle watched as a man with scars on his face and neck came into the room. He walked with a slight limp. He had dark blonde hair, worn cropped short. Brielle sat up.
“Hi Joe,” Sherman greeted.
“Hi,” he replied as he approached the bed. His eyes met hers. “And you must be Brielle.”
“This is Joe Lassiter, our team shrink, here to evaluate my mental state because I was shot.”
Lassiter chuckled. “I’ll be evaluating the mental state of the entire team that was on the ground, so don’t think you’re special.”
Sherman chuckled just a little and then winced from the pain from it.
“I should give you two the room,” Brielle said, moving to get up.
“Stay,” Lassiter said. “And yo
u don’t need to get up. You both look pretty comfortable.” His eyes went to Sherman. “Or as comfortable as you can be.”
“Yeah,” Sherman agreed. “The bruised ribs suck. I can deal with the arm and the graze by my armpit, but man, every time I move or breathe, the ribs scream.”
“That should calm down in a few days. Rest is what’s best right now, so don’t be stupid and push it,” Lassiter said. Then he turned more serious. “I read the mission report. There were a lot of bullets flying around. The team was very lucky that only one of you got hit.”
Sherman nodded. He took Brielle’s hand in his. “I’m glad it was me who got hit and not Brielle or Tina Landry or her baby, the other civilians.”
Lassiter nodded. “If it was your girl that got hit instead of you, we’d be having a different conversation right now and I’d be more worried about you.” He wouldn’t mention how messed up in the head the entire team would have been had it been the baby that got shot.
Sherman chuckled again, followed by another wince. “This is the third time I’ve been shot Joe. It ain’t no thing. My mind is fine, and this won’t impact me doing my job when I do go back on active.”
“We’ll talk about that over the next month while you’re on limited duty, but I’m sure you’re right.”
Sherman glanced at Brielle and smiled. “At least I’m guaranteed I’ll be home the next month. Sucky way to accomplish that, but I won’t complain that I’ll get to go to sleep beside my girl every night.”
“Most nights,” Lassiter corrected him. “Shepherd plans to train you in Ops and some of those will be overnight shifts, I’m sure.”
“I suppose Madison, Garcia, and Jackson will have to go out in my place while I’m laid up, it’s only fair I pick up the slack in Ops.”
“So, you're good, nothing to talk about?” Lassiter prompted.
“Nope, it’s the reality of the job, Joe, the possibility of getting shot.”
Lassiter nodded. He knew Sherman would have to be pushed to admit how he felt. Then his gaze slid to Brielle. “What about you? Welcome to the reality of this job. Are you prepared to deal with this?”
Brielle forced a small smile. “I have no other choice. I want to be with Brian, and this is what he does. Does it scare me? Yes, it sure does but the thought of not being with him, is worse.”
“That’s a good way to look at it. You had a scary ordeal yourself, and that was before you saw Sherman get shot.”
“It’s funny. I spent months in danger, but I guess I didn’t really realize it. Since Brian found me hiding on his boat, I was the safest I’d been in months, but when Cooper and Madison came down to the bayou and Mr. Shepherd took this seriously enough to send others down, that was when I really got afraid.”
Sherman raised her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. “Oh, baby, I didn’t know you felt that way. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t want to admit it and I wanted to be able to stay involved. I was worried that if you knew I was afraid, you’d keep me away from it.”
“And you wanted to see it through to the end?” Lassiter posed.
“Yeah. It was my story. I’m the one who called attention to that BioDynamics facility. I investigated it and just knew that something wasn’t right. I wanted to see it through to the end.”
“And you did. From what I hear, you have an exclusive to write the story on it. How’s that coming?” Lassiter asked.
“I haven’t started it yet. I need to do that,” Brielle said.
“Is there something interfering with you writing the story?”
“Besides the fact that Brian was shot?” Brielle shook her head. “There just hasn’t been time for me to write it yet.”
“Work on it tonight. If you can’t get the words down, there might be more to it. More you may want to talk with me about,” Lassiter offered. He handed Brielle one of his cards. “Program my number into your phone and contact me if you want to talk with me. I have an office in this building.”
Brielle took the card from him, but doubted she’d call him. “Thank you.”
Lassiter stood. “Get some rest, Sherman, and take it easy for a few days. I’ll be in touch.”
“Thanks, Joe,” Sherman said.
“It was nice to meet you, Brielle. Call me if you need me.”
“Thank you, Dr. Lassiter,” she said.
While Sherman slept, Brielle worked on her article. As she reflected on what had happened, her mind focused more on the brave actions of the Shepherd Security Team, than on the illegal activities of the Sheriff and the people at the BioDynamix facility. She knew she couldn’t mention too much about them, and any reference to the DEA agents who investigated and brought down the bad guys had to be generic, naming no names, and not specifying what technology or tactics they used to investigate what was going on.
It was late when she finished typing the article. She’d given it a lot of thought. She’d given many things a lot of thought as she worked on it. As she closed the lid to her laptop, her eyes went back to Brian’s sleeping form. She knew what she had done, and what she was planning to do was the right path for her. This man had become very important to her.
Romeo
Both Brielle and Sherman were awakened the next morning by a couple of knocks to the door. Then Sherman’s phone vibrated with a new text message. Brielle got up and handed his phone to him. It was a message from Sloan. He was in the hall.
“Come in, it’s open,” Sherman called as Brielle turned the light on. She’d slept in her clothes, not knowing if anyone would be coming into the room during the night.
“Is everybody decent in here?” Sloan asked as he entered.
“Not even close,” Sherman remarked.
Sloan chuckled. “No, you, my friend, are not.”
Brielle smiled at the black-haired woman who entered behind Gary. She was pretty. She had a heart-shaped face, big brown eyes, and a genuine smile. She carried a tray with food.
“Brielle, this is Angel, our Office Manager, Shepherd’s Executive Assistant, and Jackson’s wife,” Sloan introduced.
Brielle approached her as she placed the tray on the small kitchen table. She presented her hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Angel shook her hand. “Same. If there is anything you need, let me know. Garcia is going to push everyone’s contact information to your agency phone, so you’ll have my number.”
“Thank you for bringing us breakfast,” Brielle said.
“I’m ordering lunch out today. I’ll shoot you a text when it’s here and you can get plates for both you and Sherman. Garcia’s also going to set you up with temporary access to move around the building.”
“I’m going to get Sherman up and let them have breakfast,” Sloan said. “Angel, can you come back in about a half hour and get Brielle while I change Sherman’s bandages? You can show her how to access the panels to move around the building and maybe have a cup of tea down in the kitchen.” His eyes shifted to Brielle. “A change of scenery will do you good while I’m tending his wounds.”
“Sounds good,” Angel said.
Brielle nodded, even though she didn’t want to step away from Brian. She watched as Gary helped Brian up, another pain-filled maneuver.
Brian used the bathroom.
“How’d he do last night?” Gary asked.
“Good. Whatever you gave him let him sleep comfortably.”
Sloan smiled a crooked grin. “My best friend deserves only the best pain meds.”
“How long before we can go to Brian’s place?”
“A few days, when Sherman can get himself up and down.”
Brielle nodded. She was eager to get on with what would be their normal life, even though she was unsure what that normal life would look like for her. Brian rejoined them and Brielle watched the twisted grimace on his face as Gary helped to sit him at the table. Then they enjoyed breakfast, Gary promising to be back in a half hour.
&n
bsp; “Thanks for arranging for Brielle to spend some time with Angel,” Sherman said to Sloan as he removed the dressing around his bicep.
“I figured you’d want Brielle to, and she doesn’t need to see your wounds, up close and personal.”
“Yeah,” Sherman agreed, studying the open wound.
“You were damned lucky, you know,” Sloan said. “The bullet hit your arm in the best possible way. And under your arm, had your body been turned at all, instead of a graze you’d have serious internal damage, ribs, lungs, possibly even damage to your heart.”
“Yeah, God was really looking out for me,” Sherman agreed.
“How’s Brielle dealing with all of this?”
