by LAURA HARNER
He slipped into his car and circled back. The best way to plant evidence was to be in on the case from the beginning. He needed to be there when they searched her apartment. He needed to turn the evidence around.
He pulled his car up behind the black and whites, clipped his badge to the front of his jeans, and grabbed the distinctive windbreaker from the back of his car. Oozing confidence, he stalked to the officer now guarding the perimeter and flipped open his identification.
“Special Agent Tony Espinoza, FBI. Who’s in charge of this scene?”
****
“Mind if I make a quick pot of coffee before I go back downstairs? It’s been a long night already,” Deuce said.
Hawk took a good look at his friend. His normally neatly trimmed black hair was shaggy and curled around his ears and onto his neck, his jaw line was blue-black with the day’s growth, and there were shadows around his eyes.
“Are you all right?” Hawk asked.
“Just tired. I’ll be all right.”
“Are you really working the security desk tonight? I thought we hired people for that,” Hawk said.
“We have a full staff, but I put extra crew on tomorrow for the Grand Opening ceremony, so I took the shift tonight.” Deuce shrugged his broad shoulders. “I needed the time to make some final adjustments to the security system. Are you ready for tomorrow? Got your speech all prettified?”
“Christ, I haven’t even thought about the speech,” Hawk said. “I suppose the public affairs folks have it mostly composed. I’ll make the final adjustments in the morning. I feel as if we’ve been in stealth mode so far. Tomorrow, people and businesses will begin moving in. With the announcement of the Pier District renovations, everything around here is going to heat up. Andrea will be inundated with employment requests, and the realtors will have the office and residential queries to sort through.”
Deuce nodded. “I still want a shot at every application before a job offer, office rental, or sale goes through. Beyond the standard credit report. This isn’t like your operations in Houston or even London. This is far more complex, more diversified. Not to mention we’re in Julian’s backyard. How long until he comes after you?”
“I don’t know, but he will,” Hawk said. “At least I hope he will. I’m more afraid he’ll go after Danielle, as a way to get to me. He’ll look for something that will bend me to his will. His ultimate goal will be to make me return to Charbonnet Enterprises, return home, and give him control over Resurgence. All wrapped up in the ‘good of the family’ spiel, of course.” Hawk added wearily, “He already tried earlier today.”
“What? Hawk, what happened?” Deuce sat up straight, his hands tightened into fists.
Hawk felt the tension seep back into him as he recounted the situation with his father.
“What the fuck, Hawk? He has pictures of Dani alone? Someone is clearly following her and you let her go out tonight to meet a witness?” Deuce exploded from his chair. “What in the hell are you thinking? I should have been informed immediately!”
“Tolley went with her. It’s the most I can do until I explain the circumstances to her. Even then, she may not let me do more.”
“She wouldn’t even know I was there. Goddamn it, Hawk. This woman has you thinking with your little head,” Deuce said, already dialing the phone. He turned away from Hawk, held a muttered conversation. When he turned back, all the blood had drained from his face.
“There’s been a shooting—an officer down call just went out. Pier District.”
****
Tony looked around the briefing room. A scant six hours after the shooting and he’d made it onto the team, no questions asked. Généreux might be a backwater version of New Orleans, but the cops here did one thing right. A cop gets shot, everybody was in on the manhunt. He sipped his coffee, pleased to note his hand wasn’t even shaking.
He had a couple more of the handy little bugs and the micro-cassette of Julian’s threat in his pocket. Once he discovered them at Dani’s apartment, he could begin proving she was illegally recording Julian’s conversations. He still needed to plant the gun somewhere on the Charbonnet estate by tonight and then justice would be rolling. All he’d have to do would be to sit back and watch.
Up until now, he’d not had an official role to play. That dick-sucker Tollefson had taken charge of the scene and wouldn’t let anyone near the body except Beau and the medical examiner. He supposed it made some sense, since Dani was Beau’s niece and he probably wanted to preserve her privacy. It didn’t matter. Beau had sought him out at the scene, had asked him to help with the investigation.
It was the perfect set up. Dani was out to get Julian. No one would blame her, given her family history with the bastard. No one would be surprised that Charbonnet had targeted another Delacroiux either. Hell, even Junior heard his father threaten Dani, and she had the tape. With just a little creative record keeping, Tony planned to toss in the discovery of the evidence from the earlier murders and wrap them all up and put them squarely on Julian’s doorstep.
Slam dunk. Still, it was a shame about the cop. He’d make sure that Julian paid.
Richard and Beau Delacroiux stepped to the podium, and the cops in the room got quiet. One look at Richard’s face told the story of a father in grief. He was pale, deep lines etched his face, and there was a visible tremor to his hands.
“I want to thank you all for being here,” he began, his voice tight. “We are…we…” He twisted his head away, and Beau took over.
“Okay, ladies and gentlemen. You know why we’re here. To catch a cop killer. It’s still early; I’ll brief the next shift when they roll in. For now, look around the room; this is our core investigative team. And we are in complete media blackout. If any word leaks, we know it came from someone in this room. If that happens, I won’t rest until I have you off the force. I know it’s going to stay with us, with family. That’s why you’re here. You’re all people I trust. There’s only one new face—Tony, you want to stand up?
“Folks, this here is Special Agent Espinoza of the FBI. He offered his services to help us clear up what happened to Dani.” Beau stopped talking then and shifted his eyes to the side, looking as though he was trying to regain his composure.
“Tony, I’d appreciate it if you would oversee the search of Dani’s place. We can’t get into Charbonnet Hall just yet, although I know a lot of us have our suspicions about Julian. I’ve got a friendly judge standing by, but we need to find some link to tie Charbonnet in order to get a search warrant.
“Tolley, you supervise the collection of all evidence. People, that means if you stumble across the murder weapon or any other piece of physical evidence when you’re out on canvass, you radio Tolley. Am I clear? Wait for Tolley to collect it. You secure the scene and wait.
“For now, Tolley, I want you at Dani’s place”—he paused, cleared his throat—“at your place. With Special Agent Espinoza. I’ll meet you there, shortly.”
****
Hawk paced his luxurious office, blind to the view, deaf to the pleas of his personal assistant, and cursed Deuce soundly for leaving him hanging.
“Andrea, try his cell again!” Hawk yelled at his assistant for at least the tenth time in the past hour. Andrea was a beautiful, dark skinned woman who’d worked for Hawk for over five years, and he knew she was proud of the changes he’d made in his life. He also knew she was right, and he needed to listen to her today if he wanted to survive this next hour. Christ, why hasn’t Deuce called? Where are Danielle and Tolley? What the fuck is going on?
“Hawk, you know Deuce will call as soon as he can,” Andrea assured him. “You need to get downstairs. The stage is all set up, the press is out, and the mayor will be arriving shortly. You have to be down there before he gets here. God, you look like shit. Here, put this shirt on.” She handed him a soft lavender shirt and stood over him while he changed.
“Now this,” she said, passing over a matching tie. “There’s no time to shave, b
ut at least pass this comb through your hair.” She eyed him critically. “You’ll do. Now, let’s go. I have your speech. It’s mostly just a lot of words thanking the mayor and council members. Make sure you get all of those names correct. You can fake the rest. You know the drill. You look forward to the opportunity presented, together we can make a difference, blah, blah, blah. Hawk, are you listening to me?”
“What? Yes. Blah, blah, I get it. Listen, you have got to pass me a note up there as soon as you hear something.”
They stepped through the glass doors of Renaissance Towers to enthusiastic applause and the flash of cameras.
****
Deuce couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this frustrated. Maybe never. Fuck, fuck, fuck! Hawk will kill me. He grabbed the bars, his hands squeezing into fists against the unyielding metal. He threw his head back and bellowed, “Guard!”
The door swung slowly open and a dark-haired woman entered, looking around the room as if she too was searching for the guard he’d been calling. Then she turned slowly to face him, and let one eyebrow crawl slowly up her forehead. “I’m Detective LeAnn Delacroiux, Mr. Deuce. Is there something I can get you before we begin?”
****
Tolley rolled his shoulders and stretched his neck from side to side. Christ, what had it been, ten hours since Dani had been shot? He’d forgotten all about this Grand Opening shit. He pushed his way through the crowd, making sure Tony stayed with him. When they got to the glass doors, Hawk was just getting up to the microphone to speak.
Their gazes met across the crowd, and Tolley gave the bastard the cop-eye stare he deserved. Fucking two-faced prick. He would make Hawk pay for what he’d said about Dani when this was over. It was the least he could do.
Chapter Nineteen
“Okay, Just Deuce. Tell me again,” LeAnn asked, leaning back in her chair. In the witness room, Deuce’s gaze kept shifting from the clock on the wall to her face—back and forth—and the slower she went, the jumpier he got. Works for me.
“They called me in. Dani had Tony and Beau in her apartment. I swept the place after they left and found two listening devices in the living room and one in the elevator.”
“And did you see who put the devices in Detective Delacroiux's place?” LeAnn asked.
“No,” Deuce answered angrily. “I already told you all of this. Look, you’ve had me here all night. I need to get back to work or at least call my boss. I was supposed to be there hours ago for this Grand Opening. Come on, Detective, I know you know about it. I’m working the security with the Généreux PD for Christ’s sake. The mayor’s going to be there.”
LeAnn plastered on a smile. “Hawk Charbonnet’s your boss, isn’t that right, Deuce? How do you know the bugs didn’t belong to him? It’s his building, after all. Who would have better access?”
“Why the fuck would Hawk do that? He knows the top three floors of the Tower are equipped with a jamming device. The elevator scan clearly showed Espinoza was carrying electronics when he and Beau got on. Dani herself told me he’d planted the bugs. I’d swept the fucking place less than twenty-four hours before we found them, and the only people in or out of the apartment besides Dani and Tolley were Tony and Beau!”
Deuce attempted to maintain his cool exterior, but LeAnn could see the little beads of sweat that dampened the hair around his forehead. She didn’t fool herself into thinking that Deuce was afraid of her. She’d run his records, knew he was a former Navy SEAL. He could withstand anything she threw at him and a helluva lot more. So she had to ask herself if he was afraid for someone else, someone he cared for a great deal. Or was it sheer frustration at the GPD procedures? That was okay, too. Whatever worked. Besides, she’d gotten almost everything she needed. One more push, though, and maybe she could convince him it was better to share—it was the only way anyone was going to help with whatever had him so worried. Just a little more.
“Oh come on, Deuce. You’re so far up Hawk Charbonnet’s ass, you’d lie to your own mother for him. I know you helped him break into Detective Delacroiux’s old apartment. You opened that locked door like it was nothing. Got a little B and E in your background?” She shook her head.
“But, nah…For this, you didn’t need to break…you’ve got a master key to every apartment and office in the Tower. The most logical person to plant a bug in the detective’s apartment is you or Hawk. You’re Hawk’s errand boy. Just like Julian has his errand boys. Like evil daddy, like dirtbag son. Isn’t that right?” LeAnn asked, then leaned forward, getting into his face.
“You planted those bugs in Dani’s place, didn’t you? You had no choice but to remove them when Tolley found them,” LeAnn whispered.
“No!” Deuce exploded. Then, with a final look at the clock, he started to talk.
****
Tolley went into his bedroom to freshen up. It had been a long night, and it was rolling right into day two. He took his time cleaning up, even thought about a shower, but dismissed the idea with Tony in the apartment. He washed his face at the sink, brushed his teeth, then checked his watch. He judged he’d allowed enough time to pass and went back into the living room.
Tony had been joined by Beau, and they looked up at him expectantly.
“Tony found something. Get your kit,” Beau said, his voice tense with excitement.
Tolley went to back to his room, grabbed his forensics case, and then followed Tony to his discovery.
Tony pointed to the small writing table that Tolley knew damn well Dani had never used. It was one of the new pieces Hawk had added in order to help fill up the room. He gloved up, pulled out tweezers and evidence bags before he opened the drawer. Sure enough, tucked into the corner of the top drawer was a small cardboard box. He carefully used the edge of the tweezers to lift the lid of the box. Inside, nestled in cotton were three bugs.
The same type of bug he and Deuce found in Dani’s apartment and removed last night. In fact, they looked to be the same exact listening devices Tolley had returned to their original placement early this morning. A quick glance to the base of the lamp confirmed his suspicions. The bugs had been moved, put away into a small box that hadn’t been in the desk four hours ago when the apartment had been thoroughly searched. Funny how only one other person in the room knew where to find those little listening devices.
Ignoring the figure moving in slowly from the kitchen, Tolley looked at Beau, then over to Tony. “Good job, Agent Espinoza. Did you find anything else?”
“Yep, found a tape on the top of that shelf. I don’t know where the player is; I was just getting ready to look in Dani’s bedroom.”
“I’d stay out of my bedroom, if I were you,” Dani said from behind Tony. Her weapon was drawn, hands steady. “Hold your hands away from your sides and don’t fuckin’ move. Trust me, I’d have no problem shooting you.
“Tolley, get his weapon. Search him carefully for a backup piece. Tony Espinoza, you’re under arrest for the attempted murder of a police officer, assault with a deadly weapon, tampering with evidence, and we’ll let you know the rest of the charges when we book you.”
Tolley stepped back with the weapons before Dani holstered her gun. She yanked one of Tony’s hands behind his back and snapped on the first cuff, then grabbed his other hand and secured the handcuffs.
She nodded at Beau who read Tony his Miranda warning.
Finally recovering from the shock of hearing Dani’s voice, Tony turned his head slowly to look at her. Tolley watched the shock and disbelief wash over him before he tried to cover himself.
“Detective Delacroiux! Dani!” Tony cried. “You’re alive, thank God. There must be some misunderstanding—”
“There is, douche bag,” Beau interrupted. “Someone thought you had the integrity to uphold the law.”
****
Finally alone in his apartment, Hawk stared blankly out the window. He had no memory of speaking in front of the crowd. No recall of talking with the mayor, could remember no part of the newspa
per interviews. From the moment he saw Tony and Tolley heading into his building, he knew for certain that the cop that had been shot was Danielle. Hadn’t some part of him known all along? It’s what Deuce had feared, too, and now he was missing.
He sank to the couch, with his elbows on his knees, his head dropped down into his hands, and he pulled at his hair.
“Oh, God,” he choked, and then he began to rock. He was dying inside. Danielle. His Danielle. So full of life, so beautiful, so giving.
She’d told him she loved him. There was no artifice, no games. Just an honest declaration of love. As if he’d needed her words to know the truth of it. Hadn’t he felt it in every caress, in every kiss? He never should have made her wait to hear those words from him, never should have fought to keep them secret.
He pictured Tolley, and the look he’d shot him as he’d gone inside. The expression on Tolley’s face said more clearly than words that this was Hawk’s fault, and Hawk alone knew the absolute truth of that unspoken accusation. This was his fault.
It was one thing to believe he could outmaneuver Julian on the business front. He’d known all along his father would try to find a way to make him pay. He had been an arrogant fool to believe he could stay two steps ahead of Julian. He never should have been within ten feet of Danielle until long after the Grand Opening was completed. Not until he knew he could keep her safe. Even if that meant waiting a lifetime.
He began to shake, fighting back the tears and freeing the anger. My father. This was his father’s fault. He’d threatened Danielle, and now she was gone. Julian would pay. He would make Julian pay, and no cost was too high. Hawk was already dead inside.
Hawk stormed to his study and unlocked the gun safe. He tucked his Glock into his jacket pocket and headed for the elevator.
