Chance Collision
Page 25
The FBI agent made a low growling sound, and Andi ignored him as she met Chief Martin’s eyes for the second time. “The guy who shot Pete?”
“Tip of the iceberg,” Agent Lucas muttered.
Chief Martin scowled. “I want you to work with Agent Lucas.”
Agent Lucas leant forward, his fists clenched. “I work alone.”
“Not in my city, you don’t. And not according to Special Agent Barnes.” The two men stared at each other.
Andi had the urge to roll her eyes but forced herself to sit still. If it wouldn’t have pressed her luck with Chief Martin’s mood, she’d tell them both they could call her when their pissing contest was over. Although concerning her boss’s order, she was with Agent Lucas. She was better off without him.
“I have a partner,” Andi said.
“Detective Crane is unavailable, MacLaren. You’re sitting next to your new partner. So get acquainted.” Chief Martin intertwined his fingers and rested his hands on his desktop. “I have been assured that Special Agent Lucas will fully cooperate with your already on-going investigation.”
“We’ll see about that,” the FBI agent said under his breath, earning yet another glare from her boss.
Great, not only did he not want to work with her, he was planning on being tight-lipped. Andi really didn’t want to be stuck with him. “Chief, I don’t think—”
“MacLaren, shut up. I didn’t ask what you thought. You’ll work with Lucas, no matter what either of you say. He will not roam around my city unchecked.”
Agent Lucas rushed to his feet while Andi gaped. Chief Martin had never spoken to her in such a manner.
“Unchecked?” Agent Lucas growled, his fists tight to his sides.
Was he restraining himself from physically harming her boss? At another time, she might have been amused.
“I don’t need a babysitter.”
“I’m not a babysitter, dammit.” Andi’s words were out of her mouth before she could censor the statement. She glared. Both men looked at her.
“Lucas, sit down. MacLaren, I meant no insult,” Chief Martin said. That was as close to an apology as she would ever get. “Lucas, MacLaren is my best detective. Second to her is her partner, Peter Crane, who is in the hospital recovering from his wounds. I am putting you with her because of her skills, not merely to keep you busy.”
Praise? Wow. It didn’t come often from her very un-touchy-feely boss. Andi flushed, taking a breath. But Cole Lucas didn’t sit, and he damn sure didn’t seem impressed by Chief Martin’s little speech. He didn’t even flinch. However, after several tense moments on his feet, he sighed heavily—insulting her a bit—and took his seat.
“There’s no other way, is there?” he whispered.
He was musing to himself more than speaking to her or Chief, but it didn’t stop the brilliant, triumphant grin that could have split her boss’s face in two. He might have even looked handsome if he hadn’t been gloating so hard.
Andi gave a sigh of her own. She looked at Agent Lucas then at her boss, who was staring at them both expectantly.
No one said anything.
“Well?” Chief Martin prompted.
“Well, what?” Andi grumbled.
“The case won’t solve itself.”
Was she back in high school in the principal’s office? Though, at the moment, detention held some appeal. With a shake of her head, she rose.
Cole looked the female detective up and down again. Despite his irritation, he was drawn to her. Just gorgeous. He had liked her show of temper moments earlier, and had no doubt they would clash again. Andi MacLaren seemed like she needed to be in control. Well, he had news for her. He was always in control, and he’d have no issues making it clear, first thing.
He winked at the buxom redhead sitting at her desk in the chief’s front room on the way out, and she gave him a knowing smirk. Cole hadn’t caught her name, but she was stunning. Although, she was young—couldn’t even be twenty-five. He glanced back at Detective MacLaren. Why was he so intrigued by her? The chief’s secretary was much more his normal type, but he would prefer Andi MacLaren if he was forced to pick between the two. That would be fun. He bit back a grin.
“So, what do you have?” Detective MacLaren asked as he followed her down the hall.
“Meaning?” He quirked an eyebrow.
“Hmmm, I see you won’t be making this easy for me.”
She was already irritated with him. Should he answer her straight or push some more buttons? “What do you mean?” he asked, going for innocence.
Sighing, she shook her head. “Look, Agent Lucas, this will be a lot easier if we just cooperate with each other.”
“Cole,” he said.
“What?” Andi asked, eyebrows drawn tight.
“Call me Cole. And I will call you Andi,” he said it slowly on purpose, dragging each word out. Her cheeks reddened. He’d ticked her off even more. She didn’t speak, just turned away and headed down the wide hallway. Cole grinned and followed.
They passed through a door with a placard announcing ‘CID’, the Criminal Investigations Division, near the doorframe. He groaned when he observed the room. Though it was spacious, there were only seven cubicles, and one work area was empty save for the standard issue phone on the desk.
The only other person in the room was a man, probably in his forties, with dark hair and glasses. He sat at one of the desks, the phone to his ear, speaking in low tones. His workspace was neat and organised, and he wrote on a legal pad as he spoke.
Andi stopped at a cubicle on the far right against the wall. She leaned on her desk, crossing her arms over her chest and giving him a long look. “Well?” she prompted.
Cole looked around again, wanting to come off as nonchalant. “Where is everyone?”
One eyebrow shot up. “Pete’s in the hospital. That’s Detective Kurt Jamison over there. His partner is Detective Sergeant Noah Sullivan—we call him Sully, naturally. No clue where he’s gotten off to. Last but not least is Detective Jared Manning. He’s on vacation, but he’ll be back next week. Right now he doesn’t have a partner. The department has an opening for a detective.”
“Oh?” Cole grinned.
“Yeah. You interested?” That eyebrow went even higher, her tone sarcastic. Good. Cole was getting her all hot and bothered.
“Hell, no. This is Podunkville. I don’t do small towns.”
Detective MacLaren snorted. “Nice.” Her lips pursed as if she was going to say something else, but she didn’t.
He had a feeling it wouldn’t take much more to make her really mad, and he didn’t want to push her too far.
“So, a one-woman show, huh?” he asked a moment later.
“Actually, we have a female lieutenant, a female sergeant and several female officers. Do you want to see my case file?”
Cole shrugged. Her expression tightened, her full lips a flat line. She shoved the fat maroon file folder at him. He suppressed a chuckle and nonchalantly peered over the crime scene photos.
“Maybe you could tell me how big the iceberg is…” Andi said. Her chest heaved as she took a deep breath.
“Nice wish,” Cole said. He skimmed her report. It was well written and informative, but didn’t answer all his questions. How the hell had Maldonado got away? She’d returned fire. Ah, she’d hit the bastard. The CSIers had recorded four blood types at the scene, including her partner’s outside the entrance of the warehouse where the two bodies were found. That might explain why Maldonado had gone into hiding. But Cole would find him.
“Look, I don’t want to work with you any more than you want me around. Why don’t we make the best of it and get something accomplished? Find out who shot my partner, and I’m guessing you have the key to your case.”
Andi’s voice pulled him from the plan he was formulating in his head. Her blue eyes were wide and sincere. The case file still in his arms, Cole couldn’t help but stare, trailing her body before returning to her face.
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nbsp; Arms at her sides, shoulders tight, she scowled. “Jesus.”
Focusing on her irritation, he cocked a half-smile. His smartass comment died on his tongue as the detective who’d been on the phone appeared next to them.
“Morning, Andi. Who’s your friend?” the guy asked.
“I would use the term friend very loosely,” Andi muttered, shooting Cole a glare.
He let it slide and glanced at the other man.
“What was that?” the detective asked. He must have heard, though, because his eyes danced and a ghost of a smile played at his lips.
“Detective Kurt Jamison, this is Special Agent Cole Lucas, FBI. He’s going to be…working…with me for a while.”
“Nice to meet you, Agent Lucas,” Detective Jamison said, putting his hand out.
Cole grasped it.
“Nice to meet you, too, Detective Jamison,” Cole said, flashing a smile.
Andi harrumphed. Cole narrowed his eyes. She smiled sweetly at him. Any other time he’d have been pleased, but she was mocking him. Jamison glanced at her then back to him before giving a hearty chuckle. What the hell was so funny? Cole frowned.
“Well, I need to chase down Sully. We’ve got a promising lead in that big stolen property case.” Jamison cleared his throat, but his tone sounded genuinely regretful. “Take care of Andi since Pete’s not around right now, Agent Lucas. She’s our girl.”
“I’ll take care of her, all right,” Cole grumbled.
Andi glared.
Jamison laughed again then disappeared from the room. Andi crossed her arms over her chest. Cole made sure she noticed his eyes rest there before he flashed his best dimpled grin. Her breasts were too hidden. What a shame.
She rolled her eyes and let her arms fall to her sides. “Are we going to talk about the case at all?” Andi prompted.
Cole went back to reading the report but showed no reaction to it. He made mental notes of a few things and revised his plan. He put the case file down and gave it a pat. “Catch you later, MacLaren.” He tossed his business card on her desk.
“What?”
“I have some leads to follow up on.”
“Wait. What? Where are you going?” Andi’s voice rose with each word. He flashed another grin and disappeared from the CID room.
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About the Author
C.A. is originally from Ohio, but got to Texas as soon as she could. She’s married and has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. She works with kids when she’s not writing.
She’s always wanted to be a writer and is overjoyed to share her stories with the world.
Email: ca@caszarek.com
C.A. loves to hear from readers. You can find her contact information, website and author biography at http://www.totallybound.com.
Also by C.A. Szarek
Crossing Forces: Collision Force
Totally Bound Publishing