The Thief

by Kate McCarthy

  Murphy is clearly an undercover detective, working her way inside the Marchetti crime group. She knows about the list. She knows I was coerced. I give her a hostile look and face the window. I know better than to say a word, but I am not okay. My head is thumping harder and my neck is aching. I feel the hot prickle of tears in my eyes and blink them back.

  * * *

  Kelly

  “Pull over up here,” I bark at Valentine.

  Hammer and four other brothers are up ahead, pulled over to the side of the road, astride their Harley’s with mine sitting there waiting.

  “You shouldn’t have told her to not pull over,” he says. “We can sort out the mess at the station and pick her up from there.”

  “Ace is not goin’ in a cell. Not for a single second.”

  “It won’t matter. I’ll get her out.”

  My jaw ticks. “It will matter. I made a promise. I fuckin’ promised!”

  My car door is open before the Subaru even growls to a stop behind my Sentinels brothers. They turn their heads.

  Fox and I jump out of the car. “Need your eyes and ears with Mitch,” I tell him, tucking the gun from his glove compartment into the back waistband of my jeans.

  He nods and climbs in the front passenger seat as I jog to my bike, rain pelting my clothes and face. My brothers don’t question me as I reach them. They simply straddle their bikes, engines rumbling, waiting for me to take the lead.

  Mitch zooms off ahead of us while I climb on, not wasting the time to put on a helmet. Sparing the barest glance at oncoming traffic, I shoot out behind him, slipping through gears as I overtake and pull ahead.

  The last piece of information I have is of Ace heading east down the M5 Western Motorway. I push my Harley to the absolute limit, sliding through corners, my baby struggling to hug the slippery road. Our bikes crest a hill before shooting down, flying around the corner for the on-ramp. I kick it up another gear, opening up the engine as I roar down the motorway.

  The traffic is light, yet cars start braking up ahead, building, the red lights illuminating the dark road. I catch the flash of a police siren in the distance.

  Fear rises, a living, breathing animal inside me. I shove it down as I shoot forward, leaving the Subaru behind as I weave my Harley through the building cars. A section of the road ahead is closed. There’s been an accident. My eyes burn as I blink against the rain, seeing the GTO crumpled against a tree.

  Ace. Bile rises. Baby, no. No, no, no, no, no.

  I reach the scene. I’m off my bike and running before my brothers even stop behind me. Someone tries to push me back, but I shove them away and they go flying as I run for the car. The door is open. Ace is not inside. I turn my head, searching.

  My eyes land on the undercover police car. Is that … Murphy? What the hell? I glance to the back-passenger window and see Ace, her arms clearly cuffed behind her back and blood streaked down her face.

  “Ace!” I shout, running. “Ace!” She turns her head just as the car pulls out, taking her away. “No! Ace!” I reach the car, jogging beside it as I grapple for the handle.

  I’m seized from behind as it accelerates out onto the motorway. Someone’s trying to restrain my arms. I shove again, sending them backward as I stare after the car, my stomach sinking. “Motherfucker!” I shout, grabbing at my hair. I’m too late.

  I turn, starting for my Harley when my phone rings. I tug it from my back pocket and check the screen. It’s Valentine.

  “The GTO hit a tree,” I answer. “She’s injured and they took off with her in the back of their car. Where the hell are they takin’ her, Valentine?”

  “They’ll book her down at the Parramatta station.”

  I’m ready to hang up, when he asks, “Why were you wanting me to run Miles Howard earlier?”

  “Because he’s some prick from Ace’s past, and I wanted to know where he was at. Why?”

  “Because we found out more information about the undercover tail. Howard works the Property Crime Squad Motor Unit. He’s the one who just cuffed her.”

  Suddenly it makes sense why the guy was all over her ass in the GTO. I’m angry. This guy literally has held a grudge all these years because Ace made him look the fool. Sonofabitch. “Meet me at the station.”

  I get back on my phone and make another call.

  Echo answers, sounding frantic. “Kelly, what the hell? I’ve tracked Ace out on the Motorway, and she’s not answering her phone.”

  “She’s just been arrested.”

  There’s a pause. “How did that even happen?”

  “You wanna know? Miles Howard made it happen.”

  “Kelly—”

  “I have to go. Meet me at Parramatta station. I’m headed there now.”

  There’s not much my Sentinels brothers can do from this point on. I give them a brief overview of the situation as I climb on my bike. They make the decision to follow me to the station and wait out the front, a silent form of support. We head off, and after we park our bikes along the kerb just down from the station, Valentine pulls up behind them, Fox jumping out and jogging toward me as I climb off.

  “Did you talk to her?” he asks.

  I shake my head. “Sonofabitch was already driving off with her. You know Murphy was in the front?” I say as Valentine reaches us. He falls in beside us as we jog across the road, making our way to the entrance.

  Fox’s eyes widen in shock. “What?”

  “Bitch must’ve been working undercover.”

  “Murphy?” Valentine asks, scrolling down something on his phone. “Shoulder-length dark hair? Dark eyes? Curves?”

  “Yes,” Fox replies.

  “This her?” he asks, holding up a picture on his phone as we reach the front door. It’s definitely her, but she’s in full issue uniform, her intelligent eyes severe as she stares down the camera.

  “That’s her,” he confirms.

  “It’s a classified photo. Detective Hayden Lewis. A finalist for NSW Field Operations Police Officer of the Year this year. She didn’t show for the awards ceremony,” he says, reading his screen before looking up. “And that would be because she was working undercover and doesn’t want her face out there.”

  “There goes our money,” Fox mutters to me, as if I honestly give a shit.

  Valentine raises his brows as we jog up the stairs, having heard him. “What money?”

  “Nothin’.” The automatic front doors slide open.

  Fox steps to the side, letting me go first. I walk in and Valentine grabs the back of my shirt, pulling me up. “I’m handling this, Daniels. Keep your mouth shut.”

  Clearly the man doesn’t know me at all. “You’ve got rocks in your head if you think I’m gonna sit back and let you deal with this.”

  “Newsflash, Daniels. I’m the one with the badge.”

  He flashes it at the man behind the front desk like a superior asshat. “We need to speak with Detective Miles Howard.”

  “I’ll call him for you, Agent Valentine.”

  My chest is tight with impatient fury. I glare at him. “We’re in a hurry.”

  He looks from me to Valentine, his expression unimpressed. Then he nods toward the stairs before going back to his computer screen. “Second level.”

  We pause at the base of the stairs, turning as someone from behind us flags Valentine down. “Mitch!”

  “Alan,” he replies, moving away from the stairs and toward the older man. His salt and pepper hair is short, but mussed as if he’s had a difficult night. Despite the late hour, he’s still in uniform, the shirt slightly rumpled. They shake hands. “Thank you for coming so quickly. Especially at this time of the night.”

  “I was just around the corner attending to another matter, but when my godson puts in a rare special request, you can guarantee I’ll be here.”

  My lips press tight as the pleasantries waste our time. Alan turns in my direction. He holds out a hand, an essence of power emanating from the man. “You must be Kelly Daniel
s. I’m Chief Superintendent Alan Rossiter,” he says as I shake it, and I’m impressed because this man holds a very high position of authority. It doesn’t surprise me that Mitch holds this connection—godson to a chief superintendent. The Valentines have their tentacles woven throughout the entire state of New South Wales and beyond. They’re resourceful and smart, and the reason why I brought Mitch in on the Marchetti deal in the first place. They’re like the goddamn Avengers of Sydney. “Appreciate you being here.”

  He nods and introductions are made between him and Fox. “Let’s get this done then. Lead the way, Mitch.”

  We make our way up the stairs. Valentine flags down a passing officer as we reach the top and step inside. “Detective Howard?”

  He stops, impatient. “He’s in booking. You’ll have to wait.”

  Valentine flashes his badge again as Rossiter keeps behind us, letting him take the lead. “We’re not waiting, so point me in the direction of booking or I’ll rain down Federal hell on this entire station.”

  Fox and I share a mutual glance. It grates to rely on an agent with a shiny badge, but it opens doors.

  The officer huffs, clearly pissed. “I’m not—” His eyes land on Rossiter and his hand snaps in a brief salute. “Sir. Booking is downstairs at the back of the building.”

  “Appreciated,” Valentine replies as the officer walks away, turning his head back for a second glance before disappearing inside an office. We head back down the stairs and make our way to the back.

  “Kelly!”

  I pause and turn. It’s Echo. She’s jogging toward us, her eyes red-rimmed and raw. “Where is she?” she gasps, out of breath as she reaches us.

  “Out in booking. We’re just headed through there now to get her.”

  She grabs my arm as I turn. “Miles Howard is a cop.”

  Echo knew and never said a word? “Yeah, I know that now. A heads-up woulda been fuckin’ nice, you know?”

  “Why would I do that? It’s not a happy subject. We don’t talk about it. But I’ve kept tabs on him on and off through the years. Why is he arresting her?”

  “Because he’s an asshole. Apparently he was running his own undercover operation on Marchetti and rather than inform the Feds, he got the jump on them and not only did he fuck everything up, he arrested Ace too.”

  Her face pales. “He’s out back booking her right now?”

  “Yes,” I bite out, impatient. “So if you don’t mind, we’d really like to keep movin’ so we can get her the hell out of the there.”

  Echo falls in behind us as we reach the door to booking. The cop on duty is flashed badges, and we step through. It opens to a large wide room with two offices to the left and an administrative counter. It’s quiet, with only three bodies inhabiting the area. Murphy is unmistakably one, though she’s not Murphy now, is she? She’s Detective Hayden Lewis. The other is a uniformed officer, which means the man in the black shirt and jeans, a badge hanging from a small chain around his neck, is Howard.

  Fox makes a grab for me, sensing my intentions before I even make a move. “You’ll end up arrested too,” he says in a quiet, harsh voice.

  “I don’t care.” The need for retribution won’t be denied. I start toward him.

  “Daniels,” Valentine cautions.

  Howard looks over, seeing our group before his eyes shift to me. I see a flare of recognition. “You Howard?”

  “I am,” he says, straightening, chin lifting.

  That’s all I need to know. I cock back a fist and slam it in his jaw. My knuckles burn. I shake them out as he crashes backward into the officer behind him. “Where is she?”

  Howard regains his footing and rubs his jaw, his eyes narrowed with fury. “Consider yourself under arrest for assault of an officer.”

  “You’re not an officer. You’re a fuckin’ disgrace.” I grab him by his shirt and drag him toward the nearest wall. I slam him up against it, taking great satisfaction in his head smacking into it. Hard. “Where is she?” I shout, having reached the absolute end of my tether.

  Valentine and Rossiter grab at me, trying to pull me from him, but rage has me in its clutches, lending me extra strength. I don’t budge. “Where, Howard?” I slam him again, harder, and despite the pain I see swimming in his eyes, he still manages a smirk.

  Hayden shifts in my line of vision. I turn my head. She nods to the wall behind her. There are two open entrances on either side. I drop Howard like a sack of potatoes and start for the right side because it’s closer.

  “Cuff him,” Howard barks to Hayden.

  She blocks me from moving, but she hesitates at cuffing me. He’s her partner, clearly she has to back him, but I can see she doesn’t want to. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that Howard acted against her tonight. She was the one working undercover. She was the one having to swallow her ethical code and subject herself to Marchetti in order to get closer. And that sonofabitch just goes rogue and prematurely ejaculates all over their operation, all for his own personal gain. It’s a wonder she didn’t punch him in the face before I did.

  Rossiter steps forward as does Valentine. Fox keeps back, his arms folded and eyes on Hayden. “Stand down, Detective.”

  His brows snap together. “Sir. He just assaulted me in front of all of you. With all due respect—”

  “There has clearly been no respect given here,” he replies, his voice a whip. “Tonight you have conducted yourself in a manner unbecoming to your partner, your fellow officers, and your entire unit. You received a tip yesterday about the Feds being involved in an operation with the Marchetti crime group. Rather than approach their lead agent…” he waves a hand to Valentine “…about working together, you chose to act outside the parameters of your own operation, discounting all the hard work both you and your partner have made to date, in order to bring in Marchetti and those who work for him before the Feds did. You compromised your fellow officers’ lives, and civilian lives, to make this collar for your own personal gain. You acted recklessly, causing a civilian who was working with the Feds injury. Not only that, you arrested her and proceeded to book her and lock her away without medical attendance. I want your gun and badge, Detective Howard. Consider yourself suspended, pending further investigation.”

  I walk around the heavy, brick wall, wanting to take satisfaction out of Howard’s comeuppance, but I’m too anxious to put my eyes on Ace. There are three cells. She sits in the middle one by the wall, her head tipped back against the bricks and her eyes closed. Her hair is wet and limp. They’ve taken her jacket and her skin appears damp and chilled. The wound across her forehead hasn’t been properly attended to, and her legs are spread slightly, a pool of vomit at her feet.

  Seeing her so hurt and vulnerable just about breaks me. I’ve failed her. I’ve fuckin’ failed her. “Ace,” I croak.

  There’s no indication she heard me. She doesn’t move.

  “Ace,” I say louder, firmer.

  Nothing. She’s unconscious. Panic rises up in waves. “Fox!” I roar. “Hayden!”

  Hayden is closer and reaches me first. Fox isn’t far behind with Echo right behind him. “You goddamn fuckers!” I shout at Hayden, banging my hand against the bars Ace sits behind. They both look inside the cell, Fox visibly blanching, which makes my panic worse because he’s seen all kinds of injuries, so he already knows it doesn’t look good. “Get her out!”

  She wastes precious time running back out for the keys.

  “Ace?” Echo cries out.

  “I’m okay,” Ace slurs with her eyes remaining closed. It’s little reassurance because it’s clear she’s not okay at all.

  “You need to call an ambulance,” Fox says to Hayden as she returns, his voice grim. “She has a serious head injury and potential spine and neck issues. We can’t move her without a back board and proper transport.”

  “Mitch is already on it.”

  I’m so angry. I can’t remember ever being so angry. I want to go back and punch Howard until he’s unconscious
and lying in a cell so he knows how it feels.

  “She’s going to be fine,” Fox reassures me as Hayden unlocks the cell door. I know my Sentinel brother would never lie to me, but I also know he’d do or say anything in this situation to keep me from losing my shit. “Just don’t lift or move her.”

  The door swings open, and I shove past Hayden and crouch by Ace’s side, bringing us to eye level. I put my hands on her knees. “Baby?”

  Her eyes flutter, acknowledging she heard me, but she doesn’t open them. “I’m okay, I promise,” she rasps quietly. “My head just … hurts a bit. I need a painkiller.”

  “Pain meds are comin’, babe. We’ll get you sorted.”

  She swallows. “I crashed the GTO. Damn cop clipped my back end.”

  I file that information away, knowing it will go in Rossiter’s investigative report. It’s not looking good for Howard’s career. “Fuckers.”

  Ace nods her agreement and winces from the pain. “Fuckers,” she whispers like a little injured warrior. “What about Marchetti?”

  “Arrested,” I say with satisfaction as I take her hand, giving it light squeeze. “The ambulance will be here soon. We’ll get you out of here.”

  “Don’t need … an … ambulance.”

  “You don’t get a say.”

  “Stubborn … donkey.”

  She’s trying to make me laugh, but it just makes me want to cry because my woman is the one injured and trapped inside a jail cell, and she’s the one trying to comfort me, even if it is just with cheeky insults. “I’m so sorry, babe.” The words sound trite and useless. Apologies don’t fix anything, especially not this. Not this.

  “Don’t … apologise. I’ve got it handled because I got you.” Her eyes blink open and land on me. Their colour is dull and worn, indicating her high level of pain, but they’re still beautiful. I want to wake up to those eyes every single day. The realisation makes my heart pound because this isn’t just love, this is forever. “Turns out I’m … stronger than I thought.” She takes a deep shaky breath. “Jail is a piece of cake.”

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