Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 76780 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76780 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 384(@200wpm)___ 307(@250wpm)___ 256(@300wpm)
Once I deem him okay, I slide off the bed to grab a quilt from the closet. I cover his cold body with the warm blanket and then squat on the floor to rifle through his bag. It’s full of spray paint cans, just as I expected. Nothing else of interest. Zipping it back up, I carry it to the living room and shove it into a closet to deal with later. Right now, evidence of vandalism is the least of my worries.
I’m more concerned about the perpetrator himself.
A crime like this could be bad for Callan. He didn’t just damage property; he permanently defaced it. That paint’s not coming out of that brick. I suppose there are worse designs than a rainbow, though. It’s a little cheery and well-done if you ask me.
Not that anyone is asking.
He whimpers, triggering my heart rate to spike. I brush his hair out of his eyes. Callan is hot in that moody, emo kind of way. It makes me want to terrorize him until I draw smiles and laughter from him. Right now, I just want to make sure he’s okay.
“Talk to me,” I murmur, running my thumb over his cheek. “Do I need to take you to the hospital?”
His brows scrunch, and he winces against the light. “W-What? No. Turn off the light.”
I should probably make him get up, but he looks too right in my bed. Plus, I don’t think he’s going to die or anything. I need to get back and deal with the crime scene. After turning off the overhead light, I flick on the lamp and then grab my cuffs. I’m not going to chance him running before we talk about this. We have a lot to discuss.
He doesn’t fight me when I take his hand. In fact, he yawns and threads his fingers with mine. It’s so fucking cute that I almost skip out on work to crawl into bed with him.
Not yet.
Eventually, I will have this boy.
I cuff his thin wrist and hook the other end to the headboard where he won’t be escaping.
“I’ll be back,” I tell him.
He’s back to sleeping softly, so I leave him be.
For now.
A yawn makes my eyes water, and I blearily look at the clock. Jax and Brie should be rolling in soon. I’ve taken photographs of the vandalized wall and written a report.
The Rainbow Vigilante, after a wild foot chase, escaped.
Still at large.
When Jax walks in, a box of donuts tucked under his arm and wearing a friendly grin, I almost feel bad for ruining his morning.
“Who’d you arrest this time?” he grumbles.
Okay, so I don’t feel bad at all.
“Your lucky day, Sheriff. No one in the cell.”
He sets the donuts down, frowning. “But?”
“But the perp got away.”
“What perp?”
“The Rainbow Vigilante.”
“What?” His eyes widen comically. “You saw the Rainbow Vigilante? Where? What happened?”
I scrub my palm over my face and sigh. “It’s all in the report on your desk.”
He snatches it up, his eyes skimming over my notes. “Fuck.”
“For what it’s worth, it’s good artwork.”
“On Ned the spitter Townsend’s damn bank building.” He curses. “Does he know?”
“Townsend? I figured he’d see it when he got to work today.”
“This is going to turn into a shitshow.”
“I’m sure it won’t happen again.”
“But you didn’t capture the vandal,” Jax growls. “Don’t make assumptions.”
I purse my lips together. It won’t happen again because I know who did it. I’ve spent the past several hours working out a fitting punishment for him, too.
“The others were on windows,” he mutters. “This one is on a federal building. It’s in a whole new league.”
“Ned’s son Hank hurt Callan. I kind of feel like it’s karma if I’m being honest.”
His features darken. “As much as I agree with that statement, it doesn’t change the law or the fact that we have to catch the Rainbow Vigilante. The crimes are worsening. Fuck. I thought…I honestly thought Hank was the Rainbow Vigilante since the crimes slowed to a stop once all that shit hit the fan.” He sighs. “It’s obviously not him. Whoever it is has either been lying low or is an out of towner who’s come back to visit.”
“I’ll keep an eye out at night. In the meantime, I’m off to grab some shut-eye.”
“Good work,” Jax rumbles.
“But I didn’t catch him.”
“You will.”
His confidence in me is both a burst to the ego and a punch of guilt to the gut. I already did catch him, but I have no plans on turning him in. He’ll be punished as I see fit, but as a man, not a cop. Thoughts of spanking Callan’s ass isn’t the best image while standing in front of my boss.
“I’m out. Tell Brie not to call me until at least after two. She forgets my ass is chasing all the criminals at night while she gets her beauty sleep.”