Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 95676 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95676 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
"What's the plan, brother?" Jacoby asks, looking at me out of the corner of his eye when I fill him in on that tidbit.
"I need to comb through everything again," I mutter. Someone somewhere has to have an inkling of who Fake Ivy is. Criminals fuck up. It doesn't matter how good they think they are, they fuck up. They make mistakes. Those mistakes are where we look. Those are the threads we pull. All it takes is one to unravel the whole tapestry. There are a thousand little pieces to this puzzle. I just need to find the one that doesn't fit where it should.
"I meant when we get there," he says.
"If you're asking if I'm going to be a problem, the answer is no," I snap.
He cocks a brow at me.
I growl out a curse. "Fuck. I know what my job is here. I'm not going to fuck that up. I may think she's innocent, but I'm not stupid. I took the same oath you did."
"That was before you fell in love," he mutters.
Is that what this is? I'm in love with her? I want to deny, but I don't think I can. Maybe it's too soon and I'm crazy, I don't fucking know. But I think I started falling for her before I ever even met her. And then I met her, talked to her. Held her in my arms. Now…I don't know what this is now. All I know is that it runs deep. It's vast and powerful and right. God, nothing has ever felt this right before in my life. I saw her and felt like lightning struck. I couldn't look away.
"She didn't do this," I say, my voice soft.
"I'm not saying she did," he says. "Shit, I'm inclined to agree. I met her too. I've been looking into her right alongside you. I don't think she did it either. But are you ready to risk your career over this girl, brother? Because that's what you're about to do. From this point forward, she's officially a suspect in an open investigation run by your department. Until she's cleared or you quit, you're breaking every fucking rule in the book for her. They won't just take your badge if she's charged. They'll take your certification. You'll never work in law enforcement again."
"I know." I blow out a breath. I know exactly what they'll do. But some risks are worth taking. Ivy Kendall is one of them. I know it in my soul. She's meant to be mine. There are other jobs, other careers. There is only one Ivy. "I know what I'm risking."
"Fuck," Jacoby says, shaking his head. "You're either the dumbest son of a bitch I know or the bravest son of a bitch I know."
"Let me know when you figure out which."
He snorts and then laughs.
My phone rings. I glance at it and then curse when I see Ivy's name on the display. I'm not looking forward to this conversation. I was hoping to put it off until I could see her in person. This isn't something I want to tell her over the phone, especially when I know she isn't going to handle it well. She's going to panic. Who the fuck wouldn't?
"Cam, I think I found something," she blurts as soon as I answer, not even giving me a chance to say anything. "Rory Clark was supposedly at Shae's the week before he went missing, at the exact same time Fake Ivy posted she was here shopping. How much do you want to bet that she was using his name and financial information?"
"You're at Shae's?" I ask. Shae's is an upscale clothing boutique in the swanky Union Square shopping district in the city. It's the last place I'd expect to find Ivy, though I'm not surprised she's out hunting for clues on her own. She isn't the type to sit on her hands and wait for me to do the work myself.
"Obviously. I couldn't just sit around and wait for something to happen," she says. I can practically hear her eyes roll. "Did you hear what I said? I think Fake Ivy was here in person, using Rory's name. Or he was here with her, which means he might actually know who she really is. You need to get his credit card statements and request the security tape footage."
"I'll look into it."
"Something's wrong," she whispers.
Fuck. I pinch the bridge of my nose.
Jacoby glances at me and then back to the road.
"I need you to go back to your apartment and wait for me."
"Cam―"
"Kitten," I sigh. "Go home and wait for me."
"Tell me," she demands, refusing to give up that easily.
"Kitten," I growl, trying to avoid doing this on the phone, especially when she's not even at home. She doesn't need to hear this in the middle of a fucking store. It's going to break her heart.