Total pages in book: 145
Estimated words: 136731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Part of me wishes Lexi could see me now.
That same part of me thinks she’d be proud of me.
The other part of me knows she’s better off without me and prompts me to stop being a fucking sap.
I clear my throat. “You know this dude?”
Nox sighs, “Yeah. Old contact. Used to be a field detective, but he fucked up. Now he’s on desk duty.”
“I’m thinking bringing me in is gonna get him back in the field, no ass-kissing required.”
Nox doesn’t deny it. Instead, he grins. “That’s the plan.”
My lip twitches with a struggling smile, but the effort causes my stomach to turn with the wrongness of this situation. In a sudden movement, lest I have a moment to rethink what I’m doing, I reach over to open the door. “Let’s do this.”
Nox and I enter the diner and the smell of disinfectant hits my nostrils. A lone waitress mops the floor and calls out, “Closing time, boys.”
A tall man sitting on a stool, sipping coffee, calls back, “It’s okay, Sheila.” He turns to me, and when I see his face, I pause in my tracks. The man’s hard eyes hit me with a glare, and he mutters, “They’re with me.”
The man stands, unfolding himself from the stool, and takes his coffee to a booth. The lights shut off around us, leaving only the light from the kitchen to illuminate our surroundings, and Nox slides into the booth. I take my time, seating myself next to him.
I take in this man, this cop, and I don’t do it discreetly.
What can I say?
I don’t do well with authority figures.
He watches me in my blatant display of disrespect and grins. “Antonio Falco, raised from the dead, alive and well.” When he reaches out with a hand, I try not to sneer. “Casper Quaid.”
I take his hand firmly and pump it once before letting it fall. Nox greets his old friend. “Cas, how you doin’?”
Casper sighs, running a hand through his too-long blond hair. “Overworked and underpaid. Same shit, different day. How’s Lily?”
Nox’s face softens at the mention of his wife. “Asking about you. Wants you over for dinner sometime soon.”
Casper shakes his head slowly, his blue eyes full of mirth. “You’re not careful, I’ll steal your girl.”
Nox clicks his tongue, leaning back in the booth, smirking. “You can sure try.”
Small talk. Meaningless small talk. It drives me nuts. A part of my brain jitters and I do my best to not grind out, “Are we gonna talk business or what?”
Casper loses his smile and turns to face me head on. “What’s to discuss? You want me to take you in, and being that Nox is an old friend, I’m going to do that in a respectful way, no cuffs. You’re not gonna get that from anyone else, Antonio.”
“Twitch.” My jaw steels and the damaged part of my mind lashes out. “It’s Twitch.”
“Okay, Twitch.” Good guy Casper throws his arms out. “So, are we doing this or what?”
I look over to Nox, and he eyes me warily. He doesn’t think I’ll go. I can see it in his eyes. He’s looking at me like I’m a wild animal. Placing an arm on my shoulders, he leans closer to me and mutters quietly, “Stick to the plan.”
The plan.
My fucking plan.
I’m taking a big risk here, and for the first time in my life, I’m anxious at the thought that things may not go my way. It’s enough to make my stomach coil, because this time around, I actually give a fuck. The uncertainty kills me.
I take my time standing while weighing up my options. I must be taking a while, because Nox clears his throat.
No risk, no gain.
The thought settles my nerves.
If this goes my way, I have a lot to benefit from it.
Besides, you’d risk it all for them.
I take a deep breath and let it out slowly, turning to face my captor. “What are you waiting for, Detective Quaid?” I lean my hip on the booth and cross my arms over my chest. “Let’s fuck shit up.”
We wait in the parking lot by Quaid’s standard white guy sedan while he wakes the police chief of his precinct to discuss the willing surrender of one Antonio Falco. When Quaid returns to us, his eyes shine with enthusiasm, locked on me, eyes on the prize, and he tries to maintain his calm as he speaks, his voice low. “Chief wants you brought in discreetly.” He turns to Nox, a look of awe on his face. “You got contacts in deep places. Deeper than you ever let on.”
Nox lowers his gaze to the gravel-covered ground. “It’s all about who you know.” He’s shutting down, avoiding me.
I don’t like that. My brow lowers a fraction. “What?”
Casper eyes me good, blinking in surprise before his lip lifts and he laughs softly. “He doesn’t know, does he?”