Total pages in book: 144
Estimated words: 133531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 534(@250wpm)___ 445(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 668(@200wpm)___ 534(@250wpm)___ 445(@300wpm)
“And brought the cops,” Gideon said. “The detective was shot and killed there, presumably by one of those men.”
“But that hasn’t been determined yet,” Javier pointed out.
“What does that mean, Javier?” Mack asked. “Do you believe someone else killed Ramsey?”
Javier shrugged. “I don’t ever jump to conclusions when it comes to cops. I don’t like them. They don’t like me. Some are good. Some are bad. Who knows what happened to Ramsey? But someone killed two of Harvey’s partners. Maybe it was the cops looking for revenge.”
“Maybe it was Harvey,” Brian Hutton suggested. “Or the other one, Jarrod Flawson.”
“Could have been,” Javier conceded. “But if it was, why hasn’t Harvey left town? If it were me, and I did everyone in and knew the cops were hunting me, I’d get the hell out.”
Gideon had to admit Javier had a good point. “Why would Harvey be following Rory around? Especially when the cops are watching her so closely.”
“Yeah, and why are the cops so interested in Rory?” Javier asked.
There was a long silence as Gideon’s team mulled it over, trying to figure out why Harvey would be following Rory and why the cops were just as interested.
“Gideon, we have to ask the hard questions here,” Mack said. “You’ll have to forgive us while we consider every possibility.”
He had known the questions would be coming. He had asked them himself. He was the only one, other than Javier, who had really been close enough to Rory to read her true character. As much as he disliked Mack and the others doubting her even for a minute, he knew, since he’d considered the possibilities, they would as well. He just had to keep his protective nature under control.
“For Harvey to be such a big-time dealer, he must distribute in other cities. Rory has traveled extensively. Is it possible she works for him? If they all moved into that building and she was there as well, they could have had to meet in person for a reason. That has to be what the cops are considering.”
Gideon looked Mack straight in the eye. “I would be a fool not to have thought of that, but I dismissed it immediately. Rory isn’t capable of working with a drug dealer. She doesn’t have the personality for it.”
“I’m going to back Gideon on this one,” Ethan said. “She’s too much of an empath. You’ll see for yourself. She’d be the type who would blame herself for the suffering around her.”
Javier nodded. “I’ve followed her for a while now and haven’t seen any evidence at all of criminal activity. She’s not the type, Mack. If anything, she’d try to stop Harvey. I don’t mean kill him or call the cops on him. She’d probably sit him down and do her best to talk to him logically and explain the error of his ways.”
There was a low murmur of laughter. Even Gideon smiled, but not for the same reason as the others. They laughed with disbelief. He laughed because it might be true. He could just hear Rory talking to Harvey in a sweet, reasonable voice, doing her best to convince him how wrong he was. If she didn’t succeed, then her temper would kick into gear, and anything could happen.
“Anyone have any other ideas why Harvey would follow her rather than getting the hell out of town? Especially when the cops are showing such an interest in her?” Mack asked. “I imagine the cops believe she’s working with him. I can’t imagine they would be suspicious of any of the other women. Rory is the only one who fits the right image. She moves around. She bartends. She’s perfect for working for someone like Harvey.”
Gideon couldn’t fault that way of thinking. Rory had told him the detectives had acted as if she were a person of interest to them.
There was another long silence. Jacob cleared his throat and sent Gideon a quick look.
“Spit it out,” Gideon said.
“The woman is gorgeous. All that dark red hair. That face and her . . .” Jacob searched for an appropriate description that wouldn’t get his head bitten off by Gideon. “Skin.” He ignored the ripple of laughter that went through the room. “He could be interested in her and just not want to let it go.”
“I appreciate your discretion, Jacob,” Gideon said, his sense of humor returning. “The rest of these jokers wouldn’t have had your ability to think so fast on their feet. I did observe him in the restaurant when we were there. He didn’t spend that much time looking at her. If another man was sitting with the woman I was interested in, I’d be watching their every move together. He wasn’t.”
“That’s true,” Ethan agreed. “That man wasn’t paying that much attention to Rory. Not like he should have been if he was crazy about her.”