In The Trenches: An OPS Protector Romance, page 18
“I don’t remember the words,” I laughed.
“It’s not hard. It’s literally a song about Oklahoma. You can spell, right?”
He started singing along, making me laugh. He even sang the women’s parts, pitching his voice for every line. Then he motioned when it was my turn to start singing.
“This is it!”
I started singing along with him, watching his lips to try and catch the words. Before too long, I was catching on, singing and laughing along with him. I was having so much fun, laughing when he rewound it for us to sing again and again. I was actually getting pretty good at it.
He grabbed me by the arm, linking mine through his. “O-k-l-a-h-o-m-a, Oklahoooooma. Yow!” we both shouted, pumping our fists in the air before we fell back onto our backs on the mattresses, laughing hysterically.
“Christ, Fox got to her,” I heard from the doorway, sitting up immediately. Cash stood there with Dash, both of them staring at me, almost in disappointment. Then they shut the door and walked out. I turned to Fox, wondering what to do now.
“Again?”
25
CASH
“I’m telling you, she’s not guilty,” Fox said as he followed me into my office.
“Why? Because she sang show tunes with you?” I snorted, sitting down at my desk.
“Well, yeah, for one thing.”
I rubbed at the bridge of my nose. My head was pounding, and I was going to lose my shit soon if I didn’t figure out what the connection was between that building and Grady. So far, I was getting nothing from Rafe. I even tried calling Rae, but she also came up with nothing.
“Give me a better reason than she sang ‘Oklahoma’ with you.”
He rolled his eyes at me. “Like you need a better reason? Serial killers don’t sing show tunes while they plot to kill someone.”
“You do,” I pointed out.
He frowned, “Right, well, I’m not a serial killer, so I don’t count. I mean really baddies.”
“Right, like terrorists. They aren’t allowed to sing show tunes.”
“Exactly!” he said, pointing at me like I finally solved the DaVinci code. “I’m telling you, no woman is going to work with a terrorist and then sit around singing musicals with me.”
“Yes, she would, if she wanted to appear innocent.”
“Alright, then tell me about her background,” he challenged me.
“I can’t. I don’t know who the fuck she is. She’s a ghost.”
“Yes, but while you were playing the mean boss that wants to tear her to shreds, I actually talked to her like a person.”
“Since when?” I asked accusingly.
“Since I know she’s innocent. Hey, I can be just as mean as the next guy, but I can smell the innocence on her.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, shaking my head. “Don’t…don’t say shit like that. It just sounds wrong.”
“I’m telling you, this woman is running and scared, but it’s not because of some terrorist plot. She’s wrapped up in something else. She practically let it slip last night that she was abused as a kid. I’m telling you, she’s not the person you’re looking for.”
I looked up at him sharply. “She told you that?”
“Not in so many words. Let’s just say I’ve seen it enough to know the signs. You’ve seen it too, which is why I’m wondering why the fuck you’re holding her like a damn prisoner.”
“Because she is a prisoner. There’s something you need to get through your head, Fox. She was at a suspected crime scene at the same time of a terrorist attack. Until she’s cleared, I’m not letting her go. This isn’t about a stolen purse or some Xboxes going missing.”
“Then let me talk to her, or have one of the other guys.”
“This is my job.”
“This is all of our jobs. We’re all qualified. Hell, I would go so far as to say Red has more experience in interrogation than you. It is sort of what he did.”
I hated when he was right. I really should have had Red in there from the start, not only because he’s a damn good interrogator, but because I was too close to this from the start.
“Fine, get him down there. I’ll be on the other side of the mirror.”
He grinned at me when he stood. “See? I knew you’d do the right thing.”
“Where is she anyway?”
“She passed out after the second time I made her watch Oklahoma.”
“Fox,” I stopped him as he turned to go. “Just remember that she’s not your buddy. She’s a suspect, and you need to treat her that way.”
“I have my priorities in order. Maybe you need to check yours.”
As he walked out the door, I stared at Betty for a moment, then picked her up and put her in my pocket to remind myself not to go crazy on the witness in the interrogation room. I called Rae again, hoping she had some intel for me.
“Your ears must have been burning,” she answered immediately.
“That must mean you have something.”
“On your company? Yes, but not on the girl. Sorry, there’s nothing there.”
Putting that aside, I’d deal with the first problem since it was the most important. “Alright, what did you find out about the company?”
“Well, it was originally started by Adam Hayes and Evan Whitlock. Adam is currently the sole owner of the company.”
“Did he buy out Whitlock?”
“No, he was killed in a car accident five years ago. According to police reports, he fell asleep driving home after a late night of work. Hayes gave a bunch of money to the family, essentially buying out Whitlock’s half of the business.”
“That was generous of him.”
“Well, without doing that, Hayes would have always been under the thumb of someone else in the family.”
“What about the rest of Whitlock’s family? What are they doing now?”
“They moved to Texas to live near her parents. She’s remarried now with two more kids. Her husband is an investor.”
“How long after Whitlock died did she remarry?”
“Um…a year,” she said, almost surprised.
“She didn’t need the money. Why remarry so soon after losing her husband?”
“I would guess that she’s one of those women that doesn’t like to be alone. Based on her social media profiles, it doesn’t look like she’s ever been alone for long.”
I wasn’t sure why that was bothering me, but right now it didn’t matter. I’d dig into it later. “What about the company? How is it doing?”
“It’s in good financial standing. Most of their research is pretty well undocumented.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that they list a bunch of bullshit about what they do to keep their business sounding legit, but there’s no actual information on what specific projects they’re doing.”
“So, we could be dealing with anything.”
“Basically.”
“Thanks, Rae. Let me know if you come up with anything else.”
I hung up and headed into the hallway, meeting up with Red along the way.
“So, you’re having me interrogate a woman.”
“Yep.”
“How far do you want me to go?”
I hesitated for a minute, not sure what to tell him. That part of me that remembered how scared she was at the gym told me not to push too hard, but the investigator in me said that I needed to have him push because we needed every last detail.
“Do whatever your gut tells you.”
He nodded and opened the door to the interrogation room as I walked past into the room beside it. Fox was already in there waiting for me with a bucket of popcorn, his chair tilted back as his foot rested on the ledge in front of him.
“Seriously?”
“What? I think this is going to be very interesting.”
Sighing, I sat down beside him and dug my hand into the bucket. “I think you’re going to be disappointed.” I tossed the popcorn in my mouth as I watched Red take a seat across from Beth.
“Beth, my name is Red. I need to ask you a few questions.”
“He’s going for the sympathetic route,” I commented.
“See? He doesn’t think she’s guilty either,” Fox said proudly.
“Or he’s trying to gain her trust.”
“I know Cash has already been in here to ask you a few questions, but there are some things we need to clarify before we let you go.”
“See? Sympathetic,” I grinned.
“Nah, he’s just signaling to you that he’s not holding her.”
I rolled my eyes and continued to watch.
“This man,” Red pointed to the picture. “Can you tell me anything about him?”
She pulled at her shirt, clearly uncomfortable. “Like I told Cash, I don’t know anything. We were stuck in the same building at the same time.”
“In the elevator,” Red nodded.
“Right.”
“And you said you climbed out through the top of the elevator.”
“That’s right. That man helped me out because my shoulder was hurt.”
Red nodded again. “Do you remember what floor you got out on?”
“Three. We were stopped just below it. His…friends pried the doors open.”
“Not friends,” I muttered. “She was scared of them.”
“Which should tell you she’s innocent,” Fox retorted.
“Unless she was working with them because she had to.”
“I know that night was scary for you, so I won’t drag you through too much of it. I’ve been stuck in an elevator before, so I know what it’s like.”
“Again,” I said to Fox, “he’s sympathizing with her.”
“No, that’s a true story, man. I was there. Of course, he was hanging from the cables and I was laughing my ass off at him, but same shit.”
“That’s not at all like being stuck in the elevator,” I snapped.
“For this purpose, it is.”
“Which is why I said he was sympathizing with her,” I practically yelled, getting frustrated with the man. Then I heard something and leaned forward. It sounded like music was playing somewhere. “What is that?”
“Oh, I had the soundtrack from Oklahoma play on repeat in the room since before she walked in.”
“For what purpose?”
He sat up, his chair settling flat on the ground. “To put her at ease, of course. I laid the groundwork for you. I got her comfortable and found something that would make her feel relaxed. She’s more likely to tell us what’s going on if she’s not ready to shit her pants.”
I tuned in again to Red. “So, just so I have an approximate on how hard the power outage hit, about what time was it when you got in the elevator?”
“Um…maybe ten o’clock?”
“Ten o’clock,” he muttered, going over his notes. “And how many floors did you go up?”
She frowned, not understanding the leading question. “Almost three.”
“So, you were in the basement when you got on the elevator.”
“Yes, I had just filled up my cart.”
He slowly looked up at her. Fox and I both leaned forward, finally getting somewhere with this woman.
“So, the man got on the elevator with you from the basement.”
Her mouth opened, but she didn’t say anything.
“Beth, there’s no entrance down there besides a fire exit. So, why were five men down there with you?”
“I didn’t say—”
“The man got on the elevator with you. You went up three floors. If he had joined you on a different level, you would have said the elevator stopped and he got on. Why were you hiding that from us?”
“I wasn’t,” she said quickly. “I just didn’t remember. I was scared and—”
“Because of the power outage, or because a large man got on the elevator with you, purposely leaving the rest of his group behind?”
“Now we’re getting somewhere,” I said quietly. “Still think she’s innocent?”
“Beth, you let those men into the building, didn’t you?”
“No!”
“How else would they have gotten in? Why would five men be hanging out in the basement? There are no offices down there. We’ve seen the layout of the building.”
“I don’t know,” she rushed out. “I swear, I…they were just there.”
“And you didn’t let them in? Come on, Beth. How else would they have gotten in?”
“They had badges,” she said quickly. “Employee badges.”
“All of them?”
“Yes! I swear.”
He nodded again. “And you trusted this man,” he pointed to the man in the picture with her. “He made you feel safe with the other men around.”
She bit her lip, nodding slightly.
“Why?”
“Because he was being nice?” she responded.
“Men like him don’t make people feel nice. Men like him don’t give a shit about a woman in an elevator. So, you’d better tell me why he was so nice to you. Was he on your team? Was he supposed to be there?”
“Oh, man,” Fox scoffed. “That’s just mean. He’s tricking her.”
“He’s getting answers out of her.”
“He was nice to me on the elevator,” she finally answered. “I don’t…I don’t like tight spaces or being that close to men. And I couldn’t see him.”
Her voice was pitching, like she was reliving the experience. Her eyes were wide and her breathing was uneven. She was close to having a panic attack. Fuck, I had this all wrong. She had nothing to do with it. She was a woman trapped in an elevator.
“They sent the man with her to take her out,” Fox muttered. “They needed to make sure there were no witnesses.”
I agreed. “But why did they leave her alive?”
Red tapped at the picture again. “What happened in that elevator, Beth?”
“Nothing,” she shook her head. “He talked to me, helped me through the panic attack.”
“And when the friends showed up?”
She hung her head, almost like she was ashamed. “He was going to leave me. I called out for him.”
“What was his name?”
I didn’t think she was going to tell us, but then she whispered, “Seth. That’s all I know. No one else said any names.”
“And when you got out, they didn’t try to hurt you or threaten you?”
She shook her head. “No, but it was clear that I wasn’t going anywhere without them.”
“And did you see anything?”
She shook her head again. “We walked out of the building and I turned away from them. I kept thinking they were going to come after me, but…”
“Seth saved you,” Red finished. “Why didn’t you tell us this before?”
A tear slipped down her cheek and she quickly swiped it away. “Doesn’t that make me complicit or something?”
“No,” Red sighed. “Give me a minute.”
He shoved his chair back and walked out of the room. A moment later, he was swinging the door open and strolling in.
“Yeah, I got it,” I answered before he could beat me to it.
“And to think, you almost went full-on Betty on the woman.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, blowing out a harsh breath. “Fuck. She’s still involved.”
“Let it go, boss,” Red shook his head. “She was there, an innocent bystander. She was unlucky enough to be caught in the elevator with the dude, but lucky enough to get out with her life. She lied because she’s terrified. You don’t know what they said to her. They could have threatened her life.”
“I know!” I snapped, pissed at myself for ignoring my initial instincts about her, all because I was hell-bent on catching a terrorist. That’s how lives were ruined. “Fox, take her home.”
“What about the job? Not gonna offer for her to keep it?” he grinned.
“Yeah, I can see her coming back here now. Just make sure she gets inside and she’s safe.”
He stood and clapped me on the shoulder. “Will do, boss. Do you want to talk to her before I take her home?”
“What for?”
“Oh, I don’t know. To apologize. To tell her what a gigantic asshole you are.” He shrugged. “Something along those lines, but don’t rely on me to tell you what to say. Just speak from the heart.”
I rolled my eyes at him and stood, shoving my way past Red and Fox. Walking into the interrogation room, I knew they were watching, using this against me in all future meetings I would have with any woman. Beth was leaning back in her chair, her arms crossed over her chest.
“I want to apologize for taking up so much of your time. After much consideration, we’ve determined that you’re not a threat.”
Her eyes slowly raised to meet mine. I expected relief or something similar, but all I saw was anger. She stood, not bothering to speak even a single word to me. Her eyes flicked to the door, and then she moved, walking right past me without so much as a mutter of disapproval. Red walked in afterward, his hands shoved in his pockets as he watched me.
“It could have happened to anyone, boss.”
“I was so sure she was involved.”
“Yeah, I think you saw what you wanted to.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, my gaze snapping to meet his.
“It means, you like that chick, and when you saw her on the footage, you let your mind put her in a box so you didn’t have to deal with her.”
“That doesn’t even make any sense.”
“Of course it does. You put all your women in a box.”
“I do not.”
He quirked an eyebrow at me. “Betty is in your pocket, and Sally is in your rifle case. Tell me I’m wrong.”
I held in my frustrations until he walked out of the room, and then I slammed my fist into the wall. Some protector I was. I just scared the shit out of a woman who was already terrified for unknown reasons. And worse, I didn’t have the time to dig into her any further because I had other shit to deal with. Fucking Rafe and his stupid ideas.
26
