Page 193 of Back in the Saddle

But even Superman didn’t fit in his mild-mannered reporter suit, if you get my drift.

“So, I guess that one guy flipping on them opened the floodgates for you boys,” I surmised.

“If we know your name, we can find out just about anything about you.”

Fascinating.

“How long have you known all of this about Jeff?”

“Mace and Roam were digging into that crew, and I wasn’t keeping anything from you. They’re not done. I wanted to give it all to you, or at least all we could find, when we had it.”

“I didn’t think you were keeping anything from me, baby,” I assured. “We haven’t had a ton of time together since I met Javi.”

“We had this morning, but you fell asleep five minutes into our stakeout.”

I justknewhe wouldn’t let that slide.

I decided not to engage, something that was hard to do with the smug, playful grin he was shooting at me, so instead I looked back down at the menu.

Seriously.

How could normal people find anything to eat at this place?

“So?” Eric prompted.

“I think I might do a Spicy Bacon Hearty Wrap,” I told him.

I mean, it had bacon. So it couldn’t be bad.

Right?

“No, I mean about attempting to fold Javi and Jeff into NI and S.”

I looked to him. “I sense what you do is not a lot less dangerous than what they do.”

“It actually is a lot less dangerous, because we have vastly more training and experience, but also simply because most of our cases don’t involve us dealing with drug peddlers, asshole pimps and gangbangers.”

This was good to know.

“And I’d recommend Jeff for the surveillance room,” he went on. “Knowing his diagnosis, we’d need to keep him in situations that have less stress.”

This was sounding better and better.

“Javi would be in the field,” Eric continued. “And Jeff might think what he’s doing is less of a rush, or less important, but even if surveillance can be boring, it’s vital. Not only is it a healthy line item in our income, when we’re in the middle of a tactical operation, input from the control room and efficient, organized, informed comms is crucial.”

“I have no issue with this, Eric. I just don’t think they’re gonna say yes,” I warned him. “You were the one who told me they’re in a blood pact brotherhood. And I’ve seen the tattoo on Jeff’s arm. I wasn’t in any position to inspect it, but he didn’t have it before. And tattoo says permanency like nothing else.”

I knew by the troubled expression that came over his face what was about to come next.

And then it came.

“You’re right about their commitment. But things have changed. I don’t think after what happened this morning he can say no. If he wants to continue to make a difference, do shit that’s meaningful, with the bonus of making a lot more money, even if some of our cases will cut across the grain, he’s gonna have to tap in. This morning means the cops are going to be dedicated to making certain the same thing doesn’t happen to Javi and Jeff, and they’ll be happy to put them in a cell to make that so.”

He slid closer and kept his gaze glued to mine.

“And honey, in case you didn’t put it together, this crew that those two men moved on could think it was on the orders of Javi. If he hasn’t already put it into the grapevine they acted on their own, this is the perfect storm for an epic beef to kick off. And if they have the organization and firepower Javi mentioned, their crew against his decimated one is not good odds.”

That thought had made many attempts to penetrate my brain, but until then, I’d kept it at bay.

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