Page 115 of Claimed By the Deputies

Lucas looks down at me and smiles, tears in his eyes. “Thank you, Tassia. Thank you for this incredible gift.”

I smile, tears of my own beginning to well as I stare at our future on the screen.

“Well,that’s it for us, at least for now,” Patterson says.

The bullpen looks rather empty right now, but it will soon have new deputies occupying the desks left behind by the ones now in jail. For the time being, I welcome the calm and the quiet.

“Will you be going after the Silver Stallions?” Lucas asks Patterson.

We’re gathered in front of the murder board, familiar faces still pinned to it. Those deceased have been crossed out with a red marker, including Trevor. Others were left with a question mark. The mayor’s photo irks me the most. Just a little longer and we’re going to get him.

“I’ve decided the task force will be redirected toward Denning,” she says. “We’ve had reports of activity coming in from the area. Some local bangers were found dead.”

Tyler shakes his head. “Dexter didn’t waste any time.”

“He couldn’t,” Mitch says. “He’s got a shipment to orchestrate for the cartel.”

“Oh, don’t you worry about any of that,” Patterson replies with a wry smile. “We’ve got our wiretapping warrants coming. Intra-agency cooperation with the FBI and the ATF because it’s the Sinaloa cartel. This time, we’re taking those bastards down.”

I nod. “Good. Somebody needs to stop them. Look at all the death and misery they’ve caused. Frost Valley has been quiet and peaceful since they left.”

“Indeed. Barely a burglary report,” Danica says as she joins us in the bullpen with a handful of envelopes and folders.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes,” I say with a warm smile.

After taking a few days to let things settle down, Lucas mentioned needing a new PA. I asked him to consider Danica now that she has two children to support without Tim. He offered her the job immediately.

She gives me a soft wink. “You’re certainly going to have your hands full with those two soon enough,” she says, pointing to my belly.

“Twins?” Patterson asks with a raised eyebrow.

I cradle my growing bump. “Yes. Totally unexpected, but here we are. Can’t put this genie back in the bottle.”

“Congratulations!” Patterson exclaims, lighting up like the sun. “They’re going to be a handful but a wonderful blessing.”

Tyler laughs. “It’s cool. Tassia has an excellent support system here.”

“That I do,” I say, smiling at him and Mitch.

“Is that today’s mail?” Lucas asks Danica.

“Yes, sir. Oh, and there’s one addressed to Agent Patterson,” she says. “It was rerouted here from the DEA field office. I had to sign for it.”

I brace myself for the reaction. I’ve had some time to think about whether I should’ve done things differently. In the heat of the moment, I let my instincts handle it. From a law enforcement perspective, I know it was the right thing to do.

“For me?” Patterson is understandably surprised, but she takes the envelope and tears it open, discovering the micro-SD card and the note I wrote. “Wait a minute. Tassia? You sent this?”

I offer a slight shrug. “I didn’t know who to trust in the department.”

“What’s on it?” she asks.

“Mayor Hamilton, Trevor, Silver Stallion leadership, and a fixer named Fitz conspiring and talking about the deal with the cartel and their involvement,” I say. “It’s the smoking gun you need to take the mayor down, once and for all.”

Everyone looks at me with widened eyes of disbelief. Patterson is the first to speak. “How the hell did you get this?”

“I got Dante to tell me about Fitz and when and where they were meeting. I went to the location and surveilled for a while. Once a busboy came out for a smoke, I convinced him with a wad of cash to give me his uniform and I went in. I pretended to be a server, placed the recording device near their table, and recorded their conversation.”

“You could have gotten yourself killed!” Mitch says, his voice raised a bit. He doesn’t sound happy.

---