Page 34 of Shadow Sabotage
She’d texted me that morning, telling me she was “following up on some leads.” Then she’d apparently turned her phone off, because she hadn’t read any of my messages or returned my calls.
Following up on leads. By herself.I gritted my teeth as I paced my office, attempting to call her again.
She could blow my whole case.
When she didn’t answer, I stormed out of my office to the bullpen where Sergeant Collins was cutting up with some guy in civilian clothes. Collins straightened, putting on a professional smile.
“Can I help you with something, Agent Weston?”
I crossed my arms. “Yes. Do you know where Deputy Hawkins is?”
Collins smirked and cut his eyes to the guy beside him. “No, I can’t say that I do.” He glanced at his watch, shaking his head.“Forty-five minutes late. I’d like to say that’s unusual, but…” He shrugged.
The other guy snickered. “She probably lost track of time painting her nails or braiding her horse’s hair or something.”
Collins choked back a laugh.
“She’s not late,” I said, scowling again. I was pissed off at Claire, but hearing these guys make fun of her like that made me want to rise to her defense. “She’s working. Following up on some leads.”
Collins gave me an appraising look. “If you know what she’s doing, then why are you asking me where she is?”
I schooled my features, replacing my scowl with a calm smile—deadlycalm. “I knowwhatshe’s doing, but she’s out of communication. I need access to your office’s GPS tracking system so I can see where her vehicle is.”
The corner of his mouth rose in an amused smirk. “Be my guest,” he said, waving me over to his computer with a shrug. “But I don’t think it will be much use to you, since her official vehicle is in the parking lot.”
I stopped, my fingers an inch from his keyboard, and straightened.
Of course.She’d taken her own vehicle, which meant I had no way of tracking her down. Meanwhile, she was out there doing God knows what, possibly blowing my investigation to smithereens.
At the look on my face, Collins grinned and patted me on the shoulder. “Is Little Miss Wildwood causing problems?”
“Little Miss Wildwood?” I repeated.
“That was her pageant title,” his friend said, choking on a laugh. He wiggled his brows. “And you’ve gotta admit, it fits. She’s wild and she always getsmy—”
Collins elbowed him and gave him a warning look.
Good thing, too. If he had finished that sentence, I’d have been tempted to obliterate his sleazy smile with my fist.
“Don’t feel bad,” Collins said, his tone empathetic as he turned back to me. He leaned back against his desk, bracing himself with his hands. “You’re not the first person to have trouble with her, and you won’t be the last.”
“Is that so?” My voice was mild, my face a mask.
“Claire thinks the rules don’t apply to her. She doesn’t belong in this job.”
“Doesn’t deserve to wear the badge,” his friend sneered.
Collins nodded in agreement. “That’s why I offered to partner with you instead. I couldn’t believe Sheriff McGrath stuck you with her. But that’s half the problem. Claire is kind of his … special pet. The rules are different for her, which, as you can see, has enabled her to continue her problematic behavior.”
I took a deep breath. Collins was a snake, but I had to admit that what he was saying made sense. Sheriff McGrath had praised her in a way he hadn’t the others, and he’d given her this assignment even though Collins should have been first in line for it.
He chuckled. “I mean, let’s be honest. He either assigned the case to her because he wanted to give her special treatment… Or because he resented having to call in an outside agency and wanted to make her your problem instead of ours.” He smirked again. “It certainly wasn’t because of her experience.”
“You’re right. It certainly wasn’t that,” I agreed.
“The offer still stands if you’d like my assistance.” He gave me a friendly smile. “I’m sure we can fix it with the sheriff.”
“I’ll consider it. But first, I need to deal with Deputy Hawkins.”
