Page 42 of The Italian Reckoning
I narrow my eyes but he continues before I can speak.
“And if I fail, and if it doesn’t prove anything to you, then I’ll let you go and you can do whatever it is you cops do. Arrest half the city for all I care.”
The instinct to decline is strong, but something stops me. I have grown desperate in my attempts to close Belle’s case and if there’s a chance I can get some kind of lead through Rocky, then maybe it will be worth it. Especially if I do things properly to ensure any lead is airtight and usable in court. It’s not like I have any other choice if there are people out there eager to hunt me down.
Staying close to Rocky may be my only means of survival.
“All right,” I say after a few minutes of thought. “But this doesn’t mean I like or trust you.”
“You totally do.” Rocky smirks. “I can tell. Otherwise, you would have been fighting like a cat to get out of here.”
“Out of self-preservation, I’m going to choose to ignore that because if you can’t recognize hatred, then that’s your issue, not mine.”
“I dunno.” He sings the last word with a smile. “You were all over me before you knew it was me. I might have a bag somewhere to stick over my head if it will help.”
I roll my eyes and drain the last lingering drops of my drink, savoring the tart burst of the fruit. “Believe what you want. You seem like a man incapable of doing anything else.”
“Ouch.” Rocky briefly touches his chest then picks up his phone as it vibrates on the counter. “I’ll have you know that… shit.” His face falls.
My stomach follows. “What is it?”
“There’s another body.”
17
SARAH
“No cops?” It’s the most glaring difference between this crime scene compared to how noisy and chaotic Belle’s was. Climbing off Rocky’s bike, I set his spare helmet down on the back and ruffle my fingers through my hair.
“No cops,” he replies. “We’re doing things my way, remember?”
The early morning sun fights to break through the clouds blanketing the sky, creating an odd chill in the air that clings to my bare arms as we walk into the crumbling remains of an old gas station. The sharp scents of old oil, rust, and decay tickle my nose as I cross my arms for warmth. Rocky leads the way with one hand in his pocket but after glancing at me, he shrugs off his leather jacket and drapes it over my shoulders without a word. I’m too stunned at how good he looks with a white T-shirt stretching over barely-concealed muscles to protest and quickly slide my arms into the sleeves before the warmth can fade.
“Did your contact tell you anything else?” I ask, hurrying to catch back up with him.
“No. I’d reached out to a few people to keep an eye out. People die all the time in this city so I have to keep the criteria pretty tight. Young, female. Showing signs of captivity, etc. All the same as Belle. This is the first bite that’s been decent enough to follow up on.”
“Have there been many others?”
“Hundreds,” Rocky sighs. “But most lack the signs of restraint like on Belle.”
“And you know what those look like because…”
Rocky glances over his shoulder. “You need me to spell it out for you?”
“No,” I sigh softly. Rocky probably knows everything I know about Belle, which highlights so much more wrong with my precinct, but at this point, I can barely keep up. “Do the others know you’re bringing a cop with you?”
Rocky flashes a friendly smile as he holds open a rickety door to the back of the gas station. “They do.”
The last thing I want is to walk in on people who will clam up the moment they see me, but to my surprise when I walk under Rocky’s arm, his contact is someone I actually know.
“Evelyn? Evelyn Morris?” Her black hair is scooped up into a messy bun on top of her head and she stands next to her partner, Cormac Gifford.
Rubbing at her eye, she flashes me a small smile. “It’s Evelyn Gifford now.” Lifting one hand, she wiggles her fingers and the bright light from several lamps brought into the room reflects off the dazzling jewels attached to her ring.
“Congratulations.”
“Thank you.” While her smile is easy, there’s stress clinging to her eyes and redness around her face as if she’s been crying. Cormac stands tall at her side with his hand in hers and he greets us with a gruff snort.
