Page 1 of Bounty Hunter's Obsession

1

HAYDEN

“This is illegal! You can’t do this! You can’t arrest me, shithead!” Logan shouts as I drag him into Haven Hunt Bounty Associates to finish processing him.

“You’re Logan Lockwood, a fugitive with an active warrant. You jumped bail, which means I can make this private arrest. I dare you to run.” My voice comes out as a snarl more than anything else, but Logan sits still on the bench inside the office as Beatrice, my office manager, stares at us both. I don’t want to make a scene for her, and Logan doesn’t want to make a scene for me.

He settles down to dole out his excuses. “But I’m not Logan, I’m Lennox. That warrant is for my dumbass brother. We look the fucking same!”

“Twins?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.

“No, he’s a year younger than me, but intelligence skipped him.” His hair is a bit longer than the guy in the picture. I wasn’t in the office when his bail was paid either, so it’s possible I have the wrong guy.

“Fine, show me your ID,” I tell him with a look at Beatrice, who’s smiling like she knows this guy is lying.

Lennox or Logan, whoever he is, sulks in his seat still with a pair of handcuffs around his wrists. He hesitates. “That’s the thing. You grabbed me as I was going back inside the bar because I left my wallet.”

Beatrice scoffs and returns to her computer to finish processing him, and I look at him. There’s a part of me that knows he’s not lying. He’s not Logan, but unless he proves otherwise, that’s not my problem.

“Beatrice, call down to Rockets and see if there’s a wallet for Lennox Lockwood,” I tell her and turn to him. “If you get your twin in here to say he’s Logan and you’re not, you’re free to go.”

“You’re asking me to set my brother up,” the guy mumbles like he can’t believe it.

“No, I’m asking someone who borrowed thousands of dollars to kindly bring their ass in so our company doesn’t lose the bond money we put up for him. You figure that shit out or get hauled in. It’s your choice, bro.”

He grumbles something under his breath, but I gather he’s going to give it some serious thought unless he wants to spend the next few weeks in jail under his brother’s name.

Beatrice smiles and continues typing away to process the guy. The office isn’t too big. There’s an area for perps to wait where she runs things as the office manager and an office for me where I take calls from various agencies looking for people who jumped bail. Sometimes, they’re people we’ve posted bail for, and sometimes, I’ll take a contract to help another county out.

The office door creaks as I push it open and plop down into the chair behind my desk. There’s a flashing notification on my computer monitor, signaling a new warrant being issued in our tri-county area. I’m supposed to be going on vacation. Well, more like hiding out at our family ranch to decompress from these last few jobs.

Curiosity tugs at me to click the icon on the screen. I can’t help it.

The mugshot that pulls up nearly knocks me out of my seat. She’s gorgeous. Fucking beautiful.

My eyes can’t move away from her soft green eyes, wide like she still has hope left for this world. Strawberry blonde curls frame her heart-shaped face and stop just under her chin. She looks young, and as I scroll through her rap sheet, I see she’s only 20 years old.

I shouldn’t be attracted to her. I got at least almost two decades on her and wait, what’s the warrant for?

A bench warrant for failing to appear. Why did my office get this hit? We only do criminals bonded for 30 grand and higher. No matter, it’s my lucky day to see her beautiful face grace my screen. I just hope I can get to her before some meathead bounty hunter tries to get their hands on her.

Halo Alvin’s warrant is for not showing up to her court date last week. I’ll find her. Every bone in my body is telling me that I need to.

My first call is to her attorney who doesn’t pick up. That’s no surprise. He’s one of the laziest lawyers in the county. All he does is persuade his clients to take guilty pleas and avoid trial. He probably isn’t going to be much help even if I do speak to him. All he’s going to want is Halo to make a deal and cut his workload.

I jot down the address and a description of her car. Apparently, her vehicle’s at a local impound lot. After pocketing the information I need, I head out of my office to see Beatrice talking to a guy in a suit.

“Everything okay, Beatrice?” I ask, stopping with a tip of my hat to the very obvious-looking federal agent.

“Yeah, boss. Go on your vacation,” she laughs and waves me off. I’m certain she can handle Lockwood, so I take off.

The first stop I make is the impound lot. Surely she has to have her car if she’s going to skip bail. The guy running the place looks like he’s in desperate need of a shower, with ropes of hair plastered to his perspiring forehead. He’s got some dirt around his neck like the shirt he’s wearing needs a strong wash, or he needs an even stronger bath. Odors of nicotine and motor oil seep out of his skin, mingling with a husky odor of rust and sweat.

He isn’t helpful in the slightest until I show him her picture. He licks his lips and that immediately makes me want to punch him in the face. I feel so protective over her right now. Something inside of me is telling me this isn’t going to be an ordinary case.

“So has she been here or not?” I ask the guy in the booth.

He shrugs, wiping his filthy hands on an even filthier towel. “Listen, man, there’s only been one other person here looking for the girl and I’m gonna tell you the same thing I told him, I ain’t seen her. She came in about a week ago but couldn't pay the storage fees. She’s got about another week or so before we can auction it off.”

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