Page 132 of Cross & Crown

joined Kelly soon after, wearing a shirt he’d pilfered from

Nick’s closet. Kelly and Julian stood together on the deck,

watching Nick walk off.

“Care to take an unsupervised field trip?” Julian asked

after a few moments.

“If I say no, are you going to ditch me the first time I take

a piss?”

“Yes.”

Kelly nodded dejectedly. “Let me put some shoes on.”

Nick left his Range Rover for Kelly and Julian, knowing

that as soon as he was out of sight, both men would be off. He

trusted Kelly to take care of himself, though; he didn’t need

his hand held. And hell, maybe they’d drum something up.

He left a note on his windshield for Kelly, then went to

the storage unit where he kept his motorcycle. He liked to

ride the bike when he was running down leads anyway. It was

easier to find parking, even with the police plates.

He headed for the station first, checking in on the requests

they’d put in for JD’s identity. A report had come in on the

other robberies they’d searched for. Nick sat to read over it,

then noticed a message on his desk from Boston College. One

of the professors had responded to their inquiries, saying he

recognized JD.

Nick tossed the robbery files aside and reached for his

phone instead. When he called the number that had been left,

a woman answered.

“This is Detective Nicholas O’Flaherty, I’m looking for a

Professor Kris Singleton.”

133

“This is Kris,” the woman said. Nick had been expecting a

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