“Someone burst into the office and took your phone. Who wasit?”
“Tim Dermot.”
“What happened to your phone?”
I cringed. This part was tricky. “He shot it. Then he took me out to see Buck, who was wrapping some other guy’s arm. I never heard his name. Wait . . . later they called himGary.”
His eyes narrowed. “So when did yougetshot?”
I lifted my shoulder into a half-shrug. “I wasn’t exactly shot, James.”
“The two stitches on your leg say different.”
I tried to get up again, but he held me in place. “I think I should keep the rest to myself. It falls within that neutralzone.”
“Like hell itdoes.”
“I’ll tell you this part: they pulled out the wallet of the driver. He’s the guy from Shreveport.”
“Elijah Landry?” After I nodded, he said, “So who was the otherone?”
“I don’t know. They didn’t get his wallet.”
“That you saw,” he said. “You can bet they got it. So I still need to know two things: One, what did Reynolds hire you to do, and two, when and how did you getshot?”
“Technically that’s three things.”
He gave me alook.
Groaning, I pushed his arm hard enough that he let me loose. I got out of bed and walked over to pick up my skirt. It was stiff with dried blood, and there was no way in Hades I was putting it backon.
James got up and followed me. “I’m not lettin’ you leave until I find out what happened.”
I groaned and squatted to pick up my shirt, which was dirty enough to have turned a dingy gray. I dumped it and the skirt on top of the dresser, then opened a drawer, looking for something towear.
“Rose.”
“I told him I wasn’t working for him, especially after he insulted me, and we had a disagreement.”
He stomped toward me and grabbed my arm, turning me to face him. “He shot you because you refused to work for him?” His face turned red. “I’m going to kill him with my bare hands.”
I patted his arm. “Calm down. I handledit.”
“How the hell is getting shot handlingit?”
I gave him a glare. “He was trying to intimidate me, James. I had to stand up to him, and I did. He pissed me off, so I told him I was leaving and I started walking out. He shouted at me to stop. When I didn’t, he shot around me a few times—never at me. The last bullet ricocheted off the door when I was walking out and hit me. It was an accident. He nearly pooped his pants when he realized he’d hit me, which confirmed he was only trying to intimidate me. I demanded his respect and insisted that I was in charge of the situation, and he ultimately caved.”
He didn’t answer at first. “You could have been killed,” he finally said. “You need backup.”
I shook myhead.
“You have to be smart. Jed and I would never do something on our own. Things can go sideways too fast. I want Jed to stick withyou.”
“First of all, you don’t get a say. As of this morning, you and I are no longer associates in any way. And second, last I heard, Jed Carlisle doesn’t work for you anymore.”
He cringed and rubbed his chin. “You heard about that, huh?”
“Yeah. So what was he doin’ with you last night?”