Page 61 of Jon's Helter Skelter Cold Case

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I dubbed today Dirt Day. Why? Because our entire focus today was digging up all the dirt possible on Solomon toa. throw out his case and prove Dwayne innocent, andb. get the man fired. So fired he was actually caught on fire would be my choice, but I’d make do with him at least no longer being able to throw people into prison. He clearly didn’t have the judgment for it.

We had absolutely everyone over at the house—Captain Olivia Livingston, Borrowman, Abby, her father, and Sho—because we all had beef with this man and wanted him gone. It said something when even the police captain wanted a detective gone.

Jon had made pizzas for the lunch meeting, a whole array out on the bar and pre-sliced, with drinks and such as well. The cats were currently draped over Abby without any shyness whatsoever, and I’d fetched her a TV table so she could at least eat while my furballs tried to adhere to her.

Sitting next to her, Olivia got comfortable. She’d given up on her half-moon glasses and was apparently wearing contacts, which really enhanced her green eyes. She’d also dyed her hair recently, the color now a dark brown instead of greying.

I decided to compliment her. “Olivia, you’re looking beautiful today.”

She preened a little. “This is why I like you, Donovan. You say sweet things.”

“My pleasure.”

She turned her head and observed Abby for a moment before asking me, “Is that normal?”

“Our cats love her. Abby can do no wrong in their universe.”

Abby giggled, pleased with the attention. A little too smug, that one.

Her father cleared his throat. Craig had stayed at the bar but was oriented on the stool so he could see most of the room comfortably. He was in a very relaxed mode, just jeans and a T-shirt, his dad bod clear. Really, the only thing I saw in common between him and Abby was their thick, curly dark hair.

“Just so I’m clear. Every single person in this room has had awful experiences with Detective Solomon, to the point of wishing he’d not been born. Even you, ma’am?”

Olivia nodded, her expression short. “Especially me. I spend far too much time and effort cleaning up after that asshole. I was, in fact, gathering evidence all this time to do a justifiable firing. Then when Donovan called and explained what you wanted to do, I immediately decided to join forces with you.”

“I’m delighted to hear it, but can I know why?”

“Two reasons, really. I feel like after all that man did to Jon, Jon deserves a good shot at him in return.”

Something about that rubbed me wrong. Don’t mistake me, Jon absolutely deserved a shot or two, but her tone suggested I should know something. Some detail that would make perfect sense of her statement.

Catching my expression, Olivia’s head canted a little to the side.

“Don’t you know? He almost released the man who shot Jon.”

He…what?

HE FUCKING DID WHAT?!

“Shit,” Jon groaned. “Olivia, that’s precisely why I didn’t tell him!”

I set my plate hastily aside before standing, damn near hyperventilating from the abrupt rage that coursed like boiling oil through my veins. Jon’s hands latched on to mine and he forced my eyes to meet his.

“Donovan. You will not end up in an orange jumpsuit and leave me at the altar. Got it?”

I understood what he was saying. I did. The logical part of me did, at least. Ninety percent of me didn’t understand this at all and wanted to take Solomon out as painfully as possible. Bad enough he disparaged Jon and treated him like a fool, but he’d gleefully tried to assist the man who had hurt him? This asshat wouldn’t know what hit him. I just had to—

Craig’s voice was calm, authoritative, and years of being in the army made it impossible to ignore him. “Donovan.”

I looked up toward him automatically and found him giving me a reassuring smile. There was anger in that smile—nothing happy about it—but then, he owed Jon massively for training Abby, if nothing else. Plus, I knew he liked and respected Jon, so he wouldn’t be happy to hear this either.

“I promise you, we’ll land him behind bars for malfeasance and gross misconduct,” Craig swore to me. “For what he did to Dwayne, he deserves it. For what he did to Jon, this is just karma hitting him.”

I heard what he was saying, but my temper didn’t want to bend on this. I looked back at Jon, who was staring up at me in blatant worry, which undid my anger more than anything else. I could never do something to hurt Jon. Even when I felt justified in doing so, I just didn’t have it in me. My anger didn’t dissolve, but I banked it. For now. Later I might need to go pound on a punching bag until I felt better.

“Okay.” It wasn’t, not by a longshot, but I blew out a breath and tried to pretend. “Okay. But I want him buried.”

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