Page 12 of Make You Mine

“Not at all, Ava. Everyone in the state knows,” Silvia says and then laughs. She also winks at me. “We’re nothing if not professional, and I’ve been known to hand him his ass more than playing nice. The fact we can argue in here and then go home and enjoy a bottle of wine just makes it more special.”

“Okay.” There’s nothing else I can say to that. To be honest, having seen her navigate, and, at times, intervene when I became distressed, endeared her to me. I would’ve never guessed, and at the same time, it makes me smile. A genuine one for the first time in so long. “That’s lovely.”

After a few seconds of silence, her husband clears his throat. “Do you have that yearbook by any chance?”

I shake my head “No. Sorry.” My head tilts to the side, and I run through the select few people I’ve kept in contact with over the years, wondering if anyone has a copy. “Except for my senior year, I tossed everything out.”

“That’s okay. We’ll contact the school and?—”

“But I might know someone who might have a copy. I’m almost positive she never tossed any of them away.”

“Rose?” Silvia asks, her brow arched. “You said she had a crush on him.”

“No. We’re not on good terms anymore.” That is the understatement of the century. She changed after we graduated, or maybe it was before. My best friend pulled away from me and became defensive after the position she put me in. “I’m talking about another friend. If anyone has a copy, it’s her. Amanda worked on the yearbook community and helped put them together, including the year you’re asking about.”

“How soon can you reach out and explain our urgency?”

“Today. Why?”

“Because I have a limited window to turn in my transcripts,” Silvia interjects, her expression serious now. “Everything you just shared will be given to the defense, Ava. I won’t hide anything, but the fact he exited the meeting before everyone is in your favor. Devin getting his hands on every piece of evidence and building a solid case will make sure Jason Ripley isn’t let off based on a technicality or lie.”

5

ELIJAH

This is a fucking mistake.

That thought runs through my mind—a nonstop loop of forewarning as Captain Perez explains my next assignment. Fifteen years older than me and at one point a marine, he’s someone I respect and have never questioned, but this time…

I’m receiving the bare minimum while he pushes a sealed file across his desk that I haven’t opened yet, but the longer I sit here, the more my irritation mounts.

This has to be some kind of joke.

I’m not a hired guard on duty, much less a roommate’s babysitter. Not that itcan’tbe asked of us: certain cases require round-the-clock protection, but this precinct has never demanded it of its officers. It’s a sign-up detail, the time given with incentives, but not like this, even if it is for a case that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.

“She’ll be under your watch until he’s caught and sentenced,” Captain Perez says as if sharing the weather report and not the bullshit job I’ve been assigned to. “We need her in thatcourtroom, Ford. Her testimony alone will put him away for a very long time, if not the rest of his life.”

Thehimis a serial killer.

The same son of a bitch I’ve been chasing for over two years.

A murderer who somehow managed to escape captivity during a routine transport a few days ago after his initial hearing in Dallas.

“This bullshit…” I run an agitated hand through my short hair “…wouldn’t be necessary if they’d just handed him over like our district attorney wanted. It started in Los Angeles and should end here. Those three families—allof those girls—deserve equal justice and not to be an afterthought.”

“I agree, but Texas as a whole has a larger body count than us and won the toss. Nothing I can do since California was denied the right to extradite and process.”

“Then send me back out into the field. You know I’m a bigger asset hunting the sick son of a bitch down than watching over her,” I beg through clenched teeth. “I can find him. I know how he thinks.”

“That’s why you’ll be a biggerassetto me here. Protecting her.”

“I’m sorry, Capt., but I don’t agree with you.” Keeping my eyes on his, I bring a bottle of water to my lips and take a deep pull. He’s my superior, and I need to remember that. No matter how hard I want to knock some sense into him with my fist, I can’t. “Everyone—every single person that worked this case wants this man’s head, but we’re being blocked because of a back-door compromise between states. A few shaken hands and a promise of recompense later decided Texas would charge and process while attaching our victims’ names to their already thick file. Each murder—thirteen in total—will now carry the maximum allowed. Am I correct?”

Captain’s jaw ticks. “Yes.”

“That isn’t enough, and you know it.”

“And what would you like them to?—”

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