Page 169 of Bossy Hero

A heartbeat later, Tomer’s upper body sags. “Son of a bitch. Boss left his phone in the car.”

Although it’s hard to see in such poor lighting, it’s a view of the headliner inside the SUV. Alan’s cell must be sitting face up on the console.

I grab the back of Tomer’s chair to keep myself upright despite the trembles rocking through me. “What about his watch?”

“That tracker isn’t moving either,” Mia answers, an air of defeat darkening her normally melodic tone.

Tomer’s voice modulates into a steely calm, almost as if he’s removed all hints of emotion. Neat trick. Wish he’d teach me how to do that. “Mia, rewind the dash cam footage to when he walked in front of the car with the chief. See if he was wearing it. I want to rule out an equipment malfunction. If he’s truly off the grid, I’m gonna tap into live satellite imagery to try to find him.”

Mia springs into action, returning to her keyboard. “On it.”

Shep’s steady voice sails through the speaker. “We’re mobile, T. Where are we going?”

“Just track my location, Shep,” Leo interjects. “I’m already en route, attempting to catch up.”

“Copy.”

“Nice when the kids can look after themselves,” Tomer quips without humor, his voice still as flat as a board.

I keep my gaze locked on the footage Mia’s rewinding, anxiously waiting for the moment Alan and the chief will appear in the grainy footage. A streak of light crosses beside the vehicle.

“What was that?” I ask.

Tapping the space bar, Mia cricks her head to the side, narrowing her eyes at the video. “Looked like a car driving by a little after they drove off. Let me run it back.”

She adjusts the playback speed and captures a silver sedan passing by Alan’s abandoned car on the side of the road. “Marking the time and grabbing a screenshot for you, T.”

Mia doesn’t wait for a response. She just starts advancing through the footage again. Once she gets back to the point where Alan crosses in front of the car, my heart sinks.

No watch on either wrist.

“He left his watch in the car intentionally,” Mia surmises. “After Boss turned off his comms, the chief must have told him to leave all his trackers behind if he wanted to talk.”

I trade worried looks with Kri, and she returns to my side to wrap her arm around my lower back.

Tomer’s fingers tap-dance over the keyboard, and then he pauses to arch a brow at Mia. “How long after the chief drove off until that car passed by?”

She wobbles her head from side to side. “About forty-five seconds, give or take.”

Tomer leans closer to his microphone. “Lionheart, did you notice anyone trailing Boss and the chief?”

“Negative.”

Beside me, Kri quietly puts my thoughts into words. “It’s almost as if the mystery driver knew the chief was gonna be there and was waiting for him to leave with Big Al.”

Tomer’s eyes widen suddenly. “Oh. Got a plate number on this view. Checking it now.”

Grasping at straws, I meekly offer a feasible explanation. “Couldn’t it just be a coincidence? It’s a public road, after all.”

Before anyone can respond to my theory, Tomer busts my bubble yet again. “What are the odds thatthisfucking guy just happened to be forty-five seconds behind the chiefrightwhen he gets Big Al into his vehicle without weapons, comms, or a tracker?”

“Who is it, T?” Leo asks, his voice deadly serious.

“Detective Patterson.”

I’ve heard enough shop talk lately to know he’s on their list of people they don’t trust.

And now he’s going after the man I love.

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