Page 108 of The Best of Us

“What do you want?” I asked them.

“The boy. He was at the scene of a crime. Two dead bodies. We need a word with him at the station.”

Bullshit.Izzy told me neither the FBI nor the NYPD were ever alerted about what happened at the rave. These two were either crooked or not cops at all.

Juliette gave me a heart attack by coming around to my side. “Officer, I’m sorry, but my son was?—”

“Is not going anywhere with you,” I finished for her, my voice dropping as sharp as a blade. “You touch him, you lose your hands. Am I clear?”

“You threatening a cop?” the second officer asked, a Bostonian accent slipping through.

The one with the badge had the balls to try and test the size of mine. “We’re taking the kid out of here.”

“The fuck you are,” I growled out as he pocketed his badge.

He moved in quickly after that, leading with a right hook. Always the damn right.

I dodged, countered with an uppercut to his chin, then swept his legs out. He hit the pavement with a loud thud.

“Mom, look out!”

I spun around at Colin’s warning, discovering a weapon being pointed Juliette’s way. I yanked her behind me, drew, and fired. Two shots. Center mass.

The man crumpled, and I returned to problem number two, discovering Colin had already gotten to him first.

Colin moved fast. A jab, a brutal right elbow, and a knee to the ribs.

The guy dropped to all fours, gasping for air.

At the sight of a glint of metal at the man’s ankle, I shouted, “Colin, get back!” I fired off three shots, putting him down for good.

Screams echoed throughout the garage. Time was up.

Juliette and Colin were still standing. Shaken up, but alive.

I holstered my gun and grabbed Colin’s arms, scanning him. “Are you hurt?” My voice was firm, controlled.

Blood smeared his fingers, and he showed me his palms, jaw clenched. “Not—not my blood.”

“Good.” I turned to Juliette, letting go of him. “Take Colin. Get in the car. Now.”

Sirens wailed in the distance. Real cops this time.

I searched the bodies, pocketed their wallets, and grabbed the badge. No phones on them. Must’ve left them in their car.

I dragged the bodies out from behind my Maserati. No reason to further scar Juliette and Colin by backing over their corpses.

Sliding into the driver’s seat, I looked at them in the backseat to check on them. Juliette’s hands were shaking, and Colin was stone silent.

I faced forward, throwing the car into reverse. “They weren’t real cops,” I said, voice calm, even though my adrenaline still burned. “Or, at the least, they were crooked. The last place they planned to take you was the station.”

Juliette whispered, “Then why don’t we wait for the real police?”

I exhaled, gripping the wheel as the sirens closed in on us. “Because the last time I was arrested for murder”—I glanced back at her again—“it ended with me becoming a contract killer for the government.”

Chapter33

Juliette

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