Page 52 of Flame's Fight

“He’s past the age and time limit. He’s been a cop for twenty-five years.” I tell her.

“He could retire and come work for me.” Caitlin offers. “I need someone to head security for Crossroads, and he’d be perfect. He could liaise with SDPD and it would take the responsibility off of Smoke and Byte. We already know he’s a great guy and will treat the women and children with respect. He’d also know which cops to call in if he needed them.”

Caitlin is warming to the idea as she lists all the benefits my dad would bring to the position. I smile at her, once again reminded about how this club is a family. I know Flame sees all the members as his brothers, but I see these women as my sisters.

“I’ll mention it to him.” I tell her. “It’s a great idea. I know my mom would like it if he retired from the force. She’d also like it if he had something to do besides sit at home.”

“What does your mom do?” Evie asks.

“She’s a pediatric nurse.” I tell her.

“Oooh.” Caitlin says, her eyes lighting up again. Evie and I both laugh as we watch the wheels spin.

“Evie?” Calls Cole who is working the bar. We turn to see him holding the phone that connects to the guardhouse. “Cops are here. They want to talk to you.”

“Cops?” Evie asks, rising from her seat and heading to the clubhouse doors. “I’ll go outside and talk to them. I don’t want to let them in unless they have a search warrant.”

Cole nods and relays the information to Izzy, who is on guard duty.

“I’ll go with you.” I say, following her, laughing, when I realize Caitlin is right behind us. The guys are not the only ones who travel in packs.

When we reach the gate, I’m surprised to see Detective Harding and another man standing outside the gate. The second guy looks familiar, but I can’t place him. Ignoring them, I’m on the lookout for that bastard Billings. Not seeing him inside the Ford Explorer, I return my focus to Harding in time to hear Evie greet the other man.

“Lieutenant DeSaul, do what do we owe the pleasure?” Evie asks. “I thought we were meeting in your office at 11:30?”

The other man nods and gives Evie a small smile. “I know. But after Harding here brought me up to speed on what happened to Ms. Wagstaffe, I thought we’d come to you instead.”

Evie glances back at the clubhouse and bites her lip. “I don’t think the guys would like me bringing cops into the house without warning. Not that they have anything to hide.” She adds.

“I don’t have a search warrant. We aren’t here to cause the Demons any trouble. We can stay out here and talk or meet at a restaurant. I probably should have called first, but my only consideration was Brooke. I thought we caused her enough problems without forcing her to come back down to the police station.”

“Want me to get Dante?” Caitlin asks. Evie nods, and we all watch Caitlin book it back into the clubhouse. A few minutes later, Dante comes out, followed by most of the club. Flame comes to my side while Chaos wraps his arm around Evie’s shoulders.

“Lieutenant, Detective.” Dante greets them. “I understand you want to come inside so you can speak with Brooke?”

When DeSaul assures him it is his only reason for the visit, Dante nods at Izzy to open the gate. The two men get back into their vehicle and drive in. By the time we reach the clubhouse, they’re climbing back out.

Dante leads them inside and to his office. Flame, Evie, and I take seats around the conference room, along with Dante. Tamara follows us in.

“Do you want anything?” Dante asks. “Water, iced tea, beer?” He asks with a smirk.

“Iced tea would great.” Harding says while DeSaul nods.

Tamara takes our orders and ducks out. She comes back quickly with a tray. After placing down the beverages, she leaves, closing the door behind her.

This cues DeSaul. He looks at me, then around the table, before returning his focus to me. “First, I want to apologize for the way we handled the case against Younger. We should never have released him, especially without notifying you.” He shudders. “I don’t want to think what could have happened to you if you hadn’t outsmarted him.”

“Do you have him in custody?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “We’re looking for him, and we will find him. I’m willing to offer you police protection.” He glances at Dante. “But I don’t think you need it.”

“She doesn’t.” Flame states, and both cops nod.

“And Billings?” Dante asks. “Where is he?”

“On administrative leave pending an investigation.” DeSaul says without hesitation. “I can’t talk about it, but we are taking his actions seriously.”

“You heard the recording of his interview with Brooke?” Evie asks.

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