Page 63 of Defender

“I suggest you gag her, first off, so she doesn’t warn Fitzgerald.But once he’s gone, really you can do whatever you want with her.”

Summer shuddered as Harper looked her over.

“Okay.I’ll call Fitzgerald.It’s a good day for him to die.”

Chapter Eighteen

The woman—her name was Tamara Snell—was dead long before SWAT ever arrived at her apartment building.But due to the pandemonium, they hadn’t realized it for a while.

911 had received multiple calls about a gun being fired in Tamara’s building.Most callers couldn’t give an exact apartment number, but one person had.The same guy who had said he saw Ms.Snell’s abusive ex-boyfriend holding her hostage.

Well, there was no abusive ex-boyfriend around now and Tamara was definitely dead.Shot twice in the chest.

The SWAT team had established a normal hostage situation perimeter.After a bit of reconnaissance, Ashton had determined his best angle for a sniper shot, if needed, would be across the street out on the fire escape of another set of apartments.After communicating with the team where he was going, he got into place and waited.

And waited.

He listened as Derek Waterman attempted to make contact through the victim’s cell phone.No one picked up.And nothing—no movement, no light—could be seen behind the thick curtains covering Tamara’s windows.

When both a visual and audio wire probe under the door obtained no results, everyone began to fear the worst.When a second probe through the apartment upstairs had shown a shot woman on the ground, the team had immediately breached the door.

They’d been too late.Way too late to help Tamara Snell.

Local investigators would come in from here and take over.Ashton was just a little pissed that they’d come all the way out here and hadn’t been able to do a damn thing to help.Especially when he could’ve delivered Summer and Chloe to the airport himself.

Then he’d gotten her text.

I know you probably can’t talk.I just need to know if you’re okay.

Ashton had shaken his head.It was nice that she was worried about him.But she should’ve already been in the air by then.The flight must have been delayed.

Hasn’t your plane already taken off?You shouldn’t be using a cell while in flight you know.Talk to you soon.

He hadn’t heard back from her again, so she must’ve started following airline rules and put her phone away.

Lillian and Roman met him at the SWAT truck.

“Her ex-boyfriend must have run out immediately after he shot her,” Roman said.“Because that scene was about as cold as any hostage situation I’ve ever been to.”

“I’m no profiler.”Lillian shrugged.“But generally, domestic violence cases are more personal in their violence.Yeah, the vic was tied up and yeah, she was shot.But there were hardly any other marks on her.”

Ashton shrugged.Lillian was right, domestic cases tended to be some of the most brutal ones they worked.But he was glad the victim hadn’t suffered a great deal before she died.

The locals would be taking over the investigation from here.Omega SWAT had been called because they were best at first response, but now it would be taken over by the Colorado Springs detectives.

“Let’s get back to HQ.”Derek shook his head as he walked toward him.“There’s nothing we can do here.”

Everyone helped secure the equipment and soon they were on their way back.

“Anybody heard about any action happening anywhere else?”Derek leaned back against his seat as they drove down the highway.

“Like, trouble?”Lillian asked.

“Yeah.”

Everybody doubled checked their phones to be sure.

“No, nothing,” Lillian said first, then looked around.“Anyone else?”

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