Page 71 of Special Agent Murphy

“That I slept with Murphy.”

“You slept with Murphy? Son of a bitch.”

“But you knew. You brought it up.”

“I knew you’d slept at his place, presumably to keep you safe from the bastard who’d hit you and stole your phone. I did not know you’d been intimate.”

Kayti felt her aunt’s eyes on her. She met her angry stare. “Don’t you look at me like that. I couldn’t help myself.”

“Hell, girl. You don’t have to yell. The man’s magic. I get it. But you’re my niece, and it’s not sitting well with me. This case is as serious as it gets. There’s no time for hanky panky, especially between coworkers. Until we find that poor girl and get her home safe, I need everyone focused.”

“I know. And we’ve done everything possible. Even with all the power behind the FBI, we’re still coming up blank for any new leads. Don’t think just because I’ve fallen for the guy, that we’re not doing our jobs in as professional a way as you’d expect.”

“I didn’t say that.” Edna started to grin. “You’ve fallen for him?”

“Well, yeah. I don’t sleep around. With him, I couldn’t help it. And before you say anything else, I’m kinda in a place where it looks like I’ll be suffering from the same condition for the rest of my life.”

“Well, now. Does he feel the same? The guy keeps things pretty close.”

“I know. Right now, we’re just finding our way to each other.”

“Considering the latest threat to your safety is rotting in a jail cell without any chance for bail, you could move back home and give yourselves time. Or if that’s not happening, you know I have a spare room with your name on it whenever you want.”

“Thanks, Edna. You’re right. I need to get back to my place. If for nothing else, to change my clothes and freshen up.”

“Want me to drop you there?”

“Sure. We’re close by. It won’t take long. I’ll meet you back at the office.”

Within minutes, the car pulled to a stop in front of Kayti’s building. Before she could leave, she hugged her aunt, a move they’d started at the end of their Sunday visits. One she now felt an overwhelming need to carry out after Edna’s tolerance and understanding of her recent behavior. “Thanks for being supportive, Edna. I’m terrified about this relationship with Murphy. Yet, there’s nothing I can do about it.” Her weak grin and chuckle said it all. “It’s too late to turn off my feelings.”

“Then follow them and rely on him to do right by you. The man’s all heart. I don’t know if you heard the rumors about his past. Why he’s been punished and sent back down the ranks.”

“Sure. Supposedly, he betrayed his partner, and the man ended up dead. I can’t believe it, not after getting to know him. He’s too honorable.”

“See, you happen to be right. I know for a fact it was the other way around. His partner, Bruce Tarner, was dirty, not Murphy. He’d hooked up with a bad bunch… Mexican mercenaries. Having enough drug money to throw around, they bought a cop. His gambling addiction took precedence over his partner, his job, and worst of all, his family.”

“Oh, no. How sad.”

“I’m thinking when Murphy appeared on the day Agent Tarner was involved with them receiving payment for a huge shipment, everything started to slide. They believed Tarner’d set them up. Though Murphy drew their fire, trying to get Tarner free, they shot him without any hesitation, believing him a dirty snitch working undercover.”

“Only, he hadn’t snitched, had he?”

“On the contrary. He’d been all in. When Murphy found out, he went to try and stop him. When backup arrived, Murphy took the blame for them being caught up in the gunplay and covered for his partner’s going rogue.”

“Why did they blame Murphy?”

“Word was, there was a dirty cop. Since Tarner died, he became the hero, so that left Murphy looking bad. Thankfully, there was no proof. Based on his exemplary record, the big shots ruled in his favor, kept him on the payroll, but let’s just say, they wanted to teach him a lesson by making his life hellish.”

Kayti understood now why so many of the office personnel shot dirty looks in Murphy’s direction, but only when his back was turned. It was the older staff who kept their feelings hidden and showed him the respect he’d earned. “See, I don’t doubt that explanation at all. But why would he take the blame?”

“Because his partner has two kids and a wife who loved and looked up to him. Murphy wouldn’t let them suffer the disgrace of knowing their guy was bad.”

“So, he wore the sin.”

“Uh huh. He never divulged Tarner’s role. I only found out from another case where they closed in on an illegal poker game with huge stakes. The man who ran the game liked to talk. He’s the one who blabbed about a player he knew was law enforcement. It seems this agent had the worst luck he’d ever seen. When I questioned him with a photo, he corroborated it was Tarner.”

“And you chose not to clear Murphy because…?”

“Because he’d made the decision to protect Tarner’s family. I respected him for that. Instead, I asked for him to be transferred to my personal team.”

Kayti hugged her aunt one more time. All she said was, “It reinforces the instinct I had to trust him completely.”

“Hey, that’s why I assigned him to work with you. I wanted you to learn from the best. Plus, I knew he’d keep you safe or die trying.”

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