Page 35 of Detective Daddy Next Door

"You'll be representing Costa in the case. The IRS is trying to play smart, and I will not let them."

Costa is one of our celebrity clients, a rapper who made it big locally.

"Are they saying he's been evading taxes? That's not even possible."

"I think this is a witch hunt against him. It's orchestrated. They’re asking for proof, although it’s proof that they already have. I mean, we've been handling his taxes for four years now. They're saying he evaded taxes five years ago, which is a lie. But we'll prove them wrong. That's why I want you to handle this."

"Does he have beef with anyone?"

"From what he said, someone's been threatening to ruin his career. It’s probably someone high up, or someone who sees him as competition and they're just using this to rattle him. He doesn't have all of his documents from five years ago so it's going to be hard."

"I mean, it'd be easier if he had all of his documents, but I'm sure we'll find a way out. Maestro firm doesn't leave any stone unturned," I say.

"I hate injustice," Micha says, an undertone of anger in her voice.

“Who’s representing the IRS?”

“Barry and Jim. Tom and Jerry, the attorneys in the chief counsel’s office.”

Tom and Jerry are our nicknames for two of the most ruthless lawyers we’ve had to go against in court. They'll do anything they can, and I meananything, to win a case.

“Oh shit. I thought we were done with them, but apparently not.”

Micha looks ahead solemnly. “I hate injustice so much,” she repeats.

I watch her as she looks away. This doesn't seem like a woman involved in fraud. She seems so unsettled by injustice. She's always talked about hard work and how she built the firm from the ground up. I feel guilty that I can't tell her about Myles and the investigation. I'm holding out hope that it's all just a mistake.

When I push the office door open the next morning it's empty. Daisy isn't here yet. I'm happy I don't have to talk much and glad I’ll get a substantial amount of work done before she comes. I'd gone out to see Costa and his team yesterday and we’d gone through some files together. It was late when I left his house, leaving me no time to come back to the office.

I pull my chair out, wipe my desk clean and settle down. I hang my bag on the chair before sliding it off to get my pen, but I don't find it. I must have left it at home or at Costa’s. I look over at Daisy’s desk for a spare pen, but I see none. I don't want to have to get up to go check her drawer. I know I didn't put any pens in my desk, but I pull it open just in case by some luck I'd dropped one in there and forgotten about it.

I don't find a pen, but I find an envelope, a brown one sitting smack in the middle of my drawer. I don't remember leaving an envelope there. Especially not a brown one. Who could have put it here? Was it Daisy? Oh, wait, is it a surprise from Daisy? I'm not celebrating anything, so I wonder what it could be. I hold the drawer open trying to figure out how it got here. After a few minutes of unsuccessful and pointless thinking, I dip my hand in the drawer and pick it up. It's crisp but it isn't sealed. I flip the flap up and open it with my finger. Inside is a piece of paper. I slide it out.

On the paper is text.Back off or face the consequences.I blink, then drop the piece of paper back in the envelope, toss it in the drawer, and shut the drawer with a loud bang. Is this some type of joke? It isn’t the first of April, and it isn’t funny.

Chapter 14

Myles

Istareoutofthe restaurant window as we wait for our food. Jon is seated across from me and is quietly scrolling through his phone. Bria's been avoiding me. She's been lying about work keeping her busy, but I know that's not the problem. I know Sonya is the real problem. After I found out that she went to Bria's office, I knew this would happen. Knowing Bria, she wouldn't want to put me in harm's way, but she could have at least told me, and I'm sure we could have found a way out together. I understand why she's staying away, but it hurts. It hurts that it's so easy for her to wrench herself away from me. It hurts that everything we had meant nothing to her. I've tried to get her to speak to me. I've called and texted and gone to ring her doorbell, but I've been met with silence each time.

"They're still working on the files we sent them."

I look away from the window. "How long will it take them to go through them?"

"They probably only have one person doing it. And I imagine the poor guy has to work on other cases, too. I can't wait for this case to be settled so that I can go back to Denver."

I don't feel the same way Jon does. He can't wait to get to the bottom of the case just so he can be free and leave Long Beach. I feel the complete opposite—I don't want to leave. Although I'm not in the best state right now, coming to Long Beach and spending time with Bria has made me realize that my heart isn't completely closed off. I'd thought I'd never be able to love again. I thought that part of life was over for me. I thought I'd never find someone who'd make me open up again. But I found all of that in Bria, and though I haven't seen her in a while now, I wish I could stay and make up with her. In Long Beach, I found out that love is possible. I found out that my heart isn’t completely frozen. Leaving would mean that I'll lose all of that. Secretly, I hope the investigation takes longer, and I hope the man in the room Jon had referred to takes time to get to the files we sent. The same files Bria helped me get from Micha's computer.

The waiter comes with our food, and I push my thoughts aside for the moment. As I pick up my fork to eat, my phone goes off. I look down at it on the table. It's Garcelle. She rarely ever calls me when I'm out, so I pick it up.

"Ellie isn't feeling well."

I drop the fork from my hand. "What's wrong with her?"

"We just got home from school. She says her stomach hurts. I actually didn't want to call, but she seems to be in a lot of pain. She needs to go to the hospital."

"Is it that serious? I'll be right there."

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