She’d been in custody since that night. Eight years had gone by and I’d never once visited. I was already in foster care by the time she went to trial, charged as an adult. Thirty years was a long time to recover and think about what she’d done. They’d never given her a reason to hate them, all except for trying to prevent her from being with a man who would in turn ruin her life.
They’d been right, and they didn’t even get the chance to see it.
Every time I smelled smoke I imagined what it was like for them. Had they died from the smoke while sleeping, or had they woke and tried to get out of the house before the flames engulfed them? I’d never know the truth. A part of me didn’t want to. I knew I’d dwell on more of what I couldn’t change.
My drug addict sister, who once had so much potential, had met a guy she thought she couldn’t live without. She gave up her soul to be with him. Then she gave up her life when she killed our parents.
She’d been writing for years, probably as soon as she was clean. One letter, that’s all she got from me. I told her to leave me alone, and that I hoped she rotted in a cell before the state was willing to set her free.
Joining the force seemed like the right thing to do. As soon as I was of age I submitted my application. I’ve never looked back or regretted my decision to do good; to save people from themselves, before they’re too messed up to know right from wrong. I didn’t want to see someone else have to go through what I did; the unbearable future of being alone.
Cassandra Healy. I read her file again just to be sure I hadn’t left anything out. I had high hopes for the girl, especially after she’d called from the hospital. Then something in me started to worry. Maybe she’d told her boyfriend about our meeting and he’d harmed her. Maybe her life was in danger because of me.
I drove as fast as my cruiser would allow, lights beaming for vehicles to get out of my way. If she was in trouble it would be on me, and I wasn’t going to allow that to happen.
I don’t know if I calmed down until I located her room and found her in one piece. She looked rough, but I’d seen firsthand what withdrawals can do to someone’s appearance. I approached her bed, first looking around to make sure she was alone. “Ms. Healy, is everything all right?”
She seemed weak as she spoke. “I’ll be fine once I’m out of here. They’re saying at least seventy-two hours. I feel like I’m going to die, and it’s your fault.”
I chuckled lightly to myself. “And why is that?”
“You told me to get clean, so I took your advice. Now I feel like I’m on death’s door.”
“You’re not. I can assure you, there’s light at the end of the tunnel.”
“That’s easy for you to say. I’m sure you’ve never gone through this before. You’re probably a natural do-gooder,” she said with sarcasm.
“I’ll have you know I work hard to be perfect,” I taunted.
“Give me a break. I might choke on your humor.”
“Why am I here, Cassie? You have to know you’re not my only case.” It was important to stay professional with my informants. I knew she was new to the program, but she had to know I didn’t mess around. My goal was to keep her out of trouble. I wasn’t there for a therapy session. I wasn’t even qualified for such actions. She needed a friend, but it couldn’t be me. My priority was her safety, and that’s as far as our relationship could go. Sure, I’d noticed how beautiful she was, even while strung out. I could only imagine how fucking amazing she could be when she was clean. Even though I lived by my code of ethics, I was still human, and a man at that. I hated she’d fallen into a life of crime and drugs. Every case seemed to remind me of my sister, and how I hadn’t been able to help her. Sometimes I felt like each case was a do-over for me to get it right. With every failure there would be one that stood out. I hoped this one had a good outcome. Losing another female to the hard life of Vegas was crushing to my soul. For so many reasons I felt like this was my calling; to help the ones who couldn’t save themselves.
She waited a few seconds before answering me. When she did, she fidgeted with her hands, as if she was nervous. “I think Rocky is ready to make the switch. I don’t know for sure, but Brant mentioned something about it tonight while we were here. He said we wouldn’t have to stay in Vegas much longer.”
I immediately thought about what would happen when she left. Would she be able to maintain a straight life, or would everything fall apart again, because she couldn’t get away from her poor excuse for a boyfriend. For the life of me I couldn’t understand why good women were attracted to the wrong kind of men. It made no sense at all. Then I started to think about the case – the one I’d worked for over a year to solve. Even with the highest form of surveillance, we were still unable to be a step ahead of Rockefeller James. “What makes you think he’s telling you the truth?”
She shrugged. “He’s hiding something from me. Then when he mentioned us being able to leave soon I knew it was because it had to do with the job. You said you wanted to know if I heard something, so I called you as soon as I was able to.”
I stepped closer to the hospital bed, noticing how beautiful her green eyes were, especially since they were bloodshot. It made the color of her iris pop. I snapped out of the trance before she noticed. “I appreciate the call. I’ll have my team stake out the house to see if the activity changes. I’ll put a tail on every vehicle that leaves the house. The heads up will help. I appreciate your cooperation.”
“I’m only doing it so I don’t go to jail. You did threaten me with it.”
“When you’re clean you’ll thank me.”
“Don’t get your hopes up. My boyfriend’s life is in danger and you’re not going to do anything to help him. That makes us enemies.”
I wanted to laugh at the audacity she had. Obviously I had the upper hand, but her spunky personality kept coming out. It bugged the shit out of me.
“Cassie, you need to understand that I’m just doing my job. Being a criminal is a decision. It’s a choice. You could have gone home and told your boyfriend all about your ordeal. The two of you could be on the road headed for better things by now, but you’re not. Why is that? Is it because some part of you knows right from wrong? Are you in this hospital because I forced you to get clean, or because you know it’s the right thing to do?”
She was quiet, and I knew I’d proven my point. I tapped on her leg. “I know you’re having a rough time. I can’t imagine how hard it is to go through what you are. If I can get to Mr. James without involving your boyfriend I’ll do it. He’s the target. If we wipe out the big guy the rest will falter. I can’t make any promises. Guy’s like your boyfriend don’t like to be threatened. It’s in his nature to steal. Unfortunately guys like him have a hard time going straight. Once they get a taste of the life of crime, they stick with it. I know it’s not what you want to hear, but statistics don’t lie. Odds are even if we don’t catch him, he’ll get in trouble in the next town, or the one after. You have a choice. I’ve seen too many women lose themselves because of crooked men. Go home and start over. If you have a family, turn to them for support. It might hurt to think about, but it’s the best thing you can do for yourself.”