Page 91 of Night Watch
Erik appreciated the information, but he couldn’t get as excited about it. “Thanks for the update, but I gotta go.” He stowed his phone and looked at his brothers. “Looks like it’s showtime.”
He started for the detective, but his phone rang again.Perfect.Detective Johnson.
“Please tell me Smitty got ahold of you,” Erik said the minute Johnson came on the line.
“He did.”
“Do you have a name for the suspect Smitty arrested?” Erik held his breath, hoping Johnson would cooperate, considering Erik and the Veritas team had been so forthcoming with him.
“You didn’t hear this from me, but the guy didn’t have ID on him. Still, his prints came back to a Jeremy Miller. Also matched the prints for the evidence your sister submitted.”
“He’s our guy then,” Erik said.
“I’m sure liking him for it. He was arrested for drug possession and distribution about five years ago. I suspect we’ll find a link between him and the counterfeit drug distributors. Not that he’s admitted it. He’s not saying a word. Not a single word. Not even ‘I want my attorney.’”
“Drugs.” Erik let the word hang out there for a moment as he processed the implications as related to the illegal pharmaceutical project Wanda was working on. “Why take Wanda’s denture and nothing else?”
“Good question,” Johnson said, in his low rumbly voice. “One I don’t have an answer for. You recognize the name?”
Erik mentally ran through names on the Responsible Officials list and Wanda’s contact list. “Nope. We need to get him talking to figure out his relationship to Wanda Walker.”
“I’d like to get you and your client down here to see if either of you recognize him from the break-in.”
Erik didn’t mind looking at a sixpack of photos to try to ID the guy he saw in the parking lot, but he hated to put Kennedy through the stress. Even if she worked in law enforcement, this was personal and would be painful. Still, he knew she would want to go. “I can arrange that.”
“Sooner rather than later.”
“Roger that.” Erik shared Gordon’s death with Johnson.
“Well, isn’t that something,” Johnson said. “Who’s the detective out there?”
Erik shrugged. Even if Johnson couldn’t see it, it was an automatic reflex. “Just going to meet with him now.”
“Since you don’t know his name, give him my number and have him call me right away.” Johnson’s demanding tone held a determination Erik hadn’t witnessed from the guy before. Likely the pressure from being on the task force. “You hear me?”
“I hear you.” Erik hung up and strode toward the slim detective deep in conversation with the deputy.
Erik didn’t know how this was going to go down, but one thing he did know that he hadn’t been clear on before. He had to tell Kennedy about Gordon before the trip to the police station and Johnson mentioned it. Or this detective called her to ask questions.
Having the matter settled should have lifted a weight from Erik’s shoulders, but it did just the opposite. He didn’t have any right to keep the news of her mother’s boyfriend from her anyway, and he wouldn’t want to be left in the dark on one of his parents. Plus, she might recognize the guy’s name, which could move the investigation forward.
More than anything, he didn’t want to hurt the woman who was taking over his heart again. He wanted to commit to her and give her only the best and most joyous life, a thought that shocked him as much as finding Gordon’s body.
23
Kennedy glanced across the sofa at Erik. He looked worried. Uncomfortable in a way she’d never seen before. And asking her to sit down so he could talk to her? He’d never done that before either. Her stomach coiled around the salad she’d eaten earlier and the spicy taco salad smell lingered in the air, making the nausea worse.
She tried to clutch her hands in her lap, but the bite was still painful, so she settled on clasping the wrist of her injured hand. She wished she could stop her mind from conjuring up all kinds of crazy ideas about where Erik had been for the past six hours, but she’d always had a vivid imagination.
He planted his hand on his knees. “I got a call from Nora. Someone broke into her place, and she asked me to come alone.”
“Nora? Really?” Kennedy’s heart fluttered as she tried to figure out why Nora might want to see Erik alone.
“Her first concern was the intruder, of course,” Erik said. “The police were there when I got there and had him in custody.”
“But why didn’t she want me there?” Kennedy asked.
“She had some things to tell me about your mom that she didn’t want you or Finley to know.” His eyes were tight with a deep pain. “But I think you deserve to hear them.”
