Page 89 of Nowhere to Hide
“Finley’s got Levine held up inside.”
There is a twist I never saw coming…“And where are you?”
“Out front of Finley’s house, behind some cover.”
“I’m guessing you were able to reach one of them?”
“Finley, on his cell phone, for a second or two. He told me to get lost and that whatever he did next was on me.”
Sandra’s chest ached at the tone of Eric’s voice. “Which isn’t true. Don’t let him mess with your head. Tell me where, and I’ll get the team together and be right there.”
Eric provided her with the address, and she ended the call.
The team…Was that how she viewed Neal Coleman, Rick Kreiger, Gibson Farmer, Monica Harding, and Donny Mason now? She’d worked with most of them twice, but considering how this felt like an extension of yesterday’s standoff, she had a feeling they’d all be on board to see this through. She called Coleman. When he answered, she said, “You called me in yesterday, and now I’m doing the same to you. I need your help and the rest of the team’s.” She laid out what Eric had told her.
FORTY-SEVEN
2:03 PM
Sandra made the call to her boss, Elwood Rowe, to let him know that she was requested at another incident. He joked she worked harder on her days off. She’d try not to take offense. But he had his boss cap on and made it clear that if she didn’t start taking her vacation days they would be gone.
She joined up with the team at MPD and headed over with them in the mobile command vehicle. It wasn’t the first time she’d traveled to the scene of an incident inside one, but it was a smooth ride.
An officer assigned to ERT drove and parked them in front of Dean Finley’s house. He hopped out along with Kreiger, and Sandra was in their wake. Kreiger directed uniformed officers to cordon off the block to vehicle and pedestrian traffic. Also under no circumstances were any news stations to be allowed past.
Sandra beelined straight for Eric, who was walking toward her. “How are you doing?” She wanted nothing more than to hug him, but her professionalism wouldn’t allow for it. She settled for brushing her hand against his elbow.
“Not good, truth be told. It didn’t have to go down like this. Todd could have talked to me. I would have helped him. Officers would have been sent to pick up Finley.”
“It sounds like Levine wanted to do right by his old sergeant, though, give him the opportunity to come forward himself.”
“Yeah, but look where that got him.” He flailed an arm toward the house.
“We’ll figure this all out, okay? Get him out safely.”
“And if you can’t?”
She wanted to offer him reassurances but nothing was guaranteed. “I can’t think that way or I’m setting myself up for failure. I keep my mind focused on a peaceful resolution and work toward it.”
He nodded. “Why does that not surprise me?”
“Come on, join the team and fill us in on everything.”
“Sure.”
Sandra entered the vehicle first and dropped onto the bench seat around the table. “Everyone, you’ve all met Detective Birch. As you were briefed, he’s the one who alerted us to the situation here.”
“There are two cops in that house, men who gave their lives to the badge,” Eric prefaced, just as Kreiger returned. “They just lost their way thirty-three years ago.”
If anyone thought to challenge the frequency with which the cops in question had crossed the line, no one said as much out loud.
“As you know, my investigation into Susan Crawford’s accident raised a lot of flags. More than that, it led to evidence that supported a cover-up. Susan Crawford was targeted, and the accident that killed her was orchestrated. What you might not have heard is I’ve even been able to tie it back to Dale Kramer.”
“Whoa, good job, Eric,” Neal told him.
Sandra was smiling, knowing that if there was evidence to find, Eric would unearth it.
“Is Kramer talking?” Kreiger asked.
