Page 84 of Sangre
Chapter Nineteen
Isla watched asSheriff Wexler stared at the note she’d just handed him while Sangre sat next to her, holding her hand. It meant a lot to Isla to have him with her. The night before, Sangre told her to trust him, and she did. It was a new feeling for her—complete trust in a man. For a long time, she’d thought Sangre hadn’t cared about her, but after he informed her that he never received the letter she’d left on his door, it suddenly made sense as to why he never contacted her.
“Last night, was anyone from your company watching Ms. Rose?” Wexler asked Sangre.
“No. Last night we were at my parents’ having dinner, so I didn’t have any of my guards watching the house.”
“I heard about Carrie Nolan,” Isla said softly. “How terribly sad.” The muscles in the sheriff’s jaw twitched. “Do you think the person sending me the letters is the same one who killed Carrie?”
“We can’t rule anything out. You need to be extra careful.” He grabbed a cup on the desk and took a sip. Looking at Sangre, he leaned forward. “You need to let me and my deputies do our job. We’ll catch the one responsible.”
Sangre pressed his lips together, his chin jutted out and arms folded across his chest, and stared at Wexler, not uttering a word. Tension crackled between the two men.
“I guess we’re done, right?” she said, hoping to slice through the discomfort.
Before Wexler could answer, the door burst open and Deputy Jeffers rushed in. He glanced over at her and his mouth turned down in contempt.
“What the hell’s going on?” The sheriff’s facial features were pinched and sharp.
“I got a lead on the car thefts over in the Sunnydale neighborhood.” Then, Jeffers looked over at Isla. “What aretheydoing here? Did you get some more fan mail?”
“I’ll talk to you about the thefts in a few minutes,” Wexler said.
Jeffers sank down in one of the chairs, and Sangre stood up, pulling Isla up with him. “We’re going.”
“I’ll need to keep this,” the sheriff said, placing the note in a large folder.
“Go ahead. Please let me know if you find out anything,” she said, her hand in Sangre’s.
“I will. And remember what I said, Sangre. We’ve got this.”
He tugged her out the door and didn’t say a word until they were out on the street. “Do you want to grab some lunch?”
She put her hand on the back of his neck and drew him to her, kissing him passionately. “Thanks for coming with me. I know this was a big deal for you. I’ve picked up that you’re not a fan of the sheriff’s department.”
“I don’t trust badges, or anyone else associated with the government.”
“You have no intention of stepping back, do you?”
“No fuckin’ way. Leroy’s for lunch?”
“Sure, but it’ll have to be a quick one. I’m meeting the band at the recording studio in a couple of hours.”
He straddled the bike and she swung her leg over it. Sensing someone staring at her, she looked up and saw Deputy Jeffers’ intense gaze fixed on her. An unpleasant, tingly chill crawled up her spine, and she quickly turned away.What’s up with that jerk?She tightened her hold on Sangre as he rode toward Leroy’s.
Two hours later she walked into the recording studio and made sure the door locked behind her. Gage sat in one of the rooms, tuning his guitar.
“You’re early,” he grinned then focused back his guitar. “I need to change one of the strings. Can you throw me the pack? It’s on top of my duffel bag.”
Isla tossed it to him and went over to the microphone stand. “Are we the only two here?”
“Jac and Benz are smoking weed out back, and Arsen is running a bit late. According to him, the chick he hooked up with last night kinda threw a scene when he tried to leave this morning. She’s going to work, so he’s making his escape.” He chuckled.
“Sounds kind of fishy to me. He probably wanted some more time with her but doesn’t want to admit it.”
Gage lifted one of his shoulders. “Maybe. He’s always with a different chick, so who knows. Are you excited about playing on Saturday? You’ve seemed a bit tense.”
Isla went over to the small refrigerator in the corner and took out a Coke. “I am. How’s Benz? Is he still super pissed at me?” She popped open the can.
