Page 16 of Falcon

“If you say so. So that’s the dead guy?” My mind was racing. How the hell did Carter Smith end up in the water, throat slit, and a bullet in his head?

“Yes. Were you aware Smith made threats against your club?” Cates asked.

“He did? Nice,” I drawled sarcastically.

“You’re claiming you’re not aware?”

“Calamity said he wasn’t, and my client isn’t claiming anything; he’s making a statement,” Luca interjected.

“Smith threatened to burn the scrapyard down in a local bar. You didn’t know?” Cates pushed.

“Already answered. Move on,” Luca interjected.

“Have you seen Smith near any of your businesses?” Cates asked.

“Let me make this simple,” I said, leaning forward. “I don’t recognise him; I don’t know him, and I’m not aware of any threats from him. If you’re looking to pin this on me, think again, Sheriff. If someone who worked at a scrapyard ended up with his throat slit and a bullet in his head, he had dealt with some seriously bad people. Start checking his acquaintances, not those who were his potential victims.”

I shoved my chair back, making it squeal. Luca stood, too.

“You don’t speak to my client without me being present, not even in a social setting,” Luca warned. “We might see that as harassment.”

With that, I left the room.

Falcon

Ghost was wrapping my tattoo when my cell rang.

“Klutz?” I answered.

“Cates just took Calamity in for an interview for that dead body.”

“Alert Luca. I’ll go over there now,” I stated and cut the call. Ghost turned to me with a raised eyebrow. “Cates is questioning Calamity about the stiff.”

“Let’s go,” Ghost said.

“You’ve got clients.”

“They can come back,” Ghost growled and glanced at his receptionist.

She nodded and popped a bubble. Well, that was fuckin’ professional.

Ghost glowered. “Spit the gum out!” he snapped.

She paled before obeying.

I left ahead of Ghost and headed for the Sheriff’s office. Fuck, had the Notorious Princes been bailed? Was Calamity locked up with them? I hurried down the road and slammed into the office.

Cates was at reception and looked up.

“Calamity is fine. He’s waiting in a room for Luca,” she said immediately.

“What the hell, Cates? You arrested Calamity?” I demanded.

“Some issues have arisen, and I need answers. Calamity isn’t under arrest; he’s here to answer some questions,” she replied.

“And you couldn’t ask them at the clubhouse?” I snarled.

“No. Not unless I wanted bias levelled against me. I don’t think you’ve got anything to do with this, but I need to ensure everything I do is above board,” Cates explained.