LITMIR.BIZ

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eyes bright in the evening lamplight, but there was something open and trusting in her expression as she drew close to him.

      For the second time, he held out his hand. “Officer Salgado? Valerie Salgado?”

      Still breathless from her pursuit, Valerie nodded and held out a hand. Her fingers were softer than silk, but her grip was strong and confident.

      “Two suspects in custody, huh? Quite a night.” Her decision to go up the ladder had seemed a little foolhardy, but she had handled herself well in every other way.

      “I couldn’t have done it without my partner.” She kneeled, wrapping her arms about the thick-necked Rottweiler. “That’s my girl.” The dog’s bobbed tail vibrated.

      Valerie’s shoulder mic made a glitchy noise. She pushed the receive button. “McNeal has the third suspect in custody. He’s on his way over to talk to you as soon as he puts Chief back in the squad car.”

      “Copy. I’m standing on the six hundred block of Kramer Avenue. Agent Lewis is with me.” Valerie commanded her dog to sit and turned toward Trevor. “So why did McNeal bring you out to meet me?”

      Trevor stared down at the dog, who watched him with a wary eye. The dog was very protective of Valerie. “I just drove in from the San Antonio FBI office. I’m here to apprehend a fugitive...a Derek Murke.”

      Valerie shook her head. “The name’s not ringing any bells for me.”

      The hope that this would be an easy capture faded. After two years of Murke popping up on the radar and then disappearing, why had he thought he could just breeze into town and Officer Salgado would know right where Murke was? “Captain McNeal thought you might have heard something. Murke spent his teen years here and has come back several times for extended stays. Since the fugitive used to live in some of the neighborhoods you patrol, the captain figured I could get your assistance in finding him.”

      “I’ll help you as much as I can, but I can’t neglect my regular patrol duties. What’s he wanted for?”

      “A few years ago, he robbed a bank in Phoenix.” He’d spare her the longer version of the story, fearing he wouldn’t be able to keep the emotion out of his voice.

      Derek Murke wasn’t just any fugitive. He was the fugitive who had shot rookie agent Cory Smith. Trevor had been Cory’s training agent for his first field assignment. Cory Smith had been a little too eager to prove himself when he’d been a part of the apprehension team that had cornered Murke in a rental house. The kid hadn’t waited for backup to be in place before entering the house. When Cory didn’t assess his surroundings from all angles, Derek had seized the opportunity and shot him. Trevor would always wonder if he had given Cory too much responsibility too soon.

      The sooner he had Murke in custody, the sooner he would feel like Cory’s death hadn’t been for nothing.

      “I see introductions have already been made.” He recognized Slade McNeal’s voice behind him.

      “Slade and I have done some joint drug task force work together,” Trevor explained to Valerie.

      McNeal placed his hands on his hips and looked at Valerie. “I thought maybe you could work with Agent Lewis to stir up some leads. He could tag along with you on your patrol, see if you can get any information for him. And in return, you get a little extra protection while you’re on duty.”

      A shadow fell across Valerie’s face. “I suppose I could use that.”

      McNeal excused himself to go talk to the officer hauling away one of the suspects.

      Trevor watched him cross the street and then turned back to Valerie. “McNeal explained to me about the death threats against you.” News about the crime syndicate Sagebrush was battling had reached other parts of the state. Now as he watched the tall redhead’s demeanor change from confident to fearful, all the news stories and police reports seemed a lot more personal. “I’m glad to help out.”

      The black and white disappeared around the corner. McNeal walked back toward them.

      “I’m on the morning shift tomorrow.” She still seemed guarded. “I assume you have some sort of file on this guy Murke? Maybe there is something in there that will give me an idea of where to look for him.”

      She wasn’t exactly warming to the idea of an FBI agent tagging along. “I won’t waste your on-duty time if I don’t have to. I can bring it by before you go on shift. If nothing in the file helps, maybe McNeal has some other ideas.”

      “That would be fine.” Valerie wrote down her home address. As she was handing him the card, her gaze shifted from his face to over his shoulder. Her eyes grew wide as a look of apprehension clouded her features.

      Trevor turned, following the line of her gaze. Across the street, a black car with tinted windows slowed to a crawl before speeding up and disappearing around a corner. Alerting on something, Lexi rose from her haunches.

      He turned back toward Valerie. Her lips were drawn into a hard, straight line. Something about that black car had upset her.

      “Is everything okay?”

      She took a step back, shaking her head. “It’s...it’s nothing.” She squared her shoulders and lifted her chin, but her effort at bravado fell short. He could see the fear in her eyes.

      Valerie Salgado was living with a death threat hanging over her head. Maybe the car had just slowed down to look for an address, but it had bothered her. Anger flooded through him over the syndicate’s stronghold on her life.

      If they did end up working together, she wasn’t going to die on his watch.

      TWO

      Valerie peered out the front window of her house. In the early-morning light, she could make out the outline of the police car parked outside. She drew her eighteen-month-old niece, Bethany, closer.

      Would she ever get used to that sight? Would there ever be a time when her life wasn’t shrouded in danger?

      Knowing that the car with the dark windows had been following her last night drove the point home. The syndicate wasn’t going to go away. They were just waiting for the right moment to get at her. Sagebrush police knew that one of the middle managers was a woman. That woman, whose street name was Serpent, was most likely the woman Valerie had seen. The Serpent had no way of knowing Valerie couldn’t identify her yet. She probably thought it was just a matter of time before she was picked up.

      A chill skittered over Valerie’s skin when she thought of the woman’s eyes meeting hers on the street. Seemingly yellow in the lamplight, they bore right through Valerie. The memory still invaded her thoughts and sent a current of fear through her.

      Bethany shifted in Valerie’s arms. She jerked her head back and blinked several times. She was all blue eyes and soft downy hair, just like her mother. Kathleen’s funeral had been more than a month ago, but it still felt so raw. While the cancer had slowly drained the vitality out of Valerie’s older sister, it had given her time to express that she wanted Valerie to take care of Bethany. The child’s father had never been in the picture and had signed away rights even before Bethany was born. Though she felt ill equipped for the job, Valerie intended to keep her promise to her beloved sister.

      Valerie held Bethany close, absorbing her softness and that sweet baby smell. Over the months, Valerie had slowly been taking over mothering duties as Kathleen grew weaker. But since Kathleen’s death, Bethany had not slept through the night. Though the little girl couldn’t articulate it, Valerie knew she was mourning.

      Even now, Bethany clung to the stuffed pink rabbit Kathleen had given her. She hardly ever let go of the toy. Valerie swayed back and forth. “I know, you miss your mama.” A lump formed in her throat. “I miss her, too.”

      Bethany melted against Valerie. After a few minutes, the little girl relaxed and her breathing steadied, asleep at last. Valerie padded on stocking feet toward the stairs that led

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