Hayden (A Next Generation Carter Brother #4) - Lisa Helen Gray Page 0,29
have so I can decide,” I order, my voice pleading. “And send me details of the reporter. If you want to keep me safe, you won’t force me to look for answers.”
“I’ll email you what we have, but I’m warning you not to do this.”
“Look, earlier I thought this was just some guys looking to make quick money ‘cause they can’t be bothered to get a job. But it’s not, is it?”
“No,” he tells me, sounding resigned in the way his voice lowers. “There’s a new gang near town that we’ve been looking into. At first, they didn’t seem to cause trouble. They kept to themselves. But now, evidence keeps leading us back to them and they keep changing their location.”
“Break-ins?” I ask disbelievingly.
“Yes. We think it’s the way for new recruits to join. A way to pledge their loyalty. Their crimes are escalating, like a simple break-in isn’t enough now. They need to do something more to prove they’re better than the last guy who joined. It’s becoming violent, and every time we get close, they move to another hideout. They’re always one step ahead of us.”
“Did you not get evidence from Christina’s murder?”
My brain is working overtime, trying to compartmentalise the information and scenarios so I can ask the right questions.
“No, nothing. Whoever is leading this gang knows exactly what they are doing.”
“Hmmm,” I mumble, more to myself than to him. “That doesn’t add up though. Not to me. Gangs aren’t masterminds. They’re clever, ruthless, dangerous and illusive, but they aren’t masterminds. I can’t see them murdering someone and knowing how to cover it up.”
There’s something they’re missing.
“I’m sorry?”
Ignoring him, I continue, wanting to get more facts. “What about her notes?”
“We’ve got officers looking for them, but so far, we’ve had no luck locating them.”
“Or they aren’t there,” I muse. “What aren’t you telling me about her?”
The phone rustles, and I picture him rubbing a hand across his jaw. “She messaged me a few days ago saying she had another note, but she wasn’t stopping. She believed it was a scare tactic, that they wouldn’t show themselves. I warned her against it. She felt like she was onto something, but wouldn’t reveal what. Then yesterday, she texted to say she was thirty minutes out, that she had enough evidence for arrests, and that she needed to grab something from the office. She never made it here. When she didn’t come after an hour, we had the team go out and look. There were signs of a struggle but she was found out of town.”
“It’s not your fault,” I tell him, hearing the guilt pouring through his words.
“Isn’t it? I told my boss what she was doing over a month ago, when we found out it might be connected to a gang. I told him she needed to stop looking into it. He agreed and had a word with her. She wouldn’t listen to him either. When the first letter arrived, we had the night shift do drive-bys.”
“Then she should have listened to your advice. It isn’t your fault.”
“Does this mean you’ll leave it alone?”
“Maybe. I don’t know,” I admit, and before he can complain, I continue. “I promise to keep you up to date with what I’m doing. I promise I won’t go asking questions or snooping where I shouldn’t. I’ll keep it research only. Although, I would like a chance to speak to her boss or co-workers or whoever she went to when she had breakthroughs.”
“Alright, but I’m begging you here, Hay. I don’t want you snooping. Promise me,” he pleads. “If I find out you’ve gone asking questions and put your name on their radar, I’ll arrest your arse myself.”
“What for?” I snap.
“You stole a twenty out of your brother’s wallet at the engagement party.”
I roll my eyes. “He owed it to me.”
“It didn’t seem that way when he got angry.”
“That wasn’t at me,” I remind him, thinking of Liam’s expression when he saw the last of his money gone.
“No, when he figured out it was you, there was a lot of hair pulling.”
I laugh, fond of the memory. Liam cried for an hour over his bald spot.
“Jesus, okay, I promise.”
“Thank you.”
“You sound surprised,” I say grouchily.
“I’ve met you and your family. You love drama.”
Damn Beau for painting us Carter’s as crazies. We’re a well-respected and normal family.
“I’m not stupid. Plus, I think the reporter already had the whole thing figured out, and I’m assuming it’s bigger than the break-ins.”