murder.”
“Yeah, Treyson. Heard about it.”
“Fucking cops are nothing but gossips.” Brock shook his head.
“You know it. This favor has something to do with that?”
“Yeah. I know your crew has feelers on the street. Treyson was in an abandoned warehouse. No vehicle found although everyone said he had a platinum ride. If I text you the make and model, can you make some inquiries? Knowing what happened to that car could give me a vector to shoot an azimuth.”
“Yeah, I can do that. How is the investigation going?”
“Big money equals big problems.” Four lovers and a partridge in a pear tree. Brock flicked the windshield wipers and watched as slush slid away from the bottom of the windshield. At this rate, he had another five minutes before he’d be able to head to Kallie’s. She'd be waiting for him, and that put a smile on his face.
“Pop is taking some huge pressure on this one.” He could hear Brody moving in the background.
His good mood disintegrated. “Yeah, I’ve been apprised.” He fucking hated that his dad had a target on his chest.
"The Governor held a press conference last night. Did you catch that? He had Dad standing up there like a chastised schoolboy as the fucker said he was going to make sure Samuel Treyson's killer was brought to justice. The son of a bitch said he was going to give HCPD one week to solve the murder before he sent in the fucktards from the State to oversee the investigation. One fucking week. The bastard is castrating Dad on a state-wide stage. Hell, he relegated Dad to a fucking back-drop." Brody's anger gained speed as he woke up.
"I didn't see it live, but a couple of the guys at work told me about it. We caught it on the internet before we left last night. I'm working this fucking case as hard as I can."
“I know it. You got any leads?”
“Too fucking many this time. Kallie and I are going to focus on working his last twenty-four. We got a warrant for his phone apps and need to go through that info dump.”
“Text and call log?”
“Tech is running the calls and printing up text messages. We should have who said what to whom by the time we reach the office.”
“Wait… hold on…” Brody yawned into the phone. “Go back.”
“Go back to what?”
“Who the fuck is Kallie? Where’s Jordan?” The sound of a one-cup coffee maker brewing in the background made him smile. He and his brother lived on coffee, unlike Blay, the health nut of the family.
“Jordan got called up by the Bureau to assist in the Grappelli debacle. Kallie Redman is my temporary partner.”
“Fuck, sorry about Jordan, that sounds like a cluster-fuck of epic proportions.” His brother took a sip of coffee and the sigh that came next was predictable.
“Yeah, I figure I’ll be whored out until he gets back, or until Davidson gets tired of the rotating door and assigns me someone permanently.”
“Fuck that would suck.”
“It would. You making an appearance at the homestead on Sunday?”
Brody grunted. “Have to. I’ve been MIA for almost two months and, unfortunately, I don’t have an active case going. We’re standing down while the DA preps us for the Serenity case.”
Brock nodded to himself. The J-DET team had intel about a freighter, The Serenity, stuffed full with cocaine. Brody’s team also ended up hauling in half the dock workers in Hope City as a huge drug smuggling ring unraveled. “Is that finally coming up for trial?” He hit the wiper again and watched another chunk of ice slide to the side and fall off.
“Yeah. The ADA wants to prosecute all the defendants together under the Rico Statute, and the union lawyers have been fighting it, but the judges know the ADA is on solid ground. Our witnesses just need to stay alive long enough to testify.”
“Worried?”
“Always. So, about this Kallie woman. She good people?”
“Seems to be. She’s smart. She worked for Jade before she came here.”
“Jade? As in our cousin, Jade? Wait, that doesn’t compute. How does a personal security officer turn into a homicide detective?”
“She was homicide in Houston. Had a fuck-ton of shit happen. Worked for Jade for a while and then transitioned here.”
“Huh.”
“Yeah.”
“She hot?”
“God. You are such a dog.”
“That means yes.” Brody laughed; the rich sound filled the car. “She’s a temporary partner, right?”
“Yes, yes she is.”
“Oh, God… you do like her.”
“Shut up.” Stellar comeback. He rolled his eyes.
“Brock, seriously, if you like this woman, go for it. Life’s