“Beth Washington refused to roll over on anyone higher up at Kilton Pharmaceuticals. I’ve said all along that I think she’s covering up something much deeper. All we got was the one man that worked in the warehouse that she was sleeping with to get her extra drugs. We know Dr. Tiller was pushing the drugs at his clinic and taking the kickback from sales, but there’s more. I fuckin’ know there is.”
Carter’s face was tight, and Kyle knew the mention of the woman who had held the gun to Tara’s head made it hard for him to keep from going ballistic. Hell, he was right there with him.
Evan said, “You two weren’t allowed to interview Beth but watched me. I pushed and pushed, but she wasn’t giving up anything.”
“I don’t see her as being altruistic,” Kyle bit out. “More like fuckin’ scared.”
“It’s hard to imagine a bitch like her willing to go to jail without rolling over on anybody else,” Carter added.
“That’s why I say she was fuckin’ scared. Somebody higher up. Somebody with power.”
“We went through her phone log, emails, and social media with a fine-toothed comb. Nothing.”
Scrubbing his hand over his chin, Kyle said, “Instead of looking at the who, how about looking at the why?” Seeing he had everyone’s attention, he explained. “Beth Washington didn’t strike me as the kind of woman who wanted to go to prison. Hell, she looked like the kind of woman who wouldn’t be able to function if her fingernail polish didn’t match her lipstick.”
Alex grunted, and Kyle knew his partner agreed. “So, maybe, instead of hunting for a needle in a haystack of who was jerking her chain, the question would be why. What could make her so afraid that she’d be willing to risk prison?”
“A payoff? Is she protected? Is someone making sure she remains quiet?” Carter asked.
Captain Hollister lifted his eyebrow. “If she wouldn’t divulge anything beforehand, what makes you think she will now?”
“I doubt she will, but I’d like to try,” Kyle said.
“Have we got anything else on Kilton Pharmaceuticals?”
Kyle shot a look toward the others at the table and shook his head. “Nothing. Not yet. But there’s no way Beth Washington or Dr. Tiller came up with this scheme by themselves.”
Captain Hollister nodded. “Okay, Kyle and Alex, keep digging. Follow anything that even looks like opioids, legal or not, that ties back into Kilton.” Turning his attention to the other cases, Kyle let Carter and Evan take over. His mind was settled firmly on finally being able to come face-to-face with the ones who put his sister in danger.
Making arrangements to visit the women’s prison the next day, he tossed a wave toward Alex as he left the station, eager to get to the Celtic Cock. It was too early for the evening crowd to have gathered and, without a local game being televised, the bar would be emptier than the previous evening. Catching the eye of Torin, he headed straight to the bar.
Hefting up on a seat, he ordered a beer and waved as Maeve came in from the back. Torin and Maeve Flanagan’s grandfather had opened the Celtic Cock many years ago. The popular pub was located in the downtown area near the Briar Hill precinct. Centrally located among several of the fire stations, it had become the watering hole for many first responders since its inception.
Torin was large, muscular, with his arms covered in tattoo sleeves, and it wasn’t hard to imagine he started out as a bouncer for his grandfather.
Taking a pull from his beer, he tried to think of a less revealing way to ask about Kimberly. Oh, fuck it. “Look, man, I need to ask you something. Do you remember the girl I was sitting with last night? We were down at the other end and you served her white wine.”
Leaning his thick forearms onto the bar, Torin held his gaze. “You’re shittin’ me, right?”
“No.”
“We were packed last night.”
“You always keep an eye on this place. Man, you brag that you know who’s in your bar.”
“Yeah, usually. But on a night like last night, the only reason we weren’t shut down by the fire department for being over the legal limit of customers was because half the fire department was in here watching the fuckin’ game. I couldn’t tell you who was in here.” He stood straight and crossed his arms over his chest, his brow lowered. “Actually,