Last Mile (Vicious Cycle #3) - Katie Ashley Page 0,7
in the twelve-block radius. All teams on alert.”
“Copy that,” I murmured.
After I had made a quick visual sweep of the area, a crackling once again came in my ear. “ETA to Vargas is two minutes, thirty seconds.”
“Look sharp, Sammie-Lou Hooker,” came another voice in my ear. I fought the urge to glare across the street at the unmarked sedan. Sitting inside wearing a shit-eating grin was my partner, Gavin McTavish. Since he was three years older than me, he was like an annoying older brother. He was more than just my partner—he was my best friend. We had met at the academy five years ago, and I’d shared more blood, sweat, and tears with him than with any other person in the world.
Even without having to be radioed, I knew the moment our suspect, Chuck Sutton, arrived on the scene. An awareness hummed through my bones, and I shifted into my chameleon persona. From his teenage days, Chuck had outsourced guns to some of the toughest Atlanta street gangs. After several prior convictions, he’d grown wiser in his older age, and he had learned how to evade our usual methods. We needed him in custody on a lesser charge so we could outwit him on the case we had been building.
That was where I came in. If Chuck had an Achilles’ heel, it was women, especially ones he bought. There must’ve been something about the illicitness that he craved.
When I heard him behind me, I turned around. After giving him my sexiest smile, I said, “Hey there. You looking to have some fun tonight?”
He licked his lips, and I fought the urge to throw up. “Maybe.” With slight apprehension in his eyes, he glanced around. “Is it just you tonight?”
I gave a quick nod. “I work for myself.”
“I like that. I don’t like middlemen.”
I ran my hand up his arm before squeezing his shoulder. “That’s just one of the things we have in common.” To bust him, I had to have him agree to a price and start off with me. Dancing around the subject the way we were now wouldn’t hold up for an arrest. “Wanna go somewhere so I can see what else you like?”
A slow smile spread across his face. “Yeah, I would. How much we talking about here?”
“A hundred for an hour whether you take that long or not.” When I could see the flash in his eyes, I purred, “But I’m sure you’ll last long enough to get your money’s worth.”
My petty compliment fueled his fire. “I’ve been known to be a big tipper if you make it worth my while.”
“Of course I will, sugar.” I dropped my hand from his shoulder to take his hand. “Your car okay, or you want to be a big spender and spring for the motel up the street?”
“My car is fine.”
Just as he started to lead me to it, one of the other agents on the case pulled a dick move by jumping the gun and coming in early. The moment he stepped out of the shadows and Chuck got a look at him, the shit hit the fan.
Chuck not only dropped my hand, but he shoved me back, causing me to stumble on my heels and fall on my ass. Then he sprinted off down the opposite side of the street from where his car was parked. “Greenburg, you dumb fuck!” I grunted at the errant agent as I tried to get my bearings.
“We had enough to take him.”
As I pulled myself to my feet, I glared at him. “Really? Then why the hell aren’t we taking him?” I didn’t bother waiting for a response. I hadn’t just spent the last thirty minutes in mortifying attire, not to mention having to say the sick shit I did, to lose out on a suspect.
While my knowledge of the area was somewhat limited, I still knew of a way to catch up with Chuck. Pounding my heels into the pavement, I pushed myself to run as fast as I could go. Within my mind, I focused on the four-block radius on the map I had studied for days before the bust. After a split-second decision, I cut down a side alley.
Glancing around, I looked for something that could incapacitate Chuck. My eyes homed in on a discarded broom, which I quickly grabbed. I then sprinted toward the end of the alley. I made it there just as Chuck ran by. I swung the broom like a bat at the