Wolf Untamed (SWAT - Special Wolf Alpha Team #11) - Paige Tyler Page 0,96

believe it himself. “But then I was stupid enough to get too close so I could hear what he was saying to one of his victims and he caught me. I thought he was going to murder me on the spot, but instead he said he’d let me go if I came up with a story for the paper so people wouldn’t figure out the truth. That’s when I came up with the delirium drug thing.”

“All he wanted out of you was a cover story?” Trey asked. “Why didn’t you go to the cops the moment he let you go?”

“Because he said he’d make me throw myself off the top of the Bank of America Plaza and I believed him,” Hobbs said. “Besides, the story is giving me the best exposure I’ve had in my whole career. He lets me know when some of the robberies are going down so I can make sure to be on the scene before anyone else. Why would I kill the Golden Goose?”

Diego would have pointed out that people dying was a pretty good reason to tell the cops, but he knew that fact would probably mean little to a man like Hobbs.

“I’m still getting an exclusive out of this when you guys catch Cowell, right?” Hobbs asked, looking at each of them in turn.

Diego resisted the urge to bare his fangs in a snarl. “We already said you would.”

That must have been good enough for Hobbs because he leaned forward, forearms on the table, face eager. “I’m not sure of the details, but Cowell mentioned a huge job he was doing that would set him up for life. We’re talking millions.”

“Did he say what it was?” Trey asked.

“No. And I had to be careful about pressing him too much. The guy’s kind of a loose cannon.”

Tell me about it, Diego thought.

He was still wondering where the hell a person could steal millions of dollars when Hobbs looked at him, a serious expression on his face.

“There’s one other thing you should probably know. Cowell is obsessed with getting his wife and kid back. It’s all the whack job ever talks about. Whenever he gets these millions he says he’s going to steal, he plans to leave the country with both of them.”

* * *

Bree glanced over her shoulder one more time before carefully pulling the crime-scene tape off the door, then turning her attention to the expensive-looking lock by slipping in a tension wrench and a medium-sized hook pick. As she felt her way through the tumblers, she wondered what Diego would think of this particular skill set she possessed. Something told her he wouldn’t approve, which was why it wasn’t a talent she’d be sharing with him anytime soon.

It wasn’t like Bree was a master lock-picker, but she wasn’t shabby at it, either, and a few seconds later, the door of Ken Reed’s apartment swung open. She quickly ducked inside so she wasn’t exposed in the hallway any longer than necessary, then repositioned the crime tape and quietly closed the door.

The first thought that entered her mind when she turned around was that investment advising obviously paid very well. The next was that Ken would probably have gladly given all this up to have his life back.

Leather, granite, and stainless steel were prevalent throughout the spacious and modern penthouse apartment. But it was also somewhat cold and impersonal, the walls decorated with pieces of art that had almost certainly been picked out by someone paid to accomplish the task. There wasn’t a single family photo that Bree could see from where she stood, and that seemed kind of sad.

Shaking off those depressing thoughts, she ignored the huge living room and chef’s kitchen, making her way toward the back of the apartment where she assumed Ken’s bedroom was.

The master bedroom was the first door on the left. It was obvious from the moment she stepped inside that the police had spent a good amount of time searching this room. The California king mattress was slightly askew, the silky comforter bunched up, drawers of the nightstands and dressers left ajar, and clothes hanging haphazardly in the walk-in closet.

Bree walked over to the closest nightstand and opened the drawer. She expected to find the usual stuff—mainly porn, condoms, and lube—but instead it was filled with notebooks.

O-kay.

She skimmed through each notebook and saw that they were filled with potential investment opportunities Ken had interest in. Apparently, he liked to write everything down before going to sleep. Either