Chapter 10
Olivia
I made my way back to my hotel room and unlocked the door. Wonderful. Shoddy hotel rooms in Redding. The perfect place for me. Not. But, it was the only thing I could afford on my per diem allotment for traveling if I wanted to get the most out of my paycheck. So, motel living it was. I jammed the key into the door and wiggled it around for a little while, then finally decided to put my shoulder into it. The door popped open and I went tumbling into my room, hitting my knees and catching myself with my hands. The contents of the overnight bag I used as a purse went tumbling everywhere. Makeup rolled out. Tampons shot across the floor. And the files I’d gotten permission to bring back with me from the precinct spilled their paper contents.
Perfect. Just fucking great.
The dust of the floor made its way up my nose as I curled up my legs and closed the door with my foot. I got up onto my knees, raking everything to me and shoving it back into my massive purse. I pulled myself off the floor and sat on the edge of my bed. I dusted the dirt and grime off my knees as I released my purse to the rickety spring mattress. I closed my eyes and let my head fall back, then looked up at the ceiling and traced the brown water marks with my eyes
“Gross,” I murmured.
I let my head fall forward and my hands caught its fall. My mind swirled with thoughts of Colt. Should I have followed him after he left the police department? Should I have tailed him and figured out where he was headed? I wondered if trusting him was a bad idea. After all, men in these clubs were fickle. For all I knew, him and his guys were planning how to hide him out right now and I’d spend more time chasing him down than solving this DEA case so I wouldn’t look like a fumbling idiot.
I’d put a lot of trust in this man. But, something about his demeanor made me want to trust him.
So, I went with my gut.
My cell phone rang up in my purse and I shoved my hand into the endless recesses. I dug around for it, shoving over papers and rolling my fingertips across empty lipstick canisters. That and mascara were the only two things I afforded myself on the job. And that was just to make me not look dead in the mornings. The lipsticks always had lip plumper so no one could see the evidence of my nervous chewing habits and the mascara was to open and brighten my green eyes just in case I hadn’t swallowed down enough coffee before coming into work.
“Come on, where the hell are you?” I grumbled.
I finally brushed against my cell phone and I ripped it out. Fuck. It was my boss. I told him I’d call him once I got into Redding and it completely slipped my damn mind.
Oh, he wasn’t going to be happy.
“This is Olivia,” I said.
“Uh huh. Did you forget something?” Aaron asked. Aaron Samuels was the head of the cartel investigation for the DEA. He worked right underneath the Chief of Operations and made sure to check on all the field agents that were assigned to the different cases pertaining to the cartel and their associates.
“Aaron, I am so sorry. I got into town and was slapped with a jailhouse meeting almost instantly.”
“I figured as much. When I notified Sheriff Barnes and told him you were headed down there, he sounded like he was in over his head. Good to hear your voice, though. I take it you’ve made headway on the investigation already?”
“Depends on what you call ‘headway,’” I said.
“What have you found out so far, Banks?”
“Well, the jailhouse interview was actually with a man that was caught running from the scene of the shootout. I’ve taken him on as a source.”
“I figured you would. You try to trust before accusing. I like that about you.”
“Thank you, sir. He’s part of one of the motorcycle clubs around here. I have a feeling he knows who the major players in the cartel are around this area. Him and his club could be very valuable to me if I play my cards right,” I said.
“How did the interview with him go?” he asked.
“I came and it went. I had to pull my whole ‘boss woman’ shtick and read him like a book before he talked to me about anything. I still didn’t get much, but I did get him out of the holding cell the police department had him in for a few days. I’m working to get the charges dropped against him in exchange for him and his club’s help.”
“Wait a second. He’s not in holding any longer?”
“No, sir. The only way to get him to trust me was to let him go.”
“Agent Banks, are you out of your mind?”
“Sir, we have protocols in pla—.”
“He runs with a damn motorcycle club, Banks!”
“Sir, I know. But, we have—.”
“I don’t give a shit what you have on him. He’s got the capacity to run! When the hell are you supposed to hear from him!?” Aaron yelled.
“Once every twenty-four hours,” I said.
The pause on the end of the line meant something bad was coming. And when I heard something akin to porcelain shatter in the background, I winced. I knew he wouldn’t be happy with that tidbit of information. I knew he’d be pissed as fuck that the only lead witness we had, I let go. But, I knew what I was doing.
He had to trust me on that.
“I’m bringing you home,” Aaron said.
“Sir, that would be very unwise,” I said.
“You’re no longer mentally fit to run this investigation.”
“Excuse me?”
“That’s the only reason I can come up with as to why the hell you would let a man like that go without an hourly fucking check-in!”
“Because I kind of want to sleep, too, and I trust the man!” I exclaimed.
“Did you just yell at me?” Aaron asked.
I curled my lips over my teeth and settled my anger down.
“Did you just say you trust him? Some grimy old man from a motorcycle gang?” Aaron asked.
“He has information I need, and in order for his gang to work with us, there has to be a vote. I know how the inner workings of clubs like theirs happen. And if he doesn’t check in after twenty-three hours at this point, both a BOLO and a warrant for his arrest are out. He goes straight to jail, and I put a fail-safe into the plan I didn’t tell him about,” I said.
“Uh huh. And what is that fail-safe plan?” he asked.
“His club gets tossed into prison along with him for aiding and abetting a fugitive.”
That wasn’t actually true. There wasn’t a clause like that in the agreement with anyone. But, it was the only thing I knew that would settle my boss down. I had no idea why I was ‘all of a sudden’ defending Colt and my actions, but I was. It felt right in the moment, whether or not my boss’s head was about to pop off and fly around the room.
“You better know what you’re doing, Banks. Because the second you misstep—.”
“When have I ever misstepped on something like this?” I asked.
It was true. My record spoke for itself. I made bold and brash moves all the time. The only reason why he was upset with this one was because he wasn’t here for me to run it through first. He’d been on top of all these investigations, but with the influx of activity, more cases and leads were popping up around the country and everyone was spread pretty thin. He had been catapulted into New York City for another investigation that wasn’t tied to this, and I could tell by his anger that he was stressed.
“You shouldn’t trust a man like that, Banks,” Aaron said.
“Well, I do. I’m going to keep track of him. And the second he falls off my radar, he’s done for. Him and his club.”
I really hoped my voice was selling the lie I spewed through my teeth.
“If that biker screws with us, your job is on the line. You didn’t run this through anyone, so you have to own up and take full responsibility,” Aaron said.
“I understand that, sir,” I said.
“No missteps. No mistakes. You get in there, you nail down this cartel, you squash them, and you get out.”
“I’ve got files with me I’m going to look over all night tonight.”
“Where are you staying?” he asked.
“Some motel in the middle of the city. Figured it would be the safest. Though, the lights of the town leave much to be desired in terms of sleep.”
“The place have blackout curtains?”
“They look like blackout curtains, but they don’t function like blackout curtains.”
“Look, I know you want to make the most of—.”
“I’m fine, Aaron. You have to trust me. This isn’t my first rodeo. I can take care of myself,” I said.
I heard him sigh, and I was thankful he was finally giving up this conversation.
“Well, get some rest. I’ll check in with you in a few days,” he said.
“I’ll be here,” I said.
And after we said our goodbyes and hung up the phone, I pulled out the disheveled files from my purse and got to work.
If the lights were going to keep me up, the least I could do was be productive.