Mitch

“You’re one lucky son of a bitch.”

If I heard those words one more time, I might have just punched something and busted my other arm. This time, they came from Steve Caulkins. I’d made it through the last round of tests, had my arm set, and they’d moved me up to a regular room. Morning light peeked through the slats on the pink plastic blinds above my hospital bed. I felt empty inside. Hollowed out. Stella was gone.

I let the truth of that settle over me and sink into my broken bones. I didn’t blame her. I should have seen this coming. Hell, I should have stopped it from ever getting this far. Fucking Ken Bardwell was right about all of it. Being with me hurt Stella in ways I’d never imagined. If I hadn’t been so damn selfish, if I’d taken a step back and gone slow, I would have seen it. Now she was the brave one. I could be brave too and let her go. Except it hurt more than the hammer blow I’d taken to the head.

“I need to get the fuck out of here.”

“Slow down, slugger. They want to keep you here until tomorrow. Make sure all your marbles are intact. Chief Lewandowski’s on his way up.”

“I mean it. I need to get to the lab and get to work on those hard drives.”

Caulkins laughed. “Relax. It’s being taken care of.”

Cold rage bubbled in my stomach. “Taken care of? By who?”

“You know, you’re good at what you do. But a big part of that is the fact that you’ve got a well-trained team that knows what they’re doing because you taught them. O’Banion has started the forensics. We’ve already found a treasure trove. I don’t think Edwards and Lewis ever thought they’d get caught. O’Banion says nothing’s encrypted on that hard drive. He thinks he’ll have a solid case built in less than twenty-four hours. And I’ve saved the best for last. Lewis squealed like a baby as soon as we got him into an interview room. He knows he’s facing real time for this one. He folded like a cheap card table. He’s given up cousin Larry in the hopes of some leniency. Sad part is, he’ll probably get it if your best friend, Judge Pierce, touches any of this. And, the best part … your girl … Stella? We already know who the buyer was with her information. There’s another woman named Stella Tenney. We’ve hooked up with Carson City PD. They’ve got a thick file on her. Plus, she appears to have been too stupid to lay low. Got into some trouble in Vegas just last weekend. She’s already in custody.”

“Good. Shit. That’s great.”

“Yep. We’re going public within the next twenty-four hours. The investigator down in Nevada thinks he’s got a lock on the thugs that came after your Stella off what the bad Stella had to say. It’s all falling into place, Mitch. This one’s a career maker.”

I felt numb. Glad, yes. It was everything I wanted. Stella could have her life back. But it was a life she wanted to live without me. The worst part about it? I knew she was right. Not about Brian. God, I was a coward not to have stopped her. She didn’t know I was the one with the best chance to stop him from getting into trouble that night. Not her. And she’d been right. Brian had still been fucking around on her. So yeah. I was the coward. I was the one who should have said something long before she had to end it. I could have forced the issue and made Brian come clean. None of this was on her. Not a second of it. I wanted to tell her, but letting her go seemed the best. She didn’t deserve this. She didn’t deserve to have to live her life waiting for another fucking nightmare to hit. An accountant, an insurance salesman, a banker. That’s what she needed. Not me. Not someone broken.

A shadow moved across the door. I looked up and Stan walked into the room. He tilted his head toward Caulkins and gave me a half smile that didn’t reach his eyes. I didn’t like that look. Something was wrong. I struggled to sit higher on the bed and cursed when pain shot across my chest from my broken rib.

“Easy,” Stan said. “You’re better off taking this one lying down.”

Never one to beat around the bush, Stan came to the foot of my bed and gripped the board. “Glad you’re here, Caulkins. This halfway concerns you too. I want you to head down to IA when we’re done. With Mitch being in the condition he’s in, they wanted to start the interviews with you.”

“IA?” Caulkins and I said it together.

Stan nodded. “Look, I’m not supposed to be here. I could actually lose my job over it. Sometimes though, it’s a risk worth taking. I wanted you to hear all of this from me.”

“Mitch’s fine, Stan. I’m fine. The whole team is fine. It got pretty sideways on that warrant last night. Thanks for asking.”

Stan shot him a look. “Listen, there’s press outside. The lobby’s in chaos.”

I nodded. “I figured. Larry Edwards is gonna be front-page news and all over the crawls for days. I don’t envy the chief over there.”

Stan barked out a bitter laugh. “Yeah. That too. It’s gonna be a fucked-up few weeks for Michigan law enforcement. But Edwards isn’t why I’m here. This one’s about you, Mitch.”

My blood ran cold. “What are you talking about?”

“Look. This is a process. What I need for you is to calm down and let it play out. Like I said, me being here is probably one of the stupider things I’ve done. I had Chapman call the union for you. There’s a rep on his way.”

“Stan? Goddammit, what?”

Stan let out a breath. “There’s a cell phone video. Edwards had a neighbor. He started recording when you had your dustup with that Russian. Fucker’s as mobbed up as they come. He’s not saying much right now on account of he’s still mostly unconscious and doesn’t speak English except for the word motherfucker. He seems to like that one a lot.”

“You’re rambling, Stan,” Caulkins said. “What’s on this video?”

“It looks bad, okay? Mitch, it’s you, sitting on this guy’s chest and pounding his face into a pulp with your fists and the whole time he’s not moving.”

“Yeah? Cuz two seconds before that he tried to put a hammer through my skull. Jesus, Stan, look where I am.”

Stan put a hand up and made a downward motion. “Calm down. I get it. Okay? And like I said, there’s a process. And sure, this shitbag neighbor probably didn’t start recording until you got the upper hand, or he edited out the rest. But he put it on social media and you know how that shit takes off. Right now, they’re calling for your head on a spike. And look, I really don’t even want to tell you this, but Judge Pierce ran with it, okay? He gave an interview to the press and pretty much described his version of what went down at his courthouse. It’s bad. It might be fixable, but right now it’s bad. And what I need is for you to lay low and let this get handled.”

“You’ve got to be shitting me.”

“Stan, I don’t know about this judge, but there were twenty other officers on that call today. This is bogus and you know it,” Caulkins said.

“I do. Believe me. But this shit spreads like wildfire. It’s gonna take us a day or so to douse it. In the meantime, I’ve got no choice. I’ve got to put you on administrative suspension. I can’t put a lid on it this time. There’s going to be an inquiry. You know the drill, Mitch.”

I slammed my head back against the pillow. “This is bullshit and you know it.”

“I do. And we’ll get to that. For now? You stay put, don’t talk to the press. Don’t talk to anybody but your rep and maybe your shrink.”

“No problem. I have no intention of sticking my face in front of any cameras, Stan.”

A look passed between Stan and Caulkins that I didn’t like one bit. Stan nodded and came around to the side of the bed. “That means no press, Mitch. None. Three days from now, we’ve got a full court of the local guys showing up at the fallen officer’s memorial. You and the rest of your academy class were supposed to be up there on the dais with me. That can’t happen now. I don’t want you anywhere near the place. Feel me? Stay home. Stay here. Whatever.”

I tasted blood where I bit the inside of my mouth.

“Stan,” Caulkins said. “You can’t be serious.”

“As a fucking heart attack. You bet your ass. You’re banned, Mitch. And it kills me to say it, but it’s for your own good. They know, okay? Sheldon Fucking Pierce made it so press knows about your recent history. Now, I’m hoping I can stuff these worms back in the can, but I for sure can’t do it if your busted mug shows up in front of a bank of cameras at the memorial. So, are we clear?”

I shook my head and squeezed my eyes shut. “Yeah. We’re fucking clear, Stan. Whatever you say.”

He gave me a grim nod and headed out of the room.

Caulkins had his hand on my arm. “Just sit tight. This is all gonna blow over. You know how this goes. You’re a good cop. Just do what Stan says for the time being.”

I looked toward the window. Rage spread through me, setting my blood on fire. I clenched my good fist and tried to tamp it down.

“He’s going to find a way to ruin me over this,” I said, barely recognizing the sound of my own voice.

“Who? Stan? Of course he won’t. He’s a stand-up guy. He’ll turn in his own badge before they let ’em take you down over this bogus bullshit.”

“Not Stan. Pierce. This plays right into his hands. He’s got powerful political friends. Trust me, I’ve known Stan a long time. He’s that worried or he wouldn’t have risked coming here himself.”

“You worry too much, man. I’m serious.”

“They can’t keep me away from Brian’s memorial. It’ll look worse if I don’t go. Not to the press. Fuck them. But to the guys we graduated with. To my brothers.”

“Fine. So go in plain clothes and put on a pair of dark shades. Stan can’t really ban you from the thing. It’s a free country. Hell, I’ll go with you.”

“Thanks, man.” I finally looked away from the window and at Caulkins. “You know for a desk jockey, you’re not half bad. I take back all the shitty things I ever said about you.”

He laughed and patted my shoulder. “Good. But I’m not taking back a single shitty thing I said about you.”