Page 8 of First Surrender
My jaw unhinges, dropping in disbelief. They drone about stipulations to the deal but I stop hearing them.
Declan’s not going to be charged for murdering my mother.
Chapter Five
Jackson
I’ve been shot at four times in my career, hit in the vest once, and almost blown up by a bomb. But, when the woman six rows in front of me slowly turns her head 180 degrees to glare at me, I think it’s the closest to death that I’ve ever been.
If it were possible, she’d have flames rolling off her back. She’s pissed.
I knew the prosecutor would present the deal this afternoon and I knew that Natalie would likely have a problem with it, but I think I underestimated the power of her fury. The licks of it are reaching me all the way in the back row.
I wish I could say it scared me but it doesn’t. It’s worse, it intrigues the hell out of me. She’s been a question mark since I first saw her but then I saw down her coat to what she was hiding underneath and it turned into full-blown curiosity.
All I can see in my mind is the two silver piercings that stared at me from the valley between her breasts. Nothing has held my attention in months but that did. As if I don’t have bigger concerns in my life, I can’t stop thinking about her cleavage.
She storms up the aisle and to my row as the rest of the courtroom disperses. “You. You son of a bitch,” she lashes at me. More than a few heads turn in our direction, including my auxiliary deputy on the other side of the room. I wave him off.
“The prosecutor didn’t have a case, he was going to lose if this went to trial,” I attempt to appease her but I can see that it’s not working. The poison she possesses in her soul is leeching out, attempting to suffocate me.
Her shiny black heel plants itself closer to me but I stay seated. Despite her anger, I have no reason to stand. Towering over her wouldn’t benefit this situation, she can yell all she wants.
“That man murdered my mom. He did it on purpose and now he’s getting a free pass. Do you even realize what you’ve done?” She seethes her venom at me but her eyes are filled with something deeper than anger.
There’s fear in their dark depths.
My gut sinks with the realization. Prosecutor Fulton warned me that she’d be opposed to any type of deal but I stood my ground because I felt it was our best chance of getting more information, even if it meant he got off with lesser charges. I’m only doing my job but if I could do it properly then I wouldn’t need Declan as an informant in the first place.
Now, I can see the thought of him being released is frightening her in some way. And, that bothers me.
“You can be mad at me all you want. Other people helped make this decision. We need to close cases. It’s the way it goes sometimes.” I shrug, trying to portray the indifference that I’m not actually feeling, but it only pisses her off more.
“If that man gets out of jail and tries to get custody of my brother, I’m going to make your life hell, you heartless piece of shit!”
I clench my jaw to stop myself from reacting. She knows how to hit below the belt, I’ll give her that. Before I can attempt another shot at making this right, she blows out of the room like a tornado, full of fury and chaos.
Maybe she’s the karma that I deserve for being rude to Whitney. Getting metaphorically kicked in the balls by a woman is way worse than any punch from a grown man.
* * *
“You understand that by accepting this deal, you agree to give me useful information, correct? If you refuse to do so, the deal is forfeit and you’ll be fighting a maximum sentence.” Declan Randolph is sitting across from me in a striped jumpsuit in the meeting room of the Rollins County Jail.
“I understand, yadda, yadda,” he drones. This guy is a real piece of work.
“Where did you get the drugs?” I ask the question that has been bugging me since I learned of Declan’s case. If someone is supplying deadly substances to people in my county then I need to know who and how much they have.
“I don’t know.”
I take a breath before I respond. I’ve dealt with people worse than this, he is not going to be the one that makes me lose my cool. He’s not worth it.
“Declan, you have one chance. Is that the answer you’re going with?”
“The pills dropped from the sky. That’s my final answer.” He shrugs.
“You’re prepared to serve the maximum sentence for Aggravated Murder by not complying with the terms of the deal, correct?”
“Well, hold on now, Sheriff. I believe my lawyer said there isn’t a murder case.” He looks at me smugly. He has no interest in this deal, he’s wasting my time. He’s still planning to haveall of his charges dropped one way or another, that’s the only explanation for the lack of self-preservation in this room right now.