Page 4 of Flash and Bang
“Sorry, sir,” Jarrett said, sitting forward, “Are you talking about fireworks… like sparklers or something?”
Thayne bit his lip to keep from laughing.You just have to push it, don’t you?
Stanger frowned and reached up to squeeze the bridge of his nose before glaring at Jarrett. He took a deep breath, probably trying to calm himself. “It’s a lot more than sparklers and I knowyouknow we have jurisdictional authority over crimes using explosives to harm the public or destroy property, so don’t be a prickly ass.” He pointed his finger at Evans. “With summer nearly upon us and fireworks shows planned all over, if someone is sabotaging the displays, we’ll have a real problem on our hands.” He paused and glared at Jarrett. “Did you sleep through your classes down in Georgia or did the taxpayers foot the bill for your ATF training for shits and giggles?”
Thayne took Jarrett’s sleeve, starting to get up. “I’m sure Evans is more than grateful for his training. Let’s go, Jarrett.”
Stanger waved him back to his seat. “I’m not done.”
Thayne sat back down.
“You two are due to report to Chief Willis at the San Diego PD’s northeastern division tomorrow morning. Connor and Darcy will be giving you tech support if you need it from here. They can help you run down any leads you come up with or do follow-ups if you need them while you are away from home base.”
“Thank you, sir,” Thayne said.
Stanger nodded and turned to Jarrett. “You should take special interest in this one, Evans, because the incident happened at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. You know how to speak Marine, don’t you?”
“Yes, sir,” Jarrett said, sitting straight in the chair for the first time that afternoon.
“Good. Well, ATF Investigator Ada Carrillo has been assigned the case and she will act as your liaison with the base and the local PD as well as fill you in on all the details of the case once you get downthere,” Stanger said.
Thayne looked over to see Jarrett frowning. “Do they think military personnel are involved, sir? I mean usually the NCIS handles crimes that involve Marine bases.”
“As you both know, when explosives are involved, the ATF takes the lead on the investigation. Since fireworks are involved, that makes the jurisdiction ours. That doesn’t mean you won’t be dealing with the Marine Corps on this. They host these fireworks shows on the base every year because there is a lot of asphalt as you might imagine with an air base… less chance of brush fires and the like that San Diego seems to be the victim of every fire season. My guess is, they will be cooperative in every way since this is a huge event which funds Marine Corps charities every year along with the fact that their own families attend this event as well. They were put in harm’s way and the Marines aren’t taking that well at all. Twelve were injured, two seriously, most civilians. This is bad, gentlemen.”
Stanger cleared his throat. “Anyway, I expect you’ll feel comfortable talking with the Marine Corps bigwigs down there, Evans.” SAC Stanger leaned forward and pointed a finger at him. “Don’t mouth off, screw up, or do anything to embarrass the ATF. Ibetter hear glowing reports from everyone including the San Diego Police Department and the Marines.”
Jarrett blanked his expression and Thayne noted a look in his eyes that he’d seen only one other time… when they’d been about to rush out and face the armed and vicious killer, Roberto Virgil Romero, the man who’d been hired to kill Thayne months ago.
“I will be respectful when I’m on the base, sir. It’s not my first rodeo,” Jarrett drawled. Thayne noted how his entire body seemed to straighten even more. It was almost as if, when reminded who he was, Jarrett became that Marine, even in posture.
Stanger nodded. “Good. See that you do, son. Make me proud.”
Jarrett frowned and nodded, standing up. Thayne stood too and the two walked out of Stanger’s office. Thayne glanced at his partner.
“You good, man?”
Jarrett threw him an exasperated look. “Yeah. I don’t know what I was thinkin’ jumping off that building the way I did and now this assignment?”
“It’s not a bad assignment, Jarrett. You know your way around a base and Stanger obviously still trusts you enough that he’s sending us. You have a chance to prove yourself, but you can’t screw upagain. He’s not going to put up with it.” Thayne reached out and gave his partner a squeeze on the arm, stopping them before they walked out into the bullpen. Jarrett turned to look at Thayne. His eyes were still hooded and his expression closed off. “Look, I know I’ve been hard on you since you scared me half to death by taking a swan dive off a ten-story building, but this assignment is really not going to be as bad as you imagine. I’m sure you can still find a way to get into trouble. Just do it quietly.”
Jarrett shot him a sideways glance. “Thanks, Wolfe.”
Thayne noticed the way Jarrett’s lips fought not to smile. Thayne dropped his hand and they turned to continue on into the office to face their coworkers. When they walked out into the main office bullpen, several sets of eyes looked up from the paperwork they were doing at their desks. Sarah Connor sat beside her partner, Tim Darcy, a huge man with shoulders as wide as the side of a barn. Jose Galvez, the man who’d replaced Victor Lowell, Thayne’s deceased partner, sat beside his new partner, Craig Baldwin.
Baldwin and Jarrett were the two rookies in the office and like Jarrett, Baldwin was also a veteran. He was recently returned from an overseaspost in Livorno, Italy, well-known for American Beach, a popular liberty spot for American military stationed overseas and Thayne knew he had gone through the ATF training with Jarrett. They’d become friends and Thayne had a hard time not feeling territorial around Jarrett when Baldwin was around. The kid was friendly with everyone and handsome in a fresh-faced wholesome way.
The team’s wide eyes greeted them as they walked out of Stanger’s office and up to Sarah’s desk.
“What’s the verdict, Evans?” Darcy asked, the only one apparently not afraid to hear the worst.
“He’s sendin’ us down to the border to play with sparklers,” Jarrett drawled, sounding disgusted. “You and Connor are gonna play tech support from here.”
“Firework duty, huh?” Jose snickered.
“Well, the fourth is coming up,” Sarah said, “Every year we seem to spend most of June and July investigating accidents caused by careless handling of them. But usually the investigators only bring us in when they’re ready to make an arrest,” Sarah said. “Something must be special about this scene.”
“Whatever happened to the good old days of fireworks on the neighborhood streets?” Darcyinterjected. “Every year, all the dads on the block used to get together and try to outdo each other to see who had the best ones. Remember those fountains of sparks? The dads would set them off in front of our driveways.”