Page 126 of Critical Alliance (Rocky Mountain Courage 3)

Next to him, the detective stiffened, but he didn’t dispute Alex’s words. Her response could tell them what they needed to know.

She moved to slam the door.

Trevor stuck his foot in the doorway. “Ma’am, I’m going to need you to come with me for questioning.”

“Am I being arrested? Because I figure if you really had a video, then you would have led with that. I don’t even own a sledgehammer.”

Alex’s heart jumped to his throat. They hadn’t mentioned a sledgehammer. And that information had been kept out of the news for just such a moment.

Trevor pulled out his handcuffs and slapped them on her. “We have a video, and now with those words, we have our confirmation.”

Trevor then informed her of her rights and tucked her in the back of his vehicle. As the three rode to the county offices, Alex was itching to ask a million questions about why she would deface the memorial, but it wasn’t his place to do so. Trevor had allowed him to come along as a courtesy because it was personal to Alex—and because he was a fellow law enforcement officer.

But that’s where the courtesy ended. While the woman was being questioned, he found himself sitting in Trevor’s cubicle. All Alex could think about was Mackenzie and his red-eye flight out to DC for debriefing. His time off had been cut short because of the chaos surrounding Mackenzie. He’d agreed to help her. He wanted to be with her. Strange that those actions were now pulling him away from her.

He didn’t want to go.

Trevor marched toward him, his expression grim. The detective sat in the chair across from Alex.

“You’re not going to believe this.” Trevor ran a hand across his jaw.

West stared at the floor and shook his head.

“Well, what is it? Don’t leave me hanging!”

He covered his mouth again as if measuring his words, reminding Alex of when he hadn’t wanted to share about the undercover agent killed on the zip line.

“You thought it was personal, and it definitely is.”

Alex said nothing. He gritted his teeth instead.

The detective scooted close to his computer, typed on the keyboard, and pulled up the video of Shelby in the room answering questions, tears streaming.

“You should hear this for yourself,” West said as he hit Play.

“I recently learned who my father is,” the woman said. “Was. He died fifteen years ago. And he has a memorial in his name. But he was not a hero. He left me and my mother to survive on our own. She died, and I grew up in the foster system never knowing who my father was.”

Shock rolled through Alex. No. This couldn’t be true. She must be lying. “Replay it.”

Trevor replayed the video, and Alex watched it three more times.

She was telling the truth. Or at least she believed it.

“It started with Sheridan’s plaque a few months ago,” Alex said. “Why her?”

“I asked her the same thing.” Trevor fast-forwarded the video.

“Because ... I blamed her. He left my mother for her. Or so I thought. I found pictures of them together, but then I realized I had misunderstood their relationship. I’m sorry.” She covered her eyes and sobbed.

“She looks like she’s only nineteen, but she’s twenty-one. She was definitely a troubled teen.”

“And ... my sister.”

Trevor looked at him. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to bail her out.” Alex stood.

“The fine is usually $400.”