Page 34 of Operation Annulment (Silent Phoenix MC)

twenty-eight

Kate

“ K ate, we’re looking into Jess Davis’s claims against you.

The emails are going to be difficult to dispute.

Mike pulls a sheaf of papers from a manila folder and hands them to me.

We’re sitting in a small interrogation room at the station.

All that’s missing is the two-way mirror like what you see on television.

I keep expecting him to go from good cop to bad cop as I take them from him.

From: [email protected]

To: [email protected]

Subject: Nate

I warned you to stay away. I don’t know how many messages I’ve sent now saying that exact thing.

Good luck today—remember as your screaming and begging for your life that I gave you every opportunity to walk away.

He wants nothing to do with you’re lies.

I’m taking out the trash. He’ll thank me for it.

The rest contain similar variations of the same threat.

“I didn’t send this. This is my email address, but I didn’t send any of these.” I point to the third sentence. “This person used ‘your’ and ‘you’re’ incorrectly. I would have never made a mistake like that. Surely, this proves that I didn’t write it.”

Mike nods. “Yeah, it could be said that you did it to throw off suspicion, though. I don’t think you wrote this, but we now have to figure out who did, or you’ll be facing forcible rape, assault, and stalking charges.”

Another officer comes in and hands me a cup of black coffee before leaving us alone again. I take a sip and immediately recoil at the bitterness. “Have you checked the IP address on these? Surely there’s a way to prove they didn’t come from my computer.”

“Yeah, it’s pinging all over the place, which is super helpful right now.” He rubs at his face, and I wonder if this is all in a day’s work for him because I feel like I’m in The Twilight Zone . He lowers his voice. “I’ve got Jeremy working on it.”

My brain tries to condense everything I’ve learned into a believable story. “Jeremy, as in Realtor Jeremy?”

Mike nods. “Yeah, I called him. He said he could hack the server and pinpoint the location. We’re going to need everyone working on this. I’m trying to keep you out of a jail cell.”

I peer down into the half-empty Styrofoam cup of coffee. “Is there alcohol in this?”

He gets up to pace. “No. Do you need some?”

“No. I’m just confused by everything right now…. I thought I might be drunk.”

Hoped for it, actually.

There’s a light knock on the door, and Mike pulls a gun from the back of his jeans before checking to see who it is. He throws the door open and ushers Zane in.

Who was he expecting to pop up in the middle of the police station?

ISIS ?

Zane grabs an empty chair before firing up his laptop. “Jeremy said your pizza is in the oven as we speak.”

Pizza?

Incapable of reprieve, my brain immediately switches gears to something equally painful.

Men will say anything to get laid.

I walk over to the window, pressing my hand to my mouth to stifle the sound of my sobs.

“Hey. Kate, it’s going to be okay.”

“I’m fine,” I lie. “Jeremy’s making pizza?”

Mike scratches at his beard. “He didn’t tell you?”

My mouth opens and closes in confusion. “I—I’m sorry? What are you talking about? Oh my god.”

I grab a pen and write:

Jeremy’s a hacker?

He nods. “I thought you knew. Shit. Well, no taking it back now. God, I’m fucking starving—that pizza better be done soon.”

Zane rolls his eyes and continues typing.

I sigh. “So, what? He works in real estate and bakes pizzas in his spare time. How does ‘the pizzeria’ fit into all of that?”

“Getting this sorted sometime tonight would be wonderful. I’ve got a wife I’d like to get home to,” Mike complains while peering over Zane’s shoulder. “Please tell me Jarvis has something,”

Zane looks up long enough to flip him off. “You’re not the only one who’d rather be at home, asshole. The pizza wasn’t baking as fast as Jeremy wanted, so he scratched the order and started over.”

I clear my throat. “Again, how does ‘the pizzeria’ factor into this?”

Mike texts someone from his phone, not bothering to look up to answer. “The owner likes buying property—kinda like your sister’s house.”

“He owns Dakota’s house?” I exclaim before nodding. “That makes more sense than anything I’ve heard over the last month. Okay, go. Bake the pizza or whatever.”

I lean forward in my chair and rest my head on my arms. I’ll just close my eyes for a minute and try to sort this out in my head.

“Pizza’s been delivered—eat up, boys.”

That sounds like Jeremy.

I blearily rub my eyes and pick my face up off the table. I’m probably the only person ever to fall asleep during an interrogation. I don’t even know how long I’ve been out.

Mike and Zane study the computer screen as if it holds the answers to all of life’s mysteries.

“That’s fucking perfect, Jarvis—pepperoni and everything. Trace it.” Mike points at something on the screen, and Zane nods.

“Did you find out where it came from?” I ask sleepily.

Jeremy’s voice comes through Mike’s phone. “Look at that. How’d we miss that? Kate, you’re going to want to see this.”

I stand up and stretch before coming around behind them. Once Jeremy points it out, I don’t see how I missed it either.

My email address is [email protected], while the dupe is [email protected].

“Who sent the messages?”

Jeremy answers, “Jess. And Mike? I think the police department will be very interested in her Google searches. She was studying brain tumors, getting away with a hit-and-run, and even masking the taste of castor oil in smoothies.”

My jaw drops, and I look over at Zane. His eyes are wide with shock. “When was that search done?”

Mike looks at the screen as Jeremy navigates through the phone. “This was done the week before Halloween. Why? Does this correspond with something?”

Zane’s jaw is clenched. “Yeah, my fiancée just happened to end up severely ill and in the hospital on Halloween after drinking a smoothie from the gym.”

Little Ricky’s voice speaks up from the phone, and I jump in surprise. I had no idea he was with Jeremy. “Mikey, you wanna give her to your old man? Cause I’d be down to help with that. Comedian could put a big smile on her face. Oh, wait—shit. I mean, do you want to turn her into a fucking pizza?”

Mike shakes his head. “No, man. We’re going to keep this on the up and up here. She belongs in prison, and with her priors, she won’t be getting out. Jarvis, wipe surveillance when you’re done.”

“What will they charge her with?” I ask him.

“Falsely reporting a crime, for starters. I might be able to get her on perjury… forgery… grand theft. I think we can get her on attempted murder charges with what she did to Dakota. I’ll have someone at the gym review the tapes and see what we come up with.

On top of that, she’s violating her parole, so she won’t be going anywhere anytime soon. ”

I lean down and hug him. “Thank you.”

He nods and squeezes me tightly in his arms. “Happy to help.”

“I’m going to go home and go to bed; try to forget this happened. Wait, can I leave?”

Zane stands up and stretches. “I’ll drive you back to your car. We’re not charging her, right?”

Mike looks down at his watch. “No. I’ve got someone up at the hospital right now with Jess. I’ll need a search warrant to get her computer. Just lay low until we arrest her. Do not talk to anyone.”

Zane grips Mike’s shoulder on the way out. “You make sure what you’ve got on her is enough to keep her locked away forever. You don’t want me getting my hands on her.”

Mike nods. “I’ll take care of it. Kate, stay home until this blows over.”

I agree and drag myself to Zane’s truck, blasting the heat on high until I stop shaking. I feel like I’m coming down with something—maybe the flu.

He looks over at me. “You gonna be okay over there?”

I shake my head. “I feel awful. When did you start working with Grey? ”

Zane keeps his eyes on the road as he answers, “I’m not. I’m just trying to keep you out of jail—the same as Sullivan.”

Once I reach Dakota’s, I wearily climb into my Tahoe and drive back to my apartment, feeling like I’m returning to another life—a life without Nate.

Grief hits me like a sucker punch, and I lay my face against the steering wheel, sobbing until I’m incapable of producing any more tears.

He slipped past my defenses and burrowed under my armor. And six hours ago, he left me standing in our bedroom alone, holding the battered remains of my heart.

Fairy tale over.

A soft tap on the glass jolts me awake. Jeremy stares at me from the other side. Sunlight streams into the car as I move my stiff body away from the steering wheel.

“Hey. Are you okay?”

I try to nod and wince in pain. I definitely have the flu. My whole body aches. He helps me out of the car and upstairs to my apartment.

It smells musty like I’ve been gone for years, not five weeks.

I flip on the kitchen light and grab a bottle of water from the fridge. “So, you and Grey?”

“Yeah, I work for him. I kind of wish Mike would have let me tell you when I was ready. Grey wanted someone to keep an eye on you, so I followed you to that chamber event. I was only supposed to watch you—I never thought that?—”

“I’d lose my virginity to you?” I supply helpfully, and his face goes white.

“Oh, fuck. I didn’t realize that. Okay, you should never mention any of that to your dad. Please.”

I press the cold bottle against my neck. “Why are you here, Jeremy? Sent to check up on me again? Because I’m going to be real honest with you. I’m not in the mood for sex. I’m in the mood to sleep until I’m dead.”

He touches my forehead and exclaims, “You’re burning up, Kate. Let’s get you into bed.”

“I’m fine.” I take a couple of steps, and my legs give out. Thankfully, Jeremy is on the ball and quickly scoops me into his arms.

I lay my face against his shirt. It feels cool against my cheek. “Um, Jeremy? Do men say anything just to get laid?”

He pulls back the covers and lays me down on the sheets. “What do you mean? Do you think that’s what I did?”

I tuck my hands inside my sweatshirt and roll onto my side, alternating between hot and cold. “No. Nate said that he only told me he loved me as a way to get laid. I just wondered if all men are really like that.”

He pulls the comforter up around my head and sits beside me. “I think Nate was misinformed, and he’s probably about to regret everything he said to you. He’d be a fucking idiot to let you leave.”

I nod. “I think that too, Jeremy. I’m a nice girl. I’m just going to rest my eyes now because they’re burning.”

He pats my back. “I’ll be in the living room. Your dad said I should stay with you until everything’s clear.”

‘Why don’t you wear a leather vest if you work for a motorcycle club? I thought all you guys did that.”

He chuckles, “Well, we don’t want to advertise or draw attention to ourselves. We try to blend in, so I typically save it for the clubhouse.”

I struggle to lift my head off the pillow, but it feels like it’s made of cement. “Dakota? Is someone with her?”

“She’s got Zane and Little Ricky. Try and get some sleep. I’ll run and get you some meds soon.” He cups my face, and I turn away. “Sorry. I’m just—I’m sorry. For all of it.”

The bed shifts as he gets up and walks out. I still have a lot of questions, but my eyes drift closed, and I slip into fever dreams.