Scarlet (21 page)

A touch of a button would be all it would take to drop a distress call. Unfortunately, there was no way to prove it, if Maggie purged her system. Red had no doubt that if Maggie had gone to the trouble to ignore the call, then she would definitely cover her actions.

The man collapsed into the seat as if he could no longer support his weight. "What's your name, sir?" Maggie asked.

"John." he coughed out. "John Green."

Hearing the uproar, the recruits came out of the back room. Takeo, Demery, and Juan stopped dead in their tracks. Randall and Keith continued forward for a better look.

"I'd like to file a formal brutality complaint against that officer," the man said, pointing at Red.

"She's not officially an officer here yet." Maggie said, giving Red a look that said
and you never will be.

"Doesn't change anything," he said, hiding his surprise. "I still want to file a formal complaint."

The recruits nearest the scene gasped and looked at each other. "Told you," Randall said to Keith. "She's a menace. How can she expect to lead a team, when she can't even keep this town ticking without resorting to violence?"

Red felt his words like a blow. She flinched, but forced her chin up. She wouldn't look guilty, no matter what they said. She hadn't done anything wrong.

"I'm finished," Keith said. "Consider this my resignation. There's just too much shit going on with you and this place." He pushed past the crowd and left.

"Count me out, too," Randall said, looking back at the other recruits. "If you're smart, you guys will leave before she drags you down with her. That's what you get for putting a woman in charge."

Takeo, Juan, and Demery still hadn't moved, but they appeared to be taking in the whole scene. Would they be next? Red vowed not to stop them if they decided to go. The departing recruits were right about one thing, if any of them chose to stay, their reputations might be damaged by being affiliated with her.

"They're leaving," Maggie spat. "And it's all your fault. If you were able to
control
yourself, we wouldn't be going through this now. Someone call a medic before Mr. Green bleeds to death in the station."

Red shivered at the accusation. Maggie believed that her out-of-control wolf was responsible for this man's injuries. Red looked at the faces in the crowd. Some were familiar to her, while many others weren't. The one thing they had in common was they all looked convinced that she'd done it.

She stepped forward and reached for John Green. One of the townspeople blocked her way, stopping her.

"Oh no you don't." the man said. "You're not getting another go at him."

"Fine!" Red snapped, taking a step back. "Tell them the truth." she growled at Green as he slumped in the seat. The bleeding had started to clot, so his face didn't look quite as hideous as it had moments ago.

"I don't know what you mean," he said innocently.

"You ran into that wall." Red's voice rose with each syllable. "I've never seen anything so insane."

"Figures you'd say something like that. What did I ever do to you?" He whimpered like a wounded animal.

Red balled her fists and felt her entire body tense with anger. "I don't know what you're up to, but you won't get away with this," she said. "I'll see to it."

His eyes widened in fright. "She has it out for me. Someone protect me." Green tried to move out of the chair, but the man behind him held his shoulders down.

"You're safe now. We won't let her hurt you anymore. Will we?" he asked the crowd.

The murmurs grew in fervor.

"I know what it looks like, but I didn't touch him!" Red shouted.

People backed away, clearing a small area around her. The fear was easy to see, and even easier to smell. It stank like bitter synth-beans. She wrinkled her nose. How could she convince them she was innocent, when all signs pointed to her guilt? Red looked up and saw the three remaining recruits staring at her.

"If you want to leave, then go now," she snapped. "I won't hold it against you. I don't want anyone around who doesn't want to be here."

The men looked at each other and seemed to come to an unspoken understanding. Takeo stepped forward. "We're not going anywhere. It's just starting to get interesting around here. Besides, I think you need our help now more than ever."

Red looked at them and hoped the gratitude she felt showed on her face. She gave them a curt nod and strode off to Morgan's office. She hadn't been inside of it since he'd left. She hadn't wanted the empty reminder. Now she desperately needed to be around the familiar. Red pressed her palm on the door and it opened. Everything inside was exactly as he'd left it—neat, compact, and stringently organized. She stepped inside, noting the jacket hanging on the back of his chair.

Maggie began her report. Red listened in dismay as the chances of regaining her career went down the recycling drain. She pressed a button and the door shut, closing the world out. Why was this happening to her? All she'd wanted to do was come to Nuria and see where her relationship with Morgan led. She hoped by doing so that she'd also find a place to fit in. She'd been such a fool. Nothing was ever that easy.

Red walked over to Morgan's desk and pulled the coat off his chair. She buried her nose in the material and inhaled deeply. Morgan's scent filled her lungs. A new kind of pain took over as she closed her eyes. This ache hurt more than anything the people of Nuria could do to her. Because no matter what they did, it would never touch the pain of loss she felt with Morgan gone.

*    *    *

Red had been sitting at Morgan's desk for an hour when the vidcom chirped. She knew who it was even before she picked it up and pressed a button. Commander Robert Santiago, the head of the International Police Tactical Team. The screen brightened and her grandfather's sullen face came into view. Despite the circumstances, her heart lurched in happiness at the sight of him.

"Gina, you look like crap," he said, moving closer to the viewer.

"Feel like it, too," Red said, automatically moving back so her image blurred a little. She could just imagine what she looked like, and she didn't think her grandfather needed a closer inspection. If he got a good look at her, he might come down to Nuria, and that's the last place she wanted him to be. It was one thing to ruin your own reputation, she wasn't about to ruin his. He'd worked far too hard to get to his position. "It's good to see you," she said. "I've missed you so much."

"You, too, special one." He gave her a small smile. "Where's Morgan?" he asked without prelude.

She felt the color leach from her face. "He had to leave town for a short while. I expect him back soon," she lied.

His bushy brows lowered over his eyes in suspicion, but he didn't say anything further. "I just received a very interesting report about a noncommissioned sheriff station employee who's been accused of brutality. Would you know anything about that?"

Red sank back in Morgan's chair. "It doesn't make sense," she said.

"What doesn't?" he asked.

"He just hit the wall," she muttered.

"Gina, I need you to start from the beginning, since they're requesting the tactical team to intervene."

Intervene? The word rang in Red's head. How dare Maggie ask for outside help to handle this situation. She'd been so worried that Red would bring in IPTT because of her inability to control her wolf, and now she was calling in the troops.

Red blew out a frustrated breath. "I know what I'm about to tell you is going to sound crazy, but it's the absolute truth."

Concern marred his face, making him appear older than his years. "Just tell me what happened."

"I was heading to the food dispensing station to grab some lunch. John Green popped out of an alley on my way there and told me his friend was down and he needed help getting him to the emergency care center. When I went to call it in, he tried to stop me. I should've known something was up then, but I didn't listen to my gut. I was too preoccupied with—"
What was she going to say? She was thinking about Raphael's kiss and hadn't been paying attention to her surroundings?
She didn't think her grandfather would appreciate that news either. Red shook her head at how stupid she'd been. "It's not important." She waved the thought away. "I did end up calling it in, but the station said they never received my request for backup. Of course, I didn't know that at the time."

"Then what happened?" her grandfather prodded.

"I followed him into the alley. Figured my backup would be there any minute. There was a bunch of debris in the area so I didn't immediately spot his friend. The guy told me he was on the other side of some metal pipes that were lying against the wall."

He interrupted her to ask. "Is his friend okay?"

"Yes, no—I mean, I don't think he ever had a friend. I think the whole story was made up to get me into the alley." She scrubbed her hand over her face. "It doesn't make any sense."

"You're right," he said. "Why would someone go to that much trouble?"

"I don't know, but that's not the strangest part. When we reached the location he'd supposedly left his friend in, he apologized to me. At the time, I had no idea what he was apologizing for. The next thing I know, he took off full speed for the wall. He didn't even put a hand up to break the impact. The crunch of bones shattering sounded awful. I thought he was mentally unsound."

Robert Santiago sat back, his expression thoughtful as he digested her words. "That
is
odd. Did he say anything else?"

"No, not to me. I only received the apology. After that, he hit the wall again, then started shouting for help. Townspeople flooded the alley. The second they arrived he claimed brutality and asked them to protect him. It was so bizarre I didn't know what to do." She sighed. "I still don't. Why would someone do something like that?"

"Has anything else happened lately that stands out?"

Red thought about telling her grandfather about the murder, but how could she? If she said one word, he would send the IPTT in to investigate. It wouldn't matter that the man was an unknown or that a report had already been filed. She knew her grandfather well. He'd do anything he could to protect her and would continue to until his last breath.

By the time IPTT finished its investigation, the town of Nuria would come under scrutiny. That was something she just couldn't have. Red had promised Morgan she'd protect the town. She'd continue to do that, even if they didn't want her protection.

"No, it's been pretty quiet." Her gaze dropped. She couldn't meet his eyes and lie a second time.

Misunderstanding her evasiveness, Robert spoke. "It'll be okay. I'll hold the files for as long as I can. That should give you a week to get to the bottom of this mystery. Something is obviously going on in Nuria. I know you can handle it. I trained you myself. If you have any more problems— anything at all—call." He smiled as she looked up.

"Thank you, Commander," she said.

"I'm not your commander anymore, special one."

She looked at him, staring at the deep lines in his face and his white crop of hair. The mole on his cheek dipped and rose with every movement of his mouth. He was sitting behind his desk, surrounded by real books. She could almost smell the rich scent. It made her homesick.

"Thank you, Grandpa."

His eyes sparkled at her words. "Anytime, special one. Anytime."

Red slumped in the chair as the screen dimmed. She had a week, tops, thanks to her grandfather, to uncover who was behind Green's sudden appearance. It was a given that she was being set up. If it was Roark, then he was going to elaborate means. Red just couldn't figure out what he would gain from her being sanctioned. It could create problems for her career, but it wouldn't stop the new tactical team from forming. Unless he thought she'd be arrested.

The question played in her mind until she feared she'd go mad. She stood up and dropped Morgan's jacket over the chair before heading out the door. The sheriff's station was quieter now. She figured Maggie and the townspeople must have personally escorted John Green to the emergency care center.