A Cop's Honor. Emilie Rose

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ vision of the perp standing over Rick’s body and the blood pools spreading across the floor flashed across his brain. The sudden pressure on Brandon’s chest felt as if a beam had dropped on it. “Once. I try to avoid that.”

      “Are you scared to?”

      That day he’d wanted to empty his clip into the guy who’d killed Rick. The only reason he’d managed to stop after one shot was because he wanted to see if Rick was still alive. “No. I value life—mine and others’—and my job. Shooting someone without cause jeopardizes both.”

      “Have you ever beat up anybody?”

      Another tough answer, but truth often was. “Yes. But never for the sport of it. When I’ve hit someone it’s because I was defending myself or someone else. Again, fighting is—”

      “I know, I know. A last resort. Jeez. I heard ya’ the first time.”

      Brandon lowered the last end of the gutter and helped Mason carry it to the grass beside the driveway then stopped beside the boy. “Is there someone you think needs beating up now?”

      A darting glance was a telling glance. “Who, Mason?”

      “Nobody.”

      “C’mon, everybody wants to pop someone sometime. Is a kid bothering you?” No answer.

      “At school? On the bus?”

      Mason hustled to the compressor. “Are you gonna show me how to use this thing or not?”

      The refusal to answer was an answer. But the kid wasn’t ready to talk. Brandon let it go and offered Mason a hammer. “We’ll get to the power tools soon enough. First, we need to remove the rotten fascia board and check the rafters for decay. If we find any we’ll have to cut the bad board away and sister on a good one.”

      “Huh?”

      Success. Confuse the subject then offer assistance. Gaining trust, whether it was a suspect’s or a boy’s, was all about strategy. And Brandon had his mapped out. It wasn’t the best or fastest option, but it was the only one Hannah’s restrictions permitted.

      “That’s what your dad said the first time I asked for his help. I’ll teach you what you need to know. Just like I taught him. But you have to listen, follow instructions and trust me. Then and only then will I let you use the saw and nail gun. Can you do that?”

      The question was about far more than carpentry, but Mason wouldn’t know that.

      “Yeah, I guess.”

      Over the next hour Brandon guided Mason through replacing and repainting the rotten boards, with Belle’s occasional input, and then he stood back. “Not bad for your first day wielding a nail gun.”

      Mason offered the first genuine smile Brandon had seen from him. “It was pretty cool. I’m hungry. You hungry?”

      Progress. Mason was asking about his welfare. “I don’t think your mom’s expecting me for dinner. But let’s ask her about me coming back later in the week to show you how to rehang the gutter.”

      “Okay.” Mason hustled inside.

      They found Hannah and Belle in the kitchen. The smell of bacon filled the air and Brandon’s stomach grumbled.

      Hannah glanced up from the frying pan, and the wariness in her eyes engaged his protective instincts. “Thank you for letting Belle hold the level. She’s talked nonstop about it since she came in.”

      “No problem. She was a big help.” He winked at Belle, making her giggle, then pulled out his phone and hit the calendar app. “If weather and my case load permit, I can come back Wednesday to finish the job.”

      Hannah shook her head. “We can’t do Wednesday. Belle has dance lessons.”

      “Where does Mason go?”

      “With us.”

      “To dance lessons?”

      “There’s a quiet place for him to do his homework,” she defended.

      Poor kid. “Let me keep him here so he can help me with the gutter.”

      Hannah pulled one corner of her bottom lip into her mouth. It was a habit he’d noticed too many times today.

      “Please, Mom? Brandon’s teaching me to use his tools, and I really want to learn.”

      She looked surprised by Mason’s enthusiasm. “Okay. But you have to promise to do your homework.”

      “I will. I swear.”

      Her gaze swung back to Brandon. “Do you um...want to stay for supper? It’s breakfast night. We’re having bacon, eggs and pancakes.”

      Hannah’s forced smile couldn’t hide her lack of eagerness for his company. And he couldn’t blame her. He needed some time to get his head back on straight. “Thanks, but I’ll have to take a rain check. I need to get a few things done before work tomorrow. See you Wednesday,” he offered to the room in general.

      Belle slid off her stool and rushed him. She wound her little arms around him and squeezed. “Thank you for painting my room, Occifer Brandon. It’s bootiful.”

      “You’re welcome. Your picture is going to be perfect on the wall.” The urge to stay hit him hard. But he had to go. This wasn’t his family. It was Rick’s.

      No matter how much he’d enjoyed spending the afternoon with Hannah and her children, there were too many risk factors attached to him. If his job didn’t get him killed, he’d still have the cloud of Parkinson’s hanging over his head.

      Brandon had read extensively about the future his father faced as the disease progressed, and having loved ones wipe his butt was not in Brandon’s plan.

      He could never be a family man.

       Chapter Four

      BRANDON HAD SPENT Monday and Tuesday convincing himself that his out-of-line thoughts about Hannah had been a fluke. He arrived at her house Wednesday evening, determined to prove his point.

      The front door opened. Belle, wearing a pink headband, leotard and tutu and her sparkly sandals, darted out toward him. She hurled herself at him. “Occifer Brandon!”

      He swung her into the air then set her down. She weighed more than the twins, his four-year-old niece and nephew, but squealed the same. “Hey, kiddo. How’s the room?”

      “Prettiful!”

      Her made up words were...cute. Mason stepped onto the porch. The sour expression he usually greeted Brandon with was absent. “Mom’s inside. She’s all in a tiz about leaving me here. Like you’re gonna kill me or something.”

      “I’ll try not to.” Brandon fist-bumped Mason then followed the kids through the foyer to the СКАЧАТЬ