For the Right Reasons. Kara Lennox
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Название: For the Right Reasons

Автор: Kara Lennox

Издательство: HarperCollins

Жанр: Современные любовные романы

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isbn: 9781472094063

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СКАЧАТЬ real-estate lawyer, he’d driven a BMW. Those chrome rims wouldn’t have lasted long in this neighborhood.

      He found a parking spot along the edge of the curbless street, having strong reservations about bringing Bree to a place like this. But before he could voice his doubts, she was out of the car and charging toward the apartment building where Mildred Hayes lived. He grabbed a folder from the backseat and hurried to catch up to her.

      The interview with Ms. Hayes was a waste of time. The friendly silver-haired woman could tell them only that the call had come from her hoodlum grandson, Jerome Taylor Hayes, who had probably called her from a “borrowed” phone. She didn’t know how to locate him, as he’d never given her a permanent address. She thought he was in a gang, and probably a drug dealer.

      “So some hood has Philomene’s phone? This isn’t good. Not at all.”

      “I agree. So maybe the sheriff’s department will listen now.”

      “I doubt it. They’ll just say this Jerome person must be a friend of hers.”

      “If the sheriff’s department won’t do anything, maybe the San Antonio police will.”

      “Or maybe it’s up to us. How can we find this Jerome character?”

      “Whoa. Bree, we aren’t cops. We can’t go around interrogating people like we are. Jerome’s not the kind of person we want to tangle with.”

      “If you won’t help me, then I’ll just do it myself.”

      “Get in the car, okay?” Great. Now Bree knew just how to push his buttons. She knew he was just protective enough of her that he wouldn’t want her poking and prodding at lowlife drug dealers by herself. “I’ll go with you to talk to the sheriff. And if he doesn’t take it seriously, I’ll drop Daniel’s name. Sometimes that’s all it takes to light a fire under someone.”

      For the next few minutes, Eric focused on getting them out of the hood. He breathed easier once they’d found the freeway.

      “You know Daniel Logan pretty well?” Bree asked.

      “Some. He’s hard to get to know. My brother doesn’t get along with him—Daniel threatened to kill Travis at one time. But despite that, Daniel offered me a job when I got out of prison. He knew I’d be a mess, and he gave me a safe place to land. That was pretty generous of him.” If Eric did drop Daniel’s name, he’d have to be careful not to come out and say his interest in Philomene was official Project Justice business. The work he and Mitch were doing was completely unofficial, and Daniel would blow a gasket if he thought Eric was invoking his foundation’s name where it wasn’t legitimate.

      But no harm in letting the sheriff—and maybe that obnoxious D.A.—know that Eric knew Daniel Logan.

      “He seemed really nice when I talked to him. I thought if anyone even read the application I sent in, it would be some intern or something. I was shocked when the head guy himself called me.”

      “Most of the time Daniel doesn’t get personally involved in cases. But occasionally he sees something that intrigues him.”

      “I really thought he was going to help me.”

      Eric felt that twinge of guilt, which was becoming way too familiar. “You were right—it was my fault the case got dropped. But I felt like I didn’t have any choice.”

      “You did, though,” she said quietly. “You shouldn’t have let a personal vendetta get in the way of justice.”

      Oh, hell, he shouldn’t have brought this up. They were just going to end up yelling at each other again.

      But Bree didn’t yell. “Maybe you could talk to him.”

      “Talk to who?”

      “Kelly. Maybe if you guys talked about what happened—”

      “Are you insane? There is no way I would ever go face-to-face with that guy again. Not ever.” Eric fervently hoped that Kelly had forgotten about him. What a horrible mistake it would be to jog the convict’s memory. “It was a long, hard battle getting myself out of that hellhole. No way would I ever set foot in Huntsville again.”

      Bree was silent for a while, then said, “Now imagine if you didn’t have people on the outside who loved you and wanted you to be free. Imagine if you’d been stuck in that disgusting place the rest of your life. I am the only one standing between Kelly and that fate. He doesn’t deserve what he got. He doesn’t deserve what you got.”

      Ah, hell, she was crying. Before, she’d shown him only anger. That he could deal with. But the tears?

      “I’m sorry, Bree. I know it has to be hell for you. But I did what I believe is the right thing.” Except, perhaps, for telling Daniel that huge lie. Daniel was not a man to be lightly crossed. If he ever found out, the results wouldn’t be pretty. But Eric would face the consequences if he really believed Kelly was harmless. Unfortunately, that just wasn’t the case.

      Bree said nothing, just dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. Eric couldn’t think of one thing to say that might comfort her. For a guy known for his facility with words—one of the reasons he’d joined the legal profession—he was remarkably unskilled at saying the right thing when he was with Bree.

      * * *

      “NOT THIS AGAIN.” Becker County sheriff Bobby DeVille was a caricature of a bumbling but corrupt local cop. In fact, he had more than a passing resemblance to Jackie Gleason as he’d appeared in Smokey and the Bandit. So far he’d been barely civil to Bree, and he’d shaken Eric’s hand only with obvious reluctance. “How many times am I going to have to listen to this story?”

      “I have new information,” Bree said in a calm, neutral voice. Eric admired her control. “Philomene’s phone was stolen. It turned up in the possession of a drug dealer.”

      “And how did you come across this information?” the sheriff asked.

      “The drug dealer’s mother found the phone and started calling the recently called numbers to find out whose it was.” This was the story Bree and Eric had agreed on, rather than implicating Mitch in what had obviously been some kind of illegal access to phone records. “It’s sounding more like Philomene met with foul play, right?”

      “Do you know how many cell phones get stolen in a day?”

      “Sheriff DeVille,” Eric began, “I know you don’t have the resources to chase down every person who leaves town without telling someone where they’re going. But a number of factors grouped together like this—”

      “Save me your big-word lawyer speech,” the sheriff said tiredly. “Find me some blood. Or find her car abandoned someplace. Then I might think about suspecting foul play. But Philomene Switzer isn’t some innocent kid. She has a checkered past—been arrested a time or two.”

      “Not for a long time,” Bree objected. “She’s worked so hard to straighten out her life. She had a good job, an apartment—”

      “And a boyfriend who’d run up her credit cards.” The sheriff raised one eyebrow. “I see I’ve surprised you. I’m not as ill-informed as you seem to think. It’s entirely possible she disappeared to avoid СКАЧАТЬ