Colton K-9 Cop. Addison Fox

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СКАЧАТЬ be persona non grata but she wouldn’t add litterbug to the litany of sudden crimes she’d apparently perpetrated against LSP. Nor would she put someone at risk of tripping on it inadvertently.

      Box lid in hand, she crossed back to the car, dropping into the driver’s seat and turning on the ignition. The car caught for the briefest moment, then rumbled to life. She put her foot on the brake, about to shift into reverse, when her gaze caught on the rearview mirror and her still-open trunk.

      Resigned, she opened the door once more and crossed back to the trunk. That damn cardboard box stared up at her, the lonely receptacle of her professional life and—finally—she let the tears she’d fought all afternoon fall.

      Lost job. Lost family. Hell, even a holiday that was shaping up to be a lost cause. All of it seemed to conspire against her until all she could see or think or feel was an overwhelming sense of loss.

      Frustrated, Bellamy stepped back and slammed the lid.

      Instantly, a wall of heat flared up, consuming her before she felt her body lifted off the ground and thrown across the parking lot.

      * * *

      DONOVAN WAS MIDWAY down his parents’ stone-covered driveway when the call from Dispatch came in. He answered immediately, responding with his badge number and his location.

      “We have a bomb called in at Lone Star Pharmaceutical. Your location indicates you’re closest to the site.”

      LSP?

      An image of the imposing corporate park on the edge of Whisperwood filled his thoughts, along with the pretty woman he’d met a million years ago who worked there. Who was bombing the town’s largest employer? And why?

      “I am,” Donovan confirmed. “I can be to the site in three minutes. What are the known details?”

      “LSP security called it in. Initial report says a car on fire and a woman shaky but standing.”

      “She walked away from a car bomb?”

      “Reports say she was outside it and tossed back by the blast.”

      “I’m on my way.”

      “Thanks, Officer. Backup will meet you there.”

      Donovan took a left out of his parents’ driveway instead of the right he’d planned. Flipping on his lights he headed out over the two-lane Farm to Market road that lead back into town and on toward the corporate headquarters that stood at the opposite edge of Whisperwood.

      He’d already spent the morning with the town’s chief of police and now it looked like he’d spend his evening with him, as well. The town was big enough to keep a sizable force, but they had to tap into the Austin PD for specialties like bomb squad support. As LSP had grown along with the town, Donovan had often wondered why the local PD hadn’t been given more resources, but knew that wasn’t always an easy battle.

      It was one that big companies readily fought when they preferred to employ their own security.

      Perhaps that folly had come back to bite them?

      By all accounts LSP’s owner was a local maverick who was as delighted to be a pillar of the community as he was to rub the town’s noses in it when he wanted to do things his way. Bold and daring, Sutton Taylor had favored the town he’d grown up in to set up his world-renowned pharmaceutical company.

      Donovan turned onto Lone Star Boulevard, the well-paved road that ran in front of LSP’s headquarters. The scrub grass and occasional ruts that made up the drive across town vanished as he came onto LSP land.

      The guards at the main entrance waved him through the gates before he’d barely flashed his badge and Donovan headed straight for the billowing smoke still evident at the back of the parking lot. Alex sat sentinel beside him, his body strung tight as a bow as he waited for his orders.

      Even from a distance, Donovan could tell the scene was contained. Two LSP security vehicles were parked near the still-smoldering car and a crowd had gathered at the edge of the parking lot, obviously evacuated from the building. The security team seemed to have it under control, the individuals corralled far enough back to avoid any additional fallout from the wrecked car. With the destruction already wrought on the burning sedan, the car was the least likely source of any remaining danger.

      Instead, he and Alex would go to work on the scattered vehicles still in the lot.

      He parked, his already alert partner rising farther up on his seat. Within a few moments, he had Alex at his side, leashed and ready for duty. One of the security guards moved away from a huddled woman and walked toward him. The man was grizzled, his body stiff with age, but his clear blue eyes were bright and alert.

      Sharp.

      The man nodded. “Officer. I’m Gus Sanger. I’m in Security here at LSP.”

      “Donovan Colton. This is Alex.” He motioned for Alex to sit beside him, the move designed to show his control over the animal yet ensure no one missed the dog’s imposing presence.

      “You got here fast. K-9’s out of the Austin PD.”

      “I was in Whisperwood on another assignment.” Donovan shook the proffered hand before pointing toward a pretty woman covered in soot. “Is she hurt?”

      “Claims she isn’t. That’s Ms. Reeves. Bellamy Reeves. She’s banged up and has a few scratches on her elbows and a bigger gash on her arm the EMTs bandaged up, but I’d say lucky all in all.”

      At the utterance of her name, Donovan stilled. Although he hoped it didn’t show to Sanger, Alex recognized it immediately, shifting against his side.

      Bellamy Reeves? The same woman he’d spoken to so many years ago in the Whisperwood corner store...

      “Do you mind if I go talk to her?”

      Sanger nodded, his gaze dropping to Alex. “Does he go everywhere with you?”

      “Everywhere.”

      “Good.”

      Donovan walked to the woman, taking her in as he went. She was turned, her gaze focused on her car, but he could make out her profile and basic build. Same long legs. Same sweep of dark hair. And when she finally turned, he saw those same alert gray eyes, that were mysterious and generous, all at the same time.

      She was still pretty, even beneath a layer of dirt and grime from whatever happened to her car. Which he’d get to in a moment. First, he wanted to see to her.

      “Ms. Reeves?”

      She had her arms crossed, the bandage Gus mentioned evident on her forearm and her hands cradled against her ribs as if hugging herself. She was drawn in—scared, by his estimation—and doing her level best to hide it. “Officer?”

      He ordered Alex to heel at his side, then extended his hand. “I’m Officer Colton. This is Alex. We’re here to help you.”

      Whether it was the use of their names or the fading shock of the moment, her eyes widened. “You.”

      “It’s me. How are СКАЧАТЬ