Guard Duty. Sharon Dunn

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СКАЧАТЬ pulled to the curb, scanning the area as he got out of the car. “This is the street?” The neighborhood consisted of older homes built close together and several apartment buildings.

      She looked at him over the top of the car. “Yep, this is the neighborhood I patrol.” She spoke with affection as she lifted her chin and looked around. “If I remember correctly, I met Linda on a stolen television case.” She studied the line of houses as though she was trying to jar her memory about where Linda Seville lived.

      A girl of about seven road by on a bike. “Hey, Officer Salgado.”

      A trilling laugh escaped Valerie’s throat. “Hey, Jessie Lynn. I see you found a new chain for your bike.”

      The kid was half a block away when she shouted, “Yes, ma’am, I did.”

      She turned to face Trevor. “Jessie loves that bike. She always gets a ride in before school.”

      Valerie cared about the people here. That much was clear, but sometimes emotions got in the way of the job. He hoped she could keep them in check.

      Valerie came around the car and joined Trevor on the sidewalk. She looked up at him, expectation coloring her lovely features. She had a spray of freckles across her nose and cheeks, and her voice had a soft quality that made him think of lullabies. He shook himself free of the warm, fuzzy feeling he got when she stood close to him. Okay, she was attractive and smelled nice. So what? He had a job to do.

      Valerie pointed to a bungalow-style house with flower beds that were overgrown with weeds. “That’s it, right there. Now I remember. It wasn’t a stolen television—it was a missing pet.”

      It sounded like Valerie didn’t know Linda Seville all that well. They made their way up the sidewalk. Worry twisted into a hard knot at the base of his stomach. What if this lead didn’t pan out? Would they be back to square one?

      As though she had read his mind, Valerie said, “We might be able to get a line on Murke some other way if this turns out to be nothing.”

      He appreciated her optimism, but in his mind, there were no second shots. Murke had evaded him since Cory’s death, leaving whatever town he’d drifted into the second he got wind that the Bureau was onto him. The capture needed to be swift before Murke had a chance to run again.

      He knocked on the door. Through the sheer curtain, he could see that all the lights had been turned off, and no one stirred inside. He could feel that tightening in his chest. That awful feeling that they’d missed their chance to get the jump on Murke. “Where would this Linda be if she wasn’t at home?” He couldn’t hide the urgency in his voice.

      “I don’t know that much about her. She’s not one of the people in the neighborhood who talks to me. I just helped her find her poodle months ago.” She turned and looked at the other houses. “I’m sure we can ask around.”

      Trevor tensed. Too much asking around meant a greater chance of Murke getting wind that the Bureau had found him. “I just want this lead to work out.”

      She flinched as though he had hit her with his words. “You really want to get this guy, don’t you?”

      Trevor softened his tone. She didn’t deserve to be the recipient of the frustration over his long history with Murke. “He shot an agent I was training. Cory was a rookie fresh out of the Academy, and I know rookies make rookie mistakes, but he didn’t deserve to die.”

      “I’m sorry about the agent being shot.” An emotion flashed across her face that almost looked like hurt, though he couldn’t figure out why. “I don’t think she’s here.” Valerie turned away and stared up the street.

      He’d heard the quiver in her voice. Something he had said had struck a nerve. Women made him crazy sometimes. He was always saying the wrong thing around them and never quite understanding why it had been the wrong thing. Trying to sort it out with her would just make things worse.

      Just let it go and do your job.

      Trevor scanned the windows of the apartment buildings. No doubt the neighborhood had eyes everywhere. They’d expect to see Officer Salgado around, but would wonder what he was doing here. And then they would start to talk. If Murke was in this neighborhood, how long before word got back to him?

      When he turned toward Valerie, she still had her back to him. She let out a soft gasp as her shoulders stiffened and she reached for her gun. He followed the line of her gaze.

      Derek Murke sidled up the street holding two plastic bags and a six-pack of beer.

      THREE

      “Police, stop.”

      Valerie sprinted across the grass and drew her weapon.

      Shock registered on Murke’s face. He dropped his groceries and dashed up the alley.

      Murke was headed for the warehouses behind the bungalows. Valerie called out to Trevor. “Stay with him. I’ll grab Lexi.”

      Trevor had already drawn his handgun. He raced past her down the alley. Murke bolted over a dilapidated fence with Trevor on his heels.

      Valerie ran to Trevor’s car and opened the back door for Lexi. With the dog pulling hard on the leash, Valerie circled around the fence. She entered a two-block area containing a series of metal buildings, some still in use and others abandoned. She saw no sign of Murke or Trevor. She took Lexi over to the other side of the fence where Murke had probably landed. Lexi picked up the trail right away.

      They jogged past a tire shop that was still operational, but closed at this hour. There was a risk that Lexi had picked up on Trevor’s scent and not Murke’s since both men were running. Following a scent was not a perfect science, but she’d trust Lexi’s nose over searching blindly.

      Heart pounding, she took in her surroundings as she ran. The Rottweiler pulled toward a large warehouse. Metal slapped against metal. The sound of a door slamming against the frame or the wind blowing? Valerie followed Lexi into the warehouse through a place in the exterior wall where the corrugated metal had been bent back from the frame.

      Once inside, she waited for her eyes to adjust to the dimness. The warehouse was a big open area with a balcony all around it. This had been a clothing factory at one time. Pieces of abandoned equipment provided numerous places for Murke to hide. Trevor might have lost sight of him and gone off in the wrong direction.

      She studied the stairs leading up to the balcony where the offices used to be. Now they were just gaping holes, the office doors having long since been looted.

      Lexi kept her nose to the ground, though her pace slowed.

      A creak of floorboards caused Valerie to turn. She waited for another sign of life. If Murke was close, Lexi would have been more excited. Valerie licked her dry lips. Blood whooshed in her ears as she adjusted her grip on the gun. Water dripped somewhere in the building. The steady tap, tap, tap of the droplets hitting metal overtook the leaden silence.

      Lexi ran back and forth. The scent had become muddled.

      Though Valerie’s hands remained steady, sweat trickled down her back. Someone was in here. She could feel eyes watching her. Lexi stopped sniffing and lifted her head.

      Valerie СКАЧАТЬ