“Shall I come with you?”
“I can handle picking up a suspect.”
“He might be armed.”
“He’ll be at work.He’s not likely to carry a gun at a shire building.”
“True, but he’ll recognise me and won’t know you.”She locked her computer and took her vest out of her locker.“Shall we go?”
She walked out before he responded.“We’ve got a lead,” she told Martin and Pierre.
“Who?”Martin asked.
“Steven Hamilton,” Rodney answered.
Damn him.Rodney knew she thought there was a leak in the department.He should keep this quiet.But maybe he figured Colin had been the only one.
Both men raised their eyebrows.“He’s always got the flashiest things,” Pierre said.“But I figured they paid him well at the shire.”
“He doesn’t seem the type.”Martin’s gaze darted to the phone on his desk and then back.“What’s the lead?”
“Photos from last night.Dot caught him going after the drug barrels.”
“Must have been desperate when he heard about Colin.”
“How would he have heard about Colin?”Dot asked.“We were the only ones who knew.Colin didn’t mention working with Steven.”
Martin shrugged.“Probably saw him being driven away.Doesn’t take much to put two and two together if you see a police officer in the back seat of a police car.”
“Let’s go,” Rodney said and gestured Dot to follow him.
Her shoulders tensed as she left the room.The paranoia was back.Rodney was impatient, but her question was relevant, and for him to interrupt her seemed suspicious.It wasn’t until Rodney pulled up in front of the shire building requiring no directions that something else occurred to her.
“How did you know where Steven works?”He’d never met the man and the Hamiltons hadn’t been on their suspect list until today.He wouldn’t have met him during the investigation because the shire hadn’t been involved.
Rodney glared at her.“You might think I sit around doing nothing, but my team has investigated people in positions of power in Retribution Bay.”
It must be nice to have those kinds of resources.Dot scanned the building.Just the double front doors as the only exit from this side, but there were rear doors leading out to a staff car park.“I’ll go around the rear.”
“He’s not likely to run for it.He doesn’t know we’re coming.”
She didn’t care.Her gut was telling her to go around the back.“I’ll catch up with you.”She strode around the side of the building, ignoring Rodney’s curses behind her.
No exits on this side of the building, but as she rounded the corner to the back, the door was flung open and Steven strode out.Average height, slim build but getting a middle-aged paunch, and neat, dark hair.Very similar to the boat captain last night.He made a beeline to his car and hadn’t seen her.
Dot smiled and jogged over.“Steven!Can I have a word?”
He whirled around, eyes wide.The recognition hit, and he reached into his jacket.Dot grabbed her gun and levelled it at him.“Freeze!”
Steven hesitated, glancing behind her.
She couldn’t afford to look.His hand was still underneath his jacket.“Very slowly show me your hands.”Her heart raced, her finger hovering on the trigger and her focus narrowed to his every movement.
“Sergeant Campbell, relax.I was reaching for my phone.”Slowly he withdrew his hands and held them high.
Dot lowered the gun.“Where were you off to?”
“Family emergency.Natasha’s sick at school and needs to be picked up.Kristy is busy.”
