She lived on the floor beneath his, and he’d hooked up with her a few months ago. They’d barely spoken since, and that was fine with him. Brogan didn’t sleep with women more than once, never allowing a deeper connection that would lead to a real relationship. He wasn’t sure he had much to offer a woman in the long run.
“Hey, I haven’t seen you around in a while,” Julie said, stepping in close to him. Her tiny shorts had her legs on full display, and she flipped her blonde hair over her shoulder in an unmistakably flirty way.
“Been busy,” he shrugged. The truth was that his business with the mafia meant that he kept strange hours. He also hadn’t gone out of his way to run into Julie.
No need to give her false hope.
He knew that she wanted a round between the sheets with him. She wasn’t exactly subtle about it. But he was interested.
“Such a shame,” she pouted, placing a hand on his arm. “If you had more time, I’m sure we could squeeze in a little fun.”
He gave her a weak attempt at a grin before stepping away, heading toward the elevator doors that were closing. They opened again as he stepped inside and turned to face her.
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
But he wouldn’t. All he was interested in right now was sleep and helping Owen defeat the Italians. There was no time for anything else.
3
AMY
It took two hours for Amy to pull herself together. She was still freaked out, but she’d also talked herself into going to the police. Mancini’s threat hovered over her head, and she knew that this was exactly the kind of thing he didn’t want her to do, but he was underestimating her.
Being scared wasn’t going to keep her hiding away in her apartment or acting like nothing ever happened.
These assholes abducted her, and they weren’t going to get away with it, even if shewasa little crazy for going up against what was obviously some kind of organized crime syndicate. They took her because of her medical knowledge, but they clearly didn’t bother to research the person they abducted at all. Amy wasn’t the type to cower under threats. She did what she had to do to get through the day, but now that she was back in her real life, she wasn’t going to allow herself to be intimidated.
Still, she was anxious as she left the apartment building. It was after eight in the evening, but there were plenty of people coming and going. Amy’s eyes darted around, looking for anyone that seemed out of place or dangerous. Unfortunately, her nerves were fried, so everyone seemed like a threat.
She didn’t relax until she reached the police station. She figured this was probably the safest place for her to be right now. Even at this time of night, the police station was full of people bustling about. There were detectives in slacks and jackets with their badges hooked on their waistbands as well as the cops in their dark blue uniforms. Some them were escorting people in handcuffs, but most of the cops she saw as she walked inside the building were walking with folders in their hands and talking to other officers.
Ahead, there was a tall desk with the emblem of the police department on the front. Amy’s eyes ran over the police badge with the scales of justice on the center with the words Misso City Police Department in a circle around the image. The MCPD. If anyone could help her, it had to be them. Hopefully that had an organized crime division.
“Can I help you?” the woman behind the counter asked as Amy approached. Her uniform was spotless, and her hair was slicked back in a sleek bun at the base of her neck.
“Uh…yeah.” Her throat was suddenly tight. “I guess I need to speak to someone about a…mafia-related crime?”
It came out as a question because Amy couldn’t be entirely sure that the men that took her were a part of the mafia. It was just her best guess based on the way they behaved and the fact that Mancini was an Italian name. Weren’t the Italians big in the mafia business?
Surprise flickered across the officer’s face, and Amy couldn’t blame her. She’d swapped out her contacts for a pair of black-rimmed glasses, and she was wearing a white romper with a blue knit sweater. She probably couldn’t have looked less like the type of person to associate with the mafia even if she tried.
“What kind of crime? Which mafia?” the officer asked, looking skeptical.
There’s more than one?
“I was abducted,” Amy said, not sure how much detail she should give. “And…I don’t know which one. I can give names and describe where I was taken.”
“Okay,” the officer said, gesturing to long benches up against the wall. “Take a seat and someone will be with you soon to take a statement.”
Amy tapped her sandal against the tile floor as she waited. Time seemed to drag on and on as she waited, and she kept thinking about her seat in the dining room at that house. She was on edge then too, but an overwhelming sense of self-preservation kept her in place. Now, she was losing patience. It had been fifteen minutes.
Didn’t they care that she had valuable information?
She was just about to go to the desk again to put a little urgency behind this situation, but a man stepped in front of her. Tall with shaggy brown hair, he was wearing a brown suit and frowning.
“I understand you have some information you’d like to share about organized crime?”
Amy stood and had to crane her neck to look into the guy’s face. “Yeah, I was taken this morning-”
