“They’re trying. But it could be weeks, even months, before we find a match. If they find any prints at all.”
Ray was right. Even though Dallas had their own lab, matching fingerprints was a painful process. Not necessarily because it was technically difficult but simply because there was such a backlog of cases for the lab to work on, not just for this county, but also for the surrounding counties that used the local institute to process their evidence. The truth of the matter was that three dead gangbangers likely killed by other gangbangers didn’t rate very high on the department’s priority list.
“How’d you guys swing getting a TV signal routed to your ops truck?” Ray asked suddenly, drawing Brooks’s attention back to Curtis’s press conference. “I’d have thought the budget cuts would keep you from doing something like that.”
Brooks chuckled. “Becker did it. Which means it’s extremely techie, probably shady, and possibly illegal. We’ve learned not to ask too many questions.”
Ray nodded, apparently understanding. “Have you been listening to what our esteemed chief of police has been saying this time?”
Brooks shook his head. “I avoid listening to Curtis whenever I can.”
“That’s generally a wise outlook, but in this case, I thought you might have heard him announce who the next sergeant for the gang unit might be. I’m hoping it’s one of my people, but with the way he likes to play politics, there’s no telling who it will be.”
Brooks did a double take. “You’re out already?”
Ray’s smile was sad. “I told you it would happen. Curtis made it official this morning. He’s replacing me. He told me I could either retire or move to a desk job in range services or the evidence property warehouse.”
Talk about being put out to pasture. Ray was a good cop. He didn’t belong in the evidence room. “What are you going to do?”
“Put in my retirement packet. I’ll be out in a few weeks. I’m hoping I can close this case first, but that might be tough. Whoever this new gang boss is, he’s smart. If I don’t get him, it will be up to whoever takes my place.”
“Damn,” Brooks muttered. “I’m sorry about this.”
Ray shook his head. “Don’t be. It’s time. But enough about me. Tell me about that girl I saw you with last night. Selena, right? I didn’t have a chance to talk to you much, but I got the feeling she’s someone very special. Any chance I’m going to see some little baby SWAT cops running around anytime soon?”
The idea of having children with Selena made him smile. “I don’t know. I’d like that, but it’s complicated.”
Ray laughed. “I have no idea what’s going on between you two, but I doubt it’s as complicated as you’re making it out to be. It never is. Like Curtis replacing me. There are a hundred different ways I could react to the situation, but there’s only one way that’ll get me what I want, so that’s what I have to do. Same for you. All you have to do is figure out what’s important to you and what you really want, then do what you have to do to get it.”
Brooks didn’t say anything. Ray could always make the most complex problem simple. Even when it involved love and out-of-control werewolves.
Chapter 16
“I know I don’t have any right to ask you for a favor, Jayden,” Selena whispered into her phone, pushing herself deeper into the shadows of the alley, hoping nobody across the street could hear her. “But I really need your help. You’re the only person I can turn to.”
“I’ll be there in five minutes,” he said.
No argument. No complaint about the fact that she hadn’t responded to any of his earlier texts or phone messages. Instead, he’d said the exact words she needed to hear. The gentle, confident tone was almost enough to calm her racing heart all on its own. Thank God, she’d had the courage to call him.
“I’ll always be there for you,” he added. “Just keep out of sight until I get there, okay?”
“I will,” she said. “But please hurry. Marguerite just sent me another text. She thinks Ruben might have taken some kind of drug in addition to all the alcohol he’s been drinking. She said he’s not acting like himself.”
“I’m already out the door,” Jayden said. “Just…promise you’ll wait for me…okay?”
Selena looked across the darkened parking lot at the raucous crowd of partygoers moving in and out of the three-floor apartment building, knowing there was no way in hell she was going in there by herself…not in her current condition.
“I’ll wait. I promise.”
She heard the sound of a truck door slam closed over the phone as Jayden hung up. She leaned against the brick wall of her hiding place, fighting for control as her body continued to react to the wild energy pouring out of the building on the other side of the street. Merely being here had her claws and fangs extending and retracting in uncontrollable spasms. That should have been enough to make her turn around and go back to Becca’s apartment. But the idea of abandoning Ruben to whatever kind of trouble he was in was more than Selena was willing to live with. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She was going into that apartment building to rescue her student—as soon as Jayden arrived to make sure she didn’t go nuts and tear someone apart.
Selena’s claws and fangs hadn’t slipped out on their own since yesterday, and she’d almost begun to think maybe she might have this thing under control. It had been enough to convince Becca it was okay for her to head out for the evening to spend some time with Scott.
“Don’t worry about me,” Selena had insisted. “I’ll just hang out here and watch Netflix.”
That truly had been her intention. Then Marguerite had sent a text, saying Ruben was in trouble. It had been tricky getting all the details through texts, but somehow, the girl had found him at a Locos party, getting drunker by the minute. Selena had panicked, not sure what she should do. Putting herself in a situation like the one Marguerite described was asking for trouble, but in the end, she didn’t have a choice. She thought she’d be okay, that she’d be able to handle it.
She’d been wrong. Within seconds of reaching the apartment complex Marguerite had given her the address for, Selena’s claws and fangs had slipped out. Even worse, she’d found herself already heading for the entrance of the building before she’d consciously decided going in was the plan. It was like she had no control over her own body anymore. That was when she’d accepted she couldn’t do this on her own and had called Jayden.
