I’ll find him. Then I’ll fucking end him.
Gabe looked down at Elle, her delicate fingers giving his hand a squeeze. He still couldn’t believe how close he’d come to losing her. If it hadn’t been for her computer, he would have.
Can’t lose what you don’t have.
“You’re probably right, though,” Puett’s deep voice cut through his thoughts. “Chances are this wasn’t personal. Probably gang initiation or something like that.”
His tone gave Gabe pause, making him study the other man more closely. “Or something.”
“It’s a shame we weren’t able to at least find the bullet.” The other man put his notebook back into his jacket pocket. “Damn thing must’ve bounced off the computer when it hit.”
“That would be my guess.” Gabe nodded. He had a feeling the cop knew exactly what had happened to the bullet.
Sgt. Puett glanced Elle’s way. “I hate to admit it, Dr., but in a city this size, the odds of solving a case like this aren’t very high. Without any hard evidence, it’s pretty much impossible for my department to see it through to the end.” Puett came closer, his seasoned eyes shifting to Gabe’s. “Even so, justice sometimes has a way of hunting these criminals down. You like to hunt, Mr. Dawson?”
You’d better fucking believe it.“I do my fair share.”
There was another brief pause before the guy nodded. “I’ll let you know if I have any more questions.” Puett held out his hand, his sudden change in direction telling.
Gabe shook the man’s hand. “Thanks.”
“Take care of yourself, Dr. Dawson.” The man headed for the door but turned back just before it. With one last look at Elle, his eyes landed on Gabe’s. “Tell McQueen I said we’re even.”
A second later, Gabe and Elle were alone.
“McQueen?” She frowned. “Isn’t that your boss’s name?”
“Yeah.”
That explained the guy’s cryptic comments about hunting. If Puett knew who Gabe worked for, the man damn sure knew what he was capable of. Not only that, the guy had just given him the green light to handle the situation the way he saw fit.
I’ll be damned.
“What did he mean when he said they were even?”
“Puett knows I have the bullet, but he’s looking the other way.” Gabe glanced back at Elle. “How are you feeling?”
She put a hand to her chest. “Like I was punched by Mike Tyson.”
He stared at the spot where she was hit. Opening his mouth, Gabe started to apologize for not protecting her better but was interrupted by a frazzled Jenna rushing into the room.
“Oh, my god! So it’s true?”
“Before you blow a gasket, Jen, I’m fine,” Elle assured her friend.
“You were shot, Ellena.” The fiery redhead shot him a glare before practically pushing him aside to get to her friend. “Don’t tell me you’re fine.”
“Iamfine. And actually, he shot my computer. Not me.
Despite the woman’s angry demeanor, she carefully wrapped her arms around Elle and held her closely. “Shut up and give me a hug.” A moment later, Jenna pulled away and shook her head. “I swear, if you’d gotten yourself killed I would’ve been so pissed.”
“I’m sorry I scared you.” Elle’s eyes skittered to his then back to her friend’s.
“Trust me, it wasn’t something I planned.”
Gabe’s heart gave a hard thump as his mind played through the night’s most recent events again. The entire scene had been running on loop in his head like a fucking horror film.
He saw the gun. Hollered for Elle to get down. Heard the shot a fraction of a second before he saw her fall. It made him want to fucking puke.
