“As always, you’re the best, Doc.”
“You do the work, Arlo. I’m just here to tap you in the right direction. You think you’re doing better? I can put you on the schedule for tomorrow too”
"I’ll let you know if I need another one before that. Thank you for taking my call with no hesitation.”
“I gave you my number for a reason. I’m just glad you used it. That, in itself, is a huge step. I’m here if you need me again, but good job today.”
“Thanks, Doc.” I hang up and take a deep breath. Shifting so I’m facing Rina, I squeeze her hand. “I’m sorry.”
“Nothing to be sorry for. I’m the one that should be sorry. I knew you wouldn’t approve of the plan, and I did it anyway. I thought taking it into my own hands would make things happen faster, and I didn’t think about logistics past that.”
“I’m not very good at verbalizing my concerns, especially when it comes to you. I know I’m getting better, but fucking Tyler has me more on edge than I want to admit. It’s not that I think your plan is bad; I just need to figure out how to let you do it safely. I will not jeopardize you for anything.”
“I see that now. I was too caught up in getting from point A to point B as fast as possible and didn’t think about what it would take to actually accomplish that. It’s not as simple as going to dinner with Tyler and ‘catching him’. We need to make sure everything’s in place, so when you do take him in, charges stick and no one gets hurt. It was shortsighted of me.” She sighs and leans into my shoulder.
“I want to get a plan together and cover all our bases, but I’d really like to go back to your house and hold you tonight. All of that can wait until tomorrow,” I murmur against her temple.
“Done. Let’s head out.”
“Can you drive? I still feel pretty drained from the damn panic attack.”
“Of course.”
I shakily stand up, Rina supporting me the whole time as we head out after locking up Grind Time.
There’s a lot of work to get done before Saturday, but tonight? Tonight, I’m going to hold my wife as she sleeps, knowing she’s safe in my arms.
Chapter 38
Arlo
Saturday comes too fast.
I’m a bundle of nerves, but I’m trying to stay focused on what needs to be done and not the potential problems that could arise. Nothing good will come from me stressing about the what-ifs.
“Great news,” Oakley says as he walks into my office and sits down in the chair across from me.
I arch an eyebrow, waiting for him to continue.
“Usually, people get excited with good news, you know. Anyway, my guy on the Marshals helped the Rosedale Police Department obtain a warrant.”
“Do I want to know what helped means?”
“Nope. You just get to be relieved there’s a warrant in place. We can execute it while Rina and Tyler are at dinner, or we can keep an eye on them and see what information Rina can get before going in.”
“And we have Rosedale’s support?”
“We do. I’m in contact with one of their lieutenants, and he’s just waiting for word on which approach we want to take. They’ve been really easy to work with. I think they’re just happy to get a scumbag off the streets, one they didn’t even know about.” He smirks.
“It’s probably the only reason they so readily agreed towork with us.”
“That, and when a U.S. Marshal tells you it’s a priority, people tend to listen.” Oakley grins.
“You would know.”
“How’s Rina doing?”
I sigh. “She’s acting fine and tells me she’s ready, but I know she’s nervous. We don’t really have a concrete plan on how to get information out of him, what she should say, and where she should steer his movement and the conversation. Everything is open-ended, and I think she realizes that now.”
