“Sit up slowly,” he grated out, weapon raised. “Hands up!”
The person didn’t move. Either someone was passed out there…or worse.
He rushed forward and nudged the boot with his own.
No movement. He grabbed it and ripped the body out, but the instant he did, he knew the person was dead.
A single, clean shot through the heart.
His pulse tripped as he crushed his phone to his ear.
Cannon answered on the first ring. “What do you got?”
“Agent’s dead.”
“Dammit.”
Rome looked down at the body. “Professional hit.”
“You’re sure?”
“Positive.”
Another curse from his commanding office. “I’ll contact the Bureau.”
“We need to know who burned him.” He barely got the words out before the back door opened and a woman with curly black hair stepped out carrying a garbage bag.
Stina.Relief washed through him that she was still alive. But he took a step toward her in case whoever offed the agent was still lurking nearby.
He pocketed his phone and slipped his weapon into his waistband as she headed straight for the dumpster where he was standing next to a dead federal agent.
She looked right at Rome and stopped. Just then, sirens ripped through the night, and her shoulders slumped.
“Oh, comeon.”
He stared at her. That wasn’t fear or panic.
It was annoyance.
She pointed at the body, head cocked with what could only be called attitude. “Another dead guy in the dumpster?”
Before he could respond, she stomped her foot.
“Did youhaveto call the cops? Do you know how many customers are going to leave when they see police cars?”
Thrown off-balance in a way he hated to admit to himself, he scrubbed a hand over his jaw. He’d crossed half the country expecting to find a frightened target.
Instead he’d found a woman who didn’t realize she was standing in the middle of a kill zone.
* * * * *
Stina made it almost two hours to the end of her shift before the night officially turned into garbage.
That felt fitting, considering her manager chose that moment to shove an overstuffed trash bag into her hands and point at the back door. He didn’t even bother looking guilty about heaping more work on her even though they were down a waitress tonight. He just kept stuffing mozzarella sticks into his mouth.
She looked down at the bag, then back at him. “Why not Geraldo?”
“Because I asked you.”
