Page 42 of Tied Over

“Would you mind taking Stella to the table right there so she can eat but still see us?” Bodhi suggested, smiling at him. “And she needs something to drink with her mound of macaroni and cheese,” he teased her.

Stella was beaming at Bodhi. Hayden looked confused, but then he looked at Stella and smiled, walking around the end of the table, by Bodhi, by Luke, and finally me before reaching the little girl.

“Come on, kiddo, you need a napkin.”

“But I don’t wanna leave Jed.”

“You’re not leaving me. You’re just gonna be right there, yeah?”

She looked like she might cry.

“I will not leave you, you understand? I will not,” I swore, my voice firm for her.

“You promise?”

“Cross my heart.”

“I’ve got no warrants,” Sharpe rushed out.

“Hold one sec,” I told him, then pointed at the table. Stella moved then, walking the six or so feet to the end of the eating table, taking a seat, and watching me as Hayden darted over to another table to get a juice box from a large bowl of cubed ice.

“Go,” I told Sharpe.

“No warrants, but yeah, sex offender. Two girls, one five, one seven, he served three years, been out for five, works at his father’s law firm in Denver, and it looks like he’s a title examiner there.”

“Okay.”

“What do you need?”

“Seattle PD to my location.”

“Done. What else?”

“What’s the requirement for sex offenders vacationing in Washington?”

“Lemme check,” he said, and there were more clicks of his keyboard. “They have to check in with local law enforcement within three business days if the stay in the place they’re visiting will be for ten days or more.”

“Thank you.”

“’Course. Call me if you need me.”

Hitting the END button, I lifted my head as Bodhi walked Luke around the table to me, and then the three of us moved away from the table but stayed in sight of the little girl.

“So Luke here is a registered sex offender,” I told my partner.

“Okay,” Bodhi replied flatly, turning to Luke. “Think now before you answer, because what you say will either have you leaving here in a police car or an ambulance. It’s up to you.”

He nodded quickly.

“Did you molest Stella?”

“What? No, I would nev—”

He was cut off when Bodhi grabbed hold of his face, both cheeks, and squeezed tight. It hurt; I knew it did. Enough people who’d been on the receiving end of his painful grip had made complaints about it that never went anywhere.

“What did I say?” Bodhi asked, sounding utterly bored. “I will hurt you, Luke. I can even hurt you permanently, and it would be your word against mine.”

Luke just stared at him with wide eyes.