Badge of Honor (The Town of Pearl 9)

He took a slug from his beer and stared at the fire. “I guess it would be kind of nice to be with the same woman for a while. You know, get to know her, take care of her, and let my guard down enough to enjoy her for a while instead of for a night,” Orin told them.

“Great, now he has you thinking of precious moments and being tender and courting some woman. We’re doomed,” Mace added.

Gus, Harper, and Galvin chuckled just as Galvin’s phone rang.

“It’s Dmitri,” he said and took the call.

They all looked concerned. Even Galvin felt that slight tension in his chest. Most of the time when Dmitri called them it was for a job, or some work he needed done discretely. But as he listened to Dmitri talk, he couldn’t help but look at Harper and feel bad for the guy. It seemed this woman Lauren he was so interested in could be a criminal herself, and as good as dead with the Tenth Street gang from New York after her.

“So what is it that you want us to do?”

Dmitri explained and then Galvin told him he was going to put him on speaker so the others could hear. When he did, he saw all their expressions change and then Harper’s face turn bright red as he clenched his jaw. It seemed he wasn’t going to take the information lightly. This woman Lauren he felt was perfect for them was either a corrupt cop, or an innocent one caught in the middle of a drug raid gone badly. Throw in the mark for death on her chest, and yeah, even he felt a bit on guard.

* * * *

“So we’re talking full investigation and full contact with this woman?” Orin asked, joining the conversation. His curiosity was growing about Lauren, and his buddy’s deep, and instant, interest in her. Right now, Orin thought Harper looked ready to explode.

“Don’t be so obvious about it. You already have an in now that Harper has made contact with her,” Dmitri said.

Harper’s eyes widened. “How do you know that?” Harper asked.

“The woman whose house Lauren is staying in is the one that contacted me to save her from getting killed while she was in the hospital,” Dmitri told him.

“The hospital? So Lauren did sustain injuries?” Harper asked.

“Victor is sending you everything I have including how I first came in contact with Lauren.”

“Who is she staying with?” Orin asked.

“Mary Higgins,” Dmitri replied.

“The wealthy older lady who lives in that estate behind the Inn?” Gus asked.

“Yes. She’s like family so when she called needing help I immediately stepped in.”

“What’s your take on this, Dmitri?” Galvin asked.

“I want to believe Lauren’s a good detective, caught in the middle of corruption and a bad situation. But we’ll need to figure that out quickly. It’s all in the file. Let me know if you have further questions.”

Dmitri disconnected the call and Mace walked inside to get the laptop.

Orin looked at the fire slowly burning out. They had been getting ready to add another log, but it wasn’t necessary now. The atmosphere had changed immensely. They now had another job to do, but this time it was closer to home and that put Orin on edge and certainly the rest of the team as well.

Chapter 8

Lauren needed to head into town. Beth got the wrong protein shakes and Lauren couldn’t help but to think she did it on purpose. It seemed Mary and Beth were pushing for some kind of love match to happen between Lauren and Harper.

Lauren headed down to Main Street when she saw the sheriff standing by his truck on the corner talking with a woman and two children. He immediately looked up and caught Lauren’s eye. She nodded and gave a small smile and he looked her over.

She wasn’t in hiding today so much. She wore jeans, sneakers, a pale blue V-neck T-shirt, and carried a backpack with her.

“Good afternoon, ma’am,” the sheriff said and stopped talking to the woman with the two children so he could talk with Lauren. She eyed him over. The sheriff was a big man. He had lots of muscles, a firm expression, and defined lines by his eyes probably from being in the sun a lot or even squinting or scowling. He seemed very commanding. She respected that.

“Good morning, Sheriff,” she said and held his gaze.

“I haven’t seen you in town much. Are you starting to feel a bit more comfortable here?” he asked. She wasn’t stupid. She knew he knew about why she was here in Pearl and why she was living with Mary.

Lauren looked around the town. “I was just heading toward the store and hoping they had some things I needed. It looks like you run a nice, safe town here, sheriff. I respect that,” she told him as she crossed her arms and stood in a stance she knew probably spoke volumes to Wyatt. It was a cop thing. Body language said a lot about a person.