Chapters (95)
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Dedication
- Epigraph
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- Eighty-Four
- Eighty-Five
- Eighty-Six
- Eighty-Seven
- Acknowledgements
- About the Author
- Also by David Swinson
- Thank you for buying this ebook, published by Hachette Digital.
I pay him. He hands it over to me.
“Gracias,” I say.
When I get home I drop my pack on the sofa and head to the kitchen, where I sit at the breakfast table and enjoy the spicy-sweet mango. Gotta put something in this stomach. Latinos know about spice. It’s actually good on a hot day like this. Cools down your body temperature. Works for me, at least, and the mango has nutritional value. Lord knows I need as much of that as I can get.
Now I have to figure out what the hell to do. I don’t like keeping this information from my friends on the department. It’s valuable. How can I reveal it without giving myself up? I’m not ready to do that. Don’t think I’ll ever be ready to do that. I’ve grown accustomed to this life. Hell, even enjoy it. Most of it. The ups, not the downs.
Leslie.
Shit. That crept right into my head. I have to let it go. I have to finish this. Figure how to play it out. After that, I’ll think about how to fix what I fucked up.
I decide to give Diamond a call, but it goes straight to an automated message. I don’t leave one back. Is that fuck avoiding me? Damn well better not be.
I know now that I can’t keep the police out of this. The easy thing to do would be to kill Jasper, but I can’t do that. I certainly can have fun thinking about it, though.
The academy always said that drugs, money, and women are the most common things that take a cop down. I can attest to one of them, but only because I like it for myself. I don’t deal, but I do steal. So I guess I got two—drugs and money. Leslie is a good person, so she doesn’t fall into the academy’s category of the wrong woman.
What’s Jasper’s jones?
I’m betting it’s as simple as money—and mental illness.
Cell rings.
Hurley.
“What’s up?”
“I need to talk to your source.”
Shit.
“Not that easy. Tryin’ to find him, see if he’s willing.”
“Can you tell me how involved he is?”
“Heavily.”
“Can you tell the source, without making promises, that we might be able to help him if he cooperates?”
“Wait—what? So you know Jasper’s dirty?”
“That’s the information we’re getting, too.”
“How’d you find that out? I mean, I know you’re a great detective and all—”
“Let’s just say I had an enlightening hospital interview.”
Damn, he got Repo or his older brother or both to roll. I don’t remember much of that night, but I know I went right to the edge with it. Maybe softened them up a bit for Hurley. Literally. From the outside in.