Made for You (9 page)

“Johnny Rocket?” Zip’s voice grew hard as he said the name. “I’d be crazy to talk to you about him.”

“It’s important.” She gripped her phone tighter. “Tell me what you know. I’ll make it worth your while, like always.”

A pause. “Not over the phone,” Zip said after a moment. “I’ll meet you at the usual place.”

It would take ten minutes to get to the abandoned farm. She glanced at her watch. “Twenty minutes.”

“Now? I don’t think I can—”

She cut him off in a warning tone. “Zip, you know you’re safe with me.”

He blew out his breath. “All right, all right. Make sure you’re not followed.”

She disconnected the call, and with a smile of satisfaction went from her office to her bedroom and tugged on a pair of shoes. It felt good to be moving forward on this case.

Technically she wasn’t cleared to drive yet, but she was tired of being cooped up and dependent on others. It wouldn’t hurt to meet Zip on her own—he was as dangerous to her as a newborn kitten.

She shoved her wallet with her credentials in the back pocket of her jeans and her keys in her front pocket. She buckled on her belt and holstered her Glock, then put a light blazer on over her blouse to cover her weapon.

It took her all of eight minutes to get ready to go and then she was out the door and in her dark green Ford Explorer. As she drove to the meeting place, her heart beat a little faster from the thrill of the hunt. Every step she took would take her closer to Taynor and Belle.

Zip wasn’t at the meeting place at the abandoned farm when she arrived. She drove around to the back side of a dilapidated weathered barn and parked. The farm was far enough off the main road that they most likely wouldn’t be seen, but she never took chances if she could help it.

She parked her SUV in the shade and climbed out, then leaned against the vehicle and looked up at an old rusted windmill that creaked in the warm breeze. Her hair lifted from her shoulders and a dust devil skittered across barren land a hundred feet away from her. Two vultures circled overhead and she wondered if some poor creature had died and had the vultures’ attention.

Zip arrived five minutes after she did, and he pulled up in his sapphire blue 1969 Camaro. It had a wide white stripe down the middle of the hood and she knew the car was his baby.

When he got out of the car, he pulled a cigarette out of a pack in his shirt pocket and a lighter from his jeans’ front pocket. He paused to cup his hand against the breeze so that he could light the cigarette.

After it was lit, he slipped the lighter back into his pocket and walked toward her. His dirty blond hair reached his collar and he had a scar like a slash through one eyebrow. His skin was tanned and lined and he looked older than his thirty-five years.

“Hello, Detective.” He drawled the words as he leaned against the hood of his Camaro. “Sure you want to get into Johnny Rocket’s business?”

“What kind of question is that?” She scowled and pushed away from the Explorer, and walked up to him. He was thin and lanky, a good eight inches above her five-two. “I’ll get in anyone’s business who gets in my way. And if Johnny has anything to do with a little girl’s disappearance you can be damned sure I’ll serve up his balls to him on a platter.”

Zip took a hit on his cigarette and blew out the smoke. “I’ll say one thing. You’ve got your own set of brass balls, Detective.” He shook his head. “Johnny is real bad news.”

“Why haven’t I heard of him before?” Kelley asked. “Prescott Valley isn’t exactly a metropolis with new drug kingpins sprouting out of the desert.”

“The man’s a ghost.” Zip blew out another puff of smoke. “And he’s new around here—came up from Phoenix. You know the Hector Garcia murder, the one you cops haven’t figured out yet?”

Kelley frowned. “You’re telling me this Rocha guy is involved?”

Zip smirked. “Johnny’s the one who offed him.”

A chill rolled up her spine. Hector Garcia had been one of the most notorious drug smugglers around, and smart, too. For someone to have the opportunity to kill him, they had to have been just as smart. Reese and Kelley had been trying to make a case against Garcia when he’d turned up dead, just weeks ago. Someone had done the Prescott Police Department a big favor.

She and Reese had been investigating the murder but they’d both been injured on another case, which had slowed things way down. The workload of the other detectives on the force was heavy right now so the Garcia murder had been put on the sidelines. Kelley being shot, Belle’s kidnapping, and Laura’s murder, had taken precedence.

The breeze blew strands of hair across Kelley’s eyes and she impatiently brushed them out of her face. “Tell me what you know about Rocha.”

Zip shrugged. “He has a major shipment coming in soon that will make him a big player in the area. He’s already got an established business in Phoenix. He’s seeking to expand.”

“I’m going to want details on that shipment.” Her heart rate had picked up. “But first I want to know if Rocha has the girl, Belle Jones.”

A scowl creased Zip’s face. “I don’t like no one messing with kids.”

Something caught in Kelley’s throat. “So he is involved.”

Zip’s scowl deepened. “The sonofabitch is into trafficking kids.”

Her skin went cold and for a moment she felt lightheaded and wondered if it was the concussion. “Are you saying he sold Belle?”

“Don’t know.” Zip shook his head. “But he could have or he’s gonna do it.”

“Do you know where Rocha and Taynor are?” The words rushed out. Dear God, she had to find Belle.

Zip raked his fingers through his hair. “Last I heard, Rocha was at Fat T’s place. Johnny’s looking to set up shop somewhere and I think he’s liking Fat T’s.”

“You’re certain?” Kelley’s jaw was tight. She knew exactly the location Zip was referring to.

The informant gave a nod. “I don’t hold no love for any bastard who sells kids.”

“Give me what you know about the drug shipment,” she said even as she was pulling out her phone and pressing the speed dial number for Reese.

“I don’t have that information yet, but I’ll get it.” Zip held out his hand. “In the meantime.”

Kelley pulled out her wallet and gave the informant cash while at the same time holding her phone between her ear and shoulder.

Reese answered as she turned away from Zip and hurried back to her Explorer.

“Hi, Kelley,” Reese said, and she swallowed. He usually said, “What’s up, Petrova?” Apparently last night
had
changed things.

She climbed into her Explorer, the phone now in her hand. “I just met with Zip—”

“What?” Reese cut across what she was saying. “What the hell were you doing out meeting an informant? You should have called me and let me take care of it.”

“Listen to me.” Kelley nearly shouted as she started the vehicle. “This is important. It’s about Belle.”

“I’m listening,” Reese said.

As she drove the SUV away from the old ranch, Kelley told Reese the entire conversation she’d just had with Zip.

Reese cursed. “I’ll mobilize the team.”

“I’ll meet you there,” she said and disconnected the call before he could tell her to stay home.

With her jaw set, she headed down the dirt road, back to the main road toward town, straight for Fat T’s.

She beat Reese and his team by one minute. She parked her Explorer as law enforcement vehicles pulled up. After she cut the engine, she jumped out and opened up the back of her SUV where she took off her blazer and pulled on a bulletproof vest and then a windbreaker with POLICE across the back.

Reese strode up toward her, his expression fierce. “No. You’re still on leave.”

“I’m getting in on the raid.” She scowled at him. “We don’t have time to argue. Let’s go.”

For one moment they glared at each other and then Reese started giving out orders to the officers to cover the back and the front of Fat T’s place.

Kelley went with Reese to the front door with officers backing them up. Two men swung the battering ram at the door. A huge crash sounded in the air as the door splintered open.

“Police!” Reese shouted, as did Kelley and the other officers as they swept into the home. Their shouts echoed in the house, organized chaos. Three men, including Fat T, were playing poker in the living room. Cards and poker chips went flying when the table overturned as the men rushed to their feet.

One of the men pulled a gun. Reese shot him and the man went down. Fat T and the other man put their hands behind their heads and dropped to their knees like they were told and then they were handcuffed and jerked to their feet.

Reese, Kelley, and the officers continued through the house, shouting “Police!”

Someone jarred Kelley’s shoulder and the pain made her bite her cheek. She tasted blood but ignored it as they continued clearing the house.

They didn’t find anyone else in the house and Kelley’s heart sank. They did find crack cocaine stashed throughout the place, but that was no consolation as far as she was concerned.

Heat flushed through her body as she marched out the front door and straight up to Fat T who was being held by two officers as they walked toward a cruiser.

“Hold on,” Kelley told the officers. To Fat T she shouted, “Where’s the girl? Where’s Belle?”

He smirked. “Ain’t no girl ’round here.”

“So help me,” she said with narrowed eyes. “You will tell me or I’ll kick your balls up into your throat and you can choke on them.”

His throat worked as if he was trying to swallow something. “You wouldn’t.”

She poked his chest, her finger pushing into his fat. “Try me, you sonofabitch.”

“They left.” Sweat was on Fat T’s brow and his wife-beater T-shirt had damp sweat rings under his armpits. “I don’t know nothin’ else.”

Reese came up beside Kelley. “We’ll take him down to the station and we’ll get it out of him.”

Kelley’s hands clenched into fists at her sides. “They were just here. We need to track them down, now. If I have to make this bastard sing falsetto, then I will.”

Reese looked at Fat T who was shaking his head. “Darrell and Johnny, they left with that little girl. I told you.”

“When?” Kelley growled.

“Maybe half an hour ago.” Fat T’s dark little eyes darted from Kelley to Reese and back. “They didn’t say where they were going. Johnny, he doesn’t tell me anything.”

“Right.” She gave a nod to the officers who held Fat T. They pushed him into the back seat of the cruiser as one of the officers read Fat T his rights. He was so fat it was a wonder he fit into the vehicle and the car didn’t drop like a low-rider from his weight.

Kelley raked her fingers through her hair. Her whole body ached with frustration. “We just missed them
again.
” She looked up at Reese, who wore a grim expression. “What if he sells that little girl?” Terror at the thought of Belle being sold into child slavery made her whole body hurt.

“We’re not going to let that happen.” Reese rested one of his hands on her good shoulder. “We’ll see what we can obtain from the other guy.” He nodded toward another cruiser where the other man was sitting in the back. “Ron Simpson. He’s just one of Fat T’s flunkies, so I’m not sure what we’ll get out of him.”

A stabbing pain shot through Kelley’s head and she wavered as her head spun a little. She hesitated, waiting out the dizzy spell.

“You all right?” Reese wore a concerned expression.

“I’m fine.” She straightened.

John walked up to them, carrying what looked like a computer’s hard drive. “Grabbed this.” He raised it so that they could see it. “Might get lucky and find something on it.”

“Good.” Reese gave a nod and John turned away.

Kelley put her hands on her hips. “I’m going with you to the station.”

Reese shook his head. “Captain Johnson is going to be pissed enough when he finds out you were here. Let me handle the interrogations and I’ll tell you what we get out of them.”

Another stab of pain had Kelley gritting her teeth. “You’ll tell me everything,” she demanded.

He gave a nod. “Everything.” He glanced at her SUV. “I’m going to have someone drive you home”

“It’s not far.” She started taking off the windbreaker with POLICE across the back. “I’m fine.”

Reese studied her for a long moment. “You need to take care of yourself, Petrova.”

She might have smiled as he referred to her by her last name if her head hadn’t hurt so badly. It suddenly felt like nothing had changed between them.

“I’ll be waiting for your call,” she said and turned away.

Reese watched Kelley go. Damn but he didn’t want to let her drive home alone. His instincts had been to take her in his arms and hold her close to him. Of course he couldn’t do that and undermine her.

With a curse beneath his breath, he clenched and unclenched his hands. If he kept worrying about her every time they went out into the field, he was going to get one of them killed. He had to keep his mind on the job.

He ground his teeth. He wasn’t so sure he could work with Kelley as his partner much longer. He’d become far too overprotective of her. She was good at what she did and he’d seen her take down grown men over twice her size. But everything had changed with that kiss last night.

The kiss. For a moment he closed his eyes and shut out the sounds around him as he remembered her soft lips and sweet kiss, and how willing she’d been… If he hadn’t put a stop to it, who knew what would have happened.

With a low growl, he opened his eyes and shook his head. Yeah, he knew exactly what would have happened, and he’d be regretting last night even more than he already was.

Chapter 9

To get his mind off of Kelley, Reese immersed himself in wrapping up the scene and then headed back to the station to interrogate Fat T and the other suspect. Despite his promise to her, he didn’t want to tell Kelley what they might learn from the two they had in custody or if they found anything on the hard drive. She was likely to go tearing off on her own again if they had something substantial.

She was a damned good detective and it was thanks to her investigative skills and contacts that they’d come this close to finding Belle. They needed Kelley’s keen mind, but it was more important that she recover and be at full speed when she returned.