Читать книгу A Small Degree of Hope - Lyndi Alexander - Страница 10

Chapter 5

Almost every light on their floor was on when Kylie reached their headquarters. A fleet of police cars formed a barricade outside, which had drawn a straggly group of curious bystanders.

Fools. Probably no one would have even noticed when the prisoner was brought in if SIRT hadn’t created a fuss. Word would spread in no time.

Bearing out her prediction, as she reached the lobby, the media trucks pulled up outside the barrier.

Idiots.

When she stepped off the elevator, the buzz of conversation faded as the squad spotted her. Someone started applauding. She thought it was Pax. Others followed, and the room echoed with their approval. Her face flushed hot, her smile so wide her cheeks ached. She’d earned this one.

Even Jaco came up and squeezed her shoulder. “That’s my girl,” he said, genuine fondness on his face.

They seemed to expect her to say something, so she channeled her inner Sanderson. “Thanks, guys. Just glad we got him. Let’s move on.” She turned to Jaco. “Can I interrogate him? Dr. Astrid and I—”

An uncomfortable silence fell. She glanced at the men, finding a mix of loathing and fascination in their eyes. What now? Had they killed him on the way in? “Well?”

“The situation’s changed, Sanderson. We’ve got it locked up, and we’re waiting for a doctor to come perform a full examination.”

Qilamen snickered. “Yeah, a vet.”

The floor shifted under her. “What do you mean, ‘it’?”

“I’ll show you.” Jaco’s grin was too broad. He knew something. Something she wouldn’t like.

They walked down to the holding facility. She shoved her hands in her pockets, to keep them from “accidentally” reaching out to connect with Jaco’s smug face. She hadn’t entirely discounted the possibility that Griff had truly come to ask for her help, as he claimed. Back at her apartment, she’d been too freaked out by his sudden appearance to listen.

But he’d had the opportunity to come forward and provide the information SIRT needed and he’d refused. Instead he wanted to play Mr. Creepy Guy and stalk her. Okay then, this is what he got.

In the observation room in the holding facility, a group of guards, easily twice the usual number, and several SIRT team members stared at the computer monitors. “What’s going on?” Kylie asked.

“They’re all checking out your boyfriend.” Jaco chuckled and gestured for her to look.

The crowd parted as she came through. Focused on Griff’s cell, the camera showed a two-meter tall reptilian on the narrow bed, its skin mostly gray, particularly through the thick chest and neck, but toward the extremities it took on a beaded appearance similar to the lizard-like skin they’d seen on the women. His was a dark desert red and black, just like the flicker she’d seen at her apartment. The face was a strong one, but decidedly that of a lizard. Griff wasn’t human at all.

She hesitantly approached the screens, almost as if she could change the truth if she didn’t look. But the closer she came, reality sharpened until it stabbed at her. “He’s still out?”

She’d tagged him a couple of times, for sure, but those zaps would have only lasted long enough to get to the Cendiary. Half an hour later, he remained unconscious.

One of the men in the gray security uniforms nodded at the screen. “When he woke up in the wagon, he resisted arrest. The boys had to subdue him.”

Despite the oddity of the alien’s large, strong form, her gut and danger meter didn’t register a threat. His explanation, his pleas confused her. She didn’t like the uncertainty. When he woke up, she’d find out the truth.

Jaco drew her away from the crowd. “What was so important he had to tell you right away?”

“He sounded desperate, Jaco. According to Griff, some lizard named X plans to include our women in his breeding program.”

Jaco snorted. “X. That’s good. Mystery man. Alter ego. Someone without a name. Very spooky.”

She shrugged. “And he said women were in danger right now in a warehouse. He offered to take me there.”

“No kidding?” Jaco opened the door to the stairwell and held it for her before he took the steps down. They headed toward the detention facility.

“No kidding.” In hindsight, she began to second-guess herself. Maybe Griff had been serious. Maybe he’d have taken her there and she could have done something to release these trapped women and take down their abductor. Maybe by tagging him, she’d ruined any chance of helping this man.

This reptile.

Who had concealed his true nature and sneaked around and probably lied about half of what he’d said. He had something to hide.

She steeled herself as they came out onto the detention floor, its stark gray walls unadorned with even the framed awards and morale boosters the facility displayed on the floors above. The most dangerous criminals came here. The rule was to give them nothing that might become a weapon. “Has anyone interrogated him yet?”

“Nope. He’s been comatose.” Jaco smirked. “Resisting arrest, like.”

“Uh-huh.” Her brethren weren’t always entirely professional. It might be hours before Griff woke. Their footsteps echoed against the empty corridor like the ragged heartbeat of a man without hope. “What do you want me to do?”

“I’d say, wait here until he wakes up.” Completely deadpan, he said, “Then we find out if he wants to eat you or not.”

Maybe she’d ticked him off more than she’d thought by losing the perp in the first place. Better play along. “Right.”

At the door to the detention section, he paused, his expression softening. “Kylie, he’s obviously forged some attachment with you. I thought we could use that, you know. To wrap this thing up. But I’m the first to admit we’re not sure what we’re dealing with here. I’d understand if you weren’t up to it.”

He offered her the job, and the door out. She took a deep breath, let the air out slowly. “You’re right, we have some connection. I’ll give it a shot, Jaco. Let’s see what we can get.”

He patted her shoulder again. “We’ll be watching.”

Both a comforting thought and a sort of warning, wasn’t it? Great. She straightened her shoulders and went inside.

The maximum detention center held five cells, each four solid walls with a metal sliding door, all set behind a glassed-in wall. She and Jaco walked down to stand behind the long, narrow plaz desk where two mismatched security guards sat watching the inmates on a row of monitors. Griff was the only prisoner shown on the screens.

“Sleeping like a baby,” the taller of the two guards said, with a nod to Jaco. He switched his monitor to a close-up of Griff’s face. The odd-shaped head, broad snout, lack of ears or hair on mottled red/gray skin repulsed and fascinated her at the same time.

“Never seen anything like it. Jaco, do we have info on similar species? Are they registered in the planetary database?”

“Got Peterson working on it. Haven’t come up with much yet.” Hands on hips, he waited, fidgeting, as if he expected a special holiday gift to arrive.

Wondering what tack to take with the lizard man, she stared into the screen. His eyes suddenly opened. Her breath caught and she pulled back as if he’d been right in front of her.

Jaco chuckled. “Ooo. A ‘gotcha’ what gotcha. Sweet.”

She gave him a sharp elbow to the ribs, gratified at his grunt of pain. Then she focused on Griff, still staring at the camera, hand-shaped paws at his side. His scaly chest expanded and contracted with his breath, muscles across his midsection as tight as any man’s six-pack. No obvious genitalia, but perhaps that was handled in the reptilian way, hidden inside until needed. His legs, shaped like those of a human, would hold him upright rather than on four legs like other reptiles. He was a magnificent specimen of animal, a thick, corded neck, his body showing not a spare ounce of anything but muscle. Very powerful. He could probably snap her neck with one of those hands.

But he hadn’t.

“Ready for video interrogation?” the tall guard asked.

Jaco glanced at Kylie, who nodded. Jeff vacated his chair and adjusted the screen in front of him, so she could see and be seen. “Go, ma’am.”

She thanked him and settled into the chair, noting the thick pad on the seat. Only the best for these cushy jobs. The thought left her smiling as the two-way PIP video came onto the screen. The primary shot was of Griff in his cell. In the upper corner was a small window, reflecting what Griff saw of her. As she prepared to address him, her throat closed and she cleared it.

“Griff? I’m Kylie Sanderson of the SIRT team. I’m required to inform you this is an official interrogation. It will be recorded and what you say may be used in an eventual trial, if charges are filed. You are entitled to a representative to be with you during questioning, if you choose. If you deny a representative at this time, you are entitled to ask for one at any time in the future process. Do you understand what I’ve said to you?”

Griff’s expression was harder to read in his reptile form. He didn’t respond right away.

“Do you understand?” she repeated.

Finally, he blinked at the monitor. “I just want to talk to you.”

Not the standard answer. She hesitated, very much aware of Jaco’s critical observation. “Does that mean you want to proceed?”

“I don’t mean you harm,” he said. “I want to help.”

Definitely not a match with the legals she was expected to exchange with a suspect. Kylie debated repeating herself, but doubted it’d have much effect. She picked through what he said and settled on the statement he wanted to talk to her.

“I’m taking that as a ‘yes.’ That’s a good thing, Griff. We want your help. You said you knew where some women are being held in a warehouse. We’d like to get them home to their families. Can you help us with that?”

He retreated a step then paced the confines of his cell. He went around a second time, one hand trailing along the crete bricks. He stopped with his back to the monitor. “I want to talk to you.”

She picked up a paper clip from the table, idly worrying it with her fingers as she considered her course. “You are talking to me, Griff. At the Cendiary building, like I told you we would.”

“You hurt me.”

“You came to my home unannounced, Griff. You broke in. That’s not all right.” A bit of apprehension and shock passed through her in flashback form. She suppressed it at a noisy fidget from Jaco, who leaned on the wall behind her. Time to get this moving. “You were in human form then, weren’t you? Tell me how that happens. Is this your true form?”

He paced the perimeter once more.

How could she cajole him into revealing the truth? She’d had good cop/bad cop training. She’d hardly need to raise a finger to get Jaco in on that bad cop deal. It was one of his favorite roles.

But it didn’t feel right.

“Griff?” She waited until he stopped his circuit. “Do you need medical attention? Something to eat or drink? What can we get you?”

He leaned on the wall on the right of the picture. “They’re going to die.”

“We don’t want that to happen, Griff. You can help us.”

“I want to talk to you.”

“Then talk. I’m right here.”

“No. Talk to you.” He whirled, almost faster than her eyes could follow. Taking the thin mattress off the narrow bunk, he ripped it in half. Claws flashed out of his fingertips amid the shredded bits of cheap stuffing that showered the room. As the detritus settled, he glared at the monitor. “Talk to you like equal being. Face to face. I tried. You won’t let me! Now one is probably lost, maybe more because you are too inflexible to listen.”

Everyone held their breath, frozen at the demonstration of Griff’s swiftness and power. She made herself breathe as she gathered her thoughts. Those claws. An inch long at least. He wanted her to go in there with him.

Her nerves tingled. “You keep saying women are going to die. But you won’t tell us where they are. You won’t help, like you say you want to. This shows me you don’t really mean what you say. You’re going to let those women die. You’ll be an accessory, Griff. You’ll go to prison.”

He turned away. “Then you are, too. Because you won’t listen.”

By Sprechan’s damned shoes, he was stubborn. “I’m listening, Griff. Where is the warehouse?”

“It is not so easy.”

“Sure it is. You tell me the warehouse location. My team will go find this X character and the women, and we’ll all take the rest of the day off.” She meant it facetiously, and she hoped it came across that way. “The point is you’re the one holding us up.”

“You’ll die. You don’t understand.”

“Then explain it to me.”

He faced the monitor and raised his hands to her. “Stealth is required. X does not hesitate to kill. I can take you. But it is too dangerous to send you without the proper precautions. I would be an ‘accessory’ to your death as well. Would I be locked up for that?”

Jaco slammed a fist on the desk, cutting off her half-formed response. “Screw this. I’m not playing games with this piece of luggage any more. We’re going back to our own investigation. Maybe after he sits there for a few days he’ll change his mind. Come on, Sanderson.”

She wasn’t finished. But he was right, they didn’t seem to be getting anywhere. Jaco was already out the door. She cleared her throat and looked Griff in his virtual eye. “If you change your mind, you let them know. They’ll call me.”

She followed Jaco out. Muttering, her boss took the stairs two at a time. She hurried to catch up. He hit the door on their floor already bellowing orders.

“All right, circle round, people! We’ve got some street time coming.” He grabbed the nearest computer and activated it, calling up a map of the subdivision. The area consisted of approximately two hundred square kilometers, the majority of the population in the city, but plenty of rural areas surrounding it. Kylie hadn’t been through more than a few of the grid areas in Muraco, only the ones where the bodies had been found.

Jaco projected what was on his screen up onto the portascreen in the front of the room. “There’s approximately twenty-five grids in the city, if we carve it into natural blocks.”

His fingers flew over the keyboard, yellow lines appearing over the subdivisions’ gridded area. “We’ll walk it. Loring, you’ve got one and two. Qilamen, three and four. Peterson, five and six—”

“But boss, what about the alien research?” Pax protested.

He stared the younger man down. “You mean you’re not done with that?”

“Yeah, I’ll get it finished,” Pax mumbled.

“The rest of you, get your grid sections. Take an officer from local law enforcement and check out every warehouse in those districts. You’re looking for more lizard men and captive women.” He got to his feet and hitched at his belt. “I don’t have to tell you what you’re facing. Be wary and fully armed.”

He tapped again and the map disappeared, replaced by the feed from the detention area, showing Griff’s angry outburst. “You don’t want to be on the wrong end of that.”

“Now get out of here.” As they all filtered toward the door, he barked, “Not you, Sanderson.”

What in the hells had she done now?

Her foot tapping in staccato rhythm on the lino, Kylie hung back, nodding encouragement at Pax as he left without her. “Why not me, Jaco?”

“Well.” He scuffed his feet then took a few steps backward. “I got a comm call.”

“And?” He was stalling. She might be in trouble. Had something she’d done gotten to the upper echelons? All she read on his face was embarrassment.

“The, uh, Colonel wants you to make a visit home.”

She blinked, stunned at her father’s audacity. “I—No way.” Outrageous. “Are you playing message boy for my father? Seriously?”

He held out his hands, affecting an innocent expression. “Come on, Sanderson. Take one for the team.”

“Jaco, we’re finally ready to crack this case. This is no time for me to be missing in action.”

“I agree. You’re a valuable member of the team. You’ve given us the only real break we’ve had. But I’m really stuck between a rock and a hard place here.”

The truth eluded her. If he acknowledged she was so necessary, why was he sending her away? “Just lay it on the table, will you?”

“Look, I didn’t want to tell the guys this, but I’ll share it with you.” He came closer, staying out of arm’s reach. Smart man. “We’ve been cut. I’ve strung things along this far, practically holding my breath. When this op is done, I’ll have to let someone go because I just can’t afford a full squad any more. Probably Loring.”

Kylie considered well-intentioned rookie Pax, enthusiastic and a good evidence collector. He loved this work as if it was a girlfriend. His heart would be broken.

Jaco went on, “I’m battling every other division of planetary law enforcement to get the money to haul our people around the subdivisions. Paranormal and oddity investigation isn’t exactly high on everyone’s list of priorities, you know.”

“So my father’s going to fund our department if I go visit. Really?”

She knew it wasn’t Jaco’s fault, but she couldn’t just let him off the hook. Not because she was angry with him, but because she hated how her father always managed to do this to her. He couldn’t keep his hands off her life. One of these days, she’d cut those ties so he’d never get back in. Never.

“Reality check, Sanderson. Comes with the paycheck.”

“So tell me how much my visit’s worth to him. At least make me feel justified.”

He stared at the piles of boxes on the table. “Twenty thousand kronins.”

Whoa.

Her father was serious this time. That much could buy a fleet of shiny new economy vehicles. What was so important?

“I wouldn’t ask you if I had another choice. It’s your family. How bad can it be?”

Her lips pursed, holding back the torrent of words defining the depth of the break between herself and her father. The saddest part, of course, was if he’d quit pulling crap like this, she might be able to tolerate him.

She took a deep breath. “Bad enough I won’t go unless my boss is blackmailed for twenty thousand kronins.”

He started to speak and she raised a hand in his direction, palm flat toward him. “Skip it. This is crap and you know it. I’m going. Not for you. For Pax. I’ll return tomorrow and I’ll expect to be right back on this case.” He started to speak and she waved a finger at him. “What you’re going to say is, ‘Yes, Kylie.’”

He chewed his lip then nodded. “Yes, Kylie.”

“Asshat.” She stormed out. Twenty minutes to pack then she’d hop an interplanetary to Santoso. She’d stay just long enough to give the old man a piece of her mind then she’d be back. There had to be a way to convince Griff to tell her what he knew. In the meantime, she’d pack a couple sleeptabs in her bag, so she could use the six-hour IP transit to catch up on her sleep. At least the trip wouldn’t be a total waste.