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.Gaze still focused on the even columns of numbers, he crumpled the waxy sandwich paper and tossed it in the garbage, saving the garlic-laced pickle for last.“Good news, Boss,” a voice called from his doorway.Alex swung his chair around.Kris Thompson stood with a smile on her face and a printout in her hand.She wasn’t wearing her glasses, and he had an unobstructed view of her eyes.Hazel.Why had he never noticed that before?“What’s up?”“We’ve got a tip on Honeywell.” An incandescent smile lit her face.“Where?” Alex’s mouth suddenly felt dry.“Yakima.”“How solid does it look?”“Pretty solid.Retired cop says that the guy who fixed his truck looked a lot like Honeywell.The locals are on their way to confirm.”Alex winced and rubbed his forehead with his open hand.What if they bungled the arrest? If Honeywell escaped this trap, he might just beeline it across the mountains to Seattle and make good on his threats against Jill.A printout of Honeywell’s chilling threat sat pinned under the lip of Alex’s monitor, and he eyed it with a sense of foreboding.“Where is he staying?”“He’s sharing a house on the west side of town with a couple of other guys.”“Shit.” Alex slammed his fist on the desk.“Shit, shit, shit.” The thought of not being there to bring Honeywell in was frustrating beyond words.Jackson lumbered down the hall, eclipsing Kris in the doorway.“Christ, you look like you’re going to puke.Something wrong with the tuna fish?”His partner leaned against the doorframe, eyes fixed on Alex, concern registering in his deep voice.“Is it Jill?”Alex shook his head.“Honeywell,” Kris said.“Where?”“Yakima.”Jackson’s face broke out into a broad grin.“You want to go get the fucker?”Kris’s lips formed a tight line as she handed the electronic tickets to Jackson and Alex.Breaking the rules wasn’t in Kris’s DNA, and the stress of doing so showed on her face.She was strictly a by-the-book kind of girl.But they had pressured her to use department resources for an unsanctioned trip across the mountains, capitalizing on the fact that Captain Lewis was in an all-day meeting with the mayor and had left strict orders not to be disturbed.While all that was true, it was more in line with the letter of the law than its spirit.Authorizing his officers to engage in an arrest outside of their jurisdiction was something for which he would not only forgive an interruption; he’d damned well expect it.While Alex chose to hide behind the excuse of not wanting to disturb the captain, the trio knew the truth.There is no way in hell that Captain Lewis would agree to the trip.Not after California.Not after the ass whipping he had taken from the ATF.“You’re going to get us fucking fired,” Kris mumbled.Alex’s eyes snapped to her face, his jaw hanging slack in disbelief.He’d never heard her swear before.Not a shit or a damn.Certainly not an f-bomb.He expected nothing less from Jackson, but from Kris? He flashed a reassuring smile and lightly squeezed her shoulder.Surely she had to realize that if anyone’s ass was on the line, it was his.“Not all of us—just me.You know the golden rule: it’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission.” Alex checked his watch and nodded to Jackson.“Yeah, I’ll remember that when Lewis is picking his teeth with my femur.No John Wayne stuff,” Kris called after them.“Yes ma’am,” Alex said.“You know, Shannon, I like you better now that you’re breaking the rules,” Jackson grinned.“Bending them.And I don’t think that Kris shares your opinion.”Without so much as a backwards glance, the budget updates were abandoned, and Jackson’s low chuckle reverberated down the hall.The Alaska Air flight arrived at Yakima’s McAllister Field five minutes ahead of schedule.Stepping out into the bright afternoon sun, Alex and Jackson made their way toward the black-and-white waiting outside the terminal.It was a cool thirty-eight degrees, but Alex barely noticed the cold wind blowing through his light jacket.Anticipation had the blood pumping fast through his veins.They were close to bringing Honeywell in.He could feel it.Alex ducked his head into the open window of the cruiser and fastened his gaze on the officer behind the wheel.“I’m Detective Shannon, and this is Detective Levy.”“I’m Mitchell.” The young officer cocked a thumb toward the backseat.“Hop in.”The two piled into the car, and the uniformed officer accelerated smoothly away from the curb.Mitchell was a young red-headed cop with green eyes and translucent eyelashes.Glancing over, Alex gauged him to be in his mid to late twenties.An average-looking kid with a square jaw, set in a decided frown.He probably wanted to be the one to take down Honeywell, and letting two Seattle cops horn in on the action was the last thing he wanted to do.“Hey, thanks for letting us crash your party.” Alex flashed a lopsided grin.“I wanted to be here in person to bring this bastard in.”Mitchell nodded but didn’t say anything right away.When he did, he was all business.“We’ve got two guys watching the house.There are at least three people in there
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