Megan
Detective Jackson texted me during the last twenty minutes of my Monday-morning political science class. Once again I headed to the back door, the professor casting me a look of disdain. “Are we boring you?” he called across the room.
I couldn’t blame him for being annoyed. “Sorry!” I called. “My grandfather’s been in the hospital and I just got a text to call my mom.”
When he blanched, a frisson of guilt went through me for lying to him and making him look like an ass. “All right,” he said. “That’s understandable. Go make your call.”
Brigit and I slunk out of the room and hurried outside, looking for a private place where I could speak with the detective. Given that the students tended to stick to the sidewalks, I scurried to the center of an open greenbelt and dialed her.
“We’ve got problems,” she said without preamble.
“What kind of problems?”
“You know how people say ‘don’t make a federal case out of it’?”
“Yeah?”
“Well, Senator Sutton’s made a federal case out of it. He’s pulled rank. He says that since it appears Derek planted the drugs, it’s inappropriate for the Fort Worth Police Department to investigate Paige. He says there’s a conflict of interest.”
The feds were getting my case? Nooo!
“But Sutton works for the federal government!” I cried. “And Paige is his intern. He’s got a conflict of interest, too.”
“But he doesn’t work for the Drug Enforcement Agency,” she said. “There’s at least a little distance between them. Plus, Sutton claims that the evidence planted on Paige could be the lost drugs from the Hahn arrest.”
“How would he even know about that?”
“Good question. My guess is someone leaked the information about Derek losing the drug evidence to the DEA.”
“Who?”
“Wish I knew,” she said. “Lots of our officers know people in the federal government, particularly those who work in law enforcement. Some have worked on joint task forces. It would be virtually impossible to figure out who’s responsible for the leak.”
What she said was true. I’d worked loosely with the feds before. A criminal investigator for the IRS had been working a case at a jewelry store in Chisholm Trail Mall over the Christmas holidays. She and I had gotten to know each other. We’d even played matchmakers for the shopping mall Santa.
“Officer Mackey has been put on administrative leave. Internal Affairs will run an investigation. Heck, you might be summoned to provide evidence. You were at the pool party where he allegedly planted the drugs. You also saw him twice at Flynn Blythe’s apartment. If you spotted him there two times, he’d probably been there many more. And why?”
It was a good question. One I’d asked myself several times.
Jackson continued. “Paige McQuaid’s attorney filed a formal grievance against Officer Mackey this morning, too.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose in frustration. “What’s Chief Garelik have to say about all of this?” To have the case usurped by the federal government after the time, effort, and expense his department had put into the investigation was insulting, and surely he was beyond pissed that his golden boy had been accused of being a dirty cop.
“When I went by his office this morning to tell him, he nearly exploded.”
“Is the DEA going to prioritize this case? Move in on Chaoxiang?”
“It’s too late,” she said. “We got word he boarded a flight to Beijing yesterday. He’s probably playing it safe, waiting to see if he’s implicated before deciding whether to return.”
“He’s gone? What does that mean for the investigation?”
“Honestly? I’d say it’s dead in the water. Any competent defense attorney would be able to get Paige McQuaid off scot-free. Her prints weren’t on the phone or the bag of Molly, and her appearance at the gas station could easily be explained away by its proximity to the campus. Besides, the DEA has bigger fish to fry, Mexican cartels and whatnot. Without prints to link Chaoxiang Wu’s to the crime, they’re back to square one. This case won’t go anywhere in their hands.”
“So I did all of this work for nothing?”
“Looks that way.”
I exhaled a long, slow breath. “I g-guess I’m done here, huh?”
“Yeah,” she said. “You can pack up your things and go home.”
We ended the call and I slid the phone into my pocket, taking a moment to breathe and process my thoughts and emotions. They were all over the place. I was angry that Senator Sutton had taken the case away from the Fort Worth Police Department. I was frustrated that all of the work I’d put in on this investigation was for naught. I was concerned that Derek had been wrongfully accused. I was equally concerned that he hadn’t.
But I’d known when I went into police work that there was no end game to crime. It would never be over for good. Not all crimes would be solved. Not all lawbreakers would be caught. Not all victims would receive justice. Crime was a deep, self-inflicted wound on society, and all I could hope to do was staunch the flow of blood.
Wow. That’s enough philosophical pondering for one day, isn’t it?
“C’mon, girl,” I said to my partner. “Let’s go pack.”
I led Brigit back to the dorm. Hunter’s curly head was bent over a book in the study lounge off the lobby. After I rounded up my things, I’d stop in and tell him good-bye, thank him for keeping my secrets. Wish him luck with the girls.
Brigit and I took the stairs to the second floor. I slid my student ID through the skimmer, realizing it was the last time I’d be acting as Morgan Lewis. Good-bye, Morgan, I told myself. It’s been nice knowing you.
The room was quiet. Emily was at her morning class. Looked like I wouldn’t get a chance to say good-bye to her. I hoped she’d get her stress under control, go speak to a counselor like I’d suggested.
I rounded up a sticky note from my desk and wrote My parents are making me move in with my aunt and uncle. Good-bye and good luck. Fondly, Morgan.
I retrieved my suitcases from the closet and filled them with the clothes and shoes I’d brought. I pulled the comforter and sheets off the bed, stuffing them into the suitcase along with the clothes, having to unzip the extender so everything would fit. I grabbed my other textbook and slid it into my backpack along with my other book and laptop. I could sell the books back to the bookstore later. I’d get only pennies on the dollar, of course, but it was better than nothing.
Having packed everything in the room, I opened the door to the bathroom and stepped inside to get my makeup and toiletries. Loud voices coming from Paige and Alexa’s room caught my attention. The two were clearly arguing. Looked like Alexa had finally had enough and was sticking up for herself. Good for her.
“You can’t just delete stuff from another person’s phone!” Alexa cried.
“I’m the one in the video,” Paige snapped. “Not you. I had every right to delete it.”
Video? What video?
“Besides,” Paige continued. “Senator Sut—”
She stopped speaking.
“What does Senator Sutton have to do with this?” Alexa asked.
Paige hesitated a moment before saying, “Let’s just say he wouldn’t be happy if that video had gotten out. It’s better if everyone’s looking at that cop instead of me.”
“It’s not better for the cop!” Alexa shot back.
“Why are you on his side?” Paige said, her tone more conciliatory now. “He gave you a ticket for minor-in-possession, and you saw how he treated Morgan. He basically assaulted her. I’m telling you. Those drugs weren’t mine. My prints weren’t on the bag. Besides, you think they’re going to prosecute a cop?” She scoffed. “Not likely. The police have been shooting unarmed people left and right and nobody does anything.”
Paige was way overstating the case. Unfortunately, Alexa found it convincing. Or at least convincing enough. She offered no further protest.
I realized now that they were talking about the video Alexa had taken with her phone Saturday night. She’d been in the perfect position to record Derek searching Paige’s bag. I gathered that the recording proved Derek’s innocence. It was both a relief to know for certain that he hadn’t planted the drugs on Paige, but also a frustration to realize that evidence that could have proved him innocent was gone now. And that comment about Senator Sutton. What exactly had Paige meant by that? Did Sutton know about the video?
I rapped on the door to their room. “Can I come in?”
“It’s open!” Alexa called.
I stepped through the door. “I came to say good-bye,” I told them. “I have to move in with my aunt and uncle for a while until I’m”—I formed air quotes with my fingers—“‘mature’ enough to move back out on my own.” I rolled my eyes.
“That’s so stupid,” Paige said. “You hardly did anything wrong.”
“I know, right? Anyway, did I hear you two talking about the video Alexa took at the pool party? When the cops were there?”
The two exchanged a glance.
“Yeah,” Paige said tentatively, her head tilting. “What about it? What did you hear?”
I forced a nonchalant shrug. “Not much. You were smart to delete it. I mean, I know those drugs weren’t yours, but that video could make you look guiltier. Like maybe you were holding the stash for someone.”
Paige didn’t deny anything I said, didn’t refute my implied accusation that she’d tampered with evidence. Instead, she came over and gave me a hug. “We’ll miss you. Stop by and see us sometime, okay?”
“I will.” When hell freezes over.
On my way through the lobby, I turned into the study lounge and rolled my suitcases over to Hunter, Brigit trailing along, keeping a wary distance from the wheels of my luggage.
Hunter looked up from his history textbook, his gaze moving down to my bags. “You moving out?”
“Yeah.” For the benefit of any of the other students in the room who might be listening, I gave him the same story I’d given my suitemates. “My parents don’t trust me anymore. They’re making me move in with my aunt and uncle.” I gave Hunter a discreet wink.
He winked back to let me know he got the implied message and that my secrets were safe with him. He stood and opened his arms. “It won’t the same around here without you and Britney.”
We exchanged a warm hug.
“Good luck with your classes,” I told him as I released him and stepped back. “And the girls,” I added in a whisper. I had no doubt he’d do well on both fronts.
He offered a roguish grin. “If you decide a younger guy might be your thing after all, you know where to find me.”
Not wanting to be left out, Brigit woofed up at Hunter and wagged her tail, offering her own good-bye.
He knelt down and rubbed her back and scratched her behind both ears. “Bye, girl. Be good.”
She gave his cheek a wet, warm lick, and he responded by hugging her around the neck and burying his face in her fur. I felt a little tug at my heart. Hunter would make some girl really happy someday.
I grabbed the handle of my suitcase and said, “C’mon, girl.”
With one last glance back at Hunter, Brigit and I left the lounge and walked through the foyer to the front doors. On our way down the ramp, we spotted Emily coming up the sidewalk.
She spotted us at the same time, her face clouding in concern as we met on the concrete. “What’s with the suitcase?”
“My parents are making me move in with my aunt and uncle for a while. I left you a note.”
She exhaled sharply. “I’m losing another roommate? That side of the room must be cursed.” She shook her head in disgust, though her face softened a moment later. “I hope my next one is half as nice as you, Morgan. You were…” She seemed to be searching for the exact words, but gave up quickly, probably not wanting to sound sappy. She left it at, “You were a good roomie.”
“So were you,” I said.
“No I wasn’t,” she replied without malice.
“Well…” Now it was my turn to search for words. “At least you kept things interesting.”
She snorted but smiled, giving me a quick and awkward one-armed hug before scurrying into the dorm.
As I led Brigit across the campus to the car, I found myself worrying about the naïve and vulnerable kids I was leaving behind. If the case were abandoned, would Chao continue to sell Molly to his fellow students? Would more young people succumb to the harmful effects of the drugs and suffer permanent health problems, or worse? Was there nothing I could do to stop the flow of drugs? To hold the dealers accountable for their crimes?
Were some criminals simply above the law?