Turner had just settled in the chair across the desk from Elliot Marshall in the man’s home office. There was another man next to him. Daniel McKellen had a pinched look around his eyes—one that told Turner the other man was feeling the pressure just as much as Turner.
“How is she?” Elliot asked McKellen.
“She’s holding her own. Delancey is extremely stubborn. She’s not giving up without a fight.”
“Family trait. Let me know if you or your family need anything,” Elliot said. “And I’m making it a personal mission to find the men ultimately responsible for the shooting.”
It took Turner a moment, but he figured it out quickly. “You’re related to Officer Royce. I thought her name was Kelsi.”
“She’s my younger half-sister,” Daniel said before clearing his throat. “She wanted that kept a secret. Didn’t want to ride coattails through the academy. So we never told anyone—except Elliot.”
The man had come from a long line of TSP detectives and chiefs. Not all had been on the up-and-up. The TSP in their region had had a reputation for long standing corruption. Until the last fifty years or so.
“I’m sorry, Dan. I didn’t know.”
“No one does. We plan to keep it that way. I don’t want her targeted because of who she was fathered by.”
“So how did your sister end up in your department?”
“That was my decision,” the chief said. “She’s actually Detective Delancey Kelso McKellen, located out of Galveston’s branch. She works our Internal Affairs. There’s some concern that there’re dirty cops still on my force. Delancey was helping us find them.”
“You think she was targeted.”
“Yes, we do. We need to figure out the connection between what happened to Delancey and the corrupt city official,” Elliot said. “Which means…”
“I had Claudia and Linsey print out all the records they could, now that our servers have been found and repaired. I’m not a forensic accountant, but we may be able to find someone to go over these numbers.”
“I’ve asked Brynna to consult on this,” Elliot said, surprising Turner. Elliot’s sister-in-law Brynna Marshall was a computer genius who’d once worked for the TSP. She was also his cousin Houghton’s sister-in-law, Mel’s younger sister. They were all extremely protective of her. Involving her with anything to do with the TSP shocked him. “She’s had some experience with computer records that may be helpful. And she’s someone I absolutely trust. She’s agreed to take a look, as long as we ensure her name is kept out of everything.”
“Of course.” He didn’t want Elliot’s sister-in-law’s name associated with anything to do with this. That was one of the last things Turner would ever do. “This is just a casual look over, that’s all. Anything probative, and we send it to the right people.”
Elliot’s expression was grim when he looked at the files in Turner’s hands. “Those channels are not going to be through me. There are rats in my house, Turner. And I’m still cleaning them up. I probably will be for a very long time.”
“I know the feeling.” He had his own rats to deal with. Turner made himself a vow. He wasn’t giving up until all of those rats got exactly what they’d deserved. “We’ll exterminate. Whatever is necessary—”
Daniel’s phone cut them off.
He looked at the screen once, then frowned. When he looked up, it was at Turner. “It’s Annie Gaines, a nurse from FCGH. She was on the schedule tonight, for Delancey’s ward. I checked before I left.”
He answered it quickly.
When he cursed and stood, Turner stood, as well.
If it involved Annie in any way, Turner was going to know about it.
“What’s going on?” he asked after Daniel disconnected. “Is Annie ok? Your sister?”
“Delancey woke. Annie was with her.”
“That’s great.”
Daniel shook his head. “Not with the things Delancey told Annie. We need to get down there and keep this contained. Before anyone learns Annie spoke with her. For both of their sakes.”
Elliot and Turner were already on their feet. Turner looked at Daniel. “Call hospital security. Have a guard placed on Annie. I don’t want her right in the middle of this. Do you have guards on your sister?”
“None that anyone will notice. I don’t trust anyone in the TSP right now but a select few. And they are otherwise occupied right now. Or too recognizable.”
Elliot already had his phone to his ear. He’d disconnected by the time they’d reached Turner’s SUV.
What mattered was that now Annie had just become involved. Turner wasn’t going to let any of this touch her. No matter what he had to do to keep her safe.