| |
––––––––
BROCK TOSSED THE LATEST case file down on his desk, his mood worse than ever. All evidence was pointing to an inside job with the break-ins. There were no signs of forced entry, the buildings where the robberies had occurred were all secure, and the victims all lived in the Upper East Side. Fuck if he didn’t want to catch these perps before someone got hurt. Something just wasn’t adding up with the way they were able to get in and out so easily.
He grabbed his cup of black coffee and strode across his office, taking a long sip. The hot liquid practically scalded his throat, and he jerked the cup away, almost spilling coffee on the badge clipped to his belt. “Damn it,” he muttered. What the hell was wrong with him this morning?
“Hey man, rough morning?”
Brock glanced up to see his buddy Colton Pierce leaning against his doorframe. Blond haired and blue eyed, Colton was a California transplant who’d gone through the academy with Brock and Jake. He was a bomb tech and often worked hand-in-hand with Jake’s K-9 unit when investigating threats throughout the city.
“These goddamn break-ins are eating me up. There were three more incidents over the weekend. The crime scene techs haven’t been able to find fingerprints or a solid piece of evidence at any of the locations. I’m going to have to go back to interviewing neighbors and running through surveillance footage looking for any leads.”
“That sucks, man. You’ll find them though.”
“Damn straight,” Brock muttered. “I should stake out some of the buildings this weekend. With everyone going away for Labor Day weekend, there’s bound to be more problems.”
“Notify building security teams in the area to be extra alert,” Colton said.
Brock nodded. “Already done.”
“Jake said the latest robberies may not be the only thing whipping your sorry ass.”
“Fucking A,” Brock spat out, downing another sip of the unbearably hot coffee.
“So it’s true,” Colton said with a laugh. “A certain friend of Jake’s little sister, huh? I didn’t think you had it in you to get so pussy-whipped over a woman.”
“I slept with her one time, and you two assholes can’t think about anything else.”
Colton smirked. “Jake’s sister has been giving him shit over it. I guess you got her friend pretty worked up. You always did have a way with the ladies,” he grinned, turning to go.
Brock groaned and glanced down at his watch. Jake’s shift was probably ending right now. Maybe he could catch him in the locker room and deal with this shit so he could get back to the case. He sure as hell didn’t have time to be worrying about a woman when he had work to do.
And since when did he worry about a woman, anyway? He’d had plenty of one-night-stands before. Why was he so concerned with what Lily thought? He wasn’t a relationship type of guy. Period. So why the fuck had he been so tied up in knots all weekend then?
Striding out the door, he beat feet down to the locker room in the basement. Sure enough, Jake and some other guys from his unit were changing out of their uniforms, ready to head home for the day and get some shut eye. Jake’s German Shepherd barked in greeting, and Brock bent over to rub behind his ears. Working the night shift sucked, and Brock was glad he at least kept regular hours. His buddy looked beat as he tossed his gear into his locker.
“The man himself,” Jake said with a grin as he spotted Brock. “Morgan sure was happy you helped her out yesterday. Said you stayed late and everything? Thanks again, man.”
Brock grunted in affirmation. “Figured I owed you one.”
“What’s this shit about Lily? Morgan seems pretty pissed off on her friend’s behalf.”
“Women are crazy,” Brock smirked. “I tried to do the right thing by leaving when I realized being there was a big mistake, and what happens? I just end up in a deeper pile of shit.”
“Tell me more.”
“Like you don’t already know the story.”
“I heard Morgan’s version.”
“Look, I was just trying to do right by her.”
“By fucking her and leaving?”
A couple of guys in the locker room chuckled. “Enough,” Brock spat out. He glared at Jake. “I realized it could only end badly, so I bailed. What’s so wrong about that?”
“Only about a million things,” Jake chuckled. “Women don’t like that type of move.”
“Thanks Captain Obvious.”
Jake flipped him the bird. “Even if you both knew it was a one-night-stand, you’ve got to treat women with kid gloves sometimes. Trust me, I’ve got a sister.”
“Yeah, so did I—”
“Sorry man, I didn’t mean—”
“Forget it,” Brock grumbled, turning to leave. “It was a long time ago. And as for Lily? It would’ve ended either way. She’s not looking for a guy like me, and I don’t do relationships. I just ripped the Band-Aid off sooner rather than later.”
“Uh-huh. You keep telling yourself that.”
Brock shoved the door to the locker room back open, his blood boiling. He swore he could hear Jake’s laughter trailing after him all the way down the hall.
***
A COUPLE OF HOURS LATER, Brock swung his unmarked vehicle into a space in the parking garage of the luxury high rise. Expensive vehicles surrounded him, and he groaned. If he saved up for the rest of his life, he’d never be able to afford some of these cars.
And the rich just kept getting richer.
He narrowed his eyebrows as he realized the building was only a block away from where he’d been at Lily’s the other night.
There’d been another break-in right around the time he’d pulled a disappearing act. He’d probably passed the perps on the street as he sped out of there, he thought, his blood boiling. He pounded his fist on the steering wheel, feeling unnerved that the suspects possibly had slipped right through his fingers. Unless they lived in one of the fancy high rises in the area, he thought uneasily. Then they wouldn’t be disappearing into the Manhattan night, they’d just simply return to their own apartment. Or one they had access to, he thought grimly.
It didn’t add up that one rich Upper East Sider was robbing others, but what the hell did he know about how the other half lived? Maybe they had run upon some money troubles or were seeking revenge against someone who’d wronged them. The second theory didn’t account for the multiple break-ins though.
Brock stepped out of his vehicle, glancing around the garage. Surveillance cameras were pointed at the entrance, so if he could get a description from an eyewitness, maybe he’d be able to spot them coming and going.
Of course, the perps just as easily could have walked away on foot or hailed a cab. He’d have to review the surveillance from the front lobby as well. Some of the apartments that had been burglarized had to have surveillance systems as well. The problem was, no one ever seemed to see a damn thing. Someone was slipping in and out unnoticed, stealing thousands from wealthy victims. He’d have to compare the footage from the various buildings where the burglaries had occurred. Maybe a car with the same plates had been seen parking at each of them. Right. As if someone smart enough to slip in and out unnoticed without leaving a shred of evidence would just pull up into the garage and wave at the cameras for him.
Some of Jake’s K-9 buddies could possibly have responded to the break-in Saturday night. Even though Jake had been with Brock at the bar that night, he might have some information from other guys on his team. Brock would have to garner some intel from him later on.
For now he’d re-examine the scene, despite the fact that plenty of cops had responded to the call over the weekend. He’d interview the neighbors, see if anyone had heard anything. Check the surveillance footage. He theorized that the break-ins might slow down or even stop altogether once summer was over. Many New Yorkers headed out of town in August to enjoy vacations or took off for The Hamptons each weekend. Once the crowds returned en masse after the holiday, he wondered if the burglaries would continue.
The head of building security met him as he walked into the plush lobby. “Detective Rollins,” he said, shaking his hand before passing over the surveillance footage. “I’m glad we were able to meet today. This is what we have from over the weekend. Nothing unusual to report, unfortunately. I wish I was able to offer you more assistance. Our residents are very concerned.”
“We’ll review the footage down at the station and see if we can discover anything new. Run face recognition against some footage from other buildings in the area that have had similar robberies. Maybe we’ll be able to come up with a suspect.”
The man cleared his throat, looking around. “I hope so. We pride ourselves in maintaining a safe and secure building. These robberies don’t look good. And I, for one, don’t want to be out of a job.”
Brock nodded in affirmation. “Understood. We’ll catch them.”
“Is there anything we can tell our residents? Many of them have concerns.”
“Not while the investigation is ongoing. It’s better that we don’t reveal too many details. Here’s my card,” he added, handing the man one of his business cards. “Contact me if you can think of anything else. I’ll be in touch.”
The men said their goodbyes, and Brock walked over to the stairs at the emergency exit leading down to the parking garage. This had to be an inside job. Someone was too easily moving around the buildings, undetected. Or a team of people, he surmised. It could be anyone—staff in the building, delivery service, former employee. One thing was for sure—he wasn’t about to let the suspects slip away.
