Have you ever seen the Rain? (FBI Series Book 2)

Chapter 33

Chapter 33

Nicholas and Pete made quick time joining the rest of the team inside Billie’s room. “We have to handle this with sensitive care.” Pete said softly after looking at the printed evidence Gage gathered from one of his searches of sealed foster records.

Billie didn’t like the sound of that but there were rules for these types of things and already they had broken several looking through those records without a court order. They could always say the information came from an anonymous tip, that wasn’t the problem, the fact Kent’s partner was indeed a cop- now that was a major problem they couldn’t blink away. She was pacing toward the back of the room while her superiors tried to figure out the team’s next move.

She had been a fed for several years and apart of Pete’s team for nearly two of them. She knew the rules of the game well and why they were needed but there was a boiling passion she had to run out of the room and forget politics.

“Billie?” It was Pete who called out her name. “Have you spoken to Merchant yet?”

“No.” she stopped pacing and moved back over to the table everyone was either sitting or standing around. “He’s supposed to come by after he’s done at the office. I’ve been here since leaving my parents house. Are we going to tell him?”

“He has a right to know one of his own is a suspect.” Sasha said with a nod. “All this time we were looking for a guy.” She couldn’t believe the evidence staring them in the face.

Billie didn’t like to think a fellow cop could kill someone in cold blood, they had all became cops to help the innocent not harm them. She walked over to the table and picked up the print out Pete had finished with. It was there in black and white, Kent Kendall and Marie Gardner had shared a foster home for five months when they were fifteen years old.  Gage had gone under the system to search every sealed record on Kent while Nicholas had searched the legal channels. The only cop in the BPD to have a history with Kent was indeed Marie.

“I hate to play devil’s advocate,” Noah began. “but if Marie is the accomplice we’re looking for who’s this?” using his index finger he pushed the sketch Billie herself had done with Jill’s account of what she saw forward on the table.

“Did you get ahold of Jill?” Billie asked. They’d need the other woman to ID their suspects, it wasn’t far fetched to think Jill thought she saw a man when in reality it was Marie in a disguise.

“No one has seen her.” Pete answered, he was worried about their witness seeing as the woman was in town hiding out from an abusive husband. “There is a patrol unit out searching with orders to call me as soon as they know something.”  

“We have enough to question Marie.” Billie said with her lack of patience showing. “Let’s pin her and Kent against each other until one of them starts talking and telling us what we need to know.”

“We have to alert Dillon and get his ok for this. She’s his detective and we’re in his jurisdiction.” Pete explained again.

“I’ll call him and find out where he’s at.” Billie reached in her back pocket and pulled her cellphone free. The line rang five times before clicking over to voice mail. “It’s me, please call me when you get this.” She didn’t like what she was feeling, Dillon should’ve stopped by or at least called hours ago.  “He didn’t want to leave me alone this afternoon until I convinced him I’d be ok on my own for a little while.” It was already past nine o’clock that evening.

Nicholas’ dark brows came together in thought. “I didn’t see him when I left.”

Billie felt her heart bottom out while at the same time she rushed for the door. She vowed right then and there as she ran out to the parking lot that if Marie had done something to Dillon she was going to kill her and the justice system be damned.

“Billie, damn it wait for me.” Sasha called out, running quick to catch up.

Justin was quicker to catch up, he gripped Billie’s hand and took the keys from her. “It’ll be better if I drove. I’m faster and all.” That was his gentle way of not pointing out she wasn’t in the right state of mind to take to the streets and could get them all killed if they risked it.

The trip to the police station was a fifteen minute ride, shorter at this time of night with no traffic, but for Billie it felt like an eternity. Dillon had dropped her off five hours ago and she shouldn’t thought to check in with him sooner.  She hated the blame game but at the same time if Marie did decide to target Dillon it was to hurt her and no one else, those pictures of her family and Dillon sent to the hotel were a warning that this was personal. It was all starting to make since how Marie didn’t want the feds in town and her personal dislike for Billie herself because of how close she was to Dillon. Marie was jealous and willing to kill because of it. Kent didn’t like loose ends and had so effortlessly killed Mary Kettle without hesitance, was Marie the same way? Kent was locked away and there was nothing to stop the woman from extracting payback.

Sasha reached from the backseat and grasped her hand. “Don’t believe the worst. He’s a busy guy and there could be a million reasons why he isn’t calling back.” Sasha had lived through and saw a lot of bad in her life, it was admirable how she could still look on the bright side.

Billie decided to take a page from her friend’s page and not fear the worst. She didn’t know how she’d handle losing Dillon and so soon after her brother. It wasn’t fair. They had just decided to take a chance and get back together, there was so much they had to do and so much lost time to make up for. It couldn’t be over this fast.

Dillon’s neck was on fire and very part of his body felt numb with a burning pinprick sensation. He cursed after trying to lift his hand and finding it worthless. He lay still and tried to figure out what happened. The last thing he remembered was leaving the police station and heading to his car. He felt a bite at the base of his neck before everything went dark. Thinking back on it –and the fact he was tied to a table- he came to realize that the bite had been the feel of a needle. Someone drugged him.

Someone…

There were numerous open investigations at the department and anyone of those could have someone wanting to extract revenge on the police commissioner but deep down Dillon knew this connected to the elusive unknown partner of Kent Kendall.

Billie had found something in Joey’s letter and hopefully that something would lead her to saving his behind because right now he couldn’t save it himself. He couldn’t move.

He fought for minutes until finally being able to open his eyes. The room was bare and he was right, he was tied down to a table that he could now see was stainless steel. The emptiness of the room reminded him of a sterile lab or operating room.

He looked down at his hand and tried to move it again. There was a strap holding him down to the table and nothing more. If he could move and get the strap off it shouldn’t take much else to get free depending on the ruthlessness of the person holding him captive.

As he thought of the person, the guy Jill had seen at the church who ultimately shot the bullet that killed Joey, he pictured the face in the sketch. Now as the door opened and his kidnapper stepped inside he was shocked to see how wrong he was. “You.” He stared at her with disbelief.