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Page 65 of Affliction (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter 22)

Barrel chest glared at him. “That’s the way you want it, huh? Fine. I’ll report to the judge that you were uncooperative with my investigation.” He looked at McCord. “Put Taylor in the back of your patrol car. He’ll be our guest for a few days.”

Oh, man. This wasn’t good. Since no one paid attention to her, she freed her phone from her pocket and sent Micah a text message. McCord glanced at her, but didn’t stop her.

Micah requested the name of the officer in charge. Great. She caught McCord’s attention while Eli protested the older cop’s order. “What’s his name?” she whispered.

“Gavin Soto.”

She sent her boss the name. Micah Winter had deep ties in the Washington, D.C. community from his years as a Secret Service agent.

Five minutes later as McCord moved to Cal’s side to escort him to the cruiser, Soto’s cell phone rang. He glanced at the screen and frowned. “A blocked number?” he muttered.

“If I were you, I’d answer that call,” Rachelle said.

He scowled at her, but swiped the screen anyway. “Yeah, Soto.” The cop’s face lost all expression as he listened, blood draining from his cheeks. “Yes, sir.” More listening, then, “I understand, sir.” Silence. “Yes, sir.” Soto slid his phone away with a trembling hand. He looked at McCord. “Turn them loose.”

One of the others protested. “We need to take them to the station for questioning, sir.”

Soto gave a bark of laughter. “What we want don’t matter, kid. I don’t know how they did it, but the man on the phone was President Martin. He wants these guys turned loose, and he cleared it with the police chief.”

McCord rubbed his jaw, amusement glittering in his eyes. “Nice work,” he murmured to Rachelle as he unlocked her handcuffs. Soto’s partner released Wolf Pack.

“Get your kits.” Soto said to his partner and McCord. “Callen and I will take statements from the rest of these yahoos and send them on their way.”

While the two policemen interviewed Jon and Rafe, Eli disappeared down the hallway. Cal crouched beside Rachelle. “You contacted Micah?”

She nodded. “I had no idea he’d call the president.”

“Your idea worked.”

“At least it kept you from landing in jail.” She smiled. “I don’t have the funds to bail you out.”

Cal chuckled. “I could have posted my own bail, but I’m glad it wasn’t necessary.” His smile faded. “I don’t want you out of my sight.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered in his ear, “Will you question Blake again?”

He shook his head. “He doesn’t know anything else.” Cal pressed a kiss behind her ear and made her shiver. He turned to look at Eli when he eased back into the living room.

Wolf Pack’s leader headed for Cal and Rachelle. “Got it,” he murmured.

“Blake needs a guard.” Cal threaded his fingers through Rachelle’s. “Whoever beat him may try to finish the job.”

“Suggestions?”

“McCord.”

“I’ll see what I can do.”

When the interviews concluded, the operatives gathered their weapons and left the house. Rachelle glanced at her watch and sighed.

Cal glanced her way. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s 3:00 a.m. We have a 90-minute drive ahead of us, and Meyer and his friends will be at the hotel in a few hours.”

He unlocked his SUV. “I’ll delay the interview. The State Department doesn’t know where we’re staying and won’t until I give Maddox permission to tell them.”

Rachelle shook her head. “I want the interview behind me so we can leave.” She felt as though someone watched every move she and Wolf Pack made.

“I’ll contact Brent when we return to the hotel and have him call Meyer at 7:00. That will put the feds on our doorstep between 8:30 and 9:00.”


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