“He’s outside with Showalter.” She took her time moving toward Shelby and sat carefully. “How do you feel?”
She would’ve laughed without mirth if she could’ve mustered the strength. “That’s the million dollar question now, isn’t it?” She shrugged and seriously regretted the movement, but she tried to cover her grimace. “I don’t know,” she murmured. “Everything seems so… I don’t know.”
Viola reached over and took her hand. “That was intense. If Showalter hadn’t shown up when he did, I was about to stop that shit myself. I don’t know how. I think I started to on instinct because I’d stepped away from Dave all tense and caught that big bald guy watching me.”
“Master Jedrek.”
“Yeah, whatever. That dude has a serious attitude problem.”
Shelby chuckled then. “I thought of him as Mr. Mean when I first saw him.”
“It suits.” Her smile was sad. “I couldn’t find out anything. He watched me like a damn hawk. He didn’t realize I noticed, but I sure as hell did. I had to play off the concerned friend, then the pissed friend when you were whisked away—emotions I did not have to fake, by the way. I even confronted Emory. He seemed cool and easygoing again. It was like he was a different person while he was whipping you. I demanded answers, but he gave placating ones. It was a total bust for me. I did have Dave hang out at the bar, though, to see if he could get some general information about the club. It’s a long shot, but I didn’t want to waste the resource.”
“Smart.”
“Maybe. I’ll talk to him tonight to see if he picked up anything, but I’m not holding my breath.”
“You did what you could. I don’t know what Rick expected you to find.”
“I think maybe he doesn’t like you being here alone and wanted you to feel secure knowing you had backup this time.”
“I get it, but the change of heart is too little too late.”
Viola arched an eyebrow at her. “You know he’s not leaving you alone here, right? Not really.”
“I know protocol is to have a team in place in case something happens when one of us is out in the field, but this isn’t a simple sting op. They’d have to have a team working twenty-four-seven since I never know when Showalter will call.”
“True, but I heard him talking to Carson about taking the shift tonight. I asked Carson after Rick left, and he said they’ve had a surveillance team near the location whenever you’re scheduled to be here. He didn’t give specifics, and I got the feeling he’d been instructed to keep quiet about it.”
Shelby’s mouth dropped. “Why wouldn’t he announce it in the meeting if he had someone watching the outside while I’m here?” That didn’t make any sense. If their objective was to solve this case, then they should all be privy to everything.
“You know Rick doesn’t believe in democracy. Not on his team. He’s lord of his manner, and we all do what he says. I’m sure he has his reasons, and he’ll align himself with them until the end.”
Viola was right about that, but she had another nagging thought. “Then why didn’t Darrell say anything? He’s not one to keep secrets from me.”
That earned her an eye roll. “Girl, I know you two are tight and all, but that man is so by the book the damn thing is fused to his hand. Maybe Rick didn’t want you focusing your energy on anything other than getting close to Showalter. Who knows? If he told Darrell to leave you out of it, he would follow his orders.”
Shelby nodded slowly. “Yeah, you’re right.” But as she looked at Viola, another thought came to her. “If I wasn’t told because of some concern over my ability to maintain focus on my objective—”
“I didn’t say that.”
Shelby held up her hand to stop Viola’s protest. “Anyway. Why weren’t you told?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. It was just a theory. The guys are all single except for Rick. Maybe he didn’t want me pulling all-nighters away from my husband unless it was necessary. Maybe he figured I’d be pulled in with you at some point for support since I’m the only other female on our team since Anna got reassigned. Who knows how that man’s mind works.”
“I’ll talk to Darrell, see if he tells me anything since Carson didn’t elaborate with you.”
Viola shook her head and grabbed her arm. “Don’t. If you tell Darrell, then Darrell will go to Rick and inform him you asked. It’ll get back to him that Carson talked to me, and I don’t want his ass chewed. No matter how much he deserves it for being such an irritating flirt.” She let go and eased back. “At least now we both know what’s going on, if not the details.”
“We don’t know anything other than they’re out there somewhere.”
The smile Viola gave her was calculating. “A few tracking devices and a nifty little app fixed that.” She winked.
Oh no. “And you’re worried about Carson getting in trouble? Have you lost your mind?” she whispered heatedly. “If Rick finds out—”
“He won’t. I’m watching their backs, too. If the shit hits the fan, I’ll be able to help.”
Shelby’s shoulders fell as realization dawned. “You tagged my car, too, didn’t you?” she asked, deadpan.
Viola wiggled her phone and wagged her eyebrows.
She sighed. “Don’t get caught.” Using tools of the trade on suspects was one thing…turning them on fellow agents was completely another.
“You let me worry about that. I’m watching everybody.” She checked her watch. “We should probably go. I’ll drive your car, and Dave can follow me to your house. Unless you just want to come home with us.” She frowned and made an attempt to look to Shelby’s side for a glimpse of the marks she knew marred her back. “You shouldn’t be alone. We have a guest room—”
“No.”
“Okay. I’ll stay with you. I brought a change of clothes since I wasn’t sure how long I could stay in this getup, but it’s surprisingly comfortable.” She smirked and looked down at her outfit. “We can ride in together tomorrow, and Dave can pick me up from the office.”
Shelby took a deep breath before clarifying. “I mean, no. I’m not going anywhere. Mason wants me to stay with him tonight.”
If Viola’s eyes opened any wider, they’d pop out. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
The door opened then, and they both jumped. Shelby winced at the pain.
“I’m sorry to interrupt,” Mason said, hanging onto the doorframe, not coming into the room. “But I really should get some medicine on your back, pet. Let me take care of that, and you can keep visiting with your friend.”
“We’re not visiting,” Viola said, venom in her voice. “I was just telling her it was time to go. Dave can help her to my car.”
Shelby glanced between the two of them. Viola looked pissed, but Mason didn’t seem bothered by it. He slowly crossed his arms and leaned against the doorjamb. “I’ve asked her to stay.”
“I don’t care.”