Cold & Deadly (Cold Justice: Crossfire #1)(30)
“What did you do then?”
He gave a slightly embarrassed shrug and placed the frozen peas against his jaw. “Charged off like an idiot to deal with the guy.”
“What did the woman do?”
He shrugged, and Ava avoided looking at the strip of stomach that movement revealed. “I don’t know. I was thrown out. I didn’t see her again.”
Ava had no proof that someone spiked Sheridan’s drink, or even knew what it meant if someone had. Was it opportunistic? Some clown sticking it to the Feds? Or had someone followed them from Van’s?
If she was wrong, if Sheridan had snorted some bad coke or had an aneurysm behind the wheel, she was going to look like a goddamn fruitcake with her conspiracy theories.
Hence coming here alone…but she often worked alone. She was in a small office and there weren’t always the resources to work in pairs—especially as everyone else was working overtime on the Mortimer shooting.
Worry for Sheridan kept tugging at her nerves. She wanted to see him and make sure he was okay, but she had no right. He wouldn’t want her there—she barely knew the guy.
“You ever seen the woman in the bar before tonight?” she asked.
“No, it was my first time in the place. Plus, I was so drunk I could barely see.”
And yet he’d driven home…
“Would you consider talking to a police sketch artist and trying to recreate a likeness of the woman?” Ava didn’t know if it would be useful or not.
“Why are you so concerned with her? Why not go after the boyfriend?”
Ava rolled her lips. “The thing is, Mr. Feldman, Mr. Gardner says he doesn’t have a girlfriend and denies hitting anyone—except you.”
A cold smile tugged at Feldman’s lips. “Do they ever confess to being wife beaters?”
She recognized it immediately, that soul deep knowledge of abuse reflected deep in his eyes.
“No, they don’t admit it, but…I’d really like your help trying to track her down.”
If the woman had been telling the truth then maybe Ava could help her. If she’d been lying to create a diversion, then Ava wanted to know that too.
After a few moments Feldman nodded and climbed to his feet, looming over her with a pained expression. It crossed her mind that this guy could have made up the woman, or be working in conjunction with her. Coming here alone was unwise to say the least.
He grimaced and pressed a finger to his temple. “I’ll work with a sketch artist, but I don’t know that I’m going to remember much in the morning.”
There was no way she’d be able to persuade anyone to come out in the middle of the night based on nothing more than one of her crazy hunches. But Karl Feldman had been more accommodating than she’d expected. “I appreciate your willingness to help. I’ll show myself out.”
Ava hurried out of the house, irrationally unnerved by the guy, especially considering she was both armed and dangerous. She shivered as she escaped into the warm night air. She wasn’t proud of herself for being nervous, but she put it on the long list of flaws she was working on.
Her phone beeped as she walked to the car. The veterinarian left a message to say Sheridan’s dog was fine and that they’d keep him until morning when she could pick him up.
She sent Sheridan a quick text to tell him his dog was okay.
Had the results come in from tox screens yet? She didn’t know who to call to ask. Sheridan? It seemed like an imposition when she didn’t know if he was in a coma or worse. Texts were one thing, a phone call something else entirely. And if the tests confirmed narcotics in his bloodstream what was she gonna say? Sorry I helped destroy your career?
Should she call his boss? Hers?
Her cheeks burned at the thought. What right did she have to ask about his medical condition? What would they think?
Dammit. She smacked the steering wheel in frustration. She’d have been this concerned about anyone who’d been in a serious accident. She looked at her phone. The fact he was attractive had nothing to do with her worry, and she didn’t want anyone misinterpreting her concern. She closed her eyes, frustrated by her own indecision.
She put the Nissan in drive and headed back to the bar to see if anyone there remembered anything. After that, she’d head to the hospital and check on Sheridan’s condition. Because that’s what colleagues did.
*
The business card was handed over along with a fierce kiss.
“Two Feds were asking questions about that guy from last week. So, I slipped a cap of Liquid E into their drinks and passed the wreck of their car on the side of the road.”
Bernie’s fingers ran over the embossed circular shield on the business card. United States Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Critical Incident Response Group, Dominic S. Sheridan. The name “Dominic S. Sheridan” was printed in bold letters.
What did the “S” stand for?
A strange mixture of rage and grief hit. Questions raced. Heart pounded. “They’ll know it was you.”
“I created a distraction.” Caroline started undoing the buttons of her fitted black shirt and smiled as Bernie watched. Caroline was hot enough to melt glass and fucked like a rabbit even without GHB. “And I’m a very good liar.”
Caroline was a good liar. She was also horny. She was often horny when she came over at two in the morning. Bernie didn’t mind. Caroline thought she was the smart, streetwise one in the relationship, and Bernie didn’t mind that either.