Unauthorized Affair (Unauthorized #1)(47)

After a 50 minute stop at the DA’s office, the fastest he could make photocopies and set up a surveillance screen for the DA, they were back in his truck, heading to the police department. He parked in the first open stall he could find and practically vaulted out of his truck.

“Where are we going?” Jen whispered, as she ran to keep up with him in the PD hallways.

“Chief’s office. To request a search warrant. If he says no, we can assume he’s the mole.”

“Hunter, that’s brilliant!”

“We’ll see. Do you have your phone on you? The one that’s wired for surveillance?” He knew she did, but watched her to see if she understood what he wanted.

Her eyes went wide. “Yes.”

“Good.” He stopped just outside the reception area for the Chief’s office and flipped on his phone, pulling up the app to the surveillance camera. “They’re watching at the DA’s office too. But if I’m wrong, I’m going to lose my job.”

Worry lined her face, but he didn’t give her time to voice it. He pushed open the door and she followed.

“I have an appointment to see Chief Carver,” he told the woman at the desk.

“Go right in.”

Hunter knocked on the door and was called in by a voice inside. He pushed the door open and walked to one of the chairs opposite the chief’s desk. Jen took the other one, pulling her arms and legs in, trying to look small and unimportant. Chief Carver was a compact man with dark hair and impressive eyebrows. He spoke forcefully into the phone, holding up one finger to Hunter. Hunter nodded and waited, his heart thudding painfully in his chest.

When Chief Carver finally got off the phone he gave Hunter a menacing look. “What about Fiore Savoy, Foley? It’s taking you forever to go through that evidence file.”

“We’re done Chief, and I think we can get him on racketeering and conspiracy.”

The Chief raised his eyebrows. “That’s it? Let’s see it.”

Hunter held out the file and Chief Carver went through it, flipping each page with a grunt. Finally he spoke. “This is pathetic. There’s not enough here to make anything stick.”

“But there’s enough there for a search warrant. If we find something at his house to corroborate it then we’re golden. He’ll go down.”

The chief seemed to notice Jen for the first time. “What’s she doing here?”

“It’s her bust, if we make one. She’s responsible for getting the file and the rest of the evidence.”

Chief Carver pressed his lips together. “Where is the rest of it? I heard there was a wallet.”

“There is. It’s in the evidence room.”

“Well what about the wallet? Are you going to go for murder 1?”

Hunter shrugged. “With no body? We could dig up the yard around his house, but I doubt he was that stupid.”

From the corner of his eye, Hunter watched Jen pull her phone out of her pocket and press a button nervously, like she was silencing it. He stood and took a step away from her, gesticulating aggressively. “Look, we don’t need a body to get him for racketeering. If we do it right we can get a federal conviction and he’ll go away for life anyway. Once he goes down we can lean on his operatives and if they plea bargained, maybe someone will spill where the body is.”


Jen’s arm moved to the Chief’s desk in the far corner of his vision. She had done it.

“Absolutely not. There’s not enough here to request a search warrant. Leave it with me. Maybe you missed something. And bring me that wallet!”

“Yes sir.”

Hunter stood quickly and strode to the door. Jen followed him.

Outside, Hunter doubled his pace. He heard Jen running to keep up with him. He slammed open the stairwell door and pulled his phone from his pocket. He felt himself shaking, he was so angry. He clamped his jaw shut and felt the muscles there straining and clenching. If he saw what he thought he was going to see on the phone, he was going to go back in there and knock the Chief on his ass.

The picture from Jen’s phone on the Chief’s desk swam into view. Hunter cycled through the cameras until he saw the chief, grainy and distorted, but there. He was feeding papers into his paper shredder. Hunter clenched his fists, not sure where the papers came from. Wanting to be sure before he lost it completely. The chief took out his phone and made a phone call. “Boss,” he said. Hunter shook his head, clamping his hands shut so hard they ached. Jen touched one gently and looked at him questioningly. He held a finger to his lips and lifted the phone, trying to hear the Chief’s next words.

“I’ve got the file. It’s bad. I’m destroying it now but you’ll have to take them all out.” And then he recited the address to the safe house where Ryker and Ivy were.

Hunter pressed a button and the images disappeared. He pulled up his contacts and speed-dialed Ryker. “You guys get out of there. He’s coming. Get out of there now!” He hung up and started back towards the door, murder written on his face.

Jen pulled at him. “Hunter, you can’t go in there. Even though you’re right, if you try to take down the Chief and no one knows why, you're the one who is going to end up dead.” He was pulling out of her grasp. She wasn’t even sure if he heard her. She tried again. “Please Hunter, get hold of yourself! For me!” He stopped and dropped his head. Jen caressed his hand lightly, trying to get it to relax. She could hear his ragged breathing. Slowly, she saw his muscles relax, saw his aggressive posture loosen.