Up in Smoke (Crossing the Line, #2)(27)

Erin wasn’t sure how to feel. It’s not as if she ever held back when someone asked her what she’d done to get prison time. Armed robbery. That one time she’d set a police car on fire. Most of her past was an open book. It was the other, more personal remnants of her past that weren’t open for discussion. Except maybe with the voices in her head. Things that weren’t part of public record. No, there was something else causing the tingling that had moved to the back of her neck. Other people taking an interest in her, asking questions because they were curious, not because they wanted to interrogate. That had seldom, if ever, happened in her life. Yet in the last forty-eight hours, two people had tried to get to know her better.

It made her feel…significant.

She picked up a spoon and ran the smooth metal down her cheek. “First time was a cakewalk. Dade staff wears these green scrubs, like a light olive color. Ugly as sin. Ours were white.” When Polly nodded with interest, Erin had the insane urge to smile. “One afternoon, I pocketed a green highlighter from the library cart. I broke it open and dyed my scrubs green.”

Polly’s gaze widened. “Don’t tell me…”

“I almost didn’t pull it off. My hair was still pink, so I needed a way to hide it.” She tapped the spoon against her head. “The girl in the cell beside mine had a Marlins baseball cap. Wasn’t supposed to, but her son had sneaked it in for her birthday. She gave me the hat in exchange for buying her son Marlins tickets if I made it out.” Her throat tightened at the memory, so she cleared it. “The next day, I was on the schedule to work in the laundry room. We’d sort the clothes, then they were driven off-site to be cleaned. One of the wardens liked to get in my face a lot. Princess this, princess that. Anyway, I unclipped her pass from her belt and waited for her to take a bathroom break. I knew I’d have about four minutes to change into the green scrubs and pile my hair under the cap. I did it in one. Then I hopped into the laundry truck and drove straight out of that motherf*cker. Ditched the truck a mile from the prison and ran for it.”

“Unbelievable.”

“Yes, I am.”

Polly tapped a fingernail against her front tooth. “What about the second time?”

Erin’s stomach lurched. The room went unfocused around her. She fumbled for the matches in her pocket and lit the paper place mat on fire, sucking in the acrid smell with a greedy inhale. When Polly put it out by dumping a glass of water over the flame, Erin frowned. “Second time wasn’t as easy.”

“No, I don’t expect it would be after they knew what you could do.” Polly watched her closely as seconds ticked by. “Did you buy that kid Marlins tickets?”

“Sure did. Took his thirteen-year-old ass to Hooters afterward and everything.” She circled the rim of her coffee cup with her middle finger. “Being out in the open that day is how I got hauled back into Dade. Funny how things work, right? The baseball cap saved me and damned me at the same time.”

“No good deed…”

Erin thought of Connor. His determination to help her.

Would it go unpunished?





Chapter Nine


Connor strode into the police station and suffered through a pat-down before they would let him in to see Derek. The squad didn’t have a scheduled meeting this morning because all six members of the unit had been given their marching orders yesterday. He had two hours before he was scheduled to interview Tucker May’s ex–cell mate and he needed to speak with the captain first. When he walked into the main floor of the precinct and found Bowen leaning up against the pillar across from Derek’s office, he greeted him with a raised eyebrow.

Bowen jerked his thumb toward the office door. “He’s in there with his missus. I’ve been told interrupting them could lead to severed limbs. I like mine where they are.”

Seemingly out of nowhere, Austin sidled up to them. “I was told the same thing, but it’s been a bloody hour. Some of us have matters to attend.”

“What matters are those?” Connor asked. He still didn’t have a read on this guy, which bothered the shit out of him. Although he suspected any males who existed within Erin’s orbit would immediately become his enemy. Except for Bowen, who’d forgotten every female name that wasn’t Sera. Something about Austin put him on the defensive, like he might be more dangerous than his tailored appearance let on. “I thought you were sidelined until Derek found a use for you.”

Austin popped a stick of gum into his mouth. “There’s always a use for me. I just get to decide it for myself. I’m not a fan of following orders.”

“That so?” Bowen smirked. “Then you’re here to speak to Derek about what, exactly? The best place to get a spray tan in Chicago?”

“Hysterical.” Austin’s smile was tight. “I’ll have you know my mother was Greek. If the sun worships my complexion, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

Connor blew out an impatient breath toward the door. He suspected the reason Bowen was here was similar to his own. Austin was a wild card. But none of them were going to get answers standing around like a couple of tools. “Two minutes and I’m going in.”

A uniformed police officer walked past, whistling through his teeth at Connor’s statement. “Gird your loins.”