Read Online Cold Hearted (Cold Justice Book 6) by Toni Anderson - Free Book Online
Authors: Toni Anderson
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opinion of her based on that encounter made her uncomfortable, but that was the price she’d paid for taking back control of her life. She hadn’t been about to waste that opportunity or let the memory of it derail her career.
“Priority number one, I want to listen to the 911 call. Then speak to the roommate. But first I need to update my boss and see what team has been assigned to work the case and make sure everyone knows what they’re supposed to be doing.” Would she be in charge? She didn’t know.
As if he’d heard her mention him, her boss waved them over to his office.
“Agent Singh, thanks for coming.” Chief Strassen reached out to shake the fed’s hand with big meaty paws. Then he led them into his office and closed the door. “I’m grateful you could start working with us on this straight away. We need the public to know that we’re doing a good job at keeping them safe.”
“Two dead girls tell their own story, Chief,” Singh said. “You know that.”
Her boss nodded, not getting pissed the way he would have if she’d voiced the same opinion.
“We need to catch this person before he hurts anyone else. Everything we have is at your disposal, Agent Singh.”
Which was a joke because the two things the feds brought to the table were toys and funds.
“I appreciate that,” Agent Singh inclined his head, “but all I really need is Detective Donovan’s full cooperation.”
The chief glanced sharply at her, and her mouth opened in surprise.
“Which she’s providing,” the fed added somewhat belatedly.
Her grim smile revealed her fused teeth.
Her boss relaxed. “Erin’s a good cop. The Hawke conviction was solid…”
A loud unspoken “but” hung in the air.
Dammit .
“I will need a room of my own to work from,” Singh said.
A short burst of laughter escaped her. Space in the nineteen-twenties building was at a premium.
The chief’s glare shut her up. “We’ve arranged something. It isn’t perfect, but…”
Erin’s eyebrows stretched high. Not even she or Harry had their own office, and she didn’t see the chief willing to give up his space or enrage the secretarial staff just because a fed was in town for a day or two. They needed their one and only conference room for briefings and meeting updates.
“Barry cleared out his office and put a desk in there.” The chief ran a finger inside his collar.
Barry? The janitor. “There’s no natural light in that space.” She leaned forward, slightly horrified they were treating a visitor this way. Not that she wanted Darsh to get too comfortable, but…
“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Singh said. “As long as the door has a lock.” This time it was the chief’s brows that rose.
“Barry has keys to all the rooms. And Linda, the administrative assistant,” Erin put in helpfully. She was enjoying letting her boss squirm for a change. “Come on, I’ll show you where it is.”
“Meeting in the conference room at nine AM sharp,” her boss yelled after her.
They walked past the locker rooms to the end of the corridor. The linoleum was dirty and curled up in one corner. Arrestees never saw this part of the building. They were kept on the other side of the bullpen, away from where the cops worked cases and did paperwork. The holding cells were downstairs in the basement.
She stopped at the last door on the right. There was a discolored square of wood where Barry had removed the “Custodian” sign.
“Here it is.” She opened the door and turned on the single bulb that dangled from the ceiling. The room was scrubbed clean and smelled strongly of pine disinfectant. The shelves where cleaning supplies usually sat were empty. She pushed farther inside and had to squeeze through the gap when the door refused to open all the way. A black industrial mat covered the floor drain. A battered desk took up most of the space—God knew how they got it in here. A plush office chair that looked suspiciously like hers added
“Priority number one, I want to listen to the 911 call. Then speak to the roommate. But first I need to update my boss and see what team has been assigned to work the case and make sure everyone knows what they’re supposed to be doing.” Would she be in charge? She didn’t know.
As if he’d heard her mention him, her boss waved them over to his office.
“Agent Singh, thanks for coming.” Chief Strassen reached out to shake the fed’s hand with big meaty paws. Then he led them into his office and closed the door. “I’m grateful you could start working with us on this straight away. We need the public to know that we’re doing a good job at keeping them safe.”
“Two dead girls tell their own story, Chief,” Singh said. “You know that.”
Her boss nodded, not getting pissed the way he would have if she’d voiced the same opinion.
“We need to catch this person before he hurts anyone else. Everything we have is at your disposal, Agent Singh.”
Which was a joke because the two things the feds brought to the table were toys and funds.
“I appreciate that,” Agent Singh inclined his head, “but all I really need is Detective Donovan’s full cooperation.”
The chief glanced sharply at her, and her mouth opened in surprise.
“Which she’s providing,” the fed added somewhat belatedly.
Her grim smile revealed her fused teeth.
Her boss relaxed. “Erin’s a good cop. The Hawke conviction was solid…”
A loud unspoken “but” hung in the air.
Dammit .
“I will need a room of my own to work from,” Singh said.
A short burst of laughter escaped her. Space in the nineteen-twenties building was at a premium.
The chief’s glare shut her up. “We’ve arranged something. It isn’t perfect, but…”
Erin’s eyebrows stretched high. Not even she or Harry had their own office, and she didn’t see the chief willing to give up his space or enrage the secretarial staff just because a fed was in town for a day or two. They needed their one and only conference room for briefings and meeting updates.
“Barry cleared out his office and put a desk in there.” The chief ran a finger inside his collar.
Barry? The janitor. “There’s no natural light in that space.” She leaned forward, slightly horrified they were treating a visitor this way. Not that she wanted Darsh to get too comfortable, but…
“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Singh said. “As long as the door has a lock.” This time it was the chief’s brows that rose.
“Barry has keys to all the rooms. And Linda, the administrative assistant,” Erin put in helpfully. She was enjoying letting her boss squirm for a change. “Come on, I’ll show you where it is.”
“Meeting in the conference room at nine AM sharp,” her boss yelled after her.
They walked past the locker rooms to the end of the corridor. The linoleum was dirty and curled up in one corner. Arrestees never saw this part of the building. They were kept on the other side of the bullpen, away from where the cops worked cases and did paperwork. The holding cells were downstairs in the basement.
She stopped at the last door on the right. There was a discolored square of wood where Barry had removed the “Custodian” sign.
“Here it is.” She opened the door and turned on the single bulb that dangled from the ceiling. The room was scrubbed clean and smelled strongly of pine disinfectant. The shelves where cleaning supplies usually sat were empty. She pushed farther inside and had to squeeze through the gap when the door refused to open all the way. A black industrial mat covered the floor drain. A battered desk took up most of the space—God knew how they got it in here. A plush office chair that looked suspiciously like hers added
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