Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 71625 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 358(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71625 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 358(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
“When male and female praying mantis’ mate, the female praying mantis rips the head off of the male’s body when she’s through,” Winnie said without missing a beat. “Now, do you want pizza?”
Cody nodded. “Did you know that Americans consume over three billion pizzas a year?”
I just shook my head and stuffed another bite of pizza into my mouth.
Having my family all together like this was making my heart fucking happy.
“Dad,” Sean said, interrupting my inner thoughts. “Did you ever think to share that you were the only freakin’ person in the department that didn’t have a ballistic vest?”
I blinked, then turned knowing eyes toward Winnie’s direction. Winnie, who was avidly eating her pizza and looking anywhere but at me.
“I didn’t think it was important,” I answered.
“You just got my kid a freakin’ jungle gym for her birthday that cost over a grand. That could’ve easily gone to your vest,” he said, sounding annoyed.
“Yeah,” I agreed, blowing a breath out in defeat. “But she wanted it.”
“She also wants to have her fuckin’ grandfather around when she graduates, or goes to prom, or gets goddamned married.”
I sighed. “Sean, I’m not allowed to buy my own things for the department. It’s company policy. Everything that I have has to come out of my allowance for uniforms, and seven hundred dollar vests aren’t in my allowance.”
The new bylaw was some bullshit rule that the city had come up with regarding new police procedures, and how police officers needed to be held to a higher standard or some bullshit.
I thought it was a fuckin’ joke, but again, as the police chief, I couldn’t very well buck all their policies, or they’d find a way to get rid of me—and my men needed me. They needed someone to look out for their best interests, something that hadn’t been happening lately. Especially in this day and age where a police officer was no longer looked upon with respect but with derision.
My guys weren’t bad. None of them, not even that stupid dumbass Matt.
Was he annoying? Yes. But he was good at what he did…well, you know, when he actually did his job and wasn’t cheating on his wife.
“Well, we’re going to fix that.”
I grinned.
“I’m already working on it, son.”
Just as I was about to have to explain how to my son, my phone rang.
Work.
“Hello?”
“Chief?”
I winced. “Yeah?”
It was Matt. Why the hell was he calling me on my day off?
“There’s an incident at work. It has to do with Conleigh.”
I looked over at where Conleigh was working on her third piece of pizza.
“What’s going on?”
“I just think you better get down here.”
I said I’d be there in ten minutes and then shoved my phone back in my pocket.
“I gotta go,” I said. “Sean,” I ruffled his hair, causing him to curse. “Naomi. I’ll see y’all soon.”
Before I left, I ruffled Cody’s hair, just like I’d done to Sean, and received much the same reaction.
After passing Winnie and giving her a kiss, I left out the door chuckling.
I wasn’t chuckling ten minutes later when I arrived at the station.
“What the fuck?” I asked.
Matt had his arms crossed over his chest, staring at the building and the cruisers that weren’t currently being used by on-duty personnel.
“Who did this?” I asked.
“They’re pulling the camera feed right now.”
“You think she did this?” I asked.
“Her name is on the cruiser, Steel,” Matt said. “And it’s all over the school, too.”
It was late. Well after ten in the evening. The nightshift was usually smaller, which meant that more than two-thirds of our cruisers were at the station.
Goddammit.
There went the money I was going to use on the remaining ballistic vests.
Mother. Fucker.
“She didn’t do it,” I said. “She’s been with me all night.”
Matt turned his gaze toward me. “Taking over my family?”
I laughed and then turned to fully face him. “I’m not taking over anything. I’m picking up the pieces. It’s not my fault that you broke them.”
“Cody is my son,” he growled.
My brows rose. “You could’ve fooled me. What, you’ve only had him one week since I’ve been around, and, from what I’ve heard, you didn’t have much to do with him that week. Conleigh told me that the majority of the time he was at your parents’.” I paused. “You’re lucky I didn’t share that information with Winnie, or she would’ve been pissed.”
Matt snorted. “Whatever.”
I didn’t reply to that.
“Yo,” Tough said as he came up to us. “Kids. Multiples. But they’re all wearing ski masks. No way to identify any of them except by the color of a few of the ones with long hair. Brown, red, and one with pink streaks in it.”
“Conleigh has brown hair.”
“Conleigh’s name is on the cruisers, but she’s not very popular at school thanks to you. I wouldn’t put it past these teenagers to come here and do this because she has a job here,” I said to Matt, then turned toward Tough. “Get what you can. Call that mobile cleaning crew we use when we have accidents, tell them we need our cruisers and station cleaned. Get the fire department to hook them up with the water situation. I want this cleaned up by morning. This will not get out.”