High Risk by G.K. Parks (books for 10th graders TXT) 📕

She gave me a look. “Okay, so why is he sending you a gift basket?”

“That’s what I’d like to know.” On the third ring, Brad picked up. “What did you do?”

“Liv, is everything okay?” Brad asked.

“You tell me. I just got a get well gift from Axel Kincaid.”

“Huh, that’s weird.” Brad ignored my accusatory tone. “Look, I gotta jump off here. Jake and I are in the middle of something. He thinks the crew’s set to move on their next target tomorrow night. So we need to focus on this, but I should be back in a couple of hours. We can talk then.”

I stared at the end call message and let out a frustrated growl.

Emma held out the box. “Chocolate?”

“Ugh.”

She lifted the lid, stopping momentarily to eye me. “You don’t think these are poisoned, do you?”

“No, if Axel wanted me dead, he’d shoot me. He wouldn’t send a three hundred dollar gift basket just to get rid of me.”

“More like five.” Emma picked up one of the dark chocolate pieces and took a bite.

“I thought you were opposed to processed sugar.”

“It’s organic. Soy and dairy free.” She cocked an eyebrow. “For someone you arrested, he seems to know a lot about you. Isn’t that dangerous?”

“Yes, but that’s what happens when you spend six months undercover to make a bust and it turns out he’s been flipped by the Feds.”

“So he’s a CI?”

“I don’t know what he is. But he’s untouchable, at least for now.” I glanced at the basket. He didn’t even sign his name. And since the protection detail accepted the delivery, I couldn’t refuse it. “This better not be construed as a bribe.” I just wondered what deal my partner had made with the devil.

Thirty-eight

I jerked upright, regretting the movement instantly. My computer had gone into sleep mode, just like I had. I rubbed the grit from my eyes. Falling asleep while researching Diego Eisner’s associates shouldn’t have happened. I glanced at the pill bottle. This was why I wasn’t supposed to operate heavy machinery. Thankfully, my computer only weighed a couple of pounds.

Closing the lid, I turned my attention to the figure across the room. Brad quietly tapped away at his tablet while updating the notes on our whiteboard. He put the tablet down and puffed out his cheeks while he stared at our progress.

“Where’s Emma?” I asked.

He turned, offering me a choir boy smile. “She took Gunnie out for a walk.” He grabbed a gift bag from the floor and held it out to me. “I got you something.”

“Brad—”

“Open it.” He moved closer, waiting for me to pull the stuffed animal out of the bag. It was a plush German shepherd, lying on its side, wearing a little police vest and badge. It had a fluffy brown and black tail and a sewn on smile. Top Cop was embroidered on the back of its vest.

“Gunnie’s going to think this is for him.”

“Don’t worry. I got him something too.” He pointed to a chew toy on the floor. “It has a hidden compartment to hold a treat. He has to figure out how to get it out. He’s been gnawing on it since I arrived. I thought that’d be better than a squeaky toy.”

“I’d kill you if you got him a squeaky toy.”

“That’s what I figured.”

“Fair warning, I might kill you anyway.” I stared down at the stuffed animal, which Brad had bought just so I wouldn’t be mad at him. “I don’t accept bribes. At least not on purpose.”

“It’s not a bribe. Last night you complained you couldn’t get comfortable because Gunnie had gone home. I know you were joking, but I thought it might help to elevate your arm and keep some of the pressure off your shoulder and neck. Plus, I’m the only idiot who hasn’t gotten you something since the attack. Winters pointed that out to me last night. As your partner, I should have been first in line. My bad.” Brad took the plush dog out of my hand and placed it on the couch beside me. “See, it’s almost the same size as Gunnie. And he’s a cop, just like you. I thought it was perfect.”

“It is.” I swallowed. “Thank you. But I’d like to know what happened today. You went to Kincaid, didn’t you?”

Brad folded the gift bag and placed it flat on the table. “I did what had to be done.”

“What does that mean? Axel’s a killer. You said so yourself.”

“It’s never been proven.”

“You and I watched him shoot someone.”

“In self-defense,” Brad muttered.

“That’s not how you interpreted it when it happened.”

“Things change, Liv.”

“How? Did you get stupid all of a sudden?” I blinked, regretting my words. “Why would you go to Axel for help? You can’t stand the guy.”

A dark cloud settled over him. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep these bastards from hurting you or anyone else again. Jake found out Diego Eisner used to run with a crew.”

“They boosted cars.”

Brad’s gaze flicked to me. “So you know why I went to Axel.”

“That was almost ten years ago.”

“True, but Kincaid knows things. The players. The targets. In case you haven’t realized this yet, we don’t have much to go on. If he can point us in the right direction, we can stop this.”

“Fine, but you’re the one who always tells me we can’t trust him.”

“This isn’t about trust. I made a promise to you, and I plan to keep it. I’d rather beg Kincaid for help than gamble with your life or anyone else’s.”

“Does Jake know?”

“No. The brass wants this intel locked down tight. The stores in the plaza have been warned to watch out for suspicious activity and to look out for men matching the descriptions we