He looked down at his shoes for a long moment before looking back up at the detective. “No need for cuffs,” he hissed. “I’ll behave myself.”
Jackson led the senator from his office, while Brigit and I took up the rear, the tech trailing along behind us with the proof we needed to indict the senator for evidence tampering downloaded onto a flash drive.
“No need to worry, folks,” the senator told the staff gaping along the hallways. “Everything’s fine.” As we entered the foyer and passed the desk of the bewildered receptionist, Sutton sent a forced smile her way and spoke in a calm voice that hid the emotion he’d just shown in his office. “I need to take care of something off-site. I’ll touch base with you later.”
We stepped out of his offices. He stopped in the hallway, standing stock-still and closing his eyes as if resigning himself to his fate. His term, it seemed, was coming to an end.
* * *
Over the course of the next few days, my face healed, Paige McQuaid was released from the hospital, and much more damning evidence against Senator Sutton came to light.
When Minister Wu attempted to board a flight to Beijing at the DFW airport Tuesday afternoon, an explosives-sniffing dog alerted on him. He was found to have gunshot residue on his clothing and was held for questioning.
A black Suburban Senator Sutton claimed to have rented for use by his campaign in delivering yard signs was found parked behind his headquarters with damage to the front bumper. While he argued that someone must have backed into the vehicle, nobody was buying it. With the Suburban linking not only Sutton, but his campaign, to criminal activity, the FBI launched an investigation and discovered that a trade organization called the Texas Exporters League had made a half-million-dollar donation to Sutton’s campaign, though they’d funneled the contribution through Sutton’s personal accounts so that he could hide its source. Despite his campaign slogan that he was “The Best Representation Money Can’t Buy,” it was clear that Senator Sutton, like many other politicians, had been for sale. Looked like everyone had their price.
With Wu and Sutton directly linked not only to evidence tampering, but also to the attempted murder of two police officers and a college student, they were being held without bond. I bet the senator missed his American flag pin. It could have been used as a weapon in jail or traded for cigarettes.
The senator’s approval rating plummeted, a diehard two percent unwilling to give up on the guy they were certain was being framed. Essie Espinoza’s popularity soared even higher.
Derek was cleared of planting the drugs and returned to duty, though Captain Leone insisted he ride with another officer for the time being and that all evidence be handled by the partner. Straws were drawn, and poor Summer got the short stick. I made a mental note to buy her an air freshener for their cruiser. Derek was a big boy and could work up quite a sweat, not to mention those onion-loaded burgers he liked so much.
As for me, I was finally free to have that dinner with Seth and his mother, Lisa. Seth took us to a nice Italian place on a Sunday evening in late July.
While it was clear that things between Seth and his mother were still strained, my presence seemed to act as a buffer, and I could sense the two of them connecting through me. I still found it uncanny how much they resembled each other, from the blond hair to the chin dimple. It was as if Seth’s absentee father had had absolutely nothing to do with his DNA.
I passed the basket of garlic bread to Lisa. “What do you think of Blast?”
“He’s incredible!” she said, taking the basket from me and helping herself to a slice. “Such a sweetie, too. He helps me do the dishes.”
Seth scoffed, but good-naturedly. “If by helping you mean he licks the plates clean with the same tongue he cleans himself with, then yeah.”
“Brigit does the same thing at our house,” I admitted. “She’s better than a scouring pad at getting rid of sticky gunk on pans.”
We kept the conversation light. All in all, it was a pleasant evening. I hoped it would be the first of many to come. Seth needed to get past his hurt, and it was clear Lisa needed to work through her guilt. I hoped I could help them do that.
* * *
In early August, Brigit and I were out on patrol, working the night shift, when a vandalism call came in.
“We’ve got a report of a broken window,” the dispatcher said. “The victim reports she believes her ex-boyfriend tried to break into her home.”
Ugh. Domestic violence is the worst.
I grabbed the mic from my dashboard. “Officers Luz and Brigit on their way.”
Look for these other tails of romance and K-9 suspense from Diane Kelly
PAW ENFORCEMENT
PAW AND ORDER
UPHOLDING THE PAW
(an e-original novella)
LAYING DOWN THE PAW
AGAINST THE PAW
From St. Martin’s Paperbacks
… and don’t miss the hilarious Tara Holloway novels!
Death, Taxes, and a French Manicure
Death, Taxes, and a Skinny No-Whip Latte
Death, Taxes, and Extra-Hold Hairspray
Death, Taxes, and a Sequined Clutch (an e-original novella)
Death, Taxes, and Peach Sangria
Death, Taxes, and Hot Pink Leg Warmers
Death, Taxes, and Green Tea Ice Cream
Death, Taxes, and Mistletoe Mayhem (an e-original novella)
Death, Taxes, and Silver Spurs
Death, Taxes, and Cheap Sunglasses
Death, Taxes, and a Chocolate Cannoli
Death, Taxes, and a Satin Garter
From St. Martin’s Paperbacks
ST. MARTIN’S PAPERBACKS TITLES BY DIANE KELLY
THE PAW ENFORCEMENT NOVELS
Paw Enforcement
Paw and Order
Upholding the Paw (an e-original novella)
Laying Down the Paw
Against the Paw
Above the Paw
THE TARA HOLLOWAY NOVELS
Death, Taxes, and a French Manicure
Death, Taxes, and a Skinny No-Whip Latte
Death, Taxes, and Extra-Hold Hairspray
Death, Taxes, and a Sequined Clutch (an e-original novella)
Death, Taxes, and Peach Sangria
Death, Taxes, and Hot-Pink Leg Warmers
Death, Taxes, and Green Tea Ice Cream
Death, Taxes, and Mistletoe Mayhem (an e-original novella)
Death, Taxes, and Silver Spurs
Death, Taxes, and Cheap Sunglasses
Death, Taxes, and a Chocolate Cannoli
Death, Taxes, and a Satin Garter
PRAISE FOR DIANE KELLY’S PAW ENFORCEMENT SERIES
“Kelly’s writing is smart and laugh-out-loud funny.”
—Kristan Higgins, New York Times bestselling author
“Humor, romance, and surprising LOL moments. What more can you ask for?”
— Romance and Beyond
“Fabulously fun and funny!”
—Book Babe
“An engaging read that I could not put down. I look forward to the next adventure of Megan and Brigit!”
—SOS Aloha
“Sparkling with surprises. Just like a tequila sunrise. You never know which way is up or out!”
—Romance Junkies
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Diane Kelly is a former CPA and tax attorney, who had several brushes with white-collar criminals during her career. When she realized her experiences made excellent fodder for novels, her fingers hit the keyboard and thus began her Special Agent Tara Holloway romantic mystery series. Diane is a proud graduate of the Mansfield, Texas Citizen Police Academy, and “Mom” to three very spoiled canines who inspired her Paw Enforcement series.
For more information or to sign up for Diane’s newsletter, visit her web site at www.dianekelly.com. You can also find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/dianekellybooks, or follow her on Twitter at @dianekellybooks. Or sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Acknowledgments
One: Business, But Not as Usual
Two: The Price of Freedom
Three: Shake Your Booty
Four: Nip it in the Bud
Five: Stars and Stripes
Six: Sixth Sense
Seven: The Cover of Darkness
Eight: Chain of Custody
Nine: Getting Our Licks In
Ten: Let’s Make a Deal
Eleven: Party Poopers
Twelve: Good Things Come in Small Packages
Thirteen: Banking on It
Fourteen: Back to School
Fifteen: Canine Coed
Sixteen: Negotiations
Seventeen: Sniffing for Suspects
Eighteen: Quitting Time
Nineteen: Shopping Spree
Twenty: For a Good Time, Call Molly
Twenty-One: Shake, Rattle, and Roll Over
Twenty-Two: Job Dissatisfaction
Twenty-Three: Closing In
Twenty-Four: Swing and a Miss
Twenty-Five: Sleepless Nights
Twenty-Six: Something to Rally Around
Twenty-Seven: Queso Me Mucho
Twenty-Eight: Crowd Source
Twenty-Nine: Pinged
Thirty: Night Light
Thirty-One: Trumped
Thirty-Two: Immunity, Impunity, Impurity
Thirty-Three: Raining Cats and Dogs
Thirty-Four: For Sale
Thirty-Five: Binging
Thirty-Six: Get Meowt of Here!
Thirty-Seven: Screwed Over, and Over Again
Thirty-Nine: There’s No Place Like Home
Forty: Spent
Forty-One: No Means No
Forty-Two: Eau de Ew
Forty-Three: The Numbers Game
Forty-Four: Fingered
Forty-Five: Party Animal
Forty-Six: Back to the Table
Forty-Seven: Making a Splash
Forty-Eight: Mutt in a Mug Shot
Forty-Nine: A Monumental Failure
Fifty: Girls Gone Wild
Fifty-One: Two Dog Night
Fifty-Two: Delete, Delete, Delete
Fifty-Three: Preempted
Fifty-Four: Doggone It
Fifty-Five: Leverage
Fifty-Six: Fast and Furry-Ous
Fifty-Seven: Pack Attack
Fifty-Eight: The Upshot
Fifty-Nine: Evidence and the Lack Thereof
Sixty: Sixth Scents
Sixty-One: Above the Law
Sixty-Two: Coming Clean
St. Martin’s Paperbacks Titles by Diane Kelly
Praise for Diane Kelly’s Paw Enforcement Series
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
ABOVE THE PAW
Copyright © 2016 by Diane Kelly.
All rights reserved.
For information address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
eISBN: 9781250094858
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St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / December 2016
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