Catherine Bybee Soul Mate (pdf)

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meet with your approval...
Ron brought his hands in the air and shook his head. I never said I didn t
approve.
Then what is this about? Now Nick was confused. Ron s body language
didn t give the impression he was angry. In fact, if Nick didn t know better, he
would swear there was a grin hiding behind his stiff exterior.
This Pierce woman, she s the same person you pulled files on the other day,
right?
Yeah.
Ron rubbed his chin, as if in debate with himself. She s a beautiful woman.
It wasn t a question.
Nick narrowed his eyes at his boss. You know her?
I wouldn t say that.
Exactly what would you say? And why the hell are you being evasive?
Instead of answering his question Ron asked, Are you involved with her?
I don t see how that is any of your business.
Now Ron did smile. Beautiful, not like my Nancy mind you, but stunning in
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her own way. You can t even tell she d been attacked by wolves when she was
eighteen.
Wolves? The report said dogs.
Humm. Ron nodded his head, unaffected by the inconsistency of his
statement. Wasn t there a report of a wolf helping the child escape her
kidnapper?
Ron was leading him somewhere, without saying where.
I put the child s statement in the file.
Yes, you did. Ron stood to leave. When he reached the door, he turned
around and glanced to the ceiling. I wonder how far a wolf can smell or hear their
prey?
I m not sure, why do you ask? Damn it, what are you getting at? Nick knew
better than to come right out and ask. Like he told Kari, the FBI didn t
acknowledge privacy, even within their very own walls.
I wonder if there s anything in our files. Let me know if you find the
answer.
I will.
Smiling, Ron walked out of the room.
Nick watched him leave, his cryptic words echoed in his mind.
Not wasting time, he clicked into the department classified files and opened
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a second monitor to the internet. Nick had a sneaking suspicion that the facts of
the Pierce murders lay in the details.
After typing in wolves, dogs and murders along with Kari s name and that of
her parents, he cross-referenced to unsolved cases. Ron wouldn t have led him to
something wrapped up tight.
A warning screen popped up saying it would take over an hour for the files
to pull out of archives. They dated back to the borough s inception.
While waiting, Nick used the information superhighway to learn more
about the woman who kept him up at night.
Once the department files finished downloading, Nick clicked into the one
that flashed classified. It wasn t password protected, which surprised him. After
Ron s hints, he guessed his boss was the reason for the ease in obtaining access.
The screen flickered, and in slow motion an image emerged that had Nick s
jaw hitting the floor. Son of a bitch.
At one in the morning, Nick picked up the phone and woke Ron Patterson
from his comfortable sleep.
The bastard deserved it.
Yeah? Ron s sleep-filled voice answered the phone.
It s Murdock. I ve been called away on a family emergency.
Really? A small clicking noise came over the wire. Almost like it was
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bugged. I m sorry to hear that.
Damn the man, he knew exactly what he faced, but didn t give a clue.
When can we expect you back?
I m not sure. I ll keep you posted.
Ron cleared his throat. California s nice this time of year. Take some of your
vacation time if you need to.
Sneaky bastard. Ron knew he didn t have family in California.
I ll call when I m back in town.
You do that.
Nick ended the call and picked up the phone again.
Kari slammed the file cabinet closed and cursed when she noticed a broken
nail.
Damn, she mumbled bringing her finger up to her mouth and sucking on
the sensitive exposed skin.
She d put the Carter file in archives, having given the man what he needed.
He in turn gave her a hefty check for her efforts.
It beat the alimony he would have shelled out if Kari hadn t found his wife
in bed with another man, a boy toy Mr. Carter s money supported without his
knowledge.
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Usually, Kari would be satisfied with a case coming to a close, but lately she
found little joy in her work.
Dee found her more times than not deep in thought and distracted. Nick s
constant phone calls only added questions from her little sister, questions Kari
didn t want to answer.
She suspected that Dee realized her big sister s heart pined for the man
behind the voice. But sisterly love kept her from forcing the issue, for which Kari
was eternally grateful. Kari would have caved and blubbered like a lovesick girl if
Dee had pressed. That behavior wasn t something she did very often.
Maybe she should take some time off, she mused. Even now, she could smell [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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