Bodyguard (Den of Thieves, #2) (3 page)

“So... nothing in particular.”

“Not really any one thing, no. I'm sorry, Detective. I wish I was more help but truthfully I'm at a loss.” She sighed heavily and went on, “Somehow I think this will be easier to come to terms with if I could understand the reason it happened in the first place.”

“I wish I had an answer for you right now. We are still taking to some of the witnesses who were at the scene. For now, we don't think there is an immediate threat to your life.”

“I noticed the guard standing outside my door, thank you for that.”

“You’re welcome, however, we do have a solution for you when you're ready to leave the hospital which from what the doctors have told me, could be any day now.”

“Oh God. I hope you're not going to have one of those creepy undercover cops follow me around, are you?” She groaned outwardly. The very thought of someone following her around the city gave her the creeps. Not to mention how her family and friends would react to being followed wherever they went with her.

“No, Miss Woods, given that the police department’s budget isn't what is supposed to be at, we can't spare as many Undercovers as we might have been able to in the past. The Justice Department is, however, able to take care of the bill for any expenses for whatever we decide. Besides that, any criminal worth his salt would be able to spot an unmarked car a mile away and find a way around it.”

“Just what do you propose?” She eyed the detective suspiciously.

“We have a team of professionals who will be able to see to your protection.”

“Professional bodyguards?” She inwardly groaned and rolled her eyes to the ceiling as she tried to sink deeper into her pillow.

She liked this idea even less than the unmarked undercover officer she'd just been refused. A bodyguard would be worse by far, they were allowed to go anywhere or do anything. Her freedoms would be even more limited.

“It’s not forever, Miss Woods,” the woman detective said soothingly, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“There is so much for me to do every day; how can I possibly get someone to run through the chaos with me?”

“We’ve spoken to the DA and he's modifying your schedule-“ Stan started, and she could feel her blood pressure rising as she found herself tuning out the actual words he was speaking.

How dare he? Who did this man think he was?

“Stop. Just stop.” She raised her right hand to silence him. “Miss Wood-“ the other woman started, but she only had to flip her hand again in her direction to silence her too.

“Detectives, I understand you both have a job to do, and I understand that part of that includes ensuring that I am no longer in danger.” She paused to catch her breath; the ache in her shoulders and head had increased to throbbing as her blood pressure had risen. “However, I too have a job to do and one that also includes making sure those responsible for doing things like this to me and others are thrown behind bars so they can't hurt anyone else. I cannot do my job if I am tethered to another person or anchored in one spot, unable to move for fear I might be hurt.”

“We understand that, Ma’am and that is precisely why we opted for a twenty-four-hour bodyguard versus the city owned and operated security detail.” Stan nodded as he spoke, “We had a feeling that you would not want to be stuck in one spot and unable to do things that are important to you.”

“And what, you think an overgrown babysitter will do the trick?” She snorted. “You are kidding, right?”

The look on the man's face told her otherwise. He was not kidding.

“I am truly sorry but this isn't up for debate, Miss Woods,” Jane told her softly.

Olivia bit back the tears; her shoulder started to throb again. Her anger at her own weakness became overwhelming and bile began rising up in her throat.

“I know it's not what you want to hear right-“ the other woman started before Olivia cut her off.

“Really? Do you know? Do you understand what I'm going through?” She fired at the woman enough to make her jump.

Jane started to open her mouth but Olivia had had enough.

“No, Detective. You. Don’t. Know,” she spat. “You have the training and the means to protect yourself while I am now going to have to rely on some rent-a-cop to follow me around.”

She paused to catch her breath; neither detective made a move or uttered a word. They were waiting for her.

“And what is that going to look like to my peers? Or worse yet, to the criminals that I am set to prosecute? The only thing they are going to see is weakness. The defense attorneys are going to jump all over this like flies to shit.”

“I get it, Miss Woods. But there is no other option for us. We have a duty to keep you safe and that is what we are intent on doing. I am sorry if that is not something you'd like to consider, but at this point, you have no choice,” Stan said, rising.

His partner stood up, too.

“So that's it then?” Olivia huffed.

“For now,” the man replied.

“Why, what else have you up your sleeve?”

“I will want to discuss the events of that morning but not today. You need your rest.” He smiled.

She could tell he was really trying to be fair but she wasn't ready to admit defeat yet.

“Fine then,” she mumbled as the detectives walked out of the room.

As the door shut behind them, the floodgates opened and she started to cry.

*****

B
o grabbed his bag as he stormed out of D.O.T.. He had spent the last ten minutes in his jeep going over each of the items in his pack.

He never left base without double-checking his gear. He never wanted to be in a situation where he didn’t have what he needed.

He had been there once before and it had cost him dearly. He wasn’t about to allow himself to be in that vulnerable position again any time soon. Not if he could help it anyway.

Putting the car into reverse, he backed out of his spot and started to make his way downtown to the hospital, silently cursing the rest of the team for foisting this on him in the first place. He did not want to be protecting anyone.

That wasn’t what he had signed up for.

His phone rang and he glanced down at it before he accepted the call.

“Yes, Cat,” he spoke.

“Hi Bo,” Cat’s voice came through the car’s speakers.

“What would you like, Cat?” He turned onto the main highway.

“I just wanted to see how you were doing.”

“Really? Seemed like you were of the same opinion as everyone else in there just a few short minutes ago.”

“Yeah, about that—” she started and then trailed off.

“Don’t worry about it, Cat.”

“I am sorry, Bo. I guess I just got carried away in the moment like everyone else.” She really did sound sincere.

She had, after all, called to make sure he was okay.

“It’s fine, Cat, really., he sighed as he responded. He really didn’t have the heart to be mad at his best friend.

“No, it isn’t alright, Bo. They shouldn’t be putting you in a situation where you are not comfortable. It’s really not fair.”

“Well, maybe they are right this time. Maybe it is time I put the past in the past and moved on with things. I mean, there isn’t a way for me to change the past so I might as well let it go.”

“Everyone deals with things in different ways, Bo. You have to deal with your things in the way or ways that make sense to you. If you aren’t ready for something like this, there should be no one out there who will force you to be ready when you aren’t.” He could hear the concern in her voice.

“I am fine, Cat, really I am.”

“If you aren’t up to it, Bo, I will just tell Paul and Jake that I will do it. You don’t have to. Really.”

“Cat.” He knew she was only trying to help him but at the same time he was starting to think that maybe it was time for him to move on and let the past stay in the past where it belonged.

“If you’re sure, Bo.”

“Yes, I am sure, Cat.”

“You will tell me if it turns out to be too much for you, right?”

“I promise that you will be the first person I call.”

“Alright. I am going to hold you to that, you know. There will be no escaping me if you start going off the rails and you don’t ask for help.”

“I am not going to go off the rails, Cat. You don’t need to worry quite as much as you are doing right at the moment.”

“Fine, if you say so.”

“I do.”

“Alright, I will check in with you later then.”

“I look forward to it.” A smile crossed his face. No matter what hell went on around him, he could always take comfort in the friendship he had with Cat.

He drove through the streets, wishing somehow she was going to be there with him. Not that he needed the support to do the job, but she was one of the few people who understood that even though the job came first, there were some things that even he had a hard time dealing with.

Some things just brought back too many memories for him and made the job very difficult. Though they had not talked much about their pasts, he knew that she too harbored the same guilt and scars that he did. That they had gone in to do a job and they were the ones who had ended up damaged in some way. A way that would never completely heal.

He shook his head and tried to clear away the dangerous thoughts that invaded his mind. He did not need them to surface now. Now he needed to focus on the task at hand.

Bo turned off the highway onto the off ramp and headed into the heart of the city towards the hospital.

He wondered what she was going to be like. She seemed like the strong, independent type. The file stated that she was one of the top prosecutors in the country and had one of the highest conviction rates around. That in itself would make a whole lot of the criminals that existed in every city very unhappy that she was around.

It would make them happier still to know that she had been hurt and that would possibly give them a chance to finish her off in her weakened state.

That was something that he was not about to allow. He had spent many years on protective detail in the army, protecting civilians and dignitaries alike. Even when he had come back home, he had continued to do the odd protection job until eventually the demons of his past had caught up to him and he found he could no longer do that line of work.

That was when he had hooked up with the group at D.O.T.. It had been right up his alley. Just enough action that he didn’t get bored but no one other than his team had needed his protection.

Until now.

He only hoped that he would be able to live up to the job and not let the rest of the team down.

B
o took a deep breath and got out of his Jeep. The wind picked up as he closed the door, sending a few leaves and a paper coffee cup bouncing across the parking lot.

He pulled his jacket close and took a quick glance at the sky. The weather report said it might rain later on. Bo doubted the sky would hold another hour the way the clouds are gathering.

Crossing the parking lot, he nodded to the security guard that was under the hospital.

“Morning, Sir,” the man waved to him. “Morning.” Bo turned back and moved on.

Bo hated hospitals. They were wonderful as far as the advances in medicine and the seemingly miraculous things they could do nowadays. However, woeful moans and sharp cries of agony brought back memories of his time in the war. He could still see the faces of the innocent victims caught up in a battle that wasn't their choice to fight. He remembered the mothers wailing over their dead husbands’ bodies, others begging him to take their child with him back to the Western world where things were safer. The look in their eyes was burned into his mind forever.

“Are you going up?” the petite blonde asked, holding the elevator door open for him, smiling.

“Yes. Sorry.” He cleared his throat, which had suddenly become dry.

The door closed behind him as he stepped on and pushed the button for the fifth floor.

“Family?” The woman spoke again as the elevator begin to move upwards.

“No,” he answered a little too sharply and immediately felt bad about it.

“Oh. Sorry,” she mumbled, the friendly light in her blue eyes fading as she looked down at her shoes.

“No, I'm sorry I was rude,” he mumbled, feeling awkward. “I'm here to see a friend but I'm afraid I don't like hospitals that much.”

“I'm not sure there is anyone who really likes hospitals.” Her face brightening again, “Well, maybe the doctors and nurses do at to some extent. I mean, they get to make people feel better and stuff.”

Bo looked at her a moment, saying nothing, as the elevator arrived on his floor and he stepped out.

“Have a nice day.” She beamed. “Well, as good as you can have.”

“You too,” he mumbled and headed off down the hallway as the doors closed once again.

Scanning the hallway, he could see two uniformed officers talking to each other at the end of the hall. He took a deep breath to re-center his mind before he approached them. He had a job to do and no good would come of him failing to be completely on point.

“Good afternoon, officers.” Bo nodded at them as he came up in front of them.

Bo noticed they both instinctively placed their hands on the butts of their guns.

“Can we help you?” the taller one asked.

“I'm here to see Miss Wood—-” Bo started to reply.

“Miss Woods is not receiving visitors at this time,” the other man cut him off, his hand still on his weapon.

“I understand that but I'll try it again—-”

“Look, we don't want any trouble here, pal, so unless you’re family, you would do best to move along.”

“Honestly, officers, I'm not looking for trouble—-”

“Good. Then we'll be moving along then?”

The back and forth with these two was making his head spin. The constant interrupting was irritating him. It was not a good combination.

“Officers, while I understand that you are both just doing your job, if you would be ever so kind as to let me finish what I was saying, you would see that I do have a legitimate reason for being here,” Bo grumbled, trying to keep his temper from overflowing.