Private Dick Casefile 01 - Lily White Rose Red

lucky.
    “We had a chat,” Reggie said. His eyes slid to Jazz and away when he caught me watching him. “Thanks for clearing Jazz.”
    “All in a day’s work.” I took another slug from the bottle.
    “You look gloomy,” Reggie observed. “I thought it was a red letter day, catching the killer and all.”
    He wasn’t supposed to know anything about that. He was a cop, for crissakes! Who the hell—Jazz. Of course.

    Lily White, Rose Red: Grey Randall, Private Dick Casefile #1
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    “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said distinctly.
    “Parades, confetti, the roar of the crowd, you solved the case.
    You’re a hero.”
    “Yeah, I’m sure Lieutenant Steele will want to shake my hand, right after he books me as an accessory before the fact.”
    “He won’t hear about it from me.”
    “It’s not like he’s going to fail to notice when Woods never shows up for work again,” I pointed out.
    “Maybe he won’t be too upset over it,” Reggie said. “Woods took the brakes off some cops who don’t know when to say when. All in the name of public safety.”
    For Reggie, that was like saying Woods corrupted the entire force and let them edge into being more crooked than the crooks, justifying his actions in the name of the law.
    “And you came over here to tell me that?” It wasn’t making my conscience feel any better.
    “No, this is a snatch,” Jazz said cheerfully.
    “Come along quietly and we won’t put the cuffs on,” Reggie affirmed.
    What the hell was going on? He couldn’t really be arresting me for what happened—? My brain ticking over, I held out my wrists. “I’ll come quietly, Officer.”
    Reggie looked surprised, but Jazz didn’t know any better.
    When he came closer, I broke for the door. Reggie snapped the light on, and Jazz tackled me, swinging me up over his shoulder. I grunted as his shoulder got me in the ribs, but I started to kick, aiming for where it hurt.
    He slapped my butt, and I let out a sound somewhere between a shriek of outrage and a shout. It barely stung, but he startled me. And maybe I was a little drunk.
    I gasped, “Who put you up to this?”
    “Phil Martin,” Reggie said. “Careful, Jazz. Mr. Big only likes the 194

    CATT FORD

    bruises he puts there. Don’t mark him up too much.”
    “What the hell?”
    “Phil’s a friend.” Reggie’s smile was smug.
    “You told me he was straight!”
    Jazz couldn’t suppress a snort of laughter, which made an earthquake rumble in my gut as I was hanging ass up over his shoulder at the time and getting pretty lightheaded.
    “Yeah, and if you asked him, he’d tell you I was straight too.
    Friends lie for their friends sometimes.”
    “Oh yeah? What about me?”
    “If he asked, I’d tell him you were straight.” Reggie gave me the eye. “If you wanted me to.”
    Well, that answered the question about why a cop felt so safe sitting in a queer club. Phil Martin might be a crook, but there was a higher brotherhood that superseded other loyalties. Not that I thought he’d put them up to this out of a desire to deepen his friendship with me.
    Queer he might be, but Phil Martin wasn’t the type of guy who was going to let my innovative questioning techniques slide without getting his back.
    “Put me down,” I ordered. To my surprise, Jazz did so and steadied me as I staggered from the head rush. I was still a little lightheaded, but I ducked under his arm and lurched for the door again.
    Jazz caught me in two steps and grabbed both my arms. “Will you quit that?”
    “No,” I panted. Hey, at least I was honest about it.
    He wasn’t even breathing hard as he held me motionless despite my effort to squirm out of his grip. “Get his belt, Reggie.” I froze for a moment in terror. What were they going to do? A belt swung hard could hurt, and I didn’t even want to think about what the buckle end might feel like. Reggie fumbled at my waist, freeing my belt and feeling a good bit of me in the process. I’d never suspected Lily White, Rose Red: Grey Randall, Private Dick Casefile #1
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    him of that, but he looked kind of gleeful while he was doing it. I guess he was enjoying having the upper hand after me shaking him down for information.
    Jazz circled the belt around my arms and buckled it, pinning my arms to my sides. Huh. That was going to make it difficult to run for it.
    It threw my balance off, as I found out when I backed up a step and almost cracked my head on the