First Offense Read Online Free PDF Page B

his pocket, he found a Rolaid and tossed it into his mouth.
    What had begun as an obligation to a dying friend had ended up filling a void in the detective’s own life. Even though he’d dated many women through the years, Reed had never felt strongly enough about any relationship to marry. He’d yearned for a family, however, and in many ways he now felt he had one.
    Picking up the microphone, he raised the lieutenant at the scene. They were waiting for the forensic people and taking statements from witnesses. No one had seen a suspect or vehicle. All they had seen was Ann down on the ground and bleeding. By the time the paramedics arrived, she had been unconscious. “Make sure you get in touch with Claudette Landers ASAP,” Reed barked into the radio. “Get her to pick up Ann’s son. He’s probably at the house alone right now. Are the press there?”
    “What do you think?” Lieutenant Cummings said. “Like fleas on a dog.”
    “Take care of the situation with the kid fast, Pete, or he’ll see it on TV. Not the best way to hear your mother’s been shot.”
    Reed dropped the microphone. He was torn, thinking he should go to the house and pick up David himself. But Claudette was a woman with kids of her own and a very close friend of Ann’s. Women were better in this type of situation.
    “Look, Sarge,” Abrams interjected, “why don’t you go to the hospital and check on Ann and I’ll pick up the kid and drive him to this woman’s house? Turn around and take me to the station, and I’ll pick up another unit.”
    “We’re almost at the hospital,” Reed snapped, his voice harsher than he intended. “As soon as we know Ann’s stable, I’ll let you get started on the paperwork.”
    Having put Abrams firmly in his place, the detective rolled down the window to get some fresh air. Noah had been wanting to get in Ann’s pants ever since her husband vanished. If her name so much as fell off Noah’s tongue, however, Reed felt like snatching his head off. Why Noah was interested in Ann he had no earthly idea. She was appealing in a fresh-faced way but clearly no raving beauty, and certainly not the type of woman Abrams preferred. He went for flash in a big way: big breasts, stylish hair, sharp clothes. He also had three failed marriages under his belt, and Reed didn’t want him within ten feet of Ann Carlisle.
    At thirty-seven, Noah Abrams was a handsome man with chestnut-brown hair, hazel eyes, and a scattering of freckles across his nose and forehead. He had a penchant for hand-painted silk ties. He’d wear the same suit for ten years straight, but he’d cough up a hundred bucks for a single tie. Today he was wearing one with the image of Marilyn Monroe on it.
    “Let me ask you something, Noah, now that we’re on the subject,” Reed said, coming out of his thoughts. “Why are you always circling around Ann Carlisle like a damn shark? She’s not your type. I’ve seen the kind of women you take out.”
    “I resent that. Reed,” Abrams said. “Maybe I haven’t always had the best taste in women, but I’m not a total jerk. You seem to forget that I’ve known Ann almost as long as you have….” His voice trailed off and he gazed out the passenger window. When he continued, his voice was low and sincere. “I really care about Ann, Sarge. Hell, I used to work with her when we were both police cadets. We had some good times back then. Maybe one of these days I’ll settle down. If I do, she’s the kind of woman I want.”
    “Oh, really?” Reed said, shifting around in his seat. “She’s seeing someone anyway, so you can put that out of your mind.”
    In reality. Reed thought as little of Glen Hopkins as he did of Noah Abrams. Hopkins was too fast for Ann, with his fancy Rolls and his motorcycle. And the man was a damn cowboy, always bragging about his rodeo days as if anyone really cared. “After all this with her husband,” Reed said, “and now someone puts a slug in the poor woman.