For All to See (Bureau Series Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

stained his mind. His fingers still felt the flesh and blood of his friend’s near-fatal wound. He’d had to place two fingers in the hole to stop his friend from bleeding out. The bullet had demolished Hunt’s right shoulder and clipped his artery. They were lucky the ambulance had been so close.
    A squeaky hinge alerted Nathan to company. “Brewer, my office,” the gruff voice of his superior demanded. He nodded in response.
    Christ, what now?
    Nathan went in with his guns locked and ready. “Sir, as I told you before. I had no alternative. Agent Helm and Famosa had to be eliminated as threats. Keen was—”
    Williams’ raised hand stopped his explanation cold. The hand told him to sit, too. Nathan complied.
    Dr. James Williams, Ph D and MD, sat across from Nathan. His crinkled face told his story. He was born, he started working, and he never quit. Nathan had been working for the director for five years. He respected his opinion and his work ethic, to a point. But Nathan thought he could lighten up a little. A tight drink with a loose woman every now and then would do the trick, but he wasn’t about to voice the suggestion.
    He liked his job. Even when he hated it.
    “I know you just got done with a doozy and I know you’re down a partner. But we got a break in the Field-Dresser case.”
    Nathan’s shoulders reared. His heart sat on his tongue.
    “I need you to look into it,” Williams continued.
    Nathan swallowed. He sucked in a deep breath, and then another before he could speak. “You told me to back off. No, you ordered me to back off,” he bit.
    “We both take orders, Brewer. Sometimes, we don’t like or agree with them. We do it anyway because order sets us apart from the apes. Just barely.” Williams’ hazy blue stare held firm.
    “Who told you to back off and why?” Nathan asked with fewer teeth than before.
    “They had their man. Just because you didn’t believe it didn’t mean they didn’t have all the evidence they needed to go to trial.”
    “It’s no coincidence that we’re talking about this now, when yesterday was the anniversary. He’s taken another one.” Nathan nearly snarled.
    “I flagged all missing persons reports for the island of Tortola in the British Virgin Islands back when you predicted it’d be his next location. It’s up to you to discern whether it’s the Field-Dresser’s work or a shitty coincidence.”
    “The missing woman has dark hair, a pretty smile, and a long lean body.”
    Williams’ upper lip twitched and it was all the answer Nathan needed.
    “I’m sending Dick with you.”
    Nathan sawed his teeth.
    “Y’all are wheels up at Homestead in an hour. I suggest you work out your differences in-air. I won’t have the two of you screwing this up over a passed rivalry.”
    Nathan imagined opening the hatch mid-flight and shoving Special Agent Richard Kepler out without a parachute. “Yes sir.” Talk about working things out in air.

5
    “ S tay , bud,” Madelyn ordered. Her whisper echoed in the marble entrance of the police substation, but Deacon’s whine overpowered it. The silk of his ears nuzzled her bare calf. He’d stuck close all day, refusing to chase monkeys during her first two classes or play with her students at break. She supposed he only wanted to comfort her, but his somber mood seemed more foreboding than her rampant imagination.
    She crouched as demurely as she could in a skirt and heels and cradled his head. “No dogs allowed. Do you want Mrs. Edna to yell at us again?”
    His gaze lifted to the ceiling. If a dog could roll their eyes, Deacon had. Madelyn kissed his forehead, rubbed his fat jowls, and then stood. With a pouting huff he plopped himself down in a corner of the large corridor.
    Madelyn left her only source of comfort on the chilly marble and clacked her way through the main hallway. The knot that had been growing in her stomach all day cinched tight.
    Where the hell was Nichole?
    Two men loitered in the