On Her Six (Under Covers) Read Online Free PDF Page B

before the screen went black.
    “Holy freakin’ mother of a biscuit on toast with jelly!” She held her foot and jumped around as Martinez, Sinclair, and the other officers pushed the PCP user toward Booking.
    “Mother Mary in Heaven and Wilbert, too,” she whimpered.
    “Sam?” Major Fowler said from behind. “What the hell is going on in here?”
    She turned to see his furrowed bushy eyebrows and wrinkled forehead.
    Squeezing her eyes shut and wincing, she pointed to her foot, which was still cradled in her other hand. “ Ow ,” she squeaked.

Chapter Four
    As Ash parked his ‘98 Dodge pickup along the curb, his stomach grumbled. After getting settled in last night, and then the incident with the Vamper this morning, he hadn’t eaten. He couldn’t wait to get inside and devour his lo mein.
    He lifted the manual lock on his driver’s side door and glanced up and down the street. Always vigilant.
    The street was quiet; it was midday so most neighbors were probably at work or staying inside to beat the heat. Based on what he’d seen so far, the community was made up of blue-collar workers. Some wore a shirt and tie, but the majority wore uniforms and drove company vans. The other half he’d seen walking the streets during the day were much older than him, probably retired, their hair gray and posture slumped from years of backbreaking work.
    Perfect place to blend in and learn what he could about the local drug scene. First, because this area was near the port, which was where the DEA suspected the Vamp supplier was bringing drugs into the city. Second, he knew from personal experience on the job that the quietest streets and people were the best sources of information.
    The DEA knew about Vamp and what it could do to a person once hooked, but they didn’t know how and where patrons were getting addicted in the first place. The incident with the addict this morning was a great start. Club Hell on 27th Street. Ash’s portion of this assignment was to learn information like that and then pass it on to his team leader, who would decide what to do with the intel. Which pissed Ash off because that used to be his job. Before his major fuckup on their last assignment, that is. Out of habit, he rubbed the left side of his chest, his fingers gliding over the notch of round, raised skin just above his heart. A constant reminder.
    If he wanted to get his team back, if he wanted to be team leader again, he had to play by Director Landry’s rules. Observe the city, see what he could learn about where addicts were getting hooked, and pass the info on. Do not under any circumstances take matters into his own hands.
    That last order was going to be his greatest struggle. Ash was a hands-on kind of guy. It wasn’t in his nature to sit back and watch.
    But he wanted to stop the drug pandemic that seemed to be taking over. It was why he joined the DEA in the first place. That shit didn’t belong on the streets. And users most definitely didn’t deserve to die because of it.
    Still gazing out the driver’s side window, he glanced at Blondie’s house and thought about their unorthodox introduction this morning. Boyish and athletic had been his first thought when he’d spotted her. But it was something in the way she moved that had caught his attention. Fluid and confident. Shoulders back and spine straight gave the illusion she always got her way.
    A bitter laugh escaped. And now he knew she was demanding and overbearing, too.
    Snatching the take-out bag from the seat, he slid out.
    He made it five steps.
    “Excuse me!” a female voice called out behind him.
    He glanced down at the bag in his hand and sighed. So much for chowing down on his lo mein. Stopping on the first step leading to his house, he turned.
    “You there—are you the new neighbor?” A woman hurried after him, making great strides despite her age and size, her full hips swaying with a purpose. Behind her she dragged a scraggly-haired mutt that looked