Damn, she thought, I really do need to up my social skills.
Standing outside Deb’s office, she heard her yelling at someone. “I don’t care what Agent Sawyer is saying. You hold him in his room until I say so.”
Sin entered the office and watched Deb mouth the word, “Finally.”
“Hold on,” the doc said to whoever was on the other end, “I’m on my way. Tell him that he’ll be discharged when I get there.” Deb hung up the phone, sat back, and folded her hands across her chest. “It’s about time. I have Navy brass crawling all over me. It seems your boy called his boss and demanded to be released.”
Sin sat in the chair across from the desk. “Sorry for the trouble. I’ll make a few calls and straighten it out.”
Deb rose and stood in front of Sin. “Don’t bother. This is the most excitement I’ve had since the last time you swept into my life. How long has that been? Let’s see.”
Sin watched as Deb started to count back with her fingers. “Okay,” Sin said, grabbing her hand, “I know, I’m a lousy friend. Sorry.”
“Shut up and give me a hug.”
The two hugged and sat next to one another. “Now, tell me what the hell is going on.”
Sin caught Deb up on what had been happening and why she needed Sawyer kept at the hospital until she had a chance to speak to him. When she was finished, Deb stood and swept her arm toward the door. “Come on. I can’t wait to hear what he has to say.”
“Me too.”
Walking the hall, Deb stopped and grabbed her arm. “I received your text. As soon as we leave here, I want to see Becca Lancaster. I want to check her out and make sure she’s okay.”
Before they reached Sawyer’s room, they heard him screaming at the staff. “Jesus, he’s a piece of work,” Deb said. “Not that I disagree with him complaining about being held for no apparent reason, but he’s been taking out his aggression on my staff. If it wasn’t for you, I would have kicked his ass to the curb a long time ago.”
“I’m sorry for the hassle,” Sin said.
“I’ll go sign his discharge papers and leave this fool to you.”
As Sin was stepping through the doorway, a bedpan flew past Sin and into the hall. “I don’t give a shit what some ‘stick up the ass’ doctor says,” he yelled. “I’m out of here. Give me my damn clothes!”
“Stick up the ass doctor,” Sin said, entering the room. “Is that any way to talk?”
Sawyer’s head snapped toward the door. “O’Malley. I should have known you were behind this.”
“Here I was wondering what exactly you were behind.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
She grabbed his clothes from a cart outside his room and threw them at him. “It means you haven’t been honest with me. I don’t appreciate that.”
Sawyer pulled his pants on underneath his hospital gown. “Bull shit. I gave you the drive with my notes. I’ve been transparent.”
“Transparent? Do you want to talk about following Becca and Pia to the reggae club here or on our way? Your choice.”
With angry, jerky movements, Sawyer fumbled with the buttons on his shirt. “On our way where?”
“You never answered the question.”
Sawyer pushed his way past her. “I’m not telling you shit and I’m not going anywhere with you. I don’t have to explain myself to you. I have a young girl to find.”
“As usual, you’re a little too late.”
Sawyer stopped and faced her. “What the hell does that mean?”
“It means you were too late in protecting Becca. Too late in providing me the information I requested, and too late finding Becca.”
She saw the color drain from his face. “Is she de—?”
She shook her head. “No. I found her. Becca’s safe.”
Sawyer slumped against the wall and dropped his head. “Thank God.”
“God had nothing to do with it. Let’s go.”
Walking away, Deb caught up and walked beside Sin.
“Who’s this?” Sawyer said.
“Dr. Deborah O’Rourke meet Agent Jason Sawyer. Agent Sawyer meet ‘stick up the ass’ Dr. O’Rourke.”
Outside, Sin stepped up to her bike and swept her leg over the saddle.
“Where’s my car?” Sawyer asked.
“I had it towed to the police station. It wasn’t safe outside the reggae club.”
“How am I supposed to get to wherever we’re going?”
Sin pointed to her bike. “You ride with me.”
“Where to?” Deb said.
“We’ll meet you at the Johnson place.”
Sin watched Deb walk to her car and pull out of the lot. “Now, before we go anywhere, care to tell me about the night Becca and Pia were taken?”
Sawyer huffed. “There’s not much to tell. I didn’t like Smitty’s idea of giving Becca and Pia space while they were down here. Too many people, too many unknowns, so I followed them. The bar was packed wall-to-wall. Somehow, I lost them. When her alarm went off, I followed the signal and ran toward the dock, but I was too late.”
“Did Becca know you were following her?”
“Sort of,” he nodded. “I told her I would stay out of sight but that I wouldn’t leave her alone.”
“How did she take that?”
“Like any nineteen-year-old. She wasn’t happy. But she understood the risk involved in her being in large crowds. It’s something she’s had to deal with for the past six years.”
“Anything else you want to share? Were you alone, or were there other agents with you?”
Sin watched Sawyer’s eyes drift up and right. A sign he was searching for an answer. When he looked at her, all he said was, “I was alone, and I’ve told you all I know. I swear.”
Sin didn’t push him, she just swung her leg over the saddle of her bike and pointed to the seat behind her.
Sawyer grumbled as he swung his leg over the saddle and sat behind her.
As Sin jumped on the starter and gunned the throttle, she heard Sawyer swear as he
