Free Teresa Watson by Death Stalks the Law Page B

Crenshaw,” I told him. “Sheriff Greene said that Agent Hopkins wants to see me.”
    “Hold on a minute,” the man said. He made a call that lasted less than a minute. “You can go in, Ms. Crenshaw, but your friend will have to wait outside.”
    Trixie started to say something, but I stopped her. “It’s ok, Trix. I’ll be fine. All I have to do is scream, and he’ll come running, I’m sure.” I smiled at the man and went inside.
    Hopkins was staring at the wall as I walked in. “Sheriff Greene says you know about T.J.”
    “He’s the person you met in Red Oak,” I said, sitting down in the chair by his bed.
    He nodded. “If it makes any difference, he tried to get out of the assignment three months ago. He didn’t feel right about the way we were using you for information.”
    “You were using me for bait.”
    “Yes, we were. But you are the only connection we have to her.”
    “You still have Earline, her mother’s best friend.”
    “She isn’t doing us much good locked up, Ms. Crenshaw. You and your mother are the only living family she has left.”
    “But she hasn’t made contact with my mother, has she?”
    He shook his head. “No, she seems to have attached herself to you for some reason.”
    “Lucky me.”
    “At a meeting with our superiors a few days ago, T.J. said he thought Cosgrove was hiding out at an old farmhouse a few miles outside of town.”
    “Well, that certainly narrows things down. There are only twenty or thirty farmhouses around here. Shouldn’t take more than two or three days to search them all.”
    “He said it had a red barn near the main house.”
    “So that narrows the search to maybe fifteen. Why didn’t you tell Owen this?”
    “Because I wanted to tell you that T.J. truly loves you. He was hoping that you wouldn’t find out about his assignment until after we caught your aunt. He was talking about resigning and joining the sheriff’s department on a full-time basis, just so he could be here with you. I didn’t think that was something you wanted me to tell the sheriff.”
    I didn’t know what to say. Half of me thought it was sweet that he wanted to give up his career to stay here; the other half wanted to kick him to the moon for the deception. “I broke up with him, Agent Hopkins. No one likes to be used, even if it is for the right reasons.”
    “Just give him a chance to explain before you write him off completely,” Hopkins said. “You’re the first person who has been able to crack through that hard heart of his since his wife died.”
    “His…wife?” Wow, did not see that one coming.
    “She was an agent, like us. She was killed on assignment overseas. T.J. took a leave of absence for a few months, and when he came back, he had changed. He didn’t allow himself to get too emotionally attached to anyone. But once he took this assignment, he mellowed. You became more than an assignment to him. He fell in love with you.”
    I shook my head. “But it doesn’t change the fact that he used me. That’s not something I am going to easily forget or forgive.” I stood up. “Is there anything else?”
    “Just one more thing. The envelope that T.J. gave me had a flash drive in it. It contained some new information he had. I never got the chance to look at it. Your aunt must have it now, so whatever he knows, she does, too.”
    “I’ll tell Owen about it. What do your superiors have to say about all this?”
    “Not much at this point.”
    “Did you tell them about T.J.’s suspicions about her whereabouts?”
    “I did. They’re going to start searching the county soon. I doubt they told your sheriff about it.”
    “So you want me to do it.”
    “Professionally, I am telling you not to get involved. Personally, I think you should tell him what is going on. This is his turf; he needs to be involved because he knows the area. Whether you decide to tell him or not is up to you.”
    “I’ll do what I can.”
    “Good luck. I hope you find