Free Unlock the Truth by Robena Grant

downtown, babe,” she said, hurried over and pressed a soft warm kiss to his lips. Then she spun on her heel and waved a hand toward her car door. “See that hole in my car, Deputy Stanton? That’s from a gunshot.”
    Stanton’s eyes widened.
    Zeke tried to hide his surprise at her kiss. He touched the tips of his fingers to his lips. She really liked goading Dave. Huh, how about that? Now he could smile. Then Stanton shoved a hand on his head and pushed him down and into the back seat of the cop car, erasing all smiles. Imagine that…being transported in the back…in the freakin’ cage.
    “No need to unpack my stuff, Irma,” he heard Dena call out as the door slammed. “I’ll do it when I get home.”
    He looked back toward the courtyard. Irma stood huddled inside. She wiped her eyes with the corner of her apron. Manny stood behind her, his young face worried, and beside him Bob Carmine gripped a soda can. What a weird scene. Zeke sensed the beginning of something new and big. Bigger than anything he’d ever known.
    Stanton slammed his car door shut. Zeke settled into the seat and closed his eyes for a second. Dena kissed me? And she’s staying at Three C’s? How is that going to work out?
    He turned and looked through the rear window as the cop car drew away.
    Dena slid into the driver’s seat of her car. Several officers came around from the back of his house and climbed into another car. His heartbeat pounded with indignation.
    Had they expected him to run?
    No sirens blared or lights flashed as the cars spun around in the driveway and headed out to the main road. That was a plus. Zeke swallowed hard against the nausea that rose in the back of his throat. His head pounded again and he closed his eyes. Susie was dead, murdered.
    He could remember her smile and her scent; his first love. Regret tore through him that they’d argued. He should have tried to work things out. Why had he requested that restraining order on her? How long ago had that been, three months, or four?
    His eyes smarted and he closed them tighter and leaned his head back against the headrest. This had all the makings of being a long day.

Chapter Five
    Would this make the papers in L.A.? Dena pressed her mouth tight. The local paper for sure. Yep, this would be all over the Los Angeles Times . And if the cops took her statement, well, her name might be mentioned. She’d have to call her boss before he called her. She owed him that.
    The cops took a back route. They were way ahead of her but she could still see their cars. Desert landscape mixed with farmland surrounded her. She slowed down, looking for a safe place to make a call. Everything was so flat. Occasional roadside stands that featured grapefruit, dates, and oranges at reduced prices flashed by her windows. She slowed, thought twice about stopping then hit the accelerator.
    The long road ahead shimmered with a haze from the afternoon sun. Now she’d lost sight of the cop cars and a tiny tingle of panic began to rise in her chest. She passed by several huge concrete block fences. Each development had wrought iron gates manned by a security guard house; fancy estates with Spanish names. All she could see beyond the tall fences were rooftops. At least she’d reached civilization.
    She pulled into a strip-mall parking lot and reached for her cell phone. With the new California laws about hands-free cell calls, she knew she’d have to buy one of those Bluetooth thingamajigs, but who had time to shop? She blew out a puff of air, made sure her car doors were locked, and pressed the number in her auto-dial.
    “Tell me this again,” Steve said, and his angry voice grew louder. “You’re working for him without a contract. You said you’re his girlfriend. You entered a restricted crime scene and you want me to take over the case. And I’m to fire you as of Friday?”
    Dena winced at the anger in Steve’s voice. He rarely yelled or showed how upset he was, but with every sentence