Mueller did know that was all kinds of fucked up, considering their purpose for being there, and their need for reliable and willing witnesses. Or at this early stage in the investigation, any information they could find. And he knew how Bogart behaved would not foster that.

He also knew Boone wasn’t a fan of Bogart’s attitude, and because of Bogart, that was all they were going to get out of Ryn if Boone had anything to say about it.

So Mueller shut his mouth, it went tight, then he walked out.

Boone closed and locked the door then prowled down the hall to get his phone, which was on Ryn’s nightstand.

He didn’t get his first call off before Ryn was in the doorway.

“Malcolm or Tom?” she asked after names she didn’t know.

“Malcolm is Lee and Hank Nightingale’s dad, a cop. And Tom’s Lee’s wife, Indy Nightingale’s dad, also a cop.”

She knew Eddie and Hank. They were cops but they were in what was considered the Nightingale crew.

Jet, Lottie’s sister, one of the Rock Chicks, was married to Eddie Chavez.

Lottie’s posse…

Being Ryn’s posse.

Hawk’s crew…

Being Boone’s crew.

In other words all of this…

Their crew.

“Sebring?” she went on.

“Knight Sebring. He owns a club downtown. And he has a…” Fuck, how did you describe Knight? “Unique sense of right and wrong, and if someone is doing what he considers wrong, he’s the kind of man who wades in.”

She took that in before she stated, “Brett didn’t kill Corinne.”

Nope.

And the frame angle takes a finer point.

“Those cops are bad guys,” she went on.

Boone lost interest in his phone because she’d demonstrated her keen ability to read people and he was more interested in that.

“How do you know?” he asked.

“I hesitate to share, considering you’re not a big fan of this aspect of my job description, but do enough lap dances for skeevy guys, you can spot a skeeve from a thousand paces.”

He could totally buy that.

“Bogart was an easy read, your take on Mueller?” he asked.

She shrugged. “He’d never get a lap dance. He’d never even go into a strip club.”

“So you didn’t get a bead.”

“I didn’t say that. He’s the brains. In other words, he’s smart, sharp, in control and isn’t about to expose a tell. If this is bigger than those two, he’s the boss. If it’s just those two, he’s the mastermind.”

“Yeah, that was my take.”

“Boone.”

She said no more.

“Baby, I gotta call Hawk,” he prompted her to say what she needed to say.

“Brunch is off, isn’t it?” she asked.

“C’mere,” he muttered.

She came there.

He pulled her into his arms.

And then he gave her the bad news.

“Yeah.”

She held his eyes, lifted a hand and rested it at the base of his throat.

“You need to be careful,” she whispered.

He took in and blew out a breath.

And then he said, “Yeah.”

Chapter Seven

Flashback

Boone

Boone was taking the stairs up to Hawk’s office two at a time when his phone went with a text.

He kept moving as he pulled it out of his back pocket.

He stopped when he saw a text from Ryn.

Out shopping for teddies.

Keep me informed.

Sweet.

Hot.

Brat.

He grinned and took the stairs slower as he texted back,

Teddies?

He started jogging again, and by the time he was in the hall, heading to the door to Hawk’s suite, she’d answered.

With her own single word.

Red.

So, before he punched in the security code to get into the suite, he smiled and answered again with one word.

Spanked.

He gave that a second before he sent his next.

About to go in. I’ll text when I’m done.

He shoved his phone in his back pocket, hit the keypad and pushed in the door.

He looked immediately right.

And he knew how serious this was, even when he already knew it was serious.

This because a number of the players hadn’t fucked around with getting there.

Hawk. Hawk’s top lieutenant, Jorge. Boone’s colleague and bud, Mo. Mitch Lawson. And Ally Nightingale, officially a Rock Chick. Also officially a badass. Hank and Lee Nightingale’s baby sister. Ren Zano’s wife. And a woman who ran her own detective agency and she did it well.

Hawk gave him a chin lift and Boone moved to the conference room.

They were all standing in a huddle, but Boone caught Mo’s eyes first, before he focused on Hawk and stopped.

“We’ll get the full story when everyone is here,” Hawk said.

“Got it,” Boone replied. “You call Rush?”

Hawk looked to Mo.

Boone looked to Mo.

Mo nodded.

Mo had called Rush Allen, president of the Chaos Motorcycle Club, which was one of the factions Bogart had named as trying the patience of some of the brothers on the force in what Boone was translating as a veiled threat.

“Knight?” Boone went on.

“Knight’s in New York City with his girls,” Hawk said. “Not back until later today. Rhash is coming.”

Rhashan Banks, Knight’s right-hand man.

But it was pure Knight to take his woman and daughters to NYC, probably to shop, see shows, go to museums, and generally do a variety of shit Knight had zero interest in doing, all this over a school weekend.

But one of his girls mentions it, and they’re on a plane.

There was a lot to debate about how Knight Sebring lived his life.

The way he took care of his family was not part of that.

Hawk’s attention went over his shoulder and Boone looked there to see Lee Nightingale strolling in.

This started the flood of arrivals, which included another Nightingale, Hank. Then came Eddie Chavez. Brock Lucas. Rush Allen. Rhashan. Mag. Luke Stark, Lee Nightingale’s top guy. Malik, another cop friend and Hawk’s office manager, Elvira’s husband. And Carson “Joker” Steele, Boone’s bud in Chaos.

They all began to take seats, and to start them off, Hawk, standing at the head of the table pulling out his chair, announced, “Elvira isn’t here, and even if she was, she’d invite me to fuck off if I asked her to make everyone coffee. The machine is in the corner. Help yourself.”

Ally already had a coffee.

Boone had a white tumbler in his car that said FORTNUM’S USED BOOKS on the side, it had been filled by Ryn before he took off, and on his drive he’d discovered she had a heavy hand with scooping coffee, another indication they worked.

He’d downed it on the way there.

So he was set.

Eddie and Brock were still at the Nespresso machine when Hawk suggested Boone start it, running down Ryn’s convo with Cisco the other night and what happened that morning.

Everyone was seated, and he was not liking the looks on the faces of the cops at the table by the time he was done, so he finished by asking Mitch, “What?”