Hit and Run Read Free

years ago. It was cute and suited her.
    It was also quiet. No lights on. No car in the driveway. It looked empty.
    “You sure you have the right house?”
    “Yep.”
    Scarlet drove two blocks down, pulled over, and jumped out. She saluted Krista, who slid over to the driver’s seat.
    Scarlet jogged back to Leah’s house. She didn’t see anyone watching the place. She knocked on the front door. No answer. No movement. She tried the door. Locked.
    Did she pick the lock? Go in? What if Jason wasn’t here? Breaking and entering?
    Instead of going through the front, she went down the long, narrow single-car driveway to the back. The garage was detached and situated almost completely behind house. A brick patio and another postage-sized area of lawn separated the house from the garage. She tried the back door. It was unlocked.
    Gun in hand, she opened the door. “Jason!” she called in a stage whisper.
    She heard a footfall behind her. She swung around and saw her old friend step around the garage into the backyard. He, too, had a gun.
    “Put it down, Jason.”
    “You first.”
    What? Jason was her friend. And he had a gun on her. Her anger level rose. “You called me .”
    Jason glanced around. “You alone?”
    “Put the damn gun down.”
    He lowered his weapon, so she lowered hers.
    “My partner is keeping an eye out,” she said.
    “Partner?”
    “Krista Hart.”
    “I remember her.”
    “Where I go, she goes. Tell me what the fuck is going on.”
    “Someone tried to kill me today.”
    “That’s what you said. Let’s go inside.”
    He hesitated, then nodded and opened the back door, motioning her to go in first. She did, looking around to make sure no one was lurking. They were in a small eating area off the kitchen. She walked through the kitchen into the dining room, then finally holstered her gun.
    “I can’t stay here long,” Jason said. “They’ll find me.”
    “I have a safe place, but first—talk to me, Jason.”
    Jason didn’t turn on any lights. The street lighting cast a faint glow through the partly-closed mini-blinds in the adjoining living room. He paced the width of the dining room.
    “Sit,” she told him.
    He almost didn’t, then pulled out a chair and sat. His whole body was tense, which made her hyper-alert as well. Every car that passed burned her ears as she listened for the tell-tale sign of slowing, observation.
    She remained standing. “What’s going on, Jason? Who tried to kill you? Why didn’t you call your captain?”
    “I wanted to—but I can’t. I don’t trust anyone.”
    “John will help.”
    Jason shook his head. “He’s part of the system. I can’t go to him, risk his career—risk his life. I didn’t even want to call you, but I don’t know where else to turn.”
    “What happened?”
    “I don’t even know!”
    “Jason. From the beginning.”
    He took a deep breath, let it out, looked her in the eye. “The beginning? I don’t even know when it started, but I think it was when my sergeant split up my partner and me. Put us each with a rookie.”
    Her heart skipped a beat. That’s what happened to her right before the ambush three years ago. She and her partner, Detective Gabe Stone, were separated and reassigned as training officers. That’s how she met Krista. It wasn’t uncommon, most cops had to train at one point . It was that it came as a surprise, and only two weeks before the ambush. Scarlet hadn’t thought it was suspicious until later.
    And now a similar situation had happened to Jason.
    Jason continued. “Last night, I was coming off shift late—after midnight. I was totally beat after a shitty day. I had three domestic violence calls in a row, then thirty minutes before I was supposed to clock out, a gang shooting. Thirteen-year-old shot and killed a twelve-year-old. I was first on scene.” He paused, the anger and grief etched in his face.
    “I was halfway home when my partner, Gina Perez, called me. We hadn’t seen much of each