The Baker Read Free Page A

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    “Yeah.” Terry chuckled before finishing off his cream-filled piece of deliciousness. “You can never be too careful.”
    Cameron grinned back before looking up to call the meeting to order. Each of the ten detectives working on crimes against persons, property, and fraud gave a brief report, with the guy in charge of intelligence bringing up the rear. Casper wasn’t a hub of serious crime, but property crime, some gang activity, and organized crime kept them busy. Cameron had added the intelligence officer position to the team after he was promoted at the end of last year, and the man had already made a significant impact. Between that and Cameron’s changes in the case management system, they had improved the tracking and status of investigations to the point where Cameron’s boss was happy, and Cameron was on track for the next promotion.
    After brief reports from the youth division, victim services, and the property and evidence department, Cameron asked for additional points, but nobody had anything to add. The holidays had been thankfully quiet for them, different from the guys on patrol. They had been extremely busy trying to keep Casper’s streets safe and free from inebriated drivers.
    “Okay, that’s it for this week, then. I’ll see you again in the new year.” Cameron rose to signal the end of their formal meeting, noting with a regretful glance that the leftover donuts had somehow managed to evaporate into thin air while he wasn’t looking.
    “You got a minute?” Steve Hatcher walked up to Cameron, notepad in hand. He was in his late forties, with a slight paunch and thinning brown hair and happened to be an excellent property detective. The man’s real passion was gossip though, and Cameron had been impressed with Steve’s ability to remain on top of departmental politics on many occasions.
    “Sure, you want to join me in my office?” Cameron started walking when Steve nodded, and they were soon settled in the small room with its old-fashioned filing cabinets and clutter-free desk. Cameron sat and looked at Steve, curious what Steve wanted to share.
    “I just heard the most interesting bit of news, and knowing how important it is we stay on top of things, I thought you should know about it too.” Steve settled more deeply into the visitor’s chair, apparently ready for a long discussion. The older detective loved feeling important.
    Cameron nodded and tilted his head to communicate his interest. That was usually all it took to get Steve going.
    “So, here’s the thing.” Steve cleared his throat. “From what I’ve been hearing, it sounds like the chief may be retiring soon.”
    “Bullock?” Cameron raised his eyebrows in disbelief. “Our own Chief of Police Jeremy Bullock? Are you sure? The man is married to his job, and he’s only just over sixty.”
    “Yep, got it via my sister-in-law’s cousin’s son. He’s very friendly with one of the chief’s closest family members, can’t tell you which one, that’s confidential. But let me tell you, he’d know.” Steve sat up straight, as if Cameron might attack the reliability of his sources and he was getting ready to defend their and his honor.
    “Hey, I don’t doubt that’s what they said. I just have a really hard time imagining Bullock anywhere but right in the middle of things.” Cameron leaned back in his seat, letting the idea sink in.
    “I know, right?” Steve smirked. “But what if it’s true? Depending on who’s the next guy in charge, people will get promoted, moved around, and the whole mess we went through three years ago when Bullock took over will just repeat itself.”
    “Not to mention it’ll take them a while to figure out whom to appoint. Our work will get affected for sure.” Cameron groaned. He’d only been here two years, and only a detective, when the last upheaval had paralyzed them. Now, with a whole department under him, the politics might kill him.
     
     
    NOT SURPRISINGLY