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Chapter 22
Buck leaned back in his chair, draping his arm over the empty seat next to him.
"Kid sure booked it out of here fast," Buck said.
Josiah smiled. "Young love," he said.
Buck's eyes cut over to the bar and the woman serving drinks. Inez said something to a couple seated there and gave them a warm smile.
"Glad you could convince him to take the night off and go to Casey," Buck said, turning his attention back to Josiah.
Josiah lifted his tall glass of beer in agreement. "Me too."
Buck slid his phone toward him and glanced at it. He frowned. He had hoped Morgan would join them for supper, but he hadn't heard from her. He hadn't heard from her since yesterday. His frown deepened.
"You worried about something?" Josiah asked.
Buck put his phone back down. "Not about nothing new."
"Morgan," Josiah guessed.
Buck sighed heavily. "I start thinkin' we're making progress then this. She goes radio silent. Won't return my calls."
Josiah set his drink down. "I'm sorry, brother."
Buck appreciated that Josiah didn't offer platitudes.
His phone lit up and Buck had a flare of hope that maybe Morgan was calling. But it wasn't her name on the caller ID.
"Hey, Ez. Everything ok?" Buck asked. The way Ezra had hurried out earlier hadn't been reassuring.
"It's Morgan," Ezra said, no preamble.
Buck felt his stomach lurch. He was already on his feet. "What is it? Is she ok?"
There was a long enough pause to keep Buck's stomach lurching.
"I'm bringing her to your house," Ezra said. "We'll be there in five minutes."
And then he disconnected.
Buck was frozen. None of what Ezra said made sense. His mind latched onto the one thing he could figure out. Ezra wasn't bringing Morgan to a hospital. He was bringing her to his house. Bringing his sister home. So she must be ok. She had to be ok.
"What's going on?" Josiah asked.
Buck just shook his head. He was pulling out his wallet, blindly tossing bills onto the table. "I don't know."
"You need me to go with you?"
Buck shook his head, more out of uncertainty than turning down Josiah's offer.
"I'll let you know," Buck said. He started for the door, nearly tripping over someone's legs that were stretched out past their table. He mumbled an apology, but didn't slow. Not until he crashed into a waitress, carrying a tray.
"Sorry," Buck said on instinct. He grabbed at the tray, steadying it and keeping it from tipping.
"Buck?" Inez asked, shifting her weight to keep the tray in her arms.
"Sorry, Inez. Sorry," Buck rambled out an apology, making sure she was steady on her feet, but already focused on the door. "You ok there?"
"I'm fine," Inez brushed off his concern. She moved, trying to meet his eyes. "Is something wrong?"
Buck shook his head. "I don't know." He managed to glance down at her briefly. "I gotta go."
He made his way around her without upsetting her tray again. He made it outside, to his truck and looked around quickly before backing out of his parking spot. His phone lit up again and he glanced at it. It was Chris. He didn't bother answering. His entire focus was on Morgan. Ezra was with her and Buck needed to get to his house. Anything else could wait.
Ezra's fancy car was parked in the driveway of Buck's townhouse at a haphazard angle. Buck parked at the curb. He glanced in the window of the car on his way past, looking for any hint of what was going on. The passenger seat was folded down. Buck couldn't figure out why Morgan would have ridden in the back.
His front door was unlocked and he stepped into an empty living room.
"Ezra?" he called.
His living room wasn't empty. He stopped in his tracks. There was a girl—a young woman—sleeping on his couch.
"Ezra!" he called again.
"We're in the kitchen," came Ezra's voice. Buck could hear the pressure there. Not so much the tension as the complete lack of it. Ezra was clearly working to sound completely even keeled. Which made Buck even more concerned.
He glanced at the woman on the couch again and walked through the little used dining room to the kitchen.
Ezra was standing next to the doorway and glanced briefly at Buck when he came in, then turned his attention to the opposite end of the room.
Buck followed his eyes.
Morgan whirled around and looked at Buck with a look of panic pulling at her face. Her eyes were wild, her hair falling out of her ponytail into her face, her hands shaking.
"What's wrong?" Buck demanded. He started toward Morgan, needing to get to her and find out what was wrong as much as he needed to reassure himself that she was alright, but Ezra laid a hand on his arm. It was Morgan wheeling backwards and slamming into the wall behind her that stopped him, though.
He swung his gaze to Ezra, ready to demand answers, but Ezra didn't make him wait.
"Your sister took something."
Buck's attention flew back to Morgan. The look in her eyes, the flush of her skin, the darting gaze. Buck wanted to slam his fist into something. He had never even suspected Morgan was into anything like that. Even with that creep she was going around with, Buck had never thought—
"Buck?"
Morgan's voice hurled from her. Buck did what he could to match Ezra's posture. Easy. Nonthreatening.
"Hey, Mo," he said. His words weren't as light as he had hoped for, but it was the best he could manage with his little sister high as a kite and agitated in front of him.
"Buck," she said again and this time she came toward him. "You're here? It's you? You're really here?" Her words were rushed, pushed out of her. She lifted her hands and framed his face with them, like she was trying to make sure he was there. Buck wanted to tell her he would be there for her no matter what. He had always been there.
He could feel her hands trembling against his face, her fingers tightening their hold on him, but he didn't take the connection from her.
"I'm here. I've got you," he said.
"He won't get me?" she asked then, the panic flaring in her eyes, releasing her hold on Buck and backing away to anxiously scan the kitchen, flinching when she saw the windows.
Buck looked to Ezra in silent question, Ezra was watching Morgan with concern.
"There were some…men…in the apartment where Morgan and her friend were."
Buck heard the barely suppressed anger and his alarm rose. "Did they—"
"No."
He let out a long breath, but it was far from relief. Not with Morgan flinching when she looked at the windows.
Buck crossed the room, trying to keep his movements slow, even, nonthreatening, and pulled the shades. Morgan's eyes met his for a minute, but then she was moving again. She put a hand to her chest and looked to Ezra.
"I know it's unpleasant," Ezra said quietly to her. "I know."
"What did she take?" Buck asked.
Ezra kept his eyes on Morgan. "Meth."
Buck had guessed as much. It wasn't reassuring, knowing they had hours of Morgan strung out ahead of them.
"And her friend?" he asked, the woman on his couch just as much a concern.
"I don't know," Ezra said. And then Ezra did take his eyes off Morgan, but Buck was willing to bet his teammate was every bit as aware of Morgan's every move as he was himself. "When Morgan called, it sounded like Lei was drugged against her will. Morgan was trying to get her out of there."
The knowledge that Ezra had dropped everything when Morgan called and got her and her friend out of wherever they had been threatened to overwhelm Buck. He could never pay Ezra back for that.
"Ez," he started.
"Noted," Ezra said, cutting off Buck's thanks.
Buck watched Morgan as she opened the fridge, swinging the door too quickly and a couple jars falling to the floor. Then she backed away, leaving the door open, the refrigerator forgotten. She went to the window again, but stopped, both her hands pressing to her heart.
"I didn't take them to the hospital." It was the first Buck could remember ever hearing Ezra sound uncertain. "I didn't know if you wanted Morgan associated with any of the criminal element should the police be brought in."
Buck knew the police wouldn't have been called for Morgan. But they might have for her friend. If they did a tox screen and found she had been drugged with a date rape drug, and Morgan was linked to her…
"Let's spare them that," Buck said. But that didn't mean he wouldn't get answers. And if he found the guys, they would wish it was the cops that had picked them up.
"He's here," Morgan said. Her voice shook. "He's here. He found me." She gasped out the words.
"I took care of him," Ezra said.
Buck raised his eyebrows. He was going to get details on that later. And buy Ezra a beer.
"They're back at the apartment," Ezra said.
"In Denver?" Morgan asked. She clutched her forearms with her hands and Buck winced at the way her nails dug into her skin, but she didn't seem to notice. "He's in Denver? He followed me?"
Buck felt his brow furrow. Who was Morgan talking about?
But he couldn't ask her. Not when she was spinning out. Her breathing too fast, her skin too flushed. Right now, he just needed to stay by his sister's side. No questions asked. She needed to know Buck was there, no matter what.
#
It had been a long day. It had felt even longer after starting it with Morgan and finding out what had happened in Vegas.
Chris pulled the bottle of whiskey out of the bottom drawer of his desk. He poured a splash into his coffee mug and put the bottle away.
The bottle usually made an appearance after a case was wrapped up. The men would gather in the bullpen, Chris would bring out the good whiskey and they would celebrate another notch in their belts as a team. The unspoken sentiment was that they were also celebrating all of them getting through alive, unharmed. They didn't leave anyone behind. No matter what.
And the entire time, Morgan had been on her own in Vegas, getting beaten by an old boyfriend. He and Buck had left her on her own. Celebrating their wins, focused on their team, their job, while she had been fighting a battle on her own.
Chris shoved the mug away without tasting the drink. He dropped his head into his hands, fighting for control.
He needed to talk to Morgan, not to find out if she was ok, because everything about her return to Denver made it clear she wasn't. He needed to find out what needed to be done now. How they could make this guy pay.
He needed to talk to Buck. Buck needed to know.
Knowing he wasn't going to get any sleep tonight, Chris grabbed his keys. He flipped off his office light on the way out. He'd head over to Buck's now. See if Morgan had given Buck any hint of what had happened in Vegas. Then they'd go from there.
Morgan wasn't going to be left alone again.
#
Casey beamed from where she was snuggled up next to JD on the couch. She took the small gift bag Nettie handed her and opened it.
Vin forced a smile when he felt Nettie's eyes on him again. He knew Nettie wasn't missing his distraction and he was frustrated with himself for being so distracted. Morgan had made it clear she wanted nothing to do with him. She didn't want his help. It was a sorry form of self-torture to keep thinking of her. But he couldn't stop. Not when he had seen her forced to debase herself on Ezra's lap at the club last night. Not when he had seen the look in her eyes after.
"Vin?"
Vin dragged his attention back to Casey. She was looking at him with concern. So was JD.
Vin mentally shook himself. He knew that JD hadn't missed Chris' furious words for him and Ezra. JD knew something was going on with their assignment. But he also knew JD wouldn't say anything in front of Casey. Not on her birthday.
Casey was holding a small vase in her hands.
"That's real pretty, Casey," Vin said, managing to sound like he hadn't been miles away.
Casey still looked like she was worried about him, but JD gave her shoulder a squeeze and she relaxed slightly.
"It's for her desk when she graduates this spring. All the things she's gonna be dealin' with as a social worker, she's gonna need some fresh flowers to brighten her desk," Nettie said.
"That's a good thought, Nettie," Vin said.
Casey set the vase on the coffee table in front of her, and Nettie handed her the box Vin had brought with him.
Vin kept his attention on Casey—on Nettie and their little makeshift family—while she opened the box. She opened it and looked up at him with big eyes. She pulled the photo album from the box and the box fell to the floor, unnoticed.
She eagerly opened the cover and started to flip through the pages. She stopped on one page and her eyes twinkled as she held it up for him to see.
The picture of her and Vin, ready for a formal dance at their high school, Casey pretty as a picture in a blue dress, and Vin looking like he was ready to suffocate in a tie, made Vin smile sincerely. He had wanted nothing more than to skip that dance. But Casey hadn't had a date and he had dressed up and taken her, ending up standing alongside the wall until she dragged him onto the dance floor against his will.
Casey looked back at the album, all the pictures Vin had put in the sleeves of her and Nettie, of him and Casey, of Casey and JD.
When she got to the last page, she let out a small gasp and read the handwritten words on the paper before slipping it out of the sleeve and handing to Nettie without a word.
"You said that would never see the light of day again," Casey said, not looking one bit irked that Vin hadn't kept his word.
Vin felt himself flush slightly. "Thought maybe I'd give it to you. Make sure you know…"
Nettie handed the page back to Casey. "I always liked that poem. About time you let us read it again."
Casey started to hand it to JD, but Vin stood then and tucked it back into the photo album.
"Never shoulda let you read it the first time around," he mumbled.
It had been a school assignment. To write a poem about your family. Vin had only been with Nettie and Casey a few weeks by that time. But they had been the first family he could remember. So the poem had been written and turned in. It had hung proudly on Nettie's fridge until Vin had taken it down and stuck it in his bottom dresser drawer, embarrassed by the feelings he had shared.
JD looked at his watch. "I gotta get going," he said, his face matching the way Casey's fell. "I'm going to need to get an early start tomorrow on the wires. But I'll stop by if it's not too late after."
Casey nodded. She fingered the bracelet she was wearing that had been JD's birthday gift for her.
"I'll help you clean up," Vin said to Nettie, both of them taking their leave to allow JD and Casey some privacy before JD left.
Vin was in no hurry to go. He didn't want to see Morgan's lack of response to his texts, he didn't want to see what Ezra had called about and think about what they were going to have to say to Buck and Chris about what was going on at the strip club. He'd rather stay and fend off Nettie's suspicious glances.
#
Chris pulled his truck to the curb in front of Buck's house, eyes narrowing at Ezra's Jag taking up the driveway. Buck's truck out on the street. JD's car pulled in behind him.
"JD," Chris greeted him as they both got out of their vehicles. It was late, but the lights were on in Buck and JD's house.
"Are we having a meeting?" JD asked. "I didn't get any messages about that. I was with Casey—"
"No meeting," Chris cut off his apology. "Just stopping by to talk with Buck." And apparently Ezra. He hoped Ezra was there coming clean to Buck about what he and Vin were up to. It made sense Ezra would feel more comfortable going to Buck first. Chris was well aware that Ezra would rather not broach questionable subjects with him. They hadn't gotten off to the easiest of starts and there were times he questioned whether he had fully earned Ezra's trust.
JD opened the door and Chris followed him in. He heard Buck's voice coming from the kitchen, then something toppling over and Ezra's words. Another crash.
He looked at JD and they both headed toward the back of the house. Chris glanced at the woman passed out on the couch. He didn't want to know. But he kept going anyway.
As soon as he stepped through the kitchen doorway, he ducked, something flying through the air at him and crashing on the floor in pieces.
"Let's just calm down," Buck was saying.
"We're over here. No one is coming near you," Ezra added.
Chris was aware of JD ducking back around the doorway of the kitchen, but Chris ventured forward. He looked in the direction they were looking and saw Morgan. An irate Morgan.
Morgan brandished a plate.
"What's going on?" Chris asked. He had his own frustrations with Ezra and Buck at times and had felt like throwing a few things at them—or shooting them—but had no idea what had set Morgan off.
"Stay away from me," Morgan said.
Chris took a better look at her and knew she hadn't gone straight home to Buck's after she left his place that morning. She had gotten drugs somewhere.
"I was tryin' to check her pulse," Buck said. "See if she's ok."
Chris could guess how rapidly Morgan's heart was beating.
Morgan tossed the plate aside, no reaction to the shattering.
"Don't think she's ok, Buck," Chris said grimly.
Morgan looked to Chris. He wondered what she was seeing. She looked like she was under attack by her thoughts, and after what she had said—or not said—this morning, Chris could guess what those thoughts were.
"Let's give her some space. She don't need all of us crowding her," Chris said. "You can keep an eye on her through the door," he said to Buck.
He and Ezra backed out of the room with Buck, leaving Buck in the doorway.
Chris heard Morgan muttering to herself and shut down whatever he wanted to make this easier for her. That wasn't an option right now. Not with whatever she had put in her system. She was going to have to ride this out.
He and Ezra went past JD, still hovering near the doorway, his face a mixture of worry and fear.
"She'll be fine, Mr. Dunne," Ezra said as he passed him. "As soon as the drugs wear off."
Chris wasn't surprised to see Ezra go directly to the couch and crouch down next to it, slipping a finger over the girl's slim wrist. The girl stirred slightly and the relief on Ezra's face was evident.
"You feel like telling me what the hell is going on?" Chris asked when Ezra looked satisfied with the girl's condition.
Ezra's shoulders stilled and he took his time standing to face Chris. Chris braced himself for whatever Ezra was about to say.
Ezra filled him in on the phone call, what he had found when he got there, and his suspicion that Morgan hadn't done the drugs willingly.
Chris found his ire growing. His rage wasn't towards Morgan. It was to the ex he had learned about this morning. The one who had her running from Vegas, kicked out of school, and into a self-destructive free fall ever since she showed up in Denver.
Shouting came from the kitchen and Ezra winced. "I'm going to take Lei out of here. When she wakes up, it might be less threatening if she's not near this."
Chris shook his head. "And you think waking up with some strange man, in his house, after being drugged is going to be less terrifying?"
Ezra hesitated and Chris narrowed his eyes.
"We're acquainted," Ezra finally said. "I've met Lei previously."
Chris wasn't sure if he wanted to know how Ezra was tangled up with Morgan and whatever she was into in Denver. But a part of him was relieved that at least Morgan had Ezra on her side. For all his differences with his often wayward agent, Chris trusted him with Morgan.
Chris held back any further comment and got the door for Ezra, helped him get the girl into his low slung sports car and stepped back to watch them drive off.
Inside the house, he heard another crash, and he didn't allow himself the satisfaction of a heavy sigh. He held it in. He held everything in with tight control as he walked back inside with heavy steps.
#
