I stood up, pushing the table when I did, shoving it straight into not just St. James’ chest, but also the chief’s and Yao’s as well.
I didn’t stop to think about what I was doing, though.
Instead, I let my anger take the driver’s seat and let him have it.
“Listen here, motherfucker,” I growled. “Royal is the best goddamn thing that’s ever fucking happened to me. And you want to dangle her like a piece of unwanted meat? I think the fuck not.” I leaned as far over the table as I could, planting both of my fists into the solid wood instead of his face like I wanted. “I don’t know what kind of piece of shit treats his daughter like you do, but you don’t impress me anywhere near as much as you impress everyone else at this goddamn department. First, I could give no shits if you were to get hurt. And honestly, I think that your son would much rather spend his life with his sister and not the so-called father that would rather his son be unhappy than have his sister in his life.” I clenched and unclenched my fists. “Every couple of hours, I was having to sneak into the locker room to delete the messages that your son sent her when you forbade her to have any contact with him. It was killing me to see the tears filling her eyes when she saw what her ignoring him was doing to him.”
The Judge’s mouth clenched at my words.
“I hate you and I don’t even know you,” I continued, leaning even farther forward. “I wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire. Hell, I would grab a can of gas and throw it on you just to make it burn hotter at this point. You’re no father. You’re a piece of fucking shit.”
A soft hand on my forearm was the only thing that had me pulling back when I only wanted to reach across the table and pull that man across it just to slam his face into the wood.
“Justice, it’s okay,” she said softly.
I laughed in the man’s face.
“And even now, after you’ve treated her like dogshit, she protects you,” I snapped. “You don’t deserve a goddamn thing.”
I sat back in my seat and looked at the chief. “You won’t use her.”
Luke’s eyes were hard, and he nodded once.
I didn’t care if he was pissed. Hell, I didn’t even care about my job at this point.
I’d live in a cardboard box if it meant that Royal was happy and protected.
“We’re not using her as bait,” Yao promised. “It’s obvious that he can get places that we can’t even see until he’s been and gone. My suggestion would be a sting. One that’s in and out. Justice?”
I nodded once.
I’d do it.
“No,” Royal snapped. “If I’m in danger because of what you said Marcus could accomplish then who’s to say the same isn’t the case for Justice?”
She had a point. But…
“Well, we can’t spend the rest of the fucking year in hiding…” St. James trailed off at my look of annoyance.
He sat back and crossed his arms over his chest.
“The bodies,” Royal said. “Have you been able to identify any of them?”
Yao shook his head. “No. We tried, but everything that would be able to identify them are missing. No dental imprints. No fingers to imprint. No identifying features. Hell, the only thing that has been even semi-identifiable in any of them was one of them was missing an eye. He looked like he had it ripped out. His eyelid was missing, too. Other than being dead for three days each…”
Royal held up her hand, stopping him.
“Wait. Did you say he was missing an eye?” she asked.
Yao frowned. “Yes.”
Royal stood up, her eyes alight with excitement.
Then she ran out of the room.
“Told you she shouldn’t have been allowed in here…” St. James grumbled.
I gritted my teeth and clenched my hand onto the chair to keep myself in it.
“This affects her, Judge St. James,” Luke said. “We talked about…”
Royal burst back in, Tanika with her.
“Tanika,” Royal said. “Remember that call last week where the guy killed himself?”
Tanika nodded. “Tell them what happened,” Royal ordered.
Tanika frowned, then started in.
“A woman called in saying her husband had killed himself,” she said. “He hung himself. And to get him down, his wife cut him down with a circular saw. But the saw slipped, and she ended up cutting into the man’s face.”
I felt bile rise in my stomach.
“Were there other signs on any of the others?” Royal asked Yao.
“Not necessarily…” Yao pulled up his computer. “The medical examiner just found signs of heart attacks in two of the others. One died of some sort of infection. The only other one that didn’t die of something natural was a man that had signs of a car accident…” he paused, reading. “Head wound. Took a pole to the…”