I set the badge in Aria’s hand. Then my weapon.
She took them and placed them in an evidence bag. “I have no doubt I’ll be getting these back to you—hopefully, very soon.”
The confidence in her voice didn’t reach the hollow space in my chest.
Aria rested her hand on my shoulder. “You’ll be hearing from me.” Then she walked toward their chopper.
As the distance between us grew, so did the hole in my chest. Everything I’d worked for was gone.
The stain of Bob Ackerman’s corruption would taint everything I’d ever done.
Kayden appeared at my side, and his hand found mine. “You okay?”
“No,” I said, desperately trying to stop my chin from quivering. “No, I’m not.”
“Oh, Fire.” He pulled me to his chest, and as he wrapped his arms around me, every emotion hit me at once.
The first sob came out of me before I could stop it. Ugly. Loud. I hated that sound. I’d spent years training myself not to make it. Years of being the cop, the steady one, the one who held her shit together in a crisis.
I tried to stop, but couldn’t. The tears kept coming, and I hated every one of them.
Kayden held me tighter. Said nothing.
When I couldn’t cry anymore, I sucked in a few shaky breaths and eased away from him. Mitch and Cassidy had formed a small circle around me.
“Sorry,” I said, wiping my eyes.
“Don’t be sorry. Taking your badge is pure crap. You did nothing wrong,” Mitch said.
I pressed my lips together, trying to convince myself I’d done nothing wrong. But maybe I had. Maybe I’d been so blind to so many things that I’d missed dozens of signs. That would make me as guilty as Bob.
“So,” Cassidy said, frowning and grinning at the same time, “you didn’t tell them we hid that money?”
“No, because you’d have been arrested for messing with a crime scene.”
“See?” Kayden said, slotting our hands together. “I told you, you could trust her.”
“We know that.” Cassidy rolled her eyes.
“Thanks, Sapphire,” Mitch said. “Guess we owe you an apology.”
“What for?” I frowned.
“Putting you in that situation.”
“You didn’t. Bob and Frank did,” I said. I looked down at my hip where my badge was often clipped—the badge that had defined me for so long.
I’d never felt so lost in my life.
But I wasn’t alone. Kayden’s hand was warm in mine, and his family was standing beside me. For the first time in years, I wasn’t defined by a badge, a title, or a duty.
I was just Sapphire Delaney.
Devastated, yes. Uncertain, absolutely.
But not broken.
Not completely anyway.