Bending the Rules by Susan Andersen Read Free Book Online

her mother.
    Only it turned out to be none of them and by the time Poppy hung up fifteen minutes later, her heart was hammering the wall of her chest like an enraged carpenter. She didn’t know whether to laugh like a loon or bang her head against the nearest wall.
    Because it turned out she was getting what she’d asked for. And that was good, right? Her three juvie taggers were getting a second chance, which meant so was she—to help. So, yes. It was good.
    Excellent, in fact.
    All except for the part about them being monitored for good behavior. By none other than her favorite cop: Jason de Sanges.

CHAPTER FOUR
Did I lie through my teeth? You betcha. Do I feel bad about it? Yeah, right.
    T HE FAINTEST GLIMMER of the connection between a recent spate of burglaries that Robbery had been fielding itched at the back of Jase’s mind. He couldn’t quite get a grasp on it, but it floated close to the edge of his consciousness then disappeared, floated nearer yet, then dove out of reach once more. He thumbed back through his notes, knowing that something in there must have triggered it, but the pale flicker of whatever it was retreated. So he emptied his mind and sat quietly in the noisy squad room in hopes that the association he sought would swim a little nearer to the surface of his brain. And the glimmer came closer, closer—yes, come to Papa, baby, almost there…
    “Yo, de Sanges!”
    And it was gone. Swiveling his chair around, he saw Bob Greer leaning out of the door to his closet-size office. “Something I can help you with, Lieutenant?”
    “Yeah. Come in here a minute, will ya?”
    He did as he was bid and knew he wasn’t going to like whatever was coming when Greer said, “Close the door.”
    He did so and stuffed his hands into his pockets as he studied his superior. “What’s going on?”
    “Take a seat.”
    He took a seat.
    His lieutenant perched on the edge of his desk. “I got a call from the commissioner, who got a call from the mayor.”
    Oh, shit, he thought in disbelief, she wouldn’t have. Not twice. But a bad feeling crawled the nape of his neck. “And?”
    “And apparently someone is seriously connected, because guess what you’ve just been assigned to?”
    He rubbed his hand over his jaw. “Tell me this doesn’t have anything to do with those merchants’ tagger kids.”
    “Sorry, Jase. You are now the official head honcho of the—get this—Neighbors United Through Art program.”
    He slumped back in his chair. Breathed, “Fuuuck,” stretching out the single syllable until by rights it should have snapped beneath the attenuation.
    “Look at it this way,” Greer said. “It puts you on the mayor’s radar. Do a good job and he’s gonna remember when it comes time for you to take that lieutenants’ exam. A word from him could mean the difference between a decent placement and Peoria.”
    Right. Like the man was still apt to be in office by the time the next lieutenants’ exam rolled around. But he nodded as if that were a genuine consideration and said, “Yeah, there is that. So what does a ‘head honcho’ on one of these committees do?”
    “Make damn sure those three kids toe the line. No screwups.”
    He sat upright. “You’re kidding me, right?” Looking at the older man, Jase could see that he wasn’t. “Jesus, Lieutenant, we all screw up now and then—and teenagers more often than most. Are you seriously taking me off the streets to be their frigging hall monitor?”
    Greer shrugged. “What can I say? The mayor wants to accommodate his friend by giving the kids a break. But he’s a politician first and foremost, so he’s also covering his ass by making sure they don’t do anything to get the merchants or general neighborhood up in arms. And you’re the lucky bastard who was nominated to ride herd on them.”
    “Lieutenant, we’re dealing with that rash of burg—”
    “Oh, you’ll get to work your burglaries, trust me. You didn’t think watching some