A Good Day for Chardonnay (Sunshine Vicram #2) by Darynda Jones

He was right. She’d arrested him, unofficially, four months ago when he’d first confessed to killing his uncle Kubrick. At the time, she suspected he only confessed because Hailey had beat him to the punch. She was the first of many to confess. But he knew things about the killing that Hailey hadn’t.

“Did you find them or not?” he asked.

“The assailants? No.” She almost didn’t want to ask the next question, but she needed to know. “Did you?”

He turned his back to her, clearly angry. “Are you even looking?”

“Hey,” she said, offended. “You know we are. We’ve had some developments.”

“Great. Because developments will help.”

“I don’t think I like your attitude, mister.” She shoved her free hand onto her hip. “Which could only mean one thing. You’re in a massive amount of pain.” Even when she’d seen Levi at his angriest, he was rarely a straight-up asshole to her.

He turned to face her again. Her statement seemed to steal some of his thunder. “Massive is a strong word.”

She stepped closer. “Quincy, can you close the door?”

“Sure, boss. Which side would you like me on?”

“This one. I need a witness.”

He did as ordered and waited.

“A witness for what?” Levi asked.

She set her coffee on her desk. “Take off your shirt.”

The intrigued brow that formed a questioning arch did nothing to slow her pulse. “You don’t need a witness for that.”

“I don’t. You do.” When he crossed his arms over his chest, refusing to cooperate—shocker—she said, “Look, either you let me do this or I’m arresting you and watching while Quincy strip searches you.”

“For the love of God, Ravinder,” Quincy said, “let her check you out.”

Most likely, any internal bleeding from the hit-and-run would’ve manifested by now. He would hardly be standing. She hoped the danger had passed since he seemed strong as ever. But better safe than sorry.

Favoring one side of his body, he lifted his shirt over his head with a grunt. He could barely lift his left arm high enough, but he managed to get the shirt off and hold it firmly in a clenched fist. He was freshly showered and the woodsy scent of patchouli filled the room.

Along with the scrapes and bruises she’d expected to see was a massive, platter-sized bruise along his left ribcage with petechial hemorrhaging down that side of his torso.

Sporting her best poker face, she walked around him. His wide shoulders tapered down to a lean, muscular back that had not fared any better. It had deep gashes, probably from being dragged across the gravel, that needed to be looked after.

She walked around to face him again and lifted a hand to his bruised jaw, fighting the urge to send it all the way around his neck. To pull him closer. To lock him to her.

His shimmering gaze trailed from her eyes to her mouth where it lingered a long moment. “So, in your far-from-expert opinion, what’s the prognosis?”

She dropped her hand. “First, you should be in a hospital.”

“And second?”

“I don’t believe for a minute you found nothing out there. I can’t force you to tell me, Levi, but we should be working with each other, not against.”

“That’s convenient.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Meaning?”

“Suddenly we’re colleagues? You sure you don’t want to arrest me again?”

“I’m still considering it,” she said, stepping closer. “Don’t push me.”

He clenched his jaw and admitted, “I found the truck.”

Why she would be surprised, Sun had no idea, but she was. She schooled her features. He was sharing. According to Auri, sharing was caring, but she only said that when Sun had ice cream.

“And the man you injured?”

“The man I killed?” he corrected. “Not in it, if that’s what you mean. They burned it to the ground at an abandoned warehouse near Las Vegas.”

“They didn’t get far,” she said, surprised no one called it in. Las Vegas, New Mexico, was only about forty-five minutes from Del Sol and fires were not taken lightly in the arid state.

“That means they had to dump the body somewhere between Del Sol and Las Vegas, but damned if I can find it.”

“Do you think they buried it?”

“They wouldn’t have taken the time. I got the VIN, but I doubt it belonged to any of the assailants.”

“And you’re sure there was no body?”

“I told you. He would have bled to death in a matter of seconds. They dumped the body, I just can’t find where. And with all that blood, they had no choice but to burn the evidence.”

She nodded. “I’m going to need that baseball cap.”

“It’s in my truck.”

“Covered in your DNA.”

He shrugged, completely remorseless.

“Quincy, do you mind?”

Without breaking eye contact, Levi fished his keys out of his pocket and tossed them to her chief deputy.

After he left, she held out her hand. “And the knife.”

He dove into his other front pocket and brought out a foldable hunting knife. She reached over him, grabbed an evidence bag and opened it up. “Is there a reason you took this?”