‹ Prequel: Beta

Gamma

08

Savannah hadn’t expected to find Tyler waiting at baggage claim when she got off the plane. But she didn’t mind the surprise. She was worn out with everything that had transpired that day and she preferred not needing to make awkward small talk with a random Uber driver.

She smiled as she walked up to Tyler. “What are you doing here?” she asked him.

“Came to see my girlfriend, make sure she didn’t bring a Blackhawk home with her,” Tyler replied, grabbing her carry on bag from her as they waited for her checked bag at the carousel.

Savannah laughed. “Nah, left him in Chicago,” she told him. “I’m happy you’re here,” she admitted as she leaned her head against him. “I’m tired,” she added, not attempting to stifle her yawn. “Where’s Alex?” she suddenly asked, remembering her best friend was going to dinner with Tyler.

Savannah had spoken to Jamie earlier, asking him for some details pertinent to the Sonny Diego case, and she’d brought up Alex. Jamie missed her, and she knew he was desperate to make up with her. She hoped he had done just that.

“With Jamie,” Tyler said, kissing the top of her head.

She looked up at him. “Yeah?” she asked happily.

Tyler nodded. “Yeah. I got through to her.”

Savannah pulled away to give him a look. “You got through to her?” she raised an eyebrow. She hadn’t been able to convince Alex to talk to Jamie yet, so how had Tyler?

“Don’t act like I’m not capable of helping them make up!” he exclaimed.

“Just didn’t know you were such a romantic,” she hit his shoulder with her own. She moved forward to grab her suitcase she saw coming on the carousel, but Tyler got to it first, easily lifting it.

“Eh, only at certain times,” he shrugged.

“So she’s at his place?” Savannah asked.

“Yeah, told her I’d let you know to pick her up there for breakfast,” he said as he wheeled her suitcase out of the airport.

“Guess that means you’re stuck with me for the night,” she told him.

He reached over and tangled his fingers with hers. “Wouldn’t want to be stuck with anyone else,” he replied.

Her phone buzzed as she got inside Tyler’s car, and she glanced to see it was a text from Liam. Sorry to text you so late. Need to talk to you ASAP in the morning.

She didn’t want to wait until the morning, so she dialed his number, glancing at the radio to see it was after midnight. “Liam, what’s up?” she asked, and she could feel Tyler’s eyes on her, obviously wondering why she was calling Liam so late.

“Sorry, Van, but I got something good out of Pablo,” he revealed. She’d almost forgotten about the criminal Liam was chasing after when she left for Chicago a few days ago. She’d been so focused on the Sonny case that she’d momentarily put the Dallas cases to the back of her mind. “His partner is laying low in San Antonio. I think we can get to him though. Wanted to get your permission to hack into his phone records even though he’s not in Dallas at the moment.”

Savannah looked out the window, seeing the familiar sights of the city as they drive to hers and Tyler’s place. “Call the San Antonio office. Work together,” she told him. “We all know you’re better at getting deep into phone records better than anyone else. I’m sure they’d love the help. But I don’t want to screw anything up getting him behind bars because we didn’t call their office.”

“Sounds good,” he said, and she could tell he was a little disappointed she was making him call the other office before starting the search himself. “I’ll call first thing in the morning.”

“I’ll be in first thing,” she told him.

“See you in a few hours,” he said, hanging up the phone.

“You need sleep,” Tyler spoke up as she shut her eyes. “Savannah, you look exhausted. Did you sleep at all in Chicago? And why are you back here? Not that I don’t want you here,” he quickly added. “I just...you haven’t told me anything about this Chicago case.”

“Tyler,” she began to tell him that she didn’t want to talk about the Chicago case, especially when it was hitting too close to home with a connection to Dallas. But then she thought about it. “Can we talk about it in the morning? I promise to tell you everything, but I really just want some sleep.”

“Yeah, sure,” he agreed.

She opened her eyes to look at him. “I will tell you,” she promised him. “And I’m fine, I’m safe,” she added. He didn’t say anything but briefly glanced her way before keeping his eyes back on the road. “I’m glad to be home.”

“Don’t miss Toews yet?”

“Not yet,” she grinned, though she kept her eyes closed.

She didn’t even know she’d dozed off until Tyler was waking her up when he got home. “I would carry you in, but I feel like you might yell at me,” he told her.

“I’m awake,” she said, forcing her eyes open. She noticed they were in the garage, and he opened the door to get her bags. She didn’t wait on him as she walked inside, immediately greeted by his dogs who were up way past their bedtime.

“Easy boys,” he told them as Savannah gave them each pats before making her way towards the bedroom.

Tyler followed her back there. “I haven’t seen you this tired in a long time,” he commented.

“I think it’s part concussion, part stress,” she admitted. She didn’t like talking about her concussion, but she knew that Tyler would see right through her immediately.

He kissed her cheek. “Well get to bed then,” he said, and she nodded her head, quickly changing into shorts and a T-shirt and hopping straight into bed without even washing her face or brushing her teeth.

She was awoken too soon by her alarm clock. She heard Tyler groan before swearing. “Fuck. Savannah, it’s 6:00 am, why is your alarm going off?” he whined.

“I’m meeting Alex for breakfast before going into work,” she told him. She wasn’t too happy with the early wake up call either, having gotten to bed just five hours before.

“Alex just made up with Jamie last night. If she’s awake, she’s not coming to the door,” he muttered, keeping his arm over his eyes to block out the light.

“We’ll see,” Savannah replied, getting out of bed and heading towards the bathroom to take a shower.

She didn’t take as long of a shower as she would have liked because she didn’t want to be too late for breakfast, wanting to get to work as soon as possible to catch up on everything since she’d been gone plus to find out some details about Tommy.

As she headed out the door, she wondered if Tyler would be right about Alex not being up for breakfast anymore. She figured if she didn’t want breakfast, she’d just head to work earlier.

She had texted Alex on the way over to Jamie’s but didn’t get a response. She debated buzzing his place, and she finally decided to go ahead and push the button. She was half surprised when Jamie answered. “Is that girlfriend of yours there?” Savannah asked.

“Come on up, Van,” Jamie replied before buzzing her in.

She was met by a half naked Jamie who had the worst case of bed head she’d ever seen. “You’re worse than Seguin. Put a shirt on,” she joked with him as she walked inside. “You sure Alex is decent?” she added.

“Oh stop,” Alex walked out from the bedroom. She, too, had clearly been up late last night making up for the time she’d been away from her boyfriend.

Savannah couldn’t help but smirk at her. “Surprised you can walk this morning,” she said to her. “Want a quick breakfast?” she asked, tossing a bag of bagels at Alex. Savannah had stopped for coffee, too, but the line was too long, so she’d settled for just a half dozen bagels, figuring she’d take the extras to work. “I need all the details from last night,” she added, glancing in Jamie’s direction.

“Dinner with you and Shea tonight?” Alex suggested.

Savannah nodded her head. “Yeah, sounds good. I’m glad you two are okay,” she said sincerely.

Alex smiled. “Me, too.” Jamie had walked over and put his arm around her.

“Jamie, I may be calling you later,” Savannah told him. Alex looked at her friend curiously. “It’s for the case,” she added.

“What’s going on?” Alex looked between the two of them, concerned.

“You sound like Tyler,” Savannah rolled her eyes.

“Hey!” Alex took offense to the statement.

“Speaking of which, what do I need to wear to this magazine thing?” Savannah changed topics. “I might just be tagging along with you two or with Shea and Audrey. Classic third wheel.”

Alex tilted her head, confused. “Why wouldn’t you be going with Segs?”

“Please, no one wants the cover boy showing up with a girl,” Savannah commented.

“Something tells me Segs won’t have it any other way,” Jamie replied.

“You give him too much credit,” Savannah chuckled. “Alright, I’m out of here, gotta go get caught up on the Dallas drug world,” she told them. “Jamie, don’t let this girl out of your sight today,” she added with a wink. “And Alex, fix your hair. That goes for both of you. Quite obvious you were banging before I got here,” she called them both out.

Alex went red as she tried to tame her hair, and Savannah just laughed as she walked out of the condo. She was already to her car when she realized she’d left the bag of bagels with Alex. She was hungry, but she wanted to get to the office.

She wasn’t surprised to see Liam already there when she walked in. “Did you get a hold of the San Antonio office?” she asked him.

“Yep. Got their permission and have already started looking into it,” he told her.

Savannah smiled. “Good. Catch me up,” she said, motioning for him to follow her to her office. She listened as he told her everything about Pablo and his partner that Liam was trying to close in on. “Sounds like we’ve got our work cut out for us,” she commented in the end.

“Yeah,” Liam nodded his head. “So how was it in Chicago?” he asked.

“Let’s just say the case is far bigger than Chicago. I may actually need your help at some point,” she told him.

“Name it,” he replied.

“I’ll let you know. Just know that we may have our own Dallas hockey drug dealer around here,” she revealed.

Liam looked at her curiously. “You think that’s a little too close to home for you to be involved in?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

She waved him off. “Watch out, you’re starting to sound like Tyler,” she told him. While Liam had flirted with her when she first started working in Dallas, he had backed off after realizing she was serious about Tyler.

Liam gave her a look that clearly said he didn’t like being referred to anything like Tyler. “Tell me when you need my help.”

Savannah nodded. “I will,” she assured him. He walked out of her office, leaving her by herself. She fired up her computer before glancing at her phone to see she had two missed texts.

Tyler: Dress is optional for the magazine party. You being my date is not.

Shea: Call me when you get a chance


Savannah wondered if Jamie or Alex had been the one to tell Tyler she didn’t think he needed to show up with a date, but Shea’s text is what really got her attention. She didn’t reply to Tyler, instead immediately calling her sister.

“Hey! Figured you wouldn’t see that text for a while and you’d be busy at work,” Shea answered the phone.

“I am at work, but you know you’re always more important,” Savannah told her. “What’s going on?” she asked, worried something had happened to Shea.

“Oh sorry, didn’t mean to make you think I was in trouble,” Shea told her, realizing her text had seemed more urgent. “I have a favor to ask you though.”

“Sure,” Savannah said as she clicked on her email to see how much she needed to get caught up on.

“I need you to tell me going through with a surrogacy isn’t the dumbest thing you’ve ever heard and that two women can bring a child into this world and raise him or her properly,” Shea said without taking a breath.

Savannah’s eyes widened when she comprehended what Shea was saying. “You and Audrey are going to do a surrogacy pregnancy!? Oh my God, Shea! That’s great! Of course you two will be amazing parents!”

“Thanks. Jamie said the same thing, but I needed to hear it from you as it’s all becoming closer to reality,” Shea said.

“Hold on. Jamie knows and you’re just telling me!?” she exclaimed.

“I’m sorry but you were in Chicago and he just kinda found out. Audrey and I are keeping it low key until we know if it’s something that might actually happen. So you can tell Alex. And maybe Segs. But not mom or dad.”

“Oh god, Mom and Dad would freak,” Savannah muttered. She knew her parents were impatiently waiting for grandchildren. And they weren’t going to get any from her anytime soon. So if they even had a suspicion that Shea may have a baby, they’d be on the first flight back to the States.

“Exactly,” Shea agreed. “So you think it’s a good idea?”

“Of course! And Alex would agree with me. We can discuss it tonight, we’re still on for tonight, right?” she asked. The two of them plus Alex had plans to have dinner that evening.

“Yes. I’ll come drag you out of your office if I have to,” Shea threatened.

“See you later!” Savannah said before hanging up the phone. She then went back to the text Tyler had sent her and decided to respond before she got down to work.

Savannah: Ha ha ha. I’m wearing a dress. But I think I may go with Alex and Jamie.

Tyler: Like hell you are. You’re going to be by my side all night.

Savannah: Your groupies won’t like that.

Tyler: They won’t like the things I’ll do to you when we get home either but I will…

Savannah: Smooth line ;)

Tyler: I’ve got better. You coming home tonight?

Savannah: Late. Dinner with Shea and Alex first.

Tyler: Ugh. Fine. Guess I have to share you with them.

Savannah: Always. We’re a set.

Tyler: Good thing I like them.

Savannah: Good thing they like you!


She had gone to put her phone away when it suddenly started ringing. She saw Maren’s name flash across the screen. “Hey,” she answered.

“Got a minute?”

“Sure,” Savannah replied, wondering what information Maren had.

“Louis Brophy is in the hospital,” Maren stated. Savannah’s eyes widened at the news. Louis was the first round draft pick for the Blackhawks the year before. He was playing for their minor league team right now. “Reaction to Gamma,” Maren continued.

“Can he talk?” Savannah asked. “If he can tell us where he got it from, that’d be huge.”

“Already done,” Maren said, and Savannah’s heart rate picked up in excitement, waiting to hear when Maren knew. “I went to the hospital to talk to him and guess who was there. Toews.”

Savannah smiled. She bet Jonathan wasn’t disappointed to be running into Maren. “And…?” she impatiently waited on her to continue the story.

“Louis told him that he got it from one of the scouts. Told him it’d get him to the top quicker,” Maren said.

“Jimmy Nelson,” Savannah muttered.

“Didn’t name him by name, but it’s got to be. Have you found out anything about Conway?” she asked.

“Not yet, but I’m doing some digging today,” Savannah replied. She really needed to get to work. On both the Dallas cases and this one.

“Okay, let me know what you find out. I’ve got to go. Toews is leaving and I’ve got a couple of questions for him,” Maren said, hanging up before Savannah could even say goodbye.

Savannah stared at her computer. She needed information on Tommy Conway . She started to search him in the database before she stopped. There was a better way to do this, even if she didn’t want to.

Reluctantly she grabbed her phone, dialing a familiar number. “Is this a booty call,” a jovial voice sounded.

“I actually need your help.”

“What’s wrong?” Tyler’s voice turned serious.

“Can you come to the office? I have some questions you could help me with,” Savannah told him.

“You’re asking for my help on a case?” he asked.

“I can call Jamie if you prefer,” she began.

“No, I’ll be there in fifteen,” he said before hanging up on her.

Savannah frowned as she typed in Conway’s name into the database. He was crime free. This was going to be a difficult case to close.
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I'm glad you all enjoyed the last chapter, thanks for the comments!

Things are going to start picking up in the story coming up, so get ready for that!