Sign of the Maker (Boston Crime Thriller Book 4), Brian Shea [free reads .txt] 📗

would undoubtedly receive recognition for her bravery. But awards and hero tags did little to shake the unease. Getting past a shooting, especially one resulting in the loss of life, took time, sometimes a lifetime of healing. Killing another living creature went against human nature. A human being, even an awful one like Smith, still carried a burden. The feeling was tempered slightly when weighed against the evil he committed and the lives he stole.

Kelly knew Barnes, probably better than she knew herself at times. And he knew it would take some time, but he was confident in her ability to get past this. She would need to do it in her own way. Kelly resigned himself to giving her the time and space to do so.

They took turns petting the cat. Barnes was entranced by the framed marathon bib commemorating the tragedy of 2013's Patriot Day when she had faced a bomber's malicious wrath firsthand.

"I think I need to go for a run," she blurted. "It's the only way to clear my head."

Barnes had been put on a mandatory two weeks' administrative separation, meaning no casework, no police life. For someone like Barnes, the forced time away would be tough, like being told not to come home.

Halstead had been great with Barnes on scene. He made sure she was in a good headspace before allowing her to leave. He authorized Kelly to take a few days of personal leave, knowing most of that time off would be devoted to Barnes's wellbeing. Halstead advised the word from the top was nothing but positive and there looked to be no fallout from the shooting. Superintendent Acevedo had stopped by to check in on her before she left the station. He'd used the word “hero” when speaking with her. All signs pointed in the right direction, even though the official decision regarding the shooting wouldn’t be made until much further down the road. But from everything Kelly had observed thus far, he was confident that everything would be resolved favorably.

"You want me to come for the run?"

"I don't think you’d be able to keep up tonight." Whenever she needed to blow off steam, she pushed the pace of her runs. Barnes needed her space to work through the demons. He knew this because he did the same thing, just in a different setting, using the boxing gym like she did the city streets. Each pounding out their issues in their own way. When he needed to exorcise those demons, he went all out, pushing himself on the bag or in the ring.

Kelly looked at the time. He hadn't planned on meeting his crew of childhood friends at Pops's gym tonight, but with Barnes leaving, he might as well.

Kelly, along with every cop in the city, had been running on fumes for the last several days. But with the bomber dead, everybody had a chance to take a breather and reset. The evidence would be there when he returned. Boxing gave Kelly clarity. He needed it, both professionally and personally. Crazy to think only a couple days had passed since he brought up moving in with Barnes. The conversation was tabled with the first bomb's blast, and now was not the time to return to it. At least Barnes had accepted the invite to join him and Embry on this weekend's excursion to the Cape before the real cold settled in. It would be good to get away from it all for a few days.

"If you're going to head out for a run, I think I'm going to head home for a bit."

"You don't want to stay tonight?"

"It's not that. I'll be back. I just need to clear my head too."

"You're going to the gym, aren't you?" Barnes cocked her head and looked at the bandage. "You think that's a good idea with that gash in your head?"

Kelly got stitched up nearly six hours after he'd been struck by the debris at the Oyster House attack. It took seven to close the wound. The throbbing had subsided, but it was still tender to the touch. Besides a little ibuprofen, he took nothing else to mitigate the discomfort. Not out of a macho bravado but because Kelly avoided pain meds at all costs, especially after Brayden's bout with drug addiction. He didn't want to have any drugs in the house that might serve as an unnecessary temptation for his brother, who'd been able to maintain sobriety since his recent near-death experience.

"How about I promise not to take any punches to the face? Sound good?" Kelly needed to clear his mind. Nothing did that better than being around the leather and sweat of his sanctuary, his second home.

A few minutes later, they were standing outside Barnes's apartment. They shared a long, quiet embrace before breaking it with a kiss. Barnes winked and set off at a quick pace. Kelly watched his partner and lover disappear around the corner, then hopped into his Caprice and drove toward Dorchester.

36

He pulled into the lot of Pops's gym later than normal. He'd been on rotation to box Edmund Brown tonight. His childhood friend was a Harvard graduate and high school principal in his old neighborhood, running the same school they had come up in.

When Ed saw Kelly walk in with a bandage on his forehead, he said, "Mike, I hope you're not thinking of banging gloves with me tonight. It looks like you've already run into a wall."

Kelly laughed. His head hurt. "I need to shake some things loose."

"Why don't you do some bag work?"

"Bag work's not the same. I need the ring tonight."

"Well, I'm not going to be punching you in the head."

"Fine by me. We'll do body work today. How's that sound? Just a round or two. We can keep it light."

"Okay."

The two got in. Bobby and O'Brien watched as the bell rang and they began their three-minute round. Kelly was sluggish, but he was grateful Brown wasn't babying him. Pops always said, "Once inside the