The Sharps Unleashed Read online

  THE SHARP S

  UNLEASHED

  By: Amy DeMeritt

  The Sharps Unleashed

  Copyright © 2018 Amy DeMeritt

  All Rights Reserved.

  ISBN-13: 978-1985668768

  ISBN-10: 1985668769

  This book may not be reproduced in any form, in whole or in part, without written permission from the author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the authors imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or events is entirely coincidental.

  Cover designed by Amy DeMeritt

  Dedication

  To the brave men and women

  who sacrifice their lives for

  the good of humanity.

  Thank you for your service.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Coming Soon…

  Other works by Amy DeMeritt

  Chapter One

  ​ Officer Robin Sharp hangs up her desk phone while standing and gulping down the rest of her coffee. As she sets the mug down, she grabs her highway patrol jacket off of the back of her chair, and swings it around her back, quickly thrusting an arm into the sleeve.

  ​ “Jones, let’s go. We have another conflict over at Henry’s Lumber Yard.”

  ​ “That’s the sixth one this week. I thought this big logging bill would be good for the city, but it’s just causing us a shit load of headaches.”

  ​ “Yeah, well, you know how it goes. A new opportunity arises and people want to milk it dry before anyone has the chance to take it away from them again.”

  ​ Officer Eric Jones drinks the last of his coffee, slips his jacket on, and follows Robin to her cruiser.

  After a three-year legal battle, the state’s Environmental Preservation Department and the Commerce Department finally came to agreeable terms on opening several thousands of acres of forest up to the logging industry less than a month ago. The state was flooded with applications from locals and out of towners trying to secure a permit and parcels of the land.

  The instant the permits were awarded, Pine Grove city was inundated with hundreds of new faces, who have brought jobs, money, and boosted the local economy. They’ve also brought tension, fights, and greed.

  ​ Robin pulls into the gravel lot of Henry’s Lumber Yard – the largest storage and distribution yard for lumber going in and out of the city.

  ​ “It’s those damn Gleason boys again. Damn sheep fuckers. I don’t understand how they were awarded a permit.” Robin laughs at her partner as she parks. “I’ve heard Judge Thompson has a fetish for sheep skin slippers.”

  ​ Eric laughs hard as they open their doors and jump out of the car. They quickly wipe their smiles off of their faces and replace them with stern authority.

  ​ The Gleasons are local sheep farmers, but dabble in many side businesses, which typically results in frequent disputes. The Gleason men are tall, broad, and ruggedly handsome with light blue and green eyes, strong square jaws, and light sandy hair they keep trimmed short, with matching five-o’clock shadows. Even though the townspeople know them to be untrustworthy and short tempered, their good looks tend to award them the deals and jobs they want.

  ​ “Ah, hell, you called the goddamn brown skin princess? This is a matter between men, honey, so you just go back over to your car and file your nails.”

  ​ “Just for that comment, I could toss you in the cage, so watch your mouth. What’s the problem this time?”

  ​ “You couldn’t ‘toss’ me anywhere, sweetheart. But I sure could toss…”

  He makes the mistake of grabbing Robin’s shoulder and gets in her face. She reacts quickly, grabbing his hand and twisting it back while she spins and kicks him behind the knee, sending him crashing to the ground onto his chest. She presses a knee into his back and cuffs both of his hands. With his face pressed into the gravel, Leon Gleason groans in pain and curses insults at her.

  “You have no right to arrest me!”

  “Actually, I do. For one, you insulted an officer of the law while attempting to interfere with a police investigation. Then you physically assaulted an officer by placing your hand on my shoulder. So, you’re going to sit in a cell for seventy-two hours or maybe longer. It depends on what you did before we arrived. Officer Jones, toss him in the back.”

  ​ Eric roughly picks Leon Gleason off of the ground and marches him over to the police cruiser. Robin straightens her jacket and faces the remaining men in the two sides of the dispute – Mr. Henry, the owner of the lumber yard, two of his employees, and three of Leon Gleason’s adult sons.

  ​ “Mr. Henry, what’s the problem?”

  ​ “Same as the last time. They want more money. But like I told them before, I’m paying the same rate to every logger.”

  ​ “We know damn well you can afford to pay more. You’re going to make a boat load from the lumber companies off of our labor.”

  ​ “And like I told you before, you only did one piece of the job to get these sticks sold. We have to strip the limbs and bark and turn them into good lumber. We have hours of manual labor we have to put into those sticks. Either, accept the rate I’m offering, or go clean and sell your own damn lumber. I’m not paying a dime more.”

  ​ Leon Gleason’s sons begin to argue, but Robin holds up her hand and they fall silent.

  ​ “If you don’t like the way Mr. Henry does business, sell your logs to one of the other yards in the city. If I have to come out here again, you’re all chilling out in a concrete block. Are we clear?”

  ​ “The others are under cutting the loggers’ worse than Henry is. This is just bullshit. You all pass these bills claiming to be helping the economy and giving people jobs, but really, you’re just helping the rich get richer. How much are you getting paid under the table to silence us?”

  ​ “Either close the deal or move your trucks off of the Henry property.”

  ​ “We’re not going anywhere. We’re taking a stand.”

  ​ “Well, that works just fine for me. We’ll just arrest all of you for trespassing on private property and impound your vehicles and the logs you cut. You’ll be looking at least a two-thousand dollar fine to get the trucks out of impound once we release you.”

  ​ “You think because you have a badge you’re so tough.”

  Leon’s oldest son, who has been leading the argument since Robin arrested his father, steps closer to her, getting in her face. He looks her up and down with a sneer and laughs.

  “You don’t scare me. You’re just a woman – just a piece of shit woman who needs to be…”

  “Cole, shut up.”

  The youngest of the boys grabs his brother’s arm, but Cole shrugs him off, keeping his eyes on Robin’s. He licks his li
ps and takes a step closer, nearly touching her. Robin maintains an unaffected blank expression and doesn’t move an inch.

  “I bet you’re a screamer. I bet if I tied you to a tree out in the woods, you’d cry and scream like a little bitch. Wouldn’t you? Back off, or we’re going to find out.”

  He shoves her shoulder, but Robin was anticipating it, so she doesn’t stumble backwards. She grabs his arm, and sweeps his legs out from under him, sending him falling on his ass in the gravel.

  “Fucking bitch, I’m going to… ”

  “You’re not going to do a damn thing except occupy another one of our concrete boxes.”

  He quickly jumps up and lunges for her, but Robin sweeps his arms away, knees him in the stomach, and cuffs one of his hands before he even lands on his knees gasping for air. She grips his other hand, gets him cuffed, and rips him up to his feet while he’s still wheezing from having the wind knocked out of him.

  “I got him.”

  Eric takes Cole from Robin and pushes him towards the car. Robin faces the last two brothers and quirks the corner of her mouth in a small challenging grin.

  “So, you boys going to be real adults and do what needs to be done, or do I need to toss the two of you in the big-kid playpen too?”

  ​ “Our dad has to make the deal with Mr. Henry, so I guess we’ll leave for now.”

  ​ “Good plan. Be careful where you park your rigs. Our guys are out patrolling to keep our highways clear. Got it?”

  ​ “Yes, ma’am.”

  ​ “Not ma’am – Officer Sharp. Got it?”

  ​ “Yes, sorry, Officer Sharp.”

  ​ “Good day, Mr. Henry.”

  ​ “Thanks for coming out.”

  ​ Robin nods towards the men and turns her back to them. As she reaches for her door handle, she struggles to control her smile from seeing her partner has cuffed both of their new prisoners to the bars above the windows, which is a very uncomfortable way to travel. The two men look embarrassed and angry, with red scrunched faces.

  Since the increase in disputes and confrontations, the police force was ordered to carry two sets of cuffs, as well as a bundle of zip ties, just in case a large crowd needs to be apprehended. If she had to arrest Leon’s last two sons, Robin would have had to use zip ties to secure their hands, then call for back-up to come pick them up.

  ​ Robin and Eric get in the front seats, and as they’re buckling up, Leon Gleason spits at the back of Robin’s head, which just splatters against the thick Plexiglas shield separating them. Robin and Eric just ignore him, and Robin takes off to the station with her lights on, so she can get them into processing as quickly as possible.

  ​ Robin has dealt with far more dangerous men and women in her life, so the Gleason family doesn’t give her even an ounce of concern at all. They’re just the typical barking dogs, without much, if any, bite.

  ​ When they’re just a couple of minutes from the station, Eric calls ahead to give the processing team time to prepare to take custody of Leon and Cole.

  ​ As they’re pulling the men out of the backseat, both of them attempt to break free, despite being handcuffed. Leon tries to jam a shoulder into Robin, but she dodges it, and shoves him chest down onto the side of the car. Cole gets his arms free from Eric and tries to take off running across the parking lot, but Eric catches him, and wrestles him down to the ground.

  ​ “Listen, you’re already going to be out at least three days’ worth of income. Do yourselves a favor and just chill.”

  ​ Leon doesn’t respond to Robin, but his body relaxes and he stops trying to fight her. Cole notices the shift in his father’s behavior, so he stops fighting Eric, and allows Eric to pull him up to a standing position.

  ​ Robin and Eric lead Leon and Cole into the station, and four tall broad chested officers come over to relieve them of the men.

  ​ “This way, boys. It’s time for a shower and a change of clothes. ”

  Leon and Cole glare at the men and mumble something about perverts under their breath, but they don’t attempt to fight the officers.

  Once they’re out of sight, Eric releases a small laugh and starts taking his jacket off.

  “God, I don’t know how you keep your cool and don’t just knee assholes like that in the ball-sack. There’s no way I could be a woman. It’s ridiculous really. I mean, between the two of us, you’d destroy me, but jerks like that assume you’re weak and helpless just because you’re a woman.”

  “Why are you being weird right now?”

  Robin grabs her mug off of her desk to get a cup of coffee, and Eric perches on the corner of a neighboring desk with his arms over his chest. His pale cheeks blush light pink, and he takes a deep breath while shaking his head and looking at the floor.

  “You’re my partner. You’ve been my partner for over a year and I’ve never seen you go through so much bullshit for being a woman in a position of authority, as much as I have this month. I guess I just want you to know you don’t need to validate your rights as a woman and your badge-worthiness to me or anyone.”

  “Did you once see me attempt to validate either of those?” He shakes his head while scratching the back of it. “No, but…”

  “Then why would you counsel me against a narrative you’ve never heard me use?”

  “I just don’t want you to think all of us are like that.”

  “I never said you are.”

  Robin walks away to make her coffee, but Eric jumps up and follows. She rinses her mug in the sink, smells the half empty pot of coffee to see how fresh it is, and pours a full mug. As she takes a sip, she turns to face Eric, who is leaning against the counter next to her, looking scolded and upset.

  “What’s the deal, Jones? What are you feeling guilty about?” He shrugs a shoulder and looks down. “I was like that when we first met. I was mad that I was being transferred to this station, and when they told me my commanding officer is a woman, I was really pissed off.”

  “I remember.”

  Robin walks back to her desk to sit, and Eric follows her. He sits in her neighbor’s empty desk chair and crosses a leg to rest his ankle on his knee.

  “I’m sorry I was like that.”

  “You’ve already apologized for that and I forgave you.”

  “I know, but don’t you need to hear something like that right now? I mean, with what just happened?”

  “No, I don’t. I don’t need a man to validate that it’s acceptable for me to be who I am. You didn’t do anything wrong today, so you shouldn’t be apologizing and trying to convince me those guys are wrong. If I was a man, would you be sitting here apologizing for some jerk running his mouth?”

  “No, probably not. We’d probably joke about how badly you could have fucked him up if you wanted to.”

  “Then don’t do it with me. I know your intentions are to attempt to empathize, but all you’re doing is perpetuating the idea that women need men’s permission to be individuals.”

  “So, I see you booked two of those shit bag Gleason’s. What’s going on with the other two?”

  Officer Andre Brooks perches on the corner of Robin’s desk with a smug grin, and sprawled legs.

  “Get your nasty ass off of my desk. They’re finding a place to park their rigs since they can’t sell their load or do any work till Leon is released. ”

  Andre stands up as Robin scoots her chair closer to her desk to turn on her computer.

  “You’re typing that report already? Come on, we’re going to Freddy’s for dinner and drinks.”

  “I’ll pass this time.”

  “Why? Those assholes get to you?” Robin glares at Andre before she starts typing. “No, I’m just not in the mood.”

  “Freaking women and their mood swings, man.”

  Eric suddenly stands up and shoves Andre, gripping his shirt in his fists, and coming in at about four inches shorter than Andre’s six-foot tall broad stature. With his dark brown hair and eyes, sharp features, and smug grin, A
ndre looks menacing towering above Eric with his light dirty blonde hair, soft kind features, and blue eyes.

  “Watch your fucking mouth. There have been plenty of times you weren’t in the mood to go out with the group but didn’t want to explain why.”

  “You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d think you two are fucking. See you tomorrow. Jones, don’t join us this time. You’re a mood-kill right now.”

  Andre struts away with an annoying laugh and fixing his shirt. Eric looks down at Robin, who is watching him with a quirked eyebrow.

  “Sorry, I know you said I shouldn’t do that stuff, but I just lost it. It’s one thing for assholes like the Gleason’s to say something derogatory, but it’s another for someone on the force to disrespect you like that. Anyway, I’ll leave you alone.”

  He starts walking to his desk, and with his back to her, Robin lifts her coffee mug to take a drink with a small smile.

  She takes a sip, and then says, “Thanks.”

  Eric looks over his shoulder as he reaches his desk and throws her an appreciative smile. Without another word, both of them work on typing up the report from the confrontation at Henry’s Lumber Yard with Leon and Cole Gleason.

  Robin finishes typing her report before Eric, and as she’s turning off her computer to leave, she stands up, and asks, “You going to be much longer? Do you want me to wait for you?”

  “No, I’m just about finished. Go ahead. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Ok, good night.”

  Chapter Two

  ​ As Robin walks in the door, the security alarm starts rapidly beeping, demanding to be disarmed or telling her to flee, as if she’s an intruder. Robin flips the button shield down, punches in the five-digit code, and tosses the shield back up. Taking a deep calming breath, trying to exhale the day’s stress, Robin pulls her jacket off, and tosses it over the back of the sofa. She takes off her belt, which is loaded with her pistol, handcuff pouch, a Taser, and a retractable night-stick. She sets the heavy belt down on the sidebar, and as she walks towards the back of the house, she starts unbuttoning her shirt.

  ​ Robin grabs two thigh-holsters loaded with six throwing knives in each and straps them to her upper thighs. She lays her shirt over the back of a dining room table chair and walks out the glass sliding door to the backyard.