Billie's Bounce

by Claudia Hall Christian

  “No one ever looked,” Ava said.

  “Exactly,” Nelson said.

  “Where are the families?” Ava asked.

  “Washington,” Nelson said.

  “Dr. Quincy will be there tomorrow,” Ava said.

  “I was thinking the same thing,” Nelson said with a nod. “We can also ask the FBI to do it. They missed it in the original investigation.”

  “Did they assign someone to be our liaison?” Ava asked.

  Nelson nodded.

  “Let’s get them working,” Ava said. “I think Dr. Quincy will have her hands full, but I’ll ask her.”

  “Sounds good,” Nelson said.

  “Time to wrap up,” Ava said.

  “Got it,” Nelson said. He turned back to his computers.

  “I’m going to wake Bob,” Ava said.

  “I’m awake,” Bob said with a yawn. He gave Ava a searching look. “Time to head home?”

  “It is,” Ava said. “Do you need a ride?”

  “Sure, if you don’t mind,” Bob said.

  “Not a problem,” Ava said.

  “Can I take a lift, too?” Nelson asked.

  “Of course,” Ava said. “I’m back out at the hospital to check in, so you’re both on the way.”

  Leslie and Fran came out of the lab. The women were putting on their coats and grabbing their purses from their office workstations.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Ava said.

  “We’ll wait for you in the hallway,” Leslie said.

  Ava nodded. She started her walk-through. Unless the equipment was working, it was all turned off. The refrigerator doors were closed. The lights were off in her office. She clicked off the work-area lights and joined the team in the hallway. The door closed and locked. Ava turned the key on the deadbolt that only she had a key to. She did this when they were actively processing evidence. It was an extra precaution to keep the experiments from any interference.

  They walked together to the elevators and took one to the ground floor. Tired, no one said anything as they walked. Now that they were out in public, they couldn’t speak about the case. Leslie and Fran found their cars first. They waved them off before walking to Ava’s car. Nelson got in the back and Bob took the front seat. They made it out of the police garage and on their way east of downtown Denver.

  Ava dropped Nelson at his Race Street house and continued out to one of the nicer new areas, where she dropped Bob. He waved to her. She drove out to the hospital and parked in the lot.

  Eight

  Ava was yawning when the elevator doors opened to Seth’s room. She checked in at the nurse’s station and went to the room. Seth was sound asleep, and the room was dark. There was a flash of blond hair. Seth’s daughter, Sandy, stood up when she came in. Sandy hugged Ava. Sandy was one of the best human beings Ava had ever met. Even though Sandy was a little older than Ava, they were close friends and compatriots in loving Seth.

  “You look tired,” Sandy said.

  “Long day,” Ava said. “Do I smell?”

  “Like mold,” Sandy said. “Go shower. I can wait.”

  “You think it’s okay. . .” Ava pointed to the shower in Seth’s room.

  “He’s not going to use it anytime soon,” Sandy said.

  Ava went into the hospital-room bathroom and took a fast shower. She cursed her now-longer hair. It took more time to clean and needed to be brushed. Stepping out of the shower, she shook her head at her own impatience. She was about to put her dirty clothing back on when she saw that Sandy had put a bag in the bathroom. Ava opened the bag and found her pajamas. There was a note from Maresol reminding Ava to take care of herself. Ava dressed quickly and left the bathroom.

  Sandy nodded to Ava’s tangled hair.

  “I didn’t bring a brush,” Ava said.

  “Let me,” Sandy said.

  Sandy was an accomplished hairstylist. Sandy nodded to a stool where Ava sat down.

  “It’s got to be really stressful,” Sandy said, as she picked up a piece of Ava’s hair and began to softly pull a brush through it. “Working a case and dealing with all of this.”

  “Maresol makes everything pretty easy,” Ava said.

  “Yes, thank God for Maresol,” Sandy said.

  Ava nodded.

  “You know, there is a step between having a shaved head and having it grow out,” Sandy said.

  “I know, I know,” Ava said. “I just haven’t had the wherewithal to get in to see you.”

  Sandy put her hand on Ava’s shoulder.

  “When he’s home, I’ll bring the kids over. They can play in the pool while I take care of your hair,” Sandy said.

  Exhausted, Ava’s eyes welled with tears. Seth had surrounded himself with the kindest, most loving people. They had immediately extended their support and love to her in a way that she had yet to understand.

  “Let’s just get through this,” Sandy said. “I’m going to braid it so you can wear it that way tomorrow.”

  “Thanks,” Ava said.

  Sandy bent down and kissed Ava’s cheek.

  “Maresol called me,” Ava said. “She said in her message that the surgery was successful.”

  “Everything went really well,” Sandy said.

  “I thought he’d be awake,” Ava said.

  “They woke him after the surgery, but they didn’t trust him to rest,” Sandy said. “I guess, the first 24 hours of healing are the most important. They gave him pain and sleeping meds. He should be awake tomorrow.”

  Ava nodded.

  “Personally, I think he’s exhausted,” Sandy said. “The whole thing — the pain, the wheelchair. . .”

  “The dependence,” Ava said.

  “PT,” Sandy said. “It’s a lot for him to deal with. He’s been independent since he was a little kid.”

  “We’re lucky he’s been so amenable,” Ava said.

  “I don’t want to see it when he gets fed up,” Sandy laughed.

  Ava grinned. Sandy finished braiding her hair. She patted Ava’s shoulder and picked up her bag.

  “Get some sleep,” Sandy said. “I think Lizzie will be here tomorrow morning. If not, Bernie will wake you.”

  Ava nodded. Lizzie was Seth’s first daughter from his first marriage. Lizzie was married to Seth’s agent, James “Jammy” Schmidt V. She and Ava were close in age and fast friends.

  Sandy stopped at the door.

  “Have you eaten?” Sandy asked.

  “Lunch,” Ava said with a shake of her head.

  “I was supposed to make sure that you’d eaten,” Sandy said. “Sorry. I’ll pick you up something and be right back.”

  “Oh, Sandy — don’t bother,” Ava said. “I never eat much when I’m working.”

  “You’re sure?” Sandy asked.

  Ava nodded.

  “Okay,” Sandy said. “Call me if you need anything. We’re not far.”

  “I will,” Ava said. “Do you know when he’s to awaken?”

  “Tomorrow morning,” Sandy said with a shrug. “They weren’t exactly sure. His metabolism is so fast that he kind of blows through the drugs.”

  Ava nodded.

  “Thanks, Sandy,” Ava said. “You’re a lifesaver.”

  Sandy grinned at Ava and left the room. Ava went to Seth’s bed. She sat on the side of the bed for a moment, just looking at his face.

  He was always so animated — laughing, talking, playing music, or thinking out loud. Even when he was silent, he was vibrant and alive. It was unnerving to see him so still. She touched his cheek and kissed his forehead.

  “The news is good,” Ava said to herself. “He is healing.”

  She got up from the bed and settled on the lounge chair with a blanket and her eBook reader. She was asleep in a few minutes. She’d spent the day stuffing her mind with witness interviews and evidence reports. The imagined voices of interviewees and the evidence swirled around her brain and through her dreams. Their words and information whirled around her and thro
ugh her.

  “Ava.”

  Deep in her dream, she heard someone calling her name.

  “Ava. Where are you?”

  She woke up with a start. It took her a moment to remember where she was.

  Had she heard something?

  Was it a dream?

  “Ava!”

  Seth.

  Ava threw off the blanket and jumped from the chair. She went to Seth’s hospital bed.

  Seth’s eyes were open, but he seemed still out. She grabbed his hand and held it tight.

  “Seth,” Ava said.

  He jerked and was wide awake. He looked at her in confused wonder.

  “I was dreaming that you were captured by a flying-demon-lizard-thing,” Seth said.

  “I’m right here,” Ava said.

  “I couldn’t find you,” Seth said. “I swore to myself that I would find you.”

  “And you did,” Ava said.

  When they were first dating, she had been captured by the Saint Jude serial killer as an offering for a demon. Seth had found and saved her. She leaned over to kiss his lips.

  “Nice to see you,” Ava said.

  “I’m so glad that you’re okay,” Seth said.

  She kissed him again.

  “Should I call the nurse?” Ava asked.

  “I’m okay,” Seth said. “Successful surgery?”

  Ava nodded.

  “Looks like they saved the shrapnel for your collection,” Ava said, gesturing to the plastic jar on the table next to the bed.

  Seth grinned at her. He patted the bed. She crawled into the bed with him. Lying on her side, she draped her arm over his chest to avoid the surgery wounds.

  “How are you?” Seth asked.

  “Good,” Ava said. “Worried about my husband.”

  Seth kissed the top of her head.

  “What case did you get?” Seth asked.

  “Senator killed by RPG near Aspen,” Ava said.

  Seth groaned.

  “We have boxes upon boxes of evidence,” Ava said. “Bob got the director to cough up ten techs to work around the clock just to deal with the moldy, dirty, ancient evidence. Just insane.”

  “How is the evidence?” Seth asked.

  “The detective told me that his sheriff thought the senator got what he deserved,” Ava said. “The evidence is. . . nothing. We have a whole lot of nothing.”

  “Humor me,” Seth said. “Lay out what you have.”

  “You’re supposed to be sleeping!” Ava asked.

  “There’s nothing more relaxing than hearing about a case,” Seth said. “It will help wash Saint Jude out of my brain.”

  Ava sighed. He jostled her shoulder.

  “Come on,” Seth said. “Be a good wife and obey.”

  Ava laughed out loud. Seth started laughing but then groaned in pain. Ava helped him through breathing exercises until he was feeling a bit better.

  “Lay it out for me,” Seth said again.

  “Fine,” Ava said. “But you have to close your eyes and pretend to sleep.”

  “Will do,” he said.

  He closed his eyes. She waited to see if he would fall asleep. He opened one eye to look at her.

  “Fine,” Ava said.

  “Start at the beginning,” Seth said.

  Nine

  “The beginning?” Ava shrugged. “It starts with the senator.”

  She explained how he’d dodged the draft but somehow became the head of the committee that handled veteran affairs. She told him about the detective who’d worked the case on the side so as not to anger his sheriff. She told him about all of the interviews she’d read and the measly evidence reports. She finished with their five questions.

  “Leslie thinks there might be something with the grenade,” Ava said. “That’s our most solid lead. We’re running DNA on everything, but. . .”

  Ava sighed.

  “We’ve got nothing,” Ava said. “Three Capitol Police were killed and one hated senator. Nothing.”

  Ava shook her head.

  “Feels like we were set up,” Ava said.

  “You were set up,” Seth said. “We were set up. They gave us their most unsolvable case so that we’d fail.”

  “We can’t afford to fail,” Ava said.

  “No, we can’t,” Seth said.

  “Anything stand out to you?” Ava asked.

  “The imaginary wife and child,” Seth said. “The draft board isn’t perfect, but they aren’t dumb, either. Has anyone checked to see if in fact there was a wife and a child?”

  “Not that I’ve seen,” Ava said. “The senator was known for joking about tricking the draft board with the child and wife. He was very open about his trickery. He felt like he was so smart for faking it.”

  Seth shook his head.

  “When was he supposed to be drafted?” Seth asked.

  Ava gave him the date.

  “When his number came up, they were drafting every warm body,” Seth said. “We had Korea to sort out. Vietnam War was starting up. There were missiles to put in place. That’s not to mention that we were in every other stupid conflict McNamara could get his filthy hands on.”

  Seth nodded.

  “Check on the wife and child,” Seth said. “Turn over every rock. I bet you — they exist.”

  “What should we bet?” Ava asked.

  “Donuts from my favorite place,” Seth said. “The donuts in this place suck.

  “You’re on,” Ava said with a grin. Seth loved donuts. “Anything else stand out?”

  “Seems like a lot of people worked hard to get nowhere,” Seth said. “It’s very weird. The FBI investigator is no slouch. CBI. It’s just. . . weird.”

  “Very weird,” Ava said. “I spent all day reading witness interviews and evidence reports. There’s a lot of words there and no real information. Like they were instructed to make it look good, but get nowhere.”

  “Feels that way to me,” Seth said. “One more thing.”

  “Yeah?” Ava asked.

  “Did anyone talk to his rich wife?” Seth asked.

  Ava looked off into space. After a moment, she shook her head.

  “No,” Ava said. “I don’t think that they did. I wonder why?”

  “Exactly,” Seth said. “Ask Maresol for her number.”

  “You have her phone number?” Ava asked. “Is she an old girlfriend?”

  “Rich heiresses are seriously not my type,” Seth said with a grin.

  Ava smiled.

  “She supports a few of the charities we regularly donate to,” Seth said. “She likes to make a splash, so she often buys tickets to my concerts in a silent auction.”

  “So the wife,” Ava said.

  “It’s likely nothing, but the whole wife thing sticks in my mind,” Seth said. He looked at her. “Good questions, by the way.”

  “We thought so,” Ava said with a smile.

  Ava fell silent as she thought through what Seth had said. When she looked at him again, he was sound asleep. She put her head down and held him until her watch buzzed.

  Time to get up.

  Seth made a noise when she got up but fell back asleep. The nurse came in.

  “Oh, good — you’re up,” the nurse said. “I came in earlier, and you were both sound asleep. So sweet. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

  “Sorry about. . .” Ava gestured to the bed.

  “We find that love makes the healing go faster,” the nurse said with a nod. “You clearly love him very much.”

  Ava nodded.

  “I have to get to work,” Ava said. “I think. . .”

  Seth’s hospital door opened. Lizzie walked into the room. Ava and Lizzie hugged in greeting.

  “This is Lizzie,” Ava said. “Seth’s second daughter.”

  Lizzie smiled at the nurse. In the time that Ava had known her, Lizzie had grown into a confident, strong woman. The nurse gave Lizzie a smile in return.

  “Lunch, coffee,” Lizzie said, giving Ava a bag
. “Maresol told me to yell at you to take care of yourself.”

  “Thanks,” Ava said with a grin.

  “We cannot have you both in the hospital,” Lizzie said in an exaggerated Spanish accent.

  “God bless Maresol,” Ava said with a grin.

  “I know, right?” Lizzie asked. “She had a proper meal waiting for me when I got in from the airport”

  “The best,” Ava said. “Please do tell her that I am properly admonished.”

  Lizzie grinned and went to the bed to see her father. Ava opened the bag from Maresol. She had included clean clothing for Ava and a note telling her to put her dirty clothing in the bag. Ava did what she was told. She would have left Maresol a note to thank her, but Maresol didn’t have time or interest in her thanks.

  “Hey you wouldn’t happen to have the contact information for Mrs. Michaud, would you?” Ava asked.

  Since marrying, Lizzie had spent much of her time now helping fundraise for various children’s causes.

  “Sure,” Lizzie said, reaching for her phone. “What are you up to?”

  “We’re working her husband’s cold case,” Ava said.

  “Great mystery,” Lizzie said. “How’s it going?”

  “Eh,” Ava shrugged. “It’s early.”

  Nodding, Lizzie turned her focus to her phone. She wrote all of the contact information down for Mrs. Michaud on a piece of paper and gave it to Ava.

  “She can be a real witch,” Lizzie said. “Don’t take it personally. I will tell you this — she never got over her husband’s death, and she won’t thank you for opening this case again. And, call her anything other than ‘Mrs. Michaud’ at your own peril.”

  “Good to know. Thanks,” Ava said and started for the door.

  “Not so fast!” Lizzie gave Ava a cup. “Coffee. Lunch.”

  Lizzie gave Ava a lunch bag and a hug.

  “Have a nice day,” Lizzie said. “I’ll call if there’s something to report. Let me know how you do with Mrs. Michaud.”

  “I will, and thanks again,” Ava said. “He should be awake soon.”

  “Good,” Lizzie said. “I brought some mysteries for him to read.”