by Sherry Lewis
He’d been so relieved to see Lucy standing on his doorstep, he hadn’t mentioned the phone call he’d received from Rush only minutes before she rang his bell. Wiley’s doctor would be performing surgery this morning, and the wait was killing him.
He couldn’t have foreseen how tough this would be. Until he came to Houston, he’d been sure that he’d put those old longings for another life behind him. He’d been certain that working on the ranch with Wiley was his future. But now—
No doubt about it, this was going to be a long-ass day.
Still fighting sleep, he measured grounds, filled the coffeemaker with water, popped a frozen waffle into the toaster and sat down with the newspaper to wait. But his attention was so splintered, he read the opening paragraph of the same article four times and still couldn’t remember what it was about.
Just as the aroma of coffee began to fill the air, he heard Lucy coming down the hall toward the kitchen and his senses jumped onto high alert. Setting the paper aside, he steeled himself for the jolt of awareness that was becoming commonplace whenever Lucy walked into a room…but nothing prepared him for the sight of her with her hair tousled, her body encased in the shirt she’d borrowed from him, and long, bare legs stretching beneath it.
She was always beautiful, but she was utterly breathtaking this morning. Knowing that he was one of the rare people who got to see her this way made the moment feel intimate and special, and almost rendered him speechless.
With a yawn, she sat across the table from him. Sweeping the hair out of her eyes, she glanced toward the coffeepot. “I will love you forever for waking me up this way.”
Unable to resist, he leaned across the table and kissed her. “Gee, if I’d known it would be so easy, I’d have made you coffee a long time ago. What would a waffle get me?”
She laughed softly and crossed her legs, unconsciously exposing a little more thigh to his view. “Two will get you almost anything you want. I’m disgustingly easy when I’m hungry.”
“I’ll make a note of that.” He dropped two more waffles into the toaster, filled two mugs, grabbed a couple of spoons and carried everything back to the table. He’d never been a fanciful man. Not one for big dreams. Never had believed in fate. But sharing the morning with Lucy felt so right maybe he’d been wrong before. He could almost see a lifetime of mornings just like this one stretching out in front of him—but unless one of them underwent some big change, that wasn’t likely to happen.
Ignoring the flush of disappointment, he slid one mug in front of her. “How did you sleep?”
She rolled her eyes but her gaze settled on his chest and a faint flush brushed her cheeks. “Sleep? Is that a word I should know?”
“You didn’t sleep, either?”
“Not even a wink. I was sure you were out cold.”
Wanting to keep the moment light, he shook his head and grinned. “After last night? Are you kidding?” He could have left it at that, but he didn’t feel right keeping the truth about Wiley from her. Sobering, he straddled his chair and rested his arms on its back. “Rush called last night just before you got back here. The doctor says one of the blood vessels in his retina burst. They’re doing emergency surgery on his eye this morning.”
Her smile faded immediately. “Oh, Jackson. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You had concerns of your own…and I got a little distracted.”
“Is he going to be all right?”
“I won’t know until after the surgery—and maybe not even then. The doctor thinks the problem was brought on by high blood pressure, so that’s also an issue. Wiley can’t see a thing out of the eye now, and only time will tell if he ever will again.”
She slid her hand over his and gently squeezed. “I’m so sorry. I know how much he means to you. You must be worried sick about him.”
“Yeah. I am.” Jackson held on to her hand tightly, but he wouldn’t let himself tell her how much she meant to him. It wasn’t as if he had a choice. He’d made commitments to Wiley that he couldn’t break, not for any reason. Doing his best to shake off the melancholy, he forced a thin smile. “Rush has my cell number, though, so there’s no need to stick around here all day. Let’s figure out where Sid’s Lounge is and get over there before it’s too late.”
Lucy’s eyes roamed his face, but she accepted the abrupt change of subject without question. “Why don’t you see if you can find it in the phone book while I go downtown. I need to be there for the morning briefing and I have another appointment with Cecily before I can get away. I’ll call when I’m finished and we can decide where to meet.”
Jackson nodded and let go of her hand. “Sounds fine to me.” Last night had been almost magical, but today real life had returned with a vengeance. He just hoped one night of magic wasn’t all they’d ever know.
Chapter Fifteen
THE NEXT TWO HOURS PASSED with agonizing slowness while Jackson paced around the condo and tried to distract himself with odd jobs that needed attention. He tightened knobs on cupboards, installed a new washer in the kitchen faucet, tacked down a loose section of carpet and replaced a couple of lightbulbs that had burned out since his arrival.
After what seemed like days, the call finally came. Just as he feared, the news wasn’t encouraging. The doctor couldn’t predict the future, but at least for now Wiley’s days behind the wheel of his beloved truck were over, and he had a long healing period ahead of him.
Almost immediately after Rush disconnected, the phone rang again. He snagged it eagerly, needing to hear Lucy’s voice. “Hello?”
“Jackson? Oh, I’m so glad I caught you at home. I was afraid I’d miss you and I misplaced your new cell phone number.”
“Mom?” He rubbed the bridge of his nose and tried not to resent the interruption. His mother’s timing couldn’t have been worse—but that was nothing new. Beverly had always moved at a pace Jackson couldn’t understand. For twenty years she’d tolerated her husband’s drinking and abuse, then she’d bailed out right when Holden needed her most. “Where are you calling from?”
“We’re in Chania. I’m telling you, Jackson, Greece is quite possibly the most fabulous place on earth. I just wish I could enjoy it. What’s the news about Angelina?”
Jackson leaned against the counter. “We haven’t found her yet, but we did learn that she’s been talking to Holden in an Internet chat room. Looks like she made plans to meet him.”
His mother let out a sigh of frustration. “This is pure hell, I just want you to know that. I really should be there doing something to help.”
Unless she’d recently had a personality transplant, she’d be more of a distraction than a help. And her new husband…Jackson shuddered at the thought of having to deal with Lloyd on top of everything else. “I’ll let you know if there’s anything you can do. Until then, you might as well stay there and keep Lloyd happy.”
“But what about you? You shouldn’t have to do everything alone.”
“I don’t know why this should be any different.” He’d meant the comment to sound lighthearted, but even he couldn’t miss the bitterness in his voice.
His mother didn’t miss it, either. “Jackson? Are you all right?”
He nodded, even though she couldn’t see him, and rotated his neck on his shoulders. “I’m fine. Just tired and frustrated. I got off the phone with Rush right before you called. Wiley’s just come out of surgery and it looks as if he may have lost the sight in one eye.”
“Oh, Jackson, I’m so sorry.”
“Rush is doing everything he can, but if I don’t get home soon, the ranch is going to suffer. I feel like we’re close to finding Angelina, but not close enough. It’s been a rough couple of weeks, that’s all.”
“And, as usual, you’re shouldering everything yourself.”
“Who else?”
“What about me?”
He snorted. “First of all, Wiley and the ranch aren’t your responsibilities. And you have a new husband to think about, rememb
er?”
“That’s true, but you are my responsibility, and I’d like to see you happy. I don’t know why you continually push me away, especially when you need me.”
Jackson ran a hand along the back of his neck. “I’m fine, Mom. You don’t have to worry about me.”
After a pause, his mother released a heavy sigh. “Honestly, Jackson, do you have to be so prickly with me? I know I haven’t always been the best mother, but I did try.”
Old resentments he’d thought long dead rose to the surface. He tried to brush them away, but they were there, alive and breathing and fueling every move he made. Those feelings made him angry—and very, very tired.
He thought about Lucy and her argument with her parents, about Angelina running away from a mother she thought didn’t care about her, and a soul-deep sadness filled him. His mother wasn’t a bad person. Lucy’s parents weren’t bad people. Even Patrice was trying her best to give her daughter a better life. They all believed they were doing the right thing.
But how was anyone supposed to know what the right thing was?
“Jackson?”
He shook off his thoughts. “I’m sorry, Mom. Just distracted. Tell you what. Let me follow through on this lead today. If this doesn’t pan out, I’ll let you know, and if you really want to come home to help, I won’t argue.”
Maybe it would sound like nothing to a stranger, but he and his mother knew just how big a concession this was. A long silence stretched between them before she whispered, “Thank you.”
“Sure.”
“You don’t know how much this means to me. Maybe… Maybe we can finally put the past behind us?”
“I think maybe we can,” he said. And for the first time in his life, he believed it.
“WE JUST GOT WORD THAT the Amber Alert issued by the Cheyenne police department at 0230 this morning has been canceled. The girl and her father were found just outside of Rock Springs and the girl is on her way back to her mother.”
As always, the news of a found child spurred a round of applause among the members of the Missing Persons Unit. Good news was hard to come by in their line of work, and they celebrated whenever some came their way.
When the cheering subsided, Nick settled his gaze on Lucy. “What about you, Montalvo? You ready to call off the search for your missing girl?”
“I’d like to stay on the case a few more days, Captain. Last night, we picked up some critical information. I have good reason to believe that the girl left home to meet her father after chatting with him online.”
Lucy briefly filled Nick in on the conversation she’d had with BRANDONSGURL. “I’m planning to check out Sid’s Lounge after I leave here. See if anyone knows where to find Holden, or remembers seeing Angelina the night she disappeared.”
“All right. Why don’t you talk to one of the guys on the Internet Task Force before you go. They might have a line on this guy already.” Nick looked at the group. “Anything else?”
Orry lifted one finger and got the nod from Nick to go ahead. “I want another crack at the mother in the Donny Williamson case. I don’t think she’s telling us everything she knows.”
“Then take it.” Nick leaned back in his chair and tapped the eraser end of his pencil on the table in a gesture that always indicated agitation. “Nothing we can take to Homicide yet?”
“Not yet. But I’m working on it.”
Nick nodded and pushed to his feet. “All right. If that’s everything, let’s get going.”
Lucy didn’t waste a second. Intent on making her way to the ninth floor where the Internet Task Force was headquartered, she slipped into the crowded elevator and pressed the button for the eighth floor. The elevator stopped on every level as it descended, letting people in, letting people out, but by the time the doors swished shut on the twelfth floor, the elevator was almost deserted.
Just before the doors closed, someone slid inside and Lucy recognized Crista Santiago, one of the six-pack. Crista had been particularly vocal about Lucy’s reaction to Risa’s troubles, but the two of them had never seen eye to eye on many things—especially the justice system. Lucy’s strong belief that the system worked clashed with the cynical attitudes about law and order Crista had developed living in the barrio. When all the evidence had pointed to Risa’s guilt in Luke’s murder, Lucy had been convinced that justice would prevail, while Crista had been adamant that they couldn’t trust the system—especially not when it affected a friend.
One particularly heated conversation had essentially put an end to their friendship, and Lucy hadn’t talked to her since. Seeing her now threw Lucy for a loop. Neither of them had been willing to concede their point, and Lucy had lost a dear friend. She thought of the conversation she’d had with Jackson last night, and it made Lucy’s whole argument feel childish. Could she admit to Crista that being right had been more important than their friendship? It wouldn’t be easy.
Crista recovered from the shock first. She brushed a lock of brown hair from her cheek and managed a smile that looked almost genuine. “Hello, Lucy.”
“Crista.”
“It’s been a while.”
Lucy had forgotten how stunning Crista could be when she smiled. She was stunning anytime, really. Her long brown hair and curvaceous figure had caught more than one male eye during their monthly lunches, and Crista had never been left sitting alone at the table when they’d gone clubbing.
Lucy nodded. She longed to open up to her old friend—to talk like they used to—but she was unsure how to do that. “Yeah, it has been a while. How have you been?”
“I’ve been all right. How about you?”
The temptation to tell the truth rose sure and strong, but all that came out of her mouth was a noncommittal “Fine.”
“You’re still in Missing Persons?”
“Yeah. And you?”
“I was transferred to Homicide a few weeks ago. The Chicano Squad.” An uncomfortable silence fell between them as Crista studied the numbers above the door. After only a few seconds, her gaze dropped to meet Lucy’s again. “Have you talked to any of the others lately?”
“I saw Mei a couple of days ago, but we didn’t speak.” She couldn’t bring herself to mention Risa.
But Crista obviously didn’t suffer from the same uncertainty. “Have you talked to Risa?”
Lucy shook her head and fought the urge to break eye contact. “No, I—” How was she supposed to finish that sentence? No, I haven’t had the nerve? No, I’ve been too afraid? She shook her head weakly. “No. Have you?”
“A few weeks ago.”
“So everything’s okay between you?” Lucy hoped it was. She didn’t want her mistake to ruin the friendship for everyone.
But Crista merely shrugged. “I don’t know if ‘okay’ is the word I’d use. I’d say things are tentative between us. But the two of you were always so close. It’s hard to believe that you’re not friends any longer.”
“We were close,” Lucy said with a sad smile. “But I took care of that.”
Crista’s eyes roamed her face for a long moment. The elevator jerked to a stop and the doors swished open. The moment was over, the conversation still unfinished, yet there was nothing more for either of them to say.
“It was good to see you,” Lucy said as she stepped in front of the sensors to keep the doors from closing again. And she was surprised to discover how much she meant it.
“You, too.” Crista stepped farther into the corner, prepared to let the elevator move on, but at the last minute, she darted through the doors into the corridor with Lucy. “All right, I give. You don’t seem like yourself. What is it?”
“It’s nothing. Just the case I’m working on.”
Crista laughed softly. “I’ve known you for six years, Lucy. I’ve seen you working tough cases before, but I’ve never seen that look in your eyes. What gives?”
Her genuine concern was hard to resist—but Lucy gave it hell. “It’s just life. You know how that is.”
“I’d love to,” Lucy said honestly, “but someone is waiting for me and I need to talk with the guys on the Internet Task Force.”
With a shrug, Crista pressed the elevator call button and Lucy sensed the moment was slipping away. There had been too many moments lately and she suddenly realized she couldn’t afford to let another one go. “What you said before—about me not being myself? Well, you’re right. I’m not.”
Crista turned back, her face awash with curiosity. “I knew something was wrong.”
Lucy slid her hands into her pockets, needing to feel her keys, her phone, the change and lint there to ground her. “We lost an eight-year-old boy three weeks ago, and I’ve had a hard time dealing with it. I’ve been talking with Cecily Fontaine, and I think that’s helping, but my parents found out last night and they’re fit to be tied.”
Crista’s eyes grew sad. “They’re still expecting you to be their golden girl?”
“I’m afraid so.” Lucy had forgotten how nice it was to have friends who knew her history, who didn’t need an explanation for everything.
“Well, I’m sorry. I know that’s tough for you, and I hope they figure it out someday. But what about you? Are you really doing okay?”
Her concern touched Lucy more deeply than she could have expected. “I think so. For a while, I wasn’t sure I had what it takes to do this job, but I’m starting to rethink that now.”
“You?” Crista laughed in disbelief. “You’re one of the most dedicated officers I’ve ever known. If you have doubts, what should the rest of us be feeling?”
“I don’t know if dedicated was the right word,” Lucy admitted. “Obsessed might be closer to the truth. And you’re a great cop, Crista. I know we’ve come at the job from different angles for the past few years, but I’ve always known you were good at what you do.”
Crista’s lips curved. “That can’t be easy for you to say.”
