“Here,” said Officer Timmons, “Try this.”
Alex didn’t want to waste time having the young officer explain how he’d gotten his hands on a half-eaten bacon biscuit. Opening the sandwich, Alex removed the bacon. Scooting toward the car, Alex placed one half-eaten slice on the nearby edge of the back seat. Without hesitation, the dog made his way toward the treat as Alex backed away toward his previous position.
Wrapping another piece of bacon in a morsel of biscuit, Alex held it out toward the pooch, whose fear seemed to be abating.
When Timmons edged himself toward the dog, Alex waved him off.
“Nah, I got this. It’s just me and my little buddy here. Want some more? It’s good bacon ain’t it?”
Alex could see the dog’s nubby tail begin to wag feverishly as he stepped out of the cruiser and accepted a bite of food from Alex’s hand as gingerly as if he’d done it all his life.
Patting his head, Alex fed another bite to the, now, happy canine.
“There we go. Now, let’s see what your name is, lil buddy. Oh, look at that. Buddy.” Alex smiled up at Kellan. “A fitting name for such a sweet mutt. Buddy. Okay, Buddy, you and me are gonna go look for your leash and then you are gonna go home with me. I can’t wait for you to meet Brandy.”
As Alex walked toward the house, the dog stopped, erupted into a barking fit.
“Okay!” Alex said, rushing to the dog’s side, holding out another bite of the sandwich that had calmed him before. “It’s okay. I forgot. I’m sorry. Officer Timmons, will you see if you can find Buddy’s leash for me, please?”
“Sure will, Sir.”
“Now then,” Alex said petting the dog’s head. “We have to go back to the station first, so no leaving me any surprises in the car young man, you hear?”
He sneezed.
“That means ‘yes sir’.” Alex said, grinning up at Kellan.
“Whatever you say, Boss.” Kellan replied.
“Don’t mind him,” Alex said to Buddy. “He’s racist against black dogs.”
“I am not!” Kellan said, “Wait, what? Alex, you’re an idiot.”
“See there? Racist against brown people too,” Alex winked at Kellan.
“Here’s the leash, Sir,” Timmons said. “It was right by the door.”
“Thank you, Officer.” Alex said, suddenly serious.
“What now?” Kellan asked.
“I am going to check on Escalante, then head back to the station. Unless you need me. You gonna be okay here?”
“I’ll be fine, Alex. We’ll all be fine. Do what you gotta do, man. We’ll connect later. You tell Escalante’s wife?”
“Nah,” Alex said, sullen. “Danny said he would take care of it. I don’t know how she’s going to take it. Two weeks ago, the happiest day of their lives. Now this. I mean, we all know the danger. We all know what’s up. We all know that any time we walk out the door could be our last. We accept it when we take the shield. But we never expect it. I know I don’t. Maybe it’s different for spouses. I dunno. But, if it were me sitting at home and Lisa in the field, I know I’d worry but I’d always expect her to come home.”
“I don’t know what I’d do if I lost my wife.” Kellan agreed. “But what would I think if it was me that was shot? If you know it’s coming. If you don’t die instantly, but you’re fading from this world into whatever is waiting on the other side, what are your thoughts? I’ve pondered that many times. Alex, I still don’t know.”
“I don’t think any of us know, Kel.” Alex assured him. “We just have to hope that, when our time comes, we are right with the Big Man Upstairs.”
“Yeah,” Kellan said absently, his gaze focused back to the porch where Whit and his wife still lay, waiting for Tabby to get to them.
“We’ll catch this guy.” Kellan whispered, as if hoping the promise could escape the barrier between this world and that which Whit’s spirit would smile at the promise of brotherhood.
Chapter 6
Dean Whitaker, his wife and Martin Escalante. All within a couple blocks. Couldn’t be a coincidence, Alex said to himself. They’d have to work the cases separately until they could find and confirm a connection, but two murder scenes with three victims within a couple blocks? No way this isn’t connected. That was Alex’s gut feeling anyway. What was it Danny would say? You make room for the gut, but you follow the facts until they line up with the gut? Something like that. You had to trust your gut, but you also had to recognize that there was always the chance your gut was wrong. Two murder scenes meant two investigations. Despite Alex’s unexpected bond with Whit’s dog, Kellan would head up the scene at Whit’s house. Alex would take lead down the block. He could always hand it off to another detective, but Escalante and Whit would do the job. They deserved at least that much from the rest of the family.
It was true that Alex believed in the possibility of coincidence, generally speaking of course. Though he was trained to leave absolutely nothing to chance, Alex the man had always thought coincidences could happen. But Alex also believed in God. Often, he thought to himself, the things we write off as coincidence were actually God’s way of taking care of you, guiding you. Like needing five bucks for lunch and finding a twenty dollar bill in the washing machine. Maybe it was just good luck. Or, if his Faith was to prove as true as he hoped, maybe it was the God of All reaching down and saying, “Splurge a little. You’ve had enough brown bags for a while.”
In moments of purest evil, coincidence was a little easier label to affix to the situation. Coincidence was much easier to accept than the acknowledgement of everything embodied in God’s Antithesis.
Clearly this was an evil act, as all murders are. Either way, the Devil was at play. But in what form? Was this merely the coincidence of the Devil’s spiritual influence on two individuals or was it the deliberate act of one very real, living minister of Hell’s landlord?
It didn’t take long for Alex to connect the name of Derrick Calloway to the crime, though he hadn’t verbalized it to anyone – and wouldn’t without irrefutable proof of an exacting connection. But it was too much of a coincidence. Among the notes Alex had taken at the scene, he’d made a note to call Calloway’s parole officer.
Now, back in his office, it was the first call he made.
A dusky female voice answered on the first ring.
“Hello?” Alex found himself envisioning a young Kathleen Turner on the other end.
“Is this Ms. Benson? Nadine Benson?”
“Speaking.”
“Ms. Benson, this is Lt. Alex Mendez of the Longview Police. I need to speak to you about—”
“Derrick Calloway,” she interrupted.
“Yes ma’am,” Alex confirmed. “But how did you know?”
“I read the report, Lt. Mendez. I recognized your name right away. I expected I’d be hearing from you. To answer the question you’re going to ask, Calloway has not checked in since being processed out. In fact, he hasn’t reported in at the halfway house we arranged for him. Neither has he made any appearance at the job we lined up for him. I wish I could be of more assistance to you, Lieutenant, but it would appear Derrick Calloway has vanished.”
“Vanished? You mean you lost a prisoner?” Alex exclaimed.
“No,” Mrs. Benson replied calmly, “I mean we have not heard from a parolee. It does happen. He’s given a certain amount of time. Usually we have heard from them by now, but it is not uncommon for some of them to go enjoy a few hours in the park or even take in a trip to an amusement park to ride a roller coaster before checking in. Freedom elicits many different reactions I’m afraid.”
“Ms. Benson, I don’t believe you’re not taking this seriously.”
“Look, Lieutenant, I have over a hundred parolees under my charge. I have to meet with each one personally. This doesn’t leave time for much else. But Calloway was given forty-eight hours to get settled in and report to me. He still has time on that clock before we start calling out the National Guard. Now, I u
nderstand your position on the matter. But the law is the law and we all have to abide by it. Even you.”
“Look, Lady!” Alex said, before pausing to catch himself. A little calmer, he continued. “Look, I’m afraid you don’t understand. We have a triple homicide on our hands and one of those is the officer that put the cuffs on Calloway when he was taken into custody twelve years ago. Another was that man’s wife. Now, unless you want to become a statistic of that law you say you have to obey, I suggest you get on the horn to the halfway house, the job you set up and every person Calloway has ever called friend until you find him. And when you do find him, you call me, because I want to have a chat with him.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Nadine Benson said, absently. “Good day.”
Without waiting for Alex’s reply, Nadine Benson hung up.
“You do that,” he said to dead air.
Reaching down below his desk, Alex patted Buddy’s head.
“Okay, Pooch. I guess it’s time we go meet the family, eh?”
Shutting off his computer, Alex picked up the phone again.
Dialing Danny’s extension, Alex waited.
Danny picked up on the third ring.
“Hello?”
“Hey Danny,” Alex said. “I just wanted to let you know I’m heading out for a little while. Lisa has decided to go with Mom to Arizona and is taking the kids. I want to go say my goodbyes. I’ll be back later.”
“Eh, take the day, Bud. Come back bright and early tomorrow. You’ve earned it.”
“I will have earned it when we find the person or persons who killed Escalante and Whit. Who are you sending to talk to Escalante’s wife, by the way?”
“Then consider it an order,” Danny said, a little more firm, but still with the tone of a friend rather than a superior officer. “You need your head on straight, Alex. Get your family gone and get some sleep. I’m going out to the Escalante’s in a few minutes myself. Kinda felt like I owed it to him. I’m taking Kellan, Janet and probably Kelli Sharpe. Janet knows Mrs. Escalante and Kelli’s good with kids. Tabby’s still doing the autopsies. We won’t have anything before morning anyway. Come in first thing in the morning and let’s get the ball rolling. Kiss the family for me.”
“Will do, Boss.” Alex said, cocking his mouth in a half smile. “What, no kiss for Daddy?”
“I’ll tell you what you can kiss,” Danny snickered.
Alex snorted. “I’ll be back in the morning, per your orders. Don’t solve the case without me.”
“Go home,” Danny reiterated. “If we have a break, I’ll call you.”
“Hey Danny?”
“Hmm?”
“Watch your six, okay?”
“You too, Bud.”
Hanging up, Alex removed his coat from the back of his office chair.
“Okay, Buddy, what say we leave a little surprise on police property before we get in Alex’s car?”
If the feverishly wobbling nub was an indication, Buddy was firmly behind the plan.
Chapter 7
“Maybe I shouldn’t go. I—Maybe I should stay here, go see about the Escalantes.”
“Danny is over there with Janet, Kellan and Kelli Sharpe.”
“Who?”
“Young kid. Was in Alyson’s class. Danny said she’s good with kids.”
“Yeah, well, so is Alyson. Why didn’t he take her? And you need somebody to take care of your little friend here.” Lisa pointed to Buddy, who seemed to be smiling up at her as he sat obediently next to Alex.
Brandy had already welcomed him. Giving him the doggy sniff over, she must have decided he was acceptable, because she sat beside him staring up at Lisa, mirroring her new friend’s obedient posture, while offering her best “pet me” eyes.
Alex grinned, hugged his wife close to him. Loosening the hug, Alex kept his arms wrapped around her.
“He’s got more than one cop on the roster, Babe. Alyson’s got a job to do. Let’s let Danny do his job okay?”
“Yeah well—” she stared at the ground, shuffled her feet.
“Yeah well,” Alex whispered, lifting her chin. “I love you and Mom is waiting.”
“Well, what about these two? You sure you can manage with them both?”
“How much different can it be? Another food bowl, letting two of them outside and remembering to leave the toilet seat up.”
Lisa coughed. Gave Alex her best “that’s not funny” stare.
“I’m kidding,” Alex laughed. “Now will you go on?”
“Daddy?”
“Hey Baby!” Alex said, letting go of Lisa, kneeling down to Christina’s level.
“Is Buddy gonna be here when we get back?”
Alex could see the hope in her eyes, mixed with a pleading that was subdued but real.
“Well, he’s going to be keeping Daddy company while you and Mommy and Joey are going with Grandma.”
“Can we keep him?” Christina asked, more curious than begging this time.
“Daddy’s going to have to talk to Mommy about that first, Honey, but he’ll be here when you get back, I think.”
“Brandy, don’t bite him or anything,” Christina said, turning her attention to the Mendez pooch. “And share your toys with your little brother.”
“Yes, mom,” Alex whispered, just loud enough to cause Lisa to snicker, wink.
“I love you, Daddy,” Christina said, wrapping her arms around Alex’s neck, “Buddy can sleep in my bed with Brandy while I’m gone,” she whispered.”
Alex laughed.
“Sweetheart, I’ll probably let them sleep with me if they want. Daddy’s going to be pretty lonely without all of you.”
“Gonna get pretty quiet in there,” Lisa agreed, bending down. “Sure you can handle it?”
“Honestly? I don’t know what I’m going to do with myself. Alyson will be there some of the time, but it’s going to be weird having the house to myself and gobs of time to fill.”
“Well, we will be back in a few days. You and Alyson just stay out of trouble in the meantime.”
“We have Danny and Josh to keep us in line.” Alex said, offering an exaggerated grin.
“Why doesn’t that comfort me?” Lisa replied, nudging Alex’s shoulder. “Okay you two pups. Keep Daddy in line while Mommy is gone, you hear?”
Brandy sneezed, wiped her nose with the side of her paw, looked at Lisa and, it seemed to Alex anyway, winked. Buddy simply stood, padded forward and licked Lisa’s face before she could pull back.
“Good enough,” Lisa said, patting them both as she stood. “Seriously, Babe, you gonna be okay without me?”
“I will be fine. I know how to operate a microwave, a can opener and am smart enough not to run with scissors, so I’m good.”
They hugged one more time, a little tighter perhaps. Maybe even a little longer than before. Yes, Alex thought to himself, he felt it. He felt the sadness. He felt the emptiness of the house before they had even pulled out of the driveway. He felt the deafening silence weighing upon him. Yes, Alex admitted, standing in front of his wife and daughter that hadn’t even left yet, he felt the absence.
“Okay,” he said, clearing his throat, picking up Christina, “Let’s get you buckled in young lady. Carrying her to the car, Alex may have taken just a touch longer than normal buckling her in. Leaning over to kiss his son’s forehead, Alex’s lips may have lingered longer than usual during the typical morning goodbye kisses he often shared with the tiny tot.
Waving goodbye, Alex waited until they were around the corner before finally allowing a tear to fall. A father’s love is real. And Alex was a father.
The wind picked up, calling Alex to shiver, draw his hands deep into his jacket pocket.
“Okay, lady and gentleman,” Alex said, patting Brandy and Buddy on the head. “Race you into the house.”
***
The SUV had quite a few amenities he’d probably never discover. One he’d quickly noticed is the bullet-resistant glass that w
as far thicker than typical automobile glass. He was surprised to find that it did not alter his view of the road in any way. As a child, he’d always pictured bullet-resistant glass as being blurry or opaque. Somewhere between a fisheye camera lens and the frosted glass of a private detective’s office door.
Having discovered the glass, he assumed the vehicle to be armored in some way, but wasn’t sure he wanted to test the theory. Two compartments in the back of the vehicle had garnered him a 9mm pistol and what looked like an AR-15. He wasn’t a gun aficionado, but he’d seen them on television and in some of the reading material provided in prison. How odd, he’d always thought, that the prison system wouldn’t at least tear out pages with advertisements from the NRA, or some other gun-loving group, before giving them to convicted felons.
He’d been unable to locate any ammunition for the AR-15, but did find three full magazines for the 9mm.
Staring out the window, Jason watched as the Mendez family drove by, likely unaware of him. Likely unaware of the carnage to which they’d return.
“So, that’s what you look like, eh?” Jason whispered, as he watched Alex Mendez trotting toward his house, followed by two dogs. “Not the face I remember.” He regarded his own chiseled features and bristled facial hair in the rearview mirror. “But then, I guess mine isn’t a face you’ll remember either.”
He sighed to himself, cranked the SUV.
“Well, I missed once. I don’t plan on missing again.”
Chapter 8
The night had proven far longer than Alex had anticipated. Fathers are supposed to be rugged, tough men. At least that was the stereotype. They were the car fixers, the door replacers, the stern “never cry when you jam a nail through your hand” kind of fella. That’s the kind of man Theodore Mendez, Sr. had been, minus the nail through the hand anyway.
Alex was not that man. Lisa had referred to him as her rock more than once in their years together. If by “rock” she meant big, mushy bowl of “firmly in touch with my emotions” jello then, yes, Alex was indeed her rock. Sure, he had probably one of the most masculine jobs in the world. But, he’d long ago figured out one immutable fact. He sucked at it. If he ever needed proof at his level of suckitude, he need only think back to his time as temporary captain of homicide. There’d come a time when he wasn’t cut out for the street anymore – and that time might even be fast approaching – but he was no leader. And he certainly was no politician. To say nothing of the fact he had the right to remain silent when confronted by television reporters, but he somehow seemed to lack the ability. It had gotten him into trouble more than once during his brief tenure as captain, but it had been enough of a lesson that Alex would not be pursuing, let alone accepting, a promotion anytime soon – temporary or otherwise.
Target: Mendez: An Alex Mendez Tale Page 3
