Everyday Hero

by Jo Leigh

  “Maybe he went home.”

  “To Gus?” T.J. asked. “Not likely.”

  “Gus may be horrible, but he’s familiar. Bobby’s afraid. He’s going to go somewhere he can feel safe.”

  “There’s no safety at his home. Believe me.”

  “We aren’t talking about you.”

  He met her gaze and in that glance he knew she saw right through him, down into the secrets he used to think he kept hidden. He looked away. “I’ll go. I’ll bring him back.”

  “Maybe,” she said.

  “I don’t want him in jail.”

  “You may have no choice,” she said gently. “Sometimes, it just doesn’t work out the way we want it to.”

  He smiled and sighed. “If it were only sometimes, that would be enough.”

  He walked across the street, not looking back at Kate or the kids or the center. He could have gone back inside and changed, grabbed his car keys and driven to his mother’s house, but he wanted to walk. He needed the time to think.

  What the hell was he going to say to Bobby if he ever found him? Right now it was hard to come up with one reason Bobby should come back to the center. It wasn’t going to do any good. The cards had been dealt and all any of them could do was play out the hand.

  Kate locked the front doors, grateful the workday had come to a close. Exhaustion made her muscles ache and her eyes gritty. Where the hell was T.J.?

  Neither he nor Bobby had returned to the center. Only now, when the last kid had been picked up, did she realize how many times she’d thought about the detective and his brother.

  She’d tried to picture where they were, if they’d met, if they’d fought. The truth was, she didn’t know either of them well enough to make any guesses. She’d find out the truth when they came back. If they came back.

  “Are you gonna stand there all night? I’m starving to death.”

  Trust Molly to put a smile on her face. “I’ll trade you dinner duty tonight,” she called. “Even better. I’ll do your laundry all next week if you cook tonight.”

  “Deal.”

  “You haven’t heard from Bobby, have you?”

  Molly shook her head. “He did pretty good with the kids today. Better than I thought he would.”

  “Yeah?”

  “I think he kind of liked it. Of course he didn’t do any diaper changes. That, we’ll have to work up to.”

  “I hope so.”

  Molly turned to leave but stopped before she got to the door. “You sure about that laundry thing? A whole week?”

  Kate’s nod earned a huge smile.

  “Sucker!”

  She laughed. Molly was getting the better of her, but she just couldn’t face the kitchen. Not right now. It was all she could do to walk around the big room and pick up. Odd bits of paper, a broken cassette, three brand-new number two pencils and a silver condom packet—unopened. Well, at least someone had thought about safe sex. She tucked the packet into her pants and threw the rest of the garbage in the big barrel just before she turned off the lights.

  Peter had already cleaned up from the grade-school kids and Kate was sure Molly had done the same in the nursery. Trust her crew to be efficient without complaint. She was the one who felt whiney tonight.

  What she wanted was a bath. A real bath where she could soak her whole body at the same time. Bubbles up to here. A glass of wine. Pink candles. Pavarotti singing Nessun Dorma.

  She sighed. The only part of that equation she had any hope of actually getting was the wine. There was a bottle in the back of the fridge. At least it was there a month ago.

  Molly was chopping veggies when Kate made it into the kitchen. As usual, her assistant was cooking with the finesse of a bull moose. Pots, pans, knives and food were, spread around her on all available surfaces. Kate thought about helping, but discarded the idea immediately. Without saying a word, she turned down the hall and went back toward her room. She’d change, wash up. Try not to think about T.J.

  She reached for her door, then stopped. She heard a sound coming from Bobby’s room. Crossing the hall quickly, she pushed his door open, wondering what she was going to say to the boy.

  It didn’t matter. Bobby wasn’t there. T.J. was. He held one of Bobby’s baseball caps in his hand. For a long time, he didn’t move and she didn’t, either. Finally he looked at her. His gaze held nothing but sadness.

  “I didn’t find him,” he said softly. “I should have, but I didn’t.”

  “He’ll come back.”

  T.J. shook his head. “There’s been another fire. Bobby was seen near the store. I don’t think he’ll ever come back again.”

  Chapter 6

  Kate took a step toward T.J., but stopped when she saw him flinch. It was a subtle move and she might have missed it in another man. Not with T.J., though. For whatever reason, she was able to read him. At least when he let down his tough-guy facade.

  Right now, there was none of the brash, cocky cop. Only a big brother who’d made some big mistakes. Who didn’t want or need her comfort.

  “I’ll call the station,” she said.

  He nodded, fingering the lettering on the cap, tracing the L of Lakers with his thumb. “I went to the house. No one was there. I waited for a long time.”

  “How did you find out about the fire?”

  “Gus. He showed up about forty minutes ago.”

  “Damn,” she said.

  “You got that right.”

  “Well, how did he hear about it?” She kept wanting to move closer to him, even just to see him better, but she forced herself to stay perfectly still.

  “I never asked. It was a pretty one-sided conversation. He wasn’t particularly interested in my opinions.”

  She looked him over carefully, studying the knuckles on the hand she could see—his right hand. There were no bruises or cuts. So they’d avoided a fistfight. This time.

  “What were his?”

  “Don’t know. Maybe he expects Bobby to run away. He sure doesn’t think he’ll come back here.”

  “Do you?”

  He tossed the cap onto the bed. “How the hell would I know?” He turned to her, sticking his hands into the pockets of his jeans and she wondered when he’d changed clothes. The last time she’d seen him, he’d still been in his running shorts.

  “I was the idiot out there all day,” he continued, “thinking we had this thing wrapped up. That Bobby was going to get one look at those little babies in there and grow wings. All day I’ve been real busy patting myself on the back for my insight and wisdom.”

  His gaze found hers and the accusation there let her know he wasn’t confining his ill will to himself. He blamed her, too.

  “You didn’t do anything wrong. For God’s sake, it’s the first day.”

  “And last.”

  “Not necessarily.”

  He seemed to have no response to that, except the cold stare. She thought of this afternoon, the look on his face when they’d raced back to the center. The sound of his laughter when one of the kids made a joke. She wanted that man back. “I’m going to the phone,” she said. “Molly’s working on dinner. Why don’t we meet in the kitchen and plan from there.”

  He shrugged his shoulder in as noncommittal a way as possible, but she couldn’t help that. Right now, she had to talk to her friends on the force and get the real skinny. “If you want to stay here and pout, be my guest,” she said. “It’s up to you.”

  With that, she left Bobby’s room and went quickly toward her office. When she sat at her desk, she reached for the phone but didn’t pick it up. She’d sounded so sure of herself back there, but that had been some kind of reaction to T.J.’s indifference. The truth was, she was deeply disappointed, too. T.J. hadn’t come up with those dreams. He’d gotten them from her, special delivery. Good old Pollyanna strikes again.

  Sighing, she picked up the receiver and hit the speed dial number for the Harbor Bay police. She didn’t recognize the voice on the phone and asked t
o speak to the desk officer. A few moments of piped in music and then, “Tucker.”

  “Randy. It’s Kate. What’s this about another fire?”

  She heard the sound of a siren in the background. That and shuffling paper. Odd that those two noises were all it took to form a complete picture of the station.

  “They hit the Stop-N-Go on 7th and Fortuna. Gutted the plate, but no one was seriously hurt. Mr. Calloway, the proprietor, was beat up, but not enough to put him in the hospital.”

  “Did be recognize who did it?”

  “Nope. Never saw a one. At least that was his story.”

  “You think he’s afraid to talk?”

  “Wouldn’t you be?”

  She nodded, even though she knew he couldn’t see her. “What do you think? Who was it?” No use planting the seed of Bobby’s being there if it didn’t already exist. She held her breath while she waited for his response. Two, three seconds while she struggled not to cross her fingers.

  “Odds are on Arcola. Maybe this time we’ll get something on him. But then again.”

  “That’s it? Nothing special about this one?”

  “What’s going on with you, Kate? Is something wrong?”

  So much for her acting ability. “No, nothing.”

  “You know something we don’t?”

  “No. No, trust me. Thanks. I’ll speak to you later, okay?”

  She heard his goodbye faintly as she hung up the phone. Randy was a good guy. He would have told her if Bobby was under suspicion.

  Had Gus made the whole thing up to bait T.J.? Having seen the two of them together, she wouldn’t doubt it. It didn’t matter now. Bobby’s whereabouts did, however. It wouldn’t surprise her if he’d run to Danny’s camp. There was something charismatic about Arcola. If he’d had the right opportunities, he really could have made something of himself.

  “Dinner’s ready, Kate.”

  She looked up to see Molly standing at the office door.

  “What’s wrong with Captain Marvel? He’s pouting like someone took his fire truck”

  “Bobby.”

  Molly waved away the word as if it were a gnat. “He’ll be back. He didn’t have any money and it’s past his dinnertime.”

  Kate stood and joined her assistant in the walk to the kitchen. “Why are you so sure? You know something I don’t?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well?”

  Molly ran a hand through what she jokingly called her golden tresses. “He’s got the hots for me. Bad.”

  Kate smiled. “You just met him this morning.”

  “Doesn’t take but a minute.”

  “Really? You’re that good?”

  Molly grinned as they entered the kitchen. “Better.”

  “What’s better?” Peter was standing at the table, handing a fistful of silverware to T.J.

  “Molly has this idea that Bobby will come trotting back any minute.”

  T.J.’s eyebrow came up. “Why’s that?”

  “Because he wants me,” Molly said, moving to the stove. “I can’t help it. It’s this thing I do to men.”

  Kate kept her eyes on T.J. She was used to Molly—well, sort of. The girl still surprised her with her incredible self-confidence and a wisdom way beyond her years. But T.J. hadn’t been exposed to “the Molly factor” as Peter so eloquently put it.

  “All men? Or just the men in my family?”

  She turned to T.J. and gave him a critical once-over. “You don’t have to worry. It only works with young guys.”

  Kate burst out laughing and to his credit, T.J. did, too.

  “It’s the second time today I’ve been accused of being a geezer,” he said. “This place is hell on the ego.”

  “Don’t get your panties in a bunch, T.J.,” Molly said. “I’m just saying we’re from different worlds. What cassette is in your car stereo right now?”

  T.J. blinked a few times. “The Eagles’ live album”

  She nodded. “When’s the last time you stayed up all night, drinking beer and shooting pool?”

  He shook his head slowly and Kate could almost see him search his data banks for an answer. “Last July. No, wait. That was something else. It wasn’t that long ago. Hold on. I’ll remember—”

  “Uh-huh,” Molly said, cutting him off. “And what was the big controversy over the last Salt-N-Pepa video?”

  T.J. frowned. “Too spicy?”

  Molly shook her head. “Cute.” She gave him a weak, pitying smile. “Don’t be depressed. Really. It’s not so bad. You have your memories.”

  T.J. pulled out a chair and sat down. “Damn.” He looked up at Kate and smiled wryly. “How do you take it?”

  “First off,” Peter said, “we don’t listen to her. She’s completely insane.”

  Kate went to the cupboard to get the plates and to keep her grin hidden from T.J. She was disproportionately pleased about this turn in the conversation. Leave it to Molly to snap him out of that ugly mood.

  Brushing off the small whiff of jealousy that it was Molly and not her who had the magic touch, she got four bowls, two of them from the same set, and brought them to the table. “What is that luscious smell?”

  “Chili,” Molly said. “Prepare your gullets. This be hot stuff.”

  “She means that,” Peter said. “Don’t be fooled by her size. The girl has an evil streak a mile wide.”

  Kate held out a bowl for T.J. He took hold, but stilled his hand: She didn’t let go. Not after he’d caught her gaze. His slow smile had lost all irony and was as genuine and real a thing as the floor beneath her feet. Swallowing hard, she thought she should say something. Assure him that things would turn out okay, that Bobby would return and that he wasn’t wasting his time. But she couldn’t make her mouth work.

  It was his eyes that stopped her. The dark gaze that didn’t waver, the small lines at the corners that signaled his pleasure and no small measure of surprise.

  “Is this some new dinner ritual?”

  Molly’s voice snapped her back to the room and she let go so quickly the bowl nearly fell to the floor. T.J. seemed to recover his senses, too, and they both turned to get on with the meal.

  She sat down across from him and concentrated on Molly as the girl brought the big cast-iron pot to the table. While Molly dished out the chili, Kate thought about what had just happened. How, with a simple look, T.J. had somehow managed to stop time. What was the deal here? Was she really interested in him? Had she completely lost her sense of reason?

  She took a bite, burning her tongue for her trouble. Grabbing her water glass, she doused the fire, then noticed T.J.’s panicky reach for his glass. He’d done the same thing. Was he thinking the same thoughts, too? She’s the one who needed to think. To straighten things out in her head. But she couldn’t do that while he was so close to her. She took another sip of water while the questions circled.

  “So, T.J.,” Molly said. “The bedroom next to Kate’s is empty. Why don’t you move in?”

  Kate spit.

  Molly jerked back and looked at her wet T-shirt. “Ewww, God. That’s so gross.”

  “I’m sorry,” Kate said, reaching with her napkin to dab Molly’s shirt.

  Molly grabbed the napkin and did her own wiping. “I said the bedroom next to yours, Kate. Don’t get hysterical.”

  Kate felt the heat radiate from her cheeks. “I coughed. I’m sorry. It had nothing to do with—I mean, I don’t care— I’m sure T.J. has a place to stay.”

  “No, I don’t. I checked out of the motel this morning.”

  She turned to look at him. His grin was entirely too smug. “Then you’ll have to check in again tonight. This isn’t a rooming house.”

  “What if Bobby comes back late?” Molly said, giving Kate her wide-eyed, little-Miss-Innocent stare. “We can’t expect T.J. to keep coming back and forth.”

  “Didn’t you say just last week that you were going to get another counselor to move in there?” Peter asked. “Isn’t T.J. a counselor
for the rest of the summer?”

  “Yeah,” Molly said. “That’s right.”

  All eyes were on her. The two mutineers continued to eat as if they hadn’t just pushed her out on the gangplank. T.J. was no better. He wasn’t grinning, but only on the outside. She could tell that inside he was doing a little victory dance. This was a plot, plain and simple. They’d all ganged up on her. They enjoyed watching her squirm.

  “If and I mean if he stays, it means he has to work. Just like the rest of us.”

  “Hey, just tell me what to do,” he said.

  “Okay, hotshot. But you’re on probation. I run this ship tight.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “After dinner, you can help Peter—” Kate caught sight of Molly in her peripheral vision. The girl was staring past her, toward the kitchen door. She turned.

  It was Bobby.

  Her gaze swung from the boy to his brother.

  All the good humor from a moment ago vanished. “Where the hell have you been?” he said, his voice sharp and bitter.

  Bobby took a step back and for a minute, Kate thought he was going to bolt. Instead, he looked at Molly. “I needed some time to think.”

  “So you ran off to find Danny?” T.J. pushed himself back from the table, although he didn’t stand up. “Does he do your thinking for you now?”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about. I shouldn’t have come back here. You—”

  “Bobby,” Kate said, cutting him off. “Go get washed up for dinner.”

  He looked at Kate through narrowed eyes, but he didn’t move.

  “Now.” She turned to Molly. “Get him a bowl of chili, would you, Molly?”

  Molly stood up and that seemed to be enough to send Bobby to the back to clean up.

  Kate turned to T.J. “Come on. We’re going for a walk.”

  He ran his hand over his face. Suddenly he looked old, as old as Molly had teased him of being. Why couldn’t he keep his temper in check around Bobby? What buttons did his half brother push?

  “Why?” he asked.