by Anne Patrick
Gwen recalled one of the witnesses in the strong-armed robbery said she thought she had seen the girl before but couldn't remember where. After work, she would revisit the woman to see if her memory had improved.
"How much longer are you on desk duty?" Nick asked from his desk.
Gwen glanced over. "Today's my last day, thank goodness. I'm about to go stir-crazy."
"Tell me about it. I still have another week."
"Aw, that sucks."
"Yeah, I can see you're real broken up over it."
"Well, if you're bored you can do me a favor and watch this video and see if you can tell what the object is the girl picks up from the ground."
"As long as it doesn't involve anymore paper cuts, I'd be happy to help." He rolled his chair over to her desk.
Gwen rewound the video to just before the girl collided with the robber and hit play on her computer. They both watched the screen.
"Play it again. Only slower."
Gwen did as he asked.
"I can't tell. It's too small. CSU could do a frame by frame and enlarge the object."
"Are you kidding? It took a week to get this. Can you give it a shot?"
"Sure."
Gwen ejected the disc and handed it to him. "Thanks, Nick. I'm gonna get a soda. You want one? I'm buying."
"No thanks."
Gwen looked toward Ian's office. He had his head tilted back and was reading the file in his hand. It wasn't the first time she'd noticed the habit. He needed reading glasses but was too stubborn or prideful to admit it. She smiled as her thoughts drifted to Sunday and the great time they had at the Grand Canyon.
"Thought you were going for a soda," Nick reminded.
"I am. Sure you don't want anything?"
"Second thought, you could bring me a candy bar. Anything without nuts."
Gwen returned a few minutes later with her soft drink and his candy bar. "Heads up." She tossed it to him and he caught it with one hand. "Nice. How're you doing on the video?"
"My guess is it's a coin of some kind. All I can tell for sure is it's small and round, about the size of a quarter. Maybe she was wearing a pendant and it broke when he ran into her."
"Could be." She popped the tab on her soda and took a drink, staring at the frozen frame. It was grainy and dark but the object was as Nick described and Gwen guessed it to be silver. If it were gold, someone would've stolen it from her before now or she would've hocked it.
Gwen's extension rang and she moved back to her desk.
"You want me to take this back to CSU and see if they can get a clearer picture for you?"
"That'd be great, Nick. Thanks." She sat down and answered the phone.
*****
Ian shifted his attention to the squad room as Gwen answered her phone. Nick was on his way out the door. Watching and listening to the two the last day and a half had been entertaining to say the least. Neither of them liked being chained to their desks. It reminded Ian of his field days when he couldn't wait to hit the streets. His gaze rested on Gwen. He could tell from her grin that whoever she spoke with over the phone, the person just gave her some good news. She wrote in her notebook as she listened. A new lead on a case maybe.
Gwen hung up the phone, shifted through the paperwork on her desk, and then wrote some more in her notebook. Curious, Ian left his office to investigate.
She glanced up with the same smile she wore while talking on the phone. "Can I run something by you?"
"All right." He sat on the corner of Nick's desk and folded his arms.
"Okay, Williby's Liquor Store was robbed at approximately 1:25. He hit us at 1:45. That's only twenty, maybe twenty-five minutes, depending on how accurate the witness was. It takes at least eight to ten minutes for the drive. With that kind of precision, I figure he's done this a lot more than four times. So I called Phoenix PD, as a follow up on our statewide bulletin, and it just so happens they have three unsolved robberies matching our guy's MO. The last one was a month before Dawson Bartlett left college and moved back to Shorewick."
Ian sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Didn't we go through this last week?"
"Come on, Ian." She tossed her pen on the desk and looked at him. "What more do I have to do to prove to you he's our guy?"
"Bring me some solid evidence I can go to the captain with. You might be able to connect the robberies to the ones in Phoenix but without proof or—"
"An eyewitness. I know." She sighed then began to nibble at her bottom lip.
"Did you get anything from the ATM video CSU dropped off?"
"The girl on the footage is definitely my suspect from the strong-armed robbery. After the guy runs into her, she picked up something from the ground. We can't tell what it is, though. It's small and round. Could be a pendant or a coin."
"How small?" Ian asked.
"Quarter size, maybe a little smaller. He scored less than a hundred bucks in this robbery but I doubt he would've taken coins. It must be hers."
"You can't buy anything in a liquor store for a quarter?"
She shrugged. "Maybe she wasn't going to the liquor store to begin with. Only went in after she realized it was robbed." Gwen pulled up a map program on her computer, consulted her notes then punched in the address. "None of the businesses in this area are opened past midnight."
"What about Laundromats?" Ian suggested. "I think there's one in the next block that's open twenty-four hours. I've used it a couple of times. She could've been going there to use the payphone. I remember it has one because someone was using it one of the nights I was there and I hadn't seen one in a while."
She used a search engine to check for payphones in Shorewick. Only two popped up. "You're right. Amy's Fluff and Fold."
"Maybe that night wasn't the first time she's used the phone."
"I'll take a sketch by and put it on their bulletin board." She grabbed one from her desk drawer, picked up her note pad and stood.
"Where do you think you're going? You're on desk duty. Have someone else do it."
"Please." She tilted her head slightly and added her irresistible smile. "There's also a witness I want to talk to again."
"All right, but get hold of Kris and have her go with you."
"Okay." She hurried to the door.
"Hey, Gwen." He waited for her to turn around. "How about dinner tonight at my place? I'll grill us some steaks and we can watch a movie."
"Sounds good. Text me your address."
*****
Gwen called Kris on her cellphone and asked her to be her chauffeur.
"Thought you were grounded?"
"I got a reprieve."
"You know I'm juggling a half dozen cases."
"Just following orders. Should only take an hour or so. Come on, you know you miss me."
"I'm ten minutes out."
Gwen grabbed them both fountain drinks from the cafeteria. Kris was waiting when Gwen entered the garage. She got in the unmarked cruiser and handed one of the sodas to Kris.
"How's the arm?"
"Same as it was this morning when you asked. I'm fine, really. I don't know why everyone is making such a big deal of it."
"The lieutenant must not think it's so minor seeing as how he's been watching you like a hawk." Kris drove out of the garage and turned left. "Nick said he even stayed with you while you got your stitches."
"Nick's got a big mouth."
Caught at a red light, Kris glanced over at her.
Gwen smothered a smile. "What?"
"Nothing."
"Then why the grin?"
"Just wondering how long you plan on keeping it a secret."
"If you've got something to say, Kris, just say it."
"You and the lieutenant. There's something going on between you two."
Gwen couldn't hold it any longer. She smiled. "Who else knows?"
"Nick's just figured it out. Me, I've known for over a week."
"A week? But we just—"
"The look on your
face whenever you talk about him. I haven't seen it in a while. You really like him."
"Yeah, I do."
"You think it's a good idea, though? He's our supervisor."
"We're professionals, Kris. A relationship isn't going to interfere with our work."
"Hope the captain sees it that way."
"Ian isn't responsible for our evaluations, Captain Bradley is. So it's not like I could benefit from our relationship career wise, and we're not partners."
"That's true." Kris laughed. "When I first suspected something was going on, I thought I must be crazy. I mean, given your bad habit of always butting heads with authority figures."
"Ian isn't your typical brass. He's a detective first. It's one of the first things I admired about him."
"I'm happy for you, Gwen. I want you to be careful, though. I know how important your career is to you."
"I will." She smiled at her friend, thankful of the bond they had. She hoped the others in the unit would be just as understanding when they found out.
Kris pulled up in front of 211 North Ash and they got out of the car. Bonnie Abrams looked up from her flower garden and smiled.
"Good afternoon, Mrs. Abrams," Gwen greeted. "Can you spare a few minutes of your time?"
"Certainly. Come on up on the porch. Can I get you two something to drink?"
"No, thank you." Gwen waited for Mrs. Abrams to take a seat in one of the patio chairs and motioned for Kris to take the other. "We were wondering if you'd given any more thought as to where you might've seen the girl from the purse snatching incident."
"I have, and the only thing I can come up with is church."
"You think she attends your church?" Kris asked.
Mrs. Abrams shook her head. "On Wednesday's we serve an evening meal for the needy. I usually help out. I'm pretty sure that's where I've seen her."
"Which church?" Gwen's mind started spinning as an idea formulated. Tomorrow was Wednesday. With any luck, the girl would show up.
"The Community Church on Winchester and Twenty-Fourth."
"Great. Would you mind not helping out tomorrow? I'm going to be there in case she shows up and if she sees you, she might recognize you and get spooked."
"Okay. They serve from four-thirty till seven."
Gwen shook her hand. "I appreciate your help."
"You're welcome. Good luck."
"You remember my concern from earlier," Kris said on the way to the car. "I think it's about to be tested."
*****
Ian lived on a quiet cul-de-sac less than a mile from the station. As rentals went, it was a nice home. Single story bungalow with two bedrooms, a large living area and kitchen, and medium sized patio inside a fenced-in back yard.
Gwen waited until after dinner to tell Ian of her plans. The way she figured it, she'd have a better chance of talking to the girl if Gwen were to pretend to be homeless also. Then once she gained a little trust, she would discreetly mention the robbery and find out what the girl knew. Worse case scenario, Gwen would place her under arrest and go from there.
"You were shot two days ago and now you want to go undercover in a soup kitchen? No, absolutely not, Gwen. The doctor said no strenuous activity."
"Really? You're going to bring that up after our Grand Canyon adventure."
He smiled. "I thought you had a good time."
"I did." She took his arm and draped it over her shoulder as she nestled against him. "My point is that tomorrow wouldn't be anymore taxing on me than the wonderful time I had with you Sunday."
"You're exasperating, you know that?"
"So is that a yes?"
"You promise no foot chases?"
"Only if the girl runs."
"Gwen."
"Fine. I'll let Kris go after her. She can't run nearly as fast as I can, though."
"That's a risk I'm willing to take." He picked up the DVD remote. "Have you told her about us yet?"
"Didn't have to. Seems she's a lot more intuitive than I realized."
"As any good detective should be. Nick and Ron?"
"I'm pretty sure Nick knows. Doesn't matter. Too late to back out now." She turned in his arms and initiated a kiss. Seconds later, her phone rang. She sighed and grabbed it from her pocket. "Jamison."
"Gwen, it's Tony. Do you have plans for dinner tomorrow evening? If not, Kara and I would love to have you and Ian over. Thought we'd grill out."
"I have plans tomorrow." According to Mrs. Abrams, they served dinner at the church until seven. "Thursday or Friday would be better."
"Friday then."
"Okay, hang on." She peered up at Ian. "You wanna go to Tony's for a cookout Friday night?"
"Sounds great. Ask him what we can bring."
"We'll bring dessert." She ended the call and stuck her phone back in her jeans pocket and heard Ian chuckle. "What?"
"I could get used to this." He drew her back into his arms and kissed her.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Gwen looked in the locker room mirror. For the past hour, Nick had been helping her get into character. The disheveled blouse, missing a couple bottom buttons, and the jeans with the worn out knees fit the part. The ash-blond wig wasn't right, though; it was too close to her natural hair color. "Let me try the black wig."
Nick reached into the large tote he had borrowed from a friend in narcotics. "I still say you should go with the auburn one. You'd make a hot redhead."
"Just give me the black one."
He snickered as he handed it to her.
She put it on and ruffled it a little. "Perfect."
"Wait. Let me add a little dirt to your cheeks."
"That's overkill, Nick. I'm homeless, not dead." She grinned. "You're enjoying this way too much."
A knock sounded at the door. "It's Kris. Can I come in?"
Before either had a chance to answer, the door opened. Gwen turned and Kris laughed. "Wow! Hang on, I've gotta get a picture of this." She took out her phone.
"Don't you dare," Gwen warned too late.
Kris took another, still smiling. "Eric is going to love this."
"I don't even know why we're friends." She patted Nick on the shoulder. "Thanks for your help."
"Anytime. Hey, Kris, be sure and text me a copy of those."
Gwen followed Kris out of the locker room. "You do and I'll—"
"I won't," she promised.
"I'll meet you in the garage. I've gotta grab my purse."
"Get mine, too." Kris tossed her keys to Gwen.
Thankfully the squad room was empty. Gwen removed her purse from the desk drawer and then went to Kris's desk. She had just sat down in the chair when she heard the door open.
"Can I help you, ma'am?"
Gwen smiled as she recognized Ian's voice. "Yeah, you can buy a girl dinner in a couple of hours."
"Gwen?"
She laughed.
Ian moved around to her side and shook his head. "You really do take your job seriously."
"Yeah I do." Gwen unlocked Kris's desk and took out her purse. "Wish me luck."
"I'll say a prayer for you. Rafferty's okay for dinner?"
"Maybe dessert. I'm eating at the church." She stood, still smiling.
He crossed his arms. "Remember, no foot chases."
"Got it, boss."
"And be careful."
She waved over her shoulder.
*****
Ian went into his office and busied himself with paperwork that had accumulated on his desk. Midway through the stack, his daughter called.
"Hey, sweetheart."
"Did I catch you at a bad time?"
"Not at all."
"I talked to Isaac earlier and he told me you guys had a good talk Saturday. For future reference, if you ever want to win me over, I'd love to see Lifehouse in concert."
Ian laughed. "I'll remember that…but I have to confess the tickets weren't my idea."
"I thought one of your detectives sold them to you because they couldn't make
it to the concert."
"That's partially true. I did reimburse her."
"Her? Now I'm really intrigued. Dad, is there something you'd like to tell me?"
"I suppose so, but I didn't want to do it over the phone."
"You've met someone?"
Ian couldn't tell from her voice if she was upset at the notion or pleased. "She's a detective in my squad. Her name is Gwen." He went on to tell how they'd become friends and that they had recently began to date.
"She sounds like an interesting lady. More importantly, you sound really happy."
"I am, JoAnn. She's a good woman." He just had to be careful and not screw it up. Gwen had a lot of baggage. So did he. The difference was, she knew about his.
"So when do I get to meet her?"
"Let's wait a while on that."
"Afraid Isaac and I will scare her off?"
"Of course not. It's just that we don't know each other that well yet and…this is all pretty new to me. I mean, I was married to your mother eighteen years. Gwen is the first woman I've been interested in for over twenty."
"I get it, Dad, you're out of practice. Just be yourself. You're a great guy. Any woman would be lucky to have you in her life."
"Thanks, sweetheart." It was a little more complicated than that. He had a feeling, Gwen had a lot of demons from the past she needed to slay before they could have any real future together.
*****
The dining hall of the church was starting to fill when Gwen arrived at four-fifteen. At least ten bench tables with chairs packed the large room. Just outside the kitchen area there were two long tables where six volunteers stood ready to serve the growing line of men, women, and children. Gwen quickly scanned the crowd for the girl but didn't see anyone who resembled her. All she had to go on was the sketch and her vague memory from the alley. The girl's eyes were about the only thing Gwen knew she could rely on because they still haunted her.
