by Jet MacLeod
“Are you ever gonna tell me?”
“I will tell you what I can, when I can. I know you may not understand it but, I’ve done things I can’t talk about. I’ve done things I’m not proud of, but I have never done anything illegal.”
“I guess I’ll have to deal with that,” Reagan replied.
“I’m sorry, Baby. I am just not at liberty to say. It’s national security.”
“I understand that. I do. I’m not doubting that. I know that you were in the Army. I have to expect some secrecy about what you did. I don’t want to start expecting surprises on our door step.”
“I’m sorry about that. I didn’t know that was gonna happen. I also can’t call or notify all of my ex-Army buddies not to tell them that I can’t help them. I can’t do that. I’m sure that the only reason that Ryder came here was because it is something very important. I don’t want to argue with you about this. I’m sorry. I love you,” Grace explained.
“I love you, too.”
The doorbell rang, again. Grace walked across her bedroom to the doorway. Reagan didn’t challenge her. She let Grace pass and go to the front door. Grace made her way to the front door, with her wallet in hand. She could feel Reagan following her down the stairs and to the door.
It was their Chinese food. Grace paid the driver and gave him a large tip. She took the food to the kitchen. She began unpacking the bag and placing the food containers on the kitchen table, when Reagan joined her.
“I’m sorry,” Reagan told her.
“For what?”
“Freaking out on you.”
“You had every right. I can’t fault you for that. I’m sorry that I worried you. I’m sorry that my past came to the door,” Grace replied.
“No, if anyone is sorry for their past, it’s me.”
“Reagan.”
“Grace.”
“Don’t you think that. Don’t you ever think that. Your past is not your fault. You couldn’t control it. You are not to blame at all,” Grace stated.
“Then you can’t apologize for your past.”
“But, I could control mine. I joined the service. It was my choice.”
“That may be true, but you didn’t choose your missions.”
“True,” Grace replied.
“So, you can’t help it if your past darkens your door.”
“How do I deserve you?”
“By loving me,” Reagan replied, batting her eyes and making a cute face.
“Absolutely, then I must be a millionaire in love. You truly are the best thing that has ever happened to me,” Grace stated, all serious.
“The feelings are mutual.”
“I love you.”
“I love you.”
“Now, let’s eat before Catie gets home and we have no privacy.”
“Sounds good,” Reagan answered.
They dug into their food. The doorbell rang. Reagan glanced at the watch.
“Too late.”
Chapter Nineteen
Sam lay asleep across Tabitha’s bed. Tabitha knew she was tired. She had no plans of disturbing Sam anytime soon. She watched Sam as she slept. She decided that she couldn’t pass up the opportunity to sketch and draw Sam’s sleeping form.
As the morning progressed into afternoon, Tabitha progressed from sketches to canvasses. She had left Sam to sleep. Tabitha was lost in her paints and painting when Sam found her in the studio.
“Busy morning?” Sam asked, making Tabitha jump.
“Bloody Hell! You scared me, Sam. Did you sleep well?”
“As well as could be expected,” Sam replied.
“I know, Love. Did you have bad dreams? Did they bother you?”
“Somewhat. I hate sleeping after a case now. I don’t give my mind time to digest everything. It makes for interesting dreams.”
“Wanna tell me about it?”
“Not really,” Sam answered.
“What’s that from?” Tabby asked, pointing at a bruise.
“An idiot.”
“Did the idiot run?”
“Nope, just fought back when Grace and I tried to arrest him,” Sam replied.
“You caught the guy?”
“Not the rapist, no. We ended up on another case and an extremely privileged dumb ass. Evidently, he thought that a court order didn’t pertain to him.”
“Guess he thought wrong,” Tabby stated.
“You should see him. I thought Grace was going to break the door on him. She is freaking amazing. Pow! He was standing behind the door and she slammed it on him to pen him. It kept him from fighting that much or too hard,” Sam explained.
“Door knob to the crotch?”
“Possibly, I don’t know. He wasn’t limping though. I’m sure that it knocked the wind out of him good. Not sure that I would have thought to use the door. That was ingenious.”
“That’s just Grace. You’d be amazed what I’ve seen her do. Maybe, you should get her to train you. It couldn’t hurt.”
“There’s a thought. I’ll ask her next time I see her. Maybe, that’ll help her relax a little more around me. It’ll certainly help her to stop thinking about the case so much, off duty,” Sam stated.
“She still obsessed?”
“I would be to if it was my lover. I understand where she’s coming from. That’s why I talked to her before we tried to come home. I guess I finally got her to see reason. She’s agreed to give me lead on Reagan’s case,” Sam answered.
“You got O’Shea to relent?”
“I wouldn’t say relent. I think she just finally realized that the case was doing more to her psyche than she thought. She’s finally admitted out loud, I think. It meant more then,” Sam replied.
“Well do me a favor and don’t let the case rule you.”
“I promise. Plus, I have you to help me stay grounded. What about the program?”
“It’s moving slowly. Reagan is moving along with the code. She is working on it, while you’re working on the case. Every new detail helps. Every new clue gets us one step closer. Reagan stares at each new composite, to see if this is the one.”
“Any luck?” Reagan asked, hopeful.
“I’m sure that you and Grace would know before I do,” Tabitha answered.
“Maybe, we would. But, how goes the collection? How’s your art going?” Reagan asked changing the subject.
“It’s working out well. I have a lot of great new sketches. All I have to do is transfer the best ones to a canvass and paint them. Once that’s done, I’ll call my agent and the gallery. So, I’m guessing it should be up in about two months or so,” Tabitha explained.
“That sounds wonderful. I needed something like that. That is awesome. I love good news that has nothing to do with the case. You don’t know how happy that makes me. Wow, Tabby, that’s great,” Sam said.
“I guess so.”
“You guess so?”
“Yeah,” Tabitha answered.
“Why do you say that?”
“Because it’s my job.”
“I know, but—“ Sam started.
“But, it’s still my job. I do it to pay the bills. Don’t get me wrong. I have a lot of fun doing it. But, sometimes … sometimes, it’s a job.”
“I understand that.”
“But you know the worst part of it?”
“What’s that, Tabitha?”
“I hate doing gallery shows. I hate all the phony wining and schmoozing just to try to sell a piece. Either you like it or you don’t, me talking to you isn’t going to change that,” Tabitha explained.
“True,” Sam replied.
“I always try to get out of them. I never succeed, but I still try nonetheless. It’s a pain.”
“I believe you,” Sam stated.
Tabitha just smiled at her. They were both amazed at how well they got along. Tabitha wondered if she should tell Sam about Penny or if she should just wait until Sam met Penny in person. Penny and Tabitha were always amazed at the reactions they got whe
n they were met separately.
“Well, what should we do now?” Tabitha asked.
“I dunno. You got any ideas? I’m up for anything. Well, at least until Cormack or Grace calls, then I’ll have to go,” Sam stated.
“Duty does come first,” Tabitha quipped.
“Sometimes unfortunately,” Sam responded.
“It is a necessary evil of your job. Just like shows are for me. You being on call all the time is like inspiration to me. I can’t turn it off. I don’t know any artist or writer that can. It’s a blessing and a curse,” Tabitha stated.
“I would rather have inspiration than investigation any day,” Sam retorted.
Tabitha laughed. Sam just stared at her, unsure of what Tabitha found so funny about the situation. Tabitha realized that Sam was a little upset by her laughing, a little too late.
“Sorry, Baby, I didn’t mean anything by it,” Tabby stated.
“I know, you just catch me off guard sometimes.”
“I know. It’s my English Wit.”
“That must be it,” Sam stated.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. It’s just a mood I get in when it’s time for a show. I’m so close now and I know that I’m not going to be able to back out of this one. Monica has threatened my life, this time,” Tabitha said.
“I’ll go with you.”
“Now, that’s temping,” Tabitha replied.
“Just tempting?” Sam asked.
“It would make things more interesting for me at least. I’m not sure that my adoring public would know what to do if I came with you as my favorite accessory. It might offend them because I would be lost in you and not the show all night,” Tabitha told her.
“Wow, that was thick. Good for my ego, but thick. It can’t be all that bad. Come on. I’ll go with you. You can do the rounds and then we’ll duck out. Some sort of police drama or something,” Sam offered.
“I wish it was that easy. Oh well, we’ll go together, but you’ll be on the sidelines once Monica gets her hands on me. I can’t escape her. The woman is a prison guard. She is amazing, don’t get me wrong. Bloody Hell, I forgot to call her to update her. She is going to bloody pissed.”
“I’m sure it will be okay.”
“You have no idea how much of a task master she can be,” Tabitha stated.
“If you need time, take it. Forced inspiration doesn’t work well. I’m sure you know that. It’ll be okay.”
“I love you.”
“I love you, too,” Sam replied.
“Come see the new collection. I want your honest opinion. Promise me you won’t hold back,” Tabitha stated, knowing she was not going to show Sam the nudes, yet.
“Of course, Baby, always. I always will. I don’t sugarcoat very well.”
“I know. I love that. Now, come on.”
Chapter Twenty
Cormack sat in her lab. She and David were pouring over all of the evidence. It had been a long day and it wasn’t even noon, yet. She leaned back and stretched her neck and back.
“Any word from SLED, yet?”
“Not yet.”
“Should I call?” Cormack asked him.
“Don’t know that’ll help anything,” David answered.
“Couldn’t hurt.”
“Won’t help.”
“You sure all paperwork we sent was correct?”
“I double checked it all before I even faxed it to them.” “Sorry, I just want some results.”
“We all do, Cormack, even the lab rats at SLED.”
“Sorry, I’ll just sit back down.”
“Don’t worry about it. I understand, but as we both know, DNA takes a while to process. It isn’t the lab results were waiting on this time. It’s paperwork.”
“And, paperwork is like politics, you’ll get it when they are ready for you to have it,” Cormack replied.
“Exactly,” David answered.
“David, how come you aren’t a CSI Sup, yet? You obviously have the cred and the knowledge. What happened?” Cormack asked him, trying to find something to pass the time.
“I don’t play well with others.”
“I doubt that, seriously,” Cormack replied.
“Well, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.”
They both laughed. Cormack crossed the lab to check the all-in-one printer for anything. There was nothing.
“Wonder why Sam or Grace hasn’t called us yet?”
“Please don’t wish that on us, yet,” David said.
“I’m just surprised.”
“They’re probably asleep, like we should be.”
“Maybe so, but it doesn’t seem like Gracie.”
“Not now, let me complete something before she shows up,” David begged.
“Doesn’t matter. It’s Grace. She won’t be satisfied until we got him.”
Just then, the lab phone rang. They both turned to stare at it, but neither made a move to answer it. David gave Cormack a knowing look and then went back to his work. Cormack understood that she would have to answer the phone. She crossed the lab to the phone.
“Five bucks says it’s Grace,” Cormack told him.
“Okay, fine,” David answered, not paying her much mind.
“Lab, Sergeant Hewlett, how can I help you?” Cormack asked answering the phone.
“Hewlett, its Danica. Have you heard from Sam or Grace yet? I know you sent them home at four, but it’s almost noon and still no word.”
“Sorry, Cap, can’t say that I have,” Cormack replied, pulled out her wallet, “David and I were just wondering the same thing. Thought you might be Grace. Anything I need to know?”
“No, not really. They just told me that they had something to talk to me about. I just figured that Grace would be sitting there in the lab waiting for results. Got anything I could share with the solicitor?”
“Nope, not yet, we’re still waiting on results. I’m waiting on the SLED reports from last year, too. You haven’t gotten those have you? I needed to check some things,” Cormack replied.
“I haven’t seen anything, but I’ll make a call. Let me see what I can do. Do you have a hunch about something?”
“Just something that the Rookie said I forgot to follow up on.”
“The Rookie?” Danica asked.
“Yup, Sam, she’s the rookie. Frenchy started it. But, then again, Frenchy can get away with it. He’s the only one I’ve ever heard call Grace ‘Tiny’ and not get beat for it. Look, Cap, I know she’s your daughter, but she is going to get her fair share of friendly hazing, probably more so, cause she’s yours,” Cormack explained.
“I know. Just don’t cross any lines,” Danica replied, snickered and then continued, “She is just another detective. She doesn’t get any special treatment just because she’s mine. ‘Rookie’…I’ll have to remember that.”
“Yes, ma’am, is there anything else?”
“Not at the moment. But, if you see or hear from them before I do, let them know I need to see them. No phone calls this time, in person. Keep me posted on any results. I have a briefing with the Major in a couple of days. I want good news if possible,” Danica said.
“Will do, Cap,” Cormack said, ringing off.
She crossed the lab, back to David’s work area and threw the five she’d pulled out of her wallet at him. He looked at the money and then her. He looked utterly confused and he cocked an eyebrow at her.
“You won. It’s yours. Stop looking at me like that,” she told him.
He knew better than to argue. He picked up the five and put it in his wallet. He made a grand gesture of it since he had won, even if he didn’t know what or why. Once he replaced his wallet in his back pocket, he went back to work studying the computer screens and all the printouts from his tests. He was comparing them to the results of the other cases they had already worked. He was looking for any similarities, anything at all that he could use to prove it was the same sonuvabitch. What he really wanted were the case f
iles and results that SLED had been working with on the case, they could provide the link.
“David, do you remember the name of our contact at SLED?” Cormack asked him.
“Not a clue.”
“Great.”
“You were gonna call and try to speed things up, weren’t you?”
“I was going to attempt it, yes,” Cormack answered.
“You were going to try to rush bureaucrats?”
“I didn’t say it was smart.”
“Well, at least, you know,” David answered.
Cormack left him alone. She decided to head to the darkroom. She was going to start processing the film from the scene. She knew that the morning shift was out taking pictures in the locations that she had given them.
“Cormack?”
“What’s up, David?” she replied.
“Don’t think that you’ll have to worry about calling SLED.”
“Why’s that?” Cormack asked, still looking over her negatives.
“They’re here,” he replied.
Cormack immediately looked up to see two SLED agents standing in her lab. She looked them over. She wasn’t impressed with their suits.
“Ah, well, I guess that saves me some time.”
“We wanted to know what you got,” the male agent stated.
“No, no, no, I’m not playing this game, boys. This is my case. I just want to compare notes and see if the perp does like more than one locale. You helped last year. I’m not handing the case over,” Cormack stated.
Danica, Sam and Grace came into the lab during Cormack’s last statement. Cormack’s photographers were behind them. Danica, Grace, Sam and David moved to flank Cormack as the photographers went to their lab to process their films and photos.
“That’s right,” Danica stated, “I’m the head of this investigation. It is a Lexington case. You weren’t called to take over. We just want the records we’ve asked for, that simple.”
The male agent seemed to get agitated. He started pacing. The woman looked worried.
“Fine,” he said with disgust, throwing some files on a desk, “There.”
