by Carsen Taite
When the DPD cruiser pulled up, I got out my phone and zoomed in. A few minutes later, I had several shots of Alice and Mr. Handsome waving their arms while talking to the cops in the doorway of a motel room. Perfect.
I left them to their explanations and sped back to the Etheridge residence. I went straight to the front door and knocked loudly. Jerry didn’t answer, but I saw a curtain move, and I knew he had to be inside. I yelled, “Mr. Etheridge, I need to talk to you about your wife’s affair and criminal activity. Can you please open the door?”
I, of all people, know that curiosity makes people do dumb things. And Jerry was no different. The door creaked open and an indignant voice said, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
I pushed my way into the open door and shoved my phone under his chin. “That’s your wife, Alice, right?” It was the picture of Alice and Mr. Handsome practically running to the Chateau Rendezvous. He stiffened, and I started scrolling through the shots, ending with the one where the police were questioning his wife and her paramour in the doorway of their love nest.
I put the phone away and shrugged. “Maybe I got it all wrong. Maybe they’re working. Off-site. And they called the police to help with a big insurance problem.”
His shoulders slumped. There was no good explanation for why Alice was at a cheesy motel instead of back home with her needy, fugitive husband. He knew it and I knew it. Now I was just waiting for him to wonder why I was here.
“What do you want?”
Not the question I was expecting, but it worked for my purposes. “We need you to come in and talk to some folks about what you know. It might help you in the long run.” Nothing I said was a lie, just vague. Not that I’m averse to lying. It’s just that the more specific the story, the more chance you’d hang yourself on the details later.
Jerry nodded, resigned to his cheating wife and realizing she was more focused on getting laid than helping him hide from the law. I didn’t bother cuffing him. He was too beat down to make a getaway. Wasn’t until I turned him in at the station that he started to click that something was off. I almost felt sorry for the guy, but then I remembered how much I needed the money and I stopped feeling bad.
An hour later, Hardin handed me a stack of bills, small, but better than nothing, and I headed home. When I reached my front door, I heard a sharp cry, followed by soft whimpers. What the hell? No one had a key to my place but the super, and I’d warned him, with the Colt, about entering without permission. Jess had a habit of using her badge to get him to cough up the key. Could she be in there? Hurt?
I drew my gun and turned the handle. It was still locked. I eased the key into the lock, turned it and, with one fluid motion, turned the handle and threw open the door. Nothing. I saw nothing. I kept my gun trained as I moved through the living room and into the bedroom. Wasn’t until I came back through that I saw the culprit. Cash was prone on the kitchen floor in front of his dog bowls. Empty dog bowls. Shit. I’d completely forgotten about the damn dog. I poured a healthy dose of dog chow into his bowl and filled his water dish. I hated to admit it, but Jess was right. I wasn’t cut out for taking care of anyone but myself.
Chapter Seven
I rolled out of bed the next morning and nearly tripped over the furry beast sleeping on the floor. I had two things to do today. Take the dog to the SPCA and avoid my landlord. I had the rent, but giving it up would take a large portion of my stash, and I had better ways to spend my funds. I’d take care of the easy part first. I gathered the dog’s things.
Cash knew I was up to something, and he hung back while I scoured the place for his stuff. He had more belongings than I did, and he’d made himself completely at home by leaving his stuff in every corner of the place. I should drop him at Jess’s door to pay her back for loading him up on personal belongings. But then I’d have to see Jess, and she’d know I was full of shit when I’d acted like I could take care of another living thing.
I’d have to see her eventually. We were best friends. Spring would come and she’d want me to fill in on her softball team. I’d need to bug her for information on one of my cases. We’d give in to the simple pulls of physical craving that usually brought us together because that was the one thing we could count on.
Had I been fooling myself to think there was something more?
A rap on the door jarred me out of my thoughts. I glanced down at the dog and hoped it wasn’t my landlord. I was prepared to deny him the rent, but I wasn’t prepared to explain the dog while doing so. “Who’s there?” I called out.
“Delivery for Miss Luca Bennett.”
Words I rarely hear. I’m a naturally suspicious person. Unordered and unexpected delivery made my antennae go up. “Leave it.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but you have to sign for it.”
I hesitated. Last thing I had to sign for had come from my brother. He’d sent new cufflinks for me to wear at his wedding. He should still be on his honeymoon, but what if whatever was at the door was from him? I weighed that against the other possibility it might be something bad, like a constable waving a subpoena. I hadn’t been bad lately, at least not that kind of bad, so I opened the door.
The guy on the other side could use a good meal. I needn’t have worried about trouble since a light breeze would land him on the other side of the complex. He shoved an electronic clipboard my way, and once I signed, he produced an envelope. I took a step back. Good news never comes in letters you have to sign for.
“Who’s it from?”
He consulted his gadget. “Someone named Moreno. Said it was an urgent delivery. I tried yesterday afternoon, but you weren’t here.”
Okay, so it wasn’t bad news. Not necessarily anyway. Once he left, I tore open the envelope. It wasn’t the cash I’d demanded, but it was the next best thing. I held the five thousand dollar cashier’s check with both hands. Don’t get me wrong—the money was great, but like most other great things, it came with strings. Strings to Ronnie, strings to my past with the DPD, and strings that were likely to tangle up whatever I had with Jess.
I felt something nudge against my back and turned to see the dog, nosing his way through the crook in my arm. I widened the space to let him in, and once he set his head on my leg, I stroked his head. I may not have liked the responsibility that came from having a living thing rely on me for food and shelter, but I actually kind of liked this odd comfort. I hadn’t asked for it, but it felt pretty good.
“All right, Cash, we have some errands to run.” I stood and dumped the bag with all his belongings onto the floor. He romped around and nosed at his toys until I waved him to the door. I held the leash, and he immediately sat down, waiting for me to snap it on his collar. I started to, but then decided he’d earned the chance to walk without it. Besides, if he ran off, that was his problem. How many other homes was he going to find that had just had five Gs delivered to the door?
I rarely went to the bank, but I kept an account there just in case. When I paid my rent and my phone bill, I did so with cash, in person, but I couldn’t just stick Ronnie’s check in my coffee can. It was cold enough that I left Cash in the car while I was inside. I took my money in large bills except for a few random twenties. The crisp cash felt good in my hands, made me feel flush. I considered paying my overdue rent after all.
When I climbed back in the car, Cash left my seat and positioned himself in the front passenger seat, upright and alert. We looked pretty silly—human chauffeuring canine. For fun, I drove through a Whataburger and bought us each two biscuits with egg, cheese, and bacon. Cash waited more patiently than most humans as I unwrapped his share and tore it into pieces. If Jess could see me now, she’d realize she was wrong. I was perfectly capable of taking care of this dog.
I called Ronnie on the way home and she answered, breathless, on the first ring. “I thought you would’ve called by now. What have you found out?”
“Take a breath. I just got the check and I had to take it to the bank to make su
re it was legit. You and me don’t have the best track record when it comes to trust.”
“And you have no track record when it comes to forgiving and forgetting. When are you going to meet with Jorge? Maybe you could come to my parents’ for dinner tonight. We’re all going to be there. I’m sure they’ll be relieved to know we have help.”
I flashed back to the one time I’d been at Ronnie’s parents’ house. Her mom had spoiled me with extra helpings of homemade enchiladas. As tempting as it was to indulge in another such meal, I wasn’t being paid enough to glad-hand with the family. “I’m busy tonight. Besides, I’d like to do a little legwork first. Tell Jorge to meet me tomorrow morning at the boat dock at the lake. He can get his morning run in and talk to me at the same time.”
“You mean so you can get your morning run in and talk to him at the same time. Luca, I’m paying you good money. I expect you to give him the benefit of the doubt.”
“Pretty sure you know paying good money doesn’t guarantee results, especially not with me.” She should remember from our last working encounter that it wasn’t in my blood to ignore where the facts led just because I was getting paid. “The lake at eight a.m.”
“Fine.”
When I hung up, I turned to Cash who’d listened to the entire call with his head cocked. “She thinks she owns me, but she doesn’t.”
He muttered a few words in Husky and then did a couple of circles on the seat before settling in. I considered my next move. I didn’t really have any legwork planned. I’d told Ronnie that because I’d wanted a full day to enjoy my newfound riches before I had to work for them, but now that I had the freedom, I was antsy. Maybe I should actually find out what I could before meeting with Jorge so he couldn’t taint it with his version of the facts. I pointed the car in the direction of DPD headquarters and went in search of Nancy Walters.
*
Nancy had recently been promoted to detective, and she was doing a stint in vice, making it likely that she knew some of the players, including Jorge Moreno. That, coupled with her finely honed gossiping skills, made it worth the risk that she would let Jess know I’d been pumping her for information immediately after we talked. I parked on a street adjacent to the Jack Evans building and glanced over at Cash who sported a stray crumb from his morning biscuit on his jaw. I picked it off and offered it to him and he gave me a look of gratitude and a few yips that sounded oddly like “thank you.” I made a snap determination that his charm might be useful and decided not to leave him in the car.
Entering police headquarters always filled me with a sense of dread. It’d been years since I’d been a young cadet, graduating from the academy. I’d never been bright-eyed enough to be a true believer, but I had thought maybe I could make a decent living and do something good in the world. Too soon into my life as a patrol cop, I’d been schooled in the realities of police politics. I’d been teamed up with a senior officer, Teresa Perez’s partner, Larry Brewster, and we’d taken a domestic call. After Brewster got shot by the perp, I’d said to hell with protocol and went after the bad guy instead of waiting for backup. I wound up catching him, although I got shot in the process, and Perez’s partner bled out before the ambulance arrived.
His death hadn’t been my fault, but Perez blamed me anyway and threatened to blackball me as a maverick. I wasn’t scared of her, but I decided to quit the force and do my own thing. Sometimes you have to break the rules, and I can’t work with folks who don’t get that. Perez had never forgiven me for what she perceived as my carelessness and we’d had a few other run-ins over the years, most recently when I’d first met Ronnie and done some work for her and her uncle. When Perez found out I was poking around into Ronnie’s brother’s case, she was going to come unglued.
I approached the security desk and told the uniformed gatekeeper I had an appointment with Detective Walters. He ignored my request and pointed at the dog. “Can’t bring the mutt in here.”
This guy was never going to be promoted to detective. I may not be a dog person, but I knew Cash wasn’t a mutt. He was a purebred Husky, and any moron could tell that. Instead of getting into useless argument about dog breeds, I came up with a solid lie. “Service dog. He goes everywhere with me.”
“Where’s his vest?”
“I spilled a Slurpee on it. Got all sticky. You ever tried to clean sticky frozen mess out of a dog’s hair? Call Walters. She’ll vouch for me.” I punctuated my lies with a hard stare to convince him I could pass a polygraph on this subject. He finally shook his head and picked up the phone. About five minutes later, Nancy showed up.
“Luca Bennett! I knew you’d eventually be in a relationship, just didn’t think you’d wind up with such a hairy one.” She bent down to pet the dog. Cash backed up a few steps and sniffed the air. I was relieved to see he wasn’t going to cuddle with every chick he met.
Nancy ignored Cash’s snub and motioned me over to the side. “When did you get him?”
I didn’t bother sticking with the service dog story. “More like he got me. A jumper I picked up the other day had found him. I was meaning to turn him in, but he kind of got attached. Figured maybe he could be useful.”
“Sure. Strays can come in handy.” She jerked her chin at the guard on duty. “He’s not going to let you bring him in unless he’s got a vest.”
“That’s cool. What I want to talk to you about, well, I’d rather do it somewhere else anyway. You got time?”
She glanced at her watch. “It’s a little early for lunch, but if you’re buying, I could probably get away.”
Guess I was buying. I gestured at the dog. “Sure, but somewhere we can eat outside. I don’t want to leave him in the car for too long.” When she raised her eyebrows, I responded, “I don’t want him to tear up my car. We haven’t known each other long enough to establish trust.”
“Right. Let me go sign out and I’ll meet you on the corner.”
I knew what the real deal was. Nancy didn’t mind being seen with me out on the street, at the bar, or at a softball game, but her fledgling career as a detective didn’t need the burden of being seen helping me. The slight rejection stung a tiny bit, but I shrugged it off and led Cash to the Bronco.
A few minutes later, Nancy opened the passenger side door and waited for Cash to climb into the backseat. “You should get a harness for him in the car. So he doesn’t go flying through the window if you have to stop suddenly.”
I looked between her and the dog. “You sound like you know a lot about pets. You want him?” Her eyes lit up, and I was instantly sorry I’d made the offer even if it was a perfect solution. I may be able to cart the dog around for a few days, but long-term, he’d want things I couldn’t deliver. Regular meals, a comfortable bed, a routine. Maybe giving him to someone like Nancy, who had a steady job and demonstrated responsible behavior was the perfect solution.
She cocked her head and clucked at him, and he cocked his head and spoke a few words of his doggy language back. “OMG, what’s that sound?”
“He talks. At first I thought I was crazy, but I looked it up online. Apparently, it’s a Husky thing.” I mimicked his speech and he replied in kind.
“Wow, that’s pretty amazing. I wish I could take him, but I just refurnished my house and it’s not exactly pet-proofed.”
I acted disappointed, but I changed the subject before she could come up with a bunch of places I could take the dog to find him a new home. “Hunky’s okay with you?”
“Yeah, that’s good.”
We made small talk in the car. Well, she did, talking about who was dating whom and who was cheating on whose girlfriend. I nodded my head and murmured grunts every now and then to let her know I hadn’t nodded off. I barely knew half the people she mentioned since I didn’t spend a lot of time hanging out with the party crowd. Drinks in bars cost too much money, and I wasn’t interested in dressing in anything other than jeans and T-shirts. This trip to lunch at the local gay hamburger spot and a few random drinking outings
at Sue Ellen’s after winning softball tournaments was the most time I spent even close to the bars.
As we pulled up in front of the restaurant, she dropped her biggest piece of gossip. “I hear Chance dumped the doctor she was dating and now she’s seeing someone else.”
I slammed into the curb and cussed. “Fucking street parking.” It was more diplomatic than saying fucking Jess or fucking Nancy.
Nancy cocked her head. “It’s called a curb. Every city has them. You pull up to it, not on it.”
I bit back a retort and shook my head. “Whatever. You hungry or not?” I started to open my door, but she tugged on my arm.
“Did you hear what I said about Jess?”
She wasn’t going to let this go, and that’s all I wanted to do. “She’s seeing someone, right?”
“Right.”
“You know who it is?” I braced for her answer.
“I was hoping you would fill in that tidbit.”
I stared at her eyes for a long few seconds, trying to decide if she was baiting me. Last thing I needed was for Jess to find out I’d been gossiping about her, but what if she was the one going around saying she was seeing someone. Could that someone be me? She couldn’t have had time to start seeing someone else, could she?
The idea burned a hole in my stomach. I wanted answers, but I wasn’t giving any. I dropped my stare and shook my head. “Don’t have a clue.” If Nancy already knew something, she’d have to up the info first. I wasn’t talking.
We ordered from the counter and found a seat on the patio outside. Cash settled in beside my chair, sitting at attention, and several women stopped to admire him, even casting curious glances my way. Nancy’s cop stare burned a hole in each of them, and they scattered. I’d never considered the dog could be a chick magnet. “You want to borrow him?” I offered, more to get Nancy to lighten up than anything else. She’d always had a thing for me, although we never discussed it. “You could take him to the park and pick up chicks.”
