Breach of Honor

by Janice Cantore

  If looks could kill, Ivy, Blanche, and Rachel had just committed a homicide with Leah as the victim.

  There were several other people in the courtroom petitioning for restraining orders—all domestic violence related. When the judge called on Harden, it was hard for Leah not to imagine a secret look between the two men. She knew they were close. While they never socialized directly, she and Brad had attended several parties where Revel was also present. She held her breath while Harden stood to give a statement.

  “Judge, this woman murdered my son in cold blood. Add to that, someone closely resembling her burned down the last remembrance I had of my son, his house with all of his possessions inside. She’s unstable. I don’t want her near my family or anything that belongs to me. And she should never be allowed to own a firearm of any kind.”

  Gretchen silenced Leah with a glance before standing to rebut Harden. “Your Honor, in the first place, my client has been exonerated and we have no wish to rehash the circumstances of that case. And in the second place, my client has made no effort to contact Mr. Draper or anyone in his family. Further, Ms. Radcliff has always been an upstanding member of the community. There is nothing unstable about her or her past, and we have already petitioned the city for her reinstatement as a police officer.”

  Harden snorted audibly. “There is no way this vicious individual should be a police officer in this city or any other!”

  Leah knew they were in trouble when Judge Revel did not admonish him in any way.

  “I understand there is a history here. And it is my opinion that when there is a history, the court should err on the side of caution.”

  Gretchen started to speak up, but Revel silenced her immediately.

  “There will be order in my court.” He shuffled papers. “I find the complainant has shown cause for this order.”

  Gretchen put a hand on Leah’s shoulder.

  “However, the order is rather broad. I will narrow the parameters. The respondent is hereby ordered to stay away from the petitioner’s primary residence and person. This shall also apply to co-petitioners Blanche Harden and Ivy Harden. Additionally, the respondent is also ordered to surrender any firearms. She will not be able to possess, purchase, or borrow any firearms for the entirety of this order . . .”

  He droned on and Leah barely heard. She almost felt as bad as the day she’d been convicted of murder. This was wrong. Judge Revel quashed any hope she had of working as a police officer in Table Rock. The injustice of it weighed down on Leah. But she held her head up. She refused to let Rachel Clyburn or Harden Draper see how deep this dagger had struck.

  CHAPTER 50

  Blindsided, Leah left the courtroom in a daze. She’d believed the judge would see through the TRO. For someone who’d never been in trouble before, she certainly had struck out almost every time she stood before a judge.

  “I’m sorry, Leah,” Gretchen said as they drove back to Trail. “I didn’t see that coming. The only positive is that Revel did lessen the scope of the order. He might believe that he split the baby. If Draper had gotten all he’d wanted, you’d never be able to set foot in Table Rock again. I’ll try every avenue available to me to fix this.”

  “It’s not your fault.” She ran her hands through her hair. “Maybe this is for the best. I really only wanted my job back because it was obvious Larry and Grady didn’t want me to have it back. Maybe it’s not to be.”

  “You were unjustly deprived of your job, Leah. That was wrong, and so was this.”

  Leah started to say something bitter but didn’t. Something Chaplain Darrel said once stuck in her mind.

  “Life isn’t easy, not for anyone. The difference is how people respond to the difficulties. You have prayer to fall back on now, and prayer works. Use it.”

  After Gretchen dropped her off and left, Leah tried to pray. It was difficult to concentrate and cut through the self-pity. Resolving not to cry, she opened her Bible to the book of Psalms, settling on 91. After a while she felt better. Refusing to give in to self-pity and bitterness helped her to focus her prayers. She wanted God’s will in every issue facing her at the moment.

  Sighing, almost wishing she were back in prison so she could talk to Nora—almost—Leah knew she needed to call Clint. She wanted his broad shoulder to lean on, his wise counsel. She punched in his phone number and stuffed down the disappointment when he didn’t answer. It went to voice mail. Clearing her throat and working hard not to be whiny, she said, “Hi, Clint. How are you feeling? I hope you’re mending and taking it easy like you’re supposed to. . . . I wanted to bring you up to date. I just got slapped with a three-year TRO. If you feel up to talking, give me a call.”

  She hung up and said to the dog, “I hope that didn’t sound lame.”

  Setting the phone down, she walked to the front door and opened it to check the weather. It was a beautiful sunny day but still in the low forties. Goose bumps rose on her arms immediately. She took a deep breath, shut the door, and went back inside to grab her jacket.

  “I don’t want to be cooped up in the house,” she said to the dog. “I’ve been cooped up places too long already. Time for a walk.”

  Whether it was the word walk or just the fact that Leah was talking to him, the pup began prancing around and that made Leah smile.

  She took the little dog outside, praying and thinking while she walked. Her father’s lot was an unfenced five acres with plenty of trees. She breathed deep, enjoying the fresh, chilly air. The dog took her mind off the TRO hearing. Every so often they’d reach a patch of snow not yet melted and she’d pause, enjoying the show as he ran through the white stuff. He was a real cutie, and she knew it’d be hard to give him back to Clint. But the dog couldn’t occupy her entire thought process.

  Do I really want my badge back? she wondered.

  She thought of the women she knew in prison, how being there had changed her perspective on people in jail. To Brad, everyone on the other side of the badge was scum. Unless someone like Larry or Duke found a way to get on his good side, Brad considered most people beneath him. Leah realized there were times when she’d agreed with him. The thought shamed her now, as she remembered Nora and Donna and the women in the basketball clinic.

  Nora would be the first person to say that she belonged in prison, but not because she was subhuman scum. She was a person, a child of God, who made a mistake and was paying for it. Leah knew, at that moment, she could be a different cop, a better cop. The fight to get her job back was worth it, and she would pray and try with all she could to make it possible again.

  Just then the pup caught her eye and she laughed out loud as he lay down in the snow and wriggled his little bottom back and forth.

  The snap of a twig caught her attention. She jumped when the figure of a large man loomed in her field of vision. It was Richard Chambers, Brad’s former partner.

  “What are you doing here?” She took two steps back.

  “I came to talk to you.” Looking older and somehow bigger than she remembered, he was breathing hard, probably from trekking through the forest.

  Leah felt naked without a gun and stooped to scoop up the wet, squirming puppy. “Why are you sneaking up on me?”

  “Because I don’t want to be seen talking to you.”

  “What do we have to talk about?” Leah took another step back, wishing she hadn’t walked so far from home.

  He came no closer. “I heard you’re trying to get your job back.”

  “So what if I am?”

  “Are you going to leave the past in the past?”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “I mean are you going to try and settle scores, get even?”

  Leah stared at him. “For being wrongly convicted? I think the state cops are going to do that for me. A lot of people are being investigated for what happened to me.”

  He said nothing.

  “If you mean, do I want to get to the bottom of what the three of you were doing at Larry’s re
ntal? You bet I do. Did you come here to enlighten me?”

  “There are some doors you shouldn’t open.”

  “Is that what you and Brad were doing with Larry that night? Opening one of those doors?”

  “You’re free. He’s dead. Leave it alone.”

  Leah held the puppy close. “I can’t. It made Brad angry enough to try to kill me. I will find out what was going on with your help or without it.”

  “Even if it costs your life?”

  “Are you threatening me?”

  He shook his head and stepped back. “You kick a hornet’s nest and you’re going to get stung. Take what just happened to Tanner as a cautionary tale.”

  “What does Clint have to do with what you and Brad were doing?”

  “Just leave it alone, Leah. I always liked you. And I knew Brad . . . well, let’s just say I knew he had a dark side. It’s my respect for you that made me bring you this warning. Take it to heart.”

  Leah started to say something, then stopped. Chambers turned on his heel and took off through the forest, back the way he came, toward the road, which was about a mile and a half away. Leah noticed he was limping.

  Maybe he’d meant to warn her away, but he’d done just the opposite: made her more curious. How in the world was what Brad did four years ago connected to the attempt on Clint’s life?

  CHAPTER 51

  By Monday afternoon, Clint was tired of the computer. Computer searches and wading through pages of legal documents was not his forte. He knew he’d have to find a lawyer to dig through all the legalese he kept running into. He stood, grimacing as his body reminded him that he’d been in a serious collision a few days before. The only lawyers he knew were the ones he worked with, prosecutors and defense attorneys. He wasn’t certain he wanted to go to any of them. Gretchen might help, but her plate was full helping Leah.

  As he shut down the computer, he tried to convince himself that the stiffening and soreness in his body was easing. The cast on his wrist left his hand free, and he could make a fist, provided he didn’t squeeze very hard. He pushed his physical limits because he had to get out from behind a desk. He’d promised Leah they’d do some investigation together and he wanted to keep his promise.

  He thought of her as he closed his eyes. His feelings toward her were getting stronger. Every time he saw her, he wanted to pull her close and never let go. And though he’d promised himself not to say anything until he was certain she was on solid emotional footing, he wanted to tell her how he felt—now.

  It seemed as if he’d been waiting forever to do so, and he was running out of patience.

  Clint opened his eyes and switched gears: figuring out who the leak at the department was. When he made the arrest, anyone working that night—if they were paying attention—would have known about it. What not everyone would have known was that he’d sequestered the Russians and planned the raid.

  Clint reviewed the list he’d made of everyone on duty that night, crossing off the ones who would only know about the arrest. He then highlighted those who were most likely to know he’d delayed the booking and planned a raid. He was beyond dismayed when he finished the list. It contained only eight names, four from his department: the watch commander at the time, Lieutenant Glick; Vicki Henderson; Marvin Sapp; Erik Forman; Judge Olson, who’d signed the search warrants; two jailers from the sheriff’s department; and his friend Jack Kelly.

  Clint knew and trusted every one of those people with the exception of the jailers. He called Jack.

  “I’m sure of everyone except the two sheriff personnel.”

  “Way ahead of you, buddy. I pulled the phone logs for both of them. No calls out on their cell phones or jail phones. It was a busy night; they had a combative drunk to deal with and they were short-staffed. I don’t believe either one of them was the leak.”

  “I’m sorry to hear you say that.”

  “Why?”

  Clint read the rest of the names on his list.

  After a pause, Jack said, “I hope you’re not truly considering me.”

  Clint sighed. “No. But everyone else on the list is also above reproach.”

  “What about Forman?”

  “He’s a jerk, but he lost a cousin to human traffickers several years ago. Hates all types of smuggling. I can’t see him moving to the dark side. I could be wrong, but I’m going to have to tread carefully here.”

  “Let me know if I can help. I want to find the problem as well.”

  Clint ended the call and went to work. Erik Forman was the obvious choice, he admitted to himself. But is that because I don’t like him? Clint asked himself.

  True, Forman had been in trouble. After it was discovered he’d been sleeping on duty when he was supposed to be supervising SAT, and he was suspected of altering time cards, though that was never proven, he was suspended for fourteen days and came very close to being demoted. But in the years since then he’d seemed to be minding his p’s and q’s. Still vocally loyal to Draper, which was more obvious now that Leah was free.

  Was Forman part of the Hangmen? The same question could be asked of Glick. He was Harden’s generation. Clint made a mental note to ask Leah if she knew.

  “I can’t let my personal feelings about Forman enter into this,” Clint said as he stood and began to pace. After a minute he sat back down. He wrote a word or a phrase next to each name.

  Erik Forman—most likely suspect, too likely?

  Lieutenant Glick—old-timer, stable, by the book

  Vicki Henderson—good, solid officer, but young and to my estimation completely without guile

  Marvin Sapp—excellent cop

  Judge Olson—respected judge

  Why would any of them leak?

  Is there someone or something I’m missing?

  He knew he’d have to go down the list one by one, be thorough, not emotional, and figure this out—after all, someone had just tried to kill him. There was as good a chance the attempt on his life was connected to the smuggling as it was to his work on Leah’s behalf. Clint had to find the leak to save his own life. But even if he picked a name, how did he prove that was the leak? Confront? Let the FBI know?

  He found himself wondering if Leah might have any insight. He liked the way she thought. And maybe he was too close; an uninvolved pair of eyes might see something he couldn’t. He picked up the phone and noticed he’d missed a call. The ringer had been turned off. It was Leah’s number.

  He played her voice mail and frowned when she mentioned the TRO. It made him angry. Harden Draper didn’t want her to be a cop again, and a TRO that denied her guns would do that. He punched in her number. It went almost immediately to voice mail.

  “Hmmm,” he muttered under his breath and, a few minutes later, called again.

  Leah put the dog down and started back home, unsettled by Chambers’s unannounced visit. She reached into her pocket to try Clint again and realized she’d forgotten to bring her phone with her. She’d not had a phone to carry with her for a long time, and it was difficult getting back in the habit. Clint should know about the odd visit. He surely knew if Chambers was no longer a cop. Watching the dog as he sniffed and pranced ahead of her, looking back every so often to be sure she was following, eased some of her angst. He was a sassy little dog with a lot of personality, and she found herself clicking through likely names in her mind as she walked. Spicy, Sparky, Sassy . . .

  The manufactured home came into view, and so did an SUV Leah didn’t recognize. She stopped, wary now. The pup was a short ways ahead of her, but when he turned and saw she’d stopped, he came trotting back. Leah scooped him up and stepped behind a tree, peering around it to ascertain who was in her driveway.

  A man—not Chambers, and she didn’t think it was Larry Ripley either. He turned and she breathed a sigh of relief. It was Marvin Sapp.

  Leah stepped out from behind the tree. “Hey, Pinky, what’s up?”

  Sapp jerked around, obviously startled. “Leah! I’ve been knocking.
Your car is here. I got worried.”

  “Just out with the dog.” She walked toward him and watched as he calmed down and smiled. “Were you thinking something happened to me?”

  “Ah, Mighty Mite, I know you’ve made a lot of enemies. And Clint told me what was painted on your car.” He gestured toward it. “Call me a paranoid cop.”

  “I get it. Hey, can I ask you a question?”

  “Shoot.”

  “What ever happened to Richard Chambers?”

  “That’s a little off-the-wall. Why do you ask?”

  “Not so off-the-wall. He was Brad’s partner. I expected to hear from him. Maybe see him. But he’s not even on the department’s website.”

  “He blew out his knee really bad. Foot pursuit of a robbery suspect. Took a medical retirement about two years ago. Last I heard he was living out in the Applegate.” He pointed toward his car. “I heard about the TRO. That’s got to hurt. What say we go inside and commiserate for a bit? I brought a six-pack.”

  Hmm, Leah thought, it’s all over the valley already that I won’t get my guns back. She’d forgotten how fast stuff traveled on the PD gossip superhighway.

  “No beer for me. I’ll make a pot of coffee if you like.”

  “What? That doesn’t sound like the Mighty Mite Radcliff I knew. You never turned down beer.”

  “Losing your freedom changes a person.”

  “Not just one? For old times’ sake?”

  He stepped toward her and suddenly Leah felt uncomfortable. But was it Marvin or the fact that she really had changed and had no desire to pick up old, bad habits? Drinking had been a big part of her relationship with Brad.

  “No—” She stopped, and they both turned as a truck pulled up the drive.

  “You expecting someone?” Marvin asked.

  “No, but that looks like Clint’s truck.” She frowned. “He should be taking it easy, not driving around.” What on earth is he doing out here? she wondered, even as pleasure at seeing him flooded through her.