by Marja McGraw
Pete and I sat in the front.
“I told Stan and Felicity what’s going on,” Pete said softly. “Stan has already started doing some research.”
“Good. Did he find anything?”
Pete looked surprised that I’d ask such a question. “I don’t know. I left right after I filled them in.”
“Of course.”
“I just remembered something,” Zasu said, leaning forward. “Mateo said he was near the old railroad tracks and then he looked like he was sorry he’d mentioned it.”
“Do you have any idea what part of town that would in?” Pete asked.
“It’s not really in town. There’s a forest area nearby, if I understood the location he was talking about.”
“So maybe he saw something in the forest?” I asked.
“I don’t know. I wish he’d told me more, but he was worried about every little thing he said to me. After he mentioned the railroad tracks, he started to choose his words carefully. We’ve never had trouble talking to each other before.”
“It sounds like something really scared him,” my mother said.
“It sure does,” Aunt Martha reached over and patted the baby’s back.
“By the way,” I said, “we have dogs at the house. You’re not allergic, are you?”
“No. Are they friendly?”
“Very.” I hoped Clem would be gentle with the baby. I knew Bubba would take care.
Chapter Six
Pete drove up to the house and we saw Stanley and Felicity sitting on the porch. Felicity was wrapped in a warm sweater.
Stanley hurried to the car and helped us out before he and Pete unloaded Zasu’s things.
Felicity stood with some effort and greeted us. “Oh, a baby.”
Zasu looked her up and down. “You’re due soon, aren’t you?”
“In about a month. Maybe you can give me some tips about what to expect.”
Instant friendship, thanks to babies.
“Let’s go inside,” I said, herding the women through the door.
Pete and Stanley stood by the car, in the rain, and talked for a few minutes before carrying the belongings inside. They left everything in the guest room.
Glancing around the living room, I asked, “Where are the dogs?”
“We left them at our house,” Felicity replied. “I figured
the young woman – Zasu is it? – might want to get
comfortable before she met the dogs.”
Zasu had seated herself on the couch with the baby on her lap. “You can bring them in whenever you want. We’re ready for them.”
I took note of her demeanor. She seemed to be glad to be out of the abandoned house and on our couch. She was probably relieved that she didn’t have to face things by herself anymore.
“I’ll go get the dogs,” I said.
I approached the guest house and heard Clementine scratching on the door and whining. Apparently she didn’t like being left behind.
“Stop scratching on the door,” I said, opening it. “I want you two to behave. There’s a baby in the house now, and you have to be gentle.”
Walking back to the main house, I had to lift my legs as though I was marching because Clem kept leaping on them, scratching my legs.
“Stop that,” I said, wishing she’d listen to me.
Bubba loped ahead of me, seeming to know something new was in store for him.
Once inside, the dogs completely ignored my pleas for good behavior and approached Zasu and Sophie excitedly.
“Stop!” Pete ordered.
My eyebrows raised a notch when they stopped and sat, listening to him.
Pete smiled at me. “It’s all in the tone of voice you use.”
“Right.”
He walked in front of the two dogs. “Gentle,” he said. “Approach.”
These were words they seemed to understand, which surprised me.
“I’ve been working with them when you’re not around,” Pete explained. He looked quite pleased with himself.
Clementine had been a rescue dog. She’d been used at a puppy mill and the people who ran it had decided she’d produced enough puppies. They were going to put her to sleep, but she was rescued. I’d learned that she was great with puppies, but not with adult dogs – with the exception of Bubba, whom she had a crush on. I wondered if puppies and babies were in the same category in her mind.
Tails wagging, the two dogs approached Zasu and Sophie.
I saw Zasu stiffen, but when the dogs started carefully sniffing, she seemed to relax.
Felicity sat to her left, with my mother and aunt on either side of the women.
Clem the Licker jumped up on the couch and tentatively licked Zasu’s hand. When Zasu didn’t pull away, I could see a gleam in Clem’s eyes.
“Clementine,” I said in warning.
“May I hold the baby?” Felicity asked. “I need the practice.”
Zasu smiled and handed Sophie to my friend before turning and taking a look out the window, and then turning back to the dogs.
She stiffened again. “Your dog is baring his teeth at me.” She reached toward Sophie.
“No,” I said. “That’s Bubba’s smile. It comes in handy sometimes when certain people don’t recognize it as a smile.”
“Oh.” She slowly reached toward him and timidly patted his head.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“I like that your house is set far back from the road and that there don’t seem to be people around, other than you guys. But at the same time, I still feel kind of nervous.”
Bubba watched her and seemed to be listening. There was a slight tremble in her voice and maybe he picked up on
that. At any rate, he turned and sat directly in front of
her, looking at me.
I knew this as his protective mode.
“Good boy,” I said.
He grinned.
My mother and aunt had been suspiciously quiet. It didn’t last long.
“Well, Sandra, when are we going to get to work on helping Zasu?” my mother asked.
“Time’s a’wastin’,” my aunt added.
“Let’s take it slow, at least for tonight. We’ll have a good dinner and try to relax. Tomorrow morning I’ll call Joe and see what we can find out.” I put them off by mentioning Joe because I wanted to know if Stanley had come up with anything in his research before jumping in with both feet.
Mother and Aunt Martha started making over the baby, Zasu and my pregnant friend.
Pete motioned toward the kitchen, taking in both me and Stanley with his look.
We followed him and sat down at the kitchen table.
“Stan found out a couple of things,” Pete said.
Stanley nodded.
“Well, tell her.” Pete sounded impatient.
“Oh. Oh, yes. Well, Mateo was beaten, rather badly. He’s alive and in the hospital. As of the latest report, he’s in a coma.”
I stood, ready to talk to Zasu. “I’ll let her know. Maybe we should drive her to the hospital to see him.”
“Sit, Sandi,” Pete said. “We don’t know how much of what she told us is true yet. You need to speak to Joe before we worry about taking her to see Mateo. Don’t get her hopes up yet, either, because we don’t know how bad off he is.”
I turned to Stanley. “Did you see any mention of Zasu in your research? Do you know if she’s a suspect?”
“What I read indicated that the authorities are searching for her and the baby, but they didn’t refer to her as a
suspect, just missing.”
“Anything else?”
“Not much is being reported at this time. I believe that until he comes around, if he does, the police don’t know much.”
I glanced down at the table and back up. “Makes sense. I mean, if he’s in a coma they sure can’t ask him any questions.”
“They’ve probably talked to the neighbors,” Pete said. “Maybe they were able to give them informat
ion.”
“Joe will tell me. I have confidence. He trusts me after the last time we were here,” I said, hoping I was right.
“Sure he does,” Pete said, sarcastically. “Cops trust everyone they meet – in your dreams.”
“Oh, Pete,” I said. “You know he knows we’re trustworthy.”
Pete laughed. “Okay. You go talk to him tomorrow and see how he reacts to you. Of course, this is a small town,” he said, thoughtfully. “It’s not like L.A. where they meet every Tom, Dick and Harry in town and forget who they are within ten minutes.”
“You’re too cynical,” I said.
“It comes with the territory. Being a cop means you usually meet people when they’re at their worst. People don’t call a cop because everything in their life is peachy keen. They call when there are problems.”
“A lot of police officers are trying to change their image, aren’t they?” Stanley asked. “Aren’t they trying to become more involved in the communities?”
“You’re right, man. Things have changed a lot since I left the Department. Cops aren’t the boogey man and they’re trying to create a new image. They’re just people, like you and Sandi. Unfortunately, they’re the people who have to deal with ugly situations.”
“Okay,” I said, “times are changing and so are people.
Give a cop a break, or in this case, give Joe a break. Maybe I should give him a break and leave Mom and Aunt Martha at home.”
“Excuse me?” came a voice from behind me.
“Oh, uh, Mom. I didn’t hear you come in.”
“Obviously,” she said, hunching her shoulders. She didn’t sound happy, and I couldn’t blame her.
My bad.
“Do my sister and I upset you that much?” she asked.
“No, Mom, I was teasing. I really was. Actually, I’m hoping you and Aunt Martha are a distraction so Joe will open up to me without thinking about it.”
Her shoulders relaxed. “Oh. Okay, we can do that. I like Zasu and I hope we can help her. She seems kind of innocent, almost shy. I’m sorry she lost Mateo, though.”
I glanced at Pete. “She didn’t lose him, but you can’t tell her. He’s in a coma. First of all, I don’t want to get her hopes up. Secondly, we don’t know if she’s involved. We need to be sure about where she fits into all of this.”
My mother surprised me when she said, “You’re a good woman, Sandi, and a smart one.”
Her remark made me smile.
“But don’t blab to my sister. She’d tell Zasu the truth in a heartbeat.”
“Let’s go back to the living room,” Pete said. “They’re going to start wondering what we’re up to if we leave them alone too long.”
Stanley stood, ready to rejoin his wife. “May I come with you when you visit Joe?”
“No, Stan. I think this time we need a woman’s touch – or women’s touch.”
My mother glanced at him. “Besides, your cuddle bunny needs you right now.”
“Hmm. Cuddle bunny. I’ll have to remember that one.”
I groaned. “Don’t help him, Mom. He comes up with
enough endearments on his own.”
Stanley smiled. “We only call each other those cute names to drive you and Pete crazy.”
“It’s working,” Pete said, leaving the room.
Chapter Seven
We had a good dinner on Monday night. Zasu helped me prepare barbeque mini meatloaves. Something new and quite tasty.
She was settling in and beginning to get used to my relatives. She mentioned her own sister on several occasions, but commented that they’d lost touch years ago. I didn’t question her about their falling out. She had enough on her mind.
My mother, aunt and Felicity babied Sophie and took care of the child. Unfortunately, Felicity tired out early and went home to go to bed. Stanley and Pete did their Guy Thing and had a couple of beers to unwind. I had a feeling my mother and aunt had something to do with their need to relax.
The dogs? Other than feeding time, they spent all their time staying as close to the baby as possible. Clem seemed to want to be near her, and Bubba kept to his protective mode, sitting in front of her.
It was a quiet evening which left me feeling a little unsettled. I couldn’t explain why, but surely it had to do with what we might face over the next few days.
~ * ~
I arose early on Tuesday morning, wanting to get the morning chores out of the way so I could meet with Joe, our friendly local cop.
My mother and aunt had gone home fairly early the night before so they’d be fresh and ready to intrude in everyone’s lives the next day. I had to laugh because they’re the ones who put it that way.
They arrived around eight o’clock, making me glad I hadn’t wasted any time sleeping in.
My mother immediately made her way to Zasu and Sophie, needing her morning baby fix. Zasu was feeding the baby and happily handed her over to my mother to burp.
Aunt Martha followed me out to the kitchen. “I made sure Livvie took her hormone pills this morning.”
I smiled inwardly. “Thank you.”
“When are we going to the police station?”
“I’m going to call to see if Joe’s in right now,” I assured her.
I called and asked to speak to Joe Fleming, hoping he wasn’t out in the field. The woman I spoke to asked me to hold while she checked to see if he was in.
The next thing I heard was his voice. “This is Officer Fleming. What can I do for you?”
“Joe, this is Sandi Webster. I mean Goldberg. Sorry, but it gets confusing sometimes. Do you happen to remember me from my visit to Battle Ground last year?”
I could hear the smile in his voice. “How could I forget you? Kimberly and I still talk about that, uh, experience.”
“Oh, good! You and Kimberly are still together. She’s such a sweet person.”
“Together? We got married a month ago.”
“Congratulations! I had a feeling it would come to that. That’s wonderful news.”
“What can I do for you, Sandi?”
Okay, on to business.
“Are you going to be in the office for a while? I’d like to come in and talk to you about a case out of Vancouver.”
“I don’t know that I can help you with a Vancouver incident, but I’ll try. What’s this about and I’ll look into it before you get here.”
“Mateo Delgado. I understand he was attacked and he’s in the hospital in a coma. Do you know anything about that?”
“A little. Can’t we talk about this over the phone?”
“I’d rather come in to talk, if that’s okay.” I wasn’t about to tell him I was bringing Two Terrors with me. Of course, he didn’t know them or what they were capable of. “My mother and aunt are in town and I want to show them some of the shops in town.”
“I’ll be here for about half an hour, if you can make it. The paperwork never ends around here.”
“See you soon.” I hung up before he could change his mind.
Of course, my aunt only heard my end of the conversation. “It’s a go?”
I looked at her. “You’re starting to sound like your husband. A go? Yeah, we’re in like Flynn.”
She narrowed her eyes at me and then smiled and chuckled. “I guess being around Griz all the time has rubbed off on me.”
My mother regretfully handed Sophie back to her mother, I got the car keys from Pete, and we left. Well, we left after Pete gave me a brief lecture about Zasu needing to talk to the police. He reminded me that we could be harboring a fugitive, although he didn’t put it in quite those words.
It was a short drive to the police station, and I found Joe waiting for us. He was a handsome man and quite muscular. His dark hair was combed back instead of being parted and combed to the side, a new look for him. It must be Kimberly’s influence. I hoped I’d get to see her while we were in Battle Ground.
“Hi, Joe. I think I mentioned that my mother and aunt were coming
with me.” I pointed at them. “This is my mother, Livvie, and my Aunt Martha.”
“This is a beautiful town,” Mother said.
“We want to see more of it,” Aunt Martha added.
Joe smiled at them. “I hope you enjoy yourselves. It’s a small town and a good place to live, but don’t tell anyone about it. I like it the way it is.”
“You don’t want it to grow?” my mother asked.
“No, ma’am, but that’s just me.”
Enough of the pleasantries.
“Were you able to find anything out about Mateo Delgado?” I asked.
His smile disappeared and he set some papers down on the counter. I’d hoped he’d take us back to his desk, but apparently that wasn’t going to happen.
“Vancouver wanted to know what my interest is, and then they wanted to know what your interest is. I told them I had no idea, which didn’t go over well.”
“Fill me in on what you know, and I’ll tell you what my interest is. Okay?”
He looked into my eyes before replying. “Understand, I’m helping you because you helped me the last time you were here, and – “
“That’s my daughter – always there to help.” My mother patted my back.
Joe pursed his lips and looked at my mother.
“Sandi, you know I can’t tell you everything, but I’ll explain what I can.”
“Okay.”
“They think Delgado’s girlfriend is the one who called the incident in, and then she and her child disappeared. They’re looking for her.”
“Is she a suspect?” I asked.
“Or a person-of-interest?” my mother asked.
“I’ll give you this,” Joe said. “The bat he was beaten with had no one’s fingerprints on it but his.”
My aunt rolled her lips together and thought that over. “Well, if it had been a domestic dispute, Zasu certainly wouldn’t have taken the time to put gloves on to pick up the bat and beat him.”
I almost sucked in my breath, but caught myself.
“Zasu?” Joe asked. “How do you know her name? I didn’t mention that.”
“Blabbermouth,” Mother said with a certain amount of acid in her tone.
My aunt’s hand flew up to her mouth. “Oh! Uh, I didn’t mean…”