Shield of Refuge

by Carol Steward

  “Did you find anything on the missing girl?”

  Lieutenant Chavez shook his head. “I think Ms. Scott has an active imagination.”

  Nick’s expression wasn’t as clear. “There’s still a BOLO out, so every officer in the county will be watching for her.”

  “May as well inform Wyoming by now. If I’d stuffed a body into a car, I wouldn’t stick around,” Garrett muttered.

  “We took Ms. Scott to the location she recalls seeing the incident, but didn’t find anything to support her claim of a struggle,” his supervisor insisted.

  “Not an abandoned car? Nothing?” His headache was getting worse. “It was in the area of the university, right? Maybe it was a coed who was going to work, or…”

  “Ms. Scott insists the girl was getting into a yellow SUV. It was there, but the door was closed, and the vehicle is registered to a twenty-five-year-old male. We haven’t located him yet,” Lieutenant Chavez said. “We’ll need to wait for a missing person report to come in.”

  Garrett looked at his brother in disbelief. Nick didn’t look any happier than Garrett felt right now.

  “Amber Scott saw something. She was not making it up.” That woman couldn’t lie if her life depended upon it. He’d stake his life on that. He just had to figure out how to convince the lieutenant to find the suspect before he hurt anyone else. Especially before he realized someone from Parties Galore actually had witnessed the crime.

  FIVE

  Amber waited in the hospital lobby for the victim’s advocate from the police department to give her a ride home. At least then she’d have contact with the police if there was a problem at the shop.

  The lieutenant hadn’t looked too happy to see her there checking on Officer Matthews. If only he knew how she really felt about police officers, he’d realize she was genuinely concerned. She paced from one entrance to the other, watching for Samantha Taylor, anxious to have this night end.

  She glanced at the clock on her cell phone. It had been half an hour since she’d called. Maybe dispatch hadn’t gotten the message to her.

  “Amber?” a deep voice said from behind her.

  She recognized the voice and turned toward Garrett. “You’re going home? That’s a relief.” He still looked very miserable.

  “Yeah, Nick’s going to drop me off at our folks’ house so they can keep an eye on me. Dr. Call won’t let me go home to an empty house. Could we give you a ride somewhere?”

  Nick glanced at his watch, then to Amber. “Are you going to the bakery or home?”

  She smiled. “Oh, the bakery is home now. My grandmother has moved to the senior center, so I’m the resident baker. After you and your partner scared the wits out of me that night, Bomma and I decided it was much safer for me to live there than come and go in the middle of the night.” She shrugged. “I’m getting to like it. It saves a lot of time, and if I get a chance to take a few minutes to rest, I’m right there.”

  “Why don’t we cancel your call for the VA and drop you off. We can make sure no one is hanging around,” Nick said.

  Amber saw a look of concern on Garrett’s face. “I appreciate the offer, Nick, but I’ve already caused your brother enough trouble. The victim’s advocate, Samantha, I think it was, said she’d give me a ride. You should get your brother home so he can rest.”

  Garrett’s mouth formed an irresistibly devastating grin. “I appreciate your concern, but I’m going to be fine. It’s no bother….”

  Amber smiled back, wishing they’d met under better circumstances. The shadow of his beard accentuated the strength of his jaw. Even sitting in a wheel-chair with his bulletproof vest across his lap he looked just as strong and virile as he had when he’d stood tall from his toppled vehicle. She pulled her mind back to their conversation and to the fact that he was a cop. “I hope you’re right about being fine,” she said, “but I don’t think your boss was too pleased to see me here. I don’t want to get you into any more trouble….” She knew she shouldn’t let herself read anything into Garrett’s chivalry, but it wasn’t easy. She hadn’t had anyone look at her like that in months. Apparently she needed to dress up more often. Why, of all the men in the county, did the one to catch her attention have to be a cop?

  From the corner of her eye Amber noticed the victim’s advocate pull up to the door. “My ride’s here. Take it easy, okay?” She hurried out the door and to the police car before she was tempted to accept their offer. She had a lot of problems to work through before the shop opened in the morning. Number one was getting Garrett Matthews off her mind.

  She directed Samantha to the Old Town shops, uncomfortable with the thought of going into the dark building alone, tonight more than usual.

  Samantha Taylor must have read her mind. “I’ll go in with you, if that’s okay, just to check things out.”

  “Sure,” she said, “I’d appreciate it.”

  “So you’re a party planner, huh?” the young woman asked. “Sounds interesting.”

  “That’s a good way to describe it. No two parties come off the same,” Amber said. “I mainly coordinate weddings, but I also help arrange engagement parties, anniversaries, and even a few extraordinary birthday bashes.”

  “Rumor has it Sergeant Matthews, the brother of the cop you ran into, is unofficially engaged to his trainee. I don’t suppose they’ve contacted you to plan their wedding, have they?”

  Amber had been caught off guard at the accident when Garrett had asked her if the wedding shower was for Sarah. She wasn’t going to slip again. “I don’t discuss my client list—sorry. I do have several people willing to give a reference if you’re looking for a planner….”

  “No, I was just curious. It’s just surprising how Nick had been single all these years, and suddenly he falls for his trainee. At least there’s still one eligible bachelor in the family, though from what I can tell, Garrett has his sights set on a bigger career than being a street cop. He doesn’t bend any rules, especially when it comes to the job. And I never see him with the same woman twice. It’s like he doesn’t want any baggage holding him back. I’ll just bet he’s having a coronary over his brother’s scandal!”

  Amber wasn’t sure how to respond. She wondered what in the world made Samantha tell her all that, or if her reaction to Garrett Matthews was that transparent. She felt ridiculous now for going to the hospital to check on him. He probably thought she was a stalker. At least Samantha had answered Amber’s question of Garrett’s interest.

  It would go nowhere, and probably the best for both of them. She didn’t have time for a relationship right now, either. She was so worn out, she just wanted to go home and away from everyone. “I suppose that’s best if he realizes he’s not willing to settle down and make a commitment. No need complicating things for anyone.”

  “I guess, though I’d love to change his mind about his priorities,” Samantha said with a smile.

  Amber let out a polite laugh, thankful that they were almost to the shop. “Turn left down the alley, to the third mercury light on the right. That’s my door.”

  After Samantha checked the main level, she left. Amber didn’t mention that her living quarters were actually upstairs. Surely if the cop didn’t realize that, neither would an intruder. After all, it had a separate lock on it to assure the hired help wouldn’t take liberties with her home.

  Nothing was quite as reassuring as hearing the metal bolt on the steel door sliding into the latch. Her grandfather had installed a security alarm on the front of the shop several years back, when gangs started hanging out in the downtown area. Nana had managed to avoid making enemies with anyone, even the gang members, and Amber prayed she would be able to maintain a neutral relationship with them, as well.

  Amber double-checked the alarm, then went upstairs to change into her baking clothes. Even though she was dead tired, she wasn’t going to sleep well until she’d worked off some of this adrenaline. She at least needed to get the dough made and rising before she took a nap. Her pho
ne rang after she’d changed. She checked the caller ID. It was Rachelle.

  “Hi. How’d the shower go?”

  “It was fun, sorry you had to miss it. I’ve been calling you for an hour now. What in the world took so long? Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, just shook up,” Amber said, then told her friend about the crime she’d witnessed. “I was following the car to try to get his license plate number when I ran into the cop. I couldn’t believe it. The van just…scooped up the SUV and rolled it over, like it was made to do it. Then the SUV started spinning like a top.”

  Rachelle gasped. “Oh, my gosh, you toppled a cop? There were so many cars at the accident, I guess I thought there were more than the two vehicles involved. You’re lucky you aren’t in jail for assaulting an officer!”

  Amber pressed her hand to her head to ward off the headache that was quickly coming on. “You can say that again. At least a dozen cops were there doing nothing more than glaring at me.”

  Her friend stifled a laugh. “Were they at least cute?”

  Amber smiled, thinking of Garrett. Then she remembered him hanging upside down in the SUV, unable to get out, and the smile disappeared. “You’re terrible. I nearly kill someone, and you’re asking if the cops were cute. You know I’d never, ever, fall for a cop.” Even as she made the vow, her stomach did flip-flops as she recalled how Garrett had flirted with her.

  “I just asked if they were cute. There’s no harm in looking, is there?”

  “My mind wasn’t on the cops….” Not plural anyway, she thought. “I had bigger concerns than them, believe it or not. Number one, that poor girl.”

  “Well, that goes without saying,” she said, her voice turning serious. “Did the kidnapper see you? I mean your van’s pretty hard to miss with balloons all over the side of it.”

  She tried to recall whether he’d looked in her direction. If he had seen her, what would he have done? Come after her? Had he rushed because he heard her? She felt sure it was unlikely he’d paid much attention to anything besides his victim. She wandered her apartment and looked out the windows.

  “Amber? Are you sure you’re okay?”

  She let the curtain fall back into place. “Yeah. If he knew I was there, it wasn’t obvious. He had all he could handle with the victim.”

  Rachelle let out a deep sigh. “I’m worried about you. Do you want to come over and stay here tonight?” She could hear clanging dishes in the background just before the baby started crying.

  “Thanks, but I need to get my dough ready and figure out what I’m going to do about deliveries now.”

  “You can think here, where you’d be safe. I could send Tommy to come get you.”

  She wanted to laugh. “Oh, he’d love that at midnight. I’m safe here, Rachelle, but thanks. I’ll see you in the morning, okay? I need to get busy, before I crash and burn.” They said good-night after confirming arrangements for Rachelle to drop off her supplies the next morning.

  Only problem was, Amber didn’t crash and burn. She’d tried to go to sleep at three in the morning, but couldn’t stop her mind from replaying the accident. She couldn’t take her mind off that moment, and the officer who she’d hurt in her carelessness. She’d lain awake thinking of the tall, handsome officer who’d changed her mind about cops. She prayed over and over that Officer Matthews was okay. Prayed that the crime she’d witnessed was nothing more than a college prank. Prayed that the morning light would bring answers to her numerous concerns.

  At six-thirty, the knock on the door nearly sent her through the roof. She’d already gone online and ordered wooden shutters for the glass-front windows to provide more security for the early-morning shift.

  She looked out the peephole and opened the door for the two college girls who helped out around the shop. Thanks to the nervous energy, she’d finished the baking, leaving only glazing the pastries, brewing coffee, and filling display cabinets before the shop opened. While CiCi and Andrea washed up and put on their aprons, Amber filled them in on the challenges of the day, which were too numerous to ignore any longer. Time was getting away from her.

  “Do you want me to deliver the day-old pastries to the shelter with my car?” CiCi offered. “I wouldn’t want to put a full sheet cake in the hatchback, but we can box the pastries in the smaller boxes.”

  “That would be great. I have a couple of errands I need to run,” Amber said as she scooped the coffee into the huge filter. “Sean should be here by seven-thirty to help with the before-work rush. I’ll be gone most of the morning. Call if you have questions….”

  The room was silent.

  “Did I say something wrong?” she asked the two women. “Don’t worry, I’m not asking to borrow your car. One of my stops is to rent a car for my own use. Rachelle is going to pick me up, and at the same time, deliver all of the supplies I picked up that were left in the van last night. I just hope the van is repaired before that huge wedding the weekend after next.”

  Andrea was folding the boxes and getting the bakery cases ready to fill with fresh pastries. “Unless the damage was pretty minor, I wouldn’t bet on it. My dad’s car took almost two months to fix after his accident.”

  Amber felt the weight of the world on her shoulders. This had been her grandparents’ business. The memories here went deep—too deep to let go so easily. Especially not over a broken-down vehicle. Nana Scott had been ecstatic when Amber had asked if she could buy the bakery from her. Though her parents argued that she needed to go back to college and finish her degree, Amber was convinced that this was God’s plan for her life. She was determined to prove to her parents that she could succeed without their help.

  Amber yawned. “I have no idea how long it will take,” she admitted, “but I don’t know what we’ll do if it’s not repaired by then. I’ll have to find some way to get the wedding cake to the resort. I cannot give up this order.” The profit on it alone would pay this month’s expenses, she mused. She’d had the van repainted and tuned up, hoping it would get her through a few more years while she got the new shop in the black financially. She just hoped they could make the repairs to keep it running. Another yawn escaped. This time Andrea and CiCi caught the wave of sleepiness.

  “You haven’t slept all night, have you?” Andrea asked.

  Amber wondered if the half hour she dozed would really count as sleep. “I took a catnap, but it didn’t help much. Since I finished decorating the cakes last night, I’ll try to catch a little sleep after the lunch rush.”

  “Why don’t you go sleep for a while now. We can get the rest of the cabinet shelves filled,” CiCi said. “It looks like you have almost everything done for us. Once the coffee finishes brewing, we’re about set. Then when Sean arrives to help Andrea, I’ll make the deliveries.”

  There was a knock on the alley door.

  “That’s probably Rachelle,” she said, taking a step toward the door. “The coffee is made, the cinnamon raisin loaves are cooling on the racks, but need to be sliced and bagged.” She looked out the peephole and reached for the doorknob, then froze.

  Amber opened the door, surprised to see Garrett’s brother, Nick, still in uniform. Another officer was sitting in a separate car. “Morning, Ms. Scott. I’m Sergeant Nick Matthews….”

  “Hi,” she said tentatively, wondering why he was addressing her so formally after meeting at the hospital. “Is your brother okay?”

  He looked at her oddly. “As far as I know, he’s doing fine. Why?”

  “Well, you’re here, for one thing, and you sounded so official. Am I under arrest for something?”

  He laughed. “No, sorry, the introduction is just a formality. We’ve been patrolling a little more by your shop through the night, and I noticed that you have some company. Since a white sedan showed up sometime in the last hour, I thought we’d better check on you.”

  Amber leaned just far enough out the door to see the white car. “It’s here?”

  “There’s no one inside it, but we thought there w
as a chance that the guy may have noticed your van and placed you here….”

  She glanced at Nick. “That’s similar to the car I saw last night, but it’s not as nice.” She quickly stepped back inside her shop. “My employees just arrived. Do you want to see if it belongs to either of them?”

  “That would probably be a good idea.”

  As Nick stepped inside, Amber worried that he was going to take her in to the station because of her old charges. Though her lawyer had assured her years ago that her record had been cleared, doubt still plagued her. “This is Andrea and CiCi.”

  As Sergeant Matthews questioned her employees, Amber studied him closer. Nick was taller and stockier than his brother, but it was Garrett’s intriguing gray eyes that really caught her attention. He and Garrett had similar mannerisms, but that was where the resemblance ended. It was too bad she had such an aversion to police officers.

  “Ms. Scott?”

  She tore her mind from Garrett Matthews, and the temptation she had to ask Nick more questions about his brother. “Yes?”

  “Lieutenant Chavez asked me to remind you to go by the precinct sometime today to look at mug shots and see if you can identify the suspect. If you do that, you’ll need to talk to M. J. Daniels, our artist. She works from noon to five today. I figure we should get a description of the man you saw while it’s fresh on your mind, just in case something does come of the case.”

  Realizing her nap was out of the question, she said, “Okay, so you never found the girl?”

  He shook his head. “No sign of anyone fitting that description yet…. It’s only been twelve hours, but if no one makes a report, our hands are tied.”

  Amber wrapped her arms around her body, feeling a chill of the cool autumn air at the reminder. “And the car in the alley?”

  “Belongs to your employee, Andrea.”

  “Oh, I missed that, I guess….” While I was dreaming about your brother. “Thanks for checking in with us, Nick.” Just then Rachelle pulled into the alley and approached very slowly. Nick got into the squad car and drove away.