by B. D. Gates
"And, where was that, exactly?" Hatch threw Miranda's caution to the wind, wanting to know more about the woman sitting across from her.
Here is where Tess always froze.
This was the question that always started it, the snowballing of where are you from? what about your parents? brothers and sisters?
It was the normal progression of a conversation designed to elicit information, the facts and history of a person, but Tess didn't know if she could do it, actually pull it off, the idea of moving to a new city, making up and taking on a new past that, hopefully, would allow a different person to emerge.
She'd called it the 'Do-Over,' when she'd explained the idea to Bishop. Bishop had let her know that, for her, the new name and the new past had worked, she was happier living as Baxter, that the person she'd left behind was better left in the past.
Tess had spent evenings actually doing the work, imagining that new history with a new family in her plan to elude her real past.
What she also knew, deep down, at her very core, was that her past was the one thing she could never outrun.
17
The silence stretched out between them, Tess aware of Hatch's eyes on her while she waited for Tess to answer, neither pushing nor withdrawing the question.
She could never lie, she was bad at it, always getting caught out when the truth came to light. And it always did. Here, though, who would catch her? There was no one who would know the truth. And so she teetered on the edge between the truth and the lies.
"Whitmore. Lin's Buffet is in Whitmore."
Okay, not quite the question she was asked but it was the truth and she felt relief in not lying.
"Whitmore." Hutch looked thoughtful. "Huh. I've been through there, on my way to the coast. Lin's Buffett. I'll check it out next time."
Hatch had been an investigator long enough to know when someone was not being entirely honest with her. Tess was a detective, a seasoned cop, there couldn't be anything in her past that could make her so uneasy that she'd be less than honest, right?
Right?
With dinner over, they made their way to the door, saying goodnight to Jean as she passed them on her way to clear their table. She was in better spirits now, perhaps Lily had calmed her down, and she wished them both a good night as well. As they were about to pass the podium, Hatch stopped and took a bowl out from the recessed area underneath, offering it to Tess.
Fortune cookies.
Tess smiled at Hatch but shook her head. "I'm full."
"Take one for later, Tess. It's not about the cookie, you know."
Tess chuckled. Good lawd, no, it most certainly was not about the cookie. She took one, put it in her jacket pocket. Hatch took one and returned the basket to the podium.
The evening had grown cooler now that the sun was down. Tess was glad she'd worn her windbreaker as they rode into downtown and towards her apartment. Hatch had offered her gloves to Tess, but she'd refused them, telling her that she'd rather Hatch's hands stay warm enough to drive the bike. Minutes later, when Tess had slipped her cold hands up under the back of Hatch's jacket, the move had caught Hatch by surprise, but it also offered her some sorely needed reassurance that the evening had not been as much of a disaster as she believed.
It was also a somewhat intimate sort of thing to do, and that really surprised Hatch most of all.
Arriving at Tess's apartment building, Hatch pulled to a stop and shut down the engine. Tess took off her helmet and handed it to Hatch before jumping off. Hatch took off her helmet and dismounted as well.
"So, I really want to apologize again for this evening..." Hatch started.
"No."
Hatch stopped dead and looked at Tess. Tess was shaking her head as she stood with her arms crossed, but a small smile was on her lips.
"You don't need to apologize any more, Hatch. So stop. I had a lovely time. Thank you for taking me."
Hatch actually breathed a sigh of relief. "You're welcome."
There was a moment of quiet between them, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Hatch looked at Tess and smiled. "My team is just getting rolling and we're going to be busy from here on, but I'd like to take you out again sometime."
"I'd like that."
"Good. Okay. So, I'll be in touch."
"Good night, Hatch."
"Good night, Tess."
There was another pause between them, this one not quite so comfortable as Tess stood looking at Hatch and Hatch looking back. Then Tess had nodded, turned, and gone into the building.
Hatch sat leaning against her bike, not quite sure what to think about that last minute with Tess. If Tess had been any of the women Hatch had taken out in the past, there would have been a goodnight kiss that, for some, would have lead to a "good morning" kiss and questions about breakfast and how one takes her coffee. This one, though, this woman was different.
That conversation at dinner, that long pause...what was Tess Hayes hiding?
*****
Tess sat in her living room, clicking through the channels as she contemplated the evening. Hatch was unpredictable, to say the least, and a bit of a handful, but fun. And it's not like she wasn't used to that kind of behavior, what with spending so much time with Bishop.
Annoying, aggravating, frustrating, infuriating, funny, sweet, kind, gentle Bishop. Maybe that's why she was so drawn to Hatch, so comfortable with her.
Sometimes, late at night, when Tess's doubts were swarming around her, she'd sit looking at her phone, the screen display highlighting the number to the flip phone she'd given Bishop over a year ago.
Did Bishop still have the phone, the same number?
Was she okay? Was she happy?
Did she ever think about her?
Did she still love her?
18
I got a phone call from Whyte about a week after I'd given him the file on Charlie.
"Hey, Baxter, I'm calling to tell you that Fowler and I did a little more investigating of Charlie's warehouse and there's really not much to it, to be honest. We ran the tags on the truck, they're registered to a second-hand business in Richmond and it all seems legit.
"Anyway, we showed your file to the Captain, and he'd like to talk to Penny. Can you give me her number?"
"Sure, Whyte." I added that I'd tell her to expect a call.
"Thanks, Baxter. Talk to you soon."
Now, what is that all about?
I found out the next evening.
Penny called as I was leaving work. She told me she'd get dinner and would meet me at the carriage house, since she was already in Tenley. I drove home, fed everyone and was changing my clothes when Penny came in. She'd stopped by the Pharmacy and picked up some Philly cheesesteaks and fries for each of us, and a vanilla milkshake for me.
I had gotten hooked on them, drinking one at least every other day for the past week.
"Come on, dinner's here." Penny had set out the food and was washing up at the sink when I came into the kitchen. I walked over, kissed her "hello" and took my seat at the table, waited for her to join me.
"So, what are you doing in Tenley?" I asked after she sat down.
"Well, Captain Huff called me this morning, asked if I'd meet with him this afternoon, and I did, and guess what! He offered me a job with the police department, as a 'tech and media expert!'"
I almost choked on my cheesesteak.
"Geez, Penny, seriously?"
"Yes, Bax, and I took it!"
Now I really started coughing.
"Well, damn, Baxter," said Penny, as she jumped up and came around the table, pounded my back. "I didn't think this would kill you!"
"I'm okay, Penny, I'm okay," I said, as I took a swallow of her drink. I cleared my throat one last time. "So, tell me about the meeting."
"Well, he remembered me from the 'airport incident.' That's how he referred to it. Said I was very brave and resourceful, according to what he'd been told, what he'd read in the reports. He'd seen the photos we'd taken at Char
lie's warehouse, and he was impressed. He knew about the photo in 'Southern Lifestyles,' and then I told him about stalking Sabrina Howe, how I'd found out where she lived--don't worry, I kept it clean--and he was laughing so hard, especially since I'd talked my way out of any charges. And he'd read her second book, so that made him laugh even harder!"
I had met Captain Huff the morning after the so-called 'incident' at the airport, when I gave my official statement to the Whitmore and Tenley Police Departments.
I cannot imagine him laughing at anything.
Penny continued. "So, he wants to purchase body cams and mics for all of his patrol officers, then he wants me to help him build an audio/video tech department and work with his investigators on using video at crime scenes."
"Isn't that what the Crime Scene Investigation Unit does?"
"Well, this is in addition to evidence photos. CSI will do their thing, the Captain said that this is all brand new and that we'd figure it out as we went along. He's got a grant, and I'm going to be making some serious money, with benefits. Oh my god, Baxter, aren't you excited for me?"
I couldn't take this away from her. She'd had so much fun on the stake-outs, and had taken her role very seriously when it came to shooting the photos. I knew that she wanted more 'edge' in her life, I had just never imagined she'd get it with the Tenley Police Department.
"This is great, Penny! Really great! So, when do you start?"
"I talked with Sallie and she's not making me work a notice, her sister's daughter needs a summer job, so that's taken care of, and we've got the wedding this weekend, so I told the Captain I could start on Monday."
"Okay, so, let me just ask you this. Are you on call? Because, Penny, that will put a serious crimp in softball."
Penny sat quietly while she mulled that over.
"I don't know, Baxter. I guess we'll just have to see."
"Well, I'm so proud of you! I think that the Tenley PD just made a very wise decision in hiring you, and I think that you are about to have one hell of an adventure!"
"Really, Bax?"
"Really, Penny. Look, I know those guys you're going to be working with. They're good men, all of them, and I think that you'll enjoy this, more than you can imagine."
She took on a happier look, nearly as happy as when she'd first told me her news. I swore to myself then and there that I would be supportive of Penny, no matter what.
No matter what.
19
Hatch made a point of taking Tess out for lunch if she and Kane were working in the precinct, or take-out from restaurants close to her hotel at night when the second surveillance team took over for their shift. Tess was good company, she was charming and funny, and Hatch found herself looking forward to those times with her. It was comfortable, pleasant, they'd enjoyed the food and, in the evenings, the movies that followed, the conversation light or involving the cases Tess was working, the progress Hatch's team was making.
Over time, Hatch told Tess about growing up a tomboy, hanging out with her three older brothers, playing sandlot ball with the boys in the neighborhood, riding bikes down to a creek to fish and build forts, about the summer nights when they'd pitched canvas tents, abandoning them when it was too hot to sleep inside, spending the night sitting under the stars, talking about what they wanted out of life, what they would be when they grew up and left home.
Telling Tess about high school, how alone she felt, her brothers having graduated and moved on, seemed to bring a sea change in the conversations, Tess talking about her high school years at Tenley High, making small contributions to the conversations. Absolutely none of her talking ever touched on her home life, however.
Hatch wanted to ask, it would only be natural at this point, really, to ask about parents, brothers and sisters, but she didn't. She wondered if Tess thought it odd that she didn't, that they were not following the normal, predictable course of conversation.
She also wondered if Tess breathed a sigh of relief at the end of each night.
One beautiful evening, they were riding the Harley around the city, just touring, using it as a way to decompress from their respective jobs, when Hatch began asking questions--nothing stressful, just the benign 'getting-to-know-you' sort.
"Favorite color?"
"Blue." Tess had replied.
"Comfort food?"
"Chinese. Or french fries."
"Favorite animal?"
"Dogs. No, wait, cats, too." Tess had immediately thought of Bishop's dogs, Rosie and Sophie, but didn't want to leave out Smokey. It wouldn't have been right.
"Favorite car."
That was a tough one. Tess had been assigned a Crown Vic in Tenley, manufactured for law enforcement, and she practically lived in it for over three years, but she needed clarification.
"Do you mean one I drove or in general?"
"Either. Both. I won't take off points for specifics."
"Oh, I'm being graded? I had no idea. Okay, well, I drove a Crown Vic, which I loved, but I really like Jeeps."
"Jeeps. I like Jeeps. Did you have one?"
"No...it wasn't mine."
"Favorite month?"
"Hm." Tess gave that some thought. "March." She was thinking about running track in the cool evenings, then sitting in the stadium watching the Tenley Pride softball practices.
"Favorite year?"
Now that one was tough. It took her a while, but she was seriously thinking about how to answer. She couldn't make up her mind. "The year I graduated the police academy. And last year."
As heartbreakingly painful as the past year had been, she had known more happiness during it than any time in the previous ten years.
She didn't elaborate. She couldn't. And she was surprised to realize that nearly all of her answers were connected to Bishop.
She sighed when she realized that maybe she wasn't really that surprised.
20
The thing about sitting on a surveillance is that there's a lot of time to kill waiting for that one break, that one event that kicks off the investigation.
In other words, it's boring.
Hatch and Kane were at least in an oversized van, large enough to carry Hatch's Harley when necessary, they could get up and stretch without drawing attention to themselves. The truck was a tricked-out, state-of-the-art piece of work that allowed the two to watch their subjects, accessing nationwide databases through encrypted digital connections over cell towers.
All that waiting gave Hatch the time to do a little investigation on a project of her own.
One morning, Hatch caught Miranda on her way to her desk, and pulled her through the doorway of what she and Kane called their "War Room," closing the door behind her.
"Mir, do you remember about twelve, thirteen years ago, there was a robbery-murder at a grocery store in a little place called Tenley? They held the trial in Whitmore and the defense attorney was a real prick?"
"Hatch, do you know how many trials that describes? And do you know any defense attorney that isn't a prick?"
"Yeah, but this one was different. It got a lot of publicity because of who it involved."
"And who would that be?"
"Tess."
"What?"
"Her dad was killed, it was his store. Her mom died when she was a kid, her dad raised her, and the press went nuts over that. Tess was the star of her high school track and field team, they'd just won the Regional Championship earlier that same year. She had medalled in all of her events, they ran footage with shots of her dad watching her compete on their newscasts during the trial. For the ratings. What the press did to her should have been a damn crime. Here, look."
Hatch tapped her laptop and a video began to play. Miranda watched as the archived story centered the face of a young Tess in close-up as the press pushed up against the two men escorting her out of the courtroom. Miranda cringed, her heart aching for her as the swarming continued around the three making their way through the crowded courthouse hallway.
; Miranda slammed the laptop shut, the video still playing. "I can't watch any more."
Hatch turned and leaned back against the table, caught off-guard by Miranda's tone.
When Miranda spoke, her tone was quiet and measured, but the anger she was reining in was apparent.
"What the hell is wrong with you, Joelene Hatcher? Have you lost all good sense?" She shook her head in disbelief. "You investigated her like she's a criminal, you invaded her privacy. You're no better than the press hounds in that video, if she'd wanted us to know about any of that she'd have told us.
"See, this is how you end up in trouble, there are things called boundaries--you completely crossed hers and you've dragged me across it, too. How do I look at her now and pretend I don't know about any of this? Dammit, Hatch, you just changed the entire dynamics of my relationship with Tess without asking either of us for permission!"
Miranda turned and walked out, slamming the door behind her, leaving Hatch slack-jawed and staring after her.
21
Detectives talk to people they know things about every day, secret things the people they're talking with don't know they know. It's a game sometimes, to steer a conversation, to move someone into saying something they hadn't intended. Sometimes, though, it's even harder to know something and not act on it, not pursue it, to tamp down the natural inclination of wanting to know more.