“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because I said so.”
“Have it your way. I need to pick up my wife. If you’re the detail that is supposed to be following me, you’d better hurry, because I drive like everyone else in this city.”
* * *
Jamie was exhausted. Jack was more than a little displeased that he had administration on his back. Jamie couldn’t fault the powers that be. If word got out that a child molester had been roaming the halls of the hospital, it wouldn’t bode well. She looked at her watch. Tierney was late again. The girl was amazing. She had been warned, cajoled, threatened, and still she arrived later and later for each shift. Jamie went to Jack who was already in a foul mood.
“A moment?” she asked tentatively while taking a shy step into his office.
“You’re not in trouble.”
“I’m sorry your day turned into a train wreck.”
“Jamie, you didn’t invite this guy here, and thanks to you, we were prepared.”
“Thank you.” She accepted the compliment with a grain of salt. A part of her did feel guilty. “I have just one small matter to discuss with you. Dr. Tierney.”
“Late again?”
“Yes. How did this girl get through med school? I like the kid, but she hasn’t exhibited an ounce of professionalism. I think we need to cut her from the program.”
“Done. Want me to be the bad guy?”
“No, I will. It’s what you pay me for. That is, if she bothers to show up. Go home, Jack. I’ll see you in the morning. Thanks again for everything.”
Jamie wasn’t surprised that Jack didn’t seem to be in a hurry to head home. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to have to go home to an empty one bedroom condo. Just a few years ago, that was the way she lived her life. Now, the concept was inconceivable.
“Ah, Dr. Tierney.” She found her errant resident hanging around the nurse’s station. “Nice of you to join us. And just at the end of the shift.”
“No, see,” Tierney began to say. “You see there weren’t any cabs. Then…”
“Don’t you live a block from Sullivan Station?”
“Yes. I don’t like going down there. Have you seen what the subway is like at night?”
“Yes, because most nights I ride it.” Jamie rubbed her throbbing temple. “I find it interesting that you’re afraid to ride the subway, when just last week I saw you put a junkie in a headlock.”
“Yeah, that was something.” Tierney had the bad manners to gloat. “I’ll just get started.”
“Don’t bother.” Jamie sighed heavily and waved for the younger woman to follow her. “My office, now.”
Tierney didn’t seem concerned; she simply followed Jamie to her office. “I know what you’re going to say,” Tierney said. “I’m buying a new alarm clock. The one I have must be defective.”
“Stop. As entertaining as I find your little sagas, I can’t let this go on. It isn’t fair to the people in the program. We’ve had this little chat before. There are a lot of people out there who would kill to be in your shoes right now. You don’t seem to care.”
“I do.”
“No you don’t. I’m sorry, but you’re done.” Jamie stood firm. She hated it because the girl did make her laugh, but enough was enough. “I’ll need your hospital ID, and you’ll have to clear out your locker.”
“I’m fired? For real?”
“Yes, for real. You can file an appeal with Dr. Temple. I have to warn you that he’s already on board with dismissing you.”
“Okay, so this appeal… when can I do that?”
“I’d try in the morning.” Jamie once again wondered how this woman got through school. “He usually shows up around seven in the morning.” Jamie was stunned when Tierney thanked her then happily sauntered out of her office after handing over her badge. “Seven A.M.” She silently wondered whether Tierney would bother to be on time. “Unbelievable.”
Jamie typed up her report and gathered her things. One last check, and she could wait for CC to come and get her. She hoped the excitement was over for the day. She couldn’t help smiling when she spied a familiar figure lingering by the nurses’ station. The nurses on duty seemed amused, and it only took Jamie a moment to figure out why.
“So, you’re a cop? You guys have been busy here today,” Murphy prattled on while the nurses giggled. “I’m a doctor.” He emphasized his words by tugging on his lab coat.
“Yeah?” CC winked at Jamie, who was standing directly behind the young man.
“I get off duty soon,” he said, completely unaware of how deeply he was stepping in it.
“Murphy!” Jamie barked. “A word of advice. Never hit on your boss’s wife.”
“Huh?”
“Hi, honey.” She gave CC a quick kiss. “Murphy, get back to work.”
“Yes, Dr. Jameson,” he said in a squeaky voice while the nurses laughed hysterically.
“You could have warned him,” Jamie said.
Stella laughed. “Where’s the fun in that?”
“He seemed nice,” CC said with a grin.
“You behave,” Jamie said. “Stella, pull Tierney off the schedule.”
“For tonight?”
“Permanently.”
“You can’t wait until next week?”
“Sorry.”
“Had to fire someone?” CC winced.
“Yeah, the slacker I told you about. You okay?”
“It’s been a long day.” The smile CC had been sporting vanished. “And it’s going to be a long night.”
Chapter 28
Stevie was a nervous wreck by the time CC and Jamie arrived. Brad’s constant pacing hadn’t helped steady her nerves. Thankfully, Emma managed to have fun with her father before going to bed. Stevie’s mood failed to calm when she caught the solemn looks on Jamie’s and CC’s faces.
Her pulse raced slightly when Val came right in behind them, huffing.
“You drive like a maniac,” Val shouted.
“I drive like a Bostonian. Get over it,” CC said. “Did you make your calls?”
“Yes,” Val answered in a quieter tone. “Stevie, we need to talk.”
“Last time a woman said that to me, she was walking out the door,” Stevie said grimly. “Tell me that you aren’t leaving us so soon.”
“No, you’re the one who’s leaving.” Val reached inside her blazer and pulled out her wallet. “You, Brad, and Emma. It’s all been arranged. These are some friends of mine.” She showed Stevie a picture of a younger version of herself along with four friends all clad in dress navy whites. “Ricky, Callie, Brenda, and Dave. We went through Annapolis together, and we all retired at the same time. Dave was with the DEA, Callie is Secret Service, Brenda is CIA, and Ricky is FBI. We’re all still close.”
“He’s yummy.” Brad was drooling over the picture. “Sorry.” He gulped when he realized what he had said.
“Glad you like him. He’s your new boyfriend.”
“Lucky me.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Stevie said. “My father isn’t—”
“Stevie.” CC tried to argue.
“I’m staying.”
“Then at least send Brad and Emma,” CC said. “These people are pros.”
“We all live together in DC,” Val said before Stevie could argue. “We also own a cabin in the middle of nowhere that is extremely secure. With our professions, we know a lot places you can hide without feeling like a prisoner.”
CC picked up the argument. “You were already talking about sending Emma off with Brad to his family’s place. The Feds are going to be covering this place. Mills is going to be fixing the roof, and—“
“And we have people posing as landscapers,” Val said. “I’ll be here.”
“You can’t come into my home and tell me to ship my child off!” Stevie was furious.
“Stevie, this is bad,” CC said.
“I get that.” Stevie fought against crying. �
��You trust her?”
“I have no choice.” CC sounded defeated. “I’ll be here. I’ve taken a leave of absence.”
“What?” Stevie sat down when she felt her knees buckle. “You never…”
“He’s coming, Stevie,” CC said in a strangled voice. “He’s back, and the only way to bag him is to set a trap. It’s too dangerous to let Emma stay. I hate this just as much as you do.”
“Fine. Brad, can you go?”
“Yes. I’ll call the restaurant and the club and tell them I have a family emergency.”
“Jamie?” Stevie looked toward her.
“I don’t like it either.” Jamie also sounded defeated. “But there doesn’t seem to be another way. It’s up to you and Brad.”
“Stevie,” Val said slowly, “right now, we can do this. We have the people. If he’s on the run for much longer, they’ll cut back. I’ll be sent back to DC. You’ll be left with this dufus named Finn.”
“Cathy Finn? I thought she retired?”
“No,” CC said. “Her ex-husband.”
“Oh, the one who caught you with Cathy.” Stevie almost laughed until she realized how bad things really were. “That wouldn’t be good. The guy hates you.”
“Who is Cathy?” Jamie asked.
“I kind of dated her.” CC squirmed.
“Really?” Jamie bristled.
“Focus, please,” CC said. “Stevie, the long weekend is coming up. We can do this now, and Emma will be safe. She’ll be able to go on with her life without him ever getting near her.”
“Stevie, we should do this,” Brad firmly stated. “We can’t risk—”
“Okay!” Stevie caved in. “When?”
“Now.” CC reached over and held her hand. “Start packing her things and wake her up. Tell her that she’s going on a trip with Daddy.”
“Here.” Val held out her phone and pushed a couple of buttons. Stevie almost laughed when CC jumped at the sound of her phone beeping. “It’s copies so we haven’t broken the chain of evidence,” Val explained, snatching CC’s phone. “Press here for Play and here to Delete. I got to say I love the phones you guys are sporting.”
“I hate that everyone knows how to use my phone but me.” CC snatched her phone back. She and Stevie watched in horror as the grainy black-and-white image played before them.
“My God, it’s him.” Stevie trembled. “That’s my father. A little older, a lot pudgier, but that’s him. Where was this?”
“Green Line.” Val’s stoic veneer cracked ever so slightly. “He got off at the Boylston Village stop.”
“That’s three blocks from here.”
“That video is from the other day.”
“I’ll get Emma.”
Stevie hated everything that was happening. She hated Val for coming up with a plan that would either make her run or be separated from her daughter. She hated that Emma was being fussy and she couldn’t tell her what was going on. How do you tell a child that her grandfather was lurking around and that he’s a bad man? She silently brooded while she tried to convince Emma that she couldn’t pack her entire bedroom and that missing a couple of school days wasn’t that big a deal. She hated feeling helpless, almost as much as she hated seeing her older sister, who had always been her protector, become helpless.
“I don’t want to go,” the still half-asleep Emma wailed as she stomped downstairs.
“It’s only for a couple of days,” Stevie said. “You’ll be with Daddy and his new friend.”
“There’s a chess set there,” Val said once Emma stomped into the living room and expressed her displeasure by tossing her backpack onto the floor.
“Daddy doesn’t know how to play chess.”
“It’s true.” Brad looked completely embarrassed.
“I do.”
Stevie had been so caught up with dealing with Emma’s tirade that she missed the three strangers standing in her living room. He wasn’t tall, but he was a well-built, dark-haired Latino man with warm brown eyes. Brad is going to be in heaven, she mused.
“I’m Ricky,” he said with a firm handshake. “And I love playing chess,” he added, bending down to greet Emma.
Stevie only felt a small sense of comfort from his demeanor, and the fact that he was clad in a powder blue polo with an HRC logo embroidered on the breast. Just because he was family didn’t mean she could trust him with her kid. She said, “See, Emma, it will be fun.”
“Don’t want to go,” Emma screeched.
Stevie was at her wit’s end when Caitlin stood and crossed the room. “Emma.” CC knelt to meet Emma’s eye level. “Stitch has a glitch.” Stevie’s heart broke as she watched her daughter’s eyes widen with fear.
“Do you understand?” CC tenderly clasped Emma’s shoulders.
“Yes.” Emma jutted out her chin, doing her best to appear brave.
“You can talk to us every day,” Stevie said. “Even send videos on Daddy’s phone. It’ll be fun.”
“Auntie Caitlin doesn’t know how to use her phone.”
“I’ll learn, so you and I can talk every day,” CC promised. “Everything is going to be all right. But your mommy and I need you to be brave.”
“I will.” Emma plopped her Orioles hat on her head and picked up her stuffed puppy.
“Don’t forget to walk Dory,” Stevie said while scooping Emma up in her arms.
“Dory?” Ricky asked.
“My practice puppy.” Emma held up the stuffed animal. “If I do good with Dory, I get a real puppy.”
“These nice people are going to take you on a very special plane ride,” Stevie tearfully explained. “You be good for Daddy.”
“I will,” Emma said, breaking Stevie’s heart when she clung tighter to her.
Brenda softly broke the moment. “We have to go. Sorry, ma’am.”
After a brief flurry of activity, they were gone. Stevie’s nerves were frazzled. She had just sent her daughter off to parts unknown with complete strangers.
“Jamie, do you still have that bottle of Disaronno?”
“I’ll be right back.” Jamie moved quickly, seemingly relieved to have something to do. “How many glasses?”
“I’ll join you.” CC slumped down on the sofa.
“I’m on duty,” Val somberly added.
“As?” Stevie asked while Jamie retreated to grab the bottle of liquor.
“Oh, right,” Val stammered slightly while CC glared at her. “I’m going to be posing as your new girlfriend. That way, no one will question why I’m hanging around or sleeping over. Unless, there’s someone…”
“No.” Stevie couldn’t help notice that Val was sporting a slight blush. “Considering what happened earlier, did you think there was someone?”
“No, I just didn’t want to assume.”
“You failed to mention that your cover was going to be as my sister’s lover,” CC said with a snarl. “You could just as easily pose as a visiting cousin.”
“It’s a perfect cover.” Stevie joined her sister on the sofa. A stifling silence descended over the room. Thankfully, Jamie returned with a bucket of ice, three glasses, and a large bottle of amaretto.
“Don’t be shy with that pour,” Stevie said. It wasn’t her style to drink during a crisis. The past few days had just been too much for her to deal with. Jamie heeded her instructions and poured the drinks while Val lurked by the front window.
“Stitch has a glitch?” Val said, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
“It’s a code,” CC explained. “We have a bunch of codes to relate emergencies or to let Emma know that she’s safe. Stitch has a glitch means there’s danger and she needs to just do as we say. Or she can use it to alert us she’s in danger without having to say it.”
“Good idea, given the state of the world.” Val moved slightly closer to the trio. “So, it works?”
“Up until tonight it was just a theory,” Jamie said bitterly.
“Who’s Stitch?”
“A Disney cha
racter,” Stevie answered, fully aware that Val was simply trying to distract them. “I hate this day. At least I can track Emma with the family locator on her phone.”
“The cabin is in Virginia,” Val said. Once again, her voice sounded tense. “There’s a lake and lots of stuff for her to do. They’ll have a blast. That’s where I was heading before my vacation plans fell apart.”
“Deputy?” CC’s strained voice interrupted. Stevie braced herself for the tirade her sister was certain to release. “Can I have my gun back now?”
Stevie’s jaw dropped as she watched Val extract her sister’s nine-millimeter pistol from inside her blazer.
CC held out her hand and impatiently snapped her fingers. “The magazine? I don’t keep fifteen-round clips lying around the house.”
“Fine.” Val tossed the magazine at the grumpy detective. “It’s not like you don’t have a bug strapped to your ankle. I’m guessing a forty-caliber Smith and Wesson.”
Stevie watched as her sister simply nodded and reloaded her gun. She was stunned to see CC holster her weapon as if it were no big deal.
“Yeah, this is making me feel better,” Stevie said sarcastically. “You’re drinking, which you almost never do, and you’re carrying guns around the house. Care to tell me just how Val came into possession of your gun in the first place?”
“I had to be sure I could trust her.”
“Speaking of which.” Val stepped closer to CC. “The next time you aim your weapon at me, be ready to use it.” The coldness in Val’s voice sent a shiver down Stevie’s spine.
“I’ll remember that, for the next time you put your hands on my sister.”
“Isn’t this fun?” Jamie gave a snort and swirled the ice in her glass. “They’re trying to out-butch each other. Another round, Stevie?”
“God, yes.”
“Stevie?” CC started as Jamie handed her a fresh drink. “Not to add more stress to your evening…”
“Crap, there’s more?”
“No.” Caitlin pushed her drink aside. “I just wanted to tell you that in the morning I’m taking a trip to Waltham. I didn’t know if you wanted to go.”
“Visiting our mother?”
“Yes. I need to be sure she isn’t involved with this.”
Checkmate (Caitlin Calloway Mystery Book 2) Page 21