by Gerri Hill
She pulled her attention from Tori and watched the shabby buildings flash by. They were definitely in an older, well-worn area of the city. In fact, when she worked in Assault, she could remember numerous calls to this area. It was a poor part of the city. For the life of her, she couldn’t imagine why Tori kept an apartment here.
Tori found a spot on the street and parallel parked without incident. When she cut the engine, she glanced first at the old building, then at Sam.
“This is it.”
Sam ducked her head, peering out the window at the dilapidated building. There were several broken windows that had been taped up and a couple that were simply boarded up with plywood. She was amazed that the building hadn’t been condemned.
“Uh-huh,” she murmured.
“We could always just get a room somewhere,” Tori suggested. In fact, she didn’t know why she hadn’t thought of that before.
“No, this will be fine.” Then Sam grabbed Tori’s hand and squeezed. “Why, Tori?”
“Why? Why here? Why this apartment?”
“Yes.”
Tori shrugged. How did she explain to Sam why she hung on to this?
“We lived here for three years when I was five,” she said quietly.
“When I moved back, I had Louise get the apartment in her name. It wasn’t like this when we lived here. Even when I moved back, it was shabby, but not like this. But it was the only place… where I could go that was familiar.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry. It’s silly to have it, I know. And it’s not like I live here anyway.”
Sam brought Tori’s hand to her lips and kissed it. “It’s not silly. If it’s what you needed, then it’s not silly at all.”
Tori turned in the seat and faced Sam, meeting her eyes in the dusky glow of the streetlights. “I don’t know that I need it anymore,” she admitted. “It was a lifeline of sorts, I guess. But I don’t feel like I’m in that dark place anymore.”
“I’m glad.”
“And I have you to thank for that.”
Sam smiled and leaned across the console and kissed Tori gently. “You’re welcome.”
“Come on. Let’s order some dinner. I’m bushed.”
“Me, too.”
The ringing penetrated her sleepy haze, and Tori untangled herself from Sam to grab her cell phone.
“Hunter,” she murmured.
“It’s me. The goddamn bastard was here,” Sikes said.
Tori sat up. “At Sam’s?”
“Yes. I’ve got an APB out on the car. It’s a match for the stolen Honda.”
“Why the hell didn’t you follow him?” she demanded.
“You think we didn’t try? The bastard is smart. He took us to the Deep Ellum bar district and faded into the traffic.”
“Christ, Sikes.”
“I know. We had him. But I didn’t think you’d want me plowing down drunken pedestrians to catch him.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry.” She ran her hand through her short hair, then sighed as she felt Sam’s hand moving soothingly across her naked back. “It’s two, Sikes. Get some sleep. Maybe we’ll get lucky and some cruiser will spot the car.”
“Yeah. I’m sorry, Tori. We had the little prick.”
“It’s not your fault, John. Tomorrow is another day. We’ll get him. Go home.”
She lay back down, and Sam immediately curled against her. Tori kissed her forehead lightly and gathered her closer.
“He was there?” Sam finally whispered.
“Yeah.”
Sam was quiet for a moment, then her hand moved lazily to Tori’s breast. Her nipple responded, and Sam rubbed against it with her palm, content to just feel Tori under her hand. They were both too tired for more, especially since their nearly sleepless night the day before. But it was nice, this touching. She closed her eyes and sighed, feeling Tori’s arms tighten around her.
“He’s getting very bold,” she murmured.
Tori nodded. Yes, he was. She wondered where he was hiding, where he was keeping Charlotte and whether she was alive or not. She suspected he would already have displayed the body if he’d killed her. He’d want them to know that he’d won again.
“Tori?”
“Hmm?”
“You know I feel completely safe with you, don’t you?”
“I hope so.”
“And I don’t just mean about him. It’s… everything. I’m with you and my life feels… complete, you know,” she whispered.
“Yes.”
“Do you feel that way, too?”
Tori hesitated. How did she tell Sam all she felt? How could words convey what she felt in her heart?
“Sam, for the first time in my adult life, I feel… happy, content. I don’t feel like I’m running away anymore. I don’t feel like I need to hide from anything.” She tightened her arms. “You make me feel safe.”
“I’m so glad, Tori. When this case is over, I hope we have some normal time together. I think we need that. I wish we could spend a few days alone on the boat, just us. Where we can be ourselves and talk… and make love,” she whispered. “I love how you touch me, Tori. You bring all my senses alive, and it’s like I can’t get enough of you.”
Tori closed her eyes, letting Sam’s words wash over her and settle into her heart. She didn’t know why, but Sam loved her. She wouldn’t question it, she wouldn’t fight it. She couldn’t. But still, the words she longed to say to Sam wouldn’t come. Yes, she knew she was in love with her. Tori had no doubt about her own feelings. She had never given her love to anyone. She hadn’t thought she had any to give. Even now, she found it amazing that Sam had been able to find the light within her after she’d spent so very many years in darkness.
“Tori?”
“Hmm?”
“I’m not going to leave, you know. I know you still have doubts about this, about me.”
“Sam…”
“You do, Tori. I don’t blame you, really. But I know how much I love you. And someday, you’ll know it, too. You’ll believe me.”
Tori didn’t know what to say. She pulled Sam to her, finding her mouth in the darkness.
Chapter Forty-five
“Christ, Donaldson. You talk to a few people at the bar, you find no prints at the scene, and you deem it unsolvable?” Tori tossed the file on her desk and stared at Donaldson, waiting.
“What did you expect us to do? We had nothing and nobody would talk to us. When your first girl was killed, you didn’t have shit either,” he reminded her.
“But I didn’t close the goddamn case.” She picked it up again, reading the medical examiner’s report. A serrated knife was used. She picked up the phone, waiting impatiently until it was answered on the third ring. “Sara, it’s Hunter. I need you to have Jackson look at something. The knife wounds on our two cops, have him pull the report on Jason Branson, the transvestite who was murdered last month. Spencer did the post. She reported a serrated knife was used in that decapitation. See if we’ve got a match.”
“Rita has already pulled the file, Hunter.”
“Good, good. Okay, let me know.”
Tori nodded as she hung up the phone. Rita Spencer was smart and thorough. Tori should have known she would remember the case. She looked back at Donaldson. “We need to go back over this case, Donaldson. Who did Branson leave with? Who was he talking to? Surely, someone saw something. He was a regular there.” She looked back to the file. “You say the only one who remembered him being there that night was a bartender. That’s all you got? What did the bartender say?”
“He didn’t say anything, Hunter. He said he saw her there, that she was called Lisa. What the hell were we supposed to do with that?”
“You were supposed to put your goddamn prejudice aside and work the case. I can just imagine the two of you in that bar. You probably asked a couple of questions and got the hell out. Christ!”
“It was a dead end.”
“Dead end, my as
s. When I talk to the bartender, if he gives me any information that points to Grayson, you and Adams will have hell to pay.”
“You’re not my fucking Lieutenant, Hunter. Don’t threaten me.”
Malone was listening to the exchange from his doorway. He should have pulled the case from Adams and given it to Hunter in the first place. He knew they’d hardly probed the surface. But Hunter was overloaded as it was. They had no way of knowing the two cases were connected. But still, he should at least have run it by Hunter. But, you have a transvestite with no family badgering them to find the murderer, it was easy to let it slip through.
“Donaldson?”
He and Tori both looked up.
“What Hunter says on this goes. No questions. Do as she says. We have nine victims, possibly ten if your case checks out. Hunter is in charge of this. Clear?”
He nodded slowly. “Yes, sir.”
Malone scanned the empty squad room. “Where the hell is Adams?”
“He is… he called and said he had a doctor’s appointment.”
“If he’s gone much longer, he better hope they admitted him to the goddamn hospital. We need everyone here. We don’t have time for fucking doctor’s appointments!”
“Yes, sir.”
“Hunter? I need a word.”
Tori sighed and shoved away from her desk. Now what?
“Close the door. Sit down.”
“What’s going on?”
“CIU is coming aboard.”
“What the hell for?”
“Two officers murdered, that’s what the hell for.”
“Lieutenant…”
But he held up his hand to stop her. “You can complain all you want, but it’s a done deal. I requested that Travis head it up. At least we know we can work with him.”
“Christ! CIU! I’m surprised Jenkins hasn’t been around yet.”
“Yeah. But I think he’s been keeping a low profile since the Gomez incident. I got a call from Travis yesterday about it. Both Jenkins and Mabry have bank accounts that have had large cash deposits in the last two years. You’d think they’d be smarter than that. Idiots.”
Tori shook her head. She hadn’t given much thought to Jenkins and Mabry. Politics being what it was, she could imagine the two of them weaseling their way out of this.
“Okay, enough of that. Let’s get up to speed on this. You sent Kennedy and Sikes to Fort Worth. What you got?”
“About six months ago, they found a gay man beaten, with his throat slit. He was left in a Dumpster in an alley about three blocks from a gay bar. It went down as a gay bashing. No suspects. They’re talking to the detectives who worked the case and then the ME. I’d like to get the report to Jackson to see if he can find a match on anything. Maybe he used the same knife.”
“Okay, good. What about missing persons?”
“We have three possibilities. A nineteen-year-old girl was reported missing last year by her grandmother. She was a lesbian and had been living with her grandmother for the last two years, ever since her family told her to get lost,” Tori said with just a hint of bitterness. “The grandmother said she’d often talked about moving to California. When she disappeared”-Tori shrugged- “they figured that’s where she’d headed and let it drop.” She flipped open her notes. “Two men disappeared within a week of each other last November. Both were reported missing by their lovers. There was no connection between them and not a trace ever found. That case is also dead.”
Malone nodded. “What about Ramirez?”
“Tony’s at the lab. I want him there when they go over the stolen Honda, maybe find a clue as to where he’s been hiding.”
“What about the Branson case? I heard a little of your conversation with Donaldson.”
“The Branson case was barely worked, Lieutenant. Why did you let them shelve it?”
“Because they had no leads-”
“No leads?” she asked, her voice rising. “I guess not. They talked to one person, the bartender.”
“It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have given them the case to begin with. I should have put you on it, but your case was taking off. I just didn’t want you to take time away from it. Not with the brass coming down on us like they were.”
“I’m going to talk to the bartender again, see if he can still remember anything. Shit, whatever leads there may have been will be long cold by now. Christ, Lieutenant, I can’t believe how they handled it. I thought they were good detectives. Hell, someone fresh out of the Academy could have done a better job than this.”
“I know, Hunter. Again, it’s my fault. Let’s just open it up again and go from there.”
“I’m going back to the bar, see if someone will talk to me.”
“You want to take Donaldson with you?”
“Are you kidding? No way.”
“Okay. Travis is coming over at three. Make sure you’re back. We need to brief him.”
“Yes, sir.”
The Pink Lagoon was still closed, but Tori saw activity inside. She knocked several times and waited.
“Police,” she called, tapping again on the glass, harder this time. “Open the goddamn door.”
Finally, someone came over, and they stared at each other through the glass. The door was opened, and a young man peered out at her.
“What?”
She held up her badge. “I’m Detective Hunter.” She pushed past the man and walked into the empty bar. It smelled of stale cigarette smoke and beer. “I’m looking for one of your bartenders. Marty Stevens.”
“What for?”
Tori turned to face the young man, piercing him with a stare. “I have some questions regarding a homicide. Is he here?”
The man swallowed nervously, then tucked his long hair behind both ears. “I’m Marty,” he finally said.
Tori relaxed, then smiled. “Great. Is there somewhere we can talk?”
“Damn, Sikes. What happened to Ramirez? This one’s a hell of a lot cuter.”
John smiled apologetically at Sam, then pointed to his old friend Danny Gardner.
“This is Detective Kennedy, Danny. She’s just my partner for the day. Ramirez is still around.”
“Sorry to hear that, man.” Danny stuck out his hand and shook Sam’s. “Nice to meet you. John says ya’ll want to dig up an old case of mine.” He shook his head as he walked away, and John and Sam followed. “Been reading about it in the paper. Damn glad it’s in Dallas and not Fort Worth.”
They followed him into an empty conference room where he handed them each a folder.
“I made copies of what we got. It’s not much. Our guy was last seen leaving the bar about one-thirty. He was alone. He didn’t talk to one particular guy, didn’t dance with one particular guy. There was no one inside that raised suspicions. He was a regular.”
Sam scanned the file, noting that they had talked to at least a dozen people from the bar, not including friends and relatives.
“He had no enemies that anyone knew of, no threats, nothing. It appeared to be random. Thus, we labeled it gay bashing. But we still got shit.”
“You still have the case open?” Sam asked.
“Yeah. But it’s not like we’re working it. There’re no leads.”
John flipped to the back of the file and the Medical Examiner’s report, struggling through the medical jargon, trying to find something similar to their case. His fingers followed the words, stopping when he read a serrated knife was used on the neck.
“You had anything similar since? Or before?” John asked.
“No, Sikes. You know, the queers hang out more in Dallas. I think Fort Worth is a little too redneck for them.”
John felt Sam stiffen beside him, and he reached under the table and grabbed her arm, squeezing gently.
“Danny, we appreciate you sharing the file. I don’t suppose your ME could shed any more light, do you?”
“She might. Rumor has it, this one was close to home for her, if you know what I mean. She badgered us ab
out this case for weeks afterward,” he said, grabbing a cup next to him and spitting tobacco juice into it. “But it wasn’t like it was the salt of the earth that was killed, you know?”
Sam stood, her disgust for this man growing with each passing second. “Thanks, Detective Gardner. If we find anything, we’ll be sure to let you know.”
“No problem, ma’am.”
John hurried after Sam, finally catching up to her just before she burst through the double doors.
“Christ, Sikes! He’s your friend?”
“Oh, calm down, Sam. Hell, he’s a cop. In Fort Worth. It’s not exactly the gay-friendly capital of the world, you know.”
“I don’t know why I’m complaining. They did a better job of investigating the murder than Adams and Donaldson would have.”
“Yeah. But, it’s also personal for you now, you know.”
Sam stopped. Yes, it was. “I’m sorry, John. It is personal. A month ago, I don’t know what my reaction would have been. I hope it would have been the same.”
“Can I tell you something, Sam? I’m sorry to say, I was much like Danny there. Queers, faggots. I didn’t understand. It wasn’t about relationships and love. It was just about sex. Hunter, for instance. She’s a damn attractive woman. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why she would rather be with another woman than a man. It made no sense. But the night we were in that bar with you guys, I saw women together and I saw men together and they were looking at each other… with affection and with love. It wasn’t just about deviant sex, you know? It opened my eyes.”
Sam reached out and squeezed his arm. “We’re all just people, John. We can’t control who we fall in love with.”
He smiled. “Yeah, I know. I also saw you two dancing and… well, kissing.”