by Martha Carr
"These guys are like CIA good. What was all of that anyway? That many coyotes in one place. Did the bad guys send them? Are the animals taking sides?"
"Slow down with the questions. That was Mother Nature doing her thing." Maggie gripped the wheel tighter and kept driving right past her house, glancing over in time to see Dexter rolling on his back in the grass. "Don't freak out..."
"Worst way to start a sentence."
"I almost got shot in the head in a robbery but Bernie pulled me out."
Diana's mouth dropped open but she didn't say anything, staring at Maggie's face.
"I was going to tell you but I pictured this happening over alcohol and after you had a few." She pulled out onto the street and turned back toward Pressler. "Drop you at home?"
"Not funny, Piglet. Tell me the rest." It was one of the few times Maggie could remember that Diana sounded angry when talking to her, instead of at worst, annoyed.
Maggie swallowed hard and drove back down the street, waving to confused neighbors as she pulled up the El Camino up in front of Diana's house. "Look, it all happened so fast and I'm okay and there was so much happening..." She stopped and smacked her lips, ducking her chin. "I'm making it worse, aren't I? Okay, I was a dick and I'm sorry. It all got away from me. Geez, another lame excuse. I don't really have a good one."
"Skip that part. Get to the part about Mother Nature." Diana turned to glare at her sister before going back to looking out the window.
"Apparently, Mother Nature doesn't like it when someone hangs around past their expiration date and she's trying to rectify the situation." Maggie threw up her hands as Diana whipped around, tears in her eyes. "But... but good news, I'm the Elemental so it's not as easy as that. Hopefully."
"You're not making this better. You almost died at work"
"I'm a detective. That potential comes with the territory."
"Not helping. Don't act like you don't get it. You were supposed to die and you didn't tell me that part either." She turned away and whispered just loud enough for Maggie to hear. "Don't leave me alone, Piglet."
It felt like someone had punched Maggie in the gut, knocking the wind out of her. "I suck... It kind of never happened thanks to Bernie. It was more of a very weird close call." She looked out at the trees, their branches rustling in the wind. "But being the Elemental may not be enough if I can't get that damn compass back. I'm only as good as my ability to serve the ship."
"Does the guy who has it realize that part? I mean, if something happens to you then he loses his chance too."
"Until there's a new Elemental... Okay, okay, I get it. I don't think he's in his right mind anymore."
"Then we need to find the compass. Where do we start?"
Maggie gave a small shrug. "I'd try and talk you out of this, but you have that look... Meet me at the Mean Eyed Cat after work tonight. Bernie will be there. We'll figure it out."
"Together. Promise me."
"I promise, we'll do it together. Parker sisters are a team."
"I mean it, Maggie. No more lone Wonder Woman." Diana opened the car door to get out and hesitated, waiting for her sister's agreement.
"This will have to be a gradual process. Hey, Mom has told you not to wave that finger around in public. Fine, I'll try."
Chapter Fifteen
“Hey Fozzie, I'm feeling lucky after the last game. Thank you for the Benjamins. There's hockey tonight, right? Give me a hundred on the Blackhawks." Taylor thumped his desk with his thumb. He looked up at Maggie who was slurping hot coffee. "What? It's found money at this point," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "Besides, I'm feeling particularly favored today." He lowered his chin and waggled his eyebrows at Maggie.
Fozzie waved over his head and pulled open a drawer, getting out a notebook to make a notation.
"I get it, Taylor. It's been a hairy day," said Maggie, walking back from the break room.
"Good one. We had to hang in there by tooth and claw."
"I wasn't trying to start something." Maggie blew on the coffee and sat down in her seat. She looked at her screen, refreshing it for any signs of Simon Wesley or his car.
"Nothing? You know, he gave notice by email. Slippery little bastard." Taylor crossed his arms over his chest, scowling as he leaned back in his chair. "I still don't believe he had nothing to do with that robbery," he said, doing air quotes.
"Did you guys catch a bad one today?" O'Malley looked over his reading glasses at the computer screen, typing away, not bothering to look up at Maggie or Taylor. "I swear these forms get longer while I'm sleeping."
"You mean just an hour ago?" Taylor chuckled, feeling around in his desk drawer for a loose Starburst. "Ah, got one," he said, pulling out a slightly smushed yellow piece with a little grey and blue fuzz attached to the wrapper. "Still good." He held it up in the air, pulling off the fuzz. "Nothing penetrated the wrapper."
Maggie stared at him over her coffee cup. "Next time I'm at Costco I'm getting you a giant bag of those. You earned it."
"Nah, that'll just take the fun out of the hunt." He leaned back and looked at O'Malley, still typing away using just two fingers. "Let's just say the bad guys have actually thought up a few new tricks."
Moss walked past, tossing a file on Taylor's desk. "Then you'll be on guard for this one. Robbery in progress at a medical supply warehouse. Better get going. Dispatch said they might even still be there. Patrol is on its way but if you hurry, you might beat them there." He looked over at Maggie. "I see you changed your pants. Good call," he said, smiling. "Not exactly the rainy season in Austin."
"Good one, O'Malley. It was laundry day, what can I say?" Maggie swallowed as much of the coffee as she could, feeling the hot liquid go down her throat.
"One of these days that is not going to end well," said Taylor, scooping up the file and his jacket as he hustled for the door.
"Yeah, well today's not that day. I've been doing that for years," she said rubbing her throat as she pulled her leather jacket off the back of her chair. "It's nice and leathery all the way down by now."
They got to the dark blue El Camino and Maggie slid in, starting the engine before Taylor had completely closed his door. She made a sweeping arc out of the parking lot hitting the lights and siren, throwing Taylor back against the seat.
"Let this be a nice, normal robbery with a few felons taking what doesn't belong to them." Taylor finally got his seatbelt clicked in place and drummed his fingers anxiously on the arm rest. "I could even handle a small amount of regular mayhem."
"You were built for this job," said Maggie, as she hit the gas and sped around a red Prius, taking to the shoulder of the road, headed for Lamar. "You've been awfully quiet about what happened in the alley."
"Still processing. I have a thousand questions racing through my head, but they can wait. I figure all you'll tell me is that it's magic, which answers nothing and opens up a lot more questions. I'd prefer to let it be for a few hours, if possible." He was still chewing the Starburst.
"Fair enough," said Maggie, as she pressed down on the gas.
They got to the long, low nondescript building nestled in among Austin's idea of an office park, right next to an Austin Java. The place looked quiet with no sign of a patrol car and the coffee shop next door was almost empty. The lunch crowd had long since gone back to work in nearby matching buildings.
Taylor pressed the button on the radio in the car, looking around at the different exits that were visible from their side. "Dispatch, we're here on the scene. No sign of any trouble, yet. We're headed inside."
They got out and headed for the main door, Maggie in the lead, her gun drawn. She got to the door and signaled to Taylor, pointing at the door. It was barely ajar. She looked back at Taylor and waited for his nod before she gently pulled the door open and went in, his hand on her shoulder. The large open space was packed with supplies to the ceiling, making it more of a warren of walkers, shower seats and other basic medical supplies. None of the homemade aisles
were even or in a straight line but instead zigzagged back and forth in their own unique pattern.
Maggie worked her way through the opening of the maze, toward the other side of the room when she heard something scraping along the floor. She stopped and pointed to the right and waited for Taylor to head off in a different direction before she continued down a path that cut through the left-hand side.
"Hey!" She heard Taylor shout at someone and watched as a tower of boxed toilet booster seats and nebulizer tubing swayed back and forth. She ducked around a tall tower of cpap machines, working her way toward the noise as a figured darted nearby, a streak of jeans and a flannel shirt running between the towers of supplies.
"Taylor, you okay?"
A muffled, "get back here," came back to her, letting her know he was mad, but alright and she turned, heading toward the fleeing figure.
She worked her way to the middle of the building, ducking back and forth, listening for the sound of sneakers squeaking suddenly on the linoleum and found herself at the back door just as a teenage boy was about to duck outside.
"Stop, Austin Police!" Maggie leapt at the boy, her toe catching on the edge of a box and she fell short, briefly grabbing onto his wrist. He turned to look at her, fear in his eyes yanking back his wrist. Just before he disappeared out the door she saw the oddly arranged stars on the inside of his wrist and she felt a chill go down her spine. What could Simon and his followers want with leak proof underwear? The same strange feeling came over her again. Where have I seen those before? There was no time to answer that question.
She pulled open the door and was about to give chase down the wide back road behind the warehouses when she heard a shot ring out from deep inside the building. The teenager stopped where he was halfway down the alley and looked back at her, shocked before turning to run again. Two patrol cars came speeding down the road behind her in the direction of the teenager and she pressed herself back against the wall, pointing at them as she flashed her badge. "Go, go after them!"
Maggie ran back inside the building, pushing at the towers as she yelled out for her partner. "Taylor, are you alright? Call out! Taylor!'
She saw two more teenagers run down a nearby aisle and she turned just in time to see Taylor slump down by a tower of boxes, gently rocking them. She looked back in time to catch the glint of the overhead fluorescent lights off the .45 in the teenage girl's hands.
Taylor tried to push himself up, making the boxes above him sway even further. "Stop moving!" yelled Maggie. "This entire place is not safe," she said, sliding on her knees to his side.
Her partner rolled onto his side with a small moan, pushing himself up into a seated position. "I'm fine, I'm fine! Go after those punks. Did you see the mark? They had those damn stars too. Damn, Parker, what the hell is going on?"
Maggie lifted the side of his jacket and saw the small blood stain that was slowly growing larger. "You're not fine. Looks like you were winged. I can't see any hole."
He pulled away from her, yanking the coat out of her grasp. "That's because there isn't one," he spat. "Go after them!"
"Patrol has shown up and is on it, and you're injured. Come on, I'll help you up." She put his arm around her shoulders and helped him stand.
"It's really beginning to chap my ass that these peabrain goons keep getting the jump on us."
"Something's off," said Maggie, helping him to walk as she navigated the maze back to the front of the warehouse, turning by the toilet booster seats. "These were teenagers and they didn't seem to have the same dogged determination of Simon's usual followers."
"Just wanted a nice, normal little robbery. Nothing too fancy. Maybe stole a bunch of gauze and a few toilet seats to sell on ebay. Not too much to ask."
"You're a man of simple dreams, Taylor." Maggie strained against the large man and reached out to pull the door open further, helping him outside. "You sure that bullet didn't pass through?"
"Not as sure as I was a minute ago," he said, leaning on Maggie. She helped him into the car, cursing under her breath and gently shut the door, resisting the urge to kick it. "It's time we win one of these fights," she muttered and ran around to the other side, jumping into the car. She turned the key, gunning the engine and squealed out of the parking space, turning on the flashing lights even as she grabbed the radio. "Dispatch, my partner's been hit. We're on our way to St. David's Emergency. Please let them know."
Maggie pulled up to the ER door and was met by doctors running to the car and pulling open the passenger side door, quickly pulling Taylor onto a stretcher and running him through the open doors and down a hallway. She tried to follow but was met by an orderly who told her she would have to stay in the waiting area, and someone would be out as soon as they had news.
She went back to move the El Camino and saw the small pool of blood in the passenger side seat. "You're a damn liar, Taylor," she whispered, "but you're right. We need to start winning a few of these."
Chapter Sixteen
Maggie waited around till she could get in to see her partner, pacing back and forth in the small room just inside the wide doors. O'Malley and Moss joined her in the waiting room and made calls back to the others at the station. A bullet had passed clean through him, nicking his liver and he had lost a lot of blood, but was going to be fine.
Claire showed up, a determined look on her face, hugging Maggie as she went through the room and banging on the locked doors to the emergency department till a young med student showed up to try and pacify her. He was outmatched from the start.
"You have my husband, Detective Peter Taylor back there," she said loudly, neatly sidestepping the young man and marching forward, calling out her husband's name.
"Wait, you can't..." The student trailed after her as the doors closed and she could be heard yelling, "Peter? Peter! Call out!"
Maggie gave a tired, crooked smile and finally sat down in one of the hard, orange plastic chairs. It was only minutes later when the door opened again from the back and the med student stood there, calling out, "Maggie Parker? Detective Maggie Parker?" like it was a question in need of an answer. Maggie stood up and followed him into the back as he babbled about the forceful woman who had sent him out there to find her.
"She just kept saying, you had a right to see him and to go get you. I figured this would be easier than ignoring her. She's already organized everyone back here."
Maggie came around the printed cotton curtain and saw her large, strong partner sitting up in a bed, his thick grey hair standing up in different points. His face seemed to be sagging in on itself and he was quietly snoring, tubes poking out of the side of his gown.
"He goes in and out," said Claire. "But I think he looks pretty good, everything considered, don't you?" She gave Maggie a smile like she was looking for confirmation.
"Sure, yeah, sure..." said Maggie, nodding.
"Right," said Claire, squeezing her arm. "Here, you can sit next to me."
Maggie took the seat next to her and settled in, pulling out her phone to let her sister know where she was and she was alright. No need to make that mistake again in the same day.
The two women sat there, side by side, quietly waiting for the brief moments Peter Taylor opened his eyes. "Did they get away?" he asked for the third time.
"Not for long," said his wife.
Dinner showed up, consisting of sugar free vanilla pudding and some warm grits. Taylor took one look and snorted, closing his eyes and falling back to sleep. Detectives Moss and O'Malley finally made their way back and crowded into the small space, standing around, waiting for a chance to try out a joke or offer odds on a game. O'Malley pulled out a bag of Skittles and put them on Taylor's tray next to the pudding. "It's all they had in the vending machine," he said, not taking his eyes off his old friend.
Claire took a look at Maggie, leaning against the side of the chair and gently nudged her. "How about you go on home and get something to eat and let one of these old farts have that chair? Go on, I'
ll call you if anything changes but he's fine. He's just going to sleep most of the time. Go home," she said, in the same steely voice that had helped them raise three boys into young adults. There was no messing with her.
Maggie checked her watch and saw that it was after eight and she got up, stretching her back. "Here you go, Moss. The chair's all yours." She leaned in as she passed O'Malley and whispered, "Call me if there's the slightest change, or else..." squeezing his arm.
"Wouldn't have it any other way," said O'Malley.
Maggie made her way out of the hospital and found her car had been moved to a nearby spot. She opened the car door and was glad to see that the blood was mostly cleaned up, with a towel covering the seat. She got in and texted Diana, Meet you at the Mean Eyed Cat. I'm on my way and I'm starting without you.
She slid her phone into her pocket and considered pulling out the puzzle box to send Bernie a message but thought better of it. There had been enough mayhem for one day. He would have to figure it out for himself. At the last minute she had another idea and turned the car, heading in the direction of the main library, stopping at a Whataburger drive-through on the way. She pulled into the parking lot and drove back by the dumpster, turning off her headlights and getting out with the food.
"Slim? Slim, are you home?" She heard a rustling from behind the dumpster and respectfully waited off to the side till Slim appeared dressed in striped pants and a layering of sweaters with an oversized black and gold sweater on the top. He looked like she had woken him up but it was a little hard to be sure.
"You looking for Bernie? He's not here. He was here earlier, but he's already left." He lifted the first two layers of sweaters and scratched his belly over a Def Leppard t-shirt. "Said he had a previous engagement. That for me?" Slim held out his hand for the white paper bag and Maggie handed it over. "Still warm, nice job," he said, saluting her with a french fry.