Gem began to scramble. Car keys…car keys…on the kitchen counter. She ran back down the stairs, grabbed her camera bag from the entry closet, slipped on her tennis shoes, and headed out to her car. There was only one way in and out of the townhouse community and knowing Chad was headed to an important meeting of some sort—one where discretion was of the utmost importance—Gem figured she’d better follow him and see exactly where he was going and, if possible, find out what he was involved in.
She got behind the wheel of her navy blue Chevy Malibu and squealed out of her garage. She beat the light, left their gated complex, and parked across the street. Chad drove a sleek, silver Porsche 911, and she waited until she saw its gleam at the light. There was no mistaking him.
She plugged in her IPOD and dialed up some Bob Marley, hoping the tempo and upbeat lyrics would calm her. Her heart was pounding as she pulled into traffic three cars behind Chad.
A moving truck got in her way as they headed south on the 101. Gem switched lanes and lowered her speed. She doubted her neighbor had any idea what kind of car she drove, but thankfully the sun was beginning to set. Right now, darkness and anonymity were her friends.
Minutes later he exited off of Lankershim. She stayed with him, keeping four cars in between them. He turned east, and the further he went, the more desolate it got, and the more she had to back off so she wasn’t spotted.
Out of caution she slowed down and lost sight of him as the sun dipped below the horizon. Then she spotted his car far ahead. And saw where he was going. There were no other headlights, but she could see a line of cars heading up a long, steep drive, behind a heavy iron gate. The place appeared to be a ranch of some sort. She drove by slowly. A guard stood outside, and she passed by on the main road without so much as an inquisitive glance in his direction.
Gem pulled her car off to the side of the road about a half-mile past the gate and grabbed her camera equipment. The heavy weight tugged on her short frame. She hiked back toward the compound, ranch, whatever it was, staying low in a ditch between the road and an open field. She got closer. Tumbleweeds shielded her from the cars pulling into the ranch. Maybe some kind of party? From her vantage point, though, she couldn’t see any women. Nice cars, too. Mercedes, a Jaguar, Maserati, and a couple of BMWs.
From what she could see with her close-up lens, the men entering the palatial villa were white and varied in age from thirty to sixty years. It was difficult for Gem to tell exactly because she couldn’t get too close without being spotted, plus she had no idea what kind of security system the place had, but if she had to guess, she was pretty sure it was locked down tighter than Fort Knox. There were also a couple of uniformed guards walking around with Dobermans. She was sure those guard dogs would be straining at their leashes if they had even the slightest inkling she was there. She froze when she noticed one of the beady-eyed canines looking her way. It started to bark frantically. She sunk onto her belly next to a small boulder praying the dog’s nose wasn’t working well. Man it was uncomfortable—dirt and little pebbles digging into her body. She was pretty sure she felt something crawl up her shirt. She wiggled in an attempt to smash it.
One of the guards yelled an order at the barking dog who immediately stopped. Gem let out a sigh of relief but realized she was far from safe. She waited several minutes before lifting her head again. The sun was descending rapidly in the west and she had little time, if any, to gather more intel. She could make out one man at the front door, his shadowy figure vaguely familiar. Gem smiled at the realization that it was her neighbor, Chad. “Gotcha!” She snapped a photo. And then began taking picture after picture. She wasn’t entirely sure what she was photographing or how good the photos would come out, but she felt they were important and would eventually help tell the whole story.
Once all the men were in the house, she used her zoom lens to scan and shoot the cars parked inside the compound, trying to get as many license plates as she could. Soon darkness took over and blanketed the valley with only the lights of the compound and estate to illuminate the empty hills. Gem’s adrenaline rush had reduced to a slow simmer and she knew it was time to get the hell out of there.
She made it back to her car. She was anxious to get back to her place, so she could develop the photos. Something told her she was about to give her boss the story of a lifetime.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Tony pulled up in front of the hospital and parked his gray sedan in the loading zone. He got out and approached the thick glass doorway. The panes slid silently open for him.
He went inside the lobby and sat down in the waiting area. He picked up a National Geographic, thinking he should get a copy for Luke, who loved the glossy photos of wild animals and foreign cultures.
Everyone else seemed to be focused on a gameshow on TV. Pazzini glanced up and saw Simmons and Dr. Morales come out of the elevator. She looked worn out. Pretty, but tired.
They approached the lobby. “How’s it going, Doc?” Tony asked.
“Okay, considering.” She tucked her long, dark hair behind her ears.
“You ready for a great evening?”
“What have I got to lose?” she smiled.
“Hmm.”
Tony wasn’t quite sure what to make of her. Was that sarcasm he detected, or was she being nice? He’d never been great at reading women.
Simmons broke into a wide grin. “Ah, she’s a sweetheart once you get to know her.”
Kelly frowned at Simmons. “And here I thought you had my back,” she said. “I like
him
though.” She pointed at Simmons.
Pazzini
covered a hand over his heart. “Oh, so you don’t like me? Ouch! I’m only doing my job.”
Simmons glanced from Kelly to Pazzini and quickly stepped in, “Hey, so thanks for covering me, boss. I’d really hate to miss my little sister’s rehearsal dinner.”
“No problem.” Pazzini smiled. In the past couple of days Simmons had grown on him. And as far as the doctor went, he couldn’t deny there was something about Kelly that intrigued him. She was the first woman since his wife, Anna, who provoked any kind of response from him other than a purely sexual one. This lady had already made him angry, feel sorry for her…hell, whether or not it had been her intention, she’d even made him smile a time or two. After Anna died, Luke was the only one who got any kind of smile out of him.
Tony noticed Simmons wink at her and she smiled back. He coughed. “I think we’d better get going.”
They left the hospital and got into his car, driving silently for a few minutes before Tony blurted out, “So, you and Simmons hit it off, I see?”
She turned to face him, her almond-shaped eyes darker than before. “He did his job. I did mine. He stayed out of my way. It worked.”
“I’m trying to do my job, too.”
“Stop provoking me, then. And what are you looking at?”
“You.
Trying to figure you out.”
“Don’t you think you should be keeping an eye on the road?”
He focused back on the freeway, slamming on the brakes as the rush-hour traffic began to slow to a standstill.
“Look, this is likely only for a couple of nights. I think we should make the best of it, okay? See if we can’t get along. Is that a problem for you?” he asked.
For a moment she didn’t respond. Finally she muttered, “No. I guess not.”
“Good. I hope you’re hungry because I’m famished. Why don’t we go have a decent meal, try and make nice. I’m actually a good guy. I know you probably think I’m an ass…”
She shrugged. “I don’t know why I would think that.”
He shook a finger while keeping his eyes on the road. “I do detect the sarcasm in your voice.”
“You
are
the detective.”
“Funny. Cute really.”
“Not trying to be cute,” she replied.
If they were on a date…
if…
shit.
How could he even think like that? But how couldn’t he? He was after all a man. But a detective first. No. A man first. A man doing his job. His mind was going all stupid on him now, because he knew
if
they were on a date he would have told her she wasn’t even close to cute. She was goddamn hot. Well, maybe he wouldn’t have said those exact words, but he’d at least tell her she was beautiful. He tried very hard to erase that thought from his mind, knowing it went against every professional and ethical code grilled into him. He decided to try and get back to being completely irritated by her. She was irritating. She was damn irritating. Gorgeous but still irritating. Smart but irritating. Damn!
“Oh you’re not cute. Not at all,” he said keeping his tone as monotone as possible.
“But you just said…”
He gripped the steering wheel. “Okay. So let’s get something to eat and then we’ll go back to your place. You can go about your business and I’ll handle some paperwork I need to catch up on. You won’t even know I’m there.” They turned off Fairfax, and pulled into Canter’s Deli. “Is this okay?” he asked, thinking maybe he should have taken her somewhere nicer, an upscale pizza place maybe? She struck him as the white wine-type who enjoyed pizzas with artichokes and goat cheese, or some kind of fancy shit that didn’t belong on a pizza. Not a
real
pizza, anyway.
“Fine,” she replied.
Fine! Fine.
Good God. Well then, it would have to be
fine
. Yep. Irritating. He shook his head. Got out and waited for her. He wasn’t about to open the car door though.
No sooner were they in the door of the restaurant when the hostess—who’d been there probably as long as the deli itself—approached them. Her eyes lit up when she turned to the doctor. “Hello, Doc. Long time no see. How are you?” she asked, her Brooklyn accent thick and loud. “Is this your new man?” Her lips covered in coral-shaded lipstick puckered as she eyed Tony up and down in obvious approval.
He couldn’t help but be surprised and amused when he saw a blush rise in the doctor’s cheeks. He wanted to laugh but stopped himself.
“No. He’s, uh, he’s um…he’s just a friend.”
Friend.
He was working hard not to laugh.
“Oh a friend, huh?
Nice looking
friend
.” The waitress winked at him and turned to show them to a booth.
The doc was in front of him and he tapped her on the shoulder. She glanced back. “Friend? Nice. Good call.” He smiled widely.
“What was I supposed to say?” she said, trying to keep it down. “This is the cop shadowing me because some creep is out there sending me ominous messages and breaking into my house? Oh yeah, and he may have murdered a friend of mine. Sure.”
“Good point.” He smiled all the way to the booth.
“Enjoy, kids,” the hostess said as they slid into the pale pink seats. This was one of those old-school delis…pastel colors on the walls, Formica tables and counters, fantastic sandwiches.
Tony ordered a Reuben; the doc a turkey on sourdough and a beer on tap. She rubbed her eyes, which were red and tired looking but still sparkling with energy.
She broke the silence. “Did you find out any more about the note and the flowers? Do you have any more leads? And what about Jake? Is what happened with me related?”
He smiled sympathetically. “We are still investigating.”
Her shoulders slumped and she stared down at the table until the food arrived.
Tony watched as she guzzled down the beer and ordered another before taking a bite of her sandwich. “Might want to go easy there, Doc.”
She frowned. “It’s been a rough week.”
“Trust me, that won’t help.”
“Probably not, but it might for a little while.”
“Not long. I speak from experience.” He grew silent. The doc shifted uncomfortably in the booth. He weighed his options and decided he really didn’t want or need to elaborate. He was simply keeping the doctor safe, and finding her friend’s killer. He shut his emotions down. He finally looked back up and noticed her studying him.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yep.
Just tired. Long days.”
“I can relate to that,” she replied.
“I’m sure you can. I don’t know how you do it.”
“Do what?” she asked.
“Your job.
I mean you must see some really tough stuff.”
She laughed. “There’s the pot calling the kettle black! How about you? You’re a homicide detective.”
“Good point. But you have to deal with babies all day long. Sure, I have a lot of awful things that I see and deal with, but I couldn’t deal with sick or dying babies. How do you manage?”
She finished the second beer. “It’s not easy. Not at all. But I try not to let myself think about it much. I became a doctor to save lives and it’s what I do. There are far more babies who started out with me and grew up into healthy, happy kids than ones who die under my watch.”
“You have a difficult job and it’s got to be hard. I admire what you do. Believe me. I couldn’t do it.” He had the utmost respect for doctors.
She didn’t say anything at first. “You know what? I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. You actually seem like a nice guy and I know you’re trying to do your job here. You respect me, I respect you, and now I think it’s probably time to head out.”
He sighed. “Okay. Oh, um…do you mind if we stop off at a bookstore? I know there’s one on the way to your place. I have to pick up a book for my son.”
“Sure. How old is he?”
“He’s six.”
“That’s a fun age,” she said. “So much going on with their little brains. I love kids.”
“You want some of your own?”
“Sure, I think. Someday. Right now I’m so focused on my job I haven’t even made any time to meet anyone, much less think about starting a family.”
He nodded, not really knowing what to say. She was intelligent, attractive, a bit edgy, which he liked so it was hard for him to understand why she didn’t have someone in her life. “You know that you can have both?”
“What?” she asked.
“A career and a family.”
“Of course I know that, Detective. I just haven’t met the right guy yet.”