He sighed and looked past her. “Rox and I had been partners for years. We worked great together because we liked the harder cases, something with a challenge.”
“I can relate to that.”
He swallowed hard. She slid her hand down his arm and locked her fingers with his. “Well, we asked for a particular case where the perp was a hard core drug dealer. Numerous arrests for assault, armed robbery, and attempted murder. But, like our guy Slater, he always got off on some technicality.”
Sunny flinched at the bitterness in his voice.
“We wanted to bust him so bad we could taste it. We lived and breathed that case for over six months. Rox took the big risk and worked right in there with those thugs. I stayed behind the scenes.”
“Why?” She asked.
He squeezed her fingers. “Our perp had a soft spot for tall brunettes, and Rox was just the gal to play the part.” Judson smiled as he looked out the window. “She was able to get inside the group fairly quick and Brock, the leader, trusted her.”
Sunny’s skin grew cold. “Are you talking about Brock Bishop?” He appeared on the airwaves more times than a toy commercial during the holidays. After each acquittal, the media interviewed him with his team of lawyers glued to his side on the court house steps. The fake-white sparkle of his smile, and handsome good looks made for riveting television. The public ate it up, but Sunny cringed. “Derek called him Teflon man.”
“He’s right, but this time we had so much taped evidence we would’ve been able to put him away no problem.”
It all came back to Sunny. She’d followed that case in the newspapers and on the news. She’d never actually seen the pictures of the active detectives involved, because their identities had been protected, but she had seen the obit for Roxanne. She’d been survived by her family of co-workers and a devoted fiancé, another detective from her precinct. Judson. Sunny’s insides quivered.
After so many failed attempts they had indeed convicted their felon this round. The murder of Roxanne DeWitt, a decorated and well loved detective, had put him behind bars for life. There had been no way for him to slither his way out of those charges.
“We just about had it all wrapped up. Rox and I fought about her doing one more stint wired. She hoped to get more information on another suspect we had in our sights so we could go after him too. We argued, but in the end she told me it’d happen with or without me.”
Sunny swallowed heavily. She and Roxanne had a few things in common.
“I’m not sure what happened, but the wire was discovered and a fight broke out. Brock shot Rox before I could get inside to help her.”
The raindrops pelted the windowpane. Lightning flashed across the sky followed by a boom of thunder. Sunny startled, jumped and pulled her hand from his grip, but he didn’t even move.
“I’m so sorry.”
“She died in my arms. I didn’t get there quick enough. I didn’t protect her.” His expression was grim as he rubbed the back of his neck.
“It’s not your fault. Roxanne knew the risks of her profession. We all do.” She stepped back to give him space. “People in our line of work get killed everyday. It has nothing to do with them being a man or a woman.”
“I’ve reevaluated so many things.” His voice softened. “Losing her is the main reason I decided to leave the force and take the job as sheriff on the reservation. No partner, nobody I’m responsible for.”
“It wasn’t your fault.” She reached out and touched his shoulder, but he brushed her away.
“I don’t want your pity, Sunny.”
She pushed him to the side and stood in front of him. “What makes you think I pity you?” Sunny thumped his shoulder. “The last thing I feel is pity. I’m trying to be compassionate. I know what you’re going through. It’s hard to lose someone you love.”
“You’re too much like her and watching you makes me realize—”
“You’re vulnerable too.” She finished for him. “Listen, nobody is responsible for me except me. Watch me prove to my family I can do this, and I bet it’ll help you understand why Roxanne did some of the things she did.”
They stared at each other. The doorbell rang, but neither moved. A loud knock echoed through the room seconds later.
“Pizza’s here.” Sunny sighed, grabbing her pocketbook from the table by the front door.
Sunny returned moments later to glance around an empty room. A cupboard in the kitchen banged closed and she strolled in that direction.
Judson had plates and napkins on the table. He was in the process of pouring Coca Cola into two glass tumblers filled with ice.
“Sit down.”
He took charge as always, but Sunny obeyed. First she put a slice of pizza on his plate then hers. “You know, you have to give me some credit here. Trust me, believe in me,” she said. He pulled out his chair and sat, never taking his eyes from her face as she continued, “Don’t treat me like my brother’s, Judson.”
“It’s hard not to think of Rox when I’m with you. Hearing everything your family says, and what I went through with her. I know all about equal rights, but it’s hard to see a woman taking risks in this type of job.”
Sunny tossed her half eaten piece of pizza on her plate. She wanted to cut him some slack because of what had happened to Roxanne, but his unbending attitude pissed her off. “Don’t even give me that bullshit excuse. You don’t know anything about being a woman and what we can do. Over the years I’ve learned to fight, shoot and handle difficult situations when I’m working. I’m not some delicate little flower that needs protection.”
“I know enough to see you’re in over your head.”
“You’re as bad as my family. They need to realize I can do this and
I
will.” She brushed her hand through her hair and took a deep breath. “This is my chance to help Mr. DeVito, solve a cold case, and prove myself to the overbearing men in my family. And now to you.” Sunny twisted her heart pendant and sighed. “If you’re going to help me, then you better understand right now that my determination will see me through.”
He leaned back in his chair watching her. The tick in his jaw let her know she’d angered him, but she had more to add.
“As for Rox, listen up. She wasn’t a ‘girl’ that needed your protection. She was a woman who knew her job and the risks that went along with it. She took them because she wanted to. When things went right, she felt on top of the world.” She snapped her fingers. “And, when things went wrong, she accepted the blame and learned from it. But, she moved on.”
“She didn’t get to move on from her last lesson.” His voice hardened.
Sunny tilted her head, her voice softened. “I’m sorry for that. But even though I didn’t know her, I can tell you she didn’t go into work blind. She loved her job and knew everyday there was a risk. But, she did it anyway. Because like you, me and my family, it’s in our blood.”
“The scary thing is she said the same things to me when we fought last.”
“Why doesn’t a man doing the same job not run into all of these issues a woman does?” She lifted her chin to study him.
“Look at it from a guy’s perspective. When he’s working with a woman in our profession, he’s going to be protective and it’s distracting. We’ve been geared since childhood, we’re the stronger sex and to take care of our women. It’s hard to accept a woman at your side as an equal on the job.”
“Well, accept it.” She folded her arms over her chest with more bravado than she felt. “Roxanne dealt with the same issues I’m dealing with, so I know how she felt. I’m telling you, she didn’t want your protection. She wanted your respect.”
Judson sat silent for several minutes while he considered her. He rocked his chair back and forth on the two rear legs. “You remind me of myself when I was a rookie. I think it has something to do with your anger issues.”
“I’m sure your age has put your temper into perspective.” Sunny raised her eyebrow.
“Let’s just say I’ve learned how to control it.” He grinned. “It’s something you should work on.”
“Next you’re going to tell me we look alike.”
Judson’s laughter came from the gut. “Hell no, you’re way better looking.” His heated gaze moved across her face.
Sunny’s ears pounded as the blood rushed through her veins. She stared at Judson, clamped her lips closed, and picked up her pizza. She had no quick comeback, so she bit into the soft crust to hide her smile. Her stomach somersaulted and her legs did a silent happy dance beneath the table.
Judson parked the unmarked police van across the street from the apartment building that housed Slater, his wife Vivian and his mother. Sunny turned sideways in the passenger’s seat and frowned.
“Not a Norman Rockwell vision for sure.” She eyed the desolate looking building that held six apartments. The rusty colored brick façade couldn’t hide the repairs the building needed. Plywood covered two sets of windows on the main floor, the cracked cement stoop leading to the entrance littered the sidewalk with broken bits of concrete and looked like a future lawsuit for a slip and fall victim. The metal double hung front doors were dented with the left side hanging by one hinge.
“How about I deliver the flowers?” Judson looked from her to the building and back again, his eyebrows drawn together so tight it appeared he had one long eyebrow instead of two.
Sunny chuckled. “Not a chance. There is no way a little old lady is going to confide to some big, bald man wearing an angry scowl. It’s a woman thing.” She grabbed the handle of the door as two kids on roller blades sped past pretending to shoot at each other with their handmade guns of sticks and rubber bands. “Anyway, you’ll be able to hear everything going on. The wire has been tested and we’re up and running. Put in your earpiece and relax.”
“Easy for you to say.” His tight lipped expression did little to steady her jangled nerves, but she gulped in a large breath and willed herself to stay calm. “And don’t take all day. Even though Slater and Vivian are at the bar around the corner, we have no idea how long they’ll be.”
“If past practice is anything to go by, we have a few hours.”
Judson frowned then tweaked her chin. “Just hurry it up.”
“Show time! I’ll be back in a few.” Sunny flipped the collar of her light jacket to shield her face from the cool breeze. She moved with long strides to the rear of the van, opened one side of the double door, and pulled out a clipboard to look official, followed by a crystal vase filled with an arrangement of wild flowers and a plush brown teddy bear tucked along the side with a silky red bow adorning its head.
The dim light in the entrance brought Sunny to a stop as she blinked several times to adjust her eyes to the surroundings. She held the arrangement with one hand and wiped at her nose with the sleeve of her jacket to brush away the putrid smell filling her lungs. The clipboard bumped her forehead and she winced.
As her gaze traveled around the rectangular hallway she noticed bags of garbage sitting outside the door to her left. She sucked in one shallow breath and walked with quick steps toward the staircase which would lead her to the second level, the floor that held only two apartments, each belonging to the Slater family.
Sunny moved along the banister avoiding the stair chair lift on her right to round the first tier of the staircase. Instead of the well worn stained oak steps, the remaining six stairs were fashioned from bare plywood. A single light bulb hung low from the ceiling and to avoid it she turned sideways to squeeze past. The walls of the stairwell that had once been a cream color were filled with graffiti. An uncontrollable urge to drop the flowers and run from the building released a shudder across her body, but she closed her eyes for a brief moment and willed her legs to take the next step.
“It smells in here, it’s creepy, and if I could trade places with you now I would.” It comforted her that Judson heard everything she said due to the microphone tucked beneath her shirt, but it didn’t stop her spine from tightening as she stepped onto the landing.
Sunny glanced around the small hallway looking for apartment six. Since there were only two doors she found it quick enough, noticing that someone had turned the six so it appeared to be the number nine.
Sunny’s heart thumped against her ribs as she stepped toward the painted blue wood door with the Christmas wreath in the center. She smiled and wondered if Slater’s mom was ahead of schedule for her holiday decorating or if she’d fallen behind and hadn’t bothered to remove it from last year. Her knock echoed in the hallway and before she could take a breath the sweet voice of an elderly woman sounded through the door.
“I’m coming, hold on.”
The door opened to reveal a cute silver haired lady resting her weight on a walker decorated with a flowery basket, which held a book of crosswords and a newspaper. Judging from the old lady’s kind chocolate brown eyes and bright smile, Sunny speculated Slater must have been adopted.
“Maggie Slater?” Sunny returned the older woman’s smile, her apprehension eased.
“Yes, yes I am. Can I help you honey?” Slater’s mom moved her walker closer and peered past Sunny to look down the hallway.
“I have a delivery for you.”
“For me?” Maggie’s eyes widened when she noticed the flowers. “Are you sure? It’s not my birthday.” She raised an unsteady hand from her vice-like grip on the walker and patted the back of her short permed hair as if she were prepping for her cameo on a Publisher’s Clearing House commercial.
“Well, if you’re Maggie Slater, then these are for you.” Sunny held out the arrangement. “I’d be more than happy to carry them inside, just tell me where you’d like them.”
“Who they from, honey?” The older woman moved aside and Sunny stepped past her into the sitting room.
A typical grandma type room greeted her. Well lit with five lamps burning brightly, the sofa, matching chair and loveseat were a soft floral print, and the faded rug in the center of the room was adorned with pink and red roses surrounded by tiny green leaves. Pictures of family and friends from past to present filled the walls.
Sunny relaxed, turning toward Maggie. “There wasn’t a signed card, just the arrangement with your address and a request to deliver today.”