Chapter Twenty-Seven
It was hard not to head for a trendier neighborhood to shop in with the wad of cash burning a hole in her pocket and the car at her disposal, but practicality won out in the end. Cady stuck close to the apartment, doing most of the shopping on foot at a mom and pop store. She picked up no frills undergarments and a pack of socks that would fit them both. Cheap jeans and tops from the Salvation Army store, clothes that wouldn’t stand out in the meager neighborhood. Enough to last for a few days; possessions she didn’t have to worry about leaving behind.
She’d worn her hair wrapped up in a tight bun, donning sunglasses to keep from being recognized should the police circulate her picture as well. But no one seemed to give her a second glance as she hustled down the street. If anything, the shopping bags drew more attention, and Cady locked them in the trunk of the Jetta before heading to the drugstore, deciding to pick up a few first aid supplies, just in case.
The phone booth outside the drugstore caught her eye. It was near three p.m. now, and Cady knew Ian would be awake and worried sick about her after seeing Ethan’s picture on every news source. Surely she could risk a brief call to let him know she was alright. Even if they eventually traced it to the drugstore, that wouldn’t give them the location of the safe house, blocks away.
The phone went straight to voicemail though, and Cady’s heart sank. Leaving a brief message that she was safe, she promised to call him again soon and told him not to worry, she had it all under control. The drugstore was very well equipped, and she spent more there on everything she might possibly need to doctor him up than she had on clothes. As an impulse buy, she also picked up a San Francisco Giants ballcap for Ethan to wear, the better to hide his face in case he had to go out.
Purchases stowed away in plastic bags, Cady left the store only to be approached by a man in jeans and a Rolling Stones t-shirt. He was blonde and in good shape, a genial smile on his face as he blocked her path.
“Miss Garrett?”
Stunned at being recognized, it took her only seconds to recover. “No, you have the wrong person.” Dodging to the side, he stepped with her, tugging up the edge of his shirt to reveal a badge clipped to his belt.
“No, I don’t think I do. Detective Lucas, SFPD. I wonder if I could have a few minutes of your time.”
Shit. “Now’s not a good time,” she mumbled, looking down the street for any signs of back up. If she ran flat out she might get away, but he looked pretty fit. And where could she go? The car was several blocks away, and she couldn’t lead him back to the studio apartment.
“I’m afraid I really must insist.” He smiled engagingly. “Listen, we can do this back at the station if you want. Me, I’d rather go get a cup of coffee.” Lucas gestured to a diner sandwiched between a twenty-four hour dry cleaners and a Korean grocery store. “I’m even buying, what do you say?”
“Sure, I could go for a cup of coffee right now,” she agreed with a tight smile, figuring she’d pick her moment and run like hell.
“What’s in the bags?” he asked, sticking close to her side as they crossed the street.
“Just a few supplies.”
“Looks like you’re getting ready to mop up after a war.”
“Chance favors the well prepared.”
“That’s chance favors the prepared mind. Almost the same, but not quite,” Lucas grinned, holding the door open for her. He didn’t speak again until they were seated in front of the grimy window. “What are you preparing for, Miss Garrett?”
“Prepare for the worst, hope for the best,” she shrugged, not entirely sure why she kept speaking in stupid platitudes. The detective made her nervous, even though she’d done nothing wrong. “What is it you want to talk to me about?”
“Don’t tell me you haven’t seen your boyfriend’s pictures in all the papers.”
“I’ve been a little busy lately.”
“And yet, your first instinct was to try and blow me off today. That seems unusual for a cop’s daughter.”
“Did you know my father?”
“No, I didn’t. He was before my time.
At least he wasn’t trying to pull that card with her. “Okay, let’s cut through the bullshit. Yes, I am Cady Garrett, and yes, I have seen the news. You’ve got it all ass-wrong of course, and he didn’t do it, but here’s me cooperating. I’ll answer any question you want.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that,” he smiled, waving over the lone waitress who poured them each a cup of coffee. Cady added two creamers and two packets of sugar, surprised when he didn’t immediately start firing questions at her. She kept mum, stirring her coffee without actually taking a sip.
“Where is he?” Lucas asked finally.
“He’s hiding out.”
“Where?”
“In a safe place.”
“You’re not giving me anything to go on here.”
“I said I’d answer your questions, I didn’t say you’d like my answers. You don’t really expect me to lead you right to him, do you?”
“No, I guess not. You know he’s a dangerous man, right?”
“I do, but not in the way you’re thinking.”
“What if I told you there’s more to David than meets the eye?”
Cady let out a long breath, adding ice cubes from her water to the coffee. “I’d say… I’m fairly sure there’s nothing you can tell me that I don’t already know about him.”
“What about the fact that David isn’t his real name?”
She stared at him stonily.
“Oh, you knew that one already. What about these?” He pulled a series of prints from his back pocket, sliding them across the table to her. Snapshots of drivers license photos in California, Texas and Florida. “Did you know he’s also known as John Ford, Henry Jones and Thomas White?”
Barely glancing at the ID’s, Cady shrugged back at him. “So? There’s nothing wrong with changing your name. It doesn’t make him a criminal.”
“But this does.” He waved another piece of paper at her, unfolding the copied sheet of text. “He’s got arrests for three counts of assault over in Truckee, felony theft and aggravated assault in Sacramento, and a laundry list of charges in San Rafael. In Texas he’s been linked to a string of murders down in Laredo. He’s also wanted for questioning in the deaths of two men in Tallahassee. This is only a summary, the file I’ve got on him back at the office is an inch thick and those are just the crimes we know about.”
Cady stared at the words on the page, trying to justify them in her mind. It wasn’t him, obviously, it was the demons he chased after, but what could she say? “He’s not a killer.”
“No? Then why is this girl dead?” He slid across another picture, this one in lurid color, the girl lying broken on a dirty mattress.
“It’s not him, you don’t understand,” she shoved the picture back at him, but he slid it right back in her face, not letting her escape the sight.
“I’ve seen video footage, Cady. If you come back with me you can see it for yourself. We have a mountain of evidence piling up. DNA evidence linking him to multiple deaths. This guy is one bad dude, definitely not someone to place your trust in.”
“I’d like to go now.” She rose from the table and he clapped his hand around her wrist.
“I can’t let you go back to him, it’d be like handing you a loaded gun.”
Cady refused to be cowed, meeting his gaze squarely. “You can’t charge me with anything, I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“I can hold you for twenty-four hours though,” he grinned. “Do you think your boyfriend might punch through the walls down at the precinct to come and get you out? That might be interesting to watch.”
“He didn’t do that, I told Ian…”
“Oh, right. You told your brother that your boss, Dylan Walsh, was the one to do that. Funny, no one can find Mr. Walsh to corroborate that, but I do have some accou
nts of a man matching David’s description chasing a man who looks an awful lot like your boss down the street late last night.”
“That’s because he’s crazy. He took off after David showed up to save me. Look, I don’t know anything about the girl that was killed last night or why your witness put David at the scene. He was with me the entire time, that’s all I have to say.”
“And you’re willing to testify to that.”
“Of course.”
“Of course you are.” He let go of her wrist. “I’m trying to help you, Cady, but you’re not making it very easy.”
“I don’t need your help, Detective. The safest place for me right now is by his side. You’re looking in the wrong direction. Listen, I know you think I’m just a naïve girl who’s letting this guy feed me a bunch of lines, but I know what I’m talking about. Trust me, he’s one of the good guys.”
“I hope for your sake I’m wrong, I really do.”
The detective made no move to pursue her, but Cady didn’t trust that she wasn’t being followed. That meant she couldn’t go back to the car, and she couldn’t go back to the safe house. It wouldn’t do her any good to buy a pre-paid phone because she had no idea what Ethan’s new number was. At least she had plenty of walking around money, and she was familiar with the bus lines.
In times of trouble, as she often did, she headed for a strip of green, finding solace in the feel of grass under her feet. Things always seemed so much more peaceful at the park – the sounds of the city fading, replaced by squeals of laughter and the smell of cut grass. Finding a spot where she could see the playground, Cady squatted under a tree, waiting for inspiration to strike.
“Oh man, things are fucked up,” she groaned, falling back in the shade as she watched the kids play nearby. She only got up from her spot twice. Once to buy a hot dog and a diet soda from a vendor and once to go to the bathroom, each time returning to the shade. There was no sign of anyone watching her, but she knew a good cop wouldn’t be seen unless he wanted to be.
A plan started to form in the back of her mind, a loose one, but it was best to play things by ear, she thought. She’d have to wait for dark, which was still a few hours away, but it was her best bet.
She should have been back a long time ago and Ethan had to be worried about her by now. Ian too; she imagined him stewing at home, Kelli trying to distract him with something to eat.
Everybody worried about poor Cady.
“You know what?” she said to a squirrel who ventured out of the tree, his tail twitching manically. “I’m a little worried too.”