Page 4 of Gypsy's Lady
Doug frowned, not understanding. “See what?”
“You really don’t know, son?” The careful words gave away the depth of emotion the captain was suppressing,andDoug braced for whatever was coming, knowing it couldn’t be good. “Thornton’s dead. Norwood was a plant, and when he knew he was blown, he headed for the border. Thornton was with him. He didn’t make it back.”
Doug swallowedhard, memories of pictures Nick shared of his wife with a hugely swollen belly ricocheting around inside his head. “He’s dead?” The captain nodded,andDoug reached behind him to press a palm against the wall. “Jesus. Norwood? Norwood turned?” The captain nodded again. “Can I see the file?”
He studied Doug for a long time. Doug held his gaze steady, waiting. Finally, the nod came,andDoug turnedon his heel, striding out into the bullpen and then down the stairs to the front doors and onto the sidewalk. Aimless in his anger, he walked the streets, wrestling with how the knowledge of Nick’s death had hit him. Half of it was thedepthof betrayal in his rolling gut at what Norwood had done. Even without knowing the specifics yet, just the idea Norwood had killed a fellow officer was unreal.
Since he hadn’t thought about the two men for so long, the detailed memories that crawled through his brainwerestartling. While undercover, Doug had held the door on his past closed, keeping his entire focus on becoming the man the Malcontents believed him to be. It seemed once he opened the dooragain,it let in the memoriesin a flood.
The last day of life before joining the task force stuckout like a buoy on a smooth ocean. He remembered the perp he and Norwood had tracked down to an alley, basing their sweep on a tip from Norwood’s informant in the back hallway of a dank bar. How IA had come to the precinct and the intense conversation in the captain’s office. The look on Nick’s face when neither Doug nor Joel made a move to follow the fourth member of their little clique. Theway Norwood hadn’t even looked back when they called after him, just turned and passed out of view once he went through the doors.
Everything was crisp and clear in his mind, the smells of the bullpen present, even the sour vomit he’d been trying to clean off his shoes.IA and the captain let Norwood walk out. Why?If they had him under investigation, and IA had come to make a personal visit,wouldn’t they have stopped him?
I need to read that case file. Oncehehad the paperwork on Nick’s death in hand and learned the official version of what had happened, maybe he’d have somewhere to go. For now, Doug found himself with unaccustomed free time.
The last couple of years had been an intense ride of extremes. Between the adrenaline rush of illicit activity that dragged Doug deep intoan underworld inhabited by outlaws, and the constant stress of being undercover, his lungs ached as if they’d been starved of breath for months. When the triggers for each action were so far out of his reach, all he’d been able to do was go with the flow as Joel led the way. To be at loose ends felt strange.
At the end of the next block stood a bar, and just behind that was a motel. Oblivionand respite waiting for him.Might as well.
Time to put some mental distance between him and what he’d seen during his time undercover.
Good enough.
***
Doug rolled off the woman and grabbed a tissue to wrap the condom. He reached out and tapped the light switch on the lamp beside the bed, turning it on. His breathing was evening out when he asked, “You good, honey?”
A low laugh made himlook to the side,andhe watched as she pushed up to an elbow, resting her headon one hand. “I’m fine. You were good to me.”
“We were good to each other.” He corrected with a smile and sat up to lean against the padded headboard. “You want a shower before you go?” He winced. “Damn, I’m rude. Sorry.” He wasn’t, not really. Like every encounter before, sleeping with this woman meant a physicalrelease, nothing more.
“I’m good.” She repeated herself, holding the blanket to her breasts as she sat up, scanning the floor for her clothing. Five minutes later the door clicked behind her, and Doug was alone. Head tipped back against the headboard, he sighed heavily.
Muscleslooseand relaxed, he reached for the TV remote and thumbed buttons until he found a true crime documentary, staringat the screen until he couldn’t keep his eyes open any longer. When he slept, he dreamed of chasing the wind on two wheels, blood bubbling through his veins with the exhilaration of leaning into a corner as he followed Joel down unfamiliar roads. In this dream a woman sat behind him, her body tight against his, movements synchronized and familiar.
***
“You’re a good man, Tatum. Good officer.Chicago’s getting the best of this deal.” The captain shoved his hand out, angling for a shake and Doug met his palm, momentum lifting their clasped hands twice before releasing.
It’d been two months since he came back from undercover. Two months of only seeing Joel in passing, since his friend was still deep UC. Two months to study the file on Nick’s death and come up with the same thing therest of the officers who’d worked the case found. Nothing.
Norwood wasvapor,as if he’d stepped off the side of a bridge and vanished into the mists. Nick Thornton was still dead, his widow valiantly raising their son alone. Nothing Doug had done made a difference.
The exchange program had run its course, and it was time for him to head home.
Home.
He shook his head at the thought. Chicagowasn’t home, never really had been. His mother still lived in Iowa, but there was no sense of home there, either.Happens when you’re raised all over the place. They’d moved a lot after his parents split, apartments and rental houses blurring in his mind.I want somewhere to settle.
“Thank you, sir. I’ll miss this place.”No, I won’t.
“Liar.” The captain grinned. “Be safe, Tatum. You’re oneof the good ones.”
Doug leaned over and picked up a manila envelope from the desk he’d been using. In it were copies of the file on Thornton’s death. Something wasn’t right; he still believed his gut impression of the information. Forget at least a dozen detectives had come up dry, and ignore the fact he’d come up dry, too.
With anod,the captain turned,andDoug took a moment to scan the room.Time to see where I fit in. It wasn’t here, that was certain, as not a single hand rose to see him off.
