Page 100 of Chasing Justice
Maya stepped over Juniper, who was lying on the rug in the sun near her grandfather. He liked to sit in the living room, where he had large picture windows that provided breathtaking views of the mountains and the meadow behind the house. Velvet and Daisy were grazing in the pasture. Pops watched out the window, sipping the coffee Maya had brought him.
“You need anything else right now?” she asked.
Juniper opened one eye and then let out a large sigh and went back to snoozing. Pops had been home for about ten days, and in that time, Juniper had become attached to him. Maya had enjoyed the time with Pops too. In a couple days she and Juniper would be back at her place and she would start working on building a yard and run, but she vowed to visit Pops as often as possible.
“No, I’m good.”
“Okay.” Maya paused and then said, “Pops?”
“Yes?”
“There’s something I’ve been thinking about. That I’d like to do with you.”
“What’s that?”
“I’d like to go see Nana’s grave. I know it doesn’t take the place of going to her funeral, but I’d like that. Maybe we can get flowers...for Doug and my mother’s grave too.”
Her grandfather set his coffee down, and she tried to gauge what his reaction was going to be. He took a few moments before speaking. “I’d like that. You know, I’m starting to feel better. And as much as I’ve enjoyed the company of you and Juniper, I would like to get out of the house. Go do something. Why don’t we go this afternoon?”
Maya hesitated and then said, “That sounds perfect.”
A little while later, she went outside and pulled her car up to the porch, parking close so her grandfather wouldn’t have to move too far. The doctor thought he would have to do lots of physical therapy and walk with a cane for a while. The gunshot to his outer thigh was healing well, but still needed time. Pops had also broken his fibula, but that was quickly healing.
She thought she’d load Juniper first, and as she opened the front door a fur missile came shooting out of the house. Maya whistled and Juniper ran around the car several times, but then hopped in. Another blanket had been shredded. Maya would have to get a stash of blankets.
The door creaked open and she heard what had become the familiar sound of her grandfather’s cane and footsteps on the porch. She hurried up the stairs to assist him, but he waved her off. “I won’t get better if you keep helping. The occupational therapist taught me how to do stairs, so I’ll do them.”
“Okay,” Maya said. She stayed back far enough to give him independence, but close enough she could support him if needed. Pops limped down the stairs, taking each one carefully, but he did them on his own and climbed into her vehicle.
“You’re getting stronger every day, Pops,” she said. She closed the door and hopped in on the driver’s side.
“Flowers?” he verified.
“Yes.” Maya put the car in Drive and headed for the grocery store.
“Josh call lately?” Pops asked. “Heard you read his files. You know he’s made mistakes, but he’s a good guy.”
Maya tried not to flush at the mention of Josh. She guessed Pops was trying to figure out their relationship. Problem was, she wasn’t certain about their relationship either, so she dealt with it by avoiding questions.
Maya and Josh had talked almost every day, and she knew he was a special person. She had joined him at one AA meeting and had managed not to go to the bar or the liquor store since the standoff at the compound. But she didn’t know if she was ready for something more. Right now, she needed a good friend and someone to talk to. Josh seemed to need the same, and Maya found they could talk for hours.
“I haven’t talked to Josh today,” she said.
“Any news on the investigation?”
“You know where the investigation stands.”
“Remind me.”
She tried not to roll her eyes. “The DEA has Carson locked up. The Russian, Svetlana, was killed in the explosion. Dental records proved it was her. Sam’s remains were recovered.” Maya hesitated as her chest constricted with the memory of shooting Sam. After a moment, she continued.
“Seemed like Bobbi was able to get quite a bit of evidence to them before Carson killed her. The crime scene techs found enough evidence to put Carson away for life for Bobbi’s murder, including some bloody clothes he thought he burned. Luckily, he didn’t do the best job though of destroying the evidence.
“Jenna, once she recovers, will spend some time in jail on drug charges, but it seems she has cut a plea deal to testify against her father. She will still have to stand trial, though, for Doug’s death...” Maya’s voice caught, and then she continued. “No one seems to know for certain who killed Cody. You were there, though. Any ideas?”
Wayne shook his head no.“The Rays were all fighting for the gun and it went off in the scuffle, so I don’t know who actually pulled the trigger and killed Cody.”
“That’s all I know, but I have a question for you,” Maya said.
