Five

Matt glanced at the crowd around them, anxious to know what Sarah had considered so important that she again would come to church to seek him out.

Regardless of her reason, he was glad she had come to church. He’d enjoyed sitting with her during the service.

He held back a sigh. It was obvious what his friends were thinking when she joined them—he’d seen their little smirks, and he was sure Sarah had too.

As much as he might have liked them to be right, they were wrong. Even though he liked Sarah, he had to keep a professional distance, which was difficult when she came to see him during off-duty hours. If she really had seen something worth investigating, then getting personally involved with a potential witness could jeopardize the case.

Yet, at the same time, he knew he was doing the right thing by encouraging her to come to church. True, she’d come because of him, for reasons that had nothing to do with seeking God, but he’d watched her during the service. She hadn’t known a single song, but she’d read the words and not ignored them. Matt figured that was a good start.

At times, she had become distracted during the pastor’s sermon. However, her eyes and ears had perked up when Pastor Colin became more focused and centered on his topic of the week, which was about great men of God who made tremendous mistakes. Moses. David. Peter. Pastor had compared them to modern times to show that even though the times had changed, people certainly hadn’t. Then and now, people made bad choices. God still loved every one of them.

The whole time, Matt had watched her out of the corner of his eye. She’d been frozen in her chair. He didn’t know why the topic intrigued her, but it did.

Sarah nudged his arm. “I think we’re next. Those people were just ahead of us.”

Matt rubbed his stomach and grinned. “That’s great. I’m starving.”

They were soon seated, menus in hand, with a couple of cups of good, hot, fresh coffee in front of them.

Sarah closed her menu and laid it on the table first. “Before I forget, I wanted to tell you I couldn’t help but notice your handwriting this morning. Even in what was probably scribbles in the margins and miscellaneous notes written in a rush, everything was so neat and tidy. I guess you write a lot, reports and stuff, don’t you?”

Matt closed his menu and laid it down on top of Sarah’s. “Not as much as the generation before me. Most of my reports are done on computer, although many are still handwritten.” He grinned and folded his hands on the table in front of him. “I can probably type better than you can.”

She grinned. “I just might surprise you. How many reports do you do in a day? I find this so interesting.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “It varies with what day of the week, and day shift or night shift. I’d say I average twelve to fifteen reports a night.”

She leaned closer. “I finally have something you can start a report on. I have a name!”

Just as Matt leaned forward, the waitress appeared. The second she had finished taking their orders and left, Sarah leaned toward Matt. “The guy who came in to see Donnie is named Blair.”

“Blair?” Matt’s stomach tightened, and the sensation of hunger disappeared. “Blair Kincaid?” The two things he thought most likely to be going on to involve a non-franchised open-all-night restaurant dealt with either drug distribution or money laundering. Both could very likely involve Blair Kincaid. Word at the station was that he was again out on the streets and on their list of people to watch for.

“Donnie didn’t say his last name.”

Matt picked up his coffee cup, trying to appear mellow. “Did you see him any better this time?”

“No. He came in on Monday or Tuesday, but I couldn’t let him see that I was looking at him. I didn’t want him to get suspicious.”

“That’s probably a good idea. If this man is who I think he might be, this is very bad news. Can’t you tell me anything about him, even if it’s something that seems insignificant to you? Other than the fact that he’s got brown hair. Any scars or odd features? Tattoos? Did he have a big nose? Eye color isn’t that important. Most witnesses don’t see the perp close enough to notice, but those other things can be very helpful in a description.”

Sarah shook her head. “The first time he came in this week, all I saw was his back. The other time, I was in the closet again. It’s hard to see from down on the floor, up through the vent, and across Donnie’s office. But I would recognize his voice if I heard him.”

“You’ve spoken to him but can’t describe him?” Matt sucked in a deep breath, then forced himself to breathe evenly. As a police officer, he commonly came across witnesses who couldn’t describe a person after not only seeing them, but also talking to them. He didn’t want to think that Sarah could be so oblivious to detail, especially when she was supposed to be paying attention.

“But all I did was talk to him. I didn’t see him. I spoke with him on the phone. Donnie must not have had his cell on, because once he called on the main line and asked for Donnie. It was the same voice I heard from the closet. Only it was clearer on the phone.”

“Well, it’s a start. Keep your eyes and ears open. If you can get a last name, or a description, or see what’s in those cases that are coming in, then we can take this further and start a report. Just remember to watch from a distance. If this Blair is who I think he is, he’s nothing but trouble waiting for a place to happen.” Matt prayed quickly that trouble wasn’t already happening, but he had a feeling his prayer came too late.

Sarah nodded just as the waitress delivered their meals. Because Matt knew Sarah would not be accustomed to thanking God before she ate, he closed his eyes briefly for a short, silent prayer by himself. Once he tasted his first bite, his appetite renewed.

Sarah bit into her burger then started talking through the food in her mouth. “I feel so much better having talked to you. At least I know I’m not going crazy. Or that I’m not imagining the bad vibes.”

“I don’t believe in bad vibes, but I do believe in being attuned to what’s going on around you, and being able to tell if it’s something bad.”

“I don’t know what it’s like at Donnie’s during the daytime, or if that Blair guy comes in during the day. I only work at night. Do you think I should ask any of the day people if they’ve seen him?”

Matt dabbed at his mouth with his napkin to hide his smile. He would like to see her asking people to watch out for someone she couldn’t describe. “I don’t think that’s necessary at this point. Why do you only work nights?”

“I work nights to support myself while I take classes half-time during the day. I’m studying to be a teacher. I’m over halfway through my courses. Remember before, when I mentioned my friend Gwen? She’s a teacher, and she loves it. That’s why I decided to be a teacher too. Of course it would go faster if I could go to classes full-time, but I can’t afford that.”

“Still, going to university along with working full-time must completely fill up your days. When do you sleep?”

“It’s not as bad a schedule as everyone thinks. My shift at Donnie’s is from midnight to 8:00 a.m. I’m there for the dead zone of the middle of the night, and I end after the morning rush, which starts at 5:30 as the commuters start to make their way into Vancouver. I have barely enough time to be at the university by 8:30. I’m finished with classes at noon, and I go straight home to study and do my homework and anything else I have to do. I generally sleep from about two or three in the afternoon until ten or eleven at night, when I get up and start all over again. I tend to catch up on my sleep on the weekends.”

“I know from personal experience how tough that must be.”

Sarah shrugged her shoulders. “I guess I don’t have much of a life, but if this is the way I have to do it to get my university education, then that’s the way it’s got to be. The pay isn’t the best, but it covers my bills while I’m going to school, and the hours suit me.” She grinned. “Besides, I get sandwiches at Donnie’s for half price when I’m working. Then I don’t have to make myself a lunch every day. At least not Monday to Friday. Working nights isn’t all bad, once you get used to it and adjust your lifestyle accordingly.”

Matt nodded. Police officers everywhere worked the same type of swing shift. Typically, it was two twelve-hour days, two twelve-hour nights, four days off, and the rotation started all over again. The hours came with the job, and there was nothing he could do about it. He knew how difficult it was to try and sleep properly when he was the only one in his apartment building sleeping during the daytime. He didn’t want to imagine what it would be like working nights permanently.

They continued to chat about anything not related to Donnie’s Donuts until Sarah noticed the restaurant had all but emptied of people.

She leaned forward in the chair and lowered her voice, as if what she was saying was a big secret. “Did you notice the time? There’s hardly anyone here anymore. Do you know how long we’ve been here?”

Matt chuckled. “They know me. Like at Donnie’s, they give me free coffee refills and encourage me to stay, in or out of uniform. Come on, let’s go.”

As they walked together to the car, Matt had to kick himself for feeling chauvinistic. He didn’t want to go their separate ways from the public parking lot. He would much rather have driven her home in his car and said goodbye at her front door. Today he couldn’t, but one day, perhaps.

He pulled his wallet and a pen out of his back pocket. “Here’s my card. It’s got the station’s number on it, but I’ll give you my home phone number so you can call me any time you want.” He paused while he wrote the number down. “My number is unlisted, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t give it out, not even to anyone at Donnie’s if anyone else sees something.”

“No, I’d never give out someone’s number unless they first said it was okay,” she said as she accepted the card from him.

Matt opened his mouth, nearly asking for her number in exchange, now that he’d given her his, but he stopped himself. For the kind of relationship that just flitted through his mind, Sarah was off-limits.

He’d turned thirty a few months ago, and he’d already been thinking of marriage for a few years. Knowing that at his age, marriage was a possibility in a relationship, he wasn’t going to start out wrong by dating a non-Christian. The woman would have to be a true believer, already having made her commitment to the Lord, before he could entertain the thought. After that, Matt could happily settle for second place.

Matt loved to minister to unbelievers and new believers, but his disastrous relationship with Nanci, his ex-girlfriend, had taught him that dating was not the time to attempt to bring someone into God’s Kingdom. Only after their relationship had become serious had Nanci claimed to have become a believer. He found out the hard way that wasn’t so. She had lied and said she was a Christian just so he would keep going out with her. Their breakup had been long and painful because he’d let his heart overrule his head.

After that, even though finding a woman who could live with his job as a police officer would be difficult, Matt told himself he would never date a non-Christian woman again. He needed to know that a woman had come to a decision to follow Jesus—independent of any relationship he had with her—and for her own reasons.

If God wanted him to remain single, he would do so. Between his schedule and his job, he didn’t date much. If God wanted him to be married, then the right woman, a Christian woman, would be dropped in his path.

Sarah hadn’t exactly been dropped in his path, nor was she a Christian. She said she believed in God, but the book of James stated even the demons believed that. The point was they didn’t love Jesus and follow His words and teachings with all their hearts.

Therefore, with the rules in place and knowing what had happened before, this time he would not set himself up for a potential heartbreak. He would not even entertain the possibility of a relationship with Sarah, no matter how much he liked her.

Equally important, Sarah was a potential witness. Getting personally involved with her would jeopardize her credibility. As well, emotional involvement could interfere with his ability to take action if needed. He couldn’t cross that line. If Donnie’s visitor really was the infamous Blair Kincaid, he had reasons of his own for wanting Kincaid off the streets.

Even though he hadn’t turned his notes in to the Shift NCO, he had documented what Sarah told him the previous week. Likewise, he would document what she had told him today. Even though it wasn’t official yet, this was his baby. He had every intention of seeing it through to the end, which he couldn’t do if he were personally involved with the prime witness for the prosecution.

Sarah tilted her head as she looked at him. “Matt? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Immediately, Matt felt a burn in his cheeks. “Sorry. My mind wandered to something else. I guess I’ll see you next time I’m breathing black air.”

Her brows knotted in the center of her forehead. “Pardon me?”

One corner of Matt’s mouth quirked up. “Sorry. That’s cop talk for working the night shift.”

She smiled and something strange happened in Matt’s stomach. “I get it! That’s really funny!”

“I wouldn’t have called it funny,” he mumbled. “I guess I’ll see you soon, then. Remember, call me any time you have a question, or if you see anything. Until I see you again, stay safe.”

“Will do.” She waved the card in the air, then plopped herself behind the wheel of her car, started the engine, and shut the door.

Matt stood in one spot, without moving, watching her drive away. Not that he intended to call her, but he couldn’t help but memorize her license plate number. It was now a simple matter to run it through the computer if he needed to. Once he got her driver’s license number, he would have access to much of her personal information if he wanted it.

He didn’t need her birthday, but he thought he might just need her phone number for his personal report.