Saturday, December 2
Florida Panhandle
The cell phone ring made Creed jump, startling the dogs that had been asleep around him. Instead of going to his loft after dinner with Hannah, he’d come back down to the kennel. The conversation with Dr. Avelyn had sent his nerves jangling. He couldn’t relax enough to sleep. His jaw remained clamped tight from anger. But being surrounded by the dogs helped.
In the dark he saw the caller’s ID, and already he felt some tension slip away.
“Hey,” he said.
“Did I wake you?”
“No. I was just staring at the ceiling.” Or rather, the rafters three stories up above. He didn’t tell her where “here” was. He doubted she’d be surprised, but he wasn’t sure if she’d think it was as endearing as Hannah did. Especially if she knew how many times he slept down in the kennel on one of the old sofas or on the floor surrounded by dogs instead of his loft apartment.
He pulled himself up enough to readjust the pillow. A dog behind him readjusted, too, shifting its weight and nestling into the crook of his neck. Creed’s legs were anchored down with dog heads and one hind end that hung over his ankles.
He glanced at his wristwatch. In the stream of moonlight coming through the top windows, he saw it was after two in the morning. Creed didn’t ask why Maggie was still awake. He knew she rarely slept, let alone slept well.
“Crazy new case won’t let my mind shut down,” she finally said. “How was the rest of your day? You and Bolo were in the woods.”
“We were tracking a missing teenage boy.”
“Did you find him?”
“Only his jacket.” He scratched at his jaw. There was still something odd about that. Why would a teenager go down into the woods, leave his jacket and go back up the exact way? “Bolo lost the kid’s scent after the jacket.”
“That doesn’t sound like Bolo. Are we talking about a runaway, or is it possible he was taken against his will?”
“Differing opinions on both counts. Either way, we didn’t find him. What new case is driving you crazy?”
“Couple of homeless guys have been murdered. Right on the streets. In the middle of the night. No one claims to have seen a thing.”
“Doesn’t D.C. have a bunch of cameras?”
“I’m hoping. Problem is nobody seems to care too much. It’s like they’re throwaways. Disposable. Reminds me too much of sex trafficking victims. No one ever seems to see those women...girls...and boys.”
She stopped. Went silent, and Creed thought about his sister Brodie. Maybe Maggie was, too. For years while Brodie was missing, Creed tried to convince himself that hadn’t happened to her. But she was destined to be trafficked if they hadn’t found her when they did.
Desperate to put that out of his mind, he said, “Sheriff Norwich and I met a couple of homeless guys today.”
“I thought you said you were in the woods?”
“We were. They’ve set up camps. This one old guy named Sully seems really ordinary. Nice guy. Even has a dog.”
“I met a homeless woman today who is interesting. She told me more over a couple of donuts and coffee than the detectives who’ve been on the case. Be careful though, Ryder.”
“Careful? What do you mean?”
“I know you. People with problems gravitate toward you. And you tend to think you need to rescue them, sort of like you rescue dogs.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
“Let’s see. Since I’ve known you, your rescuing efforts of lost and needy people have gotten you on a drug cartel’s hit list, buried under a mudslide, exposed to the bird flu, and literally thrown by a tornado. Do you want me to go on?”
The smile in her voice made him smile.
“So this new case...you’re not calling to cancel your Christmas trip?”
“No. Not at all. In fact, I can’t wait to get out of the snow. We rarely have much, and it’s piling up.”
“Come down early.” He couldn’t believe he said it out loud this time. He worried if he sounded too eager, it might spook her. And, of course, she went quiet again. Other than working on a case, they’d never spent a week together. “I’m just saying, it sounds like you could use a walk on the beach.”
“That does sound good. But what about you? How are you doing?”
“I feel okay. Mended. Or maybe still mending. You forgot to add to that list, me being knifed by a girl.”
“I didn’t want to totally embarrass you. So, what is it that has you staring at the ceiling?”
“Dogs.”
“Is it Grace?”
“No. She really is doing good. Dr. Avelyn’s going to be quarantining some K9s they’re rescuing out of Afghanistan.”
“The ones they left behind.”
She didn’t sound surprised, and it wasn’t a question.
“You know about that?”
“Let’s just say you can’t be in D.C. and not hear stuff. I guess deep down, I hoped it wasn’t true. But I’ve had politicians lie to me enough times to know it could be.”
“Yeah, well, a military handler recognized her dog. Still over there. In a dirty cage. A mining company found him on the streets.” He could feel the anger rising again. Grace lifted her head to check on him.
“I’m glad they’re finding them. Bringing them home.”
“Me, too.”