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I was shocked when Travis left so abruptly. I knew that I was treading on fragile emotional ice, but I hadn’t expected to fall through so suddenly. He’d made the connection and then he was gone within a matter of seconds, leaving me alone with my computer.
Duke looked up, equally puzzled. I patted him on the head, thinking that at least one man in my life was behaving rationally. I had to give Travis a break, though. He was going through a lot, first by losing Stacia and then finding her again. I tried to imagine how I would feel if I learned that Rebecca or Samantha were related to Silvio. I would be pissed.
It took me a minute to calm down and think. I could guess where Travis was going; he wanted to confront his old girlfriend. Maybe it was for the best. I would have preferred to bring her in like a proper witness and get her to talk in a more civilized fashion. But I guessed a heart-to-heart with an old lover was probably more likely to yield results.
I nibbled on my bottom lip while thinking. Should I report my findings and stop Travis from what he was about to do? Or should I just let it happen and hope that he came back with some actionable intel?
My decision was made for me when Chief Clark poked her head out of her office and waved me over. I signaled that Duke should come along, so he rose to his feet and plodded after me.
We took our seats in Chief Clark’s office, me in a chair and Duke on the floor. I was trying to figure out how to explain the situation without making it sound unprofessional, but Chief Clark beat me to it.
“It looks like Travis stormed out of here in a hurry,” she observed.
“There’s been some movement on the case,” I admitted.
“What is it?” she asked, shutting her laptop so she could give me her full attention.
I drew a breath, getting ready to dive in. “How much do you know about Travis?”
“Not a lot,” the chief said.
“He was involved with a woman a few years ago who wound up dead. She was a fellow firefighter, and she passed away on the job.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” the chief said solemnly.
“The thing is,” I continued, “she’s not dead. She’s alive and well and living in Littleton.”
The chief frowned, not seeing the connection.
I braced myself to keep going, careful not to throw either Travis or Stacia under the bus. I was wary of the other woman, but it was possible that she was an innocent victim in all of this. If I had a father like Silvio Rossi, I might not be eager to spread the news either.
“It turns out that she’s the daughter of Silvio Rossi.” I jumped to the punchline.
“What?!” The chief rose up out of her chair, slapping her palms down on the desk.
I put my hands up in self-defense, asking her to hear me out before making any judgment calls. “Her name is Stacia Rossi, but she goes by Tricia Murphy. At the time Travis was dating her, she went by Stacia Campbell. He didn’t know.”
The chief settled down again, giving me the signal to continue.
“According to her, she’s been in witness protection all this time. Travis is going to see if he can get some answers.”
Chief Clark shook her head. “We need to bring her in.”
“If she is being protected by the Feds, they wouldn’t appreciate that,” I warned.
“Tough luck,” the chief snapped. “She’s a person of interest in our investigation.”
“I don’t think she had anything to do with the fires,” I said. “And she’s far more likely to talk to Travis than one of us.”
The chief sighed, looking away for a long moment. “We need to do this by the book.”
“All I care about is finding Rossi,” I countered. “If she can help us do that, then why stop her?”
“If the brass gets a hold of this...” the chief worried.
“I agree,” I said quickly. “Maybe we let Travis have a go first, and then if he doesn’t get anything, we can swing by and pick her up.”
The chief considered that for a while. “Do you have an address?”
“No,” I admitted. “But Travis does. Clearly.”
“How much can we trust him to play by the rules?” she asked.
“I trust him with my life,” I replied.
“I suppose that’s good enough for me,” the chief decided, putting her metaphorical sword away.
“I hope I’m right.” I shared a bit of my reluctance since we seemed to be on the same page.
“I hope you are too,” she agreed. “Hopefully this will be the break we need.”
“She may not know anything about where her father is,” I cautioned. “If he’s the reason she’s in witness protection, then she may not know very much.”
“She’ll know something,” Chief Clark predicted. “Even if she doesn’t think she knows. And I want you to keep a close eye on her.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I replied.
“There’s another thing,” the chief continued, leaning forward in her chair. “Kevin.”
I rolled my eyes. Beside me, Duke’s head perked up, as if he was following our conversation as well. “What about Kevin?”
“He’s concerned that Duchess isn’t well-trained,” the chief said.
“He’s wrong,” I argued, willing the anger to remain in the pit of my stomach where it belonged. “She was trained when I got her, and she’s been through the DPD training.”
“Be that as it may,” the chief continued, “he’s being very vocal about his complaints.”
“Why not give Duchess to me?” I suggested.
“You already have a dog,” the chief commented.
“I could have two,” I went out on a limb, desperate to get Duchess away from that animal. “She works well with Duke, and the three of us have a rapport.”
The chief frowned, considering my offer. “We don’t generally have one officer working with two dogs.”
“Just for this case then,” I pleaded. “She could help out at crime scenes, and we’ll find someone else who isn’t as finicky after all this mess is over.”
The chief studied my face, and I couldn’t tell what she was thinking. If one of the job requirements for being chief was having a poker face, Chief Clark had that nailed. She was tough but fair, and I knew she was weighing the options in her mind. Finally, she picked up her desk phone and punched a few numbers.
“Kevin?” she asked, giving me a warning look.
I pressed my lips shut, holding my breath.
“Yeah,” Chief Clark continued. “I’ve considered your request, and I will go ahead and transfer Duchess away from you.” There was a pause while the chief listened to Kevin’s side of the conversation. “Not at this time.” Another pause, and then her voice hardened as I assumed Kevin was trying to whine his way out of something. “No, but as soon as another canine becomes available, we’ll see.” A final pause, and she glanced over at me.
I couldn’t help but laugh, pressing my hand to my lips so that the sound didn’t carry. I knew how much of a handful Kevin could be, and the chief was dealing with him remarkably well. Still, her silent communication told me that she was tired of his bullshit too. She looked like a kindergarten teacher who was trying to explain why a child couldn’t take two turns at the water fountain.
“Okay,” the chief said succinctly. “I will. Turn Duchess over to Alaina as soon as she comes out of my office.”
There was a flurry of activity on the other end of the line, and I imagined Kevin sitting at his desk berating the telephone. It was yet another example of why the guy was not qualified to serve as a police officer. Who chewed out their own chief? I certainly wouldn’t do it, not if I wanted to keep my job.
But apparently, Kevin thought he knew better.
The chief listened for a moment before cutting in. “I understand. Please turn your animal over to Officer Dawson when she steps out of my office, thank you.”
The chief hung up before Kevin could share any more bits of wisdom from his personal stash. I fought not to laugh. It was hilarious watching from the outside, but I knew from experience that he was incredibly frustrating in person.
“Kevin,” the chief said. That single word summed up the entire experience.
I nodded, getting control of myself.
“He’ll turn Duchess over to you. We’ll sort this all out after we catch Rossi.”
“She’ll be a tremendous asset,” I assured her.
“Go.” The chief shooed me out, indicating that I’d used up all my favors for the day.
“Come on, Duke,” I said, waiting for my partner as he stretched and ambled out of the office with me.
We went straight to Kevin’s desk where Duchess was sitting patiently beside him. She looked up as Duke and I approached but didn’t move to greet us. It was proof to me that she was well-trained.
“I’m here to take Duchess off your hands,” I told Kevin.
He stood up, his face a mask of discomfort. “You don’t need two dogs.”
“You’re the one who didn’t want to work with her,” I reminded him.
“Because she isn’t trained,” he said.
“Fine,” I agreed, not wanting to argue. “I’ll just take her then.”
Understanding what was going on, even if she couldn’t speak English, Duchess stood. She shook out her hind quarters, making Kevin wince. I couldn’t understand why basic dog behavior got him so bent out of shape, but I didn’t care.
My family was back together, and I was one hundred percent sure that we could do a better job the three of us than Duke and I could do on our own. I stopped to scratch behind Duchess’s ears right there at Kevin’s desk. If I was rubbing his nose in it a little bit, so much the better.
He turned away as if he didn’t care, but I could tell that he was annoyed. I signaled to both dogs, walking them all the way across the room to my desk. Duchess was smiling, as much as a dog could smile, when she took her place by my side.
