Burning Proof (15 page)

BY FRIDAY,
Woody’s shooting had been officially cleared as self-defense. That part was a no-brainer. Ruiz had a gun, and he’d fired at Luke and Woody before Woody dropped him. There was still a lot of investigation into why Alonzo Ruiz had broken into Luke’s office, and there was no reason to believe answers would be coming anytime soon. Luke and Woody sat down with Lieutenant Jacoby Friday morning.

“Of all the people to be involved in a shooting, Woody, you surprised me.” Jacoby looked from Luke to Woody and shook his head.

“You’re not the only one. After all the years of range work and nothing else, I’m glad to say that my training kicked in.”

“Me too,” Luke said. “That guy had me cold.”

Happy the department had cleared Woody quickly, Luke was able to hash everything out with his mother in terms of the shooting. He could understand her gut level fear for him. He felt the same way about Maddie. That his home had been violated struck him at a visceral, personal level.

The shock of seeing that Ruiz was the man following him
was almost as great as the shock of the shooting itself. The Triple Seven was front and center again. The incident was a powerful impetus for Luke to expedite his attempt to locate Lucy Harper, shake her, and uncover why Asa had her in his notes as a possible smoking gun. But he couldn’t go off half-cocked. Even with Woody being cleared, the shooting and subsequent investigation had delayed their work on both the Cavanaugh case and his search for Lucy Harper.

Luke was glad that since the dead man was suspected for another crime, Jack O’Reilly and Ben Carney, the LBPD detectives who responded to the shooting scene, were sharing the investigation with Orange County Detective Fred Wright. He’d investigated the incident on the flood control path several months ago, when Ruiz and the other man had confronted Luke.

Wright was trying to determine where Ruiz had been staying and who he was working for, while O’Reilly and Carney investigated the shooting and completed an inventory on a bunch of high-tech surveillance equipment located in the trunk of his car. There were cameras, listening devices, and tracking devices neatly organized in the trunk. It was likely they could find the vendors and maybe in a backdoor way discover who, if anyone, Ruiz was working with. There was no evidence that he’d used the equipment in any kind of surveillance of Abby or Luke, but it was problematic that he had it at all. Luke thought it creepy that Ruiz could possibly have been listening in on conversations, recording his movements. Another carrot dangling in front of him, urging him to get to the bottom of things.

WHEN FRIDAY ROLLED AROUND,
Abby realized she’d been gone for over a week and she hadn’t checked in with Jessica. True, Jessica had told her not to worry, but she felt like she should have at least called once before now. When her friend didn’t answer her cell, Abby dialed her own home number but nearly disconnected when a familiar, but completely unexpected voice answered the phone.

“Hello?”

“Um, hello?”

“This sounds like Abby. You’re probably wondering why I answered your phone.” It was Luke Murphy, and there was a bit of a smile in his voice.

“Yeah, I guess I am. I expected to speak to Jessica. It’s comforting at least that I didn’t dial the wrong number. What are you doing there?”

“Well, it’s a long story and one you weren’t supposed to hear until you got home. But somebody broke into your
 
—”

“Broke into my house? Is Jessica okay?” Abby stood, tense and angry.

“Yes, Jessica is fine. In fact she gave the burglar a bit of a
thrashing. He got away with nothing to show for his trouble but a broken nose.”

For a second she couldn’t find her voice. She remembered the dark car she thought had been shadowing her.

“Are you still there?” Worry shaded his voice.

Sighing, Abby pinched the bridge of her nose. “Still here but not believing what you just said. Can you tell what he was after?” She didn’t have many valuables; her most important was her laptop, and that was with her.

“Jessica isn’t sure. She caught him in your office. As far as she could tell, nothing has been removed. The doorjamb was destroyed
 
—he jimmied it open to get inside
 
—and I had some time on my hands, so I came over to fix it. We didn’t want to ruin your time away since, at the time, it seemed to be a no harm, no foul situation.”

Abby almost laughed out loud when Luke used a Woody-ism like “no harm, no foul.”

Luke went on. “The back door will be good as new, and Woody wants me to install a camera like one I put up at my house. That’s where Jessica is, with him picking one out.”

“You guys shouldn’t go to so much trouble. A camera? Aren’t you overreacting?”

“Uh, first, it’s no trouble, and second, it doesn’t hurt to be cautious. Anyway, I’m sorry you had to find out this way.”

There was something in his voice. Abby heard it and knew there was more. “Was the guy caught?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“What manner would that be?”

“Abby, I think all this can wait until you get home. Woody didn’t want to ruin your trip and neither do I.”

Abby felt anger rise. “I’m not fragile. What is going on down there?”

“I know you’re not fragile. We just wanted to give you time to heal.”

“Tell me please,” she said firmly.

She heard Luke blow out a breath. “The guy who broke into your house was Alonzo Ruiz.”

“Ruiz?” Abby frowned as the name and the memory of that name and what he’d done came roaring back to her mind. “The man who shot at you on the flood control trail?”

“The same. He paid me a visit as well. That was where we stopped him.”

Questions exploded in Abby’s mind. “You stopped him? He’s in custody? Who is he working for?”

“We can’t ask. He’s dead. He had a gun and Woody had to shoot him. And before you ask, Woody is fine.”

Words wouldn’t form, and Abby felt like all the air had whooshed out of her lungs. She had to sit down to digest this news.

“Tell me everything,” she was finally able to say.

Luke told her what had transpired at his house.

She took deep breaths as the fear for Woody subsided, along with an overwhelming wave of protectiveness that extended to Luke Murphy as well.

“So he’d tried to remove all your notes on the Triple Seven?”

“Yeah, that’s what he chucked at me on the front lawn. And just when we thought that was all settled. We know Ruiz was the same man Jessica confronted at your house because his nose was broken. Bill took pictures to Jessica and she was able to positively identify him. He also had a ton of state-of-the-art
surveillance equipment in his car, and he bypassed my alarm system like it was nothing.”

“What kind of car was Ruiz driving?”

“A black Ford Crown Vic. Why?”

Abby told him about the dark car she’d thought had shadowed her to Oregon.

“Could have been him. He’d have had plenty of time to get back down here, break into your house. He knew you were gone if he followed you all the way to Oregon. But why is anyone following you? Look, bottom line, it’s okay here. Woody is good. We’re sidelined for a bit while the shooting is officially investigated, but I’m sorry if I’ve ruined your vacation.”

“You didn’t ruin anything. I was already thinking that it was time to come home. I settled a lot in my own mind about the shooting. It’s time for me to get back to work.”

“I’m glad I came along, glad I could be a part of this.” Abby put her arm over Dede’s shoulder as the two took in the sight of the newly constructed sanctuary. Ethan was going over some last-minute arrangements with Pastor Cliff, so he’d said he would miss this final group prayer. They’d talked earlier.

“So you’re going home, back to work?”
he asked.

“I’m going home, and then I have to talk to the psychologist. I’m assuming he’ll let me go back to work. How long will you be tying up the loose ends of this project?”

He shrugged.
“A week maybe.”

“Then you leave for Malawi.”

Nodding, he took her hand.
“Yeah, and I’ll be gone for a
month. But I’ll be back in LB for a few days before that.”
He held her gaze and the sadness in his eyes broke Abby’s heart.

“And I’m sure that we’ll talk on the phone before that.”

He nodded.
“Call me when you get home so I’ll know that you got there safe, and promise me something as you go back to work.”

“Anything.”

“Be careful.”

Now it was late Friday afternoon and almost everyone who’d taken part in the build was gathered at the new church to pray and dedicate the building. The sun dipped low by the time workers and volunteers finished, joined hands for prayer, and then packed up their belongings to leave.

“I’m glad too,” Dede said. “It was wonderful reconnecting. Are you sure you’re ready to go back into the lion’s den? It’s only been a week.”

“On one level, not really,” Abby said honestly. She bent down and picked Bandit up, wanting to hug the warm, furry body. A part of her still found the idea of hiding from the realities waiting for her in Long Beach appealing, especially if she was going back to again face the brick wall that was her parents’ murder investigation. “But I was already thinking it was time, and now, hearing about Woody’s shooting . . . Well, I want to know what’s happening.”

“I understand. Keep me up to date, and let me know if you visit Simon.”

“I will.” She hugged her aunt and together they drove home. Abby packed and prepared to leave first thing in the morning.

FOR A MOMENT
when Abby pulled into her driveway, she thought she was at the wrong house. Even in the fading evening light, she could see the color exploding across the front of her house. All kinds of flowers in various colors blended together to make the porch and walkway look like something from a gardening magazine.

“Wow, Bandit, Jessica has been busy.”

As if on cue, Jessica stepped out the front door, a huge grin on her face.

Abby turned off the car and got out. “You outdid yourself.”

“What do you think? The house has real curb appeal, huh?”

“It’s gorgeous. You must have spent a fortune.” Hands on hips, she shook her head. “You have to let me pay you.”

Jessica frowned and waved her hands back and forth. “No way. I had fun doing it, and you have done more for me than I can ever repay. The only thing I ask is that you water or have someone install a drip system.”

“Of course, of course.” Abby gave Jessica a hug. “Thank you. What a wonderful sight to come home to.” She stepped back, her tone changing. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Jessica looked bewildered for a minute. “Oh, that.” She laughed.

“I’m glad you find it amusing. Confronting a burglar isn’t really a laughing matter.”

“Sorry; I can’t help it. I spent so much time training to protect myself, learning so much I wish I’d known when I was married to that wife beater Rory, that finally having the opportunity to put it to practical use, and being successful, makes me smile.” She shrugged. “You get to do heroic cop stuff all the time; this was a first for me and it felt great.”

She pointed to Abby’s car. “Can I help you unload?”

“Sure,” Abby said as she opened the car door to let Bandit out. Between her and Jessica they had the car unloaded in two trips. Abby fed Bandit and then Jessica took her into the office to see what she’d caught the burglar doing.

“He had your file cabinet open.” Jessica pointed. “I had my bat. He tried to take it away from me but I got him with my elbow, right in the nose, heard it crunch. He gave up after that and ran.” Jessica smiled.

Abby couldn’t help but chuckle. She stepped to the cabinet and looked carefully around the room to see if anything was missing. “I can’t imagine what he wanted. Even if he was after my Triple Seven file, which I had with me
 
—” she held it up and put it back in its place on the bookshelf
 
—“it has no new information in it.”

“He tried to steal Luke’s notes as well. Maybe he just wanted to be certain everything was finished, you know? Tie up loose ends?”

Abby cocked her head, thoughtful. “Too bad we can’t ask him. But I am glad that he’s no longer a threat to me or to Luke Murphy.”

“Me too,” Jessica agreed. “And I’ll house-sit for you whenever you need me. It’s so quiet here, much better than the apartments where I live. Even after being burglarized, I actually got good sleep here.”

“I’ll take you up on that. I may need you in the near future. But I might have to leave Bandit as well. Would you be okay with that?”

“Of course!” Jessica said. “Are you planning another road trip?”

“I am, and I can’t take the dog.” She told Jessica about her uncle Simon. “When I go to visit him, I think I’m going to spend the night in Tehachapi. It’s not that I can’t do the drive in a day; it’s just that traffic is unpredictable. I don’t want to get stuck on the 14 freeway for hours and miss visiting time.”

“That makes sense. When are you going?”

“Not sure. I only mailed back the visiting form last week. According to my aunt, Simon will call me when I’m cleared. It may be a few weeks; it may be a few months.”

“Can’t you just go as a cop?”

“I don’t want to. I just want to go as his niece.”

Jessica shrugged. “I guess I can see that. And don’t worry about the house or Bandit. I love staying here. I wish I could afford a house in this neighborhood, so I’ll house-sit anytime. But I’m glad you’re home. We missed you at volleyball.”

Abby yawned, the long drive hitting her all of a sudden. “I missed playing. Can’t help but feel completely out of shape.”

After Jessica left, Abby settled on the couch with Bandit, bowl of popcorn in hand. In the DVD player was
The Maltese Falcon
. She felt the need to veg in black-and-white. She was about to hit Play when the phone rang.

It was Ethan.

She’d forgotten to call and tell him that she arrived home okay.

“Hi, Ethan. Sorry; I forgot to call you.” She explained about Jessica and the new landscaping. But she left out the break-in. After all, nothing was taken. Did Ethan really need to know about a “no harm, no foul” situation?

“That’s great; just glad all is well down there.”

“Yeah. The drive was fine, and I am glad to be home.”

They chatted for about twenty minutes. It was a good conversation, but there was a sad undercurrent to Ethan’s tone that Abby couldn’t ignore.

The week had gone well
 
—her trip, working with him, being away. She’d come home feeling like her old self.

But the vast chasm between their visions for the future was becoming clearer to Abby the steadier she became. After Ethan hung up, for the first time, she wondered if he was seeing that as well. He’d be back in Long Beach in a week for three days before he left for Malawi. Abby prayed he’d have a safe, productive trip and that the next time they talked face-to-face, the future would be clearer to both of them.

Bandit yawned on her lap and Abby laughed. Together they padded into the bedroom, and Abby fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. No dreams.