“Import?”
“Don’t think so. Things have been pretty cool lately. ’sides, you know us, man. We do our own. No one ’round here brings in guys to do the dity shit unless it’s big. Ain’t nothin’big happenin’.”
Delta nodded. “Is that all?”
“All I know. No one’s seen him, though. We only heard of him.” Julio wiped the glaze from his lips. “He piss you off, eh, Stevens?”
Delta looked away. “I don’t like killers in our neighborhood, do you?”
For a moment, Julio said nothing. “If I catch word a anythin’ else, I’ll letcha know.”
“You do that.” Tearing off a piece of paper, Delta handed it to him and walked away. “You do that, Julio.” Turning back around, Delta pointed a finger at him. “ And lay off the dope, will you? It’ll only fry your brain cells.”
She turned back tot he patrol car and heard him mutter something about it being too late for that.
“What was that all about?” Jan asked, as Delta sat back down.
“Just hunting and pecking, that’s all.” Delta looked at her nails in feigned disinterest.
“Delta Stevens.”
Without looking at Jan, Delta shrugged. “Do me a favor and swing by Megan’s for a minute.”
“More pecking?”
Delta tried to hide the tiny grin on her face. “More pecking.”
Megan swung the door open and grinned. “Hi there, handsome. What are you doing here looking so sexy in your uniform?” Sidling up to Delta and nuzzling her neck, Megan hugged her tightly. “You know how women in uniform drive me crazy.”
“Women? Plural?”
Megan smiled. “Singular. Make that particular.”
Delta nodded. “That’s better.” Gently prying Megan’s arms off from around her neck, Delta kissed her lightly on the mouth. “Isn’t that one of the main reasons we became involved?”
“That, and the fact that you’re great in bed.”
Delta blushed and then peered over her shoulder to make sure Jan couldn’t possibly hear them.
“So, to what do I owe this honor, Officer Stevens?” Megan’s eyes twinkled as she held her hands out to be handcuffed.
“This is business, I’m afraid.”
Megan lowered her hands and feigned a frown. “Business? Darn. I was hoping this was a social call.”
“I wish it was.”
“How silly of me to think that you would do something as spontaneous as drive over here to flirt with me.”
“Maybe some other time.”
“Mmmm. I’d like that. You know what they say.” Megan pulled Delta closer and nibbled on her ear. “Variety is the spice of life.”
With chills running down her spine and goosebumps popping up on her arms, Delta slowly pulled away. “You drive me crazy. You know that, don’t you?”
Megan’s eyes sparkled. “I hope so. Now, what is it you need, Officer Stevens?”
“Meg, I need you to tap some of your old sources for me.”
“How old?”
“I need to know who the new man is in twon. He’s a martial arts expert, or he may even be a weapons enthusiast. I think he’s pulled two jobs so far, all on my beat.”
Megan nodded, the color slightly leaving her face. “Very dangerous?”
“Extremely. He’s already killed once. something tells me he’ll do it again.”
“And you want me to see if any of my street buddies know anything.”
“You know I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t really important.”
“I’ll see what I can do, but I don’t have much to go on.”
“I know. We don’t have much. Only that he has a predilection for ancient or antique weaponry. It’s possible he may try to pawn of an ax that he ripped off. Try your pal—what’s that pawnbroker’s name?”
“Carl Locodo?”
“Yeah, he’s the one.”
“We’re looking for the creep who threw that star at you, aren’t we?”
Delta nodded. “Yep. I think he’s the one who killed the guy in the drug store.”
“I’ll see what I can do. Carl owes me a favor or two. I’ll see if he can check out the other pawn shops around the city as well.”
“Great. I really appreciate it, hon. Right now, we’re pretty much stumped.”
Megan stepped up to Delta and ran her hand laong the inside of her uniform top. “You know I’d love nothing more than to help.” Bwing her head, Megan sighed. “It’s weird that you should come by tonight.”
“Weird? Why?”
“After our talk the other night, I felt like all I had done was pint the finger at you, blaming you for our rough spots.”
Delta waited, threading her fingers through Megan’s and holding Megan’s hand against her chest.
“Then I realized that some of my blame-laying was misplaced. All this time, I’ve believed that you were spending too much time and energy on your job. I don’t hate what you do, Delta, I...”
“What is it, Baby?”
Shrugging, Megan shook her head. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, Del, but I think I’m jealous.”
“Jealous? Of Jan?”
“No, silly, of your job. When the four of us were working to bring
Miles’s killers in, it was the most exciting thing I’ve ever done in my life. Since then, I’ve just gone to school and work, with nothing really interesting to grab my attention.”
“Thanks.”
“You know what I mean. Delta, I understand why you love your job so much. Really, I do. Maybe I’m a little envious that it’s so much more exciting than what I’m doing now. I mean, didn’t it ever occur to you that there was a definite danger in being a prostitute?”
“I never really thought of it that way.”
“Well, there was. And I enjoyed knowing it was risky. Then, I got involved with you and Miles’s murder case, and there was even more excitement than hooking.”
“Are you saying you’re bored?”
Megan shook her head. “Not with you. Not with my life. I just want you to know that I’m a little envious of the excitement and the thrill yur job brings you. Delta, I love you more than anything in the world. I wouldn’t ever want you to stop being a cop, if that’s what you want. But part of my problem with our relationship is
me.
I’m not saying that you don’t still need to work on making our relationship first; I just need to come to terms with the fact that my life just isn’t as exciting as yours.”
Delta released Megan’s hand and took hold of Megan’s face between both of her hands. “Is that why I saw that law book laying on the floor the other night?”
Megan nodded and smiled shyly. “I’m thinking about changing my major.”
“From business to law?”
“What do you think?”
Pulling Megan to her, Delta kissed her tenderly on the lips. “I think you’d be a great lawyer.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Do you understand that I didn’t mean to put all the blame on you?” Checking her watch, Delta nodded. “I’m not perfect, Meg. and
most of what you were saying was right. Can we finish thish conversation later? I really need to follow up on a few things before the shift ends.”
Megan nodded and ran her hand through Delta’s hair. “I love you so much, Delta Stevens. I’ll be waiting up with bells on. Nothing else. Just bells.”
Delta grinned. “I thought you wanted to finish talking.”
“Oh, we will. But when that’s done. . . I’ll leave the rest to your imagination. Now get out of here before I throw myself at your feet and beg you stay.”
Taking one step out the door, Delta turned and smiled. “Really?”
Megan’s grin instantly transformed into a warm smile. “Really. Delta Stevens, when will you ever get it through that thick head of yours that I love you?”
Delta shrugged. “Sometimes, I don’t feel like I deserve it.”
“Sometimes, you don’t. Now get going before Jan falls asleep.”
“I love you.”
“I know.”
“You’re not going to let this one go, are you?” Jan asked, starting the engine.
Delta shook her head. “No, Jan, I’m not.”
“Because of the D.A. or because he tried to take you out?”
“Maybe both. Maybe neither.” Delta stared out the window. Sometimes it felt like the women in her life were always questioning— always demanding reasons why she did the things she did. After college, Sandy, her ex-lover, never let up on why she would “throw away a college education” to work with street scum. Delta believed that becoming a cop was the beginning of the end for their relationship. And even when Delta tried to explain why she wanted to be a cop, Sandy didn’t listen or care. Delta had spent her entire childhood reading comics and dreaming about being somebody’s heroine. She wanted very much to be an X-Man or a member of the Fantastic Four—to be so brave and courageous and take chances no one else would. Few knew of Delta’s past penchant for comics. Delta’s love of the comic book heroine “Storm” was one of the reasons Connie had nicknamed her “Storm.” That, and the fact that Delta always stormed into situations when she was a rookie. In fact, she was still like that young, energetic woman, who produly donned badge number 182.
“Delta?”
“Huh?”
“You okay? You want to take a break or something?”
Delta looked at Jan and sighed. “Jan, something inside tells me I have to stop this guy. There’s more to this than the murders. I don’t know what it is, but my gut instinct is screaming at me to dig harder and depper than I already am.”
“How much harder can you dig, Del? You’ve tapped into most of your reliable street sources. What mare is there for you to do besides work yourself to death? And lookw where that’s already gotten you.”
Delta studied Jan’s profile. For Jan, the job was just that: a job. One which was ten hours long, and she left it behind when she hung up her badge and nine-millimeter. For Delta, it extended well into the hours of her personal life. She could not leave behind in her locker the details she had witnessed during the night, nor couls she easily forget about the victims and suspects and great lines of people who tramped through her life every night. they became a part of her psyche, some adding to her worries, some not, and either way, Delta wasn’t capable of letting go completely. These people—their pain, their losses—were all a part of Delta’s life. And though she often wished she could be like Jan and leave it all behind, she wasn’t capable of doing that; it just wasn’t in Delta’s chemistry to turn away and not look back. Being involved was what she did best. If she could only learn how to successfully balance both her career and her relationship, she’d be one of the happiest people in the world.
“I know that, Jan, but I can’t let go.” Delta listed to herself say this and then shook her head. “No, wait a minute. It’s not that I can’t let go of it. It won’t let go of me.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means, this creep has his hooks in me and isn’t letting go. It’s almost like I’m being reeled in. It’s weird. That’s the only way I can explain it.”
“That
is
weird. Well, if he’s reeling you in, then I feel sorry for him. He’s got a hold of a much bigger fish than he could possibly bargain for.”
As they cruised along the darkened streets like a tiger shark in the belly of the darkest ocean, Delta began scribbling notes on her pad and tired to hum an upbeat tune.
“Is Dennis getting ready for the big race?” Delta asked, as they rolled to a stoplight.
“As usual, he and the guys have this betting pool going. They bet on each other—you know, who’s going to lose the most, who’s going to luck out, that sort of thing.”
Delta shook her head. Men were only boys in big bodies. “The ponies have never been kind to your husband.”
Jan nodded. “Isn’t that the truth. He’s tried a thousand different systems, and none of them have worked.”
Delta chuckled. “Remember when his system was to bet on the horses that peed just before going into the starting gates?”
Their laughter was interrupted by the radio announcing they had a “possible shots fired” call. It was one of the worst calls a beat cop could get. There might be a gun involved, there mgiht be a crome committed. A 216 could be an extremely dangerous situation. Or it might not.
The call was a lot like being a little pregnant or sort of blind; it left a cop with more questions than answers, and answers were a cop’s greatest allies.
Jan flipped open her book and ran her finger down the list of addresses. “It’s the Oakwood Apartment Complex.”
“Let’s hit it!” Delta said, turning on both sirens and the lights. In less than a minute and a half, they pulled into an alley paralleling Hemingway Street.
“The car lot?” Jan yelled, as Delta killed the ear-piercing sirens.
“Yes.” Car lots made for good cover when driving up to a 216 because they offered plenty of hiding areas should there be an ambush. Delta had seen a fellow officer go down once because he parked right on the street when responding to a PSF call. He hadn’t even gotten completely out of the car when he took two bullets in his leg and one in his abdomen. Since then, Delta always made sure she aprked where there was sufficient cover.
Slipping between two Gremlins, Delta motioned for Jan to look at the side door of the apartment building, which stood wide open. there were no lights on the inside, only a very dim exterior bulb, shining nakedly against the peeling paint. From her place behind the Gremlins, Delta spoke into her radio and asked for the E.T.A. of back-up. The answer was one minute.