The Brass Ring (31 page)

"Yes," Stevie confirmed adamantly.

"Sorry to yell," she mumbled quickly before disconnecting the call. She instantly called Jamie’s cell phone and was bumped to her voicemail. "Jamie, call me right away," she blurted out frantically before quickly dialing the number once again. "Come on. Where are you?" she muttered when the voicemail greeted her once again.

"What is it?" Max asked from behind her.

"I don’t know where she is," she whimpered as her face grew pale.

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

J
AMIE MOVED ACROSS the street as she continued to fumble for her cell phone. She stood in the doorway of a shop; since it was early Sunday evening everything in the tiny village square was locked up tight. She punched her code into her cell phone so she could retrieve her voicemail. Her jaw hung open as she listened to the terror in CC’s voice. "What the hell?" she said under her breath as she quickly dialed CC’s cell phone.

She heard a car engine rev to life and out of the corner of her eye she spotted a black BMW pulling away from the corner. She shrugged as it drove off towards her street. Seeing a BMW in the neighborhood wasn’t the least bit unusual. She was far too preoccupied waiting for CC to answer to think about it any further.

"Jamie!" CC snapped before the doctor could say
‘hello’
. "Where are you?" she demanded loudly, causing Jamie to yank the cell phone away from her ear.

"Please tell me that you’re premenstrual," Jamie shouted into her phone indignantly.

"Where are you?" CC repeated in a slow careful tone.

"Caitlin, you’re scaring me," Jamie stammered as she looked around for a taxi. Finding none, she turned her attention back to her lover’s voice.

"Jamie, will you please tell me where you are?" CC pleaded.

"I’m at the Boylston Village T stop," Jamie informed her in a desperate effort to calm her down. She could hear CC repeating her location to someone else.

"Jamie, I need you to do something for me. I need you to go into one of the shops and wait for me," CC instructed her carefully. "And don’t ask me why."

"Why?" Jamie inquired before she could stop herself. Once again she found herself yanking the telephone away from her ear as CC released a frustrated growl. "Sorry. Reflex," Jamie explained sheepishly in her defense.

"Jamie, just go into one of the shops," CC barked at her.

"Caitlin, it’s Sunday night. Nothing’s open," Jamie explained. "Look, I’m just going to walk home and you can explain everything when you get there." She was ready to end the telephone call; she could have been halfway home by now. It was getting dark and the tone of CC’s voice frightened her.

"No! Take a taxi," CC ordered her.

Jamie sighed in exasperation, wishing she had started walking already. "There aren’t any cabs," Jamie explained while she tried to calm her nerves. Normally she would have just told CC off for speaking to her like she was an errant child but she could hear the fear echoing in her lover’s voice.

"Are there any people or cars around?" CC continued in a strained voice.

"Caitlin! You’re scaring me," Jamie sobbed into the telephone. She was unable to hold her emotions back any longer.

"I’m sorry, baby," CC explained in a crestfallen voice. "I’ll be there soon. Just hang on and wait for me or the squad car that’s en route." Jamie released another sob. "If it’s any consolation, I’m probably overreacting," CC offered lightly.

Jamie saw through the act instantly. Granted, CC was known to overreact at times, particularly where the blonde doctor was concerned. And Jamie knew she was guilty of doing the same thing when it came to the tall dark policewoman. Somehow the level of pure panic in CC’s voice mixed with the sound of a siren blaring in the background didn’t lead Jamie to believe that CC was simply overreacting. "I don’t believe you," Jamie confronted her. "There’s no one around. There was a BMW here earlier but it just left," she said as she tried to slow her rapidly beating pulse.

"A BMW?" CC echoed. "What color?"

"Black," Jamie responded slowly as the color drained from her face.

"Are you sure it is gone?" CC pushed.

"Yes." Jamie sighed in relief as she looked around to reassure herself.

"I’m almost there; just keep talking to me, baby," CC encouraged her.

"What would you like to talk about?" Jamie grunted in annoyance; she had a sudden urge to throttle her lover for scaring her half to death.

"What did you do today?" CC inquired in a casual tone that Jamie didn’t buy for one second. Jamie scanned the dark square as the hair on the back of her neck stood on end. "Jamie?" CC prompted her.

"I had lunch with Becky," she finally responded. "You remember her; she lived on the same floor in my dorm."

"Oh yeah, she was a doll," CC responded. "What’s she up to these days?"

"Married with three kids," Jamie explained. "I told her about us."

"How did that go over?" CC laughed.

"She asked me if I’d lost my mind." Jamie snorted as the urgency of the situation slipped away for a brief moment.

"And have you?" CC teased her further, lulling the young doctor into a false sense of security.

"Absolutely." Jamie laughed as she saw the flashing blue lights approaching her.

"Is that you?" she inquired, her smile fading as she saw a police cruiser approaching her. It came to a stop at the corner where she was standing. Two uniformed police officers quickly emerged from the car. One was a large man of color who would have towered over CC. The other was smaller, also dark-skinned, with a bushy moustache. The drastic differences in their heights struck Jamie as amusing.

"Dr. Jameson?" the taller man inquired.

"Yes," she responded with a smile.

A few seconds later she saw her small Honda approaching with a flashing blue light of its own. The car skidded to a stop behind the squad car and CC struggled out of the front seat. Once again Jamie was amused as she saw the tall woman unfolding herself from the small car. "The SUV was definitely the right choice for her," Jamie noted under her breath. CC rushed over to her with a look of relief written across her chiseled features. Max looked weary as he trailed behind his tall partner.

"Hey Calloway," the smaller man greeted her. "The doctor seems fine. Anything else we can do you?" he offered sarcastically.

"Actually there is," CC said firmly as she scribbled on a small notepad. She tore off the top page and handed it to him. "Go to that address. No lights, no sirens. Drive by, check around, and keep doing it. Also keep an eye out for a black BMW."

"In this neighbor?" the taller policeman grunted. "Could you be more specific?"

"The license plate is on the paper," CC snapped indignantly. "Call my cell if you find anything, and I mean anything."

The two officers nodded in understanding before climbing back into their car. Jamie looked at CC thoughtfully. "Are you all right?" CC inquired anxiously.

"Why is there a light attached to the roof of my car?" Jamie inquired thoughtfully.

"Don’t ask," CC responded as she rolled her crystal blue eyes.

"Can I keep it?" Jamie asked hopefully as she turned off her cell phone and stuffed it back into her pocket.

"No," CC groaned.

"It has a siren too?" Jamie added with enthusiasm.

"No," CC lied.

"I heard it when you were talking to me," Jamie stated as CC went to get in the driver’s side. "I don’t think so," she said quickly as she nudged her lover out of the way. She climbed into the car and adjusted the seat. Jamie was amused as she watched Max and CC maneuver their larger bodies into her compact car.

Jamie reached over to the strange black box dangling from her cigarette lighter. "Don’t - it’s not a toy," CC chastised her as she swatted her hand away.

"Why can’t I keep it?" Jamie pouted.

"It belongs to Max," CC grumbled. "Speaking of which, we need to get him back to his car and then go on to the station."

"I want to go home," Jamie protested.

"Not yet," CC groused.

"Oh come on; Stevie will be there," Jamie whined.

"No. I called her and sent her and Emma over to Brad’s for the night," CC quickly explained. "Now we need to go to . . ."

"I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what’s going on," Jamie stated as CC shrank back in her seat. "Out with it, Caitlin," she demanded.

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

C
C WAS COVERED IN nervous sweat and her hands were trembling. Jamie was still glaring at her awaiting some sort of answer. And she did deserve one. Just what could CC tell her without compromising the investigation or frightening Jamie even more than she already was? "I'm waiting," the blonde barked indignantly.

"Do you know Ellen Murdock?" CC began slowly.

"No," Jamie snipped.

"She works at the hospital, or rather she did," CC continued, reaching deep inside herself to gather the professional demeanor that usually came to her naturally. "She's dead." She watched in horror as her lover's lip began to quiver. "Jamie, I can't tell you everything. And I'm praying that my suspicions are wrong, but right now I feel that you're in danger. Please - you need to trust me. I can't lose you."

"Okay," Jamie responded with a slight tremble. "I trust you." The heartfelt sincerity in her words almost broke CC's heart.

She was at a loss as to what she could say in an effort to offer her lover some comfort in the frightening situation. Her cell phone chirped to life and she snatched it up quickly. "Callaway," she barked into the receiver. She listened fearfully to the caller. "Come get Max where you met us," she responded coldly. "Get out, Max."

CC and Max stepped out of the car and walked over to the corner to ensure that Jamie couldn't hear what they were saying. "They found his car around the corner from our complex. They're coming back for you. I'm taking Jamie somewhere safe. Call my cell and let me know what's going on."

"Where will you be?" Max inquired casually as he began to organize himself.

"I'm not telling anyone," CC responded flatly as Max looked up at her in surprise. "From what the detective in San Diego said, his family has some very deep pockets. I can't risk anyone knowing. I won't lose her."

"You won't," Max confirmed adamantly. "This guy is going to pay even if we have to . . ."

"Don't," CC snapped fearfully. Her stomach clenched as she wondered if she was capable of doing what she feared Max was suggesting.

"Get her out of here," Max reassured her. "We'll get him and send that bastard away. I'll call you when I get back to the station. Go," Max added firmly. CC could only nod in response before walking back to the car and climbing in.

Jamie was staring blankly out the window. "Are you okay to drive?" CC asked her lover gently.

"No," Jamie answered flatly. Neither woman spoke as they got out of the small vehicle and switched positions.

As they entered the lobby of the posh hotel CC accepted the ticket from the valet. They hadn't spoken a word during the drive into the city. CC guided her lover to the front desk. Jamie seemed to be in a daze as she followed behind the tall brunette.

"Well, I'll be damned," a friendly voice greeted CC.

"Probably," CC taunted her old friend.

"Oh, you still say the sweetest things," Kendra teased her. "So what brings you here? Miss me, did you?"

"I need a favor," CC responded with a sorrowful look.

"Of course." Kendra snorted. "What happened? Did Stevie kick you out on your sorry . . ." The dark woman's words trailed off as Jamie stepped out from behind CC.

"Kendra?" Jamie spoke brightly and CC relaxed at finally hearing the sound of her lover's voice.

Kendra was about to hop over the desk when CC pushed her back. "Show some self control for once," she scolded her old friend. "I need a room."

"Of course. " Kendra nodded with a toothy grin. "Flowers, champagne, anything for the two of you."

"None of that," CC groaned as Jamie chuckled. "What I need is discretion and no names."

"Oh?" Kendra's face dropped as a scowl formed. "This is business."

"Not entirely," CC teased her friend as she took Jamie's hand.

"Now you're just messing with me," Kendra spat out with an evil growl.

"I'll explain everything," CC promised. "But for now I need a Bette Davis."

"Which means you need to get out of sight as soon as possible," Kendra replied thoughtfully as she nudged the desk clerk away from the computer. "Done," she said triumphantly as she snatch up a card key. "Follow me," she said confidently as she made her way around the long desk and waved off the bellhop.

"Bette Davis?" Jamie asked in confusion.

"I'll explain," CC once again promised as the three of them made their way to the stairwell.

"Second floor," Kendra explained.

"Sometimes when I've had problems getting a woman in need into a shelter, Kendra has helped out," CC explained as they climbed the stairs.

"I run the place and the hotel can right it off as a charitable expense," Kendra offered with a shrug. "I use names like Bette Davis or Rosalind Russell and the staff knows that it's a code for complete privacy. No one will bother you or mention your stay."

"That's very kind of you, Kendra," Jamie said with respect.

"I do what I can," Kendra said graciously as they exited the stairwell and she led them down the hallway. "The room isn't all that great," Kendra explained as she ushered them into a quaint room with a queen size bed, dresser, and television."

"This is very nice," Jamie said honestly.

"Not compared to our other rooms," Kendra pointed out. "It's very basic. No hot tub, wet bar, or anything but a bed and a television. But it's close to the ground floor and the windows face a brick wall so no one can see in."

"Perfect if you're in hiding," CC explained.

"All we really need is a bed," Jamie teased the tall brunette as she wrapped her arms around her waist.