In Too Deep(34)

The detective smiled in compassion. "Okay, have a seat, and I'll come back with some tea. We make a halfway decent Darjeeling around here."

"Milk and sugar then," I replied, going back into the lounge room and taking a seat. The detective returned three minutes later, a big mug in each hand. "Hope you're going to let me use the potty after this thing."

He chuckled and nodded. “It's to your left as you leave this room.”

I took a sip, enjoying the flavor. He had gone heavy on both the milk and the sugar, but the end result was silky smooth. "Not too bad.”

"Thanks. The secret is I actually buy real heavy cream for it. Keep it in the fridge with my name on it. Soledad turned me on to it, she's really into good food. Thankfully I seem to have a metabolism that doesn't mind it all that much."

Now that he had me sitting again, he quickly took advantage. “Listen, while we’re here, how’d you meet Cam?”

"Vacation in the Caribbean," I answered. "Cam and I were at the same resort. I'd won the trip right before losing my job, so when he asked me to come to T or C, I couldn't think of a reason not to."

"Sounds like a quick relationship," the detective said. "Ah well, love comes in all forms it seems. Hope you guys enjoy it. I used to patrol through T or C. Quiet town."

"Very quiet, but at least the weather's warmer than Ohio," I said. He’d already seen my driver's license, he knew where I was from. "Less snow, too."

"True, but the football's better in Ohio." We sat and drank our teas after that, the atmosphere much more relaxed. I’d finished about half of my mug when there was a light knock on the door. "That should be your boyfriend."

The door opened and another cop came in, older than the detective I was talking to, and by the way the detective reacted, obviously higher in rank. Cam was right behind, an apologetic smile on his face. "I'm sorry it took so long."

I shook my head, too tired to argue. "It's all right. I just want to get home."

Cam nodded and looked at the older cop. "Captain?"

The man sighed and gestured. "The shop took a look at your truck, there's nothing that would keep you off the road. The tail light is cracked, but it'll get you home safely. You're going to want to need to have it replaced soon, though."

As we left, there was another man who stayed near the four of us, not saying anything. He looked like a professor type, but a professor of the sorts of things you didn't want to study by your own choice. There was just that sort of dark hardness about the man that gave me the willies. Cam ignored him, though, and the cops escorted us to his truck, which had been towed to the station's parking lot. Cam got it started after two cranks, and I got in.

"We'll talk when we get home," Cam said gently. "I know you have questions, but if this truck was in the cops' hands for this long, I can't trust that it wasn't bugged."

"What the hell are you involved in?" I asked, not in anger this time, but in wonder.

Cam gave me a smile and shook his head. "At home."





Chapter 22





Cam




It was nearly midnight when Melina and I got home, and I reached over to shake her awake when we pulled into the driveway. She sat up with a start, a short squeak coming out before she realized where she was. "It's okay," I said. "We're here."

We went inside and Melina sat down on the couch. "All right Cam. No more delays or bullshit. If you do, I'm out of here. I'll collect my little paycheck from Jay Winters, and then I'm gone. I can’t live with lies. I love you, but I won't be lied to."

I sighed and sat down in the chair across from her. "Okay. No lies, but there are things that I can’t tell you. There isn't much, just a few names, things like that. But I'll tell you the truth."

Looking up at the ceiling, I tried to put it all together in a way that didn't sound like the ramblings of a lunatic. "First off, while everything I told you about my parents is true, I didn't tell you much about my childhood. Melina, how old were you when you graduated high school?"

"Eighteen," she said. "Why, what’s that have to do with anything?”

"I finished my bachelor's degree at fourteen, and got my Master's at fifteen. Never went back for my PhD, there were a lot of other things that were more interesting to me."

"The rest of it is easier if you follow me."

We went into the bedroom I'd configured as my office. I opened the closet. "I noticed that you'd never asked me about this closet," I said as she looked inside, surprised at what she'd found. "I figured you just hadn't looked inside yet. I mean, not a lot of people keep a gun safe in their spare bedroom closet, even in this part of the country."

"No, I hadn't," she replied. "Kinda wish I had. That cannon you pulled out of the glove box scared me nearly as much the accident itself."

I nodded, placing my palm on the reader. "The lock is hand-print activated. Right now it’s keyed to only open to me."

The machine scanned, and the lock opened with a magnetic chunk that told me it was ready. I opened the door, revealing the contents inside. "It’s actually a gun safe as well," I said, taking out the three weapons inside, "but here's my diploma."