Look For Me (Detective D.D. Warren #9)(113)

Self-defense was one of those gray areas of the law. Did Roxanna Baez have compelling reason to believe her life was in imminent jeopardy? Mike Davis had been pointing the gun for a good ten minutes without pulling the trigger. Then again, he’d used that time to confess to the murder of four other people. Of course, his self-proclaimed target was Anya, not Roxy. But he’d been looking straight at Roxy, not Anya, by the end. Meaning Roxanna could’ve believed herself in harm’s way . . .

This is where paperwork mattered. A savvy detective writing up her report. While also including a corroborating witness statement from her new CI.

As she explained to Alex that night, Jack finally tucked into bed, Kiko dancing at their feet in the backyard.

“You know when policing drifts into murky terrain? There’s what happened in the eyes of the law and yet what matters for the sake of justice?”

Alex nodded, hefted back his arm, let the tennis ball fly. He threw like a major-league pitcher. D.D. was already jealous.

“So, Flora Dane and I are two very different people. And yet just today, we managed to deliver two accounts of the events leading up to Mike Davis’s death, prepared individually and independently, which both included all the right words to help the ADA reach the same conclusion: Roxanna Baez was acting to save her own life when firing the pepper spray. In fact, Mike Davis had thrown himself into the stream of chemicals, deliberately inhaling the capsaicin into his lungs to increase the damage.”

“A version of suicide by cop,” Alex murmured. Kiko was already back. This time, D.D. got the ball. She did her best.

“Sad,” she commented now. “He was just a kid, not to mention as much a victim as Roxy and Lola in all of this. I think he really did believe he was doing what had to be done to save Roxy. That her family, far from being a support for her, was more like an anchor, dragging her down.”

“Tough.”

“Yeah. And too harsh. Because Juanita Baez might’ve made her mistakes, but she really was on the right track. And she was fighting for her girls. Had she gotten a little further with her own investigations, maybe her lawyer would’ve been able to put together a case, and real justice would have been served.”

“Kids don’t think of adults that way,” Alex said. “Especially not teenagers.”

Kiko whined. Alex got busy.

“Shooting Roberto,” D.D. listed off, “then murdering Roxy’s entire family before going after Hector, who’d once abandoned her, and taking on Las Ni?as Diablas, who’d threatened her. So many wrongs done in the name of right. Poor kid. Mother Del volunteered to pay for his funeral.”

Alex slid her a look. “Least the woman could do.”

“Exactly.”

“And Roxy?” he asked.

Kiko was back. D.D.’s turn again. She didn’t have her husband’s arm, but she did have her son’s enthusiasm. Who could’ve known this was exactly what she’d needed: Alex, Jack, and now the best spotted dog in all the land?

“Roxy and her dogs have moved in with Hector, believe it or not. I think they’ll all help each other heal. And she does still have Flora and Sarah. I’m not sure what I think of this merry band of survivors. And yet, after everything Roxy has been through, I’m grateful she has that kind of support. Certainly, I can’t imagine being in her shoes right now and facing everything alone.”

“So Flora Dane really is useful?”

“On occasion,” D.D. granted.

“And Phil and Neil?”

“They’ll come around,” she stated, not convincingly.

Alex grinned at her. “Just what you need, a little more chaos in your life.”

“Actually,” she said, as Kiko once again returned with her prize, “I think I’m handling this chaos just fine.”

“And working with a vigilante won’t rub off on you at all?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know.” D.D. winked at her husband, then launched another tennis ball into the air.

? ? ?

I FOUND SARAH ALMOST EXACTLY where I expected to: standing inside the historic college square, staring straight ahead at some Gothic monstrosity that must’ve cost a fortune to build in its day and had lasted the centuries since. Wearing a brown leather jacket, Sarah had her arms wrapped tight around her waist and was eyeing the collection of buildings with grim determination.

“I’m going to do it,” she said when I walked up, never taking her gaze off the college hall.

“Okay.”

“It’s like getting back on the horse, right? Everyone’s gotta do it sometime.”

“If you say so.”

“Besides, it’s not like I was attacked on campus. There’s nothing in these classrooms, the library, that should trigger me. Cramped apartments, sure. Roommates, fine. But I have my own studio place now. Not exactly close to here, but that’s okay. Long bus rides, T transfers, are a small price to pay for peace of mind.”

“I would keep your apartment,” I agreed. “It’s your safe zone.” Then I added: “For now.”

She finally looked at me. “Do you think I can do this?”

“I think you’re not the person I met a year ago. I think you’ve already proven you can do most anything.”

Her face collapsed a little, her eyes growing a sheen. “Flora, I’m scared.”