Valerie Hansen - Bound By Duty

* * *

Watching Captain Blackwood oversee the testing of the base of the roll-up door, Zoe felt her confidence waning. Clearly, they weren’t finding the clues she had expected.

When the tech straightened, picked up his gear and shook his head, she knew she’d been bested. But by whom? By what? She was positive she’d witnessed a shooting. The chances of such a violent act leaving no trace were slim to none. There had to be something there. There simply had to be.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t trained to find it. She was trained to teach basic flying. Period. Frustration brought unshed tears to her eyes, and she fought to remain stoic. “I saw two people. One shot the other. A body fell.”

Linc’s left brow arched. “You’re sticking to that fairy tale?”

“No, I’m sticking to the truth as I know it. There’s a big difference.”

Although rancor in Colson’s expression was evident, he didn’t counter. Instead, he turned to his superior and apologized as if the callout was his own error.

“Sorry, Captain. This false alarm was my fault. The subject was out of my sight for a few minutes, so I can’t verify anything that took place during that time.”

“Well, see that she isn’t again, Colson.”

“Yes, sir.”

The look that the K-9 cop shot her gave Zoe the shivers. She didn’t know how her surveillance could get any worse but figured she was about to find out.

She desperately wanted to counter with a statement of her own but managed to hold her tongue. It was doubtful that either man would believe she’d merely been blowing off steam and overreacting in righteous anger regarding the unfair surveillance situation.

Someday, perhaps she’d have a chance to speak her mind, but this was certainly not it. She was already in enough trouble due to her relationship with her nefarious brother, however strained. Considering all the pressure she’d been under lately, there was also a one-in-a-million chance she might have been imagining things. There had been times recently when confusion over minor things had worried her.

If there was a chance that her mind was playing tricks again, her wisest choice would be to let everyone continue to believe she had made up the shooting story as a distraction. Otherwise, someone might deem her unfit—both as an aviation instructor and as Freddy’s mother. No way was she going to allow that to happen. Her job was important, yes. She loved her country and was eager to serve. But her little boy was everything.

THREE

“I can call a cab and escort you home,” Linc told Zoe after the captain and tech left.

“That won’t be necessary.”

“You’re right. It isn’t. But if you’re really as upset as you’ve been acting, it’s sensible.” He could almost see the wheels turning in her brain before she nodded.

“I’ll walk. But I would like the company, just in case. I have to stop at the side door and pick up my groceries.”

The change in Sullivan’s demeanor bothered him, not because she had stopped arguing but because she seemed so downtrodden. Still, she’d fooled him before, much to his embarrassment, and could easily be acting again. Making comparisons to her criminal brother was natural. Boyd had been charming when it suited him, then he’d changed into a self-serving killer.

Not that Linc believed Zoe was that bad, he assured himself. But it would behoove him to remember she was kin to a serial killer. She and her brother had had the same father, so there was a chance she had inherited whatever genes that made Boyd so dangerous. That judgment wasn’t a lot different from their process of choosing likely candidates for K-9 service. The tendencies for action had to be there before training began or efforts for tight control over those instincts might be time wasted.

Ahead of him, Sergeant Sullivan paused to reclaim her grocery totes and started out the door. Linc tensed, wondering if she’d try more evasive tactics and was mildly surprised when she waited for him to clear the exit with Star and fall in beside her.

“You were right,” Zoe said with a sigh. “I should have driven. I’m suddenly exhausted.” She paused for a heartbeat. “And, no, I’m not asking for that taxi or hinting that I want you to help carry anything while you’re on duty.”

Linc harrumphed. “It takes a lot out of you to evade the police, huh?”

“Dodging you wasn’t the smartest thing I’ve ever done.”

“They why did you do it?”

“Frustration, I guess. I got tired of being treated like a criminal and decided to rebel a little.”

“Not a good idea.”

She sighed again, this time more loudly. “Yeah. It seemed kind of okay at the time. At least until the shooting.”

Pacing her by shortening his strides, Linc remained silent and waited to see if she’d confess more. Instead, she gave him a cynical glance and said, “I really goofed. I liked it better when you and your cohorts were hiding and just shadowing me.”

“You may have seen us once or twice, but most of the time we were out of sight.”

She laughed.

Linc was not amused. “Are you insinuating you knew we were keeping you under constant surveillance?”

“Absolutely. For one thing, the fact that I was being watched made me edgy, made my senses tingle the way a hare reacts to a hungry coyote.” Pausing, she blushed. “Why do you think I started keeping my blinds closed?”

“Because you were hiding something.”

“Yeah, my private life.”

“We watched the doors for signs of your brother. We weren’t peeking in your windows.”

“Says who?”

“Says me. You don’t have a very high opinion of our Security Forces, do you?”

They had reached Zoe’s four-story apartment building. She stopped at the foot of the concrete walkway to answer. “I think the police, both civilian and military, do an amazing job keeping order and tracking down criminals. What I don’t like is being considered one of the bad guys.”

Linc had to admit she had a point. Assuming she was innocent, of course. He nodded in tacit agreement. “I get that. I do. But suppose you were positive a student pilot was unstable. Would you allow him or her to fly or would you wash them out?”

She made a face. “I’ve washed out more than one.”

“Because that’s your job as a flight instructor.”

“Yes.”

“Then bear with me here,” Linc said. “Watching you for clues to finding your brother, Boyd, is my job. Even if you haven’t been helping him since he escaped from prison, you can’t be certain he won’t show up looking for you. We know he or someone mimicking him has been on base or we wouldn’t have had threats and killings identified by red roses and predictable notes.”

He sensed he was getting through to Zoe. “Do you plan to spend the rest of the afternoon at home, Sergeant Sullivan?”

“Yes. As soon as I send the babysitter home, Freddy and I are going to play a few games.”

“All right. I’ll go up with you and check the place over.”

“Seriously? You want to search my apartment?”

“Unless you refuse permission. If you do, that points to culpability. My CO can always ask for a search warrant.”

“I know. Actually, given the morning I’ve had, I’d almost welcome it. Just don’t scare my little boy. Or the babysitter.”

“I’ll try not to. I was kind of surprised to see who you got to watch him.”

“Portia Blackwood, you mean?”

“Yes.” Linc had been shocked to see Justin’s daughter show up. “Does her father know she’s here?”

“I assume so. Captain Blackwood posted a notice asking parents to consider Portia for babysitting to give her something constructive to do now that she’s living with him. I called and left a recorded message and she got back to me.”