Page 1 of What Happened Last Night

Chapter One

Jamie

As the plane touched down on the tarmac, I couldn't help but feel the stress of being back in LA land promptly upon my shoulders. Eight weeks in Amsterdam had been an answer to a prayer, but, it was nearly time to get back to the grindstone. I already missed the cool, easy pace of life I'd had while I was there. However, family was here in LA, not to mention my job, but I didn't want to think about that.

Instead, I focused on my family. My mom had already called to say she’d be meeting me at the airport to drive me over to my abuela’s house. I was looking forward to the feast I knew my abuela would be cooking in anticipation of my arrival, but that was as far forward as I dared to look for the moment.

I wasn't ready to start thinking about returning to work. And yet I was due to do just that tomorrow morning. I had worked for the LAPD for ten years, and I loved my job as a detective. Or at least I did until my last case. That shit still haunted me even after my two months of leave. Whenever I closed my eyes, I could still see what that monster did to that sweet little girl’s body. Child murder was never pretty, but that case was by far the roughest case I had ever worked, and for a while there, I’d seriously considered walking away from the LAPD altogether.

That’s why my boss insisted I take the leave. He didn’t want me to leave permanently, and deep down, I guess I didn’t want to go, either. Despite the nightmares, despite the shit I saw every day, I still loved my job. I wasn’t ready to hand in my badge and flip burgers or something equally mundane. I wanted to make a difference.

I stepped inside the airport, grateful to be somewhere air-conditioned. I hurried to the baggage carousel and spent a harrowing fifteen minutes there, during which I managed to convince myself that my bag was lost. It wasn’t, and relieved, I grabbed it and made my way through the crowds to the exit.

I was barely through customs when I heard my name being called, and I laughed out loud, shaking my head when I saw my welcoming party. I felt my cheeks getting hot as I blushed slightly at the fanfare. My mom was waiting for me as promised, but she had neglected to mention that Sasha, my sister, and her kids would also be there. The kids waved handmade signs with my name on them.

I took a moment to study my mom. It had been too long since I had seen her pretty eyes, so dark brown they were almost black. Her gray hair was neatly pulled back and twisted into a clip at the back of her head. Most women couldn’t pull off gray hair. My mom wasn’t one of them. It made her brown skin look more radiant, and rather than wanting to hide it, my mom wore it like a badge of honor.

Seeing my family there waiting to welcome me made me happy, yet at the same time, it sent a message, one I couldn’t ignore. You’re home, Jamie. And that means you’re even closer to being Detective Del Rey again. Is that really what you want?

I was relieved when my mom threw herself at me, causing me to stagger slightly before I regained my footing. Her laughter and shouts of welcome home down my ear silenced my doubts. At least for now.

I hugged my mom tightly.

“I missed you, Jamie!”

“I missed you too, Mom.”

I had missed her. I missed all of my family. We had always been close, although Sasha and I had our moments growing up. Ever since my dad died when I was five and Sasha was three and we moved in with my abuela, we had become a solid unit. We had very little money growing up. My mom worked three jobs to keep a roof over our heads and put food on the table, but it was a struggle. We didn’t know it then, though. My mom made sure that Sasha and I were never short of anything we needed.

I disentangled myself from my mom and gave Sasha a quick hug. Looking at Sasha was like looking at a female version of myself. She had my olive skin and my thick, wavy black hair, although I had to admit that the waves looked much better on her.

“It’s good to see you, Bro.” She laughed as I hugged her.

“You too,” I said, meaning it.

Finally, I crouched down so that Lucy and Mason, my niece and nephew, could hug me.

“Have you missed your favorite uncle?” I said.

Mason nodded solemnly, his big brown eyes locked on mine.

“Yes.” Lucy nodded.

It came out as ‘yeth’ and I instantly saw why. Her two top front teeth were gone. I smiled to myself.

“You lost some teeth, huh?”

She nodded, beaming at me, her eyes shining with delight.

“The tooth fairy came, and she gave me two dollars for each tooth,” she announced.

“Wow,” I said. “She must have wanted your teeth pretty badly to leave you that much.”

I stood up and ruffled Lucy’s hair and then we headed out to Sasha’s car, laughing and joking and catching up on everything I had missed at home. By the time the car pulled up outside of my abuela’s house, I felt like I had never been away.

I stepped into the house and was instantly enveloped in the delicious smells wafting out of the kitchen. I could smell meat and spices and something sweet. It smelled like my childhood, and for a moment, I was back to being a kid again, running into the house to tell my abuela rambling stories about my adventures.

My abuela came out of the kitchen as she heard us come into the house. The whole block probably heard us coming into the house with my mom and Sasha talking at once and the kids laughing and shouting, feeding on our excitement.

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