Page 3 of Justice for Radar

Damn, kid…I thought of my girl, Lucia.You got a radar for shit just like your old man.

“Um, he had to go… on to a job down here the next day. Two weeks later, he asked to fly me here to join him with the plan to drive me back through Texas where l live. Today, we were supposed to head back but…” her face scrunched, and the tears began to flow. “He, um, he left me.”

She wrung her hands and sniffed hard, trying not to fall apart. She said, “I don’t have any money. I, um, only get paid once a month and that isn’t for three more days. He knew that and…” She cleared her throat and got herself together and said, “So here I am and I don’t know quite what to do but I’ll figure it out.”

“Okay.” I nodded slowly and asked, “Can I ask a few questions?” She nodded. “What is it you do?”

“I’m a subcontracting graphic designer, a sort of ghost writer if you will, only for cover designs for books instead of writing them, you know?”

I gave a small laugh and said, “I don’t, but I assume that means as long as you have your laptop or access to a computer, you can do your job from anywhere?” She nodded and patted the side of a large tote-looking bag down on the floor between her leg and the window.

“That’s why Billy and I were supposed to, um, work… you know, as a couple or whatever.”

I nodded.

“Okay, so in a few days you get paid, and then what was the plan?” I asked.

“Buy a ticket home from the same airport, same cheap airline, hope I have enough after rent and bills to get a hotel, and when I get home, do the whole ramen diet and never trust anyone ever again?” she cringed adorably, and I chuckled.

“Well,” I said with a deep breath, sighing out on the end of it. “I know you’re low on trust and believe me, you have every fucking right to be by the sound of it, but I think I got a way to fill a few gaps in your plan if you think you can trust me and my kid over there.”

I jerked my head back in the direction of my daughter, who was serving another table. Curiosity swirled in Justice’s brown eyes, and she swallowed. I could see she already did trust Lucia, I think just by virtue of her being female, which, believe me, I both understood and wasn’t offended by at all. After all, catching criminals was my trade. I didn’t overmuch pay attention to what they did – a bail jumper was a bond jumper was another skip trace to put food on my table to me, but some of those captures? Knowing what they did and knowing I was putting them back behind bars definitely put a little sugar on top of the cheddar I earned for doing it. Which sounded weird putting it that way, but it makes sense, you know?

“I’m listening,” Justice murmured and sat back in her seat.

I nodded.

“This is what we’re gonna do…”

2

Justice…

“It’s up to you,” he said, leaning back in his seat, crossing his arms over his chest. I eyed him from across the small table.

He was a compact individual, and all of it was pure muscle, from the sleeveless white tee showing off muscular arms that belonged on a carved statue, to his long tan cargo shorts that practically hugged equally muscular thighs. The man introduced to me as Radar looked dangerous. Like he’d hurt people before, or maybe even for a living. He fixed me with a patient but kind gaze, his deep brown eyes almost black, smoldering but naturally so. No, his emotional state was calm – incredibly so. Calm and smooth as glass, which I could tell. I’d had a lot of practice reading moods. From the way I’d grown up to… to living with Rodney… before Billy.

I swallowed hard and said, “And your oldest daughter, you’re sure she won’t mind?” I asked softly.

“Mariposa?” He shrugged. “One, she’s at college, up the coast in Tampa, and two, it’s my house. What I say goes.”

“And just like that?” I asked. “Just like that, you’ll invite me, a woman you don’t even know, into your house to stay?”

I was having a hard time wrapping my mind around it. It was so bizarre.No one was ever this kind…

“Just like that, if you want to,” he said and held up his hands. “Only if you’re comfortable with the idea.”

“Wait, only ifI’mcomfortable?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

I sat and mulled it over for what was probably too long, but still this was kind of a big ask of somebody I didn’t know. But honestly, what exactly did I have to lose of any value here? My life? Didn’t seem like too much was there to be honest.

I heaved a sigh and nodded for Radar’s benefit.

“Yeah?” he asked, his gaze sharp and intelligent.

“Yeah,” I affirmed. “Yeah, okay… I mean, I don’t have anywhere else to go.”

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