Page 54 of Fighting for Brielle
“Yeah. He just appeared out of nowhere two years ago. If you don’t mind, could you continue looking into him?”
“No problem. I’ll let you know what I find.”
After Justice ended the call, he spent the rest of the morning dealing with issues as they arose and any loose ends regarding the murders that occurred over the weekend. Toward one o’clock he asked Tawny if she wanted to ride along with him on patrol and visit the grieving families of Theo and Pedro, but she declined. He wondered why she preferred to be a desk sergeant when he’d seen for himself just how well she handled herself in the field. As he headed toward his Explorer, he made a mental note to ask her about it.
Worried about Rosie’s first day of school, he pulled up in front of Top of the World Elementary School and waited for her to be brought to the parents’ loop after he spent time with Theo’s and Pedro’s parents. Listening to them tell stories about their boys through laughter and tears drained him.
Cynthia Westfall was there to pick up Rosie, but when the child caught sight of Justice, she waved and hurried toward him.
“Hi, Chief!” She hugged him and waved at Cynthia.
“How was your day, squirt?”
“It was good. Everyone was really nice to me. The lunch lady gave me an extra cookie!”
Her girlish giggle warmed Justice’s heart. “That’s awesome. Okay, go on now. Mrs. Westfall is waiting for you. Do you have any homework?”
Rosie made a face. “Yeah. Pages andpagesof math.Yuck!”
He chuckled. “All right, then. Get to it.”
Justice hung around with the school resource officer, making sure the students were safe getting into their parents’ vehicles and crossing the street if they were walking home. Over the next two days he thought he should make similar visits to the middle school and high school. Maybe talk to the kids. No pressure. Just awant to get to know youapproach.
He drove through Laguna Beach, checking on things, until his shift ended at five o’clock. Exhausted by his emotional visit to the teenage boys’ families, he was ready to call it a day. Tawny had created a group chat and sent out her first text.
Tawny: Report in, guys.
Martini and Hutch texted they’d made little progress on their investigation. River reported that Carson had been friendly though not forthcoming about himself. When Dooley didn’t respond, Tawny sent out another text.
Tawny: Put down that donut, Dooley! We need a status report.
Dooley: Give me a freakin’ break! I was doing my job. You know? Writing a speeding a ticket?
Justice: Any luck?
Dooley: No. Went to every military surplus store in a twenty-five-mile radius. No one recognized our guy.
Justice: Great job, team. See you tomorrow. Especially you, Dooley. Don’t forget!
He replied with an unhappy face emoji.
Justice chuckled to himself and hopped on his bike.
When he arrived at the Main Street Gym, Brielle looked both serious and scared. She wasn’t attacking the punching bag with her usual verve.
Pulling her aside, Justice got right down to business. “We’ve got one week to whip you into shape, Bri. So, tell me, are you whipped right now?”
Her head snapped up. “No. Why would you ask that?”
“Because you look defeated to me.”
“I just?I just don’t want to let you down.”
He didn’t think that was it but didn’t want to contradict her. “You won’t. Not if you try. If you try and fail, that’s one thing. Not trying, though? No excuse for that.” His voice softened. “And just for the record, Bri, there’s nothing you could ever do or say that would let me down except…”
“Except what?”
“Tell me we’re through in a text message. That would hurt. A lot. Worse than getting hit in the head with a piece of steel.”
