Page 14 of Chrome Poppies

According to the map, there were several routes, but I prefer to take the scenic route along the Sequoia National Forest. It wasn’t like we were rushing to our destination, so why not take in a bit of sightseeing? Emilie would like that, or she may end up sleeping for a good portion of the ride. I have already discovered this child could fall asleep quickly and easily.

“All right, Emilie. Finish your breakfast and go to the bathroom. I want to hit the road before it gets too late,” I ordered her, only for it to fall on deaf ears. “Emilie?”

There was still no response until I shuffled over to the side of the bed and poked her on the arm with my finger. Her eyes moved slowly to face me and the grin that developed on her face was a sign she was a jokester.

Emilie slid off the bed and reached over, taking her bunny by the ears. “Pink Bunny needs to go potty too. He drank too much orange juice.”

I chuckled and walked back over to the window after she slammed the bathroom door. There was no sign of Levi Shields or the Chrome Poppies. The coast was clear for now, but we couldn’t waste time. I needed to get us out of Tehachapi as soon as humanly possible.

***

DETECTIVE LARRY MCRAE

We had sent notifications to all businesses spanning twenty-five miles asking that they notify the Los Angeles or Kern County Sheriff’s department if they see a man with Jensen’s description. The phones didn’t light up as we expected, except for a call from the overnight desk clerk at the Baymont hotel near Highway 58.

When I arrived at the hotel with Sherman, we decided it was best not to go to the room and alarm Jensen or the girl. We spotted a motorcycle, an Indian with a sidecar, and determined it had to be his bike. Sure enough, within fifteen minutes, the big man walked out of the hotel with a huge duffle bag slung over his shoulder and holding the child’s hand. “There he is, Sherman.” I said calmly. “You let me do the talking. There is no warrant and there will be no arrest, is that clear?”

“Crystal, boss man.” Sherman answered with a snarky tone. He didn’t enjoy being the lesser man in the duo, but he was a newer detective and was shadowing me. His arrogance reared its ugly head a few times when he overstepped his boundaries. He was young and over-confident, yet I couldn’t stomach the blatant disrespect he had shown me, forgetting I was higher on the echelon and could strip him of his title and his badge.

We walked cautiously across the parking lot toward where Jensen stood with the girl. When he made eye contact, he leaned over and whispered something to her, and she ran toward the bike. “Jensen Grimes?” I yelled with a bit of enthusiasm, only out of familiarity. We worked together for a few years and were the best of friends before he went undercover. Rae would joke that I should move in since I was over there almost every night for a beer and dinner. However, after a while, Jensen became non-existent to all of us and the entire department had written him, but the chief never terminated his employment. I am sure he had hopes that Jensen would come back; we all had hopes. He was a good Deputy; an even better man.

“Lawrence?” He said with no emotion. I recalled he always called me Lawrence. I was never sure if it was to be professional or if he just called me that to be a smart ass. It was hard to tell with Jensen Grimes. He was always quiet and stoic. If he ever joked, you’d never know it, since his humor was as dry as a bone.

I turned to Sherman, “Can you go check on the kid? I’d like to have a word with Jensen alone.”

Sherman sighed heavily at my request with his hands on his hips before pointing at Jensen. “You better not pull any shit with the boss man, little lady. We’re on to you.”

Gritting my teeth, I responded to his asinine comment to Jensen. “Just do as I ask and quit being a dick.” Sherman glanced at me with disgust in his eyes and stomped like a spoiled child over to the bike. I ran my fingers through my thinning hair and hummed, then stuttered. “H-how in the hell are you able to walk and talk? You were shot in the head.” My eyes wandered toward his forehead and there was no mark, not even a scar. “What kind of game are you playing?”

It was the only question I could think to ask, still trying to wrap my head around the fact that the coroner confirmed it was his body in the morgue. Here was Deputy Jensen Grimes—living, breathing, walking, talking. I wanted to reach out and poke him to see if my fingers would go through him to determine if he was an apparition. But what would explain the fact that Emilie could see him and communicate with him or hold his large hand. Not to mention, the 2022 Indian Tomahawk SE? Or maybe, I was in the middle of some bizarre dream. Well, that would be a dream to own such a bike, but it was irrelevant to this whole meeting.

“No game and it’s really none of your concern, Lawrence.” He said, trying to move around me, but I stepped in front of him and placed my hand on his chest. Holy crap, it was confirmed he was as whole as any human and had a heartbeat. It was also clear that I have lost my ever-loving mind.

I pulled my hand back quickly, clenching it into a fist before wiping the beads of sweat off my brow. “Wow! Is it me or is it warm out here?”

Jensen rolled his eyes, “It’s barely seventy degrees. So, get with it, you’re wasting precious time, Lawrence.”

“Dude, I mean Deputy Grimes,” I leaned in close to him and lowered my voice. “The coroner confirmed you were dead, yet, you don’t have any iota of a mark on you. Do you have a clone or a twin or something? I’m confused.” I looked anxiously around the parking lot. “Why do you have the kid?”

“Can I trust you?” He asked, and I eagerly nodded. “I’m taking her somewhere safe, but I am not telling you where we are headed. I know you’ll report this to the chief, who has a big mouth, and I don’t want this getting back to the wrong person, namely Levi Shields. Once Levi gets word that the only witness is alive, he’ll be hunting her down.” Jensen responded matter of fact, once again still trying to move around me.

“She needs to be placed in foster care. Social services is waiting for her and yet, we found her with you, last night at the Dairy Queen… in Lancaster.” I chastised him with my arms crossed over my chest, trying to appear intimidating. But to a guy who is well over six feet tall, he dwarfs my five feet seven inches.

“I thought you were the hotshot of all detectives, yet you are getting sloppy. If you did your homework, Lawrence, you would have seen that she has living relatives, on her mother’s side, living up north in Napa. Her aunt Janiece is Trisha’s sister and my people have contacted her already. So, if you don’t mind. I’d really like to get on the road with Emilie before Levi Shields catches up.” He paused and dropped the duffel bag to the ground. “I’m sure he will after a couple of his men noticed me last night when I was getting some toiletries from my bike. I expect him to show his ugly face soon and I want to put a fair amount of distance between us.”

“Which route are you taking?” I asked, not to be nosy, but intending to give him advice on a better route.

Jensen smiled condescendingly and shook his head, “There is no way in hell I am telling you which route I’m taking. For all I know, you’re one of Levi’s pawns. Now, if you don’t mind.” He groaned as he lifted the bag. “I need to go.”

I caught Sherman’s eye when Jensen rushed to his bike and gestured for him to come over to me. “Enjoy your ride, Pink Bunny!” I heard him call out and the moment he approached, he heavily sighed. “That kid is something else. She spoke through the stuffed animal.”

“Of course, she did. She doesn’t know you nor does she trust you. We need to do some research—look for Beatrice Dillon’s maiden name and see if she has a sister named Janiece. Allegedly, Emilie has living relatives in Sonoma and that’s where Jensen is taking her.” Sherman walked around me until I placed the back of my hand on his chest. “We need to follow these two until they reach Sonoma.”

“But Larry? That’s out of our jurisdiction.”

I glared at Sherman, “It’s for the safety of the child. I have a gut feeling the Chrome Poppies won't be too far behind these two.”

TWELVE

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