True Blue K-9 Unit Christmas

“I know.” Pete remembered how things had gone down, all too clearly.

She filled a bowl of water for Ricci, then pulled out a kitchen chair and sat down. He joined her. “You would think the lead detective would ask for our assistance in a case like this. But not the old stuck-in-the-mud guys like Zimmerman.”

“Listen, Faith, it might be best if you stay here for the night. You can sleep on the sofa. I’m off for the weekend, so the kids don’t have to be up early.” A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “You know they’ll love having a sleepover.”

“I’m not sure what to do,” Faith confessed. “I need to call off work this weekend, too, now that I’m the sole parent caring for Jane. I should go to a hotel, but the idea of making you drive us there in this mess of a snowstorm seems selfish.”

He didn’t like the idea, either. “It’s your call and I understand your concern. We don’t know each other very well, except to say hi at the day-care center. But the kids will have fun. And you’ll be safe. That’s what matters, right?”

“Right.” Her tone lacked conviction. “And I’m fairly certain we weren’t followed, considering the snow.”

The momentary silence was broken by the oven timer. Pete jumped up to check the pizza. Golden-brown cheese indicated it was ready. “Tell the kids to wash up for dinner.”

“Will do.”

He found himself smiling as he pulled the pizza out of the oven and set it on the cardboard backing to cut it. It had been a long time since he’d shared a meal with someone—okay, a woman—and it felt nice. But then he remembered how he’d once thought the same about Malina and look where that had ended up. She’d been murdered over secrets she’d kept from him.

Once everyone was situated, the kids sitting on pillows, Faith put her hands together and looked at him. “Shall we pray?”

He shouldn’t have been surprised. Earlier, Faith had mentioned getting support from her church. And his sister-in-law, Eva, was also a believer and had often prayed before meals.

Pete quickly folded his hands and stared down at them, giving Mikey a look that indicated he should follow suit. Thankfully Mikey copied Jane.

“Dear Lord, we thank You for keeping us safe in the snowstorm today. We also thank You for this food we are about to eat. We ask that you continue to guide us on Your chosen path. Amen.”

“Amen,” Pete echoed.

“Amen,” Mikey and Jane repeated.

The rest of the meal went off without a hitch, but Pete couldn’t help wondering about Faith and her beliefs about God and church.

Eva had tried to convince him to give attending church a try, but he’d resisted, his emotions too raw after learning of Malina’s drug abuse and subsequent involvement in a local drug-running operation.

Yet now he thought maybe there was something he was missing. Something that put a peaceful smile on Faith’s face, despite how her ex-husband had just been murdered and she had been shot at a short while ago.

Something that might make a difference in his and Mikey’s future if he had the courage to reach out and take it.

Faith could tell that praying before a meal didn’t come naturally to Pete, but she was touched by the fact that he went along with it, even encouraging his son to do the same.

She hadn’t dated anyone after her divorce. Between working and caring for Jane and Ricci, she didn’t have the time or energy to spare. Logan hadn’t been involved in the church. She’d joined shortly after moving to the NYC K-9 Command Unit because Brianne had encouraged her to attend. Two of her fellow female K-9 officers, Brianne and Lani, had welcomed her not just to the unit but as good friends. Lani had transferred to a new K-9 unit forming in Brooklyn, and Faith would miss her.

The sense of peace and rightness had cloaked her the moment she’d entered the congregation. It was refreshing to be with people who were so kind and caring. She’d instantly felt at home.

Of course, she was still learning, but feeling more confident in her faith every day. Brianne and her new husband, Gavin Sutherland, who’d be heading up the new Brooklyn K-9 unit, were both active members of the church. She’d often watched them together, thinking how wonderful it must be to have a relationship based on Christian beliefs.

“Can we play in the snow after supper?” Mikey asked.

“Yeah, can we?” Jane added.

“Not tonight, but guess what?” Faith injected enthusiasm into her tone. “We’re having a sleepover! Won’t that be fun?”

“A sleepover?” Mikey’s eyes widened. “Yay!”

“Where will we sleep?” Jane, the ever-practical one, asked.

“You could make a tent in the playroom,” Pete offered. “We’ll put sleeping bags and air mattresses on the floor so it will be comfortable.”

“Can Ricci sleep with us?” Mikey asked.

“Sure.” At this point, Faith knew there would be no way to prevent it. Besides, Ricci was a great watchdog. “And maybe tomorrow we can play outside and make a snowman.”

“Yay!” Jane shared Faith’s dark hair and blue eyes, but her mouth was all Logan. Her daughter’s smile reminded her of the earlier, happier days of their marriage.

Before it all fell apart.

It occurred to her that she might be using the sleepover as a way to put off telling Jane about her father’s death. It was hard to know how much a four-year-old would even understand. She glanced at Pete, knowing he’d had the same conversation with Mikey several months ago.

She made a note to get more advice from him, later.

When the kids finished eating, they ran back into the playroom.

Pete began cleaning the kitchen, shooing her off when she offered to help. “I’ve got it.”

“Okay, I’ll take Ricci outside then.” She put her K-9 on his leash.

Ricci took his time, sniffing all around the yard as if he’d picked up some other animal’s scent. She hunched her shoulders, keeping a wary eye on the road in front of Pete’s house.

The traffic had dissipated, leaving the occasional driver passing by. Nothing looked remotely suspicious or out of place.

Faith wondered if she’d overreacted. She was here at Pete’s just because of seeing the slight disturbance on the windowsills outside her home. The houses were close together; it was possible that someone had gotten an address confused. Or maybe they’d been left by kids who’d wanted to get a closer view of the Christmas tree.

A car slowly rolled down the street past Pete’s house. It was difficult to figure out what kind of car it was, since it was covered in snow.

As it went by she noticed the license plate was also obscured by snow. She rested her hand on her weapon and debated calling for reinforcements. There was a flash of brake lights, as the car stopped at the intersection for what seemed like an incredibly long time.

Ricci came over, his tail thumping against her, but she kept her eyes glued to the car. There was only one person in it. Why was the car just sitting there?

Finally, the brake lights disappeared and the car turned to the right. The suspicious part of her nature made her wonder if it was going to go around the block to end up in front of Pete’s house again.

She waited, holding her breath, but the car didn’t return.

“Idiot,” she muttered under her breath. She looked down at Ricci, who nudged her with his nose. “I’m losing it, Ricci.”

Ricci wagged his tail and she hoped he wasn’t agreeing with her.

After cleaning up after Ricci, she went back inside. Ricci did the shaking thing again, spraying her with water. Pete’s kitchen would need to be thoroughly cleaned once they were gone. No doubt he’d had no idea what he was getting into by inviting them to stay.

Her cell phone rang, a jarring noise in the silence of the kitchen. She quickly answered it. “Hello?”

“Officer Johnson?” a deep male voice asked.

It took her a moment to recognize the detective’s drawl. “Yes, this is Officer Johnson.”

“This is Detective Zimmerman and I have a few more questions for you.”

She sank into the kitchen chair, wondering if Chief Jameson had already reached out to assign someone from the NYC K-9 Command Unit to work with him. “I’m listening.”

“Do you know Claire Munch?”

“Yes. As I told you earlier today she’s engaged to my ex-husband, Logan. But I can’t say I know her personally. She never said much when I dropped Jane off on the weekends she spent with her father.”

“I see.” There was a brief pause. “Can you be more specific? When did you last see her?”

She straightened in her seat. What was Zimmerman leading up to? “It’s been at least three weeks. She wasn’t always around when I’d drop Jane off.”

There was another long silence as Zimmerman digested this bit of information.

“May I ask what this is about?” Faith finally asked. “Have you spoken to Claire?”

“Claire wasn’t at the apartment she shared with Logan and the neighbors claim there were loud voices and some sort of argument going on between them roughly an hour before his body was found on the parkway. One of the neighbors mentioned he left, alone.”

Faith felt her jaw drop. “They had an argument, and now she’s missing?”

“I can’t say that she’s missing. For all we know she’s been staying with friends or at a hotel since their argument.”

Faith’s mind whirled with possibilities. Then, as long as she had Zimmerman on the phone, she asked, “Did you find any evidence of gunfire at the crime scene?”

“Nope. Nothing hit by a bullet or any bullet fragments.” He paused then continued, “I looked into your guy, Trevor Wilson.”

“And?”

“He was released on bail a couple of days ago. You may want to watch your back, Officer Johnson.”

Released on bail? Faith couldn’t believe it. “I will,” she belatedly responded.

“Oh, one more thing.” She waited. “Apparently your chief called mine and there’s an officer from your unit who will be assigned to work with me and my partner.” His tone was level, but she sensed he was frowning. “I guess you know about that.”

She couldn’t lie. “I asked for someone from my team to be included. I don’t think you should discount the help a good K-9 cop can provide. My partner was able to track Logan’s scent from the side of the road to where he’d fallen, which tells us he walked from the vehicle to the spot where he was stabbed.”

“Yeah, well, that information doesn’t help us much at the moment, does it?”

She wasn’t going to argue the merits of her K-9 partner. “Anything else, detective?”

“That’s it for now. Remember, watch your back.”

She disconnected from the call and sat for a moment, ruminating on what Zimmerman had told her. Claire Munch was missing, and Trevor Wilson was out on bail.

What did it all mean?

FOUR

Pete woke up the following morning filled with an odd sense of anticipation. It had been a long time since he’d looked forward to a new day. Malina’s passing, preceded by several tense weeks of marital discord, had weighed him down. He’d moved forward for Mikey’s sake, and had even gone through counseling sessions with his son but hadn’t experienced the simple joy of being with someone in what seemed like forever.

Excited voices coming from the first floor had him hurrying through his morning routine. When he came downstairs, the scents of coffee and maple syrup made his stomach rumble with appreciation.

“You didn’t have to start breakfast,” he protested as he entered the kitchen. Ricci didn’t move from his seemingly new favorite spot, sitting between the two kids. He was too well trained to beg, but Pete knew he was smart enough to wait patiently for a morsel of food.

“Actually I did.” Faith gave him a harried look. She’d borrowed his sweats to sleep in last night and hadn’t changed back into her uniform yet. She looked adorable wearing his oversize things. “The kids were up early and complaining of being hungry so it was either listen to them whine or cook. I decided to make myself at home in your kitchen.”

“Sorry about that.” Pete realized he’d slept much better than his houseguest. “I can take it from here.”

She waved the spatula at him dismissively. “Don’t be silly. I’m already on the second batch of pancakes. Sit down. These will be ready shortly.”

After filling a mug with coffee, he did as she suggested. Mikey and Jane were seated on their pillows and had sticky smears of syrup on their faces. Mikey was blond, like Malina had been, and Jane was dark, like her mother, but at the moment they were acting like siblings. One minute they were arguing, the next they were grinning at each other.

“Daddy, can we build a snowman after breakfast?” Mikey asked.

“Yeah, can we?” Jane echoed.

Since Faith had pretty much promised they could, he exchanged a glance with her before granting permission. “Sure.”

“You’ll have to wait until we eat, too,” Faith cautioned. “You can use that time to clean up the mess from your fort.”

“I don’t wanna clean,” Mikey protested.

“Me, either,” Jane chimed in.

“Then I guess you don’t want to go outside to build a snowman.” Faith flipped the pancakes on the griddle.

Pete hid a smile as the two kids looked at each other, then back at their mostly empty plates.

“Okay,” Jane said. “We’ll clean up our fort.”

“Yeah,” Mikey agreed.

“Glad to hear it.” Faith took a damp washcloth to both kids’ hands and faces, before lifting them off their seats and onto the floor. Ricci gamely followed them into the playroom.

“That was slick.” Pete stood and brought the empty serving plate to the counter so she could fill it with fresh pancakes. “I should take lessons from you.”

“Trust me, it’s trial and error every day,” she said in a wry tone. She added pancakes and joined him at the table. “It’s not easy being a single parent, is it?”

“Not one bit.” He forked two pancakes onto his plate then looked at her expectantly. “I, uh, suppose you’d like to pray?”

Faith nodded and bowed her head. “Dear Lord, we thank You for this food we are about to eat. We also ask for Your strength and guidance as we seek Your chosen path. Amen.”

“Amen.” Pete looked at her curiously. “You really believe God has a chosen path for us?”

“Absolutely.” Faith didn’t hesitate. “It helps me get through each day knowing God is watching over me and Jane.”

Pete frowned for a moment, staring blindly down at his food. “It’s hard for me to believe that God wanted Mikey to lose his mother and for Jane to lose her father. It doesn’t seem right that he would put young, innocent children through something like this.”

“I know it’s not always easy to understand God’s plan,” Faith admitted. She reached out to touch his forearm for a moment, heat radiating from her fingertips, before taking another bite of her pancake. “And it’s true God often works in mysterious ways. I don’t have all the answers. All we can do is lean on Him for strength while moving forward, trusting that we will understand his plan for us when it’s time.”

He didn’t find Faith’s answer particularly helpful, but he decided to let it go for now. The food was delicious, and he found himself more hungry than he’d been in a long time.

“You cooked, so I’ll clean up,” he announced, picking up his empty plate and carrying it to the sink. “After I check on the kids.”

Pete headed into the playroom to find the kids playing with toys rather than cleaning up. “Mikey, put the blanket away. Jane, please put the pillows away. When that’s finished, you can go back to your playing.”

“Oh, Dad,” Mikey huffed, but did as directed.

Pete turned and found Faith behind him. She was looking at two framed drawings on the wall. One was a picture Mikey had done at the day-care center and had given him for Father’s Day. It depicted their family—father, mother and Mikey. The family Mikey had lost. The other was a drawing Pete had done with colored pencils, depicting himself, Malina and Mikey in a replica of his son’s.

“Did you do this?” Faith asked pointing to his drawing. “It’s amazing.”

He nodded. “I wanted a way for Mikey to remember his mom.”

“You’ve very talented.” Faith glanced up at him in awe.

“Thanks.” He wasn’t, but it was nice of her to say so. He went into the kitchen to start the dishes, and Faith joined him at the sink.

It was nice to have someone to share the chore with. Ten minutes later they were bundling up the kids to head outside. Mikey and Jane were beyond excited to jump into the newly fallen snow, giggling madly as they tossed snowballs at each other.

Ricci joined the fun, playing in the snow along with the kids. With his vest off, Ricci knew he wasn’t working. When they’d made a rather lopsided snowman, Faith took a step back to admire their work. “All we need is the face.”

“I have carrots inside, for the nose.” Pete thought about what was in his fridge. “I’m sure I can find something for the eyes, too.”

“He needs a mouth, too, Daddy!” Mikey said with excitement.

Pete managed to find everything they needed. He returned a few minutes later. “Dark chocolate for the eyes,” he said as he pressed them into the small snowball of the head. “Candy canes for the mouth.” He pushed those into the snow, as well. He handed the large carrot to Faith. “Last but not least, the nose.”

Faith took the carrot, but as she was about to stick it in, Ricci jumped up to grab it. Faith tried to hold it out of the dog’s reach but fell backward into the snow.

“Ricci, no!” Jane cried, but it was too late. Ricci had the carrot in his mouth and began galloping around the yard, unwilling to let it go.

The kids ran after Ricci, who obviously thought this was a fun game. Pete offered a hand to Faith.

“Thanks,” she murmured as he helped her to her feet.

He stared down at her smiling face, fighting the insane urge to kiss her. Instead, he released her hand and stepped back in an attempt to break the sudden awareness between them.

They were both single parents. Both had four-year-old children. His wife had been murdered and so had Faith’s ex-husband. But that was where the similarities between them stopped.

He couldn’t risk going down this path again. There could be nothing more than friendship between them.

Faith couldn’t believe she’d nearly kissed Pete. She hadn’t been interested in men since her divorce and had no intention of acting on any sort of attraction now.

Despite her chief’s directive, she had a murderer to find. And a daughter to keep safe. Neither of those priorities involved Pete Stallings.

“I’m cold,” Jane said.

“Me, too,” Mikey added.

“I’m not surprised. You’re both wet and covered in snow. Let’s go inside.” Faith glanced at Pete. “It’s time for us to head home.”

“I’m happy to take you wherever you need to go,” Pete answered. They went into the kitchen and shucked their wet things. “Maybe we should throw the kids’ coats, hats and mittens in the dryer before heading back out.”

She wanted to hit the road but saw the wisdom of his suggestion. “Okay.”

Pete disappeared with his arms full of clothes. The kids ran into the playroom, with Ricci on their heels. Her phone rang from an unfamiliar number and she hesitated a moment before answering. “Officer Johnson.”

At first, there was nothing but heavy breathing on the other end of the line. Faith tightened her grip on the phone. “Who is this?”

“I’m watching you.”

A chill snaked down her spine and she quickly glanced over her shoulder. The voice was mechanical, difficult to tell if it was from a man or a woman, but she thought this was something Trevor might do. But how had he gotten her number? “What is your name?”

More silence.

“I’ll find out who you are,” she said in a stern voice.

The call abruptly ended. She called the number back, but it didn’t go through. The caller must have turned the phone off. She stared at the screen for a moment, knowing she’d have to find out who the number belonged to as soon as she was back at headquarters.

I’m watching you.

She didn’t like it but tried to shake off the sense of forbidding. As she returned to the kitchen, her phone rang for a second time, but she relaxed as she recognized Brianne’s number. “Hey, how are you?” Thankfully Pete was still down in the basement, where she assumed the laundry facilities were located.

“I’m fine, but the real question is—how are you?” Brianne’s voice held a note of concern. “The chief asked me to help work the case involving your ex-husband. I’m sorry, Faith.”

“It’s terrible,” she agreed, eyeing her daughter. Faith felt bad that she hadn’t told Jane the news about her father, yet. “Have you spoken to Detective Zimmerman?”

“Yes.” Brianne’s tone indicated she wasn’t impressed. “He’s annoyed that he has to work with us. He claims that Logan’s fiancée is missing.”

“I heard.” Faith hesitated before continuing, “I think we should use Ricci or one of the other K-9s to pick up her scent.”

“Interesting idea,” Brianne said thoughtfully. “But don’t you think she probably left by car?”

“Maybe, but it’s worth a shot. I’m worried that Claire got mixed up with something criminal and dragged Logan into the middle of it.”

“We can’t forget about Trevor Wilson, either,” Brianne pointed out. “He’s out on bail, but I haven’t been able to get a line on him.”

“Could be he skipped town.” Faith didn’t really believe it. She glanced over as Pete came into the kitchen to refill his coffee mug. “Listen, I’m going to pick up my vehicle. Has it been towed?”

“Unfortunately, yes. We were put on notice that it’s in the tow lot not far from headquarters.”

“Great, just great.” Faith hoped Chief Jameson wouldn’t hold the towing against her. “Thanks, Brianne. I also found footprints in the snow outside my windows last night. Could be neighborhood kids, but the timing is suspicious. I have some other thoughts on how to proceed with our investigation.”

“Our investigation?” her friend echoed. “Chief Jameson asked me to take it since you’re too close to remain objective.”

“And I’m sure Chief Jameson knew full well that I wasn’t going to sit idly by while you and Zimmerman did all the work. He and his siblings worked hard on their oldest brother’s murder, didn’t they? And they solved the crime.”

“Yes, they did.” Brianne was silent for a moment and Faith could feel Pete’s gaze boring into her from across the kitchen. “Okay, fine. We’ll discuss strategy. We can meet at the Command Unit.”

“Sounds good. Thanks, Brianne.” Faith disconnected the call and pushed the phone into her pocket.

Pete eyed her over the rim of his mug. “We should be ready to go in twenty minutes.”

“Thanks.” She didn’t really want to leave but knew she couldn’t put off telling Jane about her father forever. And she would, tonight. “You mentioned taking Mikey to a therapist. What’s her name and number?”

Pete set his coffee aside and quickly scrolled through his phone for the information. He wrote it down and handed it to her. “I added my number, too, in case you need to call me.”

She blushed and then quickly jotted her number for him, as well.

“When are you going to tell Jane?”

“I don’t know.” The upcoming conversation loomed overhead like a thundercloud. “Soon. Tonight.”

He nodded, his dark eyes serious.

“I’m glad she’s been focused on playing with Mikey.”

The corner of Pete’s mouth tipped up in a smile. “They are something, aren’t they?”

“For sure.” There it was again, that strange awareness shimmering between them. She cleared her throat. “I’m going to take Ricci out for a bit.”

Fifteen minutes later, when Faith came back with the dog, Pete had the kids bundled up in their warm clothes. They piled into his vehicle, each parent getting their respective child secured in their safety seat.