Finding Floyd (11 page)

"I guess she was." Chris shrugged helplessly
and sat down across from her. "Don't worry. Granny was probably too
busy watching Wheel of Fortune to notice anything else."

"How did she get in there, anyway?" Diane
wailed with her face in her hands.

"Carol Anne probably brought her. Kyle says
everyone sort of forgot she was here. They all left and sometime
later on, they realized nobody knew where she was."

"They just forgot about their grandmother!"
Diane's usually calm voice became shrill as she buried her face in
her arms. "Oh my god! They forgot their grandmother. They lost
her."

Chris jumped up and stroked her shaking
shoulders, as she sobbed.

She lifted her head and swiped at the tears
that ran down her cheeks. "Oh my god! They forgot about Granny! And
we were about to get naked! That's the funniest thing I ever
heard!"

Chris looked a little startled, but couldn't
help chuckling.

"You seem to know these people," she gasped.
"Do they do this sort of thing all the time? I mean do they just
show up here for breakfast, have a concert in the back yard, and
leave the occasional family member behind? I'm sorry; it's just
that all of a sudden everything today seems so crazy and funny."
She started squealing with laughter again.

Chris grinned at her. "Yes, I'm acquainted
with them. I've been coming down here for a few years now, and it's
just what they do. I mean, they come for breakfast and stay for the
music. They don't, as a rule, lose family members though."

"Yeah, I guess they cut up fallen trees when
it's necessary too." She continued chuckling.

"It's just who they are and it's the sort of
thing people do around here."

"Honestly, I didn't mean to laugh, but
everything just seemed so funny. You know, everyone tried their
best to help me. I just wasn't ready to feed all those people.

"You didn't know. It wasn't your fault."

"They were all so nice. Some of the women
even brought cakes and desserts, but I don't think there's much
left. I don't know how Sandy can afford to feed that many people
all the time.

Chris got up, reached over, retrieved a
cookie jar from the kitchen counter, and removed the lid. Diane
looked in and was surprised to see a heap of bills.

She frowned. "What's all that money doing
there? I looked inside when I got here hoping for some cookies and
it was totally empty."

"When these folks show up on a Saturday and
Sandy makes breakfast, everyone chips in a couple of bucks. It's
just how things work. These folks would never mooch off anyone.
They're not freeloaders. Sandy always tells her overnight guests
that it gets a bit lively here on Saturdays if the weather is nice.
Most people kind of like the music."

"I liked it too! I never noticed anyone
putting money in the jar and I certainly never noticed the old
woman."

"I'm sure you were pretty busy. Sorry I
wasn't here to catch the fun."

Oh, that reminds me." She got up, went to the
refrigerator, removed a large flat casserole, then slid it into the
oven and turned it on.

"What's that?" Chris asked.

"It's dinner. Vicky and Jack brought lasagna
and she asked me to get it started. Her lasagna is to die for."

"Am I invited to dinner?"

Diane smiled. "If you'd like. Are you going
to disappear on me again in the middle of the night?"

Chris went to her, rested his hands on her
shoulders and kissed her lightly on the lips. "You know my job
doesn't make having a woman in my life easy."

"So, do you have a woman in your life?" she
asked studying his blue eyes.

"I hope to hell I do," he murmured against
her lips before wrapping her in his arms and kissing her deeply.
Pressing her into his chest, he kissed the top of her head and
stroked her long hair. "Don't go out with him."

She pulled away and frowned. "Who? What are
you talking about?"

"I know I don't have the right to ask this
yet, and I know he's closer to your age, but don't go out with that
Evans kid."

"Kyle? Seriously?"

"I don't want you seeing anyone else." He
hugged her and asked, "Please?"

"I don't know, Chris." She pulled out of his
arms.

Colby Jack sauntered into the room,
approached the puddle cautiously and sniffed at it. He turned his
green eyed gaze on them suspiciously for a moment, walked to the
back door, and then looking their way expectantly, he yowled.

Chris obediently opened the door for him and
the cat leapt onto the porch. "Now, where were we when we were
interrupted by Kyle pounding on the back door?"

Blushing, she looked down. "We should finish
cleaning up the water," she murmured.

"It can wait a few minutes longer." Slowly he
lowered his mouth onto hers and encircled her with his arms.

Diane melted. Her lips parted and she took
his head in both hands and held him to her. She probed with her
tongue and pressed herself to him.

He held her close, felt her firm breasts
against his chest, and shuddered with the anticipation of freeing
them once more.

The peepers kept up their song in the
darkness and a car's engine came to life outside, but the sound
faded. Kyle must be taking Granny home.

A long sigh escaped from Diane as she finally
pulled her mouth from his. Gasping, she held his gaze until he
lightly brushed his lips over hers and deepened the kiss.

His hand slipped beneath her shirt and cupped
her naked breast, gently stroking her nipple. Moaning he whispered,
"Diane, I--"

Rapid footsteps thundered across the porch
and the back door burst open.

"What the hell?" Chris lifted his head in
disbelief as an angry Victoria Conners rushed in followed by her
husband. She clutched a grocery bag and glared with hostility at
Chris.

"You! What the hell are you doing here?" she
stammered.

He closed his eyes and sighed, before
reluctantly releasing Diane's breast and lifting his head. "Not
much, I guess."

Vicky strode toward the refrigerator, but
pulled up short before the puddle. "What happened here?" she asked
in surprise.

Slipping behind Diane, Chris pulled her
against his chest and spoke over her, "Like I said. Not much, I
guess."

"Rodriguez!" gasped Diane, pulling out of
Chris's arms. "What's that woman doing here in Floyd?"

Chris winced when he saw the hurt look on her
face. "I know, I know. She's here, but it's not what you
think."

Jack looked at him and shook his head. "So
your girl friend, Rodriguez, is here with you. You guys are a
little far from home, aren't you?"

"She's not my girlfriend! We're not
together," he insisted, sighing and slumping against the counter in
frustration.

"Is that where you went yesterday? Did you
leave to spend the day with her?" asked Diane softly.

"Yes, but only because I had to," Chris
insisted.

"She keep you on a short leash, or what?"
Jack sneered.

"Come on Chris," urged Vicky. "Tell us what's
going on. What's Rodriguez doing in Floyd, if she's not with
you?"

"She's sort of with me. It's entirely FBI
business though."

"You do remember that woman arrested me, put
me in handcuffs and dragged me down to the police station?" spat
Diane. Angry tears filled her eyes and she turned to leave, but
Chris laid a hand on her arm, stopping her.

"Don't go." He pulled out a chair for her.
"Please, sit down and hear me out." . He sat next to her and
reached for her hand. "Let me explain."

"You lied to me, Chris," said Diane stiffly.
"You told me you weren't working with that woman anymore."

"I wasn't! Why would I want to work with that
bitch?" He squeezed his eyes shut and winced. Shit! That remark's
going to come back and bite me on the ass.

"So you both just showed up here," Jack
drawled sarcastically. He crossed his arms and surveyed the group.
"At roughly the same time we arrived in Floyd. And you expect us to
believe that it's all some crazy coincidence."

It looks bad, but believe me, it is, just a
coincidence."

"Yesterday, you told me that in law
enforcement you don't believe in coincidences," said Diane.

"Yes," he said uneasily. "I did, but it is a
coincidence that we're all here." He wrapped his big hands around
hers, leaned towards her, and said earnestly. "We, I mean the
Bureau doesn't suspect you of anything. Just trust me on this."

"Then how did you manage to arrive in Floyd
at the same time I did? What about Jack and Vicky? Did you know
they were going to be here too?" Diane's voice was cold and
lifeless as she waited for his explanation.

"I'm not sure you can explain this one,
Owen," said Jack, helping himself to a bottle of beer from one of
the grocery bags. He didn't offer one to Chris, but eased into a
seat across from them. "This is a pretty big-ass coincidence," he
said.

Chris drew in a deep breath and let it out
slowly. "Listen. When I was given this assignment, I had no idea
that any of you would be here."

"Really?" Vicky looked skeptical.

"First of all, Rodriguez is not now, and
never has been, my girlfriend. We've been together on some
investigations. Working, but that's all.

"But it was totally obvious that she was
interested in you," said Vicky.

"Whatever. I never encouraged her." He spread
his hands on the table top and began, "I'd been on a long-term
undercover investigation." He turned to Diane. "That's why you
hadn't heard from me in so long. I had some vacation time coming
and I was going to call you and head back to Pippin's Grove to see
you."

Diane looked surprised.

"Then my boss pressured me into helping him
out on this case. He knew that I had property down here. Since I
knew people here, he thought I'd blend in. It really was the
perfect cover. Most people here don't even know I'm with the FBI. I
requested that he let me handle the assignment on my own, even
though it's customary to have a partner or other agents as
backup."

"Then why did Rodriguez follow you here."
Diane asked.

"The boss sent her down here yesterday and
that was the first I knew of it." He paused and looked at the three
faces watching him.

"You FBI creeps still think we're all guilty
of something though, don't you? Why can't you leave us alone?" said
Vicky. She began to furiously thrust grocery items into the
refrigerator, casting cold glances his way.

The silence was broken by the shrill whistle
of the tea kettle. Vicky dropped a teabag into a pink flowered mug
and poured hot water in after it. Picking up a spoon, she carried
it, along with the honey jar, to the table and set them in front of
Diane.

"Thanks Vic."

Skirting the puddle on the floor, Vicky
returned to her groceries without a word.

Jack sipped his beer and studied the agent
thoughtfully. "You've got to do way better than that. Why don't you
tell us exactly why the FBI has agents in this out of the way
corner of the country? Floyd isn't exactly a crime hotspot.
Obviously you're looking for something in particular. What does the
case have to do with us, or are you actually looking for us? Maybe
you're not telling us the whole truth?"

He didn't answer right away, but got up and
retrieved a beer from the refrigerator for himself and placed
another in front of Jack. Vicky opened a bottle of red wine, filled
a large glass and sat next to her husband. Frowning at him,
everyone sipped their drinks and waited for his explanation. No one
seemed to be in a particularly hospitable mood.

Chris looked at them and sighed. Toying with
his beer bottle, he considered his options. They're good people and
I like them all, especially Diane. I hate lying to them. Maybe I
should go ahead and quit the Bureau. Find another line of work.
That would put an end to all the travel and odd hours. Missing
holidays with friends and relatives is getting old.

Then again, I've had eight years with the FBI
and I'm on a good career path. There's a better than an even chance
that I'll be in line for that promotion when the boss retires later
this year. Leaving now would be a tough decision.

I shouldn't tell them anything, but...maybe
this is the time to bend the rules. Just a little. It's not as
though I've never bent the rules before. Why not tell Diane and her
friends why I'm here. They might even help me in the search for The
Blowtorch. Stranger things have happened.

"So, are you going to tell us what you're
doing here?" asked Jack, breaking the silence.

"All right." He drank some beer and let out a
long breath. "Okay, the reason I'm here is because there's someone
the Bureau has tracked to Floyd. There's a good possibility that
he's in the vicinity. I had a convenient cover story, because I
come to Floyd from time to time. I've got property here where I've
been slowly building a house, for nearly three years."

Diane stared into her tea as she drizzled in
a spoonful of honey.

"Coincidentally, this does have something to
do with Tony DePalma, the idiot whose laundered drug money you
stumbled onto last fall."

This got their attention.

"I thought he was in jail," said Jack.

"He is, but he turned state's evidence and
gave up information, which led us down here." He paused. I've
already said too much. Maybe, they'll be satisfied with what I've
told them, and won't ask questions.

"So, you're looking for somebody with links
to DePalma," said Jack.

"You might say that," he answered
evasively.

"Chris, I know you're friendly with my Uncle
Dominick," said Vicky. "Didn't he help you with the Tony DePalma
thing? Don't you think you can trust us?"

"I do trust you. It's not that at all. It's
just..." How much should I tell them? If Rodriguez found out she'd
raise hell, but on the other hand, Agent Rodriguez bends the rules
whenever she damn well pleases.