Maximum Guilt (Hidden Guilt Book 2) (23 page)

“I don’t know what the hell to believe. Heard she used to live with you, and you might even have gotten her pregnant. Same girl we talking about, no?”

I stood tall and crossed my arms. My eyes locked on his. “That a question?”

Alstead got my drift and took a step back. “No, it’s an observation is all.”

“I’ll be down to give an official statement soon.” I turned my back to him and walked away.

“Hey, Porter. Thought you might wanna know Brittany Foy didn’t make it. They pronounced her dead about ten minutes ago.”

I just kept walking.

Chapter 56

I went down to give my statement to Alstead and his boys. I’d been thinking about what our next step should be. The conclusion was the same every time: we needed to head back to Houston to regroup. It made no sense to wait anywhere else but home.

Maybe Stacy would go into hiding or lay low for a few months . . . or years. Hell, for all I knew, she might take up piano, never engage in crime again, and die an old woman. The latter seemed unlikely, of course, but we really had no direction.

Lafitte and De Luca shared a hug and said a long good-bye. Even ended it with a forehead kiss from Paul. He was headed back to New Orleans to decide whether or not he was joining me and my new team back in Houston. What I’d just witnessed told me his mind was pretty well made up.

De Luca and I were taking a flight back to Houston. I’d hired a company to get my truck back home. I never even considered driving back. I wanted to get home to my wife and kids as quickly as I could. Man, did that sound good!

I walked over to Paul and gave him a big hug. “Until we meet again, old friend.”

“Indeed. I’m going to be thinking about making that move to Houston as well. I’ll let you know something soon,” Paul said, smiling at De Luca.

We boarded the plane and got settled in our seats. Paul was taking a separate flight back to New Orleans. I couldn’t wait to lay my head back and shut my eyes for a few hours. De Luca gazed out the window at Paul, who watched from the tarmac as we got underway.

“He really likes you,” I said.

“Don’t try and lay it on thick for your friend. And I know he likes me; who wouldn’t?”

I laughed. “I can think of a few people.”

“Ha fucking ha.”

“I’m going to try and get some sleep. See you on the other side.”

Chapter 57

I felt the airspeed begin to slow and my eyes instinctively popped open. I couldn’t wait to get off this bird and see my girls. Miranda told me they would all be waiting for me in baggage claim. I hurried off the plane, darting in and out of people as I went. Finally I arrived at the baggage claim area, Karen spotted me first.

“Daddy!”

“Hey, Karen! Daddy is so happy to see you. Did you miss me?”

“You know I missed you. You can’t ever leave me again, okay?”

I smiled. “I’ll do my best.”

I finally made it to Miranda and Hilary. We stood there and hugged for a long time.

De Luca came over and exchanged pleasantries with my family as well.

“David, I’m going home. I’m exhausted. Will you be in the office tomorrow?”

“First thing in the morning.”

We loaded up in Miranda’s SUV and headed home.

Miranda looked over at me, her eyes clouded with worry. “You look worn out, honey.”

I reached over to hold her hand. “It’s been a trying few days, and it’s not over yet. I do believe I can finally get some decent sleep in my own bed. I have one stop I need to make on our way home.”

I gave Miranda the address to Franklin’s house. I needed to stop in and speak to his wife. I felt sick to my stomach about what happened. I was the officer in charge; it was my mission. I wanted—no, I
needed
to look her in the eye and apologize from the bottom of my heart. I knew it wouldn’t bring Franklin back, but it was the least I could do. I owed her that much.

We pulled up to the house. Everything in me wanted to back out of that driveway. This was by far the hardest part of my job. It was my job to protect the innocent and keep them safe.

Miranda placed her hand on my shoulder. “You okay? You don’t look so good.”

“No, not really. This part of the job is no fun. I’ll need a few minutes here.”

I climbed out of the SUV and made the long walk to the front door. Before I could ring the doorbell, the door swung open.

“Detective Porter?”

A young woman no older than twenty-four or twenty-five stood before me. She was tall and thin with long, blonde hair. Her deep blue eyes looked heavy and swollen. “Mrs. Shuppe, I presume?”

“Yes. I recognize you from TV. Can I help you with something?”

“I won’t take up much of your time. I wanted to come by and offer my condolences for your loss. I was the officer in charge the day—”

“It’s okay, detective. Don’t get me wrong, we’re going to miss Franklin, but he loved his job. His goal was to be a detective like you someday. He often talked about the cases you were working on. He couldn’t wait to chase bad guys and solve cases while wearing that detective badge.”

“I’m so sorry I failed him and you. And before you say it’s not my fault, it is. It’s my job to see every possible outcome and scenario. Quite simply, I didn’t do my job well enough this time. For that I am sorry.”

“Thank you for your humbleness, detective. Franklin and I both knew how dangerous his job was, especially being undercover. I’m so proud to have been his wife and to have shared some of it with him. No need for you to apologize. If you know who did this, and I assume you do, the best thing you can do for Franklin is to catch them.”

I gave Mrs. Shuppe a hug and my business card. The department had counseling services available that I also made sure she was aware of. What she said to me about catching them hit me like a gut punch.

I turned and started walkingaway then I stopped. One more thing I needed to do. I headed back for the front door. Mrs. Shuppe was still standing there.

“Is there something else I can help you with, Detective?”

I unclipped my badge from my side and handed it to her. “Please take this. It’s for Franklin.”

She offered me another hug. The tears were flowing now. I even shed a few myself.

“Take care of yourself and that kid,” I said, pointing to her stomach.

We rode the rest of the way home in silence. I wasn’t really in the talking mood after seeing Mrs. Shuppe. She was right; the best way for me to honor Franklin’s memory was to catch the maniacs who murdered him. One down and one to go.

Chapter 58

Once the girls were in their rooms for the night, Miranda and I lay cuddled in our bed.

I pulled my arm out from under her. “Give me a minute. I’ve got to look at something.”

Miranda had a confused look on her face. “Okay, but you better hurry back, mister.”

The cop in me had to check out the house and look around outside one last time. I had an uneasy feeling in my stomach. I unset the alarm and walked outside. The company I’d hired to get my truck to Houston had delivered. Only my truck and Miranda’s SUV sat in our driveway.

The night was quite still. The neighbors appeared to be tucked in tight for the night, their houses dark. The moon was full and sat high in the sky, providing almost enough light to read a book by. I headed back inside and set the alarm, laughing at myself for my paranoia.

I walked around the kitchen and checked the guest bathroom. Nothing. It was starting to feel like the only ghost I was chasing was an imaginary one in my head. I laughed at myself again.

I headed upstairs and, just for grins, I opened the girls’ bedroom doors for one last peek. Karen was tucked in tight and dead to the world. Hilary had headphones on and didn’t even realize I’d opened her door.

I went back to my room, took off my house shoes, and climbed into bed.

“David, is everything okay?”

“Everything is more than okay. Our family is whole again.”

A single tear rolled down my face. I couldn’t explain how rewarding it was to capture a fugitive. It gave me a high I couldn’t find anywhere else. Weeks and sometimes months of investigation all leading to one glorious moment.

But not even that came close to comparing how I felt right now. Nothing meant more to me than having my family together again.

“Dav—”

I placed a finger over Miranda’s lips. I pulled her close to me and guided her lips to mine. We kissed for what seemed like hours. And then I made love to my wife. It was the first time in over a year, so I was extra careful. In some ways, it reminded me of our first time together so many years ago. After a few minutes of hesitation on both our parts, the passion intensified. Before long, we reached a level that had only been matched a few times in our relationship. It was amazing.

After our lovemaking session ended, Miranda lay in my arms. I still couldn’t close my eyes, so I just laid there and listened until her breathing steadied and her body stilled. Finally, my eyes began to get heavy and I was out.

Chapter 59

The clock had yet to strike seven a.m. when our bedroom door flew open. Karen zoomed across the room and leapt into our bed, just like old times.

“Well, look who’s already up and at it,” Miranda said with a smile.

“Good morning, Mommy!”

If I were honest with myself, deep down I didn’t know if my family would ever be whole again. I’d told myself this time would be different. I knew what it was like to have my family torn apart. The last year reminded me that each day was a gift that needed to be cherished as such.

“Come and give your old man a kiss.”

I grabbed  Karen and tickled her for a second and got her even more wound up than she already was. I gave them both a final kiss, and then I headed down to make us all some breakfast.

We all loved bacon—who didn’t? Soon the entire downstairs smelled like bacon and fresh coffee. I popped some bread in the toaster and poured Karen a glass of orange juice.

Miranda came down first, and Karen trailed her a few seconds later. I don’t think any of us expected to see Hilary this side of noon and she didn’t disappoint.

As the three of us ate, I sent De Luca a text letting her know I’d be heading to the station within the hour.

We small talked a little, I simply couldn’t get over how happy even a simple breakfast with my girls made me. After I finished I kissed them both on the forehead.

I headed up the stairs to get ready for work. I stopped midway and winked at Miranda. She blushed and shooed me away. God, I’d missed that woman.

We said our good-byes, and I headed for the station. It was great being able to spend a little time with my family, but I knew what was waiting for me. I still had a fugitive on the run; I still had work to do.

As I walked through the station toward my office, several officers stopped to congratulate me on my new role as captain of the MCDH. Before I had my laptop powered on, Wilcrest was at my door.

“Glad to have you back, son. Chief Hill wants to meet with us in thirty. They tell you this isn’t your office anymore? You and your new team have an office space cleared out for you in the north wing.”

“Morning, Cap. Hell, I haven’t even assembled a team yet. I did make an offer to a couple candidates.”

“I won’t tell you how to run your team, but I’ll offer you this piece of advice: build your team with people you like and trust. Find people who are outstanding in their jobs, even if you don’t know them well enough to trust them completely. And lastly, make sure you have someone who is amazing but who you probably wouldn’t be friends with outside of work.”

I had an idea where he was going, but I guess my face didn’t convey that.

“What I’m saying is, the more diverse your team is, the more they’ll keep you on your toes in regard to managing them. It will teach you to trust people who are different than yourself and give you the opportunity to grow as both a leader and a man. I’ll see you in thirty, Chief’s office.”

As I sat down to check my email, I thought about what Wilcrest told me. That old-timer was a lot wiser than everyone gave him credit for. I was just grateful I hadn’t fallen into the trap that so many others had over the years. When I was a young boy, my grandmother taught me that you could learn something from everyone if you just shut your piehole long enough to listen.
God gave you two ears and one mouth for a reason, son. He wants you to listen twice as much as you speak.
I tried to remember her lesson, especially being a detective; listening to what people had to say was ninety percent of my job.