Free Death on the Sound by Wayne Saunders Page B

other, we started to get ready for work. This was one time I
was glad I had two sinks. Since, my makeup is on in ten minutes, I was done and
ready to dress before Maya. I watched her for a moment marveling at how
beautiful she was. She turned and smiled.
         “If you keep ogling me, you’ll never get to
work.”
         “We all have our little pleasures in life,
I’m just enjoying mine.”
    I
leaned over, kissed her breast, and then a quick kiss to her lips to seal the
deal. I dressed and had breakfast on the table when Maya came down the stairs.
         “I like this breakfast arrangement. Do you
hire out?” she smiled at me.
         “Only for sexy Indonesian women, but I’m
already spoken for, I think.”
    She
walked up to me with her bright smile on high and gave my butt a squeeze as she
sat down.
         “I think you are too.”
    We
ate, and I told her about my upcoming trip the next day. She was sad that I’d
be gone, but soon perked up when the promise of a weekend dinner to pay her
back for her Chinese pickup was in the offing.
         With breakfast dishes in the washer, we
both headed for our respective offices.    
         “I’ll call you tonight, okay Maya?”
         “I should be home about seven thirty. Be
careful on the road please.”
         “My safe driving techniques are legend at
the precinct.”
    I
smiled my biggest smile, and gave her one last kiss before she buckled up.”
         “You’re such a bullshit artist, aren’t
you?”
         “Now that hurt.”
    I
clutched my breast and hung my head. It was good enough acting to get a chuckle
from Maya.
    I
waved to a flapping arm outside her side window as the security gate lifted for
her exit. As I sat on the packed bus, I thought about Maya, and where we were
going with all this. I had to admit I was more than slightly committed to her,
and I was sure she liked me more than just a little. I’d always tried not to
get too tied down with my partners, male or female. But I had to admit Maya was
a bit different. What started out as lust for her beauty turned into something
a bit deeper. I knew she was serious, but hell we’d only been on one, well two
dates if you count the Chinese take-out, but we’d also been out many times over
the past two to three years, though not as serious as we were now. I did feel
comfortable with her, and we talked about everything when we were together. I
just needed more time to figure it all out.
         I walked in to find Tom busy researching
the names and dates involved around the death of Tully McBain.
         “Morning Tom, what was for dinner last
night? I kept you out pretty late, I’m sorry.”
         “Hey, it’s our job, and I had two Talapia
and a salad. I was so good; I think I heard angels in the background serenading
me as I ate.”
         “Jeez, I can’t take this too much longer.
Do you sit around and catalogue these pitiful pieces of crap in your spare
time?”
         “No, they’re just spur of the moment bits
of wisdom.”
    We
closed up Desiree’s case in the morning, and sent the package to the DA. I took
Tom out for lunch because I felt guilty for not feeding him the day before. We
met with the DA, Jamison McCord, and talked about what we could offer Tate for
his testimony if he decided to work with us. There were no guarantees. We got
back to the precinct, and I Googled the driving time to Walla Walla and found
out it was only a little over four hours.
         “Hey, Tom it’s only a little over four
hours to Walla Walla. I think we can do it in a day. How about you drive down,
and I’ll drive back or we can switch half way each way?”
         “Yeah, I’d rather do a day trip than stay
overnight. I hate motels.”
         “Okay, its four fifteen. I’ll make sure
we’ve got a car ready by six, and we’ll get on the road and be down there by
ten thirty. Of course, the way you drive maybe ten.”
         “Okay,