Free Memory Lapse: A Slater Vance Novel by LR Potter

with his elbow on his knees. With his
face buried in his hands, he said softly, “Jesus Christ, Tuck, you could have
been seriously hurt. The guy could have had a gun. You could have been killed…
all because of that woman.”

Tucker laid a comforting
hand on his brother’s shoulder. “But I wasn’t. And Slate, it wasn’t her fault,
she is not to blame. I’m fine and she has no one, Slate, no one. I have to help
her.”
    Turning his head to
glance at his brother before turning away again, Slater said quietly, “I
thought when Bridge first called me… it was just like mom and dad… like Anne
and Sophie… I don’t want to go through that again, Tuck.”
    Wrapping his arm around
Slater, Tucker said just as quietly, “I’m so sorry, Slate… so very sorry.”
    Their bubble of
brotherhood was interrupted by the nurse calling Tucker’s name. With one last
squeeze of his hand, Tucker rose and followed the nurse with Slater tagging
behind.

 
    ◊◊◊

 
    Slater walked into the CPD
a little after two in the afternoon. It’d been a long couple of days and he was
tired. He lifted a hand in greeting to several people he knew, some personally,
some professionally. Weaving his way to Bridge’s desk, Slater stopped to snag a
cup of the foulest coffee he’d ever tasted. He thought he’d never say this, but
he missed Bennie. Now, that woman knew how to make a mean cup of joe . She liked all those fancy
coffees and Slater frowned at the thought, I
must be getting soft, because by golly, he liked them too.
    Slater sat back in the
chair across from Bridge and quietly sipped the foul excuse for coffee and
waited for him to finish his call.
    “Hey, Pretty-Boy, what
the hell happened to your face… you don’t look so
pretty right now? Bridge asked, smiling.
    “Propositioned the wrong
woman, I guess,” Slater smirked.
    “It wasn’t Bennie, was
it?” Bridge deadpanned then busted out laughing at the stunned expression on
Slater’s face.
    “How’s the Father?”
Bridge asked more seriously with obvious concern once his laughter subsided.
    “He’s fine, dumb as dirt…
but fine.”
    “Good, glad to hear it.
I’m surprised he didn’t come with you. There were a couple of things I needed
him to sign.”
    With a roll of his eyes,
Slater said, “Please. Are you kidding me? Once the doctor declared him good to
go, Tuck decided that as long as he was already at the hospital, he should make
his rounds. It’s his day off and he wants to make rounds… he was just attacked
and he wants to make rounds…” Slater couldn’t hide his frustration, nor did he try
very hard.
    “Good ol ’
Friar Tuck. They broke the mold after they made him, huh?” Bridge smiled.
    “Sure did. Now, maybe you
can tell me who the guy was who hit my brother, the Father , in a church no less.”
    With a frown marring his
features, Bridge replied, “Well, obviously the perp was gone by the time we got there, but from what we can gather, it was Zeke Zagoria . He was there looking for Honey. Fortunately for
her, he didn’t actually find her… thanks to your brother.”
    Sitting back hard enough
to splash his coffee, Slater blanched at the thought of what could have
happened with someone as dangerous as Zeke Zagoria .
Damn his brother for getting involved with that woman! Damn her for dragging
Tuck into her disastrous mess!
    “I don’t have to tell
you, this is dangerous business. I’m concerned about the connection your
brother has with Honey Luscious. I don’t think he’s safe,” Bridge continued.
    “I agree. But what can I
do? I have to tell you, Bridge, I don’t think this woman is Honey Luscious.
Yesterday, I mean, the day before yesterday, I found a suitcase in the ravine
off the accident site which I think belongs to that woman. The clothes in the
case weren’t what you’d expect to find for a hooker. I also found a picture of
this woman holding a small baby, like a hospital photo. Have you had any luck
finding anything