Part 4 (1/2)

”You didn't see his eyes. I swear he's just on the edge of proclaiming himself king of the world. He thinks he owns us, Luk.”

”You know he doesn't.”

”Yeah, well, he wouldn't agree. And I do worry about you, every day. He knew exactly where to hurt me. You and my father are the only family I have. He knows me, Luka, like no one should. I can't decide how to proceed from here.”

”Let's talk to the captain.”

”No, not yet. Not until I figure some things out. Please don't go to him, Luka. Give me time to investigate this guy.”

”We have to let the department know what happened to you.”

”We will. Just follow my lead. After we're finished, you can take me to the station and we'll check in with the captain.”

Luka shook his head. ”Okay, you can drive this thing, but if I suspect that you're pulling all of this just to protect me, I'm going to speak up. I have to protect you as much as you feel you have to protect me. Let me call in and see if I can find out anything about your girl.”

”d.a.m.n, I hope I'm wrong.” Mal looked out of the window at the burgeoning traffic as people headed to work. It all seemed so normal. Looking back into Luka's eyes, she sighed. ”But I don't think I am.”

Mal took a long sip from her second cup of coffee, hot and steaming, as she watched Luka. His face was stern through the entire conversation on his cell phone, his expression unchanging as he thanked someone, then turned it off and laid it on the tabletop.

”f.u.c.k,” he swore softly.

Shaking her head, Mal dropped her eyes and stared at the bubbles on top of the slick black liquid.

”How?”

”Hit and run. Two nights ago. No one saw the vehicle. G.o.d, Mal, I'm sorry. She was just trying to do the right thing.”

Mal stood, downed her coffee and dropped her cup back onto the table with a bang. ”We both know that usually doesn't turn out right. I'm ready, Luka, take me in. And just back me up. You don't know any details anyway, so you'll be in compliance. You didn't see who hit you, did you?”

”No. One minute I was chomping on that hot dog, and the next thing I knew, you were gone and I was freaking out. I was worried to death, Mal, that I'd lost you. I gotta say that last night was one of the worst nights of my life.”

”Ah, that's sweet, don't make me hurt you.” But she could see by his expression that Luka really was terrified and was barely past the fear of potentially losing her. She got it, she felt the same way about him, but neither one of them had ever really verbalized how much they cared about the other.

”I'm really okay, Luka. And I don't know how I'm going to do it, but I'm going to get that motherf.u.c.ker.”

Luka nodded and stood. ”Let's go, then.”

The Captain was relieved, but he tried not to show how much. The second he saw Luka leading Mal to his office, he laid the cell phone in his hand on his desk, and breathed a sigh of relief. G.o.d, he hated the thought of losing an officer. Any officer. But Mal was special. He'd known her father most of his career and she was like a second daughter (she didn't know that.) He watched her greeting other detectives as she made her way past them, stoic, a tight smile, hurried.

It made him grin. The girl was an excellent detective, but she just couldn't connect with people on a personal level. The girl had always played everything close to the vest.

All he cared about right now was that she was alive and seemed to be okay. As she entered his office, he nodded and tried to remain professional.

”Detective. I'm grateful to see you back. Are you all right?”

”Yes, sir, I'm fine.”

”Please, have a seat and fill me in on what happened.”

”Yes, sir.”

Mal sat in the chair to the Captain's right, and Luka stayed close, taking the one to the left. They were attached at the hip, so that didn't surprise him.

”You don't need to be checked out?”

”No, I'm okay. Whoever this was, they didn't hurt me, sir.”

”Do you know who kidnapped you?”

”No. All I know is that at the end of our surveillance last night, Luka and I were attacked. We were both knocked out. I didn't see who attacked us and Luka didn't either. I woke up this morning on Pigeon Beach. They must have kept me knocked out and just dumped me. That's all, sir. I really have no idea who did this or what they wanted. Well, other than to stop the surveillance, I think that's obvious.”

”You do?” Captain Kordalis looked from Mal to Luka and back to Mal. ”That's all you know?”

Mal shrugged her shoulders and lifted her eyebrows. ”Yeah, that's it. I guess my job's cut out for me now. If you'll let Luka take me home to clean up and get into proper work attire, I'll be back to begin the investigation.”

”You were unconscious the entire time?”

”Yes, sir, I was.”

Nodding, the Captain stood. ”Then Luka, you'll take her to Mercy to have her checked over. No complaints, detective. You've been unconscious in the hands of G.o.d knows who. They could have done anything they wanted to you. You're getting a physical. Luka, take her right now. That's an order.”

Luka stood and opened the door. ”Mal? Let's go.”

Mal stayed in front of the Captain's desk for several long seconds. She had a lot to say and knew not one word would make a difference. So she turned and followed Luka from the office.

Back out in the morning suns.h.i.+ne, she whispered, ”f.u.c.k.” The only thing she hated worse than blind dates and lame bars was the hospital.

The department was hustling, as usual for a Friday afternoon, the noise level was such that Mal looked around at all of the noisemakers and tried to figure out how to shut them all the f.u.c.k up so she could hear herself think. Nothing came to mind.

She was used to the caterwauling, but today her attention and efforts were on ten things at once and she was succeeding at none of them.

Looking up at Luka, his face buried in his computer screen, she sighed. ”Let's get out of here. I'm not finding anything helpful.”

”I may have. Look, this guy, Lawrence Canzone, he's one of the two guys you mentioned on Berenstein's list. I finally found a photo. Take a look.”

Mal had been searching for photos of Canzone for two days now since her abduction and she surged out of her chair to join Luka in front of his monitor. Freezing in her steps, her eyes locked on the screen, she nodded.

”f.u.c.k, Luka. That's him.” For the next thirty seconds, she just stared at the face that seemed to be staring back at her. Then her eyes bounced back to Luka's.

”He looks so nice. Bright smile, clean shaven, expensive business suit, like your favorite uncle. Only he kidnaps kids and sells them overseas. And sells drugs to the ones he leaves behind. And, oh yeah, feels comfortable with abducting an L.A. police officer and threatening her with rape and murder. Yeah, nice guy.”

”L.A.'s Businessman of the Year,” Luka chided. ”There's an address.”

He just let that comment lay there, and watched as Mal walked back to her desk and dropped into her seat. Her head downcast, her hands clutched in fists at her side, Mal was lost in contemplation. Eventually, Luka cleared his throat.

”What do you think? Do we confront him?”