“Actually I suspect your latest case is probably pretty interesting,” he replied, looking at her curiously, “particularly if you’re hanging out at a nudist beach all of a sudden.”

  He kind of sang the nudist beach part, and that made her smile. “It’s not so much about a nudist beach. However, somebody drowned there.”

  He nodded. “That much I heard on the news, but that doesn’t usually concern your department. What’s going on here?”

  “Usually, no, it wouldn’t concern us, unless …”

  His eyebrows shot up. “Unless?”

  She shrugged. “Unless there are suspicious circumstances or something like that. It’s kind of an odd case really.”

  “So, tell me,” he said, his curiosity piqued, because he did find the blend of her work and his abilities fascinating. It was something he had gradually become accustomed to, something that still needed a lot of work on his part. Still, he also felt a divine sense of accomplishing something—especially when the two of them managed to solve a case and to find closure for the families. As he had already discovered, the value in her work was almost incalculable, something he hadn’t really seen or understood until he had met Kate.

  She had become a ground for him, not that he would use that term out loud to her because it would probably freak her out. However, something was very special about her that kept him on the straight and narrow when it came to his abilities. If anything got scary or out of control, he could refocus on who she was, who they were, and it brought him back. An awful lot could be said for that.

  He listened, as she began to explain about this new case.

  “Seriously?” he asked. “So, Colby thinks, or at least your analyst seems to think, that you have multiple cases like this drowning on purpose?” He shook his head. “It’s not as if Wreck Beach has the privacy to kill someone without witnesses, even by drowning, particularly since it’s open to the public. Even in November, just look at what you had for a view today. Plus, the fact that it’s a nudist beach should bring in all kinds of looky-loos.”

  She nodded. “I know, and I went there to get the lay of the land. With such a unique location, somebody must have seen what happened. We have an eyewitness, but I need more than that. Her report was already vague.”

  “Isn’t that the whole point of why you were given the case because somebody did see?”

  “Absolutely,” she confirmed, “and I’m meeting with our witness tomorrow morning.”

  “And yet you don’t seem terribly happy about it.”

  “It’s not that I’m unhappy,” she clarified, “but, as I start to get a reputation for these things, that can be daunting.”

  “Ah, so you’re afraid that you might not get anything on this case, yet everybody expects you to figure it out?”

  “I don’t know what anybody’s expecting, but Colby more or less gave it to me because it’s one of those cases.” She rolled her eyes, and, even if she hadn’t, Simon knew that was the intent behind assigning it to Kate.

  He smiled. “Of course, and you don’t really want to acknowledge that you’re damn good at those cases.”

  “It’s not that I don’t want to acknowledge it,” she countered, with a half laugh, “but sometimes I suspect that it’s more because of you than of me.”

  At that, he sat back and looked at her. “What?”

  Chapter 3

  Kate studied Simon’s surprised expression, and, seeing his genuine confusion, she added, “Surely you understand that.”

  “No, I don’t understand anything,” he admitted. “Very little of what I ever have to offer is helpful, and too damn much of it, if helpful at all, comes in way too late.”

  “I’ll give you that,” she said, with a smirk. He glared at her, and she chuckled. “But, when you do have something, sometimes it is helpful,” she stated, with a nod. “I’m not sitting here and going over all that woo-woo stuff with you because you already know how much trouble I have with it.”

  He nodded. “That I do know.”

  She smiled. “So, with that in mind, I feel like everybody else thinks that, if I do have a woo-woo case, I can always just ask you to tap into the woo-woo-ness, and you will potentially find the answers for me.” He sat back, frowning. “You have no clue, do you?” she asked, staring at him intently.

  “No clue about what?” he asked, clearly bewildered.

  “They really do appreciate whatever information you can provide.”

  “That’s great. Yet again, … lots of times I don’t get anything, or anything useable, plus you know how much I struggle with whatever I do get.”

  She nodded. “That’s probably a good thing because they understand you can’t always bring in information, but when you do? … They usually jump right on it. Sometimes I feel that they’re a little too quick to believe it all.”

  He looked at her and then started to laugh. “Is that what bothers you?” he asked, an odd look on his face. “Do you think you’re not being given these cases because of your ability to solve them but because you’re connected to me?”

  She frowned. “I know it sounds stupid, but is it really that stupid if you think about it?”

  “It’s absolutely stupid on their part, if that’s the reason,” he declared, “because I can’t guarantee anything that I might come up with. I can’t even make a bit of sense of it half the time. So I sure as hell can’t guarantee anything on a regular basis. I love helping you close cases and helping the families find closure, but these cases are few and far between. Besides, you’ve done lots of cases since the last one that have had absolutely nothing to do with me.”

  “True,” she noted, “and I’m kind of happy about that too.”

  “Of course you are, as you are so competitive, even with yourself,” he noted, rolling his eyes. “I suggest you either have a talk with them or just let it go because that would be foolishness on everybody’s part. And, if it bothers you that much, you probably should take it to Colby.”

  She smiled. “If only it were that easy.”

  He glared at her and replied, “It’s a whole lot easier than you’re thinking.”

  “Maybe,” she muttered. “Anyway, I’ll go meet the eyewitness tomorrow and see what she has to say, and then I’ll bring up everything we’ve got on the other cases and start taking a closer look.” She frowned. “It just seems so nebulous because there’s a difference between drowning somebody—as in holding them under or putting cement boots on them and dropping them into the ocean—versus standing there and not rendering aid. It’s still a crime, yet …”

  He nodded. “Yet very different in a sense, isn’t it?”

  “People can’t render aid for all kinds of reasons,” she noted. “One of the biggest is the fact that people often freeze and panic, not knowing quite what to do, or they’re absolutely petrified of water and can’t swim and, therefore, can’t go in and help them. In many cases, the person who jumps in and tries to help ends up drowning, even if they do know how to swim, and a lot of people know about that. So, I can’t really hold it against anybody.”

  “But that’s not the same thing as what this is,” Simon pointed out. “At least what it sounds like so far.”

  “No, and that’s why it’s such a confusing thing for me because it’s a very nebulous accusation.”

  “It is a fascinating thought though.”

  “Not for me,” she said, scrunching up her nose. “I think it’s sad, upsetting, scary even, but something like this could play out in so many different ways that I just have to keep an open mind and then go back to the team with what I find.”

  He grinned at that. “You’re a little more worried about that, aren’t you?”

  She shrugged. “I really don’t want my solid police work to be obscured by the shiny glamour of your contributions.” As he sat back, she caught the wince on his face. Reaching out, she added, “I’m sorry. Look. I don’t mean to say that I don’t appreciate all the help. It’s just—”

  “No,” he interrupted. “Believe me. I understand. I get it. It’s much more about your own abilities, and, for you, it’s a huge part of who you are. So for somebody to discount all your hard work, of course that would sting.”

  She sat back, frowning and nodding. “And that just makes me feel even shittier.”

  He burst out laughing. “You need to get over it, and fast.” He held her hand, but, for sure, wouldn’t bring up his latest weird dreams. Not good timing. Besides, he couldn’t make heads or tails of them. No true visions. No words. Just feelings. Just an alert. Just some early warning system or a nudge or whatever. When the message was clearer, he would share it with her.

  He sighed. “Besides, with your being so competitive, I really think it boils down to the shiny comment. I know you are not a believer, yet, after seeing a lot of this from my viewpoint, are you upset that you can begin to see the validity of this woo-woo stuff? No matter what, just forget about that part. You are a hell of a good investigator, and, if you don’t want any help, then that’s fine too,” he pointed out. “I’ll definitely try to avoid giving you my help.” He chuckled, and she giggled too. “Although I must admit, it hadn’t occurred to me that you needed me to keep any information I get to myself. Am I correct in thinking that?”

  “Yeah, you’re right. I really don’t want you to hold back. That would be foolish because the overall goal is to solve these murders. It’s not about my ego. It’s not about recognition for the job I’m doing. Those are secondary, if that,” she explained. “It’s about the victims, and that’s all it needs to be. As we’ve seen, solving these cases isn’t just about justice for the victim but closure for the family and, all too often, can prevent future victims. Thus I need to embrace any information I can get, no matter how unfortunate the source.”

  When he broke up in delighted laughter at the terminology, she couldn’t help but join in.

  Chapter 4

  Bright and early the next morning, Kate and Rodney stood outside the office door of Rebecca Harrison, the witness who had called in about the drowning she had seen. As they stepped through the doorway, both flashing their badges, a woman looked up, frowned, then hastily looked away. “If you’re looking for Rebecca, she’s not here.”

  “She wasn’t at home either,” Kate replied. “Do you have any idea where she would be?”

  The other woman looked at her, suddenly forgetting the papers in her hand she had been seemingly so engrossed in. “She should be home. She called in sick again today.”

  “I’m pretty sure she is sick,” Kate clarified. “It just might be more emotional than physical.” When the other woman frowned, Kate went on. “It’s not really for me to say, but she saw something fairly distressing yesterday, and she called it in to the police. So we need to ask her more questions about the incident.”

  Obviously confused but concerned, the other woman nodded. “If you’ve already been to her house, then I don’t know what to say. Her mother’s place, I guess. If Rebecca’s upset, maybe she would go there.”

  “Do you have any contact information for her?” When the woman hesitated, Kate added, “Obviously this is something that we’re concerned about, and we also want to ensure that Rebecca is okay.”

  “Yes, yes, of course,” she replied apologetically. She wrote down an address on her yellow sticky note. “This is all I have. It’s her emergency contact, and I hope you can figure it out from there.”

  “Good enough,” Kate said, with a smile.

  As they stepped back out again, Kate noted they weren’t very far away from the address for Rebecca’s mother’s house. “It’s about a ten-minute drive from here,” she told Rodney.

  Rodney nodded. “Good thing I’m driving. Even injured, I’m the best one for the job today.”

  “Why?” she asked, glaring at him.

  “Because we’ll get there in ten minutes, maybe even fifteen, but we’ll arrive alive.”

  “I am not a bad driver,” she declared, still glaring at him.

  He held up both hands. “I absolutely did not say that. However, when it comes to traffic, you have a tendency to get a little road rage.”

  She snorted at that. “Most people on the road are idiots and should be banned from driving.”

  “I won’t argue that either,” he added, with a chuckle, “particularly when you could be one of them on the road.”

  She shook her head and then laughed. “Hey, I’ve gotten much better.”

  “Glad to hear it,” he stated, but his expression screamed that he didn’t believe it. “Still, I’ll do the driving.”

  She snorted. “You’re just making a big deal out of nothing.”

  He laughed. “It’s absurdly easy to bug you. Had you grown up with even one sibling, you could handle a little teasing a whole lot easier.”

  “Thanks for that,” she said, with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

  He looked over at her and winced. “Oh, crap, Kate. I’m sorry. I keep forgetting about your brother.”

  “Which is why his cold case file sits on my desk, … so I don’t forget,” she explained. “Because it’s just too damn easy for the days to roll from one to the next and to still have absolutely no idea what happened to him. It’s just one of those things where I never get any answers. So, I keep it there, keep it fresh in my mind, and hope that maybe one day I will come up with something that makes sense.”

  “You will,” Rodney replied. “I’m sure of it. However, in the meantime, just make sure that whenever that happens, you let us help. Whatever it is, we’re there to support you and to assist you however we can.”

  She stared at him. “A few months back I never would have thought that would be on the agenda.”

  “A few months back,” he noted, with a small smile, “it probably wouldn’t have been.” He glanced at her. “It’s taken us a while, but we got there eventually.”

  She nodded. “We still have one more team member in theory allocated for us, don’t we?”

  “We do,” he agreed. “At least if it’s still in the budget, and I’m never quite sure about that. So, for now, we’re all functioning without Andy, but it’s a lot of extra work.”

  “Maybe another analyst might help.”

  “Maybe,” Rodney replied. “I won’t argue with that concept, but, if we had someone to pick up more of that research and gathering work, that would take a load off too.”

  “Which is what our analyst does.”

  “Yeah, but she’s completely run off her feet too, so—”

  “Oh, wow, what a novel idea,” she muttered, as Rodney drove too slowly to their witness. “Just think. We could have people who aren’t run off their feet, who maybe come in fresh with, you know, brain cells that function, instead of being completely exhausted because of the work they’ve done overnight.”

  He burst out laughing. “You’re welcome to take that up with the higher-ups anytime you want.”

  “Always the charmer, and my talking to the bosses won’t help,” she noted, with an eyeroll.

  “Glad you know that,” he said, “but it would be a whole lot easier on all of us if you do it.”

  She shrugged. “I’m not sure I’m ready to have anybody else come on the team anyway.”

  “That could very well be why we haven’t gotten Andy back. I’m not sure if he’s even coming back. His leave just keeps getting extended. Does he not want to come back or is he looking to shift to something else right now?”

  “Lilliana told me how Andy’s divorce sent him into his hump-and-dump phase, but now he has a serious girlfriend, right? Or at least last I heard. Maybe he is looking for changes in his work life as well. I guess that’s always an option for people, isn’t it?”

  “It can be,” Rodney pointed out. “He can always ask for a transfer to another department. Not everybody wants to be in our division, although there is a certain amount of prestige in being a detective,” he shared. “However, we also have a high burnout rate.”

  “Of course, what with our crazy long hours,” she pointed out, “and mostly I would think that lack of support, … emotional support, when it comes to facing murder every day. That alone has got to be a factor.”

  “Ah, you’ve been talking to the shrink again, haven’t you?” She glared at him, and he just laughed. “You’ll have to talk to him again eventually.”

  “I talk to him about work.”

  “You’re supposed to talk to him about your cases, your mental state, and how you’re handling all these depressing situations around here.”

  “Yeah, well, supposed to and doing it is a whole different story.” He frowned at her, and she frowned right back. “Don’t even go there.” She raised a finger to warn him. “I’m not too interested in having anybody get into my brain. Particularly after his predecessor …”

  “You’re really going to hold that against him?”

  “Nope, I’m not. I’m holding it against the entire damn profession.”

  He burst out laughing at that and said, “With an attitude like that, you may almost get away with it.”

  She grinned at him. When he gave her a side-eye glance, she knew what was coming, as he put it in words.

  “I’m pretty sure the department has rules and regulations, so eventually … it will come back and hit you in the throat.”

  “Jeez, did Colby put you up to this? Wait. Don’t answer that.”

  Thankfully they arrived at their destination just then, shifting the conversation.

  She walked up to the small front door and gave it a hard knock. When the door opened to reveal a late fifties or more like a sixty-year-old woman, Kate smiled, held up her badge, and introduced herself. “Hello, we’re looking for your daughter and are hoping she’s here. We need to ask her a few questions.”

  The older woman looked at her and then turned and called out, “Becky, the police are here to talk to you.”

  As soon as she called out, an exhausted and stressed-out woman, clutching at her robe, appeared at the door. “How did you find us?”

  “We’re the police. It’s what we do,” Kate replied.