3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

A t two minutes to six that evening, Zara pulled her ancient Volkswagen Jetta into the parking lot of the church she'd been attending with Logan and Will. At breakfast that morning, Will had convinced her to join a bunch of women from the police and fire departments for a girls' night. With his arm across the back of the bench they shared at the little diner, she couldn't deny him. He was convinced it would be good for her, and she had agreed.

But now that she was here, she regretted coming. She was no girly-girl. She was more likely to play basketball with the guys, but apparently girls weren't allowed for their b-ball nights, so it was either go get to know some of the women she worked with or stay home alone.

Alone was not an option.

She opened the door and tried to wipe the sweat from her neck. But it was futile. It was just hot. Zara thought she preferred hot to cold, but North Carolina humidity was no joke. Today's high had been in the low nineties, and it was easily still there. Without AC in her car, it was straight up miserable.

As she walked to the door, she pulled the hair tie from her hair and put it around her wrist with the other two—all teal—that were already there. She always kept them handy, and, in this heat, it seemed even more necessary.

Zara entered the church and paused as the cool air refreshed her to the core. The ten- minute drive to the church had nearly melted her. If only it wasn't so expensive to fix the air conditioning. But it really didn't seem worth it when she'd be driving a squad car the majority of the time, and maybe Will could drive her the other times.

Her cheeks warmed.

The door behind her opened, and a woman greeted Zara.

Zara pivoted to see a woman around her age with highlighted blonde hair cascading in ironed curls across her shoulders. Zara had seen her at the fire last night. Extending her hand, Zara introduced herself.

"I'm AJ. Firefighter. You're the new cop that's been riding with Logan, right?"

"I am."

A brief shadow seemed to cloud AJ's eyes, but her smile cast it away. "Welcome to Hazel Hill. I'm glad you came tonight." AJ slid her arm around Zara's and directed her to the youth room. "The kids are gracious enough to let us older people crash their little pad. But they have the comfy couches and all."

Once they arrived, Zara saw some familiar faces. Of the few cops she recognized, Megan strolled over and welcomed her.

Emily Bennett, the EMT who had taken the baby from her arms, joined them. "How are you feeling today?"

"Still coughing a ton, but I'm fine. I checked on Baby Phoebe before I came, and she's doing well."

"Oh good. That was so scary."

AJ nodded. "I still can't believe you ran in there."

Zara shrugged. "Did I really have a choice?"

Emily shook her head. "Any longer and Phoebe might not have made it. Her little lungs struggled as it was."

Zara shifted on her feet. She hadn't run in for the baby to get any accolades.

Another woman, also a police officer on her squad, raised her hand and whistled for everyone's attention. The room of maybe twenty women hushed and turned their attention to the woman.

"To those of you who don't know me, I'm Jenna Bennett. I'm so glad you're all here. We've got dinner, then AJ was in charge of tonight's event, so no crafts or spa night tonight."

A small section of the ladies cheered.

AJ said, "You're welcome."

Zara stepped closer to AJ. "I think we can be good friends."

AJ laughed. "She hasn't said what we are doing tonight."

"Well, the two biggest things I feared aren't happening, so I'm happy."

AJ said, "I wanted to go ax throwing, but Jenna didn't like that idea."

"Then you and me, we'll do that one of these days."

AJ wound her arm around Zara's again. "Yes. Yes, we will."

The new friends laughed together.

Later that night in the briefing room, Zara took her normal seat for roll call. She'd had a great time at the girls' night and had really connected with AJ and a few of the other ladies as they had played Ticket to Ride. It was exactly what she'd needed before heading into her final night shift before a well-earned four days off.

Will and Logan still hadn't showed, so she found herself watching the door.

Jenna leaned forward from the table behind Zara. "I'm glad you came tonight."

"Me too. It was great."

The guys walked in and took their seats on either side of Zara.

Will bumped her knee with his. "Did you go to the ladies' night at church?"

"I did. Jenna and I were just talking about it."

"Excellent." His smile lit her soul on fire.

"How was b-ball?"

"Cops won." Will wove his fingers together and laid his hands on his gear.

Logan added, "Isn't always the case, since those detectives make our average age about ten years older, but it's always fun."

Their sergeant walked in and roll call got underway. They heard about current cases and other important information that would affect their shift.

As the sergeant passed out assignments, Zara noticed he had said only Logan's name, not hers too. He pulled a set of keys from his pocket and held them up. "I'd also like to congratulate Officer Grant for completing her probationary period. Grant, here are the keys to your cruiser."

"Thank you, sir." Heart elated, she took the keys.

Logan's grin told her he knew this was coming. "You earned it."

The sergeant gave her an assignment, and roll call was over.

As they walked out to the parking lot, Will draped his arm across Zara's shoulders. "Good job."

She put her arm around his waist. "Thanks." She gave him a squeeze before she let go. Not that she wanted to. She would much rather stay in his embrace than anything else. She raised her water bottle. "Here's to a quiet night."

"Hear, hear." Will looked her in the eye. "Be safe."

"You too." They checked their cars and supplies and headed out.

Once in and settled, Zara checked in with dispatch then rolled.

She was excited to officially have a squad car assigned to her. She quickly missed the company of riding along with Logan, but she was equally glad to have been found fit to handle herself.

The first hour passed in beautiful quietness. Over the radio, she heard Will pull over a speeder and Logan stop to help a motorist with a flat tire. But nothing else.

She drove through a questionable neighborhood, but even that was quiet tonight. It seemed as though the heat had sent everyone to bed early.

But not long after midnight, a call came in from a neighbor reporting a loud altercation in the trailer home next to theirs. Zara wasn't far from the location, so she responded. Domestic calls required two officers though. Will came across the radio. He was also close.

She pulled into the well-maintained neighborhood that had both single- and double-wides situated close together, many with a carport in between.

Less than two minutes later, Will met Zara outside a single-wide where a distinct argument was going on—although they mostly heard a man's raised voice.

They walked up the steps to the small deck built out in front of the door.

Standing to either side of the door, Will knocked, and Zara pointed her flashlight at it.

The man replied, "Get lost."

Will shook his head. "Hazel Hill Police Department. Please open the door, sir."

Silence on the other side.

Will banged on the door.

It finally opened, and a large man appeared. "What do you want?"

"We wanted to check on you all. We heard some rather loud arguing that had your neighbors concerned. Would you please step outside, sir?"

The man snarled and glared at Zara.

She kept her face unmoved. "Who else is inside?"

"It's none of your business."

"You made it my business when you yelled so loud others could hear." Zara looked past him and spotted a woman sitting at a little dining table across the living room.

The man stepped outside. "Look. I didn't do nothing. We were just arguing. Everyone fights."

Will said, "That may be true, but we need to talk and make sure everything is all right."

The man moved to where Will indicated at the end of the porch.

Zara stepped to the threshold and caught the woman's gaze. "May I come in and talk to you?"

The woman nodded.

Zara crossed the cluttered living room. The woman's eyes were swollen and red. "I'm Zara. What's your name?"

"Miley." She swiped at her nose with a napkin.

"Tell me what happened."

"Just a little spat. Nothing new. People fight all the time. We're fine, really. No need to fuss."

Zara sat. "Your right cheek indicates it was more than an argument. Walk me through the whole thing."

"Brett got home late, so his dinner was cold. I guess I didn't heat it up enough. He must have been irritated about something at work. He's in one of his moods."

Zara got that. Her dad had been one to have volatile moods too. But didn't everyone?

"We started yelling. That's all."

"What about your cheek?"

"Oh … I … I ran into the cabinet door. It was open, and … I turned around quickly. I'm fine."

Zara had heard the same choppy excuse from her mom on many occasions. "Tell me the truth."

"Honest to God."

"Yes, honest. The cabinet is not the truth."

Miley looked at the floor.

"Can I get you some ice? It's swelling."

"I guess."

Zara stood and spotted a folded tea towel on the counter. "Is this clean?"

Miley nodded.

Zara grabbed it and filled it with ice from the freezer's ice maker. After twisting it together, she handed it to Miley. "Talk to me. I can't help you if you won't be honest with me."

Miley pressed the ice to her swollen cheek. "He didn't mean to. I shouldn't have pressed him to talk to me about work. He was right—it's not my business."

Getting closer to the truth. "Where were you both when he struck you?" That was a little more leading than she wanted, but they were getting nowhere.

"In the kitchen."

"Has he struck you before?"

"Not like that."

"But he has hit you before?"

"Well, not hit. But he can get a little rough. But who says I don't like it that way?"

"Miley." Zara gave her a pointed glare.

"So he's pushed me a few times. He's nicer than the last guy."

"How long have you and Brett been together?"

She looked off to the side as if she were calculating. "Like four months."

Sometimes Zara preferred a woman who just ran at the mouth and told her everything the moment she walked in. "Does he live here with you?" Based on the decor, Zara was certain this was Miley's primary residence.

"Yeah, moved in shortly after we started dating. Corbin needs a father figure since his dad is locked up."

"Corbin? How old? Is he here?" Why had she forgotten to ask if anyone else was here?

"He's four and sleeping in his room." She pointed down the hall at the back of the trailer.

Zara stood. "Stay right here. I'm going to check in with my partner."

Miley nodded.

Zara went to the door, stepped out onto the porch, and motioned to Will.

He pointed a strong finger at Brett. "Don't move." He moved to Zara and spoke with a hushed voice. "How's it going with her?"

"She's not the most forthcoming, but he definitely struck her."

"He's been straight up lying to me. Let's take him in."

Zara caught Will's arm. "There's a kid inside. I'm going to check on him."

"Go." Will nodded with a smile.

She went back into the house. Miley was still sitting at the table. "I'm going to check on your son." Zara went down the hall. She passed one cluttered bedroom and then a little bathroom. A closed door marked the end of the hall. She twisted the knob and eased the door open. A nightlight across the room illuminated the space. The blanket and sheet were pulled back, but no little body occupied the bed.

"Corbin?" She kept her voice quiet.

Nothing. She opened the door farther and looked around the little fifteen-by-nine-foot room.

He wasn't behind the door or in any of the space she could see. But there was a little closet on the same wall as the door. She went to the closet door and tapped.

No response.

She slid the accordion door open. Tucked in the bottom of the closet, on top of a pile of toys was a little towheaded boy.

He had giant headphones on.

Images of her childhood assaulted her, and she stumbled backward. She shook them loose, knelt in front of the boy, and tapped his shoulder.

Shifting one speaker from the child's ear, she said, "Corbin. I'm Officer Zara."

He gave her a huge smile, revealing he was missing two bottom teeth, which made him even more adorable.

"You okay?"

"You're a police officer?"

"I sure am. It's quiet now; you can come out." She offered him a hand.

He placed his little hand in hers and climbed out of the closet. "Are you going to take Brett away for being so loud?"

"Not for being loud, but he won't be staying here tonight. Okay?"

The boy nodded.

"Why don't you get back in bed and go to sleep?"

He lunged into Zara's arms.

"It's okay, little buddy. It'll be quiet now."

He hugged her tighter.

"Want to go see your momma?"

He nodded against her neck, so she scooped him up and walked back down the hallway.

Will poked his head in the front door. When he spotted her, his grimace faded. "Is everyone okay?"

"Yep." She looked down at the boy in her arms. "Corbin, this is my partner, Officer Cooper."

Corbin looked up and shot Will his priceless smile.

Will stuck out his hand for a fist bump, and Corbin stretched and met his knuckles to Will's.

"We're gonna head out." He looked at Miley. "But don't hesitate to call if you need anything."

She set the towel of ice on the table and took Corbin from Zara's arms. "Thank you."

Zara squeezed her shoulder. "Remember, you don't have to let Brett back in here, okay?"

"I know, but we'll be fine."

"Do you have someone you can call to come be with you?"

Miley snorted. "Anyone that ever mattered left me a long time ago. But I've got Corbin, and we'll be fine."

Zara and Will said goodbye and left. But Zara's stomach wasn't settled. As soon as Brett was released, which would probably be tomorrow morning, he would come back here. He'd go right back to mistreating Miley. But there was only so much Zara could do. If only she could do more.