Pam avoided Rae as she held Jane"s hand. "Sorry for taking a swing at you," she said grudgingly.
"I"m sorry about Amy. I hope the autopsy shows something." Rae pinched the bridge of her nose. She needed sleep, the sleep she knew wouldn"t come. She took out her cell phone and called Delia. She paced back and forth, and Sarah watched her cautiously as she listened.
Rae asked Delia if she could get her hands on the autopsy report.
"It"s in another precinct. h.e.l.l. I"ve got a friend over there. Let me see what I can do. No promises. I know McGrath. He"s a bit gruff but a good man. I"ll call ya."
"We"ll just have to wait." Rae paced once more. She then turned to Jane and Pam. "You don"t know if she was into anything? This Mike Porter or this other fellow." She explained what he looked like and watched their reaction. They glanced at each other but said nothing. Sarah put the coffeepot down on the table. She too noticed the glance.
"Rae can"t help if you don"t level with her," Sarah said evenly as she poured the coffee. "What about Molly Eastman?"
Jane took a deep breath and started to say something, and Rae saw the warning glance from Pam.
"If you two know something, you"d better tell me or McGrath. Look, I"m sorry about Amy. I know she was a close friend. However, she had my business card on her, and I don"t recall giving it to her."
Pam interrupted her. "Not your style?" she asked rudely. Jane sighed, and Sarah rolled her eyes.
Rae, however, gave her a wary grin. "No, it"s not. Contrary to what you might think, which by the way, I don"t give a flying fu-"
"Coffee, Rae?" Sarah interrupted gently as she thrust a mug into her hands. Rae stopped and rubbed her forehead. With that, her cell phone rang.
"Hold on to your wig," Delia said on the other end. "They"re still doing the autopsy. However, I talked to my guy. He was there when they found her. He said it looked like an accident. No marks or stab wounds and no bullet holes. He can"t be sure, but his first impression was an accident. She might have been walking and stumbled. Happens all the time. But don"t jump the gun. The autopsy should be done by tomorrow, and maybe we"ll have some definite answers. Then we"ll see from the toxicology report if anything was in her system. Oh, by the way, found out about the house in Evanston and your trio. I"m off-duty."
"We"re at Sarah"s."
"Good. I"ll stop by."
Rae snapped the cell phone, sat, and explained. Pam looked relieved and sat back in her chair. Jane was still staring at her cup, tears welled in her eyes. Rae felt horrible for her.
Jane wiped her eyes. "If it was an accident, what was she doing down by the river?" she asked absently as she blew her nose.
"Why? Would it be odd for her to be there?" Rae leaned in a bit. Pam frowned.
"No," Pam said flatly and put an arm around Jane. "Let"s not think about anything until the police let us know." Jane nodded, and Pam looked at Rae. "Can"t we skip this for the night? It"s a lot to take in."
They sat in silence for a few minutes. Sarah stood. "It"s late, and none of us has eaten. I for one am hungry. How about some ham and eggs?"
She busied herself at the stove when Delia arrived. "Smells good, I"m starved," she said happily.
Rae groaned. "What else is new?"
She introduced Jane and Pam. Delia looked at Jane and c.o.c.ked her head as she smiled. She tore herself away and shook Pam"s hand.
"Sorry about your friend," Delia said to Jane, who looked up through teary eyes and smiled a thank you.
Delia sat and rubbed her hands together. "Ham and eggs, yummy."
Sarah laughed quietly as she filled the plates. Rae gave Delia an exasperated look, and Delia smiled happily. "You lucky woman, you. So tell me how well you knew Amy," she said to Jane and Pam as she poured her coffee.
"We met freshman year and roomed together for that year. I was close with Amy and her parents. They"re adorable. G.o.d, they"ll be devastated. When I met Pam, we all became fast friends." Her voice trailed off, and Pam looked uncomfortable. Delia glanced at Rae, who was absently stirring her coffee. Sarah wondered if she was paying attention at all.
With the meal finished, Pam stood. "Professor Connelly, thanks for everything, I think I"d better get Jane home." Jane gave her a curious look as she stood.
"Thanks, Professor," Jane said, again near tears. Sarah hugged them and walked them out of the kitchen.
She poked her head back in. "Don"t you dare talk without me," she warned, then disappeared.
"An accident?" Rae asked.
Delia shrugged. "You know how these things are," she said, and Sarah walked back into the kitchen and sat. "The autopsy will determine. So your business card?" she asked curiously. Rae rubbed her forehead and winced as she touched the small bandage on her brow. "That doesn"t sound like you. Were you planning on selling her a security system?"
"Funny. I know I did not give that girl my card. She must have taken one out of my wallet. We met, went to dinner, I drank too much." She stopped and avoided Sarah"s smug look. "What did you find out about the trio?"
Delia snapped her fingers. "Almost forgot." She flipped open her notebook. "Mike Porter lives at that address. So far, he"s clean. I"m still checking on him, though. Molly Eastman, no records. Can"t say about the other guy until I get a name."
Rae got up and paced. "What about the car? I know I..." She stared, then looked to the heavens. "s.h.i.t, what an idiot! The red sedan. It was at ComTele this morning. I know it."
"Nothing yet, DMV is still working on it. Tomorrow, for sure. Now you think the other night was a coincidence, or were your brains rattled on purpose?"
Sarah all at once got a little worried. She had forgotten that someone attacked Rae. Rae seemed oblivious to it, as if it were second nature to her. She wondered what she was getting into here. That night, Rae showed a very dark side, and Sarah wasn"t at all sure she wanted to get involved with this. However, her curiosity was piqued, and she knew she was falling for Rae Jefferson.
"Maybe it"s all unrelated. Maybe I was just mugged. Maybe Amy Davis did stumble into the Chicago River and drowned. Maybe that red sedan means nothing. Maybe Amy"s apartment was ransacked for no reason." Rae looked at both of them. "And maybe I"m Admiral Halsey," she finished sarcastically and sat.
They all looked at one another.
"What are you thinking?" Rae asked Delia.
"The autopsy. How about you?"
"That red sedan." Rae glanced at Sarah. "Professor?"
Sarah smiled, picturing Rae in her military uniform.
Chapter 13.
Rae knew it-another sleepless night. The dream woke her up at one as she sat on the edge of the bed. Once again, dripping in sweat, Rae clung to the pillow and rocked back and forth. She rubbed her shoulder and forearm as it ached horribly, not sure if it was a physical pang or just the residual mental c.r.a.p from that day. She decided to blame it on the weather. "This miserable, damp autumn."
She stood, stretched, and headed for the bathroom as her phone rang. It was Sarah.
"What are you doing up at this hour?" Rae asked as she sat back down on the bed.
"I don"t know. I"d apologize for waking you, but I knew you wouldn"t be sleeping."
"And how is it that you know that?" She lay back against the pillows and smiled. She could almost see the smile on Sarah"s face; maybe she hugged her pillow, as well.
"I lived with an insomniac for ten years, remember?"
"That"s right. What happened?" Rae asked, seriously intrigued, then she yawned as Sarah"s soft voice lulled her.
"We just didn"t mesh. Her job had her traveling quite extensively for the first five years. It was a struggle for me at first. I wanted more attention than she could give. Then I didn"t need the attention, and I somehow think she was grateful." She heard Rae"s deep breathing and chuckled.
"Commander Jefferson, you sound like an obscene phone caller."
Rae chuckled and nestled the phone in her ear. "I"m sorry. You must know that you have a wonderful rhythm to your voice. I find it so easy to listen to." She yawned again. Could she actually sleep?
"Well, thank you. I tried it on my ex. She got annoyed," Sarah said softly.
"Annoyed? With your voice? Not possible." She sighed.
Sarah looked at the receiver, then put it back to her ear. "Thank you again. You can be quite charming when you want to be. Now do me a favor."
Rae smiled, looking at the ceiling. "Anything."
Sarah chuckled. "Well, for now, just close your eyes and think of a time when you were happy and content, not a care in the world."
Rae closed her eyes and thought. She was ten. Climbing her favorite tree. Once at the top, the summer breeze gently blew, and Rae remembered how she would slowly sway back and forth as she looked out over the lake.
"Got it," Rae said.
"Now concentrate on that and find some peace, if just for tonight. Good night, Rae," Sarah whispered into the phone.
Rae"s breathing became deep and peaceful. She thought for sure she said good night.
She woke in the same place with the phone still on her pillow. Smiling, she stretched and looked at the clock.
"s.h.i.t," she cursed and jumped out of bed and ran to the shower. It was almost eight, and her appointment at ComTele was in one hour.
"s.h.i.t, s.h.i.t," she grumbled as the hot water nearly scalded her.
Dressing quickly, she dashed out the door and laughed openly as she drove down the street. For the first time in four years, she actually slept more than two hours. "Professor, professor." She sighed as she drove, much too fast.
Professor Whitfield sat in the teachers" lounge, drinking tea and reading. She looked up when Sarah entered. "Well, good morning. Why are you grinning like a schoolgirl?"
"Good morning, Betty." Sarah chuckled, poured a cup of coffee, and sat next to her. "Am I grinning?" she asked, grinning.
Betty rolled her eyes. "Like the Cheshire cat. Now tell me truthfully. Have you bedded this sullen woman yet?"
Sarah shot her an amazed look and spilled her coffee. She reached for a napkin and glared at Betty.
"Betty, you insane old woman. What kind of a question is that? I mean...really." Sarah sputtered and mopped up her mess. Betty waited and watched her. Sarah caught the look and sighed. "No," she said in a disappointed voice.
Betty let out a disgusted grunt. "Woman, what are you waiting for? If you could have seen the way she was mooning over you at your cla.s.sroom door."
"Oh, don"t be ridiculous. I hardly think Rae Jefferson is the mooning type," Sarah said in a haughty tone. She gave her a side-glance. "Really? She was mooning?"
Betty nodded as she drank her tea. "Like a love-struck idiot," she said dryly.
Sarah hid her constant grin in her coffee cup. She tried to be nonchalant, but Betty noticed her hand slightly shaking as she drank her coffee. She truly loved Sarah Connelly. When she first arrived at Northwestern, the other members of the faculty immediately embraced her. Sarah had a way about her. She was smart and sarcastic, and at the same time kind and generous. She seemed comfortable in any social situation and had an innate ability to cut through all the muck and get right down to the center of things. Betty often wondered why she was single. Then as she grew to know her, Sarah let her in and told her.
The woman she was involved with for ten years...dumped her, for lack of a better word. It left Sarah disillusioned for quite a while. Oh, she dated on and off for the last few years, but no one reached what Sarah so desperately needed. It seemed funny to Betty that Sarah"s s.e.xual orientation was not a major concern to anyone. Not being one to hide, Sarah had been open but not flaunting. Her private life is her own, as it should be with anyone, Betty thought. She seemed comfortable with herself and her life. Betty found this truly refreshing and captivating; Sarah Connelly"s enthusiasm toward life was extremely contagious.
She now looked at Sarah, who was sitting there staring. The grin was gone, and a worried look took its place.
"What"s bothering you?" she asked, breaking Sarah"s reverie.
"Oh, I don"t know."
She then told Betty of the day"s sad events. Betty frowned as Sarah told her about Amy Davis. She shook her head sadly and drank her tea.
"Dead? How dreadful. Can your Rae do anything?"
"She"s not my Rae, and I don"t know." Sarah then told her what happened the previous night at the bar and Rae"s altercation with Pam. Betty"s eyes widened as she listened.
"She was involved in something when she was in the navy. I can feel it. Something happened to her. If you could have seen the dark look in her eyes. There was one time when she looked like she wanted to tell me, but that didn"t happen."
"We all have our dark sides. Your Rae seems to be running from something. Take care, dear, you don"t want to get run over," Betty said seriously. Sarah looked at her and only nodded.
Rae sat at the long table as the four directors signed the contract. She glanced through more information than she had previously received. "This is all of them then?"
The older man looked up and nodded. "All employees, past and present. Names, addresses, Social Security numbers, photo IDs, all of it. Do you really think this is necessary?"
Rae raised an eyebrow and nodded. "Trust me, gentlemen. You have no idea what a disgruntled employee can do. I"m just going to give this to my people and have them do an extensive background check. You must understand you now have government contracts. Your research here is very important, and you need security, lots of it. And I"m not telling you that because I"m in the business. I"m telling you that because I have experienced what rotten security can do," she said firmly. The village in Syria flashed through her mind as she closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead.
"You all right, Rae?" he asked seriously.
Rae took a deep breath and smiled. "Fine. Now I"ll call my contractors. They"ll be in touch tomorrow and get the ball rolling. You should be up and running within two weeks." She gathered the files and left.
As she drove through the security gate, she exchanged a wave and smile with Jim. Then out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw someone walking up to the doors of the building. She craned her neck to see who it was and thought she got a glimpse of red hair. She stopped her jeep and looked through the back window. Whoever it may have been was gone.
She flipped open her cell phone and called her contractors and gave them the okay to start. Then she called Delia, who had heard nothing from the DMV on the red sedan, but she"d keep her posted.
"Bureaucrats," she mumbled and flipped off her phone. She decided to go to Northwestern. Perhaps she could see Molly Eastman and her two friends. Somebody"s got to know something. Then she thought of Jane and Pam. Pam seemed uneasy when talking about Mike Porter. Rae wasn"t at all sure she trusted any of them.
She had a nagging feeling something was going to unravel soon. She only hoped she or the police would find a common thread before it did.
While Pam was on her mind, she decided to drive to her bookstore. Sitting in front of the shop, she got a good look at Pam as she stood behind the counter ringing up a sale. Rae"s old instincts, which frankly sucked, made her wary of Pam, but she couldn"t place why.
She walked into the shop, and when the bell chimed as she opened the door, Pam naturally looked up.