Paranoia (Michael Bennett #17)

CHAPTER 21

I WAS WHIPPED by the time I got home. I’d run down a number of leads without much success. The obvious lead I had to follow next was Richard Deason’s son, who Monica Salazar had thought was named Antonio.

There was no detail too small in a case like this. And I still had other cases I was monitoring. I also had some supervisory duties I was handling for Harry while he was away. Nothing serious. Mainly keeping an eye on some of the younger detectives in the squad. That included Rob Trilling. Pairing him with Terri Hernandez had been a stroke of genius on my part.

I’d held off on calling Mary Catherine again after she and Juliana made fun of me. I realized she was sharp enough to follow the doctor’s orders. It was still nerve-racking.

I barely said hello to the kids studying at the dining room table as I barreled through the apartment to check on Mary Catherine in our bedroom. I froze at the doorway, a smile spreading across my face as I silently took in the scene.

Mary Catherine was sitting up in the bed with her favorite glass—a souvenir from our honeymoon in Ireland—filled with juice. On the nightstand was a plate of fruit, a plate with cheese and crackers, and a bowl of soup. Sitting next to her on the bed were our two youngest, Chrissy and Shawna, playing Go Fish. The smile on Mary Catherine’s face was spectacular.

Then Shawna glanced up from her cards and jumped off the bed. Chrissy wasn’t far behind. I walked over to the bed with both the girls still hugging me.

Mary Catherine smiled and calmly said, “And how was your day?”

“Usual. How was yours?”

“Since school got out and Brian walked everyone home, we’ve had a wonderful time. I am about to be crowned Queen of Go Fish.”

Chrissy whined, “We’ve only played three games. A real Go Fish tournament is best of eleven.”

I gently kicked the girls out of the bedroom and stretched out on the bed next to Mary Catherine. I said, “How has your day really gone?”

She sighed. The kind of a sigh where you couldn’t tell if it was good or bad. It made me nervous. My stomach tightened a little bit. I reached out and grasped her hand. It felt a little sticky. I decided not to make a comment.

Mary Catherine giggled and said, “When the doctor said I had to stay in bed for two weeks, I didn’t think it would work. I figured the whole place would go to hell, excuse my French. But these kids have been great. Juliana brought me breakfast after she took the kids to school. She checked on me constantly. Then Brian got out of work early so he could pick up the kids and he brought me donuts from my favorite shop.”

I glanced around the room almost involuntarily.

“Sorry. I’m pregnant and we have ten children. There are no donuts left. Besides, I thought cops eating donuts was a stereotype.”

I just shrugged. She had me.

Mary Catherine said, “I even like beating the pants off Chrissy and Shawna in Go Fish. So I would say I had a pretty good day.”

She leaned over and kissed me on the lips. I realized I was having a pretty good day now as well.