CHAPTER 7

"He did what?!" Rich couldn't believe what Houston had called to tell him.

"Yep, the lawyer's dead and both Ashford and Officer Strickland are on the way to Memorial in critical condition." Matt was in the process of taking another Glock out of his truck and putting it in his holster since the one he had been carrying was now being sent to the lab as part of the investigation into the shooting that had just occurred.

"Nobody else got hurt?"

"Nope." He sighed. "I can't believe he did that."

"Neither can I…holy cow…well…I don't know what to say."

"When Michael and I get done here with the paperwork and what not we're going to try to talk to Naomi Benson again. Maybe this will shake her up enough to get her talking…or she could just completely shut down. We figured it was worth a try."

"Nothing to lose at this point. Glad you two are okay."

"Yep – me, too. Talk to ya later." He ejected the magazine from the pistol and checked it before popping it back in and putting it in the holster.

As he boarded the elevator he thought back to the phone call that he had shared with CJ a few minutes earlier. She had commented on how he rarely used to carry a gun but nowadays he had one on him most of the time, be it in his holster or stuck in the waistband of his jeans. "I'm glad you had it on you, hon. I hate to think that it's come to you having to wear one constantly, but…" CJ had stopped right there.

"Yeah." Both were quiet for a minute. "Gotta go take care of the report. Love you, Babe."

"Love you, Cowboy. Be safe."

"Yes ma'am. 'Bye."

Stepping off of the elevator, he walked over to the coffee pot and filled up a cup before heading into Michael's office to make out the report. The lieutenant was hanging up the phone and gestured toward it. "Anne says it's already on TV." He blew out a breath. "What in the hell was he thinking?"

"Don't know."

"Here…" The lieutenant stood up and pointed at his chair. "I've already finished my report."

"Thanks, bud." Houston sat down and began filling out the form on the computer as Hoyt walked over and looked out onto the street below, where vans from all of the TV stations had gathered once more. As his friend began working the keyboard, the cop stole a glance at the man that was like the brother he had never had. Since they had met a few years ago both men had changed, but Matt had changed tremendously. Not only was he now a husband and father, but also a sworn deputy for the Harris County, Texas Sheriff's Department and was also working toward becoming a full-fledged fire investigator. The same sense of humor was still there but the man had a more serious air to him these days.

Looking back out at the reporters Michael thought about how many times Houston had helped him out over the years and an idea that had been lurking in the back of his mind for a while now became solidified: whenever Houston decided to quit the business, Hoyt would, too. After being a cop for over sixteen years he had seen more death, deceit, and destructive behavior than he could have ever imagined when he had proudly raised his hand and taken the oath to protect and serve the city of Los Angeles, and he would be damned if he was going to continue to do it without Matt. He turned back around as he heard the PI hit the enter key and stand up.

"What more can I say? He freaked out, took Strickland's gun and shot him and then the lawyer. So we shot him." Shrugging his shoulders he picked up the cup of coffee and downed the rest of it. "It never ceases to amaze me just how crazy people can be."

"Ready to try to rattle Naomi Benson?" Michael reached for his jacket.

"About as ready as I'm going to be." The pair went out to the elevator and down to the parking garage, Matt removing his vest from the truck and putting it on before getting into his friend's car. Hoyt already had his on and the car started when the PI slid in and closed the car door.

The two pulled up to the house on Cold Water Canyon Drive for the second time in twenty four hours. "Reckon they'll even answer the door?" He gave the cop a lopsided grin.

"Maybe…" He got out of the car and they started up the walk. "…maybe not."

Houston rang the bell and it was only a matter of seconds before the door was opened by the housekeeper who looked leery of the two after what had transpired the day before. "Ma'am…" He touched the brim of his cap. "We'd like to speak to Miss Benson, please."

"I'll see if she's available." This time the door was closed and both men snickered at the same time.

"If she isn't available I guess the DA can deal with it, huh?" Matt turned and looked around. Everything seemed just as it had the day before with the exception of one thing: Naomi's Lexus wasn't there.

"Uh huh." Michael was looking around as well and when the front door was opened again, both men were somewhat surprised to see Naomi Benson.

"What?" She leaned against the doorframe.

"We thought you might want to know that your boyfriend is in the hospital." The PI adjusted the cap on his head.

"Yeah, I heard. And he's not my boyfriend."

"Told ya she broke up with him." Matt looked at Michael and winked. "So since he's no longer your boyfriend I guess you wouldn't mind talking to us about him."

"I have nothing to say."

"Oh, that's too bad. See we talked to Greg before he flipped out this morning and he had some interesting things to say about you." Houston figured he didn't have much to lose with the bluff. From the expression on Naomi's face he thought it had been the right card to play.

"What did he say?"

"Why don't we go down to the station and talk about it? You can even invite your lawyer if you want."

There was a moment of silence as Benson weighed her options. Finally, putting a somewhat smug look on her face she agreed, pulling her cellphone out of her back pocket and placing a call to the attorney who apparently approved of the meeting. She went out to the car and left with them, smiling as Michael closed the door for her.

No one spoke during the ride and Matt's phone buzzed as he received a text from Tomás Sergio, a teen that he had helped get off the streets while working a case involving a string of gang murders. He and CJ now had temporary custody of him and were putting the boy through a private school near San Francisco. He read the message: Finished with my midterms!

Grinning, he texted the boy back. Cool. And? A few seconds later the phone buzzed again.

I'm all packed! Miss Ross will be taking me to the airport in the morning.

He smiled again and Hoyt glanced over, wondering who he was talking to. CJ will probably be the one to pick you up. Not sure – I'm working a big case right now.

The phone buzzed again a few seconds later. Sorry – didn't mean to bug you.

Matt typed a reply. You're not. I'm riding back to the station with Hoyt.

The phone buzzed once again. Say hi for me. Gotta go – got a lunch date with Maricela. See you tomorrow!

Chuckling he replied. I want to hear about her when you get here…See ya! He returned the phone to his shirt pocket and looked over at Michael. "Tomás says hello. He's flying in tomorrow."

"Great. How's he doing?" Michael listened as Matt told him how well the boy was doing making up for the years of school that he had missed while homeless. "He's smart, Houston. And he's lucky that you found him."

"We're lucky that I found him." They had sent the fifteen year old to San Francisco for his own safety; Los Diablos, the gang that had been responsible for the string of murders had been nearly eradicated in a turf war with another gang only a couple of weeks after Matt had found the boy. He had ears on the street in the form of the former leader of another gang, Lorenzo Adolfo. Both of the Houston's had been looking forward to the teen's spring break when they planned to have a serious talk with him about his future.

Back at the station they were met in the lobby by Benson's lawyer, a smug little man who was barely five feet tall. The lobby on the fourth floor had been cleaned by the time they arrived and the four entered Hoyt's office to talk. The lieutenant offered both coffee which was refused and Houston went out to get a cup for both himself and Michael. When he came back in and handed the cup to his friend he turned the chair that sat in front of the lieutenant's desk to face the lawyer and his client.

Canton spoke up. "My client informs me that you spoke with Gregory Ashford before the unfortunate incident this morning."

"We did." Michael took a sip of the coffee. "Miss Benson, do you understand the charges that Mr. Ashford is facing?"

"I do – but I don't have the foggiest idea what it has to do with me." She flipped back her long blonde hair.

"Mr. Houston has evidence of Ashford using your vehicle when he was casing the theaters that he set fire to, and as you are aware he used the same Lexus yesterday when he tried to evade us when we were attempting to serve him with an arrest warrant."

"My client doesn't deny that Mr. Ashford borrowed her car on occasions." Canton had a nasally voice that Matt already found grating on his nerves. He could only imagine how bad it must be for opposing counsel in a court case.

"Mr. Ashford used the vehicle when he committed arson, Mr. Canton." Houston looked directly at the lawyer.

"Ms. Benson isn't responsible for Mr. Ashford's supposed proclivity for arson."

"You have to admit that it looks bad for her, though, don't you?" Matt turned on the charm and Hoyt had a feeling that he knew where it was leading. "What we really wondered is how a fine, upstanding member of the community such as Ms. Benson got involved with Mr. Ashford. Obviously he doesn't run in the same circles."

"That's none of your business." Naomi's eyes narrowed and her lawyer shushed her with a wave of his hand.

"She's absolutely correct. Her associations and friendships are no one's business but her own."

"Still, it must be embarrassing for your parents." Matt gave the woman an intense stare and knew that he had struck a nerve.

"Again, that isn't relevant to the case against Mr. Ashford."

"Maybe…" Matt stood up and walked to the window. "But maybe it is." He turned back to face the pair on the couch. "I grew up in a privileged atmosphere, Mr. Canton. Perhaps you're aware?"

"I have researched your history, Mr. Houston."

"Naomi and I have something in common: our family's approval is extremely valuable to us. After all, if Mr. or Mrs. Benson is offended enough by the disgrace that her indiscretions bring to the family they might well strip her of her inheritance." Although he had been speaking to the attorney, Houston's steely gaze had been locked in on Naomi and from the slight jerk of her head he felt sure that she had already been threatened. "Naturally, we wouldn't want that to happen. But if Ms. Benson were to help us in clearing up this whole mess it would probably go a long ways toward her redemption in the eyes of the public – as well as her family." He reached over on Michael's desk and picked up two newspapers. "Both of these papers are running the story on the front page. We all know it doesn't look good for your client, Mr. Canton. Continued coverage could be detrimental to her future. I think we can all agree that the sooner this business is disposed of the better it will be for your client."

"Obviously…" The lawyer got quiet for a moment and Hoyt was impressed. Houston wasn't known for being overly fancy in his speech habits. Maybe CJ has rubbed off on him. It was hard for him to quell the smile that wanted to surface. "I believe we'll need some time to discuss this situation. Perhaps we could schedule a meeting for tomorrow?"

"I think that's a fine idea." Michael nodded as he stood up and handed one of his cards to Canton. "We really do appreciate your help in the matter."

"Certainly. Good day to you, gentlemen." Canton walked out followed by a somewhat-subdued Naomi Benson and went straight to the elevator.

When they were gone the two detectives looked at each other and Hoyt gave his friend a high five. "Most impressive, Mr. Houston. Have you been taking lawyer lessons from your wife?"

"I can neither confirm nor deny." Matt sat down on the couch. "What I would really like to do is find some dirt on Benson…I've got a feeling that she's played a bigger role in this whole deal than it seems." Looking at his watch he stood up and stretched. "I'm going to the office. Maybe I can come up with something."

"Talk to you later." Michael watched as the PI headed for the stairs.

Houston stopped by Ricardo's on the way to the office and picked up an assortment of burritos, tacos, and nachos. When he stepped off of the elevator he met Chris as she was headed to lunch. "Got a date with Murray?" He gave her a smile, knowing that she was just as fond of the food from the Mexican restaurant as he was.

"No, as a matter of fact he's headed to New York."

"Wanna join me? I made sure to get extra…plus the salsa that you like." He jiggled the bag in front of her.

"What do you want to drink?" The secretary tossed her purse back into the desk and headed into the main part of the office.

"Whatever you want to pour." He stepped up into the office to find Uncle Roy working the keyboard on BABY. "Hungry?"

"I sure am." The older man closed the computer and headed up to the poker table where his nephew began pulling items out of the bag.

"Fizzy Pops all around?" Chris held up three bottles and both men agreed as they sat down.

"So Chris…" Matt swallowed a mouthful of taco. "How do you think Murray will do in the delivery room?"

She got a serious look on her face. "To tell you the truth I'm a little worried about that." She explained how the two had been attending birthing classes and Murray's near-fainting reaction to the videos that had been shown. "I don't know what to do. Maybe if you talked to him about it…since you delivered Catey Rose…" She shrugged.

"I can try." Matt nodded.

"You know, they didn't used to let the fathers into the delivery room back in the old days." Roy spoke up as he added salsa to his nachos. "I think in some cases that might have been a good idea."

"I told him he doesn't have to be there…although I would really prefer he was." Chris unwrapped a taco. "He's really worried about it."

"Well it's not like he has to be down there to catch her – that's what the doc is for. He could just stay up there and coach you."

"I pointed that out, but you know how he is: what if this happens, what if that happens…" She shook her head.

"He's worried you'll go into labor and he'll have to deliver." Roy said what Matt had been thinking.

"He is." After taking a bite of taco, Chris smiled. "Too bad he's never been around when you're delivering a calf or foal."

"You know Cricket is due to foal in August…" Matt thought.

"So am I." The secretary laughed as did the two Houston men.

"Maybe she'll foal before you do…I mean…"Houston got tickled.

"I get what you mean. Maybe he could be there for it?"

"It isn't exactly the same but it sure is good practice for a human baby." Matt chewed thoughtfully. "When you talk to him later ask about it."

"I would really appreciate it." She laughed again. "CJ told me that when she went into labor you were nervous at first…"

Matt smiled as he took a drink. "I was. But she was scared and upset and…well, I just wanted to make it better for her, you know? And the more I thought about it, it didn't seem like that big of a deal after all the horses and cows. Plus it was my responsibility." He thought back to the day that Catey had been born. "It doesn't really seem possible that it was a year ago."

Roy patted him on the shoulder. "That's when you know you're all grown up, Mattlock – the time flies."

"I believe you're right."

"Of course I am." Roy winked at the secretary.

After lunch, the two Houston men settled back down in front of BABY again and discussed the case. "Did you find out anything else about Todd Conley?"

"After a phone call to my beautiful niece and a little coaching, I believe we might be on to something…possibly."

"Aha…and?"

"Conley has talked to a couple of nationwide theater chains about buying him out, but they turned him down. They said that his theaters were not up to date and that bringing them up to their standards wouldn't be profitable for them."

"Uh huh…so maybe he did want to burn them down. But he's got seven of them…surely to goodness if he thought it through he had to have known it would come back to him."

"One would think so. But here's another little tidbit I found out from reading Variety's website. It seems he's been considering starting his own video rental business – a la FlixFix."

"And he would need some start-up capital." Matt nodded.

"Which brings me to what CJ helped me with – his financials." Roy punched a few keys on the computer and Matt began reading.

"Ohhhh boy…Uncle Roy, I believe you just blew this whole thing wide open. After seeing this you gotta wonder how he can afford to rent that office up in the Golden Triangle."

"He can't…his brother-in-law is the bank president."

"And good old brother-in-law is letting him stay rent free?" He looked at his uncle who nodded. The younger man let out a low whistle and sat back on the couch in thought for a few minutes before standing up and walking over to the windows to the patio that looked out over the Los Angeles skyline. He began pacing back and forth, a sure sign to anyone who knew him that he was working through the case. "Okay our boy Conley is in money troubles and wants to ditch the theater chain that Grandpa left him. Ashford has pretty well destroyed two of those by burning them down…" Stopping he looked at Roy. "Once again we have the question of why Ashford is dealing with someone from Beverly Hills. The only logical conclusion that I can see is that he was hired…but who hired him?" He scratched his moustache with the back of his thumb and paced a little more before stopping and looking at his uncle again. "Do you have anything linking Todd Conley and Naomi Benson?"

"No, but that would seem to be the logical answer, wouldn't it?"

"Uh huh…" Matt resumed his pacing, stopping once again as his phone rang. "Yeah, Michael?"

"Thought you would want to know – the hospital called: Strickland will be okay. Ashford not so much."

"Oh?"

"He's paralyzed." Hoyt was sitting in his office with his feet propped up.

"Oh boy." Part of Matt felt bad about it, but Ashford had brought the whole thing on himself. "Do you know which one…?"

He didn't have to finish the question. "Both of us. Between the two bullets his spinal cord was severed. Our shots entered within centimeters of each other…what one started the other finished." Hoyt himself felt a little bit bad about it. Matt sat down and Roy saw the look on his face. The cop knew what his friend was thinking. "You know if we had shot him dead neither of us would be feeling guilty."

"You, too, huh?"

"Kind of, but he did kill one person and injure another. He started the ball rolling."

"Yeah. Well, Uncle Roy may have given us a big break." The cowboy explained what had been found. "I feel stupid right now. If I had dug deeper when I was checking into Conley after the first fire…"

"No – there really wasn't any reason to suspect him so much at that point, was there? But now that there have been two fires it would naturally cause suspicion. Don't be so hard on yourself."

"I'm just glad Uncle Roy was here." He gave his uncle a smile. "Anyway, it looks like there was some connection between Conley, Benson, and Ashford. We just need to figure out how they were associated."

"Have you told Rich?"

"Not yet. I just found out before you called."

"Okay, well…" The cop got quiet for a minute. "You know something? This could get Ashford to talk maybe. Right now he's the only one going down for any of this whole thing."

"…And if the other two are involved he would get a little bit of revenge. I get you. Wonder when he'll be able to talk?"

"Don't know. We'll have to see what happens. Hang on…gotta go – got a body in the river bed. It just never stops. Talk to you later."

"'Bye." Matt hung up and told Roy about Ashford's wounds and Hoyt's thoughts.

"Michael may be right. Ashford may be just what we need to blow this thing wide open."