After the Fall - Chapter 14
"I hope she's not mad at you ..."
Matt had just finished telling Zoey about the reunion he arranged between CJ and her mother while he was out of town. He wore a confident smile on his face, fairly sure that his plan was going to work.
"I have an extra room at my house if you need some place to stay …"
He looked sideways at her while still keeping an eye on the controls of the airplane.
"She's not going to kick me out of the house, Zoey. Everything will be just fine … you'll see."
She figured she'd accept that answer for now. Just in case CJ wasn't mad at him, she had a little surprise.
"By the way, when Jolie and I were packing up CJ's things, I found something. Something I thought you'd want to have."
His curiosity was up. What could she possibly have found at the Pentin house that he would want?
She pulled a small black box from her purse and held it so that he could see and still keep on eye on the view ahead.
"It's the engagement ring you gave CJ, isn't it?"
He couldn't believe it.
"Wow, she kept it all this time?"
"Looks like. If she's still talking to you after today, and we can get her free of those charges, maybe you'll be able to give it to her … again."
The idea of that brought a broad smile to his face.
CJ had so much to think about.
For starters she had to put some serious thought into that meeting with Gary. Was it the right thing to do? If his intentions were honest about seeing her, it might be the Gary she had known and loved for years, and therefore, had everything to gain and nothing to fear. But, if it was the volatile Gary who attacked her with his own bare hands? Well it goes without saying – she would be nervous as hell.
It still perplexed her why Gary become so violent in the first place. Was it because Matt declared his love for her or that she threatened to leave him? Yes, that could make any man angry, but so angry that he'd want to badly hurt the woman he loved? For over a dozen years she never even so much had seen him lay a hand on anyone, let alone her. At The Center she saw him deal with stressful situations countless times and he never acted controlling, irate or unprofessional - quite the contrary. He was always so calm, cool and collected. That was one of the reasons she fell in love with him. He always kept his passion in check. She had a hard time wrapping her brain around the fact he had such a violent side – even though she experienced it first hand!
And that bombshell her mother dropped about Julia? Well, needless to say that was going to take some time to digest. It was also going to take some time to adjust to having her mother around. Note to self: stock up on booze.
It didn't help that she couldn't find enough to do. She'd go for a ride if her body wasn't so bruised and battered. She'd cook if her mother hadn't taken over control of the stove. She needed to work. Ah, work ... that gave her an idea.
It was so good to be back at 200 West Temple Street. And it wasn't just seeing Chris and Murray again, but being there helped to remind her of all those years ago when she and Matt worked as private investigators. Some of the cases seemed ridiculous and almost comical at first. And then after word spread about Matt's superb crime solving talent, the cases became more challenging. There seemed to be more bullets and bruises as the workload increased, too. Yes she was hit a few times herself and it was hard to go through, but he was always at her side. Maybe she could have found an easier profession but that would have meant being out of his life – and that wouldn't have made her happy at all. Of course this would mean that her mother was right about her. But, didn't everybody have something they hated about their job? Matt always seemed to sense when she needed a break from the drama. Only once in a blue moon did she have to remind him how far he could push the envelope with her.
As soon as Matt and Zoey arrived at the airport, all he could think about was how much he wanted to refuel and get home to CJ. He really didn't want to be thousands of miles away from the love of his life who had so recently returned to him.
They rented a car and drove to the Judge's home praying that he would be a helpful witness in casting doubt about Gary's character. As they were about to get out of their car though, they heard several gun shots. They looked over to the right to see an armed man running from the judge's home and into a blue Mercedes. A woman from his home emerged in the doorway and shouted, "Somebody help! Judge Henry's been shot!" As passer-by's came rushing towards her, Matt and Zoey knew what they had to do.
Matt pressed hard on the accelerator and chased after them through the streets of Miami, doing his best to keep close so he wouldn't lose them. It wasn't easy. Not only did he need to drive at a high rate of speed through small, suburban streets, he had to do it in an unfamiliar town. Zoey did her best to assist, using the mobile phone to report the crime to the police while also keeping her eye trained on the suspects.
Sirens.
They were thankful back-up was coming for it seemed the henchmen knew they were being followed. The Mercedes suddenly turned onto a dead end road and came to a screeching halt. Matt stopped a few car lengths behind.
With guns drawn they opened their car doors and braced their arms.
"Get out of the car nice and easy with your hands in the air!" Matt yelled.
Both henchmen climbed out of the car slowly at first, but then tore off in opposite directions. Matt chased after the one in the passenger seat while Zoey chased after the driver. It was several blocks until he had him cornered against several fenced-in yards. He cocked his gun as the man reached for his.
"Don't even try it. If you know what's good for you, you'll drop it real slow." As the shooter froze with his gun, Matt heard footsteps of someone running up behind him. He took a quick glance over his shoulder to see one of Miami's finest.
"My name's Matt Houston. This man just shot Judge Henry."
The officer was dubious. One of the most famous private eyes was standing in front of him?
"You're Matt Houston? Yeah, right and I'm Sonny Crockett."
Oh great. He's had trouble in the past with a police officer or two not believing him and letting suspects get away. He prayed this one would be different.
"Look, my wallet's inside my left pocket. Would you please check my I.D.? This man just shot a judge!"
The police officer decided to honor his pleas and reached into his pocket while Matt kept his gun trained on the shooter.
"Hey, you really are Matt Houston. What brings you to Miami?"
"It's a long story. Right now you need to arrest this man for shooting the Judge."
The officer returned Matt's wallet to him and inched slowly to the perpetrator while Matt backed him up. As the shooter placed his gun on the ground, the officer kicked the gun away and slapped a pair of handcuffs on him.
Matt scanned the neighborhood looking around for Zoey. She wasn't anywhere in sight and he wondered if she ran into trouble with the other suspect.
No sooner did he think that than she emerged from an alley.
"I lost her," she said jogging towards him and rubbing her shoulder.
"Her?"
"Uh huh," she managed to say in between breaths. "It was Samantha, Matt."
"Samantha? You sure?"
"Positive. I came face to face with her before she hit me with a garbage can lid."
"You okay?"
"I'm fine. It's obvious she has something to do with this whole mess. How she always seems to always elude everyone is something we really need to figure out!"
Matt knew what came next. He and Zoey would have to spend God knows how long giving the police a full report. He was going to be home later than expected. He had to call CJ with a the bad news.
Silence.
That's what he heard after he told CJ what happened. She wasn't happy, and it wasn't so much the news that the Judge had been murdered and dashed their hopes for a solid witness, it was because he wasn't going to be home by evening as promised. She knew how these things went and knew he wouldn't be back by the time she went to sleep. If only she could in fact sleep without having to worry about the worst part of her whole ordeal...
Nightmares.
Matt was the best man for the job to help her deal with them, just as she had once helped him with his.
"Your mother's at the ranch, right? Why don't you lean on her until I get back?"
Oh, he had to bring that up! She had more than a few words to say on the subject but didn't want to get into it over the phone.
"It's just not the same, pal."
"Guess you were surprised to see her, huh?" he prided.
Surprised wasn't exactly the word. More like stunned, shocked beyond belief and did anybody mention upset, infuriated, or just plain unhappy? She fell silent again and he wondered what he said wrong.
"CJ?"
"You said a few days ago that my mother had something to tell me. Did you know what it was?"
"No. She just said that she really wanted to see you."
Well, at least she couldn't be mad at him for that.
"CJ, what did she say? Did it have something to do with your father's affair?"
She took a deep breath.
"Uh huh."
"Well, is Samantha your sister?"
"No."
"That's a relief. Especially after what happened today."
"Huh?"
"CJ, Samantha was the one driving the get away car. I think she has something to do with this whole mess."
She had so much on her mind that she had trouble following and cut him off.
"Julia was my sister," she blurted.
The news stopped him in his tracks.
"What?"
"Yep. All those years my mother knew and never told me. Yeah, having her around the ranch has been a real treat, Houston."
Uh oh. He knew by the tone of her voice that his plan wasn't working like he had hoped.
"I'm sorry, CJ."
It seemed like he said that a lot lately.
"I just can't … I can't believe it," her voice wavered nervously.
"I know what a shock it must be."
It was, but she was ready to get past it … or least be distracted from it.
"Look, do what you have to do there and get home right quick, okay? I'll try to find something at the office to keep busy with until you get back."
Hmm … office ... busy. That got him thinking …
"I have an idea that might help, CJ. That is if you feel up to it?"
"Try me."
"How'd you like to do some research while you're there at the office?"
Her interest was peaked. It had been years since her fingers tickled Baby's keys.
"Check with Baby to see if there's a connection between the assassin you caught, Gary, Samantha or anyone else affiliated with them."
Suddenly her mood improved.
"You got it."
As he hung up the phone, he had a secure smile on his face. He knew that "work therapy" would be the best medicine for CJ's state of mind right now.
He turned towards his sister who had been listening and watching his conversation.
"You see Zo. She's not mad at me."
She just shook her head.
"You lead a charmed life, Mattlock Houston."
That evening, Jolie sat by CJ's side as they watched a movie in the living room. She eventually drifted off to sleep - probably due to the fact she spent most of the morning riding and the afternoon accompanying her mother to the office. She seemed to enjoy being shown off to Chris and Murray as the boss's daughter, even though it surprised her to see her mother admitting that to people outside their immediate family circle. It surprised CJ, too. She wasn't sure why she did it but the deal was done. She prayed that only good would come out of her sudden, bold decision.
CJ really didn't want to fall asleep without Matt. She knew logically she probably couldn't avoid this, but maybe by some miracle he would be home sooner than thought. Not only did she want to show him what she found on Baby, she wanted to throw her arms around him and hold on to him for dear life - that and knock his block off for arranging a secret reunion with her mother. A visit from her was the last thing she needed right now. In the meantime, she'd try to stay awake by catching up on the news, wondering if the general viewing public found better things to watch than her crisis. No sooner did she think that than she nodded off. Well, at least she tried.
Almost an hour later Matt arrived home and smiled as he stood in the doorway to the living room. There were his two favorite ladies fast asleep on the sofa. Jolie had one arm nestled around her well-traveled ducky and her head resting on CJ's lap. CJ had her head leaning against the back corner of the sofa looking more beautiful than when he left that morning.
He snuck in quietly and bent close to her face to give her a kiss on the cheek, trying not to disturb either one of them. She stirred and opened her eyes, surprised to see his smiling face.
She looked over at her sleeping daughter and gently substituted her lap with a pillow. She climbed off the couch carefully and walked into the kitchen to get into position: standing with her arms crossed in front of her.
"Hi honey … I'm home."
"Don't you honey me."
"Huh?"
He came in closer and stopped within inches of her.
"What no hug, no kiss?"
She took in his face – so handsome to her right now. She missed the man and was so glad to see him. She immediately relaxed her arms and let him embrace her into a bear hug, complete with a broad, encompassing kiss on her lips.
Yeah, she was one tough cookie.
"I missed you," he said tenderly. "Zoey said she'd stay and deal with the rest of the police investigation. She knew I wanted to get home to you."
"I have to go to San Francisco," she blurted.
"What? Why?"
"Gary's lawyer called. He wants to see me. Fred thinks it might be a way to avoid a trial if we can talk things out."
He started shaking his head adamantly even before she finished her sentence. "No, no, no, no, no! I won't hear of it, CJ!"
"Houston …"
"Talks things out? There's no way you should be in the same room with him! I can't believe you would even entertain the thought!"
He was so involved in his rant, pacing back and forth across the kitchen that he didn't notice the tears forming in her eyes. With everything she learned today she couldn't hold it in any longer. He stopped and turned her direction when he heard her sobs become audible.
"CJ… What is it? I'm sorry … I didn't mean to upset you …"
She lifted her head. "It's okay ... it's just that a lot happened today … and … I really missed you."
That admission actually made him feel a little better. This was something he could do something about. He brought her close and wrapped his arms around her, pressing the side of her face against his chest.
"I think you'll be a little less apprehensive about me seeing Gary when I tell you what I found on Baby today."
He arched his brow and waited for her next words.