Disclaimer: Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and others own the characters of "Walker Texas Ranger" and "Sons of Thunder". Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fanfiction intended for entertainment purposes only and I am not making any money from it.
Chapter 14: Victims
Carlos set one of the steaming cups of coffee that he had carried from the bar in front of Trent and the other in front of an empty seat which he promptly took.
"Good crowd," Trent commented with a slight wave of his hand at the people in Uppercuts for an early Friday afternoon drink.
Carlos nodded his head in agreement as he settled more comfortably in his chair. "So, you and Nancy are seeing each other?" Carlos asked as he looked over his cup of coffee at his best friend.
Trent had stopped the cup about halfway to his lips. He carefully set it down and locked eyes with Carlos. "How did you know?"
He slowly took a sip of coffee before setting it down and allowed a mischievous grin to spread across his face. "Well, the looks you guys were giving each other at dinner last night was kind of obvious."
He paused as he looked at his friend who looked as though he was trying to figure out what he had done or said that indicated that he and Nancy were dating. Carlo decided to give Trent a break. "Why haven't you two told anyone that you guys are dating?"
Trent sighed. "It's easier."
He raised an eyebrow and motioned with his hand for his partner to elaborate. It was strange that Trent, who was known for his honesty, wouldn't tell his own friends that he was dating someone they all knew.
"We just want to figure our relationship out first before we involved everyone else," he added.
He knew it was more than, but he would always support his friend. "Well, Trent, your relationship with Nancy doesn't just concern you and Nancy."
Trent sighed again as looked down and tapped his finger on his coffee cup a few times before he leveled his gaze. "You're right."
Carlos grinned reassuringly. "Of course I am. You know that we all care about both of you and we will still care for the both of you no matter what happens."
Trent smiled and nodded his head. "Thank you, Carlos. That helps a lot." He paused, his smile fading a little and guilt entered his eyes. "I didn't like to keep this from everyone, but it's Nancy, you know? I care about her."
He nodded his head understanding that it was a difficult situation when you dated the daughter of one of your friends; a friend who happened to have been a former boxer and rented you office space for your business. "I know you do. It's not hard to miss the way you two look at one another."
Trent gave him an appreciative smile as they took a few moments to drink in silence.
Once Trent had finished his coffee, he looked at Carlos curiously mixed with a little amusement. "Not to change the subject, but what about you and Lucy?"
"There is nothing between me and Lucy," Carlos answered and he realized that he had said it a little too quickly.
"Uh-huh," his friend replied with an amused grin.
As he leaned back in his chair his mind went to a strawberry blonde, green-eyed detective with such clarity it was as though she were standing in front of him. He shook his head and returned his attention to reality. "She's a great detective and there is no denying she is a beautiful woman, but I certainly do not have feelings for her."
"I believe you are wrong my friend, because the way you look at Lucy was never the way that I've seen you look at other woman and especially the way you used to look at Angela."
He frowned as an image of Angela appeared in his head with her long, dark wavy hair and her dark eyes that didn't miss a trick. She had been a beautiful, smart, and strong woman that had worked at DPD in the records. He had dated her for several months and he hadn't realized just how much he had cared for Angela until she had broken up with him, it had hurt him deeply.
"I didn't mean to break open old wounds," his friend said softly.
"No, it's fine." He brushed it aside with a wave of his hand. "It was a long time ago." He realized that the pain that he had felt when Angela had broken up with him was gone.
"The point I was trying to make is that when you look at Lucy, your eyes focus solely on her and this smile comes onto your face."
Carlos smiled. "She's different."
Trent laughed, recognizing the smile that had appeared on his friend's face as the one that he acquired in Lucy's presence. "Yes, she is, and you definitely have feelings for her."
A familiar ring tone interrupted the conversation as Trent pulled out his cell and looked at it. He looked up at Carlos. "That's Kim. She's ready for us upstairs."
Carlos nodded as he lifted the coffee cup and drained the rest of it. He rose at the same time as Trent and followed him. He hoped that this meeting would yield some results, but he was secretly looking forward to seeing Lucy.
Lucy and Darryl had arrived at Thunder Investigations and greeted Trent, Carlos and Kim when they entered.
Lucy focused her attention on several white boards that Kim had set up, while the others chatted. One grouping of boards was about Parker and Oswald. One board had detailed accounts of Parker's known movements. The third one had a list of murders that was attributed to Oswald, gathered by Martin, a man that Carlos had befriended a few years back and having known the man's weakness for attractive blondes, had brought Lucy along to retrieve that information. The third board had details of all of Parker's businesses, legitimately and otherwise as well as a list of his known associates.
Then there were a second grouping of boards for the three victims, Tony Cruz, Pilar, and the electronics storeowner, Joe Smith. One line connected to Pilar since she had been in the store and another connected to Parker in which he had assisted in filming the escorts with their clients and using the videos for some old fashioned blackmail.
Five minutes later, Walker and Trivette arrived, having got eyes on Parker while they were away. Sydney and Gage arrived not long after; leaving Daisy with two fellow Rangers.
"Okay," Kim said as she rose from her desk and stood in front of the boards. She pointed at the victim board. "Let's focus on the victims. Let's start with Pilar. We know that she once worked for Parker's escort service. Then, she dated Parker, then they broke up and she left the escort business." Kim looked around the group.
"There are a few questions that I though off while I was working on these," Kim said as she pointed at the questions on the board. "Pilar worked at a clothing store, but didn't make that much money. I tracked her expenses and no way could she afford her clothes and jewelry. So, where did this money come from?"
"Maybe she blackmailed Parker." Gage suggested.
"That's what I was thinking too, but it doesn't feel right to me," Trivette answered with a shake of his head. "Parker wouldn't have allowed her to blackmail him, he would've had his buddy Oswald kill her." He looked around the room. "I mean, he would have killed her sooner."
"I don't think Tony would have enough to pay for his apartment and hers," Sydney pointed out. "Besides, Pilar's apartment was nice, not overly flashy, but comfortable and in a good neighborhood. Tony's apartment is fairly decent and I found out that he had been working on repairs to his building to help but his own rent."
"If we can track the money that pays for Pilar's apartment, it may lead us to Parker," Walker suggested.
"From what I could tell, Pilar's apartment had been paid by cash," Kim answered with an apologetic look to the leader of the Rangers.
"So, that's a dead end," Sydney said as she sat down in a chair with a sigh.
"No, I don't think so," Lucy said as she shook her head.
All eyes turned to Lucy in surprise.
She looked at the victim board, old feelings that had been buried for a long time stirred within her; surprising her. Victims deserved justice and that was one of the reasons she had become a cop in the first place. She brought her attention back to the group. "We know that Pilar couldn't afford that apartment on her own so she had to have been getting the money from somewhere."
"Blackmail," Darryl said.
"I don't believe Parker would ever allow anyone to blackmail him." She shook her head as she took two steps closer to the board, and pointed at Parker. "He loved her and was hoping to get her back."
"How?" Gage asked, not believing it possible that the callous Parker could love anyone.
"Not sure yet," Lucy responded, her eyes sweeping the boards, her gut screaming at her that she was missing something among these connections.
"He's the type of guy that would kill a woman for breaking up with him." Sydney pointed out.
Darryl nodded his head in agreement. "He had her killed when she did the worst thing that he could never forgive, she betrayed him."
"We know that Pilar's death was personal due to the way Oswald killed her," Walker said, his voice hardening. "He watched her face as he strangled her to death."
"Ok," Trent agreed as his eyes swept the board before returning his attention back to the assembled group. "As far as I can see, the payments for the apartment never stopped, so did Pilar blackmail Parker so she wouldn't loose her apartment?"
"Maybe she wanted more," Carlos suggested. "Greed is quite a motivator when it comes to blackmail."
"Do you think she believed that he wouldn't kill her? I mean, she knew him personally and how he ran his business. She was afraid of him. She knew that Oswald was Parker's main hit man." Darryl had said what everyone was thinking, but no one had an answer. Until the got Oswald or Parker to talk, many things would remain a mystery.
They talked for awhile longer, planning out possible strategies to get Parker and Oswald. The large group decided to order food and take a break, then resume discussing the case. All of them hoped that this case would be resolved soon so justice could be served for all of the victims on that board and the many others that were not listed.
Lucy sipped the aromatic and flavorful coffee. She blocked out all of the noise around her, focusing on the coffee in her hand and tried to clear her mind. She failed.
She had arrived at the café after the meeting at Thunder Investigations. Even though it was late in the evening, she was on her third cup of coffee, trying to clear her mind so she could figure out that niggling feeling in her gut since the meeting ended. She had been trying for the past two hours trying to figure out the cause for that feeling that she knew would break open this case.
The boards that Kim had set up had been well-detailed and organized and the detective had commended the office manager on her skills. After dinner, everyone had brought up ideas to stop Parker's operations and bring Oswald in for multiple murders, but Lucy knew that none of those plans would work. She was so focused on her thoughts that she wasn't aware of someone approaching her table until the person spoke.
"Good evening, Detective, I see that you've discovered the best place to get coffee in all of Dallas."
She held back a sigh as she looked up. He had surprised her. She hadn't seen him enter the Perfect Cup, yet he held a cup of coffee in his hand. Her green eyes locked with ones that reminded her of hazelnuts. "I know good coffee, Mr. Snyder," she replied curtly.
He took a casual sip of coffee from his to-go cup and then looked at her with a smile on his face. "Mind if I sit down?"
She indicated with a wave of her hand that he could take the seat across from her.
Jake smiled as he gracefully took his seat.
"I will not reveal any details of an ongoing case and you know that, so why are you here?"
He chuckled with amusement as he set his cup down on the table and leaned back. "Honestly, I was just here getting the best cup of coffee in the city, when I saw you sitting here."
She remained impassive, knowing that the reporter sitting across from her had the determination and cleverness that made him a wonderful reporter. She had read his work after she had caught the reporter following her and Carlos. His writing was witty, concise and well-researched. She respected his tenacity but she feared what would happen to the handsome reporter if he were to cross the paths of either Eli Parker or Donny Oswald. She imagined his body in the morgue or disappearing forever, never to be found.
She brought her focus back to the live man sitting before her. "As I've said before, you should leave this case alone until after we've made our arrests."
He leaned forward. "I'm a reporter, but I also serve the victims and justice, even though I don't do it by wearing a badge. I tell the victims' stories so that people know what they have gone through." He paused for a moment, making a decision about something that he had been thinking about for awhile.
He continued with more intensity than he had truly intended. "I'm interested in the case that is linked to Eli Parker, but I am also interested in one of the detectives investigating the murders of Joe Smith, Tony Cruz and Pilar Hernandez. All these victims led interesting lives; their pasts were all a little colorful, but they all deserve justice." He paused, locking his hazelnut eyes onto her emerald ones. "You've had an interesting past, detective."
A strong tide of anger swept over her as her eyes narrowed and her lips tightened into a nearly invisible line. She forgot where she was for a moment as she jumped back in time. She shook her head and grabbed the table to bring her back to the present. Bracing her hands on the table, pushed her chair out as she stood up, ignoring the loud scrapping sound. She leaned dangerously close to the reporter, her lips close to his ear. "You can write your story about this case after it is resolved, but I warn you, Mr. Snyder, to keep my life out of it." She walked out of the shop, not caring about the others in the shop that had been watching the altercation between her and that bothersome reporter.
Jake leaned back in his chair and tapped his fingers of his right hand on the table as he grabbed his coffee with his left. It was his job to dig deep, deeper than most reporters would have done when he had looked into the woman's history. He just hadn't realized that Detective Lucy Silver hadn't put her past behind her.
He rose to his feet and left the coffee shop. As he got to his car, his thoughts lingered on Silver. The anger that had been emanating from the woman had been palpable. As an investigator reporter, he had seen the fear and pain hidden beneath that anger. He may have taken down corrupt politicians and horrific conditions of work factories as well as in-depth studies of criminals and crimes but he did have a moral code. He wasn't one to report on someone's past, especially someone who had once been an innocent victim.