CHAPTER 21
Left standing in the lobby, Sarah and Bobby looked at each other. Now that there was no intrigue to keep them occupied, they were feeling awkward in each other's company. Last night didn't help either.
"Well, I guess we both have calls to make. The first one to finish wins. Loser buys the first round." Sarah joked.
Bobby laughed. "All right. On your marks, get set, speed dial."
They rode the elevator up to their floor. As they reached Bobby's door, he turned and started to say something, then thought better of it. He shook his head and just said, "See you in awhile."
"Don't forget, first one to finish, wins."
"Right." Bobby waited until Sarah was safely in her room before entering his. He reached into his pocket for his cell phone and pressed speed dial #1 - One Police Plaza and Captain Deakins office.
"Deakins."
"Captain, it's Goren. I have just one question for you. Did the Chief brief you about the real purpose of this trip? Did you know this was about Nicole Wallace?"
"No, Bobby he didn't. The story I told you was word for word what I got from the Chief. I think the FBI's Regional Chief told the Chief of D's and the Commissioner the truth about the operation. They're both aware of your and Eames connection with Nicole. I think they did what they thought best to get the two of you out there as quickly as they could."
"We should have been told the truth, upfront. We should have known what we were walking into." Bobby was restlessly pacing his room, trying to burn off some of his anger at the deception.
"I agree Bobby. And I told that to the Chief as soon as I found out the truth." Deakins had been outraged by the deception and he'd put his badge on the line, the way he confronted the Chief.
"Well, I don't know if you've heard yet, but we didn't help very much. The Feds are saying that Nicole got away. If we're meant to believe that, at least now they know what she looks like. Which is nothing like the Nicole we knew."
"Yeah, we've heard about Nicole. Are you saying you don't believe Nicole got away? The Commissioner and the Chief got the news early this morning. From the FBI's Regional Chief. They probably got the word before you did."
"The Feds haven't been upfront about anything so far, I'm just not sure that I trust them to be so upfront and forthcoming now. Why shouldn't the Chief and the Commissioner know about this before Eames and I. We were just the pawns in this match." Bobby's indignation was starting to get the better of him. He knew he was getting close to the edge. "I don't think the Feds are going to need us anymore. And LAPD is definitely finished with us. Eames and I are ready to come home." Bobby said.
'Both you and Eames have accrued a lot of vacation days. Your plane tickets are open-ended return courtesy of the FBI, so why don't you take the rest off the week as R and R? Reed and Sawyer are making some progress on the Tyler case. Carver's fine holding off on taking the Janseen case to the Grand Jury. There's no reason why you should hurry back. You deserve a break, at least through the weekend. I need you back here first thing Monday morning."
"Well I'll let Alex and Andy know. They may want to stay. I'll probably just head on back to the city."
"Well, you can do what you want Goren, but I'm serious about you taking the rest of the week off. I don't want to see you back in the office until Monday. How much did this Nicole mess with your head? I need you back here focused and ready to go. I need you back here at 100 and ready to go; not hung up on what you might have done differently to bring in Nicole. No one could have predicted that Nicole would be able to slip out of a building surrounded by federal agents?" Deakins didn't even want to think about what it would mean if Bobby had seen Sarah while out in Los Angeles.
"I could have. I should have. If she really did." Bobby sat staring at the half empty bottle of Glenlivet.
"Even for Nicole that's quite a feat. But that's what I mean, Bobby. Don't second-guess yourself on this one. Let it go. Get right with this. You did what you could. You did more than anyone could have. No one, except you, expects more of you than that. Get right with this. Get in front of it. And then come back to work."
"I'll make sure that Alex and Andy know about the time off. I'm sure they'll both appreciate it. We'll see you on Monday." Goren disconnected the call. He threw his cell phone on the bed and collapsed in the same chair he'd sprawled on last night.
He hated that Nicole had always managed to get through his carefully constructed defenses, and that after these encounters, the cracks were enough for others to see into as well.
He raked his hands through his hair and roughly rubbed his face. As he sighed and scanned the room, his gaze was drawn back to the bottle from last night. He wasn't tempted by it now, but resentful that he had been last night. He wondered how much the half-empty bottle would have left in it, if Sarah hadn't come through that door last night.
Bobby stared at the connecting room door. What was going on over there? What was she thinking? What did she think about his impulsive visit to her house the other night? What effect had the events of the last two days had on her thoughts? What did he think about all this?
Sarah was knocking at the connecting door. "OK, I'm finished with my calls. How about you?" Bobby got up, walked over to the door, and opened it. Sarah had a big smile on her face. "I just got off the phone with Tony DaSilva. His father called about an hour ago. The Border Patrol picked him up early this morning near Mexicali. He was wandering around, confused, dehydrated and in need of his insulin - he's diabetic - but other than that he's fine."
"That's good news. I'm happy for you. I'm happy for them." Bobby looked down at her and grinned. Her smile had always effected him that way.
"Hey, I don't know why, but I'm feeling really good today. I mean, really, really great. I keep thinking I should be in shock or something, but I feel energized. How weird is that?"
Bobby shook his head, "It's not weird at all. It's part of the adrenaline rush. You'll crash, it might take a day or two, but you will. If you're lucky, the crash will just make you want to sleep for days. Remember, that's how it usually affected me."
"Yeah… yeah, I remember. Um… look I don't think I want to hang out here at the hotel after all. There's not much to do. How about we go out to my place and hang out at the beach. We… we could grab a cab. Alex and Andy can meet us there later. It'll give me a chance to make sure that I have everything for a barbecue and to get ready for tonight. Entertaining hasn't been much of a priority since I've been out here and I probably need just about everything with the possible exception of that full bar I still have. How does it sound? Helping me get ready for this barbecue, I volunteered to host. It really is the high life out here."
Sarah rushed through this. She was feeling very nervous. What if Bobby didn't want anything more to do with her? What if his curiosity about any feelings he might have been harboring had been satisfied the other night when he drove out to the beach. She didn't think this was the case. There was last night. There had been trust and real feeling still there, hadn't there? She wasn't sure how to read him anymore, not that she'd ever been very successful reading him before. Everything had been so messed up between them, he might just want to avoid her and get as far away from her as possible and get back to work in New York.
A spark of hope flared as Bobby answered, "Well, if you really think the beach is going to be nicer than the swimming pool at a downtown Holiday Inn situated between two major freeways." He was teasing her. She took that as a good sign. That was something they'd been able to do since the moment they met.
"Just a little bit, don't you think?" At least he hadn't flat out said no yet.
"Sure, let me get change out of and throw on some jeans. I'll call Alex and Andy and let them know about the change in plans."
"OK. How about we meet downstairs once you've changed. I'd like to find your friend Felix and thank him for the clothes. So I'll see you in the lobby in a few minutes."
Bobby nodded, "downstairs in about fifteen minutes."
"Perfect." Sarah backed out of the room and closed the door. Maybe there was a chance. Sarah threw her few belongings in the sack Felix had delivered earlier and left the room to go downstairs and check out.
Sarah walk to the front desk, "I'd like to check out … room 713. Another card was used last night to check in, but I'd like the charges put on this card instead."
"OK, that shouldn't be a problem, let me just pull up the room number… Um, hmmm, last night when you checked in the card was used to pay for the room, not secure it. The bill has been taken care of already."
Looking at the woman's nametag, Sarah asked, "Well Alice, a friend of mine did that for me, and he really shouldn't have. I hate to be a bother, but is there anyway you could credit his card back and charge mine?"
"Bobby's not going to like that, Miss Stevens." Turning to see who was speaking, Sarah found herself looking at Felix, who was leaning up against the far end of the front desk. "Are you sure this in the best time to throw your independence up in Bobby's face? It seemed very important last night that HE saw to it that you were taken care of properly."
"Felix, right? Good, I was hoping you'd still be working. I wanted to be able to thank you for the things last night and the clothes this morning. I'd like to repay you for them, if you'll just let me know how much it all came to." Sarah was rummaging through the bag looking for her evening bag from last night. "I don't have much cash with me, but I'm sure there's an ATM here or close by, isn't there?"
"You're welcome. I was glad to be able to help. You don't owe me anything. Bobby took care of everything last night. Take it up with him if you have to, but what he did last night, he did because he wanted to do it for you. Not because it was the decent thing to do, or because it was expected, but because it was the only way he could look out for you, so that's what he did. Let him do it."
Sarah was chewing on her upper lip as she listened to Felix. After Felix finished, Sarah looked back to Alice and said, "Um… okay, can I get a copy of the charges and we'll leave the billing as it is."
Alice printed out a receipt and handed it to Sarah as Bobby walked up to the desk. "We ready to go?" Bobby asked as Sarah folded the receipt and put it in the paper sack. "Good morning, Felix. Alice." Bobby clapped Felix on the back, while slipping a couple of folded twenty-dollar bills into the pocket of Felix's jacket. "Thanks again for your help last night."
"Well, as I was telling Sarah here, I was glad to be able to help." Felix said.
"Well, how about helping us one more time. We need a cab. One that'll take us out to Santa Monica and not rip us off."
Feigning mock indignation, Felix clutched his chest before replying, "Hey, this is L.A. not New York. Our cabbies are straight up honest."
"hmmm, hmmm." Bobby replied, "Sure."
"Well, I know the guy that's sitting out front is. He's a friend of mine. I'll make sure he takes care of you."
Felix leaned into the front of the driver's window and said, "Take care of my friends, would you Art? They need to get out to Santa Monica."
"Sure thing. Get in."
Felix held the door open as Sarah got in, pausing long enough to look at him and say, "Thank you, Felix. Thank you." Felix nodded and Sarah knew that he'd gotten what she meant, but couldn't say.
Felix stopped Bobby for a second and said, "I'll bet you those two twenties you slipped into my jacket, that you won't be using your room here tonight."
Bobby shook his head, "No… no bet. I learned a long time ago to only bet on a sure thing and that there no such thing as a sure thing."
"Well, you're wrong this time Detective."
Laughing, Bobby got in the cab and settled back as the car headed onto the freeway.