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 and no copyright infringement is intended. This is a fan fiction intended for entertainment purposes only and I am not making any money from it.

Chapter 9: Shocks and Tea

Carlos sighed and took a sip of hot coffee from the thermos. He looked at the clock and saw that it was two in the morning. It had been quiet and peaceful since his arrival four hours ago when he had replaced Trent. The artificial light from the street lamps kept the area well lit and it kept him awake.

As his eyes scanned the area, his thoughts turned to the flash drive that he and Detective Silver had received from Martin, one of his contacts. Martin was an unusual and rather unique contact with an attraction to blonde-haired women with bright, light green eyes. It had been useful to bring the DPD detective since she had those attributes even though she had a tint of red in her hair and her eyes were a dark green.

He shook his head, shaking away the image of the detective and having remembered that he had noticed some flecks of gold in her eyes. The flash drive had details of fourteen unsolved murders within the past decade. Martin had found that the victims had been connected to Eli Parker and that Danny Oswald was the most likely suspect in having committed the murders. With a list of those murders, they decided to go over each one of those cases with a fine-toothed comb, hoping that they would find something, anything, that the original investigators had missed. Carlos had thankfully had a chance to bow out of having to read the many boxes of case files since he had to replace Trent on protective duty.

He stretched his muscles, making certain that he wouldn't get too comfortable.

Having seen movement out of the corner of his eye, he turned his head and saw a dark figure run from Pilar's building to the building next door.

He quietly opened the door of his Dodge Durango, closed it without a sound and rushed down the alleyway between the two buildings. He paused as he reached for his gun but he hesitated. It could have been some kid going for a romantic night on the town or to a party. He didn't want to hurt or mentally scar a kid for life.

He saw movement on his left but before he could react, he felt something hit his side. It hurt. He felt his muscles locking up and it took him a few seconds to realize that he was on the ground. He ordered his brain to move his legs and arms, but his body didn't respond.

Something shifted in the shadows and he felt his heart beating a little faster.

"Well, I'm not surprised," Pilar whispered as she stepped out of the darkness, holding a Taser in her hand. "I can't have you messing up my life. Tony is dead because he couldn't keep out of my past."

He tried to move his lips to ask her what her past had to do with his friend's death, but he didn't even feel a tremble.

"I don't need you to lead them to me," she said as she hit the button, shocking him again.

In the darkness, he felt a hand on his arm and as he slowly opened his eyes, he saw familiar dark green eyes looking back at him. He felt a slight shock and he knew it wasn't the Taser.

"Sandoval?" Lucy questioned, her eyes narrowing as she studied his face. "You ok?"

He nodded his head, but other than wiggling his fingers and toes, it was all he could do.

She nodded her head. "All right. We'll have to give you a few minutes." She paused. "Pilar ran, didn't she?"

He nodded his head and she sighed.

After a few moments, he was able to move his legs and his arms. When he struggled to get up, Lucy grabbed his arm. "Let me help you up."

"Tha…thanks," he stammered out. He didn't realize the amount of physical strength that was in the detective.

"I'll drive you home and we'll make some calls."

He nodded his head or he thought he did. He couldn't believe that Pilar had gotten the drop on him. He was worried about her and if something happened to her, it would be his fault.

"Nice apartment," Lucy said as she followed Carlos inside.

"Thanks," Carlos replied as he took off his jacket and draped it haphazardly on the recliner. He carefully lied down on the couch and placed his arm across his eyes. He had called Trent and told him what had happened.

Lucy shook her head and went to the stove. She grabbed the kettle and filled it with water.

Carlos poked his head over the couch. "What are you doing?"

"I am making you some tea," she answered as she set the kettle on the burner and turned on the stove.

"Tea?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, tea," she replied as she entered the living room and sat in the recliner.

"I appreciate the ride home, Detective, but the tea seems more than I thought you would do."

"Oh?" She asked as she looked around.

"Yeah, I thought you would just drop me off and head out."

"I don't have any tea here. So, where did you get it?"

"I had some with me."

"You carry tea with you?"

"Not usually."

He raised a quizzical eyebrow and she sighed. She opened her mouth to answer but then the teakettle whistled and she jumped out of the chair and went into the kitchen.

"You're worried, aren't you?" Carlos asked as he sat up.

She didn't answer. She poured the hot water into the cup over the tea bag that was waiting at the bottom. She returned the kettle to the stove. She picked up the cup and brought it over to the sitting area. She set it down on the coffee table in front of the P.I. She took a seat in the recliner but she didn't lean back. Instead, she leaned forward and clasped her hands together. Her deep sigh filled the silence. She looked at Carlos with a mixture of weariness and knowing.

"She's in danger and I know that Parker is going to have her killed. It is only a matter of time until the call comes in."

He frowned, noting the lines on her face and the dark patches under her eyes. "That's a rather dark outlook."

"I see it as more of reality." She shrugged and pulled a stray tendril of hair behind her ear. "I've come across this situation many times."

"What? Working with two private investigators, especially one who is tall, dark and extremely handsome?" He said with a grin and was pleasantly surprised to see her lip twitch but she held back a smile.

"No one knows where she might have gone?" She asked the glimmer of humor gone.

He wondered what the Detective found humor in because he wanted to see and hear her laugh. He shook his head as he answered her question. "No clue. Kim checked but it didn't seem as though she has any family or friends. I think Tony was all she had."

"Maybe. Maybe not. We know that she is hiding things."

He nodded his head in agreement as his mind wandered.

"How's the tea?"

"Oh, uh," Carlos replied as he picked up the cup and took a tentative sip. He was surprised that because it wasn't overly sweet and it didn't taste like lawn clippings. "It's not bad. Where did you get it?" He took another sip, his eyes locked on her face.

"My partner's wife, Malha. She has her own natural remedies store."

"Oh, sounds interesting." He frowned and looked at the empty mug in his hands.

"There isn't anything else that you could have done, Carlos," Lucy said softly, yet firmly. "Not when Tony was murdered and not now when Pilar refuses help."

He shook his head and set the cup down. "I don't believe that, especially since Pilar is out there."

"We have a B.O.L.O. out for her."

"There must be some place she feels safe."

"She has no living relatives and her co-workers told us that she keeps to herself."

"Unless. Unless, she's gone to someone from her past."

"Yes, but what we've determined is that her past in shrouded in mystery."

"Yes, yes. Maybe she used another name."

"That's possible." She raised an eyebrow. "What is it, Carlos?"

He smiled as he got up from the couch. "Let's go see Kim at the office."

"At," she paused as she consulted her watch, "4:30 in the morning?"

"Yeah, what can I tell ya? She's dedicated." He shrugged his shoulders and bounded to the door. He knew Kim would find something because she always did.

"All right." She stood up and followed him to the door.

He picked up his keys and he opened the door. He bowed and waved the Detective through. She shook her head as she walked passed him. He grinned and shut the door behind him.

He followed her as they descended the building and entered the parking area. "Let's get some coffee on the way," Carlos suggested, once they had reached Lucy's car and had gotten in.

"The tea wasn't enough for you?"

"It's not that. That coffee that you brought me the day you arrested me," he paused, thinking about that coffee. "It was…life altering."

Her smile was bright as she started the car and put it into gear. "Yes, it certainly is a powerful coffee." She turned on the turn signal, checked both ways before she pulled out of the parking spot, heading in the direction of the coffee shop. "We should bring a cup to Kim as well."

"Well, yeah. She's not the one that makes the decent coffee at the office."

"Trent does."

He was shocked that she had known about Trent's coffee. He looked at her suspiciously but with his eyes twinkling. "Why do you say that?"

She raised an eyebrow at him. "I have a sense about coffee and those who make coffee. Plus, the lack of a lingering smell of coffee in your apartment indicated that you don't make coffee too often."

"Wow, you have one of those hyper-sensitive noses."

"Just for coffee."

He laughed and was surprised to hear the Detective laugh. It didn't sound like he thought it would, it was more melodic than he thought it would be. It didn't matter whether her laugh was melodic or filled with snorts; he would have liked her laugh either way. That stunned him and frightened him at the same time.