Apologies for the long delay - but had to go out of town on business and then get back into
the groove. Thanks so much for your patience.
His 'fare' was waiting on the sidewalk when Budzinski pulled the burgundy LeSabre to the curb on De Haro. Steve opened the door and leaned down, smiling broadly. "I hope you don't mind a hitchhiker," he chuckled.
The ex-cop frowned. "What?" Something moved in his peripheral vision and he saw Mike Stone gingerly get to his feet and start slowly towards the car; he had obviously been sitting on the bottom step of his steep staircase.
Steve slid into the front seat and closed the door; he leaned quickly towards Budzinski. "Do us all a favor and don't ask him how he's feeling, okay?" he growled sotto voce as his partner reached the back door and opened it.
"What?" Budzinski asked again, this time sounding even more confused as Mike climbed carefully into the car.
The older man grinned at Budzinski. "Hi, Charlie. You don't mind me catching a ride with you, do ya?" he asked with a soft laugh as he settled onto the seat and closed the door.
Budzinski, who was still frowning, met Mike's eyes in the rearview mirror. "Ah… ah, no… no, of course not." He glanced at Steve, his brow still furrowed in bewilderment. "Ah, it's awfully late. Why the ride-along, Lieutenant?"
"Oh, ah, let's just say I have a… a vested interest in what happens tonight. Wouldn't you say?"
"Uh… well, I guess you're right," the private investigator replied hesitantly, shooting another glance at the young man on the seat beside him as he shifted into Drive. As he pulled the large sedan away from the curb, he glanced in the rearview mirror again. "How are you feeling, Mike?"
Steve turned his head slightly towards the driver's seat and rolled his eyes, trying to suppress an annoyed snort. In the back seat, Mike sighed heavily. "I'm fine, thank you," he answered sharply, then shook his head. "I really wish everyone would quit asking me that," he muttered loudly enough to be heard in the front seat as he stared out the side window.
Steve flashed an 'I told you so' smirk in Budzinski's direction before turning his focus back to the windshield.
The sedan turned the corner, heading south. There was no traffic at this hour of the morning and they made good time. His two passengers not seemingly inclined to make small talk, Budzinski concentrated on his driving, occasionally sneaking looks across the front seat or into the rearview mirror. There was something going on with the two SFPD detectives that he couldn't figure out. Mike bided his time looking through the side window but once in awhile he would stare at the back of his partner's head and a soft smile would curl his lips. Steve's hands were resting on his thighs as he stared straight ahead but every now and then he would drum his fingers with a nervous energy that seemed to border on excitement.
Neither seemed interested in conversation of any kind so Budzinski decided against trying to force it. He knew the remainder of the night was going to be filled with enough drama for all of them as they recreated the drive into Marin and beyond, in the hopes of triggering a deeply buried memory. They had struck out so far, and the former LAPD detective knew that the odds were worse than slim, but it was a straw they had to clutch at, a mental and emotional journey they had to complete.
Budzinski glanced into the mirror again; was that why Mike was here?, he asked himself.
It wasn't long before they turned onto Spear. Because they had finished inside the garage before they'd gotten the call about the break-in at the Stone house, it wasn't necessary for them to gain access to the building again. But, in the quest for accuracy, the red Corolla and the tan LTD were once again parked where they were needed for the recreation. Pollard, Healey and Haseejian were standing near the front door of the garage when Budzinski slid his sedan behind the unmarked police car and turned off the engine.
As the detectives and attorney started towards the LeSabre, Steve opened the door and started to get out, his eyes dancing slightly as he heard the back door open and saw three pairs of eyes widen in surprise as Mike came into view. Healey and Haseejian exchanged a look and a confused frown but didn't say anything; Pollard seemed totally baffled.
"Ah, Mike…" he began hesitantly as the older man climbed slowly out of the car and shut the door, turning to them with a soft smile. "Ah, I wasn't expecting to see you tonight…"
Beaming, the lieutenant looked from Pollard to Healey to Haseejian and back to Pollard again, shoving his hands into the pockets of his black windbreaker and rocking slightly on his heels. "Well, I've been sitting around the house not doing much and I thought…" he shrugged with a soft chuckle, "why not? Maybe I can add some fresh eyes… who knows?"
Pollard nodded slowly. "Okay… Why not…?" he responded slowly, seeming to accept the explanation.
Healey and Haseejian didn't looked as convinced and Steve noticed their shared brief skeptical glance. He looked down and swallowed a smile.
"Ah… shall we?" Pollard continued, gesturing towards the LTD as Budzinski joined them. "You got the paper?" he asked his investigator.
Budzinski nodded, patting the breast pocket of his tweed jacket. "Right here."
The attorney nodded. "Good. Okay, ah, the phone booth is over there," he gestured down the street and everyone looked in that direction, "and we're gonna drive the LTD down there with Steve lying in the backseat, just like it happened." He looked at Mike, Healey and Haseejian. "Sorry but, ah, we have to leave these cars here so if you gentlemen want to join us -"
"We have to walk," Mike finished the sentence for him with a chuckle. He shrugged again. "No problem." He glanced at his sergeants. "Come on, fellas, let's go." He started to walk away.
"Ah, Mike," Pollard stopped him. "Is this where you were parked, more or less?" He indicted Budzinski's car.
Mike looked at the sedan and nodded. "Yeah, more or less, I guess."
"Good. Thanks."
As the Homicide detectives started away again, Steve got into the back seat of the tan LTD and laid down in the same position he had been on that night. Budzinski got in behind the wheel and Pollard in the front passenger seat. It didn't take long for the sedan to be maneuvered out from between the other two cars and down the road.
Mike was walking slightly ahead of the two sergeants, who kept glancing at each other with furrowed brows. Finally Healey did a half-jog step to catch up to his boss. "So, ah, Mike, ah… what's the real reason you're here?" he asked hesitantly, bracing for a sharp retort.
But the lieutenant just smiled as he kept walking. "Oh, no particular reason, Dan. I was… free… and I thought Steve could use the, ah, the support, you know…"
Healey was nodding slowly, skeptically. "Yeah… yeah, sure…" He glanced over his shoulder at his partner, shrugged and kept walking. He was half tempted to ask his boss how he was feeling but thought better of it; they had all been down that road before so he just pursed his lips and lightly cleared his throat. He could sense Haseejian's amusement behind him as they continued down the road. Up ahead, the brake lights of the LTD came on.
"How close to the booth did she park?" Budzinski asked, glancing into the rearview mirror.
"I'm not really sure, about twenty feet, I think," Steve answered, "but it was close enough for me to clearly hear what she was saying. She took about seven or eights steps to get to the booth, I think. She deliberately opened my door so I could hear her."
Nodding, Budzinski slowed the large sedan and brought it to a smooth stop. The others were approaching when he got out and started towards the phone booth. Pollard, still in the front seat, looked at Steve then said loudly. "Charlie, say something!"
Standing in the open door of the booth, Budzinski faced the phone. "What do you want me to say?"
Pollard raised his eyebrows. "What do you think?"
Steve nodded. "Sounds about right. I can hear him fine."
"Okay, Charlie, start reading."
Budzinski took the paper out of his jacket pocket and unfolded it. He picked up the receiver and put it to his ear. He put the paper in his mouth and dialled the emergency number, holding the cradle hook down so the call wouldn't connect. Finished, he waited a beat then began to read the transcript, using the same urgency and cadence that Nicole had fabricated to disguise her voice.
When he finished, Pollard looked into the back seat. "So… gender and acting ability aside, is that how it sounded?"
Steve stared at the attorney for a beat then, with a soft smile, sat up and started to get out of the car. Frowning, Pollard watched as the young inspector, with a glance in his partner's direction, began to walk towards the phone booth. Everyone except Mike was staring at him in surprise.
"Uh, Steve…" Pollard muttered bewilderedly, opening the car door and scrambling out, jogging to catch up. "What are you doing? You said you didn't get out of the car."
"I didn't," Steve said softly with a slight smile. He swallowed heavily as he focused his attention on Budzinski. "Do me a favor, will you, Charlie, and read it again?"
Frowning, Budzinski looked at Pollard, as if for permission. His frown deepening, the lawyer tore his eyes from his client and nodded once, sharply.
"Okay…" Budzinski muttered under his breath and looked down at the paper still in his hand. "Do you want me to go through the motions?"
Steve nodded. "Yeah… please."
With an almost invisible shrug, Budzinski glanced at Pollard again. "Okay, sure." He turned towards the phone and picked up the receiver again. "Hello?… Yes, yes… um, I was jogging through Hunter's Point and it's usually deserted, you know, and I saw two cars in front of one of the abandoned buildings…. Yes, on Spear… Anyway, as I was jogging past I thought I heard a woman screaming and then I heard a loud bang like a gunshot…. Yeah… Yeah, on Spear… Yes, it just happened… I'm in a phone booth just down the street… Okay… okay, good…" Finished, he hung the receiver up and turned towards the others, his eyebrows raised.
Everyone was staring at him, Steve and Mike with soft smiles, the others frowning in confusion.
"Did you hear it?" Steve asked quietly.
Budzinski looked blankly at Pollard, Healey at Haseejian, all of them shrugging slightly.
"Hear what?" Pollard asked.
Steve glanced at Mike and snorted softly. "Read it again… but don't use the phone this time… Just read it… slowly."
His brow completely furrowed, the private investigator stared at the attorney, who nodded after a long beat. Healey and Haseejian took a step closer.
Budzinski took a deep breath and began to read again. He wasn't halfway through before Healey caught his breath, his head coming up quickly as his eyes snapped from Steve to Mike and back again. "Oh my god…" he gasped, his craggy face breaking into a smile. "How the hell did we miss that?"
Mike's smile got a little wider. "We all did. It was Steve who caught it."
"Caught what?" Pollard asked impatiently, as Haseejian dropped his head and snorted and Budzinski eyes lit up as he stared at the paper in his hand. When nobody answered him right away, he raised his voice. "Come on, fellas, caught what?"
