They stood in the foyer of the Walters residence, questioning the man about Lupe. Brenda took the picture he offered, and tucked it into her tote.
"When was the last time you saw Lupe?"
"She just stopped showing up. Right before my kid's summer break, thank you very much. No calls, no nothing." He rolled his eyes, and crossed his arms over his chest.
The door opened, and a young blond boy bounded in and up the steps, followed by a pretty young Hispanic female.
"I see you've found a replacement." Sharon couldn't help but interject. The man's unpleasant demeanor rankled. She saw Brenda look down quickly, concealing a smile.
"Yeah, it took forever. I had to go through dozens of girls just to find one I could stand."
Sanchez stepped in front of Brenda, and used his cellphone to snap a photo of the man.
"What's this all about?" Walters shifted uncomfortably on his feet, looking worried.
"Do you recognize either of these people?" Brenda asked, holding up photos of the Disken man and Arianna Gomez.
"Nooo. Should I? Listen, it's starting to feel heavy in here. Should I be calling my lawyer?" Walters uncrossed his arms, reaching into his pocket.
"Do you feel like you should call a lawyer, sir?" Sharon asked in a quiet, even tone.
"Nooo. Look, whatever Lupe was into, I had nothing to do with okay? I haven't seen her in over a month and a half. So maybe you could talk to someone else."
"I'm sorry, sir, but you're the only contact information Lupe left behind after she was raped." Brenda paused, weighing his reaction to her words.
"Uhhhh...she?" He stammered, blinking quickly.
"3 months ago, your nanny was the victim of a brutal sexual assault." Sharon ennunciated each word, driving the point home.
"I, uh. I didn't know. That's awful." Walters furrowed his brow.
"It appears to be the work of a serial rapist," Brenda said, sliding back into her gentle tone, "the last victim was found dead in her home. So it would mean a lot to us, if you could help us find Lupe."
"Listen. It's awful. But I told you, I haven't seen her since before summer break. I wish I could help you, I do, but I've told you all I know.
"If you think of anything, sir, please let us know. Thank you so much for your time." Brenda drawled, before spinning on her heel and walking out. The rest of the team followed close behind.
The ride back to the station was quiet, but it was a companionable silence. Sharon wrote in her notebook for a bit, then glanced over at the Chief.
"Do you think we could turn the radio on, Chief?" She asked, noticing the MP3 player in the center console.
"Hmm? Oh, sure. Sure. Go ahead." Brenda nodded absently, still puzzling over the nanny's use of her employer's address.
Sharon clicked on the stereo, and to her immense relief, the song was still queued from the last time they'd ridden with the radio on. She watched the Chief out of the corner of her eye, waiting until she saw the tell-tale blush creep over her cheeks.
"You know, Chief. I love this song. I have to say, I wouldn't have pegged you for a Melissa Ferrick fan, though." She said, her voice low and inviting.
"Uh. Well, I'm not. I mean. This is the only song of hers that I know. And I don't know it that well. I, uh. I bought it off of one of those Internet song sites, after I heard it on the radio a while back. I like her voice. It remind-"Brenda broke off, realizing what she'd almost said.
Sharon held her smile in check. She was pretty sure she knew when Brenda had discovered the song. She'd heard it on the radio the night they'd closed the Ally Moore case, and it had surprised her, because it wasn't really a commercial song. And if it reminded Brenda of something...well, she was pretty sure she knew what that was, as well.
"I have a few CDs by her. I could loan them to you, if you'd like." Sharon offered, allowing her smile to break free.
"Well thank you, Ca—Sharon. That would be lovely." Brenda wasn't sure why she decided to use the woman's real name, instead of her rank just then, but as she glanced over to see how the Captain had reacted, she was graced with a rare, genuine smile. Brenda's breath caught in her throat. When she smiled, really smiled, Sharon Raydor was absolutely stunning.
They met with the rest of the squad in the central room, and Brenda shrugged off her sweater, getting down to business.
"Lt. Flynn, what can you tell me about Mr. Waters?" She asked, throwing her tote on a nearby desk.
"Well, he's a talent scout, so we know he's an asshole, but other than that, he's clean, Chief." Flynn replied with a smirk.
"I took his photo, and Lupe's photo over Adrianna Gomez's route, but nobody recognized either of them." Detective Sanchez spoke quietly.
"Well, there's gotta be some connection between these women." Brenda tapped her fingers on the desk. " We just have to figure out what it is."
"In the meantime, I've got no hits at the Morgue for Lupe Nava, and no Juanita Doe that matches her description. Which is a good thing." Provenza said, directing his last words at Sanchez.
"Well she couldn't have just disappeared! I'll call-" She faltered, then decided that it was for the case, and she could damn well do her job. "I'll call Fritz and see if he can locate her on the Federal Immigration rolls." She stood, turning toward her office. She saw a smirk pass over the Captain's face.
"Something interesting, Cap'n?" She asked, draping her sweater over her arm.
"I was just thinking how difficult it is to get Federal assistance with an LAPD investigation, and what an asset it must be to be married to an FBI agent." Sharon replied, looking up at her.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Brenda asked.
Sharon smiled, shaking her head, trying to formulate a reply, when Detective Gabriel entered the room.
"Chief, we found the third rape victim. Her name is Marisol Guttierez."
"Is she in the morgue?" Detective Sanchez asked, hunching his shoulders.
"No. She's in Interview with Lt. Tao. I was finally able to get her address from Santa Monica PD, and um, she's a nanny." Gabriel looked at the Chief at those last words.
Before Brenda could reply, Sanchez stood quickly, and stalked out of the room, leaving the squad staring after him. Brenda grabbed her tote, and headed to the Interview room.