Nolan's Journal Chapter 13
"Jason hasn't shown up yet. Bailey and I can't figure out a reason except that he's planning some complicated revenge, and he needs time to get it ready. My ass is pretty much healed, but the department doc hasn't released me for patrol yet, so I'm at the front desk. Still, it puts me at Mid-Wilshire all day. I doubt that even Jason would try to come after me there. Bailey is taking on extra shifts at the firehouse, where she is surrounded by a bunch of exceptionally strong and brave men and women. She's as safe as possible there. I've also reinforced the defenses on the house as much as I can. The shutters are in, retracted out of Bailey's sight when we don't need them. The locks on the doors are the strongest available, and we changed our security code just in case Jason, Oscar, or Monica managed to get a hold of it. I also installed motion detectors that I can activate in the house when we're not here. I consulted the LAPD's security expert, who said she couldn't think of anything else I could do.
"The department decided to push forward a new crop of rookies ahead of schedule because we're so short-handed. As soon as Celina passes her test, I'll be getting a new one. A boot will also be assigned to Tim Bradford, who decided that the best way he can serve right now is as a TO. Grey wasn't too sure about letting him do it, since he was kicked out of Metro for recklessness. The last thing a rookie needs is a reckless TO. Still, we need the rookies, so Grey doesn't have much of a choice. Also, since Tim will be working with a rookie, there's little chance he'll be working with Lucy. That will avoid conflicts that could arise from their past relationship.
"Lucy is still smarting about not making detective, but she's been so effective on the UC work she's done, including being able to figure out some of what Monica was up to, that Harper and Lopez will be giving her every UC opportunity that they can. Still we need as many cops patrolling the streets as we can muster, so Grey will have to very carefully balance where Lucy can do the most good.
"Speaking of good, we finally identified the woman Joey Renault was so anxious to get away from. Her name is Alberta Renault. She is his stepmother, not his mother. Joey's father, who worked on offshore rigs, married her after Joey's biological mother passed away. Apparently, Alberta played sweet and nice to Joey while he was home, but turned evil stepmother when he went back to sea. After he was killed in a rig explosion, Alberta wanted nothing else to do with Joey. She just kept him with her until she could get her hooks into his father's savings. After that, she kicked Joey to the curb. Gino found out that Joey is fascinated by building and construction. His teacher has been able to make him happy by letting him play with blocks or preschool plastic bricks. He thinks that Joey must have seen what was going on at the center and picked it as a place to take refuge after Alberta abandoned him.
"We have a BOLO out for Alberta and have sent the info to the FBI in case she crosses state lines. She's considered fleeing to avoid prosecution for child abuse and abandonment and anything else the prosecutors can think of if she's caught. There's no record that she actually adopted Joey. Since his biological parents are both dead, Gino and his husband should be able to adopt him. They want to and have already set the wheels in motion. I hope they succeed.
"Bailey and I have put a hold on pursuing adoption for ourselves until we're out from under any threat from Jason. I think Monica has bigger fish to fry. There's no money in coming after us. But Oscar might try something, especially if he thinks he can get something out of it. The manhunt for him is still in full force, even more so than with Jason or Monica. He did stab Wesley, and the DA's office never forgets threats to its own. While Oscar may not be the mastermind Monica is, he is a master manipulator. God knows who he's conned into helping him. He could be anywhere."
"I was finally back on patrol today, and I had Celina with me. She had been riding with Tim while I was recovering, but she seemed glad to be back with me. I'm skeptical about all her supernatural stuff, but apparently, Bradford was a lot worse. One reason I can't come down too hard on it is because Bailey believes a lot of it, and if I scoff too hard, my wife won't be happy with me. God knows with Jason out there we have enough problems. Lucy goes along with Celina on some of it too, but Tim doesn't have to worry about what Lucy thinks anymore. Most of the time, he keeps her at arm's length. Grey is actually helping with that in that he keeps their assignments from overlapping as much as possible. He's trying to keep conflict between his officers to a minimum. As undermanned as we are, friction will make a bad situation worse.
"Smitty thinks he's some kind of a hero for helping with Monica and tried to use it to get off patrol again. Grey wasn't having any part of that. He put a civilian volunteer in the property room to do the inventory. The poor woman discovered that Smitty had barely made any entries in the time he was there. That left her with a ton of work to do. Since she's a civilian, Grey had to sign off on all of that. He wasn't happy. That blew any chance Smitty had for getting back on his good side.
"All the cops on the street are keeping their eyes open for Jason. BOLO or no BOLO, I'm grateful to them for that. They're watching out for Oscar and Monica too, but Jason's at the top of the priority list because he's likely to attack family. The firefighters feel the same way. Normally, they go out in pairs for medical calls, the majority of emergencies. But right now, about the only time Bailey is alone, otherwise, is in a stall in the ladies' room. And even then, if a female firefighter is free to be in the room with her, she has company. If not, one of the guys at least watches the door. I'm still nervous, but it helps to know that first responders hang together.
"We did get a report from Garza's people that Argentinian cops spotted Monica. Unfortunately, it took days for it to reach the FBI, so Monica could be anywhere by now. Still, I suspect that her first priority is recovering as much of her money as she can. The feds froze the accounts they know about, but she could have hidden accounts or even stashes of gold or gems somewhere. The FBI just doesn't know, and apparently, neither does any other federal agency. They still haven't even figured out where Rosalind Dyer hid her operating capital, and they've had a long time to look. I'm just hoping that Monica doesn't tie up with Oscar again. He has the kind of contacts Monica normally wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole, but they could be deadly. It would be like her to let what she regards as scum do her dirty work and just sweep in for the coup de gras. Unfortunately, no one has a clue as to what that might be."