“I don’t know what Captain Rogers is worried about, but my work hasn’t suffered, and helping others is part of why most of us became police officers in the first place. It certainly isn’t for the work hours or the pay.” He snickered, and the chief chuckled. He had been fighting with the council for increases in budgets for payroll for the last three years. “I have also been in regular contact with Social Services. And we had someone speak with Bazel, alone, so he could tell his side and they could be satisfied that things were happening the way he wanted.”
“It sounds to me as though you have gone a long way toward making sure that there isn’t an issue with this.” He nodded slowly. “Like I said, I don’t intend to lay down any edicts as far as your personal life is concerned. You have the right to one the same as anyone else, and you have a right to privacy. I have already spoken with Rogers about this.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
“All I can say is to be careful. This kind of thing can blow up on you, but then, you’ve been honest about it, and that says a lot.”
Atlas tried not to be offended. “Of course I’m honest about it. But I still believe that since this does not affect my work and the job I’m doing, my personal life is no one else’s business.” He was laying down a hard line here.
“Under normal circumstances, yes. That would be very true, and we would not be having this conversation. But it is possible that Bazel could be found guilty of being here illegally, and then deported. That creates a whole different set of circumstances. But as we have already seen, his temporary visa has been approved, which is a good sign. So as far as I am concerned,until something adverse happens, we will not be having another conversation about this subject.” His features lightened. “Now, on a much brighter note, I wanted to inform you that Evie has been put up for a service award.”
Atlas smiled and gently patted her head. “That’s wonderful, but what for?”
“She singlehandedly, or single-pawedly, as the case may be, found the evidence that helped break up a major drug distribution ring. It seems they were using the warehouse to send out as many as ten kilos of product a week, and because they had people who were tapped into the warehouse systems, they sent product all over the country. The really good part is that the DEA, in conjunction with the warehouse systems people, were able to isolate the packages, and using enhanced imaging, we were able to get the addresses used. So all over the country, police departments have been making drug arrests with thousands of pounds of drugs confiscated, millions in cash found, and all of it is because Evie not only passed her test, but found something none of us expected.”
Atlas knelt down and met her gaze with a smile. “You are the best girl, and you did real good.” Then he stood again. “Who is giving her the award?”
“The DEA is putting her up for a K-9 service award, and I’ve submitted both of you for departmental awards. This is a huge bust for the department, and it will really hit home to the borough council, as well as the county, that we are making a real difference.” Now he actually smiled. “I wish I had more teams like the two of you. I’m trying for additional budget.” Evie knew he was talking about her, as her tail lightly thumped the floor.” He cleared his throat. “I have to ask, how does Evie get on with your houseguest?”
“She adores him, and as soon as Evie is done working and I take off her harness, he lavishes attention on her. It’s like heneeds all the affection he can get, and Evie can sense it.” He tried not to think about all the hardships Bazel had endured. It made his throat close up and his blood boil. Man’s inhumanity to man really sucked. He stood, and the chief excused him.
After he and Evie left the office, they returned to his desk. That was one obstacle hurdled, but there were many others. He had just sat down when Carter hurried to his desk. “What’s going on?”
“We just received a call from your neighbor.”
“Ruth…. Ruth Clark?” he asked.
“Yes. She said that she saw the man who has been staying with you racing past the house. He knocked on her door, but she said she didn’t know him and didn’t answer.” Ruth was in her eighties, and with her arthritis, even answering the door could be more than she could do some days. “She says she keeps an eye on things from her window and the young man ran across the street, and then she didn’t see him anymore. But she did add that someone came down the street a little later, like they were ‘looking and prowling.’ Her words.”
“We need to go.”
“Do you want me to ride with you?” Carter asked.
Atlas shook his head. “I need to check with Ruth and then the house to see if he’s returned, but he could be anywhere.” He was all business. “You check the area around the house and the library. It’s one of his favorite places. I’m hoping that if he didn’t feel safe alone at home, he could go there because it’s public and one of the librarians has befriended him.”
“Okay. Let’s go.”
Atlas signed out and hurried to the SUV, then put Evie in the back. He drove home and parked right in front, hoping that if Bazel saw the car, he would come to him. Atlas looked around the street, but it was relatively quiet. Then he went inside, checking the indicator in the dining room before headingupstairs and then checking the main floor. Bazel wasn’t in the house, and his concern rose, but he had to keep it under control and his head clear. He locked the doors and went to Ruth’s, then knocked on the door. “It’s Atlas,” he said loudly. She didn’t come out very often, but he always knew she was okay because she closed her curtains each evening and opened them in the morning, like clockwork. As long as that happened, he and the rest of the neighbors knew she was okay. “Ruth,” he called more loudly before a window behind him cranked open.
“There’s no need to yell. I’m old, but not deaf. Are you here about the young foreign man staying with you?”
“His name is Bazel, and yes. He’s a nice man.”
“I’ve seen what he did with your yard. It hasn’t looked that good since Grace sold you the house,” she scolded lightly, but there was no heat in it, and Atlas couldn’t argue with her. Bazel had performed a kind of garden miracle. “He knocked on the door, but I think someone was after him, and he ran away, down there. But I couldn’t see where he went.”
“Did you see what the man after him looked like?” Atlas asked.
“Of course I did.” She smirked. “He was what you might call smarmy, with slicked black hair and one of those scruffy beards the young people have that makes them look like bums. I swear I want to tell all of them to shave. He was not quite as tall as you, but tall and kind of bulky, but you could take him, I’m sure.”
“Anything else?” Atlas asked.
“No. Now you go find him so I can sleep better. I don’t want any prowlers hanging around.” She clicked her teeth. “You’d think living next to a police officer would keep this kind of thing from happening.”
Atlas had to agree with her on that one. “Thanks, Ruth. Keep your door locked, and I’ll let you know what happens.” He knew that would keep her happy. She liked to know what was goingon, even if she couldn’t be part of it. She cranked the window closed, and he returned to the SUV to get Evie, who jumped down from the back. She hadn’t been trained to track people, but he hoped that since it was Bazel, she might be able to help. “Can you find Bazel?” he asked. “Where is he?”
Evie headed down the sidewalk, so he went with her. But it quickly became apparent that she was leading him back to the house via the back alley. He had already checked the house, so he knew Bazel wasn’t there. Still, he checked the back and then urged Evie on toward downtown. He didn’t see Bazel and contacted Carter.
“He’s not at the house.”
