Scotty is the only one around. He walks over and opens the little gate, beckoning us to enter. “Hey, Frankie, good to see you.” His eyes crinkle around a genuine smile as he greets me.
“You too. How are the boys and Cat?”
“Getting too big too fast. You want to see?” He pulls his phone from his back pocket and opens the photos before I can even respond.
“This is them?” I look up at Scotty. When I left, the twins were still little guys. I babysat for them a few times, but now I wouldn’t even recognize them if they walked past me.
“I know, I swear they eat more than my mortgage payment.” He grins proudly.
“I bet, tell Cat I said hello.”
“Will do, it sure is nice having you home. I know your dad is happier than a pig in shit.” He whispers the last part conspiratorially.
“I heard that!” Dad hollers from the coffee maker. The smell alone is enough to get my feet moving in his direction. It’s late for me to have caffeine, and I shouldn’t have any, but there’s no way I’m strong enough not to, plus it might help clear my head.
Chapter 20
Hold on… Let me overthink this.
“Monroe and Charlie did a full search. The guy didn’t have anything but a pocketknife and some cash, a lot of cash, but nothing else. I booked it into evidence,” Scotty informs Dad after he sits on the edge of one of the empty desks.
“Has he said anything besides asking for a lawyer?” Dad sips from his mug.
“Nope, he hasn’t said a word.”
“What about when you pulled him over?” Dad questions.
“I didn’t think he was going to stop when I lit him up,” Scotty tells us. “He actually sped up for a second, but then he changed his mind and pulled to the side of the road. When I approached the window, he had both hands on the wheel and a chip on his shoulder. You could tell it wasn’t his first rodeo with the police.
“He wouldn’t produce a license, and the out of state plates sent up some red flags. I told him I was running the vehicle and walked back to the cruiser and called you. I pretended to be busy until you showed up, and you know the rest better than me,” Scotty finishes.
Dad stews on the little bit of information for a minute, then sets his mug down. “I’m going to do a probable cause search on the vehicle. I don’t want a lawyer coming in here and putting an injunction on it before I can get a better idea of why he ran in the first place.”
“I’ll join you,” I offer and follow him out of the back of the building. Hill Crest doesn’t impound many vehicles, not enough to have a dedicated yard for that sort of thing, so the cars are usually just towed to the back lot of the police station for the drivers to collect later.
JJ’s hauler is visible when we exit. Perfect, I forgot to ask about my car. As we approach, I see JJ working the levers on the side of his truck to lower the front end of the car. “She’s just about ready,” he announces.
“Hey, JJ.”
He turns when I call his name, and I get a good look at him. Now that I’m not wearing the rose-colored glasses of the past, I see him for the man he is today and not the guy I had a crush on as a kid. He’s still good-looking, but a little of the shine has worn off. I think it has more to do with me being an adult than anything else.
“Did you pick up a car from Mickey’s place, a Dodge Charger?”
“No, can’t say I have.” He shakes his head. “You need me to run over there and hook it up?” He looks between me and Dad.
“No, no. It’s my car. I was worried Mickey might have called because I left it there overnight.”
“Nah, she’d probably push it into the street before calling me.” He grins.
I chuckle, accepting the truth of his words. “Well, if she does and you get a call, don’t take it to the junkyard. She may not look too pretty, but she still has a few miles left in her.”
“You’ve got it. How’s city life?”
Dad ignores us for the most part. He opens the driver’s door and kneels inside as he starts to rummage around. I’m only half paying attention to JJ as I answer, “Loud and smelly.”
“You’re right there. I took Beth over to Longport for our anniversary and it was fun, but I was happy to get home.”
His words sink into my skin a little deeper than I think he intended. It’s hard to forget how much I like my hometown when I’m standing smack in the middle of it. I plaster a placating smile on my lips. “I’m going to help Dad out. Thanks for watching out for my car.”
