Err on the Side of Violence: Terribly Acronymed Detective Club Series (Book 3)

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Joe, Summer, 2009

Joe knew he and Lauren would have to take the lead as soon as they parked in the English Bay parking lot and he saw the look of pathetic relief on Al's face when they climbed out of their van. Al and Rachel had waited for them there, and together they were going to visit a woman who was in a lot of trouble, and Al was probably pissing himself at the prospect of what they might have to do, so of course it would be up to Joe and Lauren to keep everyone from panicking, never mind that they had two kids who would be without their parents if they got caught and sent to prison. He still couldn't believe Lauren had volunteered them for this mission, and if it hadn't been Rachel who'd needed their help because the woman had needed her help, he would have refused outright.

"The kids are with Sunny and Tej," Lauren told them, as if they might have opted for bringing them along. "We thought they might like to hang out with Harpreet and Ajit, since they had such a good time at our place last time. We also thought it would be safer for Sunny to be left out of this, as much as he wanted to know what was going on. We'll stay in contact by phone."

Rachel beckoned them all over so they could talk without any passers by overhearing them. "He's an officer of the court," Rachel said. "Is it wise for him to be kept in the loop? Isn't he obligated to report crime if he knows about it?"

"We never told him we were doing anything, just that you asked us for help with a friend, and that we might be a while. We'll only call him to let him know where we are and how long we'll be."

"He's defending me in that lawsuit filed by the now deceased CEO, remember?" Rachel said. "He officially hired you to get Julia on board. Won't he put two and two together if he finds out Martin died?"

"We have to make sure that man's name never comes up in our communication with him," Lauren said. "That way he has plausible deniability in all of this."

"Rachel," Joe said, "phone Julia and tell her we're near her building now, and ask her to meet us in the parking garage. Ask her if he parked his car in the parking garage, or if he found another way here, a taxi or walking, or something, so we know what to do if they try to trace a vehicle. Also ask her if we can park the van in the garage. I'd like to not leave a paper trail by paying for parking in this lot."

"My guess is he didn't drive here," Lauren said. "From the times I've photographed them, they've taken cabs."

"Jesus Christ," Al said in incredulity. "Have you done this before? The two of you remind me of that Wolf guy played by Harvey Keitel in Pulp Fiction."

Lauren and Joe both looked at him, and he cleared his throat and said, "Sorry."

"As a matter of fact, Al, we haven't," Lauren said, sounding as irritated with him as Joe felt. "We're just trying to think of all the possibilities and plan for them."

"When you're married to a P.I., you can't help absorbing information," Joe said, sounding calmer than he felt. "I've had to help Lauren on some sensitive assignments when her colleagues were otherwise engaged, but nothing like this."

"Like the time you punched that guy out in the nightclub?" Al asked.

"Well, that wasn't so sensitive. It felt good, though."

"That was before the kids," Lauren said.

Rachel called Julia. "We're almost at your place," she said when Julia answered. "Have you cleaned yourself? Are you dressed in fresh clothes? Okay, let us in the parking garage. Did he park in there? Okay. Five minutes." She hung up and turned to them. "No car."

"Good, it's easier to make him disappear this way," Lauren said.

They all piled into the van, and Joe drove them to the building, which had a sloping driveway into the underground parking lot on their right. Luckily, no one was around, and Julia spotted them and opened the retracting gate leading into the lot with a fob, waving them in frantically.