Bitter Sweets

and some Java.” Usually, Dirk’s voracious appetite was a source of mild amusement for Savannah, but, under the circumstances, she wasn’t in the mood.

    “Don’t hassle me, Coulter,” she said as she slid onto the chair in front of a police station computer and began to type furiously. “Take my word for it, this isn’t the time.”

    “That bad?” Dirk asked, the pout dissolving from his face.

    “Yeah, that bad.”

    “Whatcha looking for?” He leaned over her shoulder to study the blue screen that quickly switched to green. She had accessed the Department of Motor Vehicle files.

    “Your lost sister’s old man?”

    “Yeah, but she isn’t lost anymore. I found her last night.”

    “Good work.”

    “Maybe. Maybe not.”

    Savannah’s pulse pounded in her ears as she punched in the necessary codes to find what she was looking for...what she hoped to high heaven she wouldn’t find.

    Mallock’s name appeared on the screen, along with his basic identification stats.

    Name:
    Mallock, Earl R
    Address : 312 Elm Street, San Carmelita, CA
    Height: 5 ‘ 10”
    Weight: 220 Ibs.
    Hair: Dark brown
    Eyes: Blue

    “That’s the same description Lisa Mallock gave me last night,” Savannah said, trying to feel better.

    Dirk read over her shoulder. “So, what’s the problem?”

    “I’m afraid I might have helped Lisa’s abusive ex-husband find her.” She peered at the screen. “But the guy who hired me looked completely different.”

    “Maybe he’s a friend of the husband’s, trying to help him out.”

    “Could be, or .. .”

    She waited for the photo to appear, her hands and insides shaking .. . and it wasn’t only because she needed a cup of coffee.

    A face materialized before her on the screen. Round, double-chinned. If he had been wearing a white beard and red suit,

    Earl Mallock could have been a department store variety Santa Glaus. Unless you looked into his eyes.

    Savannah had seen that look before, too many times. Flat, emotionless, frightening more for what wasn’t there than what was. No sense of happiness, excitement, sorrow, or pain...all the components that made up most lives. All that was reflected there was a void, a profound emptiness of the soul.

    She shivered.

    “Recognize him?” Dirk said.

    “Well, not really, but...”

    Yes, she did. As much as she didn’t want to, she did recognize him.

    “If you change the hair and eye color,” she muttered, staring at the screen, “if you take off the extra pounds...oh, God... .”

    “Is it him?” Dirk placed strong, warm hands on her shoulders. But, rather than imparting comfort, as he obviously intended, the intimate gesture nearly made her burst into tears of fear and anger.

    “That son of a bitch. He dyed his hair and cut it short.”

    “And his eyes?”

    “Colored contacts, I’ll bet.”

    “But you said he was fat.”

    “He was. But apparently he lost the weight. Fast. That’s probably why he looked so haggard and run-down. This picture was taken less than a year ago, and he’s about 160 pounds now.”

    “Wow, you’ll have to find out what kind of a diet he was on,” Dirk replied.

    “Shut up,” she snapped. “Your timing stinks and you aren’t funny.”

    Instead of verbal retaliation, he continued to rub her shoulders. “You didn’t know, Van,” he said softly.

    “That doesn’t matter,” she said, jumping up from the chair and throwing the switch on the computer. “I should have known.”

    She headed for the door.

    “Where are you going?” Dirk hurried after her.

    “To see Lisa Mallock. To warn her. To tell her she was wrong about trusting me. In this world you can’t trust anybody. Not even yourself.” Tears flooded her eyes as she strode down the hallway and out the back door of the station. “Dammit,” she muttered as she got into the Camaro and peeled out of the parking lot, leaving Dirk standing alone and looking concerned on the station steps. “I should have known. I’m sorry, Lisa .. . Christy. Dammit, I’m so sorry.”

    CHAPTER FIVE

    When Savannah had left the police station, she had fully intended to drive straight to Lisa Mallock’s home, ring the bell, and warn her about a possible contact from her exhusband. But after arriving at the address, Savannah checked her watch and realized it was only five-thirty in the morning.

    Lisa would be distressed enough about the information, without being summoned out of bed to receive the news.

    Sitting in