"I imagine she would," Bethany said. "I wish the living knew there was life after death. It might help ease their grieving if they knew for sure that they'd see their loved ones again."

  "But it might also encourage those who are suicidal to go ahead with it. I can see the good and bad in knowing." Ray reached out and petted Haunt as she stood and started sniffing around the table now that there was food.

  Lance ate in silence, thinking about everything they were talking about. Did knowing about ghosts make him change his thoughts about dying? Of course, it did. It would be impossible not to, but he didn't think it would help ease his grief if someone he cared about died. He was lucky enough that he could still talk to them once they were dead, assuming they didn't go directly into the light, but he'd still feel the loss, and still grieve what had been and the ability to reach out and hug or hold that person.

  "This hit the spot. Thanks for cooking." Angus wiped his mouth. "Comfort food for sure."

  Lance nodded. "It was simple to make and filling."

  "You mind driving tonight?" Angus asked.

  "Not at all. Do you want to drop your car off on the way and then I can just drop you back at home after? That way you don't have to come clear back here later. You said he lives closer to you, right?" Lance asked.

  "Yeah, not too far from me. That would be a good idea. Might give me an extra hour to sleep." Angus rubbed his neck. "You don't mind?"

  "Not at all." Lance took his plate and bowl to the sink, rinsing but not washing them. The sooner they left, the sooner Angus could sleep.

  "Thanks." Angus stood and carried his dishes to the sink. He pressed up against Lance and bent to kiss his neck. "When this is all over, we'll find some time alone."

  Lance turned in his arms. "I look forward to that, but I know how much finding this killer means to you. I'm okay loaning you out to work until it's over."

  "Loaning me, hmm?" Angus laughed and leaned in to kiss him. "Feeling a bit possessive?"

  "Always, but I know when to let go a little, and now is one of those times. You're needed at work and I understand that." Lance leaned into him for a moment, then sighed. "Let's go track down our ghost. The sooner you talk to him, the sooner you sleep. I'll follow you to your place." He glanced at Ray and Bethany. "Pick your car."

  "Tell Angus we're sorry, but we're going with you since you can hear us." Bethany looked over at Ray who nodded.

  "The ghosts are riding with me so I can listen to them bicker in the backseat." Lance grinned at the ghosts.

  "We don't bicker." Bethany looked offended.

  Lance rolled his eyes. "You do. About what shows to watch, what book to listen to, where to go dancing, and probably now, where to go on vacation."

  Ray laughed. "He knows you too well, Bethany."

  She rolled her eyes at them both.

  "Works for me. I wouldn't know you were there anyway." Angus gave Lance another quick kiss then stepped away. "You ready?"

  "Yeah, just let me make sure the back door is locked. We won't be gone for more than a few hours." Lance glanced at the dog who was looking up at him with a hopeful gleam in her eyes. "Sorry girl, you can't go this time. I promise we'll take you out soon." He rubbed her head, then grabbed his phone and keys.

  The drive to Angus's didn't take long. Once he'd parked in the driveway, he quickly ran over and jumped into Lance's car. "Okay, head back out to Madison, then turn on Wilshire." Angus directed Lance.

  Lance did as he said. "We'll park a few spots down the street so we don't spook the family."

  Bethany laughed. "No, you'll just spook the family in the house you park in front of instead."

  Lance sighed but repeated what she'd said to Angus. "No matter what, we're going to draw someone's attention. At least we won't be adding any worry to Joe's family. They have enough going on."

  "They were having a meeting this afternoon to plan the services. Since it will be such a huge event, they wanted to go over every detail. Hopefully, tomorrow they'll be able to announce when and where it will happen," Angus told them. "I know his sister is flying in from Hawaii where she lives and there were other family members around the country who wanted to come. Not to mention officers from around the country coming to pay respects."

  "How's everyone at the station doing?" Ray asked.

  Lance repeated the question.

  "It's quiet. Everyone is whispering as they focus on finding this shooter. It's never a happy place, but it's downright dreary right now. The mayor's been in and out. That's about the only time we hear anyone yelling. She's lost her mind. Seriously, screaming at the chief isn't going to make anything better. We all want this person caught. I feel sorry for the chief right now."

  "I feel sorry for anyone who has to deal with the mayor," Lance said as he turned onto Wilshire. "Now where?"

  Angus glanced at his phone. "Fourth street on the left. Banbury Street. It's the third house on the left."

  Lance turned and saw the house. He drove a few houses farther, then pulled over.

  "That's Detective Burn's car in front of the house. They're probably still talking about everything. If Joe is there and refuses to come out right now, ask him when we can talk. I'll wait here until they're done if I need to." Angus cracked his window a bit.

  "We'll be right back, one way or another." Ray and Bethany floated out of the car and down the sidewalk.

  Lance rested his head back. "Usually, I'd love to spend a quiet night watching the moon rise with you."

  Angus smiled. "Soon enough, we'll be on that cruise watching it. I can't wait to get away from here, especially after this."

  "I bet. It will be a good break for all of us. Bethany and Ray told me tonight that they're thinking about doing some traveling. I hope they at least stay while we're gone, or Franks might be dog-sitting."

  "He'd love it. He needs to get a dog. That house of his is too big to be living in alone. Now that the yard is fenced, he could easily put in a doggy door and not have to worry." Angus leaned his head against the window. "I'm sure Mom and Dad would watch her too."

  "I know they would, but as much as they like to travel, I'd hate to ask. I'd never forgive myself if your mom put off a concert for me." Lance loved that Angus's parents were enjoying their retirement by traveling around the world and seeing bands they enjoyed. His mother was a die-hard metalhead who would spend thousands to go see one of her favorite eighty's hair bands. He glanced over at Angus. "What will we spend our retirement doing?"

  Angus grinned. "Maybe taking the motorcycles across the country to see all the national parks? Or maybe we'll just sit on the porch and yell at kids to get off our lawn."

  Lance started laughing. "I can see you being grumpy like that."

  "Hey, I took the time to mow and tend it. I don't need the kids ruining my flower beds." Angus jabbed Lance in the side gently. "You'll be the one telling them to ignore me."

  "Not ignore you, but there are better ways to keep them off the lawn. We just have to have a remote for the automatic sprinklers. We turn them on when the kids get too close." Lance shook his head. "We'll both be pushovers and you know it."

  "Probably." Angus laughed.

  Lance glanced in the rearview mirror. "Bethany and Ray are coming back. I don't see Joe."

  "Damn it." Angus sighed. "Please tell me he didn't move on already."

  They waited for Ray and Bethany to get back into the car, then Lance turned to face them. "Well?"

  "He's there, but he won't leave his family until they're done planning his funeral. He promised to go to the morgue in the morning, but he had to be back home by three to go get his sister from the airport. Honestly, I think we sort of shocked him. He said he hadn't seen any other ghosts since he died. We promised we'd be around to help him and to ask Lance or Jeremy at the morgue to contact us for him," Ray told them.

  "We tried to ask if we could wait for the meeting to be done, but he kept telling us to hush so he could hear what his family was saying. Best we could do was get his promise to come to the morgue in the morning." Bethany shrugged.

  "Well, that was a waste of time." Angus shook his head.

  "If he shows up tomorrow morning, I'll keep him there until you can get there. We can go to my office and talk." Lance reached over and rested his hand on Angus's arm. "I know it's not what you want, but we can't make him leave his family. We're lucky he's stuck around and is willing to talk to us at all."

  "True. I was just hoping for answers tonight." Angus sighed.

  Lance pulled away from the curb and nodded. "I know, but honestly, he might not have the answers you're looking for. If he had any idea who wanted him dead, he would have found a way to tell us already. His silence makes me think he's as confused as we are as to why this happened."

  "But maybe one of my questions will trigger a memory." Angus pinched the bridge of his nose, then sighed. "I know. I'm searching for miracles. You're right. There's nothing we can do. I'll sleep and meet you at the morgue in the morning. Hopefully, he'll show."

  "If not, we know where to find him." Lance headed toward Angus's house, wishing the night had brought them the answers they needed.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Angus walked up to the front desk and smiled at the older woman sitting there. "Morning, Kathy. Is Lance in?"

  "He sure is. Go on back. I think he's in his office. He told me you'd probably be dropping by." She clicked the door open with a button on her desk, allowing him to move from the lobby to the main part of the building. "There's donuts in the breakroom if you want one. Carrie brought them in."

  "Thanks. I might just grab one." He had made toast for breakfast, but it was hardly enough. Not that a donut would be any better. He made his way down the hall to Lance's office and leaned against the door jamb. "Morning."

  Lance glanced up and grinned. "Good morning. Come on in. No luck as of yet."

  Angus sighed. "Think he'll show?"

  Lance gave a small shrug. "I hope so. I can't put off work for too long. Carrie's already setting up for our first autopsy. Did you sleep?"

  "Hard. I hit the bed and didn't hear anything until my alarm went off.

  "Good, you needed it." Lance stood and went to the doorway, leaning in to kiss Angus. "Want some coffee?"

  "I'd love some." He followed Lance down the hallway to the breakroom. "Jeremy around?"

  Lance nodded as he poured two cups of coffee. "He's in with Sam, working on one of the burn victims that came in last night from that house fire."

  Angus took the cup that Lance handed him. "Thanks. Phil got that case. He thinks the men were dead before the fire was started. The house was abandoned. We're guessing squatters were living there. The call came in right as I was leaving the station last night."

  "I'll be working on the other body as soon as I get in there." Lance sat down beside Angus. "I'm not sure how long we should wait. I wish we'd agreed on a time."

  "Joe would know to come early. At least I'd think he would." Angus sighed. "If he doesn't show, do we go back to his house later tonight or just give up?"

  "That's up to you. I'm a bit shocked that as a police officer, Joe's not jumping at the chance to help us." Lance took a sip of his coffee.

  Angus reached for a donut. "Maybe he really has nothing to tell us."

  "Maybe, but you'd think he'd still want to talk."

  Angus's phone rang. "Damn it." He set the donut down, pulled his phone out of his pocket, and answered. "Franks, it's too early for phone—"

  "We got another officer shot. This time as he was leaving home. He's on the way to the hospital, but it doesn't look good." Franks sounded breathless, as if he was running.

  "Where are you?" Angus stood.

  "Just leaving the station. I'd just gotten here when the call came in. Where are you?"

  "At the morgue. What's the location?"

  Franks gave it to him, and Angus quickly wrote it down in his notebook to put into his GPS once he got to the car.

  "Who got shot?" Angus asked.

  "Officer Schneider. Newer guy. I'm told he moved here a few months ago after losing his wife," Franks told him. "Got to go. See you at the scene." Franks hung up.

  Angus turned to Lance. "Another officer was shot. He's on his way to the hospital, but it sounds bad. I got to go."

  "Yes, of course. If Joe shows up here, I'll talk to him and try to set up a time to talk. Call me when you know more." Lance stood and went to Angus. "Please watch your back. I don't like this at all."

  "We don't know if they're related." Angus kissed Lance quickly. "I'll be safe."

  He didn't wait for an answer as he rushed out the door, giving a wave to Kathy as he hurried by her desk and out to his car. The location was about fifteen minutes away. He had no reason to use his lights and siren, but he wanted to. Instead, he took side roads to avoid the worst of the morning traffic as he tried to figure out if this was related to the last shooting. It had to be. The odds of two cops being shot in a week were nearly impossible in this city.

  A cold chill ran up his spine at the thought that someone was targeting the police. He'd been sure there was a personal link to Joe's death, but maybe there wasn't. Perhaps it was the police in general. Was this some kind of reaction to so much of the media telling people to hate the police?

  He maneuvered past a small fender-bender at one intersection, then turned off the main road, almost to the officer's home. He had so many questions, many that he knew there wouldn't be answers for until later, if ever.

  He saw the flashing lights as he approached the scene. There was no way he was going to get close, so he took the first parking spot he saw down the block and hurried up the sidewalk. As he approached, he took in what he was seeing. The officer's squad car was in the driveway, the driver's door open. Blood covered the ground on the driveway, probably where he'd fallen after being shot. A woman sat in a chair on the front porch, crying as two officers stood beside her. Like always, neighbors watched from their yards, obvious worry on their faces. He looked at each one of them, wondering if one was the shooter watching the aftermath of his or her actions.

  "Angus," Franks called from a group of officers gathered in the yard.

  Angus nodded to the officer keeping things secure as he ducked under the yellow tape. He made his way to Franks, thinking how easy it would be for someone to take them all out right now if they wanted to. He forced the thought back. He would not start living in fear. He put the criminals away, he didn't fear them. "What do we know?"

  Franks shook his head. "Not much. He was late getting to work because his son is sick, and he had to wait for his sister to come over to babysit. He left almost immediately after she got here. She heard the shot a minute later and found him on the ground beside his car." Franks glanced up at the porch. "She didn't see anyone around. The kid's sleeping inside. She's going to stay here with him. Thomas Schneider is currently in surgery. I was told it's touch and go. He was shot in the upper spine."

  "Only once?" Lance asked.

  Franks nodded. "We found a casing on the road. Our guess is he parked there and waited for Tom to come out."

  "What the hell is going on, Franks? That's two in a week." Angus's stomach knotted. "This will have all of us watching over our shoulder and paranoid."

  "I know it has me nervous and I'm in an unmarked car and not in uniform. Imagine how those guys feel. If we prove these are related, everyone is going to be worried." Franks looked up on the porch. "Thank God, his son didn't see it."

  "Small blessing." Angus looked up and down the neighborhood. "A lot of surveillance cameras on the houses around here. Hopefully, one of them picked up something."

  "Officers are going door to door right now. Tom has cameras as well." Franks pointed to the camera above the garage. It doesn't show the shooter, but it shows him being shot. He never saw it coming."

  "We have to catch a break." Angus looked at the faces of the officers working the scene. They were all silent as they worked, each with a grim, worried expression. "The mayor is going to be all over this."

  "I know. Glad I'm not the chief," Franks said. "I'm headed to the hospital to wait with the rest of the guys for Tom to get out of surgery. His father is flying in from Atlanta. Amy's going to handle the family again on this. His sister decided it's safer to stay here with the kid than take him to the hospital with whatever stomach bug he has. The hospital will call her as soon as there is something to report. Amy offered to watch the kid so she could go, but she refused."

  "Probably best. There's nothing she can do there but worry." Angus knew from past experience that the hospital would be packed with officers waiting for surgery to finish so they could get an update. He should probably be there with them, but he wanted to start digging through any evidence they had. "I'm going to head in and start going through surveillance and pray we get ballistics on the bullet that hit Joe today."

  "I'll be in as soon as I can. Call me if you need me." Franks waved and headed out.

  Seeing that everything was being handled on the scene, Angus did the same thing. The sooner he got back to his desk, the sooner he could hopefully find answers. He sent a quick text to Lance but wasn't surprised when he didn't respond. He was probably in the middle of an autopsy. He'd have to update him later.

  He was angry that Joe hadn't shown up earlier. It was like catching the killer didn't matter to him. And maybe it didn't. He was dead. There was no changing that. Perhaps Joe just wanted to spend time with his family while they mourned and didn't want to bother with taking down the shooter. Hard to believe a cop wouldn't want justice, but maybe something changed once you died. But from his experience with other ghosts, they wanted their killers caught. Bethany and others were a perfect example of this. She'd sought out help to put her killer away. He just didn't know what to think. He couldn't force Joe to talk if he didn't want to.

  Once back at the station, he tried not to notice how quiet and empty it was compared to usual. He poured himself a cup of old coffee and sat down. He stared at his computer for a long moment, wondering how two police officers could get shot in his city. There was always crime, but attacks against officers were rare, especially ones of the magnitude. He feared for all his friends and co-workers, not to mention hated the stress it would put on officers' families. He could already hear his own parents warning him to be careful with a haunted look in their eyes. And Lance would suffer too, knowing he was out there every day risking being shot. But it wasn't as if he could just stop going to work.

 

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