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Julia drew back and looked at him. “You look like a rock star.”
“Heroin chic. That’s what they call skinny guys like me.” He pushed the hair from his eyes. “It’s good to see you again, Jules. Sorry it has to be under such crappy circumstances. By the way, your sister is about ready to have a meltdown.”
“That’ll be the day,” Ellie said, opening her can of beer. She unhooked her gun belt and radio and set them on the counter. “Want one?”
“No, thanks.” Julia went to the table and fished through the mess of papers. When she found what she was looking for, she offered them to Ellie. “Here, El. I have these for you.”
Ellie put her beer down. “Wow. That’s her?”
“It is.” Julia smiled like a proud parent. “I’m calling her Alice, by the way. From Wonderland. She responded to the story.”
Ellie stared at the photograph in her hand. It was of a stunningly beautiful black-haired girl in a white eyelet dress. “How’d you do this?”
“Getting her to stand still was the hard part.” Julia’s smile expanded. “We had a good day. I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow. Now, I need to run. Will you keep an eye on her?”
“Babysit? Me?”
Cal rolled his eyes. “It’s babysitting, El. Not brain surgery.”
“I’d rather crack your skull open and sew it shut than watch wolf girl. I’m not kidding.” She looked at her sister. “Where are you going?”
“Back to the library. I need to find out about her diet.”
“Go see Max,” Cal said. “The guy keeps meticulous notes. He’ll be able to answer your questions.”
Julia laughed. “Dr. Casanova on a Friday night? I don’t think so.”
“Don’t worry about it, Jules,” Ellie said. “You’re hardly his type.”
Julia’s smiled faded. “That’s not wh
at I meant, but thanks for the tip.” She reached for her purse and headed for the door. “And thanks for babysitting, El. Good to see you again, Cal.”
“Are you a moron?” Cal said to Ellie the minute Julia left.
“I believe there’s some kind of law against calling your police chief a moron.”
“No. There’s a law against my police chief being a moron. Did you see the look on your sister’s face when you said she wasn’t Max’s type? You hurt her feelings.”
“Come on, Cal. I saw a picture of her last boyfriend. Mr. World Famous scientist did not look like Max.”
Cal sighed and stood up. “You’ll never get it.”
“Get what?”
He looked down at her a long time, long enough that she started to wonder what he saw. Finally, he shook his head. “I’m outta here. See you at work tomorrow.”
“Don’t leave mad.”
He paused at the door and turned to her. “Mad?” His voice dropped. “I’m hardly mad, Ellie. But how would you know that? The only emotions you really understand are your own.”
And then he was gone.
Ellie finished her beer and opened a second. By the time she emptied that can, she’d forgotten all about Cal’s dramatics. They’d had plenty of fights and arguments in their time. What mattered was that tomorrow they’d be fine. Cal would smile at her as if it had never happened. It had always been that way between them.
Finally, she went upstairs. At her old room, she stopped. Turning the knob, she went inside.
The girl was sleeping peacefully, and though she looked like any other kid now, she was still curled up tightly, as if to protect herself from a cruel world.
