What to Read This Weekend!

12/13/2024

Griff looked up at her and blinked. “He’s gone.”

“Huh? Who? Clint? What do you mean gone?” She pulled the other chair over so she could sit facing Griff. “Where is Clint?”

“I don’t know. I got home; he was gone. Phoenix and Fern were gone. He couldn’t have left. It wasn’t even that big of a fight. Clint took our dogs and left.” Griff didn’t look at her. Instead he rubbed at a spot on his desk.

“Stay there,” Candice commanded, standing and hurrying out of his office.

Griff shrugged. “I don’t really have anywhere else to go,” he said to his empty office. He sat and watched as more people began populating his department. Some filtered off to other, smaller offices like his. Others took up their positions at desks in the open part of the floor. He tensed when the Assistant Chief Supervisor looked as if he was heading to Griff’s office, but fortunately he veered off to talk to someone else.

He had no business trying to work today, however, he wasn’t completely up to going to his supervisor, Liam Burehle, and explaining why he needed some time off. Griff needed to focus on getting some work completed, but his brain wouldn’t cooperate. It didn’t want to think about anything other than why Clint would leave and how that turn of events made no sense.

Candice returned. She set a paper cup of coffee on Griff’s desk and shoved a container of chilled juice into his hand. “Drink this. Then you’re going to eat this.” She held up a bagel wrapped in wax paper. “You’re wearing the same clothes you had on when you left yesterday.”
“Candy, thank you, but I don’t—”

“Eat. It. And drink up. You certainly aren’t going to function and rectify this situation in the state you’re in right now.” She pointed over her shoulder with her free hand. “Do I have to get the linebacker to come in and force-feed you?”

Despite how he felt, Griff couldn’t help the small smile. “I am armed.”
“So am I, but Kaminski is bigger than half the people in this office combined.” Candice held the bagel under Griff’s nose. After he took it, she stood, tapping her foot.

Griff swallowed the container of juice in one go. He wondered if she knew orange/pineapple was his favorite. The chill of it perked him up, and the sugar gave him a boost. When the first bite of bagel and cream cheese hit his stomach, he realized he was famished.

Candice crossed her arms and paced back and forth. “This feels wrong, and it stinks. How much clothing did Clint take?”

Griff met her gaze and shook his head. “He didn’t take anything except Phoenix and Fern, his wallet, and phone.”

“He didn’t—?” She blew out a breath. “What about his car? You do know the license plate number, right?”

“Yes, but….” Griff stopped chewing. “He didn’t take his car either.”

“Is it in your name?”

“No. It’s not,” Griff said. He finished the bagel. His brain was working better. Twisting around, he picked up the coffee.

“Why the hell would he leave and not take his car, then?” Candice stopped and stared at him. “This really doesn’t feel right.”

“Yeah, I know. But I can’t exactly organize a manhunt for my boyfriend. Hell, reporting him missing isn’t likely to do much good either. We had a fight the night before I came home to find him gone. We haven’t had sex in, I don’t know, a few months and… you know as well as I do what people will think. Domestic dispute. My partner packed up and left.” Griff didn’t mean to erupt in front of Candice the way he had. “Except he didn’t pack a damn thing and either walked off or called someone to pick them up. And I can’t prove a goddamn thing!”

When Candice went to his office door and called two other people in, then shut the door behind them, Griff realized he’d been yelling.

“What the hell is going on?” Jim Kaminski actually had been a linebacker for a professional football team. Now he was a freaky good expert at all things related to computer technology. The second man, Matt Carver, completed their usual investigative team.

Before Griff could answer, there was a knock on his office door. He held up one finger and asked in a loud enough voice to be heard through the door. “Yeah?”

A young man, whose name escaped Griff, opened the door. “Inspector, there is a call for you, line four. It’s the animal shelter.” He nodded and closed the door again.

“Why would they be calling you?” Matt asked. He looked at Jim, who only shrugged.

Griff was out of the chair and around the desk in seconds. He picked up the phone, stabbed at the button, and said, “Inspector Diamond.” Griff listened to the woman on the other end of the phone before saying. “I’m downtown. I can be there in fifteen minutes. Thank you. Thank you so much.”

“What’s going on?” Candice asked.

“They have my dogs. Clint would never take them there, and he’d never leave them. The woman said they were found running down the street by a neighbor, like someone was chasing them.” Griff grabbed his phone and did a quick self-search for his keys, finally yanking them out of his pocket. “I have to go get my dogs. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”