An Encounter in Atlanta | Page 7

subject of flying blondes considerably more interesting and resolved to look into the matter as time permitted.
Lt. Bain arrived, checked in with Avery, and headed for Cade's table. Cade stood up as she approached and waved at Manuel as he asked Bain how she liked her coffee.
Smoothing her skirt and hitching the back of her jacket clear as she sat down, she responded instantly, "Two sugars, please. How do you feel about what happened, Mr. Cade? About... about what you had to do, I mean?"
'About what he'd had to do'? Couldn't she say the words 'about shooting people'?
"Next question, please," said Cade. "Manuel, put two sugars in hers, okay?" Manuel nodded.
"Mr. Cade," said Bain, "I have no doubt the shooting was justified, if that's your concern. I'm asking because..."
Interrupting her, Cade said, "I'm just an inter-agency loaner. You don't have to be concerned about my feelings."
Her gaze narrowed as she set her purse on the table and firmly said, "But it happened while you were on loan tous , Mr. Cade, so if you should feel a need for counseling, we have several good people available."
Counseling, huh? That would be a first. Cade kept a straight face to avoid offending her as he glanced up to see how far along Manuel was with her coffee.
Getting up to save Manuel a trip, Cade served Bain her coffee and said, "Like I said, milady; next question."
Bain said nothing until Cade had handed her the coffee and sat back down. She sipped for a moment, then set the coffee down on the table and regarded Cade quietly for a time.
"Okay, then," she said, "The next question is, how many rounds did you fire?"
"Four. Avery fired twice."
"You're sure about that?"
"I'm sure. I hit him twice up here and twice on the sidewalk when he aimed up at us. Avery fired at him on the sidewalk."
She nodded and said, "If any rounds went astray, we'll have to account for them. May I see your weapon?"
Cade unholstered his Glock, dropped the clip and handed it to her, then turned the gun slightly to the left and jacked the slide to eject the round in the chamber, which he caught with his left hand and set upright on the table.
Leaving the Glock's slide open, he set the gun on the table, as well, and picked up his coffee. Bain had watched the casual emptying of the gun with one eyebrow raised, then she gave Cade a wry look.
"I'll bet that trick impresses the hell out of some women."
Shrugging, Cade said, "The only women who've ever seen me do that could probably do it, too, LT, so I kind of doubt it. Are you through counting my bullets?"
Nodding, she handed him the magazine and asked, "Did you have one in the chamber as well as a full magazine?"
As he thumbed the loose round into the top of the magazine, Cade said, "Yup. One up the spout."
He put the magazine back in the Glock and thumbed the slide release to close it, then put the gun back in its holster.
Bain said, "Thank you," and sipped her coffee again before sighingly saying, "I'm sorry, Mr. Cade, but you and your people were dropped on us from out of the blue. I simply don't know you well enough to just take your word for some things."
Shrugging again, Cade said, "No problem. Someone once said,'Trust, but verify' . It's a good policy. Now answer a question for me, please."
"If I can."
"Who was the woman who flew off with the car?"
"I can't tell you that." Heading off his next question, she quickly added, "I don't know who she is. Or was, I'm afraid. She was apparently dropped on us, too."
"Apparently?"
With a curt nod, she said, "I hate to admit it, but she was a complete surprise to the Atlanta PD."
Cade met her gaze for a moment, decided that if she wasn't telling him the truth, it wasn't worth pushing, and said, "I've seen tabloid reports of two superwomen and didn't really believe in either one of them until today. One is supposed to hang out in or around California and the other has been reported mostly around Las Vegas."
"That's what I've heard, too. I made a request for info as soon as I heard what happened. Before I got out of the comm center, word had come down that I was not to ask again."
Avery came to the table and said, "Lieutenant Bain, we're going to need you in a few minutes."
"Okay, I'll be right there," she said, then as Avery nodded and walked away, she said, "Mr. Cade, my office doesn't seem to have your contact info."
"My boss knows where to find me."
Bain gazed at Cade thoughtfully for a moment, then stood up and picked up her purse as she said, "In