The Switch (12 page)

The weekend at home went well, Danny thought. Tia had been a tad cool on the phone, but it could have just been from distraction. It might not mean anything. He told himself this, but he had the funny feeling that he was going to have to grovel a bit to get back in her good graces. And she wouldn’t be entirely out of line, seeing as how he cancelled their date, but surely she would understand when they talked it out.

Laura was surrounded by her family, avoiding the neighbors and limelight at all costs, but he knew it was only a matter of time until it became known she was alive, and then he expected the furor to begin.

Monday morning, after he knew her sister Sandra and her wild crew of animals masquerading as children would be gone, Danny swung by Laura’s. During one of their many talks about the past few months, it had come out that her parents had sold her old beater of a car—something she’d bought used in high school, and he’d nursed through college and into adulthood for her. It was past time she replaced it anyway, so he figured it was a bonus that she had no choice.

He loped up the front walk, his long legs taking the steps in two strides. He didn’t bother with the doorbell, but opened the door and called out, “Laura, you around?”

“Yes,” she said from behind the door. “No need to yell.”

Her voice actually made him jump. “Sorry.” He shut the door behind him and glanced at her. “You look decent. Want to go for a ride? Or rather, want to go
get
a ride?”

“Today? I didn’t think you meant before Saturday.”

“The lots will be quieter on a weekday. Besides, I have to return to Kansas City for work tomorrow night. Time’s a wasting, and if we don’t get you a car before I go, you might not have a way to come visit me. Grab your coat.”

Laura smiled and stood. “Give me a minute to put on some lipstick.”

He was completely unsurprised by the request, since she was oddly addicted to wearing lipstick everywhere she went. This weekend was the first time he remembered seeing her without it in years. “You need lipstick to go car shopping? Are you sure you don’t want me to wait while you paint your nails too?” He rolled his eyes at her. “Some things never change.”

She threw a fake punch at his gut as she walked by, making him flinch back—she’d connected those punches more than once when they were kids, and she was no wimp. A laugh gurgled up from her throat. “Hold your horses. It won’t take long.”

Within a few minutes, she was back with the requisite lipstick. If she’d done more, he couldn’t tell.

“I’m ready if you are,” she said.

“Do you have your money and ID?”

She pulled a thin wallet from her coat pocket. “I’m traveling light. Mom said they tossed my purse because it was all ripped up and filthy from the accident. I’m lucky the things inside were still in good shape—and she couldn’t bear to toss them yet.”

They wandered through two lots before Laura found a car that seriously tempted her.

“It’s an old Accord, like the last one we saw,” Danny said, nudging her toward the year-old, black Infiniti shining next to it. She really had no taste in wheels.

“It’s pearl colored, meaning it’ll stand out from all the black and white cars in the parking lots. It also has seat warmers and a CD player.” He could see the excitement gleaming in her eyes.

“The Infiniti has a CD player,” Danny insisted. “And it gets good gas mileage.”

Laura rolled her eyes. “It’s virtually the same as the Accord—which, you’ll note, has a moon roof, not too many miles on it, and since it’s used, fits in my budget far better.”

She had a point, but he was having fun pushing her buttons, so he continued. “It’s not much less.” He ran his hands over the shape of the car. “It’s also not as cool-looking as this one. You need a ride that’ll get you there with power. This baby will do that, and some!”

“Danny, you do realize I don’t have a job at the moment, so I don’t know if I’ll even be moving close to you again—which means limited borrowing opportunities for you. If you want the Infiniti, buy it yourself.” She shot him a pointed look, though there was amusement in her eyes.

He let out an exaggerated sigh. “You’re such a spoilsport.” Then he walked around her choice, tested the tires, and checked the exhaust pipe for soot. If she was going to buy it, at least he could make sure it was a decent car. No way he’d let her get stuck with a lemon—she’d had enough of that to last a lifetime.

A salesman whose nametag read “Craig” came over. “What can I do for you today?”

“Hey, can we take a test drive? She likes this one,” Danny said.

They drove it out on the road and he took a turn at the wheel, then came back and popped the hood for a look. “When were the spark plugs changed last? What else have you done to the car? What kind of warrantees does it still have?” He grilled Craig for over half an hour.

Finally satisfied, he turned to Laura. “What do you think?”

She shrugged and made excuses, but he could see it in her eyes. She wanted it. They went in to talk prices and she haggled the salesman down more than Danny expected. He didn’t remember her being so shrewd. Where had it come from? Eventually the salesman disappeared with the loan paperwork.

The wait seemed to last forever, but when they saw Craig again, he only apologized that things were taking so long.

“Not too shabby. When did you learn to haggle like that?” Danny asked when the door closed them into the small office again.

“I didn’t have much to do in the hospital but lay there and stare at the TV. I saw it on some show. It worked pretty well.” She crossed her ankles and her look turned mischievous. “So, you’ve been unusually closed-mouthed about what you’ve been up to since I died.”

“My life really isn’t all that exciting. It’s just fighting fires, tearing apart cars, restarting hearts, and delivering babies. Boring stuff, really.” He was pretty hyped about the baby.

“Delivering babies? It’s a first for you, isn’t it?”

“Yes. Though, I suppose the mother actually delivered the baby—it wasn’t like I did much. By the time we reached her, the baby was already crowning. All I did was catch it as it popped out.” He shook his head and remembered the look in the mother’s eyes, the miracle of the tiny infant. “It was the most incredible run I’ve ever been on.”

Laura’s grinned. “Make you think maybe it’s time you settled down and had one of your own?”

He knew what she meant, but pretended not to. “No way. Giving birth looks painful to me. I think I’ll let women keep that job.”

She sighed and shook her head. “Just like a man. So, is there a future wife in the picture? Have you and Ursula decided to tie the knot?”

“Ursula?” That threw him for a moment, until he remembered. Laura’s memory was still patchy, even though a lot was coming back. “Hon, that was last spring, and we only went out twice. When you died, it was Carrie.”

“Oh, all right then. Have you and Carrie gotten serious?”

He resettled in his chair, stretching his long legs to the side of the desk. There was a bit of sting still in the ending of the relationship—even if he was much happier with Tia. “Carrie was offended I was so torn over the loss of my best friend. She seemed to think I cared more for you than for her.” He turned to look at her and caught the question in her eyes. She deserved a straight answer. “When I put your funeral ahead of her sister’s wedding, and had the nerve to talk about you a lot the first bit, she figured she had to share me with you, even in your death. It wasn’t what she wanted, so she broke up.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Laura wasn’t very good at holding back her grin. “Poor girl, to be so disillusioned.”

“Poor me, to be so disillusioned. I thought she’d understand.” A smile played around his lips and he looked into the distance and thought of Tia. “I think I might have found someone who will, however. Someone quite special. You’ll have to meet her. I think you’ll get along famously.” His smile broadened even more and he met her eyes. “Actually, there are three very special females I’d like you to meet.” He could keep their relative ages to himself for the time being.

“Three? In your grief over losing me, you’ve started juggling multiple women?” Laura didn’t appear convinced, but shot him a disapproving look anyway. “Not smart, and not healthy either—and I don’t mean as far as keeping track of them. Women can be dangerous when crossed.”

He chuckled. “Don’t I know it? But you’ll have to visit real soon so you can check out jobs again, and I’ll make sure you meet the girls.”

The door opened and the salesman ushered in two blue-uniformed policemen.

“Laura Dunaway?” one asked.

“Yes, is something wrong?”

The first one, a tall, beefy guy, asked her a few questions, and when she answered them, smiled. “You’re under arrest for identity fraud, which is a federal offense.”

“You can’t be serious. I’m Laura Dunaway.” Her shock was plain on her face.

Danny looked at everyone around him and tried to figure out what was going on. They thought she was lying about who she was?

“Sure, lady, and I’m Elton John,” the second one, a tall, thin, black man stated. He turned toward Danny. “And you are?”

Danny handed over his ID. This was not good. He worked with cops every day, and these guys looked primed for the collar. “She really is Laura. I’ve known her my whole life.”

“Laura Dunaway is dead. At least, the one with the social security number she used is dead. I even ran her driver license in my system. That makes you an accessory. Turn around.” He grabbed Danny by the shoulder and twisted him, latching onto his arms and cuffing him. Danny gritted his teeth and tried to explain, but his and Laura’s protests fell on deaf ears.

They were taken straight to the jail and put in cells where they waited for hours to be booked. Danny could see the booking officer’s desk from where he sat. Though she seemed busy most of the time processing the people who’d been brought in earlier, she also appeared to take her own sweet time—and plenty of coffee breaks. His irritation grew as he waited.

When Danny stood, he could see the clock from the edge of his window, so he knew hours had passed. Laura had to be in some serious pain by now—hours after she should have taken her next dose of meds for her surgery. He wondered how much longer they’d have to wait.

After a barely-edible dinner, he was surprised when the booking officer came to his cell first. “All right, your turn.”

Danny knew their only chance at being released soon was in Laura getting a chance to prove she wasn’t impersonating anyone. “Please, can you help my friend first? She’s been waiting longer than me, and she was in surgery only a few days ago.”

The officer gave him a look that questioned who he thought he was to be making demands, then shrugged. “Suit yourself. It’s not going to make much difference.”

Danny heard the two ladies go through the whole routine about tattoos and piercings, criminal history and the like. He didn’t catch much of it, but some words filtered through to him as he tapped his fingers on the wall, recreating a beat he could hear only in his head. Finally the officer took Laura in for the fingerprint scan. He hoped the results were quick; they had to prove she really was Laura.

Twenty minutes later the officer led Laura back to her cell and they waited. Danny wondered what was going on—none of the other inmates had been taken back to holding. Was it a good sign? Had she realized it was really Laura? Finally the officer came back and let Laura out of her cell, then opened Danny’s. “You’re being released.”

Relief blew through him as he stood from his bench.

When Danny joined her, Laura asked, “Is this going to show as an arrest on my record? I was working as a secretary in a high school. It could keep me from getting another job.”

“I’m sure something can be worked out. Your booking won’t be completed, so it shouldn’t show as an arrest on either of your records. If worse came to worst you could request to have it expunged.” She told Laura who to call the next day. “In the meantime, I don’t usually do this, it’s not procedure, but you can use my phone to call someone to come get you. Your cell phones probably won’t work in here.” She offered the receiver.

Laura looked at Danny. “Your dad?”

Danny imagined her parents’ reactions after everything they’d gone through. They had probably gone ballistic, unable to reach their daughter for so many hours. Not looking forward to the call, he took the phone. “Definitely my dad.”

After a bit of paperwork, Laura and Danny had their belongings back.

“The officer who brought me in said my car would be towed. Do you have any idea where it is?” Danny asked. He only had a day before he had to be back to work. He’d arranged to be off so much already, missing another day because his car had been impounded would not be good.

Then, the door to the sally port opened and the two arresting officers entered the room. They eyed Danny and Laura, but said nothing to them, greeting the booking officer curtly before heading down the hall.

“Let me find out,” the booking officer said in reference to Danny’s question. She picked up the phone and called someone. A moment later she wrote down contact information and gave it to Danny. One more issue to resolve before he headed back to Kansas City.

His father looked relieved when they greeted him in the foyer a while later. “Thank goodness you’re all right.” He hugged Laura. “Your parents called out the troops when you didn’t return home. It’s been hours.” He scowled at Danny. “How on earth did you end up here?”