“No, he won’t.” Coltraine moved over to where Eve sat at her desk, then leaned a hip on it. “I used to think you had to be cold to be a murder cop. Cold enough to walk in death every day, or nearly every day. To pick through lives, uncover all the secrets of people who couldn’t hide them anymore. But I was wrong. You have to be able to control the heat, but there has to be heat. Otherwise, you wouldn’t give a damn, not really. You wouldn’t care enough to do what you have to do to chase murder.”
“Sometimes it takes the cold.”
“Maybe. I know more about you now, too, seeing as you’ve got me stuck in your head. You struggle with the law, because you have such intense and marrow-deep respect for it. Such strong belief. But it’s the victim who pulls you, the victim who might have you question that line of law. More even than justice, and justice is your faith.”
“This isn’t about me.”
“You know it is. We’re as intimate as lovers now. Cop/victim. I’m one of the faces in your head now, in your dreams. You never forget them, no matter how many there are. That’s your burden, and your gift. You let Li in, when the rules and regs come down against that. He’s too close. But you’ve blurred the rules and regs because he’s a victim, too. And he needed it. It’s the cold part of you that’s questioning that now, in the back of your mind. And it’s the heat that knows it’s right.”
“Which part of you walked away from Alex Ricker?”
“That’s a question, isn’t it?” Coltraine rose, bent down to stroke Galahad as he bumped against her leg. “Nice cat.”
“How about an answer?”
“You’re wondering if I walked because he didn’t love me enough to pull back from that line. To show me how much I mattered. Or if I walked because I remembered I was a cop, and I had a duty to that line of the law.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Eve shrugged. “You walked, and that’s what plays here.”
“It matters to you, because of Li. It matters because of the badge. And it matters because you wonder what you would’ve done, if Roarke hadn’t shown you how much you mattered.”
“Not altogether. One and two, that’s true. But the last? He shows me every day. I think I get how much you hurt when Alex didn’t, because I don’t have to wonder. I know. And I don’t think it was the cop who walked. I think the cop came after. I think, maybe, you were a better cop once you came here.”
“That’s nice. Thanks. Still, I wasn’t a good enough cop to keep myself from being taken out with my own damn weapon.”
“Yeah, that’s a bitch. But I’m looking at you, Detective. I’m looking at the way I think this set you up. And I’m thinking you didn’t have a chance in hell.”
“Well.” Coltraine set her hands on her hips. “That’s a real comfort to me now.”
“Best I got.”
A soft spring drizzle greeted eve when she strode outside to meet Baxter. She watched him whip his snazzy two-seater down the drive and jerked a thumb at the unsnazzy body of her own vehicle.
“Aw, come on, Dallas, why take your latest hunk of junk when I’ve got my primo?”
“Official business, and I’m driving.”
“A man’s gotta haul his ass out of bed on a rainy Saturday, and he can’t even set it down in a decent ride.” He grumbled all the way, but transferred his ass from one car to the other. “Well, nice seats, I gotta say.”
“Is your ass all comfy now?”
“Actually it is. Surprising how . . . what, whoa.” He leaned forward to goggle at the dash. “Look at this! Sizzling Jesus, this heap is loaded. It’s—”
He broke off, flung back against the seat as she poured it on down the drive. “And she fucking moves, baby! This is not departmental issue. I am not a fool.”
“Depends on who you’re asking. And I have the option, per regs, of using my personal ride if it meets code. Just like you use that toy back there.”
“Dallas, you have depths I’ve never plumbed.”
“You never plumbed any of my depths.”
“That’s your loss, sister. And Peabody never said a word about this ride.”
Eve actually winced as she remembered. “She hasn’t seen it yet. So you’ll keep it zipped about it. Otherwise, she’ll get all whiny about not seeing it first, or some such shit. Partners can be ass pains.”
“Not mine. Boy’s a jewel. So, you figure Ricker Junior’s PA and bestest pal fucked him over and killed Coltraine.”
“Killed her or helped set her up for it. And set up Alex Ricker for good measure.”
“Bestest pals can be ass pains.”
She had to laugh. “You can’t begin to know. We’ll work them separate. Start out straight interview. Just going over details. Then I’m going to peel Sandy off, leave you on Ricker. I want to heat him up, and I don’t want his bestest pal getting in the way.”
“Works for me. You really don’t figure Junior’s in it? Motive’s there, opportunity, even with the alibi. All he had to do was snap his fingers.”
“If he was going to snap them, he’d have snapped them long-distance. His old man set him up, it’s just like him. Once we pin Sandy, he’s going to flip. He’s a turncoat, so he’ll turn again. And we’ll skewer whoever Ricker has in the Eighteenth Squad.”
“I hate it’s a cop. But yeah, I went through the files, your notes. It’s gotta be.”
Eve’s in-dash beeped. “Dallas.”
“Callendar reporting from Omega.” Callendar’s face, tired eyes, major grin, filled the screen. “There was some delay at docking, but Sisto and I are in. We’re cleared and logged, and about to be escorted straight to Communications. The warden’s authorized us access to . . . well, pretty much everything.”
“Get me something, Callendar.”
“If it’s here, we’ll get it. Man-o, this place is grim. You ever been here?”
“No.”
“Good choice. Even the staff and admin areas are grim. I bet if you gave kids a mandatory tour of this place, they’d never so much as think about boosting somebody’s airboard.” She glanced away, signaled. “They’re ready for us.”
“I want to hear the minute you have anything. Even half of anything.”
“Cha. Back when. Callendar out.”
“Cha?” Eve repeated.
“As in ‘gotcha.’ ” Baxter rolled his eyes. “E-geeks.”
Eve shook her head, in perfect accord. “E-geeks.”
She swung to the curb at Ricker’s building. “On duty,” she said and preened a little when her light flashed on.
“Solid.”
“If we wrap this, I’ll show you how she verticals as we head back.”
She badged her way in, moved straight to the elevator when the doorman said they were already cleared and expected by Mr. Ricker.
He met them in the foyer. “Lieutenant.”
“Mr. Ricker. Detective Baxter. We appreciate you making time to answer a few more questions.”
His tone was as polite and neutral as Eve’s. “I want to cooperate in any way I can.”
“As discussed, we’d also like to speak to Mr. Sandy.”
“Yes. He’s probably in the kitchen, getting coffee. Please sit down. I’ll get him.”
“Prime digs,” Baxter commented as he looked around. “And they say crime doesn’t pay.”
“Only idiots say that.”
“The world’s full of idiots.”
Alex came back alone. “Sorry, he’s generally an early riser, so I assumed . . . He must be upstairs. Excuse me.”
As Alex started up, Eve and Baxter exchanged glances.
“You thinking what I’m thinking?” Baxter murmured.
“Somebody’s gone rabbit. Goddamn it. Routine follow-up, what spooked him? There’s nothing here to make him bolt, risk his position, turn our suspicions. It’s stupid.”
“Lieutenant.” Alex came to the top of the stairs, and she saw it in the pale set of his face. “Rod isn’t here. His bed hasn’t been slept in. I won’t object if you want to look for yourself.”