“He never leaves anything out, not the tiniest memo, the bitsiest note. He locks down his computer if he stands up to scratch his butt. Claims somebody stole some of his research on one of his other gigs. He even uses an audio enhance, so he can whisper on calls and nobody can hear. As if we all strain to catch those golden words from his throat.”
“So, how do you know he uses audio enhance?”
Larinda smiled. “Good one, Lieutenant. His console’s locked, too,” she added. “Discs secured.” She flicked up a glance from under gold-tipped lashes. “Being a detective, you can probably figure out how I know that. Now, the invite?”
The cubicle was perfect, Eve thought. Awfully perfect for someone who had been hard at work, then had dashed out, ill. “Does he have a source at Cop Central?”
“I guess he may, though I can’t imagine an actual human playing ball with Morse.”
“Does he talk about it, brag about it?”
“Hey, in the gospel according to Morse, he’s got top-level sources in the four corners of the universe.” Her voice lost a bit of its sophistication on the dig, and whispered unmistakably of Queens. “But he never scooped Nadine. Well, until the Towers’s murder, but he didn’t last long on that.”
Eve’s heart was pounding now, strong and steady. She nodded, turned on her heel.
“Hey,” Larinda called after her. “How about tonight? Tit for tat, Dallas.”
“No cameras, or you’re out before you’re in,” Eve warned and kept walking.
Because she remembered her days in uniform, and her ambition, Eve requested Peabody as her backup.
“He’s going to remember your face.” Eve waited impatiently as the elevator climbed to the thirty-third floor of Morse’s building. “He’s good with faces. I don’t want you to say anything unless I give you an opening, then keep it brief, official. And look stern.”
“I was born looking stern.”
“Maybe toy with the hilt of your stunner now and again. You could look a little . . . anxious.”
The corner of Peabody’s mouth twitched. “Like I’d like to use it, but can’t in the presence of a superior officer.”
“You got it.” She stepped off the elevator, turned left. “Feeney’s still working on data, so I don’t have as much as I’d like to pressure him with. The fact is, I could be wrong.”
“But you don’t think so.”
“No, I don’t think so. But I was wrong about David Angelini.”
“You built a good circumstantial case, and he looked guilty as hell in interview.” At Eve’s casual glance, Peabody flushed. “Officers involved in a case are entitled to review all data pertaining to said case.”
“I know the drill, Peabody.” Very cool, very official, Eve announced herself through the entrance intercom. “You looking for a detective badge, Officer?”
Peabody squared her shoulders. “Yes, sir.”
Eve merely nodded, announced herself again, and waited. “Walk down the hall, Peabody, see if the emergency exit is secure.”
“Sir?”
“Walk down the hall,” Eve repeated, holding Peabody’s baffled gaze. “That’s an order.”
“Yes, sir.”
The minute Peabody’s back was turned, Eve took out her master code and disengaged the locks. She slid the door open a fraction and had the code back in her bag before Peabody came back.
“Secured, sir.”
“Good. Doesn’t look like he’s home, unless . . . Well, look here, Peabody, the door isn’t fully secured.”
Peabody looked at the door, then back at Eve, and pursed her lips. “I would consider that unusual. We could have a break-in here, Lieutenant. Mr. Morse may be in trouble.”
“You’ve got a point, Peabody. Let’s put this on record.” While Peabody engaged her recorder, Eve slid the door open, drew her weapon. “Morse? This is Lieutenant Dallas, NYPDS. The entrance is unsecured. We suspect a break-in and are entering the premises.” She stepped in, signaled for Peabody to stand tight.
She slipped into the bedroom, checked closets, and skimmed a glance over the communications center that took up more room than the bed.
“No sign of an intruder,” she said to Peabody, then ducked into the kitchen. “Where has our little bird flown?” she wondered. Pulling out her communicator, she contacted Feeney. “Give me everything you’ve got so far. I’m in his apartment, and he’s not.”
“I’m only about halfway there, but I think you’re going to like it. First, the sealed juvie record—and I had to sweat for this one, kid. Little C. J. had a problem with his social science instructor when he was ten. She didn’t give him an A on an assignment.”
“Well, that bitch.”
“That’s what he figured, apparently. He broke into her house, wrecked the place. And killed her little doggie.”
“Jesus, killed her dog?”
“Sliced its throat, Dallas. Ear to floppy ear. Ended up with mandatory therapy, probation, and community service.”
“That’s good.” Eve felt the pieces shifting into place. “Keep going.”
“Okay. I’m here to serve. Our pal drives a brand-new two-passenger Rocket.”
“God bless you, Feeney.”
“More,” he said, preening a bit. “His first adult job was on dispatch at a little station in his own hometown. He quit when another reporter jogged ahead of him to an on-air assignment. A woman.”
“Don’t stop now. I think I love you.”
“All the gold shields do. It’s my pretty face. Got on air on the next gig, weekends only, subbing for the first and second string. Left in a huff, claiming discrimination. Assignment editor, female.”
“Better and better.”
“But here’s the big one. Station he worked at in California. He was making it pretty good there, scrambled up from third string, got a regular spot on the midday, coanchoring.”
“With a woman?”
“Yeah, but that’s not the big guns, Dallas. Wait for it. Pretty little weather girl that was pulling in all the mail. Brass liked her so much they let her do some of the soft features on the midday. Ratings went up when she was on, and she started to get press of her own. Morse quit, citing he refused to work with a nonprofessional. That was just before the little weather girl got her big break, a recurring bit part in a comedy. Want to guess her name?”
Eve closed her eyes. “Tell me it’s Yvonne Metcalf.”
“Give the lieutenant a cigar. Metcalf had a notation about meeting the Dumb Ass from the partly sunny days. I’d say it’s a good bet our boy looked her up in our fair city. Funny he never mentioned they were old pals in his reports. Would’ve given them such a nice shine.”
“I do love you, desperately. I’m going to kiss your ugly face.”
“Hey, it’s lived in. That’s what my wife tells me.”
“Yeah, right. I need a search warrant, Feeney, and I need you here at Morse’s to break down his computer.”
“I’ve already requested the warrant. I’ll have it transmitted to you as soon as it comes in. Then I’m on my way.”
Sometimes the wheels moved smoothly. Eve had the warrant and Feeney within thirty minutes. She did kiss him, enthusiastically enough to have him going red as a hybrid beet.
“Secure the door, Peabody, then take the living area. Don’t bother to be neat.”
Eve swung into the bedroom, two steps ahead of Feeney. He was already rubbing his hands together.
“That’s a beautiful system,” he said. “Whatever his faults, the asshole knows his computers. It’s going to be a pleasure to play with her.” He sat down as Eve started to hunt through drawers.
“Obsessively trendy,” she commented. “Nothing that shows too much sign of wear, nothing too expensive.”
“He’s putting all his money in his toys.” Feeney hunched over, brows knit. “This guy respects his equipment, and he’s careful. There are code blocks everywhere. Jesus, he’s got a fail-safe.”
“What?” Eve straightened
up. “On a home unit?”
“He’s got one, all right.” Gingerly, Feeney eased back. “If I don’t use the right code, the data’s zapped. Odds are it’s voice printed, too. It’s not going to let me in easy, Dallas. I’m going to have to bring in some equipment, and it’s going to take time.”
“He’s on the run. I know he’s on the run. He knew we were coming after him.”
Rocking back on her heels, she considered the possibilities: leaks—human—or electronic leaks.
“Call in your best man to come over here. You take the computer at the station. That’s where he was when he ran.”
“It’s going to be a long night.”
“Lieutenant.” Peabody came to the door. Her face was impassive, but for the eyes. And the eyes were on fire. “I think you’d better see this.”
In the living room, Peabody gestured to the blocky platform sofa. “I was giving it the once-over. Probably would have missed it, except my dad likes to build stuff. He was always putting in hidden drawers and hidey-holes. We got a kick out of it, used to play hidden treasure. I got curious when I saw the knob on the side. It looks like an ordinary decorative device that simulates old-fashioned turn bolts.” She stepped around the front of the couch and gestured.
Eve could almost feel the vibrations rising from her skin.
Peabody’s voice rose slightly in octave. “Hidden treasure.”
Eve felt her heart kick once, hard. There in a long, wide drawer that slid from under the cushions lay a purple umbrella and a high-heeled red-and-white-striped shoe.
“Got him.” Eve turned to Peabody with a fierce and powerful grin. “Officer, you’ve just taken one giant step toward your detective shield.”
“My man says you’re harassing him.”
Eve scowled at Feeney’s face in her communicator. “I’m simply asking him for periodic updates.” She paced away from the sweepers who were scanning the living area of Morse’s apartment. They had the lights on high. The sun was going down.
“And interrupting his flow. Dallas, I told you this would be slow work. Morse was an expert on compuscience. He knew all the tricks.”
“He’d have written it down, Feeney. Like a fucking news report. And if he’s got Nadine, that’s on one of those damned discs, too.”
“I’m with you on that, kid, but breathing down my man’s neck isn’t going to free up the data any quicker. Give us some space here, for Christ’s sake. Don’t you have a fancy do tonight?”
“What?” She grimaced. “Oh hell.”
“Go put on your party dress and leave us alone.”
“I’m not going to dress up like some brainless idiot and eat canapés while he’s out there.”
“He’s going to be out there, whatever you’re wearing. Listen up, we’ve got a citywide net out on him, his car. His apartment’s under heavy surveillance, so’s the station. You can’t help us here. This part’s my job.”
“I can—”
“Slow up the process by making me talk to you,” he snapped. “Go away, Dallas. The minute I get anything, the first byte, I’ll call you in.”
“We’ve got him, Feeney. We’ve got the who, the what.”
“Let me try to find the where. If Nadine Furst is still alive, every minute counts.”
That was what haunted her. She wanted to argue, but there was no ammunition. “Okay, I’ll go, but—”
“Don’t call me,” Feeney interrupted. “I’ll call you.” He broke transmission before she could swear at him.
Eve was trying hard to understand relationships, the importance of balancing lives and obligations, the value of compromise. What she had with Roarke was still new enough to fit snugly, like a vaguely uncomfortable shoe, and lovely enough to keep wearing it until it stretched to accommodate.
So she dashed into the bedroom at a full run, saw him standing in the dressing area, and launched into the offense strategy.
“Don’t give me any grief about being late. Summerset already handled that.” She whipped off her harness, tossed it on a chair. Roarke finished securing a square of gold to his cuff, hands elegant, steady.
“You don’t answer to Summerset.” He looked at her then, a brief flick of the eyes as she tugged off her shirt. “Nor to me.”
“Look, I had work.” Naked from the waist up, she dropped into a chair to pull off her boots. “I said I’d be here, and I’m here. I know guests are going to be arriving in ten minutes.” She heaved a boot aside as Summerset’s abrasive words scraped through her head. “I’ll be ready. I don’t take hours to put some dress on and trowel a bunch of gunk on my face.”
Boots disposed of, she arched her hips and wiggled out of her jeans. Before they hit the floor she was dashing into the adjoining bath. With a smile for the exit, Roarke followed her.
“There’s no hurry, Eve. You don’t clock in to a cocktail party, or get docked for tardiness.”
“I said I’d be ready.” She stood in the crisscrossing sprays of his shower, lathering pale green liquid into her hair. Suds dripped into her eyes. “I’ll be ready.”
“Fine, but no one will be offended if you come down in twenty minutes, or thirty for that matter. Do you expect me to be annoyed with you because you have another life?”
She swiped at her stinging eyes, tried to see him through suds and steam. “Maybe.”
“Then you’re doomed to disappointment. If you recall, I met you via that other life. And I have a number of other obligations as well.” He watched her rinse her hair. It was pleasant to see the way she tilted her face back, the way water and soap sleeked down and away from her skin. “I’m not trying to box you in. I’m just trying to live with you.”
She blew her wet hair out of her eyes as he opened the body dryer for her. She stepped toward it, pivoted. Then surprised him by grabbing his face in both of her hands and kissing him with a burst of enthusiasm.
“It can’t be easy.” She stepped into the tube and hit the power that swirled warm, dry air over her. “I can have a hard time living with myself. Sometimes I wonder why you don’t just deck me when I start on you.”
“It’s occurred to me, but you’re so often armed.”
Dry and fragrant from the perfumed soap, she stepped out. “I’m not now.”
He caught her by the waist, then stroked his hands down over her firm, muscled bottom. “Other things occur to me when you’re naked.”
“Yeah.” She wrapped her arms around his neck, enjoying the fact that by rising slightly on her toes they were eye to eye, mouth to mouth. “Like what?”
With more than a little regret, he eased her back to arm’s length. “Why don’t you tell me why you’re so revved?”
“Maybe it’s because I like seeing you in a fancy shirt.” She moved away, tugged a short dressing robe off a hanger. “Or maybe it’s because I’m stimulated by the idea of wearing shoes that will make my arches scream for the next couple hours.”
She peered into the mirror, and supposed she was obliged to put on a little of the paint Mavis was always pushing off on her. Leaning closer, she steadied the lash darkener and lengthener, closed it firmly over the lashes of her left eye, and hit the plunger.
“Just maybe,” she continued glancing around, “it’s because Officer Peabody found the hidden treasure.”
“Good for Officer Peabody. What hidden treasure?”
Eve dealt with her right eyelashes, then blinked them experimentally. “One umbrella and one shoe.”
“You’ve got him.” Taking her shoulders, Roarke kissed her on the nape of the neck. “Congratulations.”
“We’ve nearly got him,” she corrected. She tried to remember what was next and chose lipstick. Mavis touted the virtues of lip dye, but Eve was wary of a color commitment that could last for three weeks. “We’ve got the evidence. The sweep confirmed his prints on the souvenirs. His and the victim’s only on the umbrella. Got a few others on the shoe, but we expect salespeople or other customers. Brand-new shoes, hardly a scuff on the bot
toms, and she picked up several pairs at Saks right before she died.”
She went back to the bedroom, remembered the scented cream Roarke had brought back from Paris, and shrugged out of the robe to smear it on.
“The problem is, we don’t have him. He got tipped somehow that I was coming and skipped. Feeney’s working on his equipment now to see if we can shake loose some data that’ll lead us to him. There’s a net out, but he may have ditched the city. I wouldn’t have made it tonight, but Feeney gave me the boot. Said I was harassing his man.”
She opened the closet, pushed for revolve, and spotted the minuscule copper-colored dress. She took it out, held it in front of her. The sleeves were long and snug from a deep scooped neck. The skirt ended somewhere just south of the law.
“Am I supposed to wear anything under this?”
He reached in her top drawer, pulled out a matching colored triangle that might have laughingly been called panties. “These should do it.”
She caught them from his underhand toss, wiggled in. “Jesus,” she said after a quick look in the mirror. “Why bother?” Since it was too late to debate, she stepped into the dress and began to tug the clingy material up.
“It’s always entertaining to watch you dress, but I’m distracted at the moment.”
“I know, I know. Go on down. I’ll be right there.”
“No, Eve. Who?”
“Who?” She snapped the low shoulders into place. “Didn’t I say?”
“No,” Roarke said with admirable patience. “You didn’t.”
“Morse.” She ducked into the closet for shoes.
“You’re joking.”
“C. J. Morse.” She held the shoes as she might hold a weapon, and her eyes went dark and fixed. “And when I’m finished with the little son of a bitch, he’s going to get more airtime than he ever dreamed of.”
The in-house ’link beeped. Summerset’s disapproving voice floated out. “The first guests are arriving, sir.”
“Fine. Morse?” he said to Eve.
“That’s right. I’ll fill you in between canapés.” She scooped a hand through her hair. “Told you I’d be ready. Oh, and Roarke?” She linked fingers with him as they started from the room. “I need you to pass a last-minute guest through for me. Larinda Mars.”