"I don't have time for questions. I need data. Contact whoever you bribe at the ME's office and get me everything you can on Tia Wo, self-termination. She'll be coming in within the hour. I need method, time of death, who found her and called it in, who's handling the case, attending physician. Everything."
"I don't hear from you for days, then you want everything. And who says I bribe anybody?" She sniffed, looked insulted. "Bribing public officials is illegal."
"I'm not a cop at the moment, remember? The sooner the better, Nadine. And wait, can you dig any dirt on Senator Brian Waylan, Illinois?"
"You want to know if I can dig any dirt on a U.S. senator?" She gave a low, rumbling laugh. "You want a truckload or a tanker?"
"Whatever there is – emphasis on his stand on artificial organs. You can get me at home or on Roarke's porta."
"I don't happen to have Roarke's private numbers. Even I have my limits."
"Have Summerset patch you in. Thanks."
"Wait, Dallas, are you okay? I want to – "
"Sorry, no time." She broke transmission and rushed to the doorway just as Peabody strode down the corridor. "Where the hell have you been? I had you paged twice."
"We're just a little busy. Feeney sent me down to check on Wo, who kicked about fifteen minutes ago. Her current cohabitant was there and got hysterical. It took me and two orderlies to hold her down so they could sedate her."
"I thought she lived alone."
"Turned out she had a lover, kept it quiet. She got home and found Wo in bed pumped full of barbs."
"When?"
"I guess it's been a couple hours. We got word after we came in on Louise. Cartright hooked the suspicious death, but it looks like straight self-termination. I have to risk this coffee."
She crossed to the counter, sniffed the pot, gagged a little, but poured a cup anyway. "She didn't show for interview," Peabody continued. "Feeney and I went to her place, got a warrant for entry. She wasn't there. We looked for her here and came up empty. We had a couple of confirmations that she'd been in her office and the organ wing. We picked up Young and he lawyered up before you could swallow spit. We're holding him for formal in the morning, but he could dance on bail for the night. We were heading back to Wo's when we got word on Louise, so we came in, got her status."
She gulped down coffee and shuddered. "So, how was your day?"
"It sucked. What can you give me on Louise?"
Peabody glanced at her wrist unit, then looked over before Eve could control the wince. "Sorry. Damn, Dallas."
"Don't worry about it. You're on duty and pressed for time."
"I'm supposed to be having a fancy French dinner followed by what I figured might be some fancy sex." She tried a smile. "But there you go. Louise got hit at the clinic. Blow to the head. Fractured right wrist indicates defensive wound. We figure she saw whoever bashed her. They used the desk 'link."
"Christ, that took some muscle."
"Yeah, and they did a number on her with it. She was in her office. Whoever did it left her there. There's a small drug cabinet in there, for samples. It was broken open and rifled. It happened between three and four this afternoon. She was off shift at three, logged her last patient at three-ten. A doctor on the next rotation found her just after four. They called it in and started work on her there."
"What's your take on her chances?"
"It's a damn good center. Some of the equipment looks like it should be at NASA II. She's had a fleet of doctors in and out of her room. We've got a uniform on the door twenty-four / seven." She finished off the coffee. "I heard the nurses saying that she's young and strong. Her heart and lungs are prime. The brain scans haven't shown anything to worry about yet. But you can tell they want her to come out of it. The longer she stays under, the more worried they look."
"I have to ask you to call me if there's any change. I need to know."
"You don't have to ask. I should get back."
"Yeah. Tell Feeney I'm working on a couple of angles. I'll pass along anything that looks worthwhile."
"Will do." She started out, hesitated. "I think you should know: Word is the commander's been dogging the chief. He's taken some pokes at IAB, and he's breathing down Baxter's neck to close off on Bowers. He's been over to the one-six-two to do some digging on her on his own. Basically, he's busting his ass to get you reinstated."
Unsure how to feel, she simply stared. "I appreciate you telling me."
"One more thing: Rosswell's personal account showed regular deposits over the last two months of ten thousand a pop. All E-transfers." Her lips curved when Eve's eyes narrowed and gleamed. "He's dirty. Feeney's already sicced Webster on him."
"Times in nicely with Spindler's murder. Nice work." Roarke waited until she was alone before he came back in. He found her sitting on the arm of a sofa, staring down at her hands. "You've had a long day, Lieutenant."
"Yeah." She rubbed her hands on her knees, shook off the mood, then looked at him. "I was thinking about topping it off with something special."
"Is that so?"
"How about a little nighttime B and E?"
His grin flashed. "Darling. I thought you'd never ask."
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
"I'm driving."
Roarke's hand paused as it reached for the car door, and his brow winged up. "It's my car."
"It's my deal."
They studied each other a minute, crowded together at the driver's side door. "Why are you driving?"
"Because." Vaguely embarrassed, she dug her hands in her pockets. "Don't smirk."
"I'll try to resist. Why?"
"Because," she said again, "I drive when I'm on a case, so if I drive, it'll feel like – it'll feel official instead of criminal."
"I see. Well, that makes perfect sense. You drive."
She started to climb in while he circled around to the passenger side. "Are you smirking behind my back?"
"Yes, of course." He sat, stretched out his legs. "Now, to make it really official, I should have a uniform. I'll go that far, but I refuse to wear those amazingly ugly cop shoes."
"You're a real joker," she muttered and jerked the car into reverse, did a quick, squealing spin, and shot out of the garage.
"Too bad this vehicle doesn't have a siren. But we can pretend nothing works on it, so you'll feel official."
"Keep it up. Just keep it up."
"Maybe I'll call you sir. Could be sexy." He smiled blandly when she glared at him. "Okay, I'm done. How do you want to play this?"
"I want to get into the clinic, search for the data I sent Louise in for, and anything else interesting, then get out. Without getting caught by some beat droid. I figure with your light and sticky fingers, it should be a walk."
"Thank you, darling."
"That's sir to you, ace."
She streamed through the smoke of a corner glida grill and headed south. "I can't believe I'm doing this. I must be crazy. I must have lost my mind. I keep crossing lines."
"Think of it this way. The lines keep moving. You're just keeping up."
"I continue keeping up this way, I'll end up wearing security bracelets. I used to go by the book. I believe in the book. Now I just rewrite the pages."
"Either that or go back to bed and pull the covers over your head."
"Yeah, well… we make choices. I've made mine."
She found a second-level spot four blocks north of the Canal Street Clinic and tucked the car between a sky scooter and a dented utility truck. If anyone bothered to look, she mused, Roarke's elegant two-seater would stick out like a swan among toads, but it wasn't against the law to drive a hot-looking car in this sector.
"I don't want to park any closer. This thing has anti-theft and anti-vandalism features, right?"
"Naturally. Engage all security," he ordered as they climbed out. "One more thing. He reached in his pocket. "Your clutch piece… sir."