Ceremony in Death (In Death #5)(95)

He was silent a moment, then rose to turn the covers down. “So let me recap. You walked in on a mutilation in progress, took the killer into custody, a killer who implicated Charles Forte in this and in other murders. This is a matter of days after you discover a mutilated body on your doorstep.”

“It can’t be personal.”

“I beg your pardon, Lieutenant, but that’s bullshit. To continue,” he said, coming around to unbutton her shirt, “you then take Charles Forte in for interview, a man you suspect with good cause is responsible for several violent deaths. You play hardball, something which your aide whom you’re training, and who, though highly competent, has considerably less experience than yourself in these matters, disapproves of. A police officer who did not walk into a room and find a woman gleefully carving a man into pieces. The news reports were quite specific,” he told her.

“And,” he added before Eve could speak, “you then reprimanded your aide when she questioned your judgment, subsequently sending her off duty so that you could resume your interrogation. Does that about sum it up?”

Frowning, she studied the top of his head as he bent to pull off her slacks. “You’re making it black and white. It’s not.”

“It never is.” He swung her legs into bed, pushed her down gently. “I’ll tell you what it makes you, Eve. It makes you a good cop, a dedicated one. And a human one.” He undressed, slipped into bed beside her. “And that being the case, it’s probably best if I divorce you and get on with my life.” He pulled her close until her head cozied into the curve of his shoulder. “Obviously, up till now, I’ve been blind to your hideous character flaws.”

“You make me sound like an idiot.”

“Good, I intended to.” He kissed her temple, ordered the lights to dim. “Now, go to sleep.”

She turned her head so that she could smell his skin on her way to sleep. “I don’t think I can let you have that divorce,” she said on a sigh.

“No?”

“Uh-uh. No way I’m giving up the coffee.”

Eve arrived at her office at eight a.m. She had already been by the lab to harass them, which had, in part, cheered her. Her ‘link was beeping with an incoming when she opened the door.

And Peabody stood at attention beside her desk.

“You’re early, Peabody.” Eve moved to the ‘link, coded in, and waited for the messages to dispense. “You’re not on for thirty minutes.”

“I wanted to speak to you, Lieutenant, before I came on duty.”

“All right.” Eve put the messages on hold, turned to give Peabody her full attention. “You look like hell,” she commented.

Peabody kept her gaze steady. She knew how she looked. She hadn’t eaten or slept. Symptoms, she knew that were embarrassingly similar to those she displayed when a love affair ended badly. And this, she’d realized during the long night, was worse than any breakup with a man.

“I would like to formally apologize, Lieutenant, for statements made after the Forte interview. It was insubordinate and incorrect to question your methods. I hope that my lack of judgment in this matter will not influence you to dismiss me from this case, or from this division.”

Eve sat, leaned back in a chair that creakily begged for lubricant. “Is that all, Officer Peabody?”

“Yes, sir. Except to say — “

“If you’ve got more to say, pull the stick out of your butt first. You’re off duty and off the record.”

Peabody’s shoulders slumped slightly, but in defeat rather than relaxation. “I’m sorry. Watching him fall to pieces that way got to me. I wasn’t able to divorce myself from the situation and view it objectively. I don’t believe — don’t want to believe,” she corrected, “that he’s responsible. It tainted my viewpoint.”

“Objectivity’s essential. And, more often than any of us want to admit, impossible. I wasn’t completely objective either, which is why I overreacted to your comments. I apologize for that.”

Surprise and relief spread through her. Peabody found them both easier to swallow than crow and fear. “Will you keep me on?”

“I’ve got an investment in you.” Leaving it at that, Eve turned back to her ‘link.

Behind Eve’s back, Peabody closed her eyes tightly, dug for composure. She took a breath, swallowed hard, and found it. “So, does this mean we’ve made up?”

Eve slanted a look at Peabody’s hopeful grin. “Why don’t I have any coffee?” She engaged the ‘link, let her messages run. The first had barely begun when Peabody set a steaming cup at her elbow.

“Come on, Dallas, come on. Give me a break. I can go on with an update any time, day or night. Get back to me damn it. Just a couple details.”

“Not going to happen, Nadine,” Eve murmured and zipped through the next three messages from the reporter, all increasingly desperate.

There was a communication from the ME, with the autopsy report. Eve downloaded and ordered a hard copy print. Finally, a relay from the lab which verified the blood on the robe was Wineburg’s.

“I can’t see it,” Peabody said quietly. “Why can’t I see it? It’s all there.” She lifted her shoulders, let them fall. “It’s all right there.”