Richard Montanari - The skin Gods

Jessica learned that Mark Underwood had volunteered to work the film shoot, knowing it would put him close to Seth Goldman, Erin Halli- well, and Ian Whitestone.

Erin Halliwell was Ian's mistress, Seth Goldman was his confidant and co-conspirator, Declan was his son, White Light Pictures was a multimillion-dollar enterprise. Mark Underwood tried to take away everything that Ian Whitestone cared about.

He had come very close.

Three days after the incident, Byrne stood at the foot of the hospital bed, watching Victoria sleep. She looked so small beneath the covers. The doctors had removed all of the tubes. Only a single IV drip was left.

He thought about the night they had made love, how right she had felt in his arms. It seemed like so long ago.

She opened her eyes.

"Hi," Byrne offered. He hadn't told her anything of the events in North Philly. There would be time enough. "Hi."

"How are you feeling?" Byrne asked.

Victoria weakly butterflied her hands. Not good, not bad. Her color had returned. "Could I have some water, please?" she asked.

"Are you allowed?"

Victoria glared at him.

"Okay, okay," he said. He skirted the bed, lifted the glass with the straw to her mouth. She sipped, laid her head back on the pillow. Each movement caused her pain.

"Thank you." She looked at him, the question poised on her lips. Her silver eyes were touched with hazel in the early-evening light streaming through the window. He had never noticed that before. She asked. "Matisse is dead?"

Byrne wondered how much he should tell her. He knew she would learn the full truth eventually. For now he said, simply: "Yes."

Victoria nodded slightly, closed her eyes. She bowed her head for the moment. Byrne wondered what the gesture meant. He couldn't imagine that Victoria was offering a blessing for the man's soul-he couldn't imagine that anyone would-but then again he knew that Victoria Lindstrom was a better person than he could ever hope to be.

After a moment, she looked back up at him. "They say I can go home tomorrow. Will you be here?"

"I'll be here," Byrne said. He peeked into the hallway for a moment, then stepped forward, opened the mouth of the mesh bag over his shoulder. A wet snout poked through the opening; a pair of lively brown eyes peered out. "He will be, too."

Victoria smiled. She reached out. The puppy licked her hand, his tail thrashing around inside the bag. Byrne had already decided on a name for the puppy. They would call him Putin. Not for the Russian president, but rather Rasputin, because the dog had already proven himself a holy terror around Byrne's apartment. Byrne had resigned himself to buying his slippers by the case from now on.

He sat on the edge of the bed, watched Victoria as she drifted off to sleep. He watched her breathe, grateful for every rise and fall of her chest. He thought about Colleen, how resilient she was, how strong. He had learned a great deal about life from Colleen in the past few days. She had reluctantly agreed to enter a program of victim's counseling. Byrne had arranged for a counselor who was fluent in sign language. Victoria and Colleen. His sunrise and sunset. They were so much alike.

Later, Byrne looked at the window, surprised to find that it had gotten dark. He saw their reflection in the glass.

Two damaged people. Two people who found each other by touch. Together, he thought, they might make one whole person.

Maybe that was enough.

The rain was slow and steady, the type of gentle summer storm that could last all day. The city felt clean.

They sat by the window overlooking Fulton Street. A tray sat between them. A tray bearing a pot of herbal tea. When Jessica had arrived, the first thing she noticed was that the bar cart she had seen the first time she had visited was now empty. Faith Chandler had spent three days in a coma. Doctors had slowly brought her out of it, and predicted no lasting effects.

"She used to play right out there," Faith said, pointing to the sidewalk beneath the rain-dappled window. "Hopscotch, hide and seek. She was a happy little girl."

Jessica thought of Sophie. Was her daughter a happy little girl? She thought so. She hoped so.

Faith turned to look at her. She may have been gaunt, but her eyes were clear. Her hair was clean and shiny, pulled back into a ponytail. Her color was better than the first time they'd met. "Do you have children?" she asked.

"Yes," Jessica said. "One."

"A daughter?"

Jessica nodded. "Her name is Sophie."

"How old is she?"

"She's three."

Faith Chandler moved her lips slightly. Jessica was sure the woman had silently said three, perhaps recalling the toddling Stephanie running through these rooms; Stephanie singing her Sesame Street songs over and over, never quite hitting the same note twice; Stephanie asleep on this very couch, her little pink face angelic in slumber.

Faith lifted the pot of tea. Her hands were shaking, and Jessica considered helping the woman, then decided against it. When tea was poured, and sugar stirred, Faith continued.

"My husband left us when Stephie was eleven years old, you know. He left a house full of debts, too. Over a hundred thousand dollars."

Faith Chandler had allowed Ian Whitestone to buy her daughter's silence for the past three years, silence about what happened on the set of Philadelphia Skin. As far as Jessica knew, there were no laws broken. There would be no prosecution. Was it wrong to take the money? Perhaps. But it was not Jessica's place to judge. These were shoes in which Jessica hoped never to walk.

On the end table was Stephanie's high school graduation picture. Faith picked it up, ran her fingers gently over her daughter's face.

"Let a broken-down old waitress give you a piece of advice." Faith Chandler looked at Jessica, a gentle sorrow in her eyes. "You may think you have a long time with your daughter, a long time until she grows up and hears the world calling her. Believe me, it will happen before you know it. One day the house is full of laughter. The next day it's just the sound of your heart."

A lone teardrop fell onto the glass picture frame.

"And if you have the choice between talking to your daughter, or listening," Faith added. "Listen. Just… listen."

Jessica didn't know what to say. She could think of no response to this. No verbal response. Instead, she took the woman's hand in hers. And they sat in silence, listening to the summer rain.

Jessica stood next to her car, keys in hand. The sun had come out again. The streets of South Philadelphia steamed. She closed her eyes for a moment, and despite the punishing summer heat, the moment took her to some very dark places. The death mask of Stephanie Chandler. The face of Angelika Butler. Declan Whitestone's tiny, helpless hands. She wanted to stand beneath the sun for a long time, hoping the sunlight would disinfect her soul.

"Are you all right, Detective?"

Jessica opened her eyes, turned to the voice. It was Terry Cahill.

"Agent Cahill," she said. "What are you doing here?"

Cahill wore his standard blue suit. He no longer wore the sling, but Jessica could see, by the cant of his shoulders, that he was still in pain. "I called the station house. They said you might be down here."

"I'm fine, thanks," she said. "How are you feeling?"

Cahill feigned an overhand pitch. "Like Brett Myers."

Jessica assumed that this was a baseball player. If it wasn't boxing, she was clueless. "You're back at the agency?"

Cahill nodded. "I finished my stint with the department. I'll be writing up my report today."

Jessica could only wonder what would be in it. She decided not to ask. "It was good working with you."

"Same here," he said. He cleared his throat. It appeared he was not very good at these sorts of things. "And I want you to know that I meant what I said. You are one hell of a cop. If you'd ever consider the bureau as a career, please give me a call."