Макс Коллинз - No One Will Hear You

“Good,” Amari said. “Because I say butt out of this investigation. And I’m not asking.”

“Done,” Richards said.

“And you are not to air any portion of that video. Not one second .“

“Agreed.”

Her eyes swung to Byrnes and gave him a laser look. “Mr. Richards, I want to hear him say it.”

The attorney nodded to his client.

“We won’t air it,” Byrnes said unenthusiastically.

She turned to Harrow. “You’re quiet.”

“I could be saying something about First Amendment rights right now.”

“You could be.”

“But I won’t.”

“Really?”

“Really. I wouldn’t have run that vile thing even if Dennis had fired me over it.”

She wanted to believe him. But this was a man who had once shot a perp dead on live TV. How much farther over the line could you go than that?

She sneaked a look at Byrnes. The executive appeared glumly exasperated. Evidently, he believed Harrow.

“Why not run it?” she asked, as if casually exploring the hypothetical. “Just pixilate the areas of nudity and gore, and you’ve got a real ratings winner.”

“Ratings aren’t my job,” Harrow said. “We try to do the right thing at Crime Seen , and if the public doesn’t like what’s on offer, I’ll find something else to do.”

Polk chuckled. “Are you kiddin’, man?”

Byrnes muttered, “I wish he were.”

“Okay, Mr. Harrow,” Amari said. “I’m gonna choose to believe you. But if you’re playing me, you’ll pay for it.”

He grinned at her. The first full-on grin she’d got from him. “I can tell you this much, Lieutenant — I believe you.”

With a smile, Amari rose, nodded to the exec and the lawyer; then Polk trailed her to the door.

Falling in just behind, Harrow said, “To whatever extent you might want or need it, Lieutenant, know that you’ll have the complete cooperation of Crime Seen.”

“Thanks,” Amari said, if somewhat warily.

“I’ll walk you out,” he said.

They were in the hallway, Byrnes and Richards behind a closed door now, where Amari began, “Look, Mr. Harrow...”

“Make it ‘J.C.,’ would you?”

“J.C. I’m sorry if I seemed to come down hard-ass on you in there.”

“Hey, Lieutenant, I’ve—”

“Make it ‘Anna.’ ”

“Anna, I spent plenty of time on your side of the fence — sheriff, DCI investigator... that’s Iowa’s criminal investigation department. I know what it’s like to have pressure from above to close cases, and I sure as hell know it’s easier to do that if the media isn’t breathing down your neck.”

“That was a nice speech, J.C.”

“Thanks. And I didn’t even use a teleprompter.”

That made her laugh. Suddenly Polk was tagging behind as the trio headed back toward the elevator.

As they were standing there waiting for a down arrow, Amari suddenly realized she had the host of Crime Seen as an audience. How surreal.

In a what-the-hell moment, she said, “Say, J.C. — there is another case we’re working on I wouldn’t mind some help with.”

She caught Polk cocking his head, frowning slightly.

“What can I do?” Harrow asked.

The elevators doors opened and they got aboard, Polk hitting the button for the lobby, keeping an eye on the other two, like they were kids up to no good.

Amari said to Harrow, “We’re on another murder, too, a brutal thing — took place about ten days ago.”

“You do work sex crimes, right? Not homicide?”

“Right. But this is like Don Juan — it falls on our side of the line.”

“However we can help,” Harrow was saying, “we will.”

“Okay,” she said. “A week ago Friday we caught a homicide at the Star Struck Hotel. Very nasty. Male victim, emasculated and stabbed to death.”

Harrow just listened.

“That’s in West Hollywood,” Polk put in.

Amari said, “Room registered to Jeff Bailey. Body we found does not match the security video of the guy who checked in as Bailey the day before.”

The doors opened and they walked in lockstep into the lobby, footsteps making little gunshot echoes.

“And you have a dead body with no ID,” Harrow said, “and I’m guessing no clues as to the identity of the killer, or the man who checked into the hotel in the first place.”

“Sums it up,” she said.

“Well,” Harrow said with an easygoing shrug, “we could broadcast pictures of your vic and the man who checked into the room.”

“That might really help,” Amari said. “A forensic artist has done a drawing of the victim — it’d be better that than a photo of the corpse.”

“Agreed.”

“Just so you know, we already ran it on the local news and got bupkes.”

“I did see that,” Harrow said. “You didn’t let the papers know about the emasculation aspect.”

“Right.” She’d actually slipped, revealing that; but she found herself feeling cop-to-cop with Harrow.”And that’s off the record.”

“No problem.”

A petite ponytailed blonde in a T-shirt and jeans materialized.

Harrow said, “Lieutenant Anna Amari, this is Jenny Blake, our resident computer guru.”

Amari smiled and extended her hand. “I recognize Ms. Blake from your show, of course.”

Handshakes and introductions over, Jenny and Polk went off to work out the LAPD getting the Don Juan video and access to UBC computers.

Meanwhile, Amari and Harrow stood near the glass doors onto the street.

“I’ll get you a copy of the artist’s drawing and the pertinent hotel security video,” Amari told him. “How soon can you get them on the air?”

“Friday night,” Harrow said. “I’ll showcase it right at the top. We have a hell of a lot bigger audience than local news.”

She smiled. “Well, thank you.”

“Not a problem. Always ready to look after a fellow officer’s interests.”

“Only you’re not a fellow officer anymore.”

“Really, I am. Better you get to know me, more you’ll see that.”

“This assumes I get to know you better.”

“Call it wishful thinking.”

“You’re not trying to soften me up, are you?”

“Moi?”

That coming from this craggy ex-cop made her laugh; it echoed a little in the lobby. Then she turned solemn.

“J.C., you’re not going to stay out of this Don Juan thing.”

“Was that a question?”

“Not really. I was paying attention when that sleazeball boss of yours and his pet lawyer were making all those promises... and you? J.C., you weren’t saying shit.”

Harrow didn’t say shit in response, either.

“I know you’re pissed this Don Juan prick has singled you and your show out. I get that. This guy is trying to blackmail you. He’s taking the good things you’ve done on Crime Seen and twisting them into something ugly, something dark. But surely you can’t imagine that, in some weird way, you’re to blame for what he’s done.”

“I don’t,” Harrow said simply.

“... Really? Not playing with me, J.C.?”

“No.

I don’t blame myself for the actions of this evil son of a bitch. Anna, you and I are both cop enough to know this one would be killing whether or not Crime Seen even existed.”

She only nodded.

Then she said, “Okay, here’s the deal. You get in my way, I mow you down — got it?”

“Sounds fair.”

“You air anything you find without bringing it to me first, I’ll run your ass in for obstruction.”

“Promise?”

“Are you flirting with me, J.C.?”

“Maybe. But there’s one thing we can agree on.”