J. Robb - Survivor in Death

“Which is a tragedy,” Corday agreed, with no emotion. “However, I'm not interested in stepping in to save the day-even for the possibility of Roarke Industries as a client, and I resent you coming here, pushing this on me.”

“So I see. You didn't even ask if she'd been hurt.”

“I don't care.” Anger, or perhaps just a hint of embarrassment colored her cheeks. “I have my life, I have my career. If I wanted children, I'd have my own. I have no intention of fostering someone else's.”

“Then I've made a mistake.” He got to his feet. “I've taken up too much of your time, and wasted my own.”

“Grant's mother booted my father out when I was ten, and she was just one of many. What possible reason would I have to take responsibility for his daughter?”

“Apparently none at all.”

He walked out, more angry with himself than with her.

Eve stepped out of the dojo, surveyed the street, eyes tracking over parked vehicles, pedestrians, street traffic.

“Odds are low they'd have been able to trail us here,”Peabody said from behind her. “Even if they had the equipment, and the man power, to keep round-the-clock surveillance on Central, they'd have to be really good or really lucky to make our unit.”

“So far they've been really good and really lucky. We don't play the odds on this one.” She drew the scanner out of her pocket. “That's not standard issue.”

“No, it's Roarke issue. Cop issue would be what they'd expect, and they could have planted any number of devices with that in mind.”

“Dallas, you make me feel all safe and snuggled. And hungry. There's a deli right next door.”

“I'm off delis for a while. I'll always wonder if somebody's getting a blow job in the back room, with the extra veggie hash.”

“Oh, well, thanks. Now I'm off delis, and I didn't have waffles this morning. Chinese place across the street. How about an egg roll?”

“Fine, just make it fast.”

She ran the scan for explosives, homing devices, whilePeabody hotfooted it. She gave a shoulder roll-the light body armor irritated her-then slid into the car asPeabody dashed back across.

“Didn't have Pepsi.”

“What?” Eve stared at the take-out bag. “Is thisAmerica? Have I crossed over into some dark continent, some alternate universe?”

“Sorry. Got you a lemon fizz.”

“It's just not right.” Eve pulled away from the curb. “It should be illegal to run a food-service operation and not offer Pepsi.”

“Speaking of food-service operations, you know what Ophelia told me she's going to do with the reward?”

“If she gets it.”

“If. Anyway, she and the deli guy talked about going in together if she ever got enough scratch. So, with the reward, she'd be solid. They want to open a sex club.”

“Oh, like New York doesn't have enough of those.”

“Yeah, but a sex club deli. It's pretty innovative. Get your salami hard, get your hard salami, all in one venue.”

“Christ, I'm never eating in a deli again.”

“I think it might be interesting. Anyway.”Peabody popped a mini eggroll. “You want me to tag Feeney, have him start trying to trace the transmissions?”

“No. I'll take that. Tag Baxter, tell him to prioritize the Brenegan case. And contact the commander, see if he's had any luck cutting through the red tape. Let him know Kirkendall is now prime, and we've got Baxter looking into a closed case that may connect. No, not the 'link,” she added. “Let's mix up the communication devices. Use your personal for this. Then do a check with the rest of the team, using your communicator.”

“You think they might try to triangulate our location through communication?”

“I think we'll be careful.” Eve used the dash unit for Sade Tully's home address. Her next stop.

It was a modest building, easy walking distance to the law firm. No doorman, Eve noted. Average security. A scan of her badge got them through-and she imagined a couple of buzzes on various apartment intercoms would have done the same. In the narrow lobby, she pushed the button for Sade's floor and studied the setup.

Dual security cams-that may or may not have been working. Fire door leading to stair access. There was another cam in the single elevator, and the standard set of them on opposite sides of Sade's floor.

The apartment door was fitted with an electronic peep and a sturdy police lock. Eve buzzed, saw the peep engage a few moments later. Locks snicked, and Sade opened the door.

“Has something happened? Oh, Jesus, did something happen to Dave?”

“No. Sorry to alarm you. Can we come in?”

“Yeah, yeah.” She pushed a hand through her hair. “I guess I'm on edge. Getting myself together for Linnie's funeral. I've never been to one for a kid. You should never have to go to one for a kid. We closed the office for the day. Dave's going to pick me up soon.”

The apartment was pretty and bright, the trendy gel sofa done in shimmering shades of blue and green with a small eating area set up in front of a pair of windows framed with fabric. Inexpensive posters of some of the city's highlights decorated the walls.

“Dave says you've got a good memory for names, for details.”

“That's why they pay me the big bucks. You want to sit? Do you want… God, I don't know what I have. I haven't been to the market since…”

“It's all right, we're fine.”Peabody went into comfort mode. “This is a nice place. Great sofa.”

“I like it. I mean the whole shot. It's a quiet building, close to work. And when I want to play, I can scoot half a block to the subway and head toward the action.”

“Full apartment in this neighborhood doesn't come cheap,” Eve commented.

“No. I have a roommate. Had,” she corrected. “Jilly's a flight attendant-handles theNew York to Vegas II route, mostly. She's gone so much we don't get in each other's way, or on each other's nerves.”

“Had?” Eve prompted.

“She got in touch a couple of days ago. She's going to base on Vegas II now, so…” Sade shrugged. “No big for me. I can handle the rent now on my salary. Grant and Dave-hell. Dave's not stingy. I've gotten raises along the way.”

She looked down at herself. “Do you think this is the right thing to wear? Maybe it's too morbid. Black suit. I mean, a funeral's morbid, but maybe-”

“I think it's very appropriate,”Peabody told her. “Respectful.”

“Okay. Okay. I know it's a stupid thing to worry about. Why the hell should they care what I'm wearing when… I'm going to get some water. Do you want any water?”

“No, go ahead.” But Eve rose, wandered toward the trim galley kitchen. “Sade, do you remember a case Grant worked on? Kirkendall. His client was Dian.”

“Give me a sec.” She got a bottle of water from a minifriggie, leaned back on the lipstick-red counter. “Divorce and custody deal. Guy used to knock her around. Army guy-well, he was retired army by then. But one mean son of a bitch. They had a couple of kids-boy and girl. Dian finally got her butt in gear when he started on the kids. Well, not straight off.”

She opened the bottle, sipped thoughtfully. “Seems he ran the show like he was the general. More the tyrant. Schedules, orders, discipline. Had the three of them pretty well cowed. She went into a shelter, finally, and one of the people who ran it recommended our firm. Woman was terrified, seriously terrified. We see that sometimes. Too many times.”

“The court ruled in her favor.”

“All the way. Grant worked hard on that case.” Her eyes went shiny, and she paused to take a long drink, fight back the tears. “She'd screwed herself pretty good along the way, a lot of them do. Not calling the cops, or telling them that there was no trouble if somebody else called them. Going to various health clinics so she wouldn't send up a red flag. But Grant, he put a lot of hours in-pro bono, too-finding doctors, health techs, getting psych evals. The guy had some slick lawyers. Tried to make it like Dian was unstable, that her injuries were both self-induced and a result of affairs with abusive men. It didn't wash, especially when Grant put Jaynene on the stand.”