Page 22 of Sinful Promise
“I don’t—”
“The vigilante has been quiet,” she pushes on stubbornly. “But he came out of retirement when a predator was released back onto our streets. Sounds like a good deal to me.”
“Laramie Fentonewillget a fair investigation,” I grit through tight lips. “Because even if he was a bad person, he deserves a competent inquiry.”
“Right.” She comes around to our John Doe’s crushed hand and kneels closer to document it. “And he got Arch and Fletch, two of the best. They’ll do it right, and if they feel the need, they’ll arrest whoever did the crime.”Click. Click. Click. “But I won’t cheer them on, and if I was the M.E. on record, I probably wouldn’t try very hard.”
“And now your extreme bias and inability to work a case without tarnishing it with your opinion is noted.” I grind my teeth in exasperation. “On the record. Dammit, Aubree! Be smarter.”
“I’m not on the case.”Click. Click. Click. So relaxed. So comfortable. “And had you taken it when Arch offered, I might’ve requested reassignment for myself. I had to examine a little girl’s vagina last week, Chief Mayet. And we both know Fentone was the one who hurt her. I won’t sob into my pillow tonight when I think of that monster being dead.”
“Just stop talking.” I grab the recorder and switch it off before I lose my best medical examiner… and my best friend. Then I turn when the rumble of a second engine comes closer, and a beat after that, the George Stanley transport van comes into sight.
“We’re dealing withthiscase.” I toss the recorder into our murder bag and cast a glance toward Arch and Fletch.
Like it always does, my breath stops in my throat, and my eyes grow a little wider when I find Archer’s emerald stare boring my way.
He feels my anger, I’m sure of it. My despair. And if not that, then certainly he can hear the rage in my voice. My intolerance at the thought of losing my best medical examiner because of words spit out when feelings are running high.
“I need you to stop talking about Fentone.” Peeling my gaze from Archer’s, I meet Aubree’s sky-blue eyes and lower my voice. “And the vigilante, too. I need you to focus onthiscase. Because, as your chief, you just shoved me into a position where Ishouldput you on unpaid leave until you can prove your competence.”
Biting my tongue, I glance down and shake my head. “Dammit, Emeri. Don’t break my heart andmakeme fire you.”
ARCHER
“Just tell us from the start.” Fletch, with his kind tone and charming smile, kneels by the open cruiser door and meets Tandy Alexander’s terrified eyes. “Tell us everything you can think of.”
“I don’t…” Shaking hands and leaking nostrils, the woman who sits comfortably in her twenties jams a tissue to her nose to mop up the mess. “My car broke down a few weeks ago, but I don’t have very much money to fix it. So I was…” She swallows, loud and visible, so her neck ripples with the movement. “I was walking to my job today, like I have been since my car died.”
“Okay.” Fletch scribbles notes in a little book and keeps his words gentle. Curious, but not prodding. “Which way were you coming from?”
“Th-that way.” She points toward the west, inadvertently hitting the headrest on the front seat with her hand. In response, her breath catches and her face burns redder with embarrassment. “I live not far from here, with my roommate. And I work that way,” she points to the east. “I start at ten, but I like to get there early.”
“Smart move.” Fletch is the consummate sweetheart. The lover who can make any woman comfortable in the space of a single heartbeat. “Arrive early, impress the boss, and get a pay raise.”
“Right.” A soft blush fills Tandy’s cheeks, like he just…getsher. “I need to save everything I can. Life is expensive, ya know? And I have to fix my car before next winter. So I’m doing everything I can to make the boss notice me.”
“Where do you work?” My tone isn’t as soft as Fletch’s. My question, not as gentle.
And because of it, the woman scowls at me. “In an art gallery downtown. I do the books,” she adds before I need to ask. “I minored in business in college, so I had something to fall back on to make a living. But I sculpt in my spare time.” Shy, she drops her gaze and plays with the tissue fisted in her hands. “Someday, I hope to get to be featured in my gallery, and not just running the profit-and-loss statements.”
“It’s good to have a dream.” Fletch, so fucking cajoling, pats Tandy’s knee. “It’s not work if you love it.”
“So you were walking to the office?” I cut in. “Just like every other day. And you came around the corner just near here?”
She studies her hands and nods.
“Did you hear the impact when the car hit that man? Squealing tires? Breaking glass?”
Without taking time to think, she shakes her head. “I didn’t hear anything at all. I keep my headphones in when I walk.” Moving the tissue in her fingers, she reveals a pair of earbuds that show their fair share of use. “I was listening to a podcast. But even then,” she shrugs. “These are cheap, Detective. They’re not noise-canceling, and a podcast isn’t the same as music.” Finally, she brings her gaze up and meets mine before adding, “I didn’t hear anything.”
“That’s okay.” Grinning, Fletch brings Tandy’s attention his way. “So you’ve come around the corner and… what? What did you see?”
“Nothing at first.” She goes back to shredding her used tissue. “I’m not the most observant person on the planet, Detective Fletcher. I’m an artist, forced to work with numbers. I’m chained to a desk eight hours a day. So when I’m off, I tend to let my mind wander. I came around the corner and just… kept walking.”
“So whendidyou see him?” I ask. “How close did you get before you noticed him there?”
Her cheeks burn fiery crimson, piquing my interest when she refuses to bring her eyes up.
