Page 80 of A Deeper Darkness

“We.” Roosevelt’s tone cooled immeasurably. “Webeing you, Fletcher and Hart?”

“Yes, sir.”

“And why, pray tell, is a civilian working a murder investigation in my town? Not only that, but without my authorization?”

“I’m not entirely a civilian. I’m a chief medical examiner, from Nashville. I’ve been around—”

“Cap, I asked her to help,” Fletcher groaned from somewhere behind Roosevelt’s meaty calves.

Roosevelt tore his laser gaze from Sam and directed it on Fletcher. “Youasked her to help. Did you think you might want to clue me in that you’ve got some fucking chick riding along with you on a case? Or did that slip your mind?”

Roosevelt proceeded to dress down Fletcher, using some of the more colorful language Sam hadn’t heard in years. She might have enjoyed the show had she not been covered in the blood of two men—men she was becoming rather fond of—one of which was being loaded into an ambulance, the other who was sitting on the hard pavement with a bloody bandage wrapped around his arm, his pants and shirt soaked in his own and his partner’s gore.

Sam got right up close to Roosevelt and held her bloody, sticky hands in front of his face.

“Excuse me, Captain Roosevelt? Do you mind if I wash my hands? It’s been a long night.”

He took a step back and stopped yelling. Her point was made.

Fletcher tossed her a look of gratitude, and she smiled at him. He had saved her life tonight. They’d forged a bond that would be hard to tear asunder.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

McLean, Virginia

Susan Donovan

Susan vaguely heard the house phone ringing. She opened her eyes, realized she’d fallen asleep with her head on Eddie’s desk. She struggled upright and went to the kitchen to answer. Eddie had been planning to add the house line onto his office phone. Instead, she’d have to get that business line disconnected, put the office phone back on the regular phone number.

She didn’t recognize the caller ID, but that wasn’t unusual this week.

“Hello?” she answered.

“Susan? It’s Karen. Karen Fisher. I’m so glad I caught you.”

“Hey, Karen.” Susan couldn’t hide the exhaustion from her voice anymore.

“Oh, you sound beat. Honey, I’m so sorry I couldn’t make the funeral. I’m… Listen, are you at home? Can I come over?”

Susan glanced at her watch. It was getting late. She really should be heading back to Eleanor’s. And the last thing she wanted right now was a trip down Karen’s memory lane. When she’d lost King, she hadn’t handled things well. She’d want to commiserate, and it would become all about Karen.

“Why don’t we do this tomorrow, Karen. I need to head to my mother-in-law’s and get the girls.”

“I’m afraid tomorrow might be too late. It’s important, Susan. Really important. Life or death.”

Life or death. What the hell was Susan supposed to say to that?

Fine. Just…fine.

“Are you close by? Maybe I could just meet you—”

“I’m at the 7-Eleven behind your neighborhood. Oh, my God, Susan, thank you. I’ll be there in just a second.”

She hung up. Susan rubbed sleep from her eyes, grabbed a Diet Coke from the refrigerator. She went back to the office to close the doors, snapping on the hall light as she went. There was enough illumination to spill into Eddie’s room, and Susan noticed the picture of the boys, the one the cops were so interested in, was crooked. She shook her head; she’d just straightened it the other day. She was one of those people who were driven crazy by a misaligned picture. She had that innate ability to see if something was crooked. Eddie had teased her about it all the time, sometimes going so far as to knock pictures a little off center just to watch her blood boil when she entered the room.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Eddie.