Page 142 of Devoted in Death

“Document everything, down to the last fleck of dust. Copy me, Whitney, Mira, Reo and Special Agent Zweck.”

Carmichael looked at the pool of blood on the plastic, the spatters of it, the smears of it on knives, hammers, screwdrivers, jags of glass.

“Sweat ’em hard, wring ’em dry.”

“Count on it.”

Eve stepped out into the cold, found it glorious after the stench. “Thanks for the assist,” she said when Roarke stepped out beside her.

“Oh, no, I’ll be seeing this one through. I shuffled some things, as I said, and I can get a bit of work done at Central. I’ll enjoy seeing you sweat ’em hard, wring ’em dry.”

“She might not make it. I could see it in the MTs’ eyes. They don’t think she’ll make it. A few hours earlier... who knows.”

“Eve.”

“I know, I know. It’s not on me, not on anybody but the two who did this to her. But she held out, with everything they did, she held out, held on. And now she might not make it.”

She rubbed her face hard.

“I need to contact her roommate.”

“I’ll do that,” Peabody said from behind her. “I’ll make the contacts for both of them, Dallas. Maybe with friends there, with family, they’ll both have a better chance. Banner and I will ride back with EDD, and I’ll make the contacts.”

“All right, good. I’ll brief Whitney—and get Mira in on this.” She blew out a breath that streamed away in a cloud. “Let’s get it done.”

She walked away from the nightmare of a dead man’s apartment—remembered they had next of kin to notify there.

“Consider my arm wrapped around you.”

“What?”

He smiled at her. “You’d object to such a gesture when cops can see you, but know it’s there, to lean on.”

“I’m okay. We caught the bad guys.”

“Peabody knew you could do with a bit of alone with me. Use it.”

“He—Reed—he’s hurt, but not as much as she is. They didn’t hurt him as much because they needed him physically able to rape. He’s going to make it, but... He might never get over what they made him do. He’s just a guy, just a regular, apparently decent enough guy, and he’ll have to live with this. They raped him, too. By forcing their will on him.”

“Mira, or someone like her, will help him understand that, and cope with it.”

“It takes a long time to cope. It takes a lot to cope with that. Some never get there.”

It put a hole in her belly remembering how close she’d been to never getting there.

“I don’t think I would have gotten there without you. I wouldn’t have gotten there, even with Mira, without you.”

“Now you’ve done it,” he murmured. “Cops or no.” He wrapped one arm around her, then the other. “You got there. We both did. And I wouldn’t change a moment of the time, good or bad, we’ve had together since I first turned and locked eyes on you. What a jolt that was through me.” He touched his lips to her brow. “I’ve never recovered.”

“Not even a minute of change?”

“Not one.”

“Because change one, change all.”

“Now you’ve remembered.”

“Okay.” She breathed deep, pulled back. “No more sloppy stuff on the street.” She strode the few paces to the van, called into Feeney. “Got their asses.”