Page 1 of Heat of Justice (Duty #3)

Catching up on neglected admin work was always a killer, but Ellie James had volunteered to tackle the latest growing pile for her partner. It seemed only fair since she was about to cash in on a couple of years of previously ignored vacation time and jet off to Europe for a two-week break with her girlfriend. If, that is, the paperwork did not bury her completely.

“There. It’s the last folders.”

Ellie glanced up as Cody Miller dropped a bunch more files on her desk.

“Huh,” she grunted. “Better be, or I’ll never make it out of here alive.”

“It’s not that bad.” Cody optimistically snatched a folder off the top and tossed it onto her own desk. “Here, I’ll do some. You hungry? I think we’ve got some pizza left over.”

The small office they shared, located on the first floor of the Lewiston Police Department building, used to be Cody’s alone.

Now it also included Ellie’s desk, slotted in to face hers at an awkward angle that seemed to defy the laws of regular three-dimensional space.

A single metal file cabinet was squashed in the corner, as well as a tiny fridge, and Cody’s personal coffee machine, a treasure they both enjoyed.

On the bare wall facing the only window was a rectangular corkboard they used to pin information relevant to ongoing cases.

Cody was a perpetual disaster when it came to filing paperwork, but her board was always meticulously organized.

On this late Friday afternoon in June, she had just cleared away the scene photos and names of persons of interest involved in their latest investigation.

This case was now closed.

“We should get a microwave in here,” Ellie remarked.

“No space for it.” Cody shrugged. “And I like cold pizza.”

With a sprinkle of chili flakes and mayonnaise, which the detective with otherwise impeccable credentials liked to ‘collect’ from fast-food outlets like MacDonalds or Pizza Hut.

“Here you are, El.” Cody handed her a pepperoni slice on a paper plate, along with a can of Coke and two sachets of stolen mayo. “Enjoy.”

Having missed lunch earlier, a regular occurrence in their work life, Ellie knew she would, no matter what. She watched Cody sit behind her desk with her own plate, open the file folder in front of her, scowl at it, and reach for the chili flakes instead. Delaying the inevitable.

“What is your driving license renewal letter doing stuck in the middle of an autopsy report?” she asked.

“Ah, you found it!” Cody looked pleased as she reached for the letter. “Been looking everywhere for that thing.”

Ellie rolled her eyes for effect, but she was amused.

As far as she was concerned, being assigned as Cody’s partner was like striking gold.

Only four years older, Miller’s years as a detective with the NYPD had shaped her into a talented investigator.

She was a tough cop with solid experience and an innate talent for the job.

With her lean, slender body, blond hair in messy layers that just brushed the nape of her neck, and a pair of sparkling, intelligent blue eyes, Cody was the sort of cop Ellie no doubt would have had a major hero crush on when she was still a rookie.

Same way she used to feel back then about Quinn Wesley, the lieutenant in charge.

A year into her own career as a member of the special crimes task force, and with a string of excellent results to her name, she was no longer quite so green, of course.

Not so susceptible to being dazzled by her more experienced colleagues.

Still, Ellie recognized a true model of excellence when she saw one, the sort of woman she could learn from and emulate in the best ways.

Cody Miller was definitely one of those.

“Are you going to miss me?” she prompted.

Cody shot her a cool, steady look from behind her desk. “Hmm. Yeah. I might, actually.”

In spite of herself, Ellie experienced a flicker of pleasure and pride at the admission.

“Not just because I handle the paperwork?” she insisted.

“Not just. You pull your weight. You’re smart, thorough. A good cop.” Cody’s full lips curled in a wry smile. “Besides,” she added, “you don’t take care of admin work often enough for me to miss you for that reason.”

“True, that’s why it is in such disarray.”

“Hey, don’t offer to do the work and then complain about it, alright?”

Ellie chuckled. “Yeah, fair enough.”

Cody squeezed another sachet of mayo onto her pizza, took a bite, and sighed in obvious contentment.

“I wasn’t so hot about having a partner,” she reflected. “As you know, I’ve always worked alone before, and it suited me just fine.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“That was until I met you, kid.”

Well. Way to go to ruin a good compliment, Ellie decided, calling her ‘kid’ like this. Then again, she’d learned early on in their partnership that Cody loved to banter and tease. The glint in her eyes said it was the case now too.

“Thanks, grandma.” Ellie replied in kind, earning herself a chuckle.

At least Cody had not come up with a worse nickname. The lieutenant still called her ‘rookie’ from time to time. Once, after a slightly irritated Ellie asked her when she might grow tired of it, Quinn smirked in reply.

‘Who knows? Maybe never. Lieutenant’s privilege. You should be glad I didn’t opt for Baby Cop.’

Truth be told, Ellie did not mind this stuff.

Before she knew her girlfriend, the police department had been her entire life and world.

Nothing mattered more to her then than to earn her detective shield and prove she deserved it.

Now that she had done both, the squad was still family.

As the youngest member of the team, funny nicknames and the odd extra chore assigned to her were to be expected.

It was like a rite of passage, and she relished it all, cold pizza included.

For the next hour, she was quiet and kept her mind on the task at hand.

Cody also did not say much as they went through the files.

Finally, she slapped the last folder down with a triumphant smile.

“Done! And none too soon, I tell you, because my eyeballs are about to fall off. You need a ride home?” she inquired as Ellie laughed.

“Yeah, that would be great. I need to pack, then book a taxi for the morning. Jan will be working until late today, and I’d like to clean the apartment for her as well.”

“What time are you guys flying tomorrow?”

“Five A.M.” With an added rush of excitement, now that the work was done and she was a step closer to her dream vacation, Ellie whipped out her phone to show her partner a few pics. “Look, this is the bed and breakfast we booked for our first night in Janet’s hometown.”

“It looks great.” Cody smiled in approval at the rustic stone mansion. “Very Italian, huh? With that neat line of cypress trees in front of it?”

“Yes. Jan said there are olive fields in the back, and—”

Before she could share any more, a female voice interrupted sharply.

“If you two are bored, Detectives, ask another team if they need any help. I don’t expect you to stand around wasting time on personal business, is that clear?”

Ellie’s mouth dropped open in surprise at the rebuke, and she also almost dropped her phone when she looked up.

Their commanding officer stood in the open doorway, watching them with both hands fisted on her hips and flashing blue eyes in her tanned face.

Ellie’s stomach knotted unpleasantly as well as she realized that the lieutenant was not joking in the least, and that her expression was not just mere disapproval.

Quinn Wesley appeared pissed in the extreme, in fact, which also was extremely strange.

Only a few hours ago, she had clapped them both on the shoulder with a heartfelt ‘Well done’ for closing their latest case, which involved the revenge murder by her lunatic husband of the CEO of a long-established local firm.

Quinn even joked with Ellie about making sure that she did not get too soft during her Italian vacation, or she would have to ’kick your ass back into proper shape, rookie’.

The change in mood and attitude now was both unexpected and worrisome, especially as the lieutenant was normally steady as a rock.

Quinn Wesley, former army captain, did not panic or get emotional on the job.

She did not micro-manage her teams, and she certainly did not snarl at her officers for engaging in the odd personal chat.

In fact, she encouraged this sort of thing.

Ellie could not help her thighs turning a little weak under her hard stare.

“Um,” she started. “Yes. That’s clear. I was just—”

“We’re two hours off the clock, Boss,” her partner easily cut in to inform Quinn. “If something came up, I’ll take it, but Ellie needs to go home and pack.”

Of course, it would take a lot more to ruffle Cody’s feathers. Ellie admired her response, and also reminded herself that she was supposed to be just as cool and collected. With that in mind, she stuck her shoulders back and flashed a confident smile at the woman in charge.

“We just slayed a bunch of admin, Lieutenant. All files are up to date.”

She noted a tiny muscle in Quinn’s jaw flex and a flicker of emotion across her eyes. A flash of regret, maybe? It was there and gone too fast for Ellie to be sure, but Quinn seemed to relax a fraction.

“Good,” she said and shifted her gaze to Cody. “I’ll be on personal time until further notice. You need anything, Miller, go straight to Captain Wilson.”

Tough as she was, Cody probably knew not to question the order at this stage.

“Roger that, Lieutenant,” she simply answered.

“And you, Detective, see you when you get back. Take care of yourself and of Janet over there.”

Forget being pissed off, Ellie thought when Quinn forced a brief smile for her. She looked upset. Hurt, even. Ellie could not help herself.

“Lieutenant, is everything okay?” she blurted out in sudden concern.

“Everything’s fine,” Quinn stated, tone back to razor-sharp once more in a clear warning.

On that note, she spun on her heels and walked off without a single other word. Puzzled, the two detectives glanced at each other.

“Something’s wrong,” Ellie repeated.

“Mm… Maybe. We’ll see.” Cody shrugged and went on to fish her car keys out of her jeans pocket. “Don’t worry about it, eh! Get packing and enjoy your time off, El. You sure as hell earned it.”

◆◆◆

Quinn slid behind the wheel of her classic Chevy Camaro, and she made the engine roar as she peeled out of the parking lot behind the station.

A couple of uniforms walking in stared after her.

One of them shook his head in disapproval.

She noticed that in her rearview and wrapped her fingers more tightly around the wheel.

Goddammit.

She hated losing her temper; anywhere, at any time, but particularly in front of her people.

Everyone here, from the youngest recruit to seasoned cops like Cody Miller, looked up to her to set the tone of behavior.

Quinn had learned early in her army days that it paid to lead by example.

As a result, she held herself to the highest standards of both personal and professional excellence.

The officers that she personally recruited for the special crimes task force were all consummate professionals as well.

They worked hard and put everything on the line to achieve justice for their ‘clients’ : innocent victims of gruesome murders, sexual exploitation, drug trafficking, and all kinds of related violence.

The personal preferences and moods of the police officers involved did not enter the equation in this game.

It just could not.

Checking one’s attitude at the door and going above and beyond for duty was a basic requirement for anyone in this job. Shouldn’t have unleashed on Miller and Ellie like that.

Granted, it was just a snap, and Miller reacted well to it.

No surprise there.

Ellie, naturally the more outwardly sensitive of the two, immediately dropped into caring mode.

Though Quinn knew for sure that neither of them would hold it against her in the long run, she was aware the reprimand had been uncalled for.

Definitely out of line.

Stopping at a red traffic light in view of the beach in the distance, she rolled her window down.

It was warm out.

Usually, summer weather of this kind and the sharp salty tang of the ocean breeze were enough to ground her after a bit of trouble or difficulty on the job.

Tonight, though, she barely registered either.

The real reason for her loss of control with her two detectives was still stuck sideways in her throat.

It was too big and felt too painful to digest at this point, and Quinn was torn between wanting to punch something hard and bursting into tears.

For God’s sake, Wesley!

“Keep it together, Lieutenant,” she ordered herself.

Yeah, it was bad... But losing her head over the situation would only make it worse. Just get yourself home, she told herself. To Lia.