Down and Dirty

by Liliana Hart

  “Jaye,” Jack said. “We’re getting married tomorrow. This case doesn’t live and die by us, as much as it may feel like. They can solve this case without us.”

  “Right,” I agreed.

  Though it felt like we were quitting, and that didn’t settle too well with me. But I knew Jack was right. We deserved a personal life. And as much as both of us entrenched ourselves in work, it was sometimes hard to remember to take time out for ourselves and make sure we were nourishing the personal relationship as well as the professional.

  Three rapid knocks sounded at the door and Jack went to let in Lewis. His hair was still damp and he was dressed down from his usual work attire. Come to think of it, I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen him in jeans before.

  “Anything new?” Lewis asked

  “We were just catching Jaye up to speed,” Cal said.

  “Did you tell her about Doctor Owens?”

  “Oh, yeah,” I said, remembering Jack had mentioned something about it last night. My brain was starting to get foggy from lack of sleep. “What did you find?”

  “Lance Owens and Anthony Connelli went to high school together. They attended different colleges, but were roommates up in Boston until Lance started medical school and moved to New York. Connelli stayed on in Boston to finish his Master’s, but they stayed in touch. And it was actually Connelli who introduced Lance to his wife at a party. She was a law student at the same college Connelli attended.”

  “Mrs. Owens is an attorney?” I asked, trying to picture the woman I’d met yesterday in a courtroom.

  “She quit her last semester when she married Lance. But she heads a lot of charitable organizations,” Lewis explained.

  “So Connelli and Owens grew up together. That’s not really a surprise, I guess. He said they were all very close when we talked to him yesterday.”

  “Owens is a plastic surgeon,” Jack said. “One of the best in the nation from what we understand. There’s a reason all the work done on Julia Connelli never showed up in her medical reports.”

  “Oh,” I said, the light dawning. “Sorry. My brain is sleep deprived. Owens performed the surgery. No records. And probably a hell of a discount.”

  “Bingo,” Jack said.

  “I invited him in for questioning,” Lewis said. “He’ll be arriving at the station in about an hour.”

  “If he performed the surgery then he more than likely knew where she came from,” I said. “That kind of information is potential blackmail, especially if Julia was acting as a double agent on behalf of Russia.”

  “But what would Owens be blackmailing Connelli for?” Cal asked. “There’s no motive there that I can see. The only thing Connelli has of value is the work he does for the Department of Defense. What’s a plastic surgeon going to do with that?”

  “Someone who could do something with that is a Senator on the Defense Committee,” Jack said.

  “Except our hands are tied there as far as requesting information,” I said. “Were you able to find out anything from a surface look?”

  “Just the basics,” Jack said, rubbing his hands across the top of his head. “Bruce’s father was Governor, so he came by politics naturally. Was an average student. Got his business degree from Yale. Married at twenty-eight to Cherise Whitcomb-Weiss, the daughter of former Secretary of State Edgar Weiss. Bruce is on his third term as Senator, and is fairly popular. They have two children. Their oldest daughter Charlotte is in her third year of law school. And Michael is seventeen and a senior at Downton Academy. Second in his class. He’ll be attending Yale in the fall as a biochemistry major. IQ is off the charts, but has a tendency to be lazy, though he’s seen quite a bit doing community work. Has a soft spot for the less fortunate.

  “The Bruces were at a fundraiser like they said the night of the fire. Thanks to the Internet there’s plenty of pictures to prove it. There’s even one showing them leaving the event, just after midnight.”

  “The media are so helpful,” I said. “I don’t know how law enforcement survives without them.”

  “Funny,” Jack said, straight-faced. “The bottom line is, we need to know more about the Bruces and any ties they might have to the Connellis that aren’t just on the surface. With Anthony with the Department of Defense and the Senator on the Defense Committee, you know their paths cross. And they may not always cross on amicable terms. If the Senator found out the truth about Julia, there are any number of scenarios that could’ve played out.”

  “Surely Ben owes us a favor,” I said.

  “I’m pretty sure we owe Ben our first born child after all the favors he’s done us,” Jack said. “Sometimes there are ways to work around the law to get what’s needed. Sometimes there’s not. This is one of those times. And we might just have to face the reality that this case might not be solved any time soon. We’re going to have to go through the appropriate channels and do everything by the book. Especially if there’s a Senator involved.”

  I shook my head and looked at Jack carefully. Jack was one of the most patient men I’d ever known. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen him lose his temper. But there was a definite bite in his words. My own hackles rose, but I knew better than to argue in front of his men. The air was definitely charged though, and the others must have sensed it.

  “I’m going to go catch an hour of sleep before I have to turn evidence over to the DOD,” Cal said.

  Lewis put his hands on his hips and rocked back on his heels. “Yeah. I’m, uh—I’m going to grab Martinez and head into the station to prep for Doctor Owens.”

  Everyone scattered and left Jack and I facing each other. He was leaning against the table, his arms crossed over his chest and staring at me with disinterest in his gaze. It was an effective tactic when fighting. Aloneness and feeling isolated was a trigger point for me. I’d felt that way all my life, and Jack knew it.

  When Jack got mad, he didn’t argue and his voice didn’t become louder. He didn’t throw his hands around in frustration or pace back and forth. He shut down completely. He became indifferent.

  And to me that was worse than if he did have a normal reaction. Because when he got angry he closed himself off and you didn’t know what he was thinking or feeling. He was an island unto himself. His features and heart hardened, and the distance he put between himself and anyone else felt like a canyon.

  I was the first to break the silence. “What the hell, Jack? This doesn’t sound like you. Why are you angry?”

  “I’m not angry.”

  I refrained from rolling my eyes at the most blatant lie I’d ever heard. “Fine. You’re not angry. So what’s the problem? Other than the fact that there are five victims weighing on your shoulders and you haven’t slept?”

  “I know we’re at the forty-eight hour mark on this case and we’ve got nothing. And it feels like you’ve done nothing but pressure me to break the law so we can solve this case, and to hell with ethics or anything else.”

  “I beg your pardon?” I asked, my voice becoming very level, which was never a good sign. “I’m pressuring you to break the law? Really?”

  “What do you think suggesting we call in Carver would be doing, Jaye?”

  “A joke? And don’t say my name in that tone of voice. I’m not a child to be disciplined.”

  “Well, you’re not acting like an adult. We don’t have time for this.” He moved to leave the room and I stood in front of the door.

  “Oh, no. You’re not going to just walk away and leave me like I’m in the wrong here. I know you believe in the law above all else. I wouldn’t love you the way I do if you didn’t. But it’s not like you to just shrug your shoulders and give up on a case before we’ve barely gotten started. The Connellis deserve better than that. And so does Cassandra Owens.”

  “You don’t have to fucking remind me who the victims are. I can see their faces as well as you can.”

  I raised my eyebrows in surprise and felt genuine worry seep into my soul. I’d never seen Jack l
ike this. Or heard him take that tone of voice with me.

  “What is going on, Jack? This isn’t you.”

  “I don’t know. But if you’d rather see this case out to the end instead of leave on our honeymoon, just let me know.”

  I gasped and my body jerked back as if he’d struck me. “You’ve changed your mind about getting married? You don’t want to?”

  Somewhere deep inside of me, it’s what I’d been afraid of from the beginning. Why would a man like Jack—a good and honorable man in all things—want someone like me? A girl who came from the worst of the worst. Who didn’t mind bending the rules or walking in those shades of gray from time to time if it served a purpose. Jack would always do what was right, even if it was detrimental to himself.

  I had a strong moral code, but it was my own definition. I believed that right should always win and that good should always prevail. But even though I was the one who’d had the kind of upbringing that exposed me to some of the darker things in life, Jack had actually lived in those dark areas. And sometimes, like now, I wondered if he’d ever really come back from it.

  “Jesus, Jaye,” he said, exasperated. “No, that’s not what I’m saying. I’m just saying if you’re so fixated on this case and finding answers then we can do whatever you want. Just let me know.”

  “Just let you know?” I asked, a tear escaping to fall down my cheek. “Did someone just inhabit your body in the last twenty minutes and take over? You know what my answer is to “Just let you know?” I swiped at the tear on my cheek, my breath coming in big gulps. “My answer to that is fuck you. When you decide to be honest with me and tell me what’s really wrong, how about you just let me know.”

  I turned on my heel and grabbed my bag from the hall table, shutting the front door behind me softly. Jack didn’t try to stop me.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  I did what I always do when I was upset. I turned to the dead.

  I drove to the funeral home with my eyes dry and my body numb. I couldn’t think about any of it right now. Not unless I wanted to break down completely, and that wouldn’t do the Connellis or Cassie Owens any good.

  I was long past sleep. I’d pushed past the hard part and I’d hit my second wind, my mind vividly sharp, but my reactions almost in slow motion. I took fifteen minutes to shower and change clothes. I put on jeans and a gray Henley and my boots¸ and shoved my wet hair behind my ears.

  I went to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee and saw Ben Carver standing outside the door. I sighed and banged my head against the cabinet twice, wondering what the chances were that he’d show up out of the blue when we’d just been talking about him. Despite my wanting to pretend I hadn’t seen him and head downstairs, I went to open the door.

  “I don’t mean to toot my own horn,” he said by way of greeting, “But that’s usually not the reaction women have when they see me.”

  “Hello, Ben.”

  Ben was a couple years older than Jack, and a couple inches shy of six feet.

  “Jaye. I’ve seen corpses that have more color than you. Heh, get it,” he said, wagging his eyebrows.

  “You’re hilarious. I haven’t been to bed yet. You should probably come inside so you don’t have to tell all your lame jokes from the porch.”

  “I can tell you’ve been practicing talking to live people instead of dead ones. You’re so personable.” He batted his eyelashes and I almost laughed. But not quite. “Did I come at a bad time?”

  “Not really. I was just about to head down to the lab. No one’s here but me if you were looking for Jack. And I’m not great company at the moment.”

  “You’re about to get married, woman. Brides should be happy and blushing or something. Or at least getting drunk with their best friends and making questionable last minute choices.”

  “Hmm,” I said, turning my back to go to the coffeepot. I really needed to lighten up on the coffee. I knew it wasn’t healthy, but it was my crutch. I went to the fridge and added milk just to change things up, and then I pulled the cake out and set it on the counter.

  “Are you really eating cake for breakfast?”

  “I’ve already had breakfast. I’m having brunch.” I sliced two squares and put them on plates. “You’re having breakfast.”

  “I don’t mean to stick my nose into your business,” he said, arching an eyebrow as I handed him the cake. “I mean, yeah, I kind of do and I’m going to whether you want me to or not, but I thought it would sound better if I told you that first.”

  “I have no idea what you just said, but I’m getting the gist that you’re going to interfere.”

  “Only a little. I went by the house first and Jack’s looking worse than you are.”

  “I don’t mean to be rude, but you’re Jack’s friend. Why did you come here?”

  “See, there you go with being personable again. You remind me of my wife. She says the same thing to me a lot.”

  “Someday I’d like to meet this elusive wife you keep talking about. I think I’d like her.”

  “Oh, you would. Which is why I haven’t brought her around yet. I don’t need you ganging up on me.” He put a bite of cake in his mouth and made a face, sticking out his tongue to wipe some of the icing off. “My God, woman. This is pure sugar. Haven’t you noticed my body is a temple?”

  “I don’t have my glasses on.”

  “Good one.” He scraped the icing off the cake and then started eating again. “Listen, in all seriousness, I’m not just Jack’s friend. I’m yours too. I don’t know what happened. And I won’t ask. But I know I see two people hurting who are meant to be with each other.”

  I pushed the cake around on my plate a bit before finally putting it down.

  “I’m going to give you some advice, without telling you too much information,” Carver said. “You and Jack have been friends your whole lives, but the relationship aspect is fairly new. There are things you’re going to have to be patient about.

  “I’ve known Jack for eleven years. I knew him when he worked undercover those first few years, and I knew him when he moved to S.W.A.T. Things like that change a man. You start losing your friends—your brothers—and each death weighs a little heavier on the soul. You hide it behind smile and jokes and with different women, none of which you keep around long because you don’t want to have to explain to them the nightmares or the fact that you sat in your car for twenty minutes looking at your service revolver and wondering whether you should just pull the trigger.”

  I felt the tears run down my face, but I didn’t try to stop them. I’d seen these glimpses in Jack, and all I could do was pray that I could somehow make it better for him—ease the hurt. Because when he hurt, I hurt.

  “All I’m saying is be patient. Sometimes certain events can trigger others.”

  I nodded and grabbed a paper towel from the holder to wipe my eyes and blow my nose.

  “That was very attractive,” Carver said. “I can see why Jack loves you.”

  A laugh burst out, surprising me. “And you were doing so well. Almost human.”

  “Don’t tell anyone,” he said. “Now that I’ve softened you up, I can tell you the real reason I’m here.”

  “Jesus, there’s more? Maybe I should’ve gotten the vodka down instead of the cake.”

  “As long as you’re not doing surgery on anyone, I’m okay with that. I started looking through the flash drives you gave me that belonged to your father.”

  He said it quickly, laying out the facts as precisely as possible, and I felt my blood run cold.

  “First of all, I’ve never encountered the level of security to gain access to those flash drives. They’re set to erase if I make a wrong move, and it’s a painstaking process that I still haven’t broken through. But I’ve managed to get past the outer walls, and I’m going to tell you right now, because I’m your friend, if you want me to stop I will. I’ll give them back and I can develop amnesia about the whole thing.”

  I closed my eyes, trying to
decide which pain I should feel today. Between Jack and my father, I was running on emotional fumes. Even though I’d resigned myself to my father’s actions some time ago, I still felt the sting. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t harden myself completely.

  “It’s bad?” I asked.

  “From what I’ve seen so far, it could be really bad.” He sighed and went to refill his cup. “I know he’s alive. I’ve uncovered that much. Your determination wouldn’t be so strong if he wasn’t. And the contents of a dead man’s flash drives wouldn’t be nearly so important.”

  “I want you to keep going. I don’t know what my dad is capable of. Not entirely. And if there’s a chance that anyone else could be in danger, I can’t live with that on my conscience.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought you’d say.”

  I took the dishes to the sink and rinsed them out. “You’ve been a real ray of sunshine this trip, Carver. When are you going home?”

  He laughed and I relaxed a little. Ben was a good guy. Strange. And I knew I was only seeing the surface—what he allowed me to see. Carver had secrets.

  “You invited me to the rehearsal dinner tonight, and you promised me free cake at the wedding tomorrow. I’m not leaving until after that. I don’t just leave my wife at home with the kids for nothing you know. Especially when the baby is teething.”

  “Thanks for coming, Ben. It means a lot to both of us.”

  “I saw the news coverage about Anthony Connelli and his family. Word is you ruled it a multiple homicide.”

  “A single injection of a paralytic to the neck in each victim. What do you think?”

  “Sounds fishy. You might have a homicide on your hands.”

  I rolled my eyes and then filled him in on the rest, leaving out the part where Jack and I may or may not be getting married the following day.