Judgment in Death (In Death 11)

“I talk to you, I’m dead before I get there.”

That was it, she thought, leaning forward. The first crack. “Witness protection.”

“Fuck that. He can find anybody anywhere.”

“He’s not a magician, Lewis. I’m offering you a nice ride, Lewis. You give me what I need, I can get you immunity, a free walk, a new life anywhere you want to go, on or off planet.”

“Why should I trust you?”

“Because I’ve got no reason to want you dead. That’s a big one, isn’t it?”

Lewis said nothing, but he licked his lips.

“I got the impression Ricker’s not real stable. He strike you as real stable, Lewis?” She waited a moment while he thought about it. “Ricker’s going to tell himself you screwed up. Doesn’t matter, won’t matter that he sent you out after me. That he was stupid. He’s going to blame you for missing me and for getting caught. You know it. You know that, and you know he’s just a little crazy.”

He’d stewed about it all night, tossing, turning as best he could on the narrow bunk in the dark cell. He’d come around to that himself, and he didn’t like the fish-eye look of Canarde. Ricker wasn’t known for forgiving what he considered employee mistakes.

“I don’t do any time.”

“That’s what we’re going to work on.”

“Work on? Screw that. You get me immunity. I don’t say squat until I see the PA and the paperwork. Immunity, Dallas, a new name, a new face, and a hundred fifty thousand in seed money.”

“Maybe you’d like me to arrange a pretty wife and a couple of rosy-cheeked children while I’m at it.”

“Hah. Funny.” He was feeling better now, better than he had in hours. “You get me the PA, get me the deal. Then I’ll talk to you.”

“I’ll start on it.” She got to her feet. “You might have to go through the hearing. Keep cool about it, and try out that silence as a civil right. You let Canarde get a whiff of this, he’ll go straight to Ricker.”

“I know how it works. Get me the deal.”

“You called that one right,” Peabody commented as they headed down the hall.

“Yeah.” Eve was already calling the PA’s office, and was disgusted when she got the snooty recording listing working hours. “Looks like I’m getting somebody else out of bed today. Let’s head back while I start the wheels rolling on this. I want a look at the disc. Then everyone needs to be briefed.”

“Everyone?”

“Feeney’s coming in on it.”

She expected to find Roarke there, huddled with McNab over her office unit, working some of his magic. When she found McNab alone, she was surprised, irked, and disappointed. A glance at their adjoining doors showed the red locked light engaged.

Damn if she’d knock.

“I can’t get you more than I’ve got, Lieutenant,” McNab told her. “I cleaned up the image, and it’s crystal now. But all you see’s a dead guy riding in a car.”

She picked up the hard copy he’d printed out for her, studied Mills. “Go through the discs, following this segment. I want you to freeze and enhance every car, van, scooter, and fucking jet bike that came through that level from this point until the area was blocked off.”

“You want every vehicle that crossed eastbound on the GW on level two for over an hour?”

She shot him a cool look. “That was my order, Detective. Do you have a problem understanding it?”

“No. No, sir.” But he allowed himself one weighty sigh.

She went to her ’link, contacted Dr. Mira’s office, and set up a conference for the next day with the department’s top profiler. After a moment’s hesitation, she put through a transmission to her commander.

“Sir, I’ve requested that Captain Feeney and Detective McNab assist in the electronics work as regards my current case.”

“You’re clea