Vendetta in Death (In Death 49)

Eve pulled out her restraints. “Not my call to make,” she said as she clamped them on the unconscious Darla’s wrists. “But oh yeah. Barking.”

“Please, please, please.” Brinkman wept, shuddered. “Please don’t let her hurt me anymore.”

“You’re safe now. You’re safe. Okay if I hunt up a blanket for him, Lieutenant?” Trueheart asked. “He’s in shock.”

“Yeah. Then you and Baxter can take her in, book her. I’ll be in when we’re done here.”

Baxter angled his head as he studied Darla. “It’s like a girl superhero costume. A little classic Wonder Woman, a little Dark Angel.”

“A touch of Rose and Thorn.”

“Yeah.” Baxter nodded at Roarke. “Yeah, her, too.”

“MTs on the way,” Peabody said. “The nurse is coming. That’s a good call, Dallas. Eloise is going to need her.”

When Darla’s eyelids fluttered, Eve crouched down. “You drugged your own grandmother.”

“Grand? Grand?” She started to struggle. “No, no, no, I’m not finished!”

“Yeah, you are. You have the right to remain silent.”

She didn’t take that right as Eve read off the Revised Miranda, but continued to rage, to weep in frustration, to curse.

“Maybe give them a hand with her, McNab.”

He turned from studying the e-toys, actually looked stricken.

“Help them get her in the vehicle. You can come back and play.”

“On it.” He pranced toward the stairs.

Feeney studied the workstations as well, rubbed his hands together. “Let’s get this stuff logged, Callendar, and start having some fun.”

“All over and back, Cap.”

Eve called for sweepers while Peabody helped a blanket-wrapped Brinkman off the floor and to a sofa. “You got him, Peabody?”

“Yeah. He’ll be all right. You’ll be all right, Mr. Brinkman.”

“She hurt me. She hurt me. I don’t understand.”

“I’ll go up, wait for the sweepers and the bus.”

“I’m with you, Lieutenant.”

Eve glanced at Roarke as she started upstairs. “You know you want to play with those e’s.”

“I do, and I will. But for now …”

“How did you take out that droid?”

“Ah. I did a quick analysis of the one upstairs. Brilliant work really. A pity. In any case, I was able to program a shutdown. It would’ve been a shame for you to destroy it.”

“Wouldn’t have hurt my feelings.”

He skimmed a hand over her hair. “You’ve a long night ahead.”

“But a better one than the last couple, and no trip to the morgue in the morning.”