including his marriage and a close relationship with his daughter. Maybe even his soul…
He didn’t know what it was going to take to make his world right again. Lee felt himself being shaken again and opened his eyes. Karen was standing over him, dressed in a clingy black dress that came to mid-calf, her breasts tantalizing mounds that jiggled slightly when she moved. Her blond hair was twisted and pinned high on the back of her head, exposing her long, slender neck. There was no trace of the fetching tease who had just seduced him.
“You’ve got two minutes,” Karen said firmly.
Lee heaved himself up to the side of her bed, a little let down by her lack of tenderness. In bed Karen Sorano was everything he wanted, but beyond that, he didn’t have a clue about how they might fit into each other’s lives.
Lee was dressed and putting on his coat when his cell phone beeped. Karen was standing by the open apartment door with keys in hand.
“Yeah,” he answered, walking past her into the hallway.
“Lieutenant, this is Dave Portland from the forensic lab.”
Lee hazarded a glance at Karen as they boarded the elevator. She was paying no attention to the call. “Yeah, Dave…”
“I take it you don’t want to wait for the official report.”
“That’s right. What’s the story?”
“We know that your perps were using Glock semiautomatics too, so it was almost an even playing field.”
“And?”
“Well, we’ve narrowed the search to guns at the scene. We figure there were four. We’ve compared casings to see which ones match police department issue. We’re pretty sure we have the bullet that hit the civilian, but it’s pretty beat up. The lab wants to do one or two other tests.”
“Can you give me anything?” Lee asked.
“Based on what we see so far, the bullet in question is probably one of ours.”
There was no jump in his heartbeat. Lee was numb. Bewildered. “ Probably. Any chance—?”
“We ran everything twice, Lieutenant, just to make sure.”
Lee clenched his jaw. “Right. Listen, I appreciate the call.”
“Sure thing.”
He put the phone away and stared at the floor indicator over the elevator door.
“Are you okay?”
Lee shifted his gaze to Karen’s face. He wanted to be able to tell her. He wanted someone to listen and understand. But he couldn’t take the chance. And that’s not what he got from Karen anyway.
“I’m fine,” Lee finally responded.
“You know, if you have to leave…”
“I can drop you off. But I think I’ll pass on dinner.”
Karen nodded, accepting his sudden reversal of plans without question. “Maybe it’s just as well.”
He watched her artfully pull loose some of the hair from her twisted hairdo into tendrils around her neck and ears, her attention diverted to the evening ahead.
“Maybe it is.”
Barbara drove around the block twice before she finally slipped into a parking space and turned off the engine. She sat staring out at the street, watching who came and went.
It seemed a perfectly normal residential block off White Plains Road in the Bronx, made up of elderly Italians and Jews, middle-aged couples who couldn’t afford the suburbs, and genXers who weren’t paranoid about who they lived next to. This neighborhood was way out of her jurisdiction, and Barbara was always careful never to use the same route twice when she came here. She knew she was playing a dangerous game, but she knew how to take care of herself.
It was getting cold in the car. “Come on, come on,” she muttered. She checked the time. She would wait another five minutes and no more.
She squinted again at her watch. “Fuck,” she said under her breath.
When she looked up again, a familiar tall figure was casually approaching the building to her left. She watched for some sort of signal. He glanced around and, with an inclination of his head in her direction, quickly stepped into the lobby of the building. Barbara got out of her car, locked it, and
He didn’t know what it was going to take to make his world right again. Lee felt himself being shaken again and opened his eyes. Karen was standing over him, dressed in a clingy black dress that came to mid-calf, her breasts tantalizing mounds that jiggled slightly when she moved. Her blond hair was twisted and pinned high on the back of her head, exposing her long, slender neck. There was no trace of the fetching tease who had just seduced him.
“You’ve got two minutes,” Karen said firmly.
Lee heaved himself up to the side of her bed, a little let down by her lack of tenderness. In bed Karen Sorano was everything he wanted, but beyond that, he didn’t have a clue about how they might fit into each other’s lives.
Lee was dressed and putting on his coat when his cell phone beeped. Karen was standing by the open apartment door with keys in hand.
“Yeah,” he answered, walking past her into the hallway.
“Lieutenant, this is Dave Portland from the forensic lab.”
Lee hazarded a glance at Karen as they boarded the elevator. She was paying no attention to the call. “Yeah, Dave…”
“I take it you don’t want to wait for the official report.”
“That’s right. What’s the story?”
“We know that your perps were using Glock semiautomatics too, so it was almost an even playing field.”
“And?”
“Well, we’ve narrowed the search to guns at the scene. We figure there were four. We’ve compared casings to see which ones match police department issue. We’re pretty sure we have the bullet that hit the civilian, but it’s pretty beat up. The lab wants to do one or two other tests.”
“Can you give me anything?” Lee asked.
“Based on what we see so far, the bullet in question is probably one of ours.”
There was no jump in his heartbeat. Lee was numb. Bewildered. “ Probably. Any chance—?”
“We ran everything twice, Lieutenant, just to make sure.”
Lee clenched his jaw. “Right. Listen, I appreciate the call.”
“Sure thing.”
He put the phone away and stared at the floor indicator over the elevator door.
“Are you okay?”
Lee shifted his gaze to Karen’s face. He wanted to be able to tell her. He wanted someone to listen and understand. But he couldn’t take the chance. And that’s not what he got from Karen anyway.
“I’m fine,” Lee finally responded.
“You know, if you have to leave…”
“I can drop you off. But I think I’ll pass on dinner.”
Karen nodded, accepting his sudden reversal of plans without question. “Maybe it’s just as well.”
He watched her artfully pull loose some of the hair from her twisted hairdo into tendrils around her neck and ears, her attention diverted to the evening ahead.
“Maybe it is.”
Barbara drove around the block twice before she finally slipped into a parking space and turned off the engine. She sat staring out at the street, watching who came and went.
It seemed a perfectly normal residential block off White Plains Road in the Bronx, made up of elderly Italians and Jews, middle-aged couples who couldn’t afford the suburbs, and genXers who weren’t paranoid about who they lived next to. This neighborhood was way out of her jurisdiction, and Barbara was always careful never to use the same route twice when she came here. She knew she was playing a dangerous game, but she knew how to take care of herself.
It was getting cold in the car. “Come on, come on,” she muttered. She checked the time. She would wait another five minutes and no more.
She squinted again at her watch. “Fuck,” she said under her breath.
When she looked up again, a familiar tall figure was casually approaching the building to her left. She watched for some sort of signal. He glanced around and, with an inclination of his head in her direction, quickly stepped into the lobby of the building. Barbara got out of her car, locked it, and
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