Read Online Vile by Debra Webb - Free Book Online

choice. Nothing anyone says is going to change that.”
    Chet set his beer down with a plop. This was enough. “All right. You screwed up, Detective. You took your eyes off that bathroom door for a minute, and those two freaks got in. The chief could have been killed. You made a mistake. Two actually. You operated on emotion and you let yourself be distracted.” He shrugged casually no matter that his gut was clenched in a thousand knots. “Get over it.”
    She stared at him, her jaw slack with shock. “I only looked away for a few seconds. Chief Black burst in shouting like some television drama cop and I… looked away. Five, ten seconds tops.”
    Chet nodded. “You did what any other human would have done. I would have done it and Hayes would have done it.”
    Tears spilled past her lashes. “But you didn’t do it. Hayes didn’t do it. I did.”
    Chet fell to his knees next to her chair. “Baby, I wish I could make that awful feeling go away, but only time will do that.” She burrowed her face into his shoulder and sobbed. He put his arms around her and held on tight. “You are a damned good cop. Don’t let this one thing shake your confidence. If you do, you’ll second guess every decision you make from now on. Let it go, baby. Let it go.”
    She fisted her fingers in his shirt. “I can’t.” She lifted her face to his. “I was too cocky. I see that now. I’d never made a mistake like that and I thought I was above it.” She swiped at her nose with the back of her hand. “I was wrong, Chet. I’m not as good as I thought.”
    He took her face in his hands and made her look at him. “Don’t let him do this to you. Spears has already won too many rounds. Don’t let him win this one too. You’re stronger than that. The chief needs you backing her up. She’s counting on us now more than ever.”
    “I thought I was strong.”
    He smoothed the dampness away from her cheeks with the pads of his thumbs. “Show me what you’ve found on the little girl. I’m really worried about her.”
    As Lori brushed away the last of her tears, Chet drew his chair next to hers. Maybe if they focused on the case together, she would put last Friday’s event out of her mind for a while.
    “She’s about the same age as Chester, wouldn’t you say?” Chet offered.
    Lori nodded. “That’s what I’m thinking. The pediatrician who examined her estimated four years. But she’s so small.”
    “She is.” He picked up the photo of the child. “Did you notice how much she looks like the chief?”
    “The blond hair and the brown eyes.” Lori nodded. “Yeah, it’s a little creepy.” She studied Chet then. “Do you think Jess thought about that? I mean, they don’t share any facial features really but the coloring is so similar.”
    “I’m sure she considered that Spears had picked the little girl because she has blond hair and brown eyes. That has to be really freaking her out.” He grabbed his beer and downed a satisfying gulp. “It’s bad enough when an adult is missing or murdered, but it’s hell when it’s a kid.”
    Lori put her arms around his neck and pressed her forehead to his cheek. “I’m sorry. I’ve been feeling so sorry for myself I didn’t stop to think how this business with Chester must be hurting you.” She searched his eyes. “You know Sherry made a smart move, right?”
    He nodded, albeit reluctantly. “Yeah. I should have been the one to suggest the move. I was too busy being a cop to notice my own child was in danger.”
    “I see how it is.” Lori took his face in her hands and made him look her in the eye as he had done to her a moment ago. “Now who’s blaming himself for something he couldn’t possibly have foreseen?” She let him go, leaned back in her chair, and crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s okay for you to feel bad because you aren’t perfect but not me? Ha!”
    He held his hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay. We both need to cut ourselves some