Justice in the Shadows by Radclyffe Read Free Book Online

“Uh…I know you met during the serial rape case. I know that you saved her life.” A beat passed while he visibly regrouped. “And I suspect that you’re lovers.”
    “Why?” Rebecca’s tone was laser-sharp.
    “You haven’t denied a personal relationship, and every time her name comes up, you become defensive. No…not defensive. Protective.” He smiled. “Which is what you do, after all, isn’t it, Sergeant?”
    “That’s the job description.”
    “Does she mind what you do?”
    “Her name does not belong in your report. If you want me to come back for another session, you had best see that it isn’t.” And you want me to come back, don’t you? You want something from me.
    “You have my word.” He leaned forward. “Is she bothered by your job?”
    “We’re not going to discuss Catherine Rawlings.” Rebecca glanced at her watch. “And it’s time for me to go.”
    “We have another minute or two. Would you quit if she asked you to? Theoretically, of course.”
    “What difference does that make, theoretically?”
    “It says a lot about you.”
    Rebecca stood and pointed to the gold shield exposed on the flap of the leather badge case which protruded from her breast pocket. “That says all you need to know about me.”
    “I don’t agree, Sergeant,” he rejoined softly.
    “Your prerogative.”
    As Rebecca reached for the door, she heard the quiet words from behind her. “You didn’t answer my question.”
    She turned the knob, pushed the door open, and stepped out into the hall. She didn’t want him to see her face, because she was afraid he’d realize that she didn’t know the answer.

CHAPTER EIGHT
    Rebecca walked directly from Whitaker’s office to the vice squad division. As she had come to expect, even though it daily continued to shock her, Watts was already at his desk. “Anything new?”
    “The computer cops want us to come over.”
    Twenty minutes later, they were buzzed into Sloan’s building. Jason, Sloan, and, to Rebecca’s surprise, Mitchell as well, were all seated at computer stations, cups of coffee on the counters beside them.
    Glancing at Sloan, Rebecca raised an eyebrow. “How are things at the hospital?”
    Despite the creases of fatigue in her forehead and the shadows marring her cheeks, Sloan’s eyes were sparkling. “Much better. Thanks.”
    “Glad to hear it. So, what’s up?”
    “Jason,” Sloan said, “why don’t you bring them up to speed.”
    “Yesterday afternoon,” Jason explained, “I made a list of all the e-mail addresses of people who used to chat with LongJohnXXX on a regular basis, figuring that some of them must be subscribers to the porn videos. Unfortunately, the list is long, and there’s no way of knowing at this point how many of the individuals are locals. There’s also no way to know if they really have anything at all to do with the porn ring.”
    “But?” Rebecca could hear the excitement in his voice.
    “But once I get names and addresses, it shouldn’t be that difficult to find out other things about these guys. I can put together profiles, and we can do the same thing we did with Long John. Maybe we’ll get another hit.”
    Rebecca looked skeptical. “It’s a long shot.”
    “It’s not like we have a lot else going on right now,” Jason responded, looking not the least bit deterred. “Once we have some probables, I thought Catherine might look at them. She can…sense things. She’s a great profiler.”
    Rebecca opened her mouth to say no, and clamped her jaws tight instead. She rubbed the bridge of her nose where a headache was forming. There seemed to be no way at all that she could keep Catherine away from the investigation. “Yeah. That’s a good idea.”
    “Anything new at the cop shop?” Sloan inquired.
    “Let’s go back to the conference room for a briefing,” Rebecca suggested. “I’ve got some ideas.”
    Once they were all settled around the table, Rebecca studied her team, knowing that she had