Justice in the Shadows by Radclyffe Read Free Book Online Page A

to make a decision now as to how much she would share. Two people present were civilians, one was just a rookie cop, and what she had to say was beyond sensitive. But all of them were willing to walk on a high wire without a net in the name of justice. She owed them her trust.
    “Sandy gave me a lead last night. It’s not much, but she thinks she might have seen the guy in the porn video at this sex club called Ziggies.”
    “Whoa, that’s choice,” Watts exclaimed. “That place is supposed to be mobbed up.”
    “Can Sandy work the place?” Sloan asked immediately. “It would be good to have someone on the inside there.”
    Mitchell’s face turned white. “You want her to turn tricks in there for information? Why don’t you just shoot her instead? At least that would be quick and painless.”
    Sloan jerked around in her seat to stare at Mitchell, shocked by the ourburst.
    “Officer, you’re out of line,” Rebecca shot out, watching Mitchell carefully. The young officer stared straight ahead, her back ramrod stiff, her neck flushed. She was controlling her anger, but just barely. “Unfortunately, I think Sandy’s too well-known there. If she starts hanging out for no good reason, especially if she’s talking around, someone will notice.”
    “What you need is someone undercover,” Jason observed mildly. “I agree that Sandy is a good source, but she’s at risk if she becomes too visible. You need someone who’s part of the club life.”
    Watts spoke up. “Maybe we can put a female cop in Ziggies.”
    “To do what?” Jason asked pointedly. “Dance topless? I think most of your detectives would consider that a little beyond the call.”
    Sloan eyed Jason. “Do you have something in mind Jason?”
    “I know someone who can get inside.” Jason smiled at Sloan.
    Of course you do, Sloan thought. Jesus, Sarah is going to kill us.
    Rebecca shook her head. “I can’t bring in another civilian. And I don’t want someone on the team I don’t know.”
    “It’s not what you think,” Jason said.
    “You want to explain?”
    “Let me set something up for later,” he said, “and if you’re not happy with it, we’ll forget the idea.”
    “Fine. At this point, I’ll consider any option.” Rebecca looked directly at Sloan. “We need to dig out the leak within the department. That’s going to be on you.”
    Sloan’s violet eyes flashed. This was the green light she’d been waiting for. “I need a list of everyone you can think of who might have known about the operation last weekend. Jason and I will need to trace financial records, employment histories, educational background, previous postings—anything that might tie into Zamora or point to some other criminal activity.”
    “I know.” Rebecca made her decison. “For starters, there’s Capt. John Henry, commander of the Vice unit. Teri Cummings is the civilian clerk, and she probably handled the paperwork for the warrant. At this stage, I’m unaware of anyone else in the police department who might have known about it directly.”
    “Are you suspicious of either one?” Jason’s question was placed mildly, but he knew by its very nature it was inflammatory.
    “I wouldn’t have been suspicious of Henry if I hadn’t learned that he had previously been involved in shutting down the investigation into the murder of two cops. If he wasn’t part of the cover-up, he was at least aware of it and let it happen.” Her tone was bitter. “So that puts him high on the list. Cummings I don’t know at all, but it’s hard to believe it would be her.”
    “Is there anyone who has access to your field reports or your files or anything that might have had information about what we were doing?” Sloan inquired.
    Rebecca started to shake her head no, and then stopped abruptly. “Goddamn it. I was…injured…earlier this year and out of commission for a while. In order to be reinstated, I had to see the department shrink. He could have picked up