Polly Iyer - Diana Racine 03 - Backlash by Polly Iyer Read Free Book Online Page A

horrible things in this line of work ― abusive parents, dead kids, heinous murders.”
    Lucier leveled those gold-flecked eyes at her, and her heart fluttered like a schoolgirl’s, especially when he confided his deepest thoughts, which wasn’t often.
    “Nothing much bothers Chenault. He likes the streets, and the meaner the better. Violence, the next conquest, whether police business or a woman, is what gets him off. I doubt he ever second-guessed himself, no matter the result. Don’t get me wrong. He’s a good cop because he’s fearless, and he has his partner’s back.”
    “How well do you know him?”
    “We were at the academy together, so I know him well. Denny regarded everything as a competition, and I almost always beat him out ― on the shooting range, in written tests, and in physical fitness. I’m not saying this to brag but to explain why we could never be friends.
    “He rationalizes his relationships to the wives by saying a happy woman wouldn’t cheat on her husband in the first place. He even made a pass at my wife at one of the police functions.” Lucier snorted. “Told her he liked ethnic variety .”
    Lucier rarely talked about his dead wife and kids, and Diana never forced the conversation. Eight years passed between the death of his family and his life with her. He even wore his wedding ring those eight years until one night he took it off in front of her. His family memories were important, and she’d told him to keep them in his heart always. She meant it.
    “Chenault hit on your wife when you were nearby?”
    Lucier nodded. “She’d been to the ladies room, and he caught her in the lobby.”
    He stopped.
    Diana imagined his memories brought him back to that night.
    “Nikki was as straight as they come. Churchgoer, helped out at the children’s shelter, always there for friends. She was horrified and told me immediately. Unfortunately, Chenault’s wife was coming out of the bathroom too. She overheard her husband’s pitch. She must have been living in a vacuum not to know his reputation, because she was as shocked as Nikki.”
    “They say the wife is the last to know,” Diana said. “What did you do?”
    “I confronted him. Not then. I didn’t want to embarrass his wife or mine any more than they had been. The next day I surprised him at his district. Told him if he ever hit on my wife again, he’d have to deal with me. If someone had killed Chenault eight years ago, I’d be first on the suspect list, because a few cops overheard the threat. I didn’t care. I said what I meant.”
    “Now you find out that gender is no barrier for him. A man for all seasons.”
    “If so, I’m surprised. One comely young TV reporter is practically on his payroll. She writes him up as if he were Batman and Superman rolled into one.”
    “What does this guy have that makes women cheat on their husbands?”
    “He’s good looking, if you like the type. I’ve heard a few cops call him pretty. A friend of my wife’s, who barely escaped his lure, said he made women feel as if they were the only one in the room. I’m sure you’ve met men like that.”
    Diana’s guffaw turned heads in the restaurant. She lowered her voice. “I spent years in show business, darling. Most of the so-called heartthrobs I’ve met over the years tended to be so full of themselves I couldn’t take them seriously.”
    Lucier smiled, exposing his overlapping front tooth, which she adored.
    “I love you,” he said. “If I’m moody when we’re together, kick me in the ass.”
    “It’ll be my pleasure.” She cut into her coq au vin , savored the rich flavor. “You think Chenault killed Keys?”
    “Possible, if they were lovers and Moran threatened to out him.”
    “Don’t forget the guy with the bullet hole in his forehead. Those silver eyes.” Diana shivered. “He’s part of the equation.”
    “Mathieu Soulé. Maybe he and Moran were lovers.”
    “No way. Keys was a classy guy. A gangbanger