LITMIR.BIZ

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after dropping her bomb-shell, Meghan Patterson hadn’t wasted any time ushering them out of the apartment. Gabe decided he’d dig around a little and see what he could discover about the sister. Despite Meghan’s hostility, the fact remained that they’d probably need to talk to her nephew again. Discovering the identity of the unknown man with D’Brusco just might be the key to blowing this case wide open. And the instant he had an inkling of who the guy could be, Gabe would be back on the woman’s doorstep. He said as much to Cal.

      His partner never took his eyes off the traffic. “We’ll have to hope she changes her mind about letting her nephew cooperate.”

      “She’ll change her mind.”

      Cal’s brows rose at the certainty in Gabe’s voice. “I don’t know. She seemed pretty sure.”

      Reaching into his pocket, Gabe withdrew a package of gum and unwrapped a piece. He placed it in his mouth and chewed. It was a damn poor substitute for the smoke he craved, but it annoyed the hell out of Cal. That was powerful incentive. “I can be very persuasive.”

      Giving a hoot at that, Madison risked a glance at his partner. “You? Somehow I don’t think the intimidation tactics you find so effective on street scum are going to be appropriate in her case. To handle a classy lady like that requires a certain finesse.”

      Just for the irritation value, Gabe cracked his gum loudly. “I’ve got finesse.”

      Cal was chortling now. “Boy, do you. I don’t know what I was worried about. If the time comes, we’ll just count on you to change her mind with your usual suave personality.”

      Gabe was undisturbed by his partner’s gibes. “Don’t discount my hidden charms.”

      “Yeah, your charms are well hidden, all right.”

      “Keep being mean to me and I’ll tell Becky. She loves me. She’d kick your butt if she could hear you now.” Becky and Cal had married the previous year, and Gabe returned the woman’s fondness tenfold. She was upfront and plain-spoken, traits damn uncommon in the females of his experience.

      A sudden thought occurred. “Speaking of your better half, why don’t you give her a call when we get back to our desks. I was thinking of going out for a steak tonight. We could go together. My treat. I owe you for the last time you had me over. Or maybe for the last dozen times,” he mused. “I lose count.”

      “Uh…” Cal cleared his throat. “I don’t think so. Not tonight.” He turned the car into the district parking lot and started cruising for a space.

      Gabe looked out the window and spotted an empty slot. “There’s a place. Up on your left.” He shifted seamlessly back to the original conversation. “C’mon, think about it. How long has it been since Becky let you eat red meat? I could persuade her to let you order a steak. She’s putty in my hands.”

      A dull flush had risen in his partner’s face. He took even greater care than usual to park the car and switch off the ignition. “Actually, we have special plans tonight.”

      Gabe was perceptive enough to realize the plans weren’t the sort his partner would want him included in. “Yeah, okay. Why don’t you go on home and let me finish up the paperwork for today?”

      “No, that’s all right. Becky isn’t expecting me until later, anyway.”

      The two men got out of the car and walked toward the building. Gabe threw a companionable arm around Cal’s shoulders. “The trick to romancing a woman is to do the unexpected once in a while. Now you go on home and surprise Becky. Better yet, stop for some flowers and wine first.”

      “Well…” Cal’s hesitation was minuscule. “Okay. I’ll owe you one.”

      Gabe clapped him on the back. “Damn right you will. Oh, and give Becky a big kiss for me when you see her, would you? On the mouth.”

      Cal shrugged off Gabe’s arm and headed for his car. “You’re depraved, Connally.”

      “Yeah, I am. Forget it. I’ll give it to her myself the next time I see her.” He chuckled at the obscene gesture Cal made and entered the building.

      Since it was time for a shift change, the halls of the Area One Detectives’ Division were more chaotic than normal. Winding through the maze of desks and cubicles, Gabe exchanged greetings and one-liners with his co-workers and then dropped into the chair in front of his battered metal desk. Before getting to work, he shrugged out of his coat, pulled the loosened tie from around his neck, wadded it up and jammed it in the pocket of his sports jacket. Then he slung the jacket over the back of his chair, undid another shirt button and unfastened the cuffs, rolling the sleeves to his elbows.

      “Connally, you savage. You’re a little late to be the featured matinee,” Detective Lydia Fredericks observed from her desk across the aisle. She raised her voice. “Hey, Connally’s doing a striptease over here. Could we have a show of appreciation?” There was a smattering of applause, and a wolf whistle from Lydia’s partner, Marcy Rogers. Coins rained on Gabe’s desk, courtesy of the detectives in the vicinity.

      “Thank you, thank you. You’ve been a wonderful audience.” He stood and did a quick shimmy, eliciting a heart-felt moan from Lydia and some more loose change. He scooped up the coins, frowning over the lone penny in the group. “Hey, who’s the cheapskate? Fiskes?”

      Detective Mark Fiskes grinned. “What can I say? You’re a cheap thrill, Connally.”

      “Cheap, hell.” Gabe slipped the money in his pants pocket. “I just made enough to drink all night. I’m thinking about taking a second j—” The rest of the sentence went unuttered, as the sudden studiousness of the other detectives tipped him off. He turned around, and his tone went abruptly professional.

      “Afternoon, Lieutenant.”

      “Connally.” The man nodded at a coin beside the desk that had been missed. “Taking up a collection?”

      It wasn’t uncommon for officers faced with Lieutenant Robert Burney’s stern ebony mask to feel sudden, urgent needs to be elsewhere. Fast. But Gabe couldn’t pass up the chance for a little retribution.

      “You caught me, sir. I was just collecting my daily protection money from the others.”

      “Protection money.”

      Gabe propped his hips on his desk, crossed his arms over his chest and strove to make his tone earnest. “Yessir. The rest of the guys pay me to defend them from Detective Fredericks’s compulsive stalking.” Several of the men in the vicinity snickered, and Lydia invited Gabe to take a road trip to hell. He shook his head sadly. “She’s getting bolder and bolder, sir. She follows us everywhere, making all kinds of lewd proposals. The truth is, the other guys are getting scared. I’m the only one brave enough to stand up to her.” He turned to Lydia. “This is the last time I’m going to say it, Fredericks. Get help, for godsakes. You’re getting pathetic.” He dodged the pencil she threw at him, amidst guffaws from the surrounding detectives.

      Burney’s expression didn’t change by as much as a flicker. “I’d like to see you in my office, Connally.”

      Gabe pushed away from his desk and followed in his superior’s wake. When they reached the small office, he closed the door behind him and settled into a chair in front of the lieutenant’s desk. Burney lost no time getting down to business.

      “You and Madison make any progress today on D’Brusco?”

      “Some.” Gabe stretched his legs out before him and crossed one battered shoe over the other. “Best lead we got was from a five-year-old kid who was in the alley when Lenny took off.” He filled the man in on their visit to Meghan Patterson’s apartment.

      The lieutenant leaned forward, interested. “Any chance you got a decent description of the second guy?”

      “Well, the kid described Lenny pretty well, so he might be useful if we get a lead on the other’s identity. Said the guy was thin,

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