They sat in the back of the church through the Mass. Eames kept glancing at her partner. He was focused on Father Sean. His familiarity with the Mass enabled him to participate while his mind read and interpreted every movement the priest made, every word he spoke.
When the Mass ended, Goren sat back down in the pew, watching the parishioners file from the church. Eames sat beside him and looked at him, "So, what was the point of coming to Mass?"
"I wanted to watch Father Sean."
"And did you find out anything?"
He nodded. "I did, but it was only what I expected to find. He's troubled. Something is weighing heavily on the good father."
"Deakins said to lay off him, remember? You have to have something more concrete, Bobby."
"We're not going to bother him."
"Our just being here is going to bother him."
He shrugged noncommittally. "I just want to say hi," he said quietly.
When the last churchgoers had passed them, he got up from the pew and headed out of the building. Eames followed him. On the steps of the church, Father Sean was greeting the last of his parishioners. He looked up at Goren and the color drained from his face. The big detective pretended not to notice. He shook the priest's hand enthusiastically. "Great homily, Father!"
"Th-thank you, Detective. What brings you back? Do you have more questions for me?"
"Not today, Father Sean," Goren said. "We just came for the Mass. Have a good day."
Father Sean watched the two detectives descend the steps to the street. He didn't like this, not at all. He knew the big detective was suspicious and he wasn't going to go away anytime soon…not unless he had answers. He walked slowly back into the church.
In the passenger seat of the car, Goren studied the church. Eames looked at him as she put the keys in the ignition. She looked at the church, then back at her partner. "What?"
He shook his head. "Let's get back to the squad."
"What's going through that head of yours, Goren?"
He half-smiled. "About a hundred different things, Eames, but not a damn one of them is doing me any good."
She started the car, shaking her head. She didn't doubt a word he said. His mind never rested. Pulling away from the curb, she said, "What are you thinking about Father Sean?"
His closed fist rested against his mouth as he looked out the passenger window. "I think…Father Sean is going to be a key player in our investigation. He's troubled, and it's more than just the body he found on his doorstep." He tapped his fist against his knee. "Did you see his reaction when he saw us?"
She nodded. "He turned white as a sheet."
"It wasn't because he thought we were going to ask him more questions about something he knows nothing about. He feels…guilty about something."
"Murder, maybe?"
He shook his head. "No. Well, not about a murder he committed, anyway. This is something…more."
"What makes you say that?"
"He doesn't act guilty, not for something he did. This is different. It's a different form of guilt."
"So what's our next step?"
"We see what we can find out about Father Sean."
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Three hours on the computer searching database after database and all he had to show for it was a headache. He leaned back and rubbed his forehead. "Find anything?"
"No."
"Did you really think you would?"
"No."
She leaned forward and rested her chin on her hand. "Cheer up, Bobby. I find it reassuring to find a squeaky clean priest after all the crap that's been going on in the media."
He got up and shook his head. "I wasn't looking for a rap sheet or anything."
"What were you looking for?"
He was restless, fidgety, and he didn't know why. "I don't know, Eames. Ok? I don't know what I'm looking for. I'll know it when I find it, but until then, I don't know."
She got up and walked around the desks. "It's getting late. Let's call it a day."
It was Sunday night and the squad was mostly empty. There wasn't much else he was going to find tonight…or tomorrow…or any time soon she was afraid. He slammed his portfolio closed. Her hand came to rest on top of his and he looked at it for a minute. So small…delicate…but strong…just like she was. He looked at her. "Calm down," she said softly, so that only he could hear her. "I know this is hard for you, not finding any evidence you can sink your teeth into. But getting mad isn't going to make something appear out of nowhere. You need to take comfort from the fact that you've been over all this enough times to know you haven't missed anything. Get over it, Goren. Now let's get out of here."
She was right. "Sorry," he muttered.
"Don't apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. Just come on."
He picked up his portfolio and the stack of files and followed her to the elevators.