Chapter 45

Bobby was very quiet when he arrived at her apartment to give her a ride. Alex immediately felt guilty about the night before. "I'm sorry, Bobby," she said with a sigh.

"It's… it's okay. You know…" He navigated the mustang through the city streets, easily finding the quickest path through lane changes and back alleys and a short stint on the freeway.

"It's not okay. Joe's been dead a long time, and I should never put you in a position where you're in competition with him. We had something special, me and Joe, but it's gone now. I hurt you last night, and I'm sorry for it."

He listened carefully to her words and gave her a quiet nod. "This isn't going to be easy." The death of a fellow officer was never easy, but given what had happened to Joe and the personal connection he had with the current victim, it was bound to be even harder on them both.

"I know that."

"I… I'm here for you, Alex. You know?"

She was quiet and gave him a smile and a nod. Alex stretched out her fingers and touched his cheek. "You shaved. I kind of liked that beard."

Bobby allowed himself a smile. "Maybe I'll let it grow out again." He glanced her way, and she could see the affection in his eyes.

Detective Copa said he saw the man fire the second shot, that he got off three rounds, but missed, and the guy escaped on foot. He told them about the woman they had been protecting, Corinne Williams. They brought her in to 1PP for an interview.

"Shoot, cops can't even protect themselves. How they gonna protect me?" she cried.

"One of the detectives took a bathroom break," Bobby said. "Did he use yours?"

"I always let them use my bathroom, offer water. No one asked last night." Bobby blinked and then looked over at his partner. That didn't mesh with Copa's story.

Detective Daniels brought them up to speed on the 86ers, the primary suspects in the case.

"Quinn's murder… a message to Corinne Williams?" Alex postulated.

"They'd have gone after her next if Copa hadn't shown up," Daniels said. He told them there was an APB out on all of them.

Ross added, "200 detectives flooding the zone…We'll find him."

Ballistics was the next stop, then the morgue. Alex was on her game all day, but when they stood over Quinn's body, Alex started to give a little. The two detectives figured the second bullet was meant to send a message.

Someone had to interview Kevin's wife. Alex seemed the logical one to do so, since they'd once been close. They sat on the couch together, sipping tea. "Uh… ahem…Any strange calls recently? Any late night drive-bys?" Alex asked, her face full of apology.

"No," Theresa said sadly.

"Had Kevin gotten any threats?"

"If he did, he wouldn't share it with me." She laughed nervously as the tears filled her eyes again. "Well, you know that." She gave Alex a knowing look.

Alex frowned at the reference to her own pain. "Yes, I do," she admitted.

"I'm sorry," the woman said.

"No. It's okay, Theresa."

"No, it's not," she said. "When Joe died…" She tried to swallow the tears so she could continue speaking. "I remember telling you how sorry I was…if there was anything I could do…when inside, I was thinking…'Thank God it wasn't Kevin.' That's the reason I haven't kept in touch. I can never figure out what to say."

Alex's face reddened as her own tears came to the surface. She reached out and grasped Theresa's hand. She offered the woman a smile and a nod of understanding.

Bobby was in the next room with Copa. "Why didn't I use the witness's bathroom?" he said. "She hates cops."

"Yeah," Bobby agreed. "I got that from her."

"I used the chicken joint one block up. You questioning why I wasn't in the car with Kevin when this went down?"

"No," Bobby said, trying to counter the man's defensive tone. "I'm wondering if the killer waited until he saw you take off?"

"Could be." Copa talked about the 86ers, and Bobby took notes. He as much as said Sang was the guilty one.

"But if he's the leader, why wouldn't he send someone else to do the shootings?"

It was raining as the patrol car pulled up. Bobby and Alex had to lead the man through the gauntlet and into 1PP for questioning. He was accused of killing a cop. He was the most hated man in the city. Two long lines of uniformed officers formed an aisleway for them to bring him in. The man endured jeers and taunts all the way from the car to the door. He would be greeted with more glares and stares as he went through the booking process.

It took Copa an inordinate amount of time to ID the man. In front of Ross and the Chief of D's, he eventually picked the one they expected, but Bobby noticed how he tilted his head and looked out of the corner of his eye to do it. The room cleared, and just before Copa left, Bobby called softly, "Patrick, can I talk to you a second? Just a couple of questions…"

"We got the guy," Copa said.

"Yeah… just some loose ends," Bobby explained, "you know… about your bathroom break."

"Again?" Copa was smiling, now. He thought Goren was being ridiculous. "Every time I see you, you ask me where I took a leak."

"Yeah, I know," Bobby said with a good-natured smile. "It's just that you said you took the break at a chicken joint on Hillside." Copa quietly closed the door, staring at Goren all the while. Bobby shook his head. "That place was closed Wednesday night. You know… the health department."

"You checking up on me?" There was that defensive tone again.

"I don't know. Look. We both know guys get off. You know, a lawyer finds an inconsistency in the case, and… it falls apart."

Copa accepted his explanation. Calmly, he walked forward and gave Bobby a nod. "Okay. I wasn't at the chicken place. I was in a car… up the block… with Rita."

"Uh, Rita? That's a girlfriend?"

"She's a buff. Likes cops. She texted me. Asked where I was. I gave her my location."

Bobby nodded as he listened. It sounded like the truth, finally. He tried to ignore the anger that churned up as he listened to the story of how Copa neglected his partner in favor of a quickie. "Okay. So you were with her when Quinn got shot."

Copa's conscience got to him. He sighed and looked away. He knew as well as Bobby that if he'd stayed with his partner, the man might still be alive. "I was walking back from her car when I heard the shots a little ways away."

Bobby stepped away and raised his right hand to scratch the hair at the back of his head. He walked all the way to the two way on the other side of the room. Bobby flattened his left hand over his tie. "Tell me what my tie clip looks like," he called out, turning back in Copa's direction.

"What?"

"You're a cop, right? You pay attention to details. Describe it." Copa was quiet. "It's a lot brighter in this room than it was at 2 a.m. on that block." Bobby walked closer.

"I wasn't looking at you like you're a suspect," Copa said.

Bobby stood in front of the man and removed his hand. "Well, describe it now."

Again, Copa turned sideways and cocked his head a little.

"Yeah, right there," Bobby said, pointing his finger. "You have problems seeing straight on. You gotta turn to the side, right? You have to look with your peripheral. I saw you do it when you ID'd Sang, and you did it again just now."

"Where the hell do you get off-?!"

"Blind spot… right in your central vision," Bobby continued. "That could be early signs of macular degeneration, I don't know if—"

"My partner was killed, and you're trying to discredit me?!" Copa was furious.

Bobby's anger got the better of him, too. "I'm not gonna put an innocent kid in prison!"

"You think Sang, the head of one of the most violent gangs in the city, is an innocent kid?"

"Yeah. Well, maybe we should wait to put him in prison when we actually catch him for doing something!" Bobby was shouting at the detective now. "Now we both know you did not see who shot Quinn!"

"Screw you!" Copa shouted back. He walked to the door and stormed out and down the hall.

Alex saw the man's anger, and wondered what Bobby had said.

The Chief of D's was not happy. He called Goren onto the carpet in Ross' office. As his partner, Alex was along for the ride, too.

Bobby didn't stop himself from smarting off at Moran, and Alex threw him that look he'd seen so many times. God, Bobby, what the hell?!

Surprisingly, Ross came to Goren's defense. "If the ID's no good, we have no evidence linking Sang to the scene. The DA won't touch this," Ross said, as rational as ever.

Again, Bobby didn't stop his smart mouth. Moran tested Sang's alibi, and Bobby spouted, "Okay, well then, we should charge him based on a lie, I think…"

Moran's neck flushed red and he stared Goren down. "I think watch yourself, Detective," he warned. Moran turned back to Ross and gave him hell.

"Detective Goren is doing his job," the Captain said firmly.

"His job is to find Quinn's shooter!" cried the Chief of D's.

"And we intend to do that," Alex said, putting in her two cents.

Pissed, Moran clamped his mouth shut and walked to the Captain's door. His jaw jutted out as he spoke. "The funeral's tomorrow. Good luck explaining this to Theresa Quinn."

Alex frowned and pinched the bridge of her nose with her fingers as the door clicked shut.

Bobby gave Ross a look of respect, possibly for the first time. Ross ignored the sentiment. "I expect some progress after the funeral's over," he barked.

"Yessir," Bobby said and walked proudly back into the squad room. Alex released her hand and followed him out, wondering if he would ever learn how to deal with Moran.

Dinner conversation turned into an argument about truth and justice and the price of self-preservation. Alex had her boundaries, too, but she had politicked enough in her career that she was good at the game. Bobby was a slave to the truth, no matter what the consequences, and truthfully, she admired him for it, no matter how many migraines this trait had brought on.

"If he's innocent, then he's innocent, and I won't protect a liar, just because he has a badge!" Bobby cried. "I know what I know, and I'll tell the truth, and I don't care if it hurts him or you or me or anybody to do it. The world has enough lies already, don't you think?!"

Alex hung her head. There was no point in debating something like this with Bobby. He was the clear winner. She shook her head slowly and started to chuckle.

"What?" he demanded, though his tone of voice softened. She sniffed, and laughed some more. "What?" He asked again.

"I don't know how you managed to stay on the force for so long, Bobby. No, wait. I do. It's because you're the best."

He sat down again, and reached his hand across the table, offering it to her. "Ross backed me up… did you hear that?"

"Of course he did, Bobby. Because he knows you're right. He knows you're the best, too, Bobby."

A slow smile spread across his face. He'd been battling with Ross for a long time, now, and he couldn't believe he had the man's support.

Alex gave his hand a squeeze. "Moran was right, you know, about tomorrow. It's not going to be easy." She yawned then, and covered her mouth with her hand. "We'd better get some sleep."

Holding her in his arms was the highlight of his day. He hadn't been so close to her in a week, and when he tentatively placed a kiss against the soft skin of her neck, she curled into him with a sweet sigh. Bobby smiled and did it again.

Her lips were as soft as ever, and her hands were gentle as they caressed him. Their earlier argument was gone now, replaced by easy kisses and whispers of love.