CHAPTER TEN: PROCUREMENT

Las Vegas
7:30PM Monday evening

"What did you do?" Dreyfeus was hanging breathlessly to his every word. She wasn't exactly making a pass at him, but she was sitting closer than was strictly necessary, and the hand that rested on her lighter had twitched slightly to touch his six times already.

He'd been telling her about some of his most notorious cases. He told her how he'd found the real killer of AmberLeigh, how he'd solved the Dockerty murder, how he'd put Frank Adair in jail.

"I realised that someone was trying to… to gaslight me." Goren was cool in a dove grey silk suit with a white shirt and puce tie – Eames's favourite. He'd taken extra care with his appearance tonight. He had only one chance, and the importance of this meeting had him on edge. So far, things had worked out better than he'd hoped; he hadn't had to chase down the ADA and finesse a meeting with her… she'd called and suggested it shortly after he landed. It was his good fortune that, for such a women-hater, she had so little comprehension of how far a man would go to protect one.

So here they were, in a dark bar somewhere on the strip. She'd suggested meeting him at his hotel, but he'd declined, preferring more neutral ground. Besides, he couldn't risk Dreyfeus even coming near his room; he'd ordered a double, because he intended to get Eames out tonight.

"Who?"

"Well, it had to be – someone who knew me well. That meant either Gage or my brother, or maybe – Eames." He hoped Dreyfeus didn't hear him stutter over her name. "My brother was… dead, and Eames, well –" he injected a note of derision into the word, "Eames didn't have it in her, so… it had to be Gage."

Dreyfus shivered slightly. Goren knew she was trying to show a positive response to his chauvinistic rendition of the events of his and Eames's final cat-and-mouse with Wallace and Gage, but he pretended to misunderstand. "Cold?" he asked solicitously, gently tugging her flimsy shrug up around her shoulders. Dreyfeus thought of herself as demure and ladylike, and so he acted like he thought so too.

Not too long ago, it wouldn't have been an act. It took many years and many instances of letting himself be drawn in by blatant artifice (as long as it came in a helpless, soft-voiced package), to gain the insight that allowed him to stay impartial. Ironically, as now, he'd come upon that realisation in a five-month long dark night during which a true lady, his most explicit equal, was far away and inaccessible to him.

How he longed to be with her now! While awaiting his luggage at the airport, he'd actually concocted a complex scenario wherein he cancelled with Dreyfeus and managed to talk his way into lockup to see her. But he knew he couldn't do it. He had to convince the ADA that she could rely on him as an objective investigator, and to do that, he couldn't risk any contact with Eames outside the interview room. As Dreyfeus excused herself to use the ladies' room, he allowed himself a brief daydream about seeing her… he'd step into the cell, hold his arms out to her. She'd walk (not run) to him and he'd hold her tight and whisper into her hair that everything would be OK. He'd wrap his jacket around her and kiss her forehead.

But, for everything to be OK, he had work to do. With the physical evidence, the known facts about her relationship to the deceased, and what she'd revealed in the interview, she was a viable suspect. And with the ADA against her, she was in trouble.

o.o.o.o.o

"So, tell me about Eames."

This was going to be delicate. "Hey… I'm not here to give the prosecution shortcuts to convict a cop," he said with a shit-eating grin, holding his hands up. "Actually," he continued, manufacturing a cute little frown, "I'm not entirely certain what I can help you do." He looked at her earnestly and with what he hoped was veiled sexual interest. "Not that I don't want to try."

Dreyfeus smiled and leaned towards him. "I'm not asking you to bury your partner." Goren did his best not to react to her insincerity. "As I said to your Captain, I'm asking for your experience, and your insight."

"Into suspects? Or into Eames?"

Dreyfeus shrugged delicately. "We just want the truth."

"And you don't think your team can get it? I saw the investigators, they seemed to have a good bead as far as I could make out."

She sighed and shook her head. "I think you're giving them a little too much credit. You saw from the interview what we're up against with Eames. She knows all the tricks."

Goren thought defending Eames a tiny bit wouldn't be out of place. "Everyone connected to a murder lies, prevaricates and negotiates. You can't blame her for acting like a scared witness."

"Oh come on. All we want is the truth. She's hiding something, I saw it. Don't tell me you didn't?" Goren did see it. He suspected he knew exactly what 'it' was, although it wasn't something he wanted to think about. But it was irrelevant what Eames was hiding – because she was innocent, and whatever it was wouldn't be anything pertinent to the case. The investigating team got that, which was why they weren't as keen on crucifying Eames as the ADA was.

But it wouldn't do to say that. Goren inhaled sharply through his nose. "I…"

Dreyfeus put a reassuring hand on his wrist. "All we need from you is to review the evidence, have a bit of a heads-together with the team, and use your legendary interview skills to figure out what your partner is hiding. Remember… all we want is the truth."

Goren grinned, trying to look flattered and interested. "I'm concerned that my presence could be construed as a conflict of interest… might hinder the prosecution of – of the, uh, perp."

Dreyfeus smirked and squeezed his bicep. "Why don't you let me worry about the prosecution. If it starts to look like a conflict of interest, I'll pull the plug. I doubt that will happen." Translation: She was sure it was Eames, and didn't think his helping her bring Eames down would be a conflict of interest.

Goren nodded his head. "OK, yeah, OK." While the situation seemed dire, he was getting more of a read on Dreyfeus, and she was warming to him just the way he'd hoped. He didn't feel good about what was coming next, but it was necessary. "So what have you told Eames about my role?"

"Nothing, yet. How do you want to play it?"

How do I want to play it? You into my hands and Eames out of yours. He sighed. "I think it's better…" Christ, he hated this, "To catch her off guard. Don't tell her anything."

Dreyfeus's eyes widened in admiration. "Whatever you say."

o.o.o.o.o

He let her buy a couple more rounds and pretended not to notice that she was palming hers, then waited for it.

"So, Eames. What's your relationship like?" Ham-handed.

"Relationship?" he slurred, "We have none. We work together. I don't think she's had a relationship with a living person in years."

Dreyfeus looked down and shrugged delicately. "Hmmm… Making Detective First Grade is challenging for a woman. What it costs her in her work can spill over to her personal life."

Don't pretend to know what it cost her to do what she does, to be who she is. "Making detective doesn't make you controlling, withholding and unforgiving."

"You make it sound like you used to be a lot… closer?" Dreyfeus leaned in and rested two fingers on the pulse point of his wrist.

Goren did his best to look bleary. "You gotta be kidding." Tap that? Was the unspoken coda.

She stifled a smirk. "Well, to be honest, from where I'm sitting she doesn't appear like a natural… fit." They both laughed. "But… from what I've heard, she used to be stuck to you like glue."

What she'd heard? From whom? Goren hated it, but now was the time to really jump in. "Used to be? Well, used to be I trusted her. Used to be, she had my back."

"Couldn't have been easy for her, trying to keep up with someone so much more brilliant and worldly." Aah, so gracious in victory.

"Couldn't have been easy for me, with all the liabilities of a marriage without any of the perks."

Dreyfeus raised her eyebrows sceptically. Goren smirked.

"OK, yeah, I give in. We were closer once, but not the way you think," he waved his drink at her as he spoke. "Truth is, I depended on her. Too much. For things I should have been taking care of myself. Maybe it was my fault, that she got cocky. Thought she had a place in my life that she never could. Didn't want to give up the power she thought she had. Thought that we were…" He deliberately trailed off.

"Equals."

He thought he was going to barf.

o.o.o.o.o

Before heading down to the station to see Eames, he had one more hurdle to get over. He hoped he'd done enough to soften up the ADA.

"I'll interview Eames first, of course, I'd like to get started tonight. If that's OK with you and the team?"

Dreyfeus looked at him in surprise. "Of course. I'll set it up."

Goren nodded. "And I'll be talking to some of the other players, too."

Her admiring gaze chilled somewhat. "Other players?"

He smiled gently and put his hand in the small of her back. "Uh, some of the deceased's known associates here at the conference? I gather it's still going on?"

Dreyfeus nodded.

Here goes. "And, uh, Becker? Has he been interviewed yet?"

She looked at him suspiciously. "No, not yet. He's not a suspect."

"No, of course not. But she was his girlfriend, so…"

~.~.~.~.~

A/N 1: I borrowed my absolute favourite description of Eames from a wonderful fic called Intercession by Scripted Scarlet. Also, there's a shout-out to a wonderful WIP, Blues – see if you can find it! Also, if anyone's confused after this chapter, you'll learn more soon, when Goren tells Ross his impressions of Dreyfeus based on her background.

Also, Oh LORD, I have begun to consider thinking of toying with the idea of an unbelievably audacious multi-chaptered B/A fic… I can't promise it will ever bathe in the reflected glow of anyone's monitor but mine – it is a frighteningly ambitious idea, with total AU/AR, the dead resurrected, all bets unhedged, romance, a casefile, and character development through agonising soul-searching and unwelcome revelations. My head is swimming with ideas about it – all except the ending. If I can't figure out a satisfying ending, an "I see dead people" level of ending, I won't write it.

Please, pretty please, make my day and leave a review!

WORDS: 1845 UPLOADED Friday, July 23, 2010