Chapter 6

I work out of the Hall of Justice. The Hall, as we referred to the gray, ten-story granite slab that housed the city's Department of Justice, was located just west of the freeway, on the Sixth and Bryant. If the building itself, with its faded, antiseptic halls, didn't communicate that law enforcement lacked a sense of style, the surrounding neighborhood surely did. Hand-painted ball bondsman shacks, auto parts stores, parking lots, and dingy cafes.

Whatever ailed you, you could find it at the Hall: Auto Theft, Sex Crimes, Robbery. The district attorney was on eight, with the cubicle filled with bright young prosecutors. A floor of holding cells on ten. One-stop shopping, arrest to Arraignment. Next door, we even had the morgue.

After a hasty, bare-bones news conference, Isaiah and I agree to meet upstair and go over what we had so far.

The twelve of us who covered homicide for the entire city shared a twenty-by-thirty squad room lit by harsh fluorescent lights. My desk was a choice- by the window," cheerily" overlooking the entrance ramp to the freeway. It was always covered with folders, stacks of photo, department releases. The one really personal item on it was a plexiglass cube my first partner had given me it was incredible with the words you can't tell which way the train went by looking at the track.

I made myself a cup of tea and met Isaiah in the interrogations Room 1. I drew two columns on a freestanding chalkboard: one for what we knew, one for what we had checked out.

Isaiah's initial talk with the grooms parent had produced nothing. The father was big-time Wall Street guy who ran a firm that handled international buyouts. He said that his wife had stayed until the last guest had left, and walked the kids upstairs," they didn't have an enemy in the world. No debts, addictions, threat. Nothing to provoke such a horrible, unthinkable act.

A canvass of guest on the thirtieth floor had been slightly more successful. A couple from Chicago had noticed a man lingering in the hallway near the Mandarin Suit last night around 10:30 pm they described him as medium build, with short, dark hair, and said he wore dark suit or maybe a tuxedo. He was carrying what might have been a bottle of liquor in his hands.

Later, two used tea bags and two empty push throughs of Pepcid tablets on the table were the clearest sign that we d been bouncing these questions back and forth for several hours. It was quarter past seven. Our shift had ended at five.

No dates tonight, Moo?" Isaiah finally asked.

I get all the dates I want, Isaiah

Right, like is said-no date tonight."

Without knocking, our lieutenant, Kalistus warren whom we call cherry, stuck his head into the room. He tossed a copy of the afternoon chronicle across the table." You see this?"

The boldface headline read." WEDDING NIGHT MASSACRE AT HYATT.." I read aloud from the front page. Under stunning view of the bay, in a world only the rich would know, the body of the twenty-nine-year old groom lay curled up near the door." He knotted his brow.

What, did we invite this reporter in for house tour of the crime scene? She knows the names, maps put the scene."

The byline read Alice

I thought the card in my purse, letting out a long sigh. Alice goddam

Maybe i should call her up and ask her if we got any leads," kalistus went on.

You want to come on in?" I asked. And look at the board. We could use the help."

Kalistus just stood there, chewing on his puffy lower lip. He was about to close the door behind him, but he turned back." Moo be in my office at a quarter of nine tomorrow. We need to lay this thing out carefully. For now, it's yours," then shout the door.

I sat down on the table. A heavy weight seemed to be pressing on me. The whole day passed. I hadn't found a single moment to deal with my own news.

You okay?" Isaiah asked.

I looked at him, on the verge of letting it all out, or maybe crying again.

That was a tough crime scene." He said at the door. You should go home, take a bath or something."

I smiled at him, grateful for the sudden, out of character sensitivity.

After he left, I faced the mostly blank columns of the boards. I felt so weak and empty I could barely push my self up. Slowly, the events of the day, my visit to kelvin's wove their way back into my mind. My head spun with his warning: fatal Moo.

Then I was hit with the crushing realization. It was going on eight O'clock

I have never called kelvin's specialist.

That night when I got home, I did sort of take Isaiah's advice.

First I walked my dog, snoopy . Two of my neighbors took care of snoopy during the day, but she's always ready for our nightly romps. After the walk, I kicked off my Aerosole pumps, tossed my gun and cloths on the bed and took a long, hot shower, bringing in killian's with me

The image of Nathaniel and Lizzy Harry washed away for the night; they could sleep.

But there was still kelvin, and Negli's. And the call to the specialist I had dreaded the whole day and never made.

No matter how many times I lifted my face into the hot spray, I could no rinse the long day away. My life had changed I was no longer just fighting murderers on the streets. I was fighting for my life. When I got out, I ran a brush through my hair and looked at myself for a long time in the mirror.

A thought came into my mind that rarely occurred to me: I was pretty. Not a beauty, but cute. Tall, almost five-ten; decent shape for somebody who occasionally binges on a beer and butterscotch-praline ice cream. I had these animated, bright brown eyes. I didn't back down.

How could it be that I was going to die?