Purity in Death

"Eve." Roarke gathered her close, holding tight when she struggled. Her skin was iced. As she wept in her sleep, it tore his heart to pieces. "Eve, wake up. Come back now. Just a dream." He pressed his lips to her brow, her cheeks. "Just a dream."

"Kill the father, save the child."

"Ssh." He ran his hands soothingly over her back, under the old white shirt she favored for sleeping. "I'm here with you. You're safe."

"So much blood."

"God." He sat up with her, held her in his lap and rocked her in the dark.

"I'm all right." She turned her face into his shoulder. Somehow just the scent of him could center her. "Sorry. I'm okay."

"I'm not, so you can hold on to me awhile."

She slid her arms around his waist. "Something about Ha

"Yes, I remember. It was just before we met."

"She haunts me. I couldn't save her, couldn't get to her in time. And I think that maybe if you hadn't come into my life right after, that's the one that might've broken me. But she haunts me, Roarke. A little ghost to add to all the others. To add to myself."

"You remember her, Eve." He brushed his lips over her hair. "Perhaps you're the only one who does."

In the morning, she got up early enough to do a hard, sweaty workout, then took a long swim. She beat off the fatigue and the vague, nagging hangover from the nightmare.

And because she knew he'd keep at her until she gave in anyway, she sat down in the sitting area of the bedroom and ate the oatmeal Roarke ordered for her.

But she cast a suspicious eye on the milky liquid in the glass beside her coffee. "What's that?"

"A protein drink."

"I don't need a protein drink. I'm eating the stupid oatmeal, aren't I?"

"You'll have both." He stroked a hand over Galahad's head, then gave his attention to Eve rather than the morning financials scrolling by on-screen. "They'll offset the candy bar you probably plan to have for lunch. You didn't sleep well."

"I've got a lot on my mind. How come you don't have to have a protein drink?"

He forked up a section of grapefruit. "Can't abide the stuff. And I'm not the one who's going to have to deal with the mayor today."

"Yeah. I have to get started on that."

"I'm sure he'll find it an even more unpleasant way to start his day than you do yours. Drink up, Lieutenant."

She scowled, but drank. She was actually starting to like whatever he dumped in those mixes. "This data doesn't go to the rest of the team yet. I have to report it to Whitney, probably Tibble, and won't that be fun?"

"We should have your virus fully ID'd today. You're closing in."

"I've been thinking about that, too." She looked toward the data center. "I've been making plenty of noise. They'll know I've got some solid leads now. Could they dump that virus in this system here?"

"This system's security is a great deal more complex than what you'll find on other home systems."

Galahad inched toward the table, the plates. Roarke merely gave him one cool look. The cat shot up a leg and began to wash as if that had been the plan all along.

"And I've taken separate precautions," he continued, "based on the shield we've been working on in the lab. I can't give you a hundred percent guarantee, but unless they upgrade and modify what they've used to date, no. They can't infect this system."

"Let me take it in another direction. If there was an attempt to infect, can you rig some alarm, some detector, whatever, to alert us to it, maybe track the source?"

"You interest me, Lieutenant. I've already started working on that. It can't be done with any real success until we complete the full ID. But your lab rats have been devising some creative options. Jamie's particularly skilled in this area. I swear, if the boy wasn't determined to be you, he'd make his first billion before… well, before I made mine."

"If you could track it from this system, would you be able to track it back from one of the infected units?" She saw the look on his face. "Okay, so I'm one step behind the master geek plan. You get me that today, I might just dig up a pair of garters."

"I want the corset, too. And the shoes."

"You get me a source location, you get the shoes."

"I'm really starting to like this job. You have to wear the shoes the whole time we-"

"Let's not push it, pal." She rose. "I'm going to make this call from my office."

She closed her door. Though she wasn't sure of Whitney's schedule, she assumed he was already on the way in from Westchester. She tried his car 'link, and didn't mind admitting to herself that she'd timed it so she didn't have to tag him at home and chance dealing with his wife.

"Whitney."

"Sir. There's been a development in the investigation that requires your attention, and I believe Chief Tibble's."

"What development?"

"I don't believe I can discuss this over 'link, Commander. My judgment puts this at Code Five."

She saw his eyes narrow. Code Five meant complete madia block, and all departmental records would be sealed during the investigation.

"Are you at your home office?"

"Yes, sir. I can be at Central in-"

"No. The chief is closer to you than downtown. For that matter, at this point, so am I. I'll contact him. Expect us within thirty minutes."

"Yes, sir."

"Has your team been informed of this development?"

"No, sir. Just the expert consultant who was working with me when this new development surfaced."

"Keep it that way for now. Out."

Even as the screen blanked, there was a quick knock on her door. Nadine burst in.

"Damn it, Nadine, when I close a door it's because I want it closed. I don't have time for the media. Go away."

"Don't be so hasty." She closed the door at her back, then crossing the room at a clip, tossed a disc to Eve. "I went to a lot of trouble to get that to you and I don't want anyone to know you got it from me."

"Why, and what is it?"

"Why, because it could be perceived as taking media/police relations one step too far. I've a strong feeling the bosses at 75 would think so. What it is, is a copy of the home vid 75 boughtafter what I'm told was a rapid and lively negotiation from a tourist. A tourist who was taking a spin on an airtram when Nick Greene ran out on his balcony. They're going to air at nine, sharp. I wanted to give you a heads up."

"Cha

"I'm not saying I approve. I'm not saying I disapprove. This hits at nine, it's going to be big. What I will say, for your ears only, is I disapprove of going public with it without informing the police first. The vid doesn't change the outcome, the investigation, but I don't like the way it might stir up more support for Purity. So I'm giving you time to structure a response."

"Have you looked at this?" Eve held up the disc.

"I ran it on my way over. It's grim, it's ugly. And it makes Greene look like a monster. It's going to be easy to look at it and think: Thank God he's dead."

"Give me the name of the tourist."

"I can't do it." She pushed impatiently at her mane of hair. "Dallas, even if I knew, I couldn't do it. A source is a source."

"Is this your story?"

"No."

"Then he's not your source."

Nadine shook her head. "I'll only go so far over, same as you. If you're thinking this guy was a plant, I don't see how he could've been. But I'll look into it. I will promise if I smell a setup, I'll spill."

Satisfied, Eve nodded. "Tell me one thing. How much they shell out for this?"

"Dallas-"

"Off the record, Nadine. For both of us. I'm just curious."