Kindred In Death

“It’s nearly time,” Peabody added. “And she just keeps playing the piano.”

“She’d make a good cop.” Eve glanced at the miniscreen that gave her a full view of the living area.

She had men posted inside and out, some of them-like herself and Peabody-literally steps away from Charity Mimoto.

No, Eve wouldn’t let him hurt her.

But she needed him inside. He wouldn’t hear the cage door slam down, she thought. Wouldn’t know he’d walked into the trap.

“We got him,” Jenkinson said in her ear. “Heading east on foot, two blocks. Navy shirt, brown pants, ball cap, black shades. He’s wearing a black backpack and carrying some flowers.”

Eve thought of the flowers he’d brought to Deena. “Roger that. Hold your position. All positions hold. Teams A and B, wait until he’s in the box, inside the box, then move to secondary position. Sound it off.”

She waited until she’d received an acknowledgment from each team leader. “Mrs. Mimoto?”

“Yes, dear?”

“He’s on his way. Just a couple blocks away. Are you okay?”

“I’m just fine. How are you?”

Eve shook her head at the woman’s unshakable aplomb. “We’re good. He’s bringing you flowers. I want you to do everything we rehearsed, but then you’re going to want to put those flowers in water. You excuse yourself, and go to the kitchen.”

“That’s when he’ll drug my lemonade, won’t he?”

“That’s likely. You stay in the kitchen. We’ve got you, Mrs. Mimoto.”

“I’m sure you do, but let’s get him.” Her pocket ’link beeped. “I bet we know who that is. Don’t worry. Hello?”

On screen, Eve watched Charity smile at the ’link. She angled it, just as she’d been instructed, so Eve could see his face on the ’link display from her screen.

There you are, you bastard, she thought. Keep coming. Just keep on coming.

“Hello, De

“Hi, Mrs. M. I’m ru

“Of course we’re still on. I’ve got us a nice pitcher of lemonade and some muffins. My men are on their way to the wilds!” She laughed, easily. “It’ll be nice to have a little company before I settle into my solitude.”

“Aw, you didn’t have to go to all that trouble, Mrs. M. But if those are your muffins, I’m walking faster! I’ll be there in one minute.”

Yeah, come on, Eve thought as various teams relayed his progress through her earpiece. Come right on in, you son of a bitch.

“Well, I’ll pour that lemonade,” Charity said cheerfully. “See you in a minute.”

Charity shut down the ’link, set it on top of the piano. “How’d I do?”

“Perfect,” Eve said.

“I believe I might’ve missed my calling,” she said as she rose to pour the drinks. “I could’ve been a screen star.”

Eve watched her eyes go fierce, saw her take a long, deep breath before her face turned harmlessly pleasant again.

“Here we go,” Charity murmured and started toward the door.

“Turning up the walk,” Feeney told her.

“Hold positions. We do this by the numbers. No chatter. Wait for my go.”

She watched Charity open the front door, and the quick, charming grin on Darrin Pauley’s face.

“You look real nice today, Mrs. M.”

“Oh, listen to you. Come on in here! Oh, look at those daisies. Aren’t they pretty?”

“I just wanted to thank you for letting me take my lesson today.”

“That’s the sweetest thing.” Charity sniffed at the flowers. “Take a minute to sit down, have some lemonade. I bet the walk made you thirsty.”

“I guess it did.”

“A young man like you’s always hungry. You have a muffin.”

“Thanks.” He shrugged off his backpack, set it beside a chair before removing his cap, his shades.

Charity stood where she was, smiling at him. “How’s your mama doing?”

“Oh, she’s fine. I wish she didn’t work so hard. Wish I could do more for her.”

“I bet you’re doing more than she’d ever think to ask,” Charity said, and Eve hoped she was the only one who heard the underlying ice in the tone. “And won’t she be surprised when you play for her? I don’t know another boy your age who’d go to so much trouble to please his mama.”

“I owe her everything. I bet your family feels the same about you. Especially your kids. Are you sure you’re going to be all right here on your own? Alone until Sunday, didn’t you say?”

“Oh, I’ll be fine, and happy to have the place to myself until Deke and the boys get back Sunday. Now you have a muffin while I go put these pretty daisies in water. I won’t be a minute.”

“Okay.”

Charity strolled out of the room, didn’t break stride even when she sent one fiercely satisfied glance in Eve’s direction.

As her footsteps echoed away, Darrin took a small vial out of his pocket, tipped the contents into her glass.

“Go. All positions, go.”

Weapon drawn, Eve rushed the room only seconds before a half-dozen cops did the same.

“Hello, Darrin,” Eve said. She smiled as he stared at her. “Hands behind your head. Now. On your knees.”

“What’s this about?” He obeyed, but turned his head side-to-side, with the perfect mix of fear and confusion on his face. “My-my name’s De

“I bet you do. Darrin Pauley, aka De

She looked up and into MacMasters’s eyes. “Captain, would you read this son of a bitch his rights?”

“I…” MacMasters cleared the rust from his voice. He looked down at the weapon in his hand, then slowly holstered it. “You have the right to remain silent,” he began as she secured Darrin’s wrists in restraints.

“Thought you were playing her, didn’t you, Darrin?” Eve hauled him to his feet. “Playing an old woman. But she played you. She played you like a piano. This time? You’re the mark.”

The frightened boy fell away, and he smiled. And when he smiled, turning his face toward MacMasters, the shadow of the monster slouched behind his eyes. “Maybe you’ll get intent to rob, but that’s all you’ll get.”

Eve jerked him around so he faced her. “Keep telling yourself that, Darrin.”

“Look what I found.” Baxter held up a pair of the cutaway restraints bailiffs carried in courtrooms. “There’s a recorder here, too, a can of Seal-It, and hmmm.” He held up another vial and a small package of pills. “I bet these contain illegal substances.”

“Bag it, log it, bring it. And the contents of Mrs. Mimoto’s glass. Transport this thing into Central, book him. I’ll be in real soon, we’ll chat.

“Get him out.” She shoved Darrin toward Jenkinson, then walked up to MacMasters. “You did the job. You maintained. We’ve got him now. You should go home, tell your wife we’ve got him now. Be with her.”

“I’d like to observe your interview.” His face was like stone, pale and sharply carved.

“We’ll let him sweat a while. You’ve got time to go home, tell your wife. She needs to hear this from you.”

“Yes, you’re right.” He held out his hand. “Thank you, Lieutenant.”

“Captain.”

He started for the door, stopped, turned. “I thought about it, even after what we talked about. I could have taken him out. Clean line, one stream. I could have done it. Now I have to think about that.”

“Bastard did his job there,” Eve murmured. “Cracked the foundation of a damn good cop.”

“I think, with some time, the foundation’s going to prove solid. He did the job, like you said,” Peabody pointed out. “It was good, you having him read the bastard his rights.”

“Yeah. Contact the judge, assure her that her mother’s safe, and it’s done. We can contact her father, but I assume she’ll want to do that herself.”

She turned away. “All right, boys and girls, good work. Let’s close it down.”