'Are you sure…' The girl squeezed her eyes shut. The heart monitor beeped. Cold air came out of the vent over the bed. 'You're sure he's dead?'
'Yes,' Faith told her, putting all the certainty she could in her voice. 'I saw him myself. He died last night.'
She kept her eyes tightly closed.
'Are you sure that no one else came?' Faith asked. This had been the first question put to the girl, and she was just as unequivocal in her answer then as she was now.
'No.'
Faith could not let it go. She had to be sure. 'Warren didn't talk about anyone he was working with? No one came into the room with you?'
Her eyes were still closed. Faith thought that she had fallen asleep, but the girl's head moved slowly from side to side. 'No one,' she said. 'I was completely alone.'
Abigail reached out, but pulled back her hand, not knowing where she could touch her daughter, which spots would cause comfort or pain. She admitted as much, saying, 'I don't know what to do.'
Faith took the woman's hand and wrapped it around her daughter's. 'You already lost her once. It's up to you to make sure you don't lose her again.'
FAITH COULD SEE Will and Amanda standing at the end of the hallway outside Emma's room. Both of them looked up at her expectantly. She shook her head, letting them know that Evan Bernard was still in the clear.
Amanda took out her phone and Will said something to stop her. Faith could not hear his voice and, frankly, she did not care. She went back to the row of plastic chairs lining the hallway and sat down with a groan. Her exhaustion was so deep that she felt dizzy. Sleep was all she needed, just a few minutes and then she could go with Will to scour Warren Grier's apartment again. They would turn the man's office upside down at the Copy Right, interview everyone who had ever known him or come into contact with him. Mary Clark had remembered Warren and Bernard together. There was bound to be someone else out there who knew even more than she did.
Faith's head jerked up as she caught herself dozing. Her phone was ringing. She took it out of her pocket, checking the caller ID. It was Victor again. He was nothing if not persistent.
'You gonna get that?' Will asked.
Faith looked up at him. He looked as tired as she felt. 'He'll call back.' She tucked the phone back into her pocket. 'What was that about?'
He slumped into the chair beside her, his long legs blocking the hallway. 'The prosecutor says the judge won't deny bail.' He rubbed his eyes. 'Bernard's going to be out on the streets before noon.'
'Did yelling at Amanda help?'
'It's easier to blame her for all the evil things that happen in the world.' He put his face in his hands, exhaustion slowing down every move. 'What did I miss on this, Faith? How can we keep him locked up?'
Faith thought about what was behind the door across the hall. Warren was dead, but there was still someone out there who should be punished for the crime. They had to make a case against Bernard. Will was right-he had to be punished.
She asked, 'What did Amanda say?'
'She's moving on. Emma is back, we've got one dead prisoner and a lawsuit from the Alexanders to deal with. This case has basically been downgraded because we have a living victim.' He shook his head. 'What kind of job is this where a dead seventeen-year-old is more important than a living one?'
'My boss hasn't taken me off this yet,' Faith told him. 'I'll work with you as long as they let me.'
'Well, that's the other thing.'
Faith could hear the trepidation in his voice and it shot a cold chill through her. 'Did Amanda find out about the gray powder?'
He looked at her, confused. 'Oh,' he said, understanding. 'No, worse than that. Amanda is going to ask you to be my partner.'
Faith was so tired that she was certain she had heard wrong. 'Your partner?'
'I understand if you don't want to do it.'
'It's not that,' she said, still not sure she'd heard correctly. 'Your partner?' she repeated. 'Amanda's been keeping me off every important event in this case,' Faith said, thinking the missed press conference was just the icing on the cake. 'Why would she want me on her team?'
Will had the grace to look guilty. 'That was actually me keeping you out of the loop,' he admitted. 'But not on purpose. Honest.'
She was too tired to manage anything but an exasperated, 'Will.'
'I'm sorry,' he said, holding out his hands in an open shrug. 'But, listen, it's best you know what you'd be getting into.'
'This is the last thing I expected,' Faith admitted. She was still unable to wrap her head around the offer.
'I told you about the crappy dental.' He held up his hand, showed her the scar from the nail gun. 'And keep in mind that Amanda doesn't take prisoners.'
Faith rubbed her face. She let the enormity of the situation sink in. 'I keep hearing those clicks in my ear from Warren dry-firing on you.' She paused, not trusting herself to speak. 'He could have killed you.' She added, 'And I would have killed him.'
Will tried for levity. 'You seemed pretty cool to me.' His voice went up in a falsetto as he mimicked, ' ‘Drop it, motherfucker!' '
She felt her cheeks redden. 'I guess my inner Police Woman came out.'
'Pepper Anderson was a sergeant. You're a detective.'
'And
He smiled, rubbing his jaw. 'Yeah, you're probably right.' He waited a few seconds before saying, 'I mean it, Faith. I won't take it personally if you say no.'
She cut to the heart of the matter. 'I don't know if I can do this kind of job every day. At least with the murder squad, we know where to look.'
'Boyfriend, husband, lover,' Will said, a familiar refrain. 'I'm not going to lie. It takes the life out of you.'
She thought of Victor Martinez, his many phone calls. Jeremy was finally out of the house. She had met a man who might possibly be interested in her despite the fact that she was painfully ill-prepared for an adult relationship. She'd finally managed to get some grudging respect around the homicide squad, even if their highest compliment so far was, 'You're not that stupid for a blonde.'
Did Faith want to invite more complications into her life? Shouldn't she just coast through on her detective's shield, then work private security like every other retired cop she knew?
Will glanced up and down the hallway. 'Did Paul just disappear?' he asked, and she realized it was a question meant to put them back on more comfortable footing.
Faith was glad for the familiar ground. 'I haven't seen him.'
'Typical,' he remarked.
Faith turned in her chair to look at Will. His nose was still bruised, a sliver of blue tracing beneath his right eye. 'Did you really grow up in foster care?'
He didn't register the question. His face stayed blank.
'I'm sorry,' she apologized, just as he answered, 'Yes.'
Will leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. Faith waited for him to say something, but he seemed to be doing the same thing with her.
She blurted out, 'Moms I'd like to fuck.'
'What?'
'That first day with Jeremy. You asked me what a MILF is. It stands for ‘Moms I'd Like to Fuck.' '
He narrowed his eyes, probably trying to put it into context. He must have remembered, because he said, 'Ouch.'
'Yeah,' Faith agreed.
Will clasped his hands together. He twisted around his watch and checked the time. Instead of making a
