Now, I'm going to nd Rebecca and try to steal her away for lunch somewhere."

After a quick look around, Sandy brushed her ngers over the medallion pinned above Mitch.e.l.l's left breast. "It's nice."

Fleetingly, Mitch.e.l.l caught Sandy's hand and squeezed. "Thanks.

I'm glad you're here."

"Me too."

The closeness of the crowd made it easy for Mitch.e.l.l to ease her thigh against Sandy's hip, and as she did, she steeled herself to greet the other woman present. After another few seconds' hesitation, she met her sister's eyes. "How did you know about this?"

"Your colleagues are very talkative. When I called the station earlier this week looking for information about you, I heard most of the story." Erica extended her hand. "Congratulations, Detective."

Mitch.e.l.l swallowed and blinked against sudden tears. She forced the words through a sandpaper throat as she took her sister's hand.

"Thanks."

Erica held Mitch.e.l.l's hand in the silence that settled between them. Sandy wrapped an arm around Mitch.e.l.l's waist and squeezed, murmuring, "You okay, baby?"

"Yeah," Mitch.e.l.l replied softly, letting go of Erica's hand. She smiled at Sandy. "I'm okay. I'm great."

"I should go say something to Frye," Sandy said with obvious reluctance, her eyes icking to Erica.

"Go ahead. Everything's ne," Mitch.e.l.l urged, sounding more like herself. "Then how about we grab some takeout for lunch and go home."

* 177 *

RADCLY fFE "Okay, if you're sure." Sandy looked once more from Erica to Mitch.e.l.l, then ventured into the crowd.

"So," Mitch.e.l.l said. "What are you doing here?"

"You were being honored for bravery and promoted. It's a big deal."

"Yeah, and nothing I've done in the last year and a half has mattered to you, so why should this?" Mitch.e.l.l tried to curb the bitterness in her voice, but failed. "Why did you come here at all this week?"

"Because I have to work at not thinking about you every day, and when I found out you were injured and in the hospital, I couldn't stop worrying. I just...had to come." Erica's shoulders sagged slightly and she inched closer, her eyes dark with pain. "I miss you. d.a.m.n it, Dell.

I miss you."

"Nothing's changed..." Mitch.e.l.l caught herself and grinned ruefully. "Actually, everything's changed. I know who I am. I like who I am. I love Sandy. What are you going to do with all of that, Erica?"

"I don't know." Her sister shook her head. "Sandy is...she's erce, the way she...loves you."

Mitch.e.l.l's eyes sparkled. "Yeah. She's pretty amazing."

Erica studied her, her expression puzzled. "And you're happy?

She makes you happy?"

"Like you wouldn't believe."

Erica's gaze swept the room where small groups, composed mostly of men, continued to mill about, talking and laughing. The rumble of many voices drowned out neighboring conversations. Nevertheless, she lowered her voice. "That's not a problem, here?"

"Sometimes it can be," Mitch.e.l.l acknowledged. "But I don't care.

I can handle it."

"You always thought you could handle everything," Erica said with a mixture of affection and irritation.

"That's because I can."

Erica laughed, sounding very much like Mitch.e.l.l. "You are so full of s.h.i.t, Dell."

"Yeah. Like you're not." Mitch.e.l.l reached out and ngered the row of ribbons on her sister's chest. "Looks like you've been busy racking up the points. You must be looking at a promotion yourself soon."

Erica blushed. "Maybe, I don't know."

* 178 *

Justice Served "They're fast-tracking you, aren't they? The posting in DC?

Grooming you for a command post somewhere soon."

"Probably," Erica admitted.

Mitch.e.l.l was surprised to realize that she felt no animosity, no jealousy. With a start, she realized that she no longer wanted the life her sister was headed for. The life she had thought she wanted. Some of the anger she had nourished to shield herself from pain eased. "That's cool. That's good."

"I have to get back to the base," Erica said. "I wish we could talk."

"About what?"

"About...Robin. What happened."

Mitch.e.l.l shook her head. "There's no point. It's over. We all made our choices back then. And we're all living with them now." She looked away, scanning the crowd, smiling as she spied Sandy heading their way. "Sometimes the choices we're forced to make take us to the place we wanted to be all along." She met her sister's eyes. "I'm happy, Erica."

"You ready to go?" Sandy asked as she reached Mitch.e.l.l's side.

"Yep."

Sandy turned her attention to Erica. "If you're anything like Dell, and I guess you probably are, you're insane for pizza. We can order extra."

"Thanks," Erica said sincerely. "I need to catch a train." She held out her hand to Sandy. "It was very nice meeting you."

Sandy appeared thoughtful as she took Erica's hand. "It would probably be good if you came back for another visit."

"Thank you." Erica looked from Sandy into her sister's eyes. "I'd like that very much."

Mitch.e.l.l and Sandy were silent as they watched Erica walk away.

Then Sandy said, "Are you sure everything's okay?"

"Have I mentioned that I really like it when you take care of me?"

Sandy stood on tiptoe and spoke quietly, close to Mitch.e.l.l's ear.

"Yeah, but you're usually talking about s.e.x when you do."

Mitch.e.l.l laughed. "Well, then too."

"So what do you say we pick up some pizza, and I can take care of you some more."

* 179 *

RADCLY fFE "Oh yeah-love in the afternoon," Mitch.e.l.l said, grasping Sandy's hand. "I think I just got lucky."

"Yeah, yeah, rookie. Don't get used to it."

"Too late." Tugging Sandy through the crowd, Mitch.e.l.l nally knew that she was exactly where she wanted to be.

* 180 *

Justice Served

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE.

This is such a nice treat, having you all to myself in the middle of the afternoon," Catherine said, leaning her head against Rebecca's shoulder.

Rebecca, in sweats and a T-shirt, her feet propped on the coffee table next to the empty deli containers, sighed. "I could get spoiled, that's for sure." She kissed Catherine lightly. "But I have to go back to work. Flanagan said she'd have something for me today on the shooting."

"I know, and I need to go in to the of ce and take care of billing before Joyce loses patience with me entirely." Catherine too had changed into a favorite pair of slacks and a pullover, and now she drew her legs onto the sofa to curl closer against Rebecca's side. "I really enjoyed the ceremony. I noticed you trying to slip away from the photo-op at the end."

"The department never pa.s.ses up an opportunity for publicity,"

Rebecca said wryly. "Hardly my style."

"But you are newsworthy, darling." When Rebecca stiffened, Catherine laughed and hugged her. "This is the second time in less than a year that you've received a departmental commendation, you were just promoted, and you're without question the s.e.xiest police of cer in the city."

Rebecca tilted her head back to look into her lover's face. "About that last part..."

"We have to work," Catherine murmured, captured by the light dancing in Rebecca's eyes. Her body ushed hot, then she shivered.

"But there's something about you in that uniform that's had me on edge since this morning."

"The uniform, huh?" Rebecca guided Catherine's hand beneath * 181 *

RADCLY fFE her T-shirt, then pressed Catherine's palm to her stomach. "Will this out t do?"

"Darling," Catherine whispered, sliding her hand up to cup Rebecca's breast. "You in absolutely anything does it for me."

Laughing, Rebecca pulled Catherine down on top of her. Work would always be there.

v "You want that last piece of pizza?" Mitch.e.l.l, propped up naked in bed, looked down at Sandy, whose head was cradled in her lap. The pizza box lay on the oor beside them where they'd placed it earlier so they could eat in bed. When Mitch.e.l.l had indulged herself by licking off a few drops of sauce that had fallen on Sandy's breast, they'd gotten sidetracked. They'd made love, fast and hard, and then consumed the rest of the pizza in postcoital indolence.

Sandy nuzzled Mitch.e.l.l's navel, then tugged at the skin around it with her teeth. "Nuh-uh."

"Jeez, San, cut that out. I don't have time to go again." Mitch.e.l.l squirmed as Sandy bit harder. "Ouch. Come on. I've got that doctor's appointment, and Jason's been waiting all day for me to nish up some stuff."

"Say please," Sandy muttered, circling her tongue where her teeth had just been.

"Oh man," Mitch.e.l.l sighed, her stomach quivering as her body went molten. "Honey. "

Sandy slid a hand beneath the sheet and up the inside of Mitch.e.l.l's leg. "What do you say?"

"Please," Mitch.e.l.l whispered.

v "Good afternoon, Lieutenant," Flanagan said when Rebecca rapped on her open of ce door. "I hope you're not bringing your bulldog in here."

"Watts?" Rebecca grinned. "No, he's down at the docks following up on some paperwork with Port Authority."

"Good, because even when he does keep his hands in his pockets, * 182 *

Justice Served I don't trust him in my lab." Flanagan capped her pen and shuf ed papers into a folder. "So, nice showing this morning."

"I didn't see you there," Rebecca said, surprised. Flanagan was not one to appear at departmental gatherings, of cial or otherwise.

"Maggie make you go?"

Flanagan harrumphed as she stood. "Actually, no. I just put my head in for a minute. Saw you get the commendation. Congratulations."

"Well, thanks."

The two regarded one another from a few feet apart, then spoke at once.

"About the case..."

"So regarding the ndings..."

With comfortable routine once more restored, they moved companionably into the laboratory where Flanagan led Rebecca to a workbench.

"Nothing new about COD. GSW at close range. From the trajectory, I put your shooter in the car with the victim, not just leaning in the door. That means considerable blowback-his, or her, clothes and body would have been grossly contaminated with the spray. No professional would get into another vehicle like that."

"I've got uniforms checking every dumpster, sewer drain, and alley in a three-block radius. But down there, in the middle of the night, with no one around, the shooter would have had ample opportunity to discard the weapon and their clothing somewhere we'd never nd it."