In Death 09 - Loyalty in Death

the river. I can't afford to have two members of my team tripping over heartstrings."
    He surprised himself by laughing, and meaning it. "Christ, that's cold."
    "Yeah, I know." She remembered the way Roarke had looked at her that morning. "I suck at this, McNab. But I need you on your toes."
    "I'm on them."
    "Stay on them," she told him and walked out.
    Since she calculated she couldn't do worse on her record of offending, insulting, and injuring people who mattered to her that morning, Eve put a call through to Roarke as she headed to the garage.
    Summerset answered, and her instinctive reaction of clenching her teeth felt a lot better than guilt. "Roarke," was all she said.
    "He's engaged on another call at the moment."
    "This is police business, you cross-eyed putz. Put me through."
    His nostrils flared in annoyance, and her mood lightened just a little more. "I will see if he's available to take your call."
    The screen went blank. Though she didn't doubt he'd have the nerve to cut her off, she counted to ten. And ten again. She was heading toward thirty when Roarke came on.
    "Lieutenant." His voice was clipped, the Irish in it frigid temper rather than music.
    "The department needs one hundred million in fake bearer bonds -- good fakes, but not good enough to pass a bank check. Sheets of ten thousand."
    "When's your deadline?"
    "I could use them by fourteen hundred."
    "You'll have them." He waited a beat. "Anything else?"
    Yes, I'm sorry. I'm an idiot. What do you want from me? "That's it. The department -- "
    "Appreciates it. Yes, I know. I'm on an interplanetary conference call, so if that's all..."
    "Yeah, that's all. If you'd let me know when they're ready, I'll arrange transport."
    "You'll hear from me."
    He cut her off without another word and made her wince. "Okay," she mumbled. "That hurt. Bull's-eye." She jammed the link back in her bag.
    She remembered her advice to McNab. Just forget it. She did her best to follow it, but some of her feelings must have shown on her face. Peabody kept her mouth shut as Eve stepped up to the car. And they drove to the morgue in silence.
    The dead house was packed like a lobby bar at a Shriners' convention. The corridors were full of techs, assistant MEs, and the medical staff drafted from local health centers to wade in during the current crisis. The stench of humanity, alive and deceased, smeared the air.
    Eve managed to snag one of the morgue staff she knew. "Chambers, where's Morris?" She'd hoped for a five-minute consult with the chief medical examiner.
    "Up to his eyebrows. The hotel bombing brought in a lot of customers. A lot of them in pieces. It's like putting a jigsaw puzzle together."
    "Well, I need to see one of your guests who checked in early this morning. Lamont. Paul Lamont."
    "Jeez, Dallas, we're working on priority here. We gotta get these stiffs ID'd."
    "It's connected."
    "All right, all right." Obviously miffed, Chambers scurried to a computer, ran the log. "We got him on ice in area D, drawer twelve. We're racking, packing, and stacking them for now."
    "I need a look at him, his personal effects and the incoming report."
    "Let's make it quick." His shoes slapped down the hall. He swung into area D, slid his key card in the slot, and led them inside. "Drawer twelve," he reminded her. "Just use your master, and I'll pull up the rest."
    Eve uncoded the drawer and out came a puff of icy smoke and Lamont. Or what was left of him. ' They did a job on him," she muttered, scanning his mangled, broken body.
    "Sure did. Says here the vehicle, a black Airstream van, jumped the curve and ran right over him where he stood on the sidewalk. We haven't done anything on him yet, just stored him. He's not priority."
    "No, he'll keep." Eve slid the drawer back in place. "What did he have on him?"
    "Fifty couple in credits, wrist unit, IDs and key cards, pack of breath mints, palm-link, date book. Oooh, and a sticker." He examined the long, slim blade. "Over the legal limit, I'd say."
    "Only by a mile or two. I need the 'link and date book."
    "Fine by me. Sign for them and they're yours. Look, I have to get back. Hate to keep the customers waiting."
    She signed the checkout log. "Have these effects been dusted?"
    "Hell if I know. Enjoy."
    Eve turned to Peabody as the area doors swung shut. "We'll dust and clean first. Let's go on record."
    Peabody shifted her field kit on her shoulder. "Here? Don't you want to do this somewhere else?"
    "Why?"
    "Well, the place is full