Gallagher Justice. Amanda Stevens
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sucked in a sharp breath. Frank Quinlan had just arrived with a couple of uniformed minions in tow. He stepped under the crime scene tape and bulldozed his way through the alley. Those not in his immediate orbit scurried for cover.
Quinlan was a stockily built man with close-set eyes and a hawkish nose that gave him a mean, predatory look he’d perfected to his advantage over the years. He was intimidating, arrogant, and had so many connections in the department, knew so much dirt on city officials, that even his superiors were afraid of him.
Fiona consciously straightened her posture because she knew that in a one-on-one confrontation with Quinlan, her height was her advantage. Men like Quinlan couldn’t stand tall women.
He strode past her to Doggett and stabbed a finger in her direction. “What the hell is she doing here?”
That was like him, not to speak to her directly, Fiona thought. Jerk. She pitied the women under his command.
“Commander, this is Fiona Gallagher. She’s an ASA—”
Quinlan cut off Doggett’s introduction with an obscenity. “I know who she is, Doggett. I asked what she’s doing here.”
“Deputy Chief Fox asked for an ASA on the scene to advise.” Fiona was pleased that her voice sounded smooth and professional, as if his little tirade didn’t bother her at all.
He whirled. “Let me give you a piece of advice, Gallagher. Stay the hell out of our way. You interfere with this investigation, you’ll have me to answer to.”
“And if you screw up my case, you’ll have me to answer to,” she shot back. “I expect to be notified the moment you have a suspect in custody. I want to be present for the interrogation.”
Her insinuation was crystal clear, and if there had been sufficient light where they stood, Fiona was certain she would have witnessed Quinlan’s face turn a dark, livid purple. As it was, his rage rendered him incapable of speech for a moment before he sputtered another obscenity, then turned on his heel and stalked off.
Milo materialized beside Fiona. She hadn’t even known he was around, but he must have heard the sordid little showdown, because he muttered, “Asshole,” in a low voice, then said anxiously, “Are you okay?”
She shrugged. “Sure. Why wouldn’t I be?”
Doggett said behind her, “What the hell was that all about?”
She turned. “Let’s just say, I’m not one of Commander Quinlan’s favorite people.”
“Yeah, I got that,” he said dryly. “You want to clue me in on what’s going on?”
Before Fiona could answer, Milo said, “You ever hear of the Fullerton Five, detective?”
“You mean those guys who killed that little girl a few years back?” Doggett’s expression subtly altered. “Wait a minute.” He glanced at Fiona. “Gallagher. That’s why I know you. You’re the prosecutor who went after Quinlan when one of those guys brought a lawsuit against the department. No wonder he’s pissed at you.”
“I didn’t go after him,” Fiona argued. “Allegations were brought against him and some of the detectives under his command that I believed to be credible. I cooperated with the IAD investigation because I wanted to get at the truth.”
“He was cleared by Internal Affairs and by the Office of Professional Standards,” Doggett said. “You still believe he coerced those confessions?”
Fiona shrugged. “I know I can’t prove it. But I learned a long time ago that this is a town built on clout and cronyism. I’ve had to accept that justice is sometimes hard to come by.”
“Yeah,” Doggett said with a frown. “I guess that’s a lesson we’ve all had to learn.” He glanced back down at the body bag, then turned on his heel and disappeared into the darkness.
* * *
FIONA STARED OUT THE CAR window as Milo drove her home a little while later. They were just coming back from Lexi and Alicia’s apartment on the north side of the city, near the university. Doggett had agreed to let Fiona be present when he broke the news to Alicia’s sister, but when they arrived at her apartment, no one was home.
Which was very odd and troubling to Fiona. Where could an eighteen-year-old girl be at four o’clock on a Tuesday morning? Any number of places, of course, but with her sister lying dead in an alley—
She’s okay, Fiona told herself. Wherever Lexi was, she was fine. They couldn’t both be gone. Fate wouldn’t be that cruel to Lori, but Fiona knew all too well that it could be. She’d seen enough heartbreaking cases in her years as first a defense attorney and now as an ASA to know that fate had nothing to do with fairness.
“Fiona? Did you hear what I said?”
Milo’s voice drew her out of her deep reverie. She turned from the window. “Sorry. What?”
“I was asking you about the other twin. Is she—” He broke off, looking sheepish. “I don’t want to sound insensitive here.”
“But you want to know if Alicia’s twin is as beautiful as she was.” Fiona sighed. “Even more so, if you can believe it.”
Milo shot her an incredulous glance. “You’re kidding, right?”
“I’m not kidding. You should see her. Lexi is...” Fiona trailed off. “I don’t know how to explain it exactly. She has this quality about her. Men are...drawn to her.”
“Like she’s always in heat,” Milo said under his breath.
“What?”
He shrugged. “Nothing. I was just projecting, I guess.”
“But you nailed it perfectly,” Fiona said with a frown. “That’s exactly how men look at Lexi.”
Milo was silent for a moment. “Were they models or something? I’ll have to take your word about Lexi, but let’s face it. Alicia was drop-dead gorgeous.”
Fiona winced at the description. “They had offers to model, but their mother tried to shield them from all that.”
“Shield them how?”
By asking me to look out for them, Fiona thought. But for crying out loud, who was she to supervise teenagers? She’d fallen in love with a killer. Hardly a role model most mothers would welcome, but Fiona and Lori went way back.
She could still remember that day after school when Lori had confided in her that she was pregnant. Fiona had been stunned. She wasn’t even allowed to date, and her best friend was pregnant!
Tearfully Lori had explained how she’d met this guy at the mall. He was older, more experienced, and claimed he was in love with her. Fiona could believe that. Even so young, Lori was a blond, blue-eyed stunner, the kind of girl that men couldn’t take their eyes off.
The two of them had started meeting after school and on weekends. Not for real dates, of course. Lori wasn’t allowed to date, either. She’d tell her mother she was going to Fiona’s house, and then she’d meet up with this guy. They’d have a soda together. Go to the movies. All very innocent at first, then things got out of hand.
He dumped her when he found out she was pregnant. Lori was devastated.
“You have to tell your parents, Lori. What else can you do?” Although secretly Fiona thought that the last thing she would ever do was tell her parents something like that. She’d rather die first because her father would kill her anyway, and her brothers.... She shuddered. She didn’t even want to think about what her brothers would do.
But somehow Lori had managed to work up the courage to go home and tell her parents everything. She certainly wasn’t the first girl in their neighborhood to find herself in that predicament, and this was the enlightened eighties after all. But her father had still been so angry that