Читать книгу The Detective And The D.A. - Leann Harris - Страница 9

“You can’t go in there unannounced.”

Kelly Whalen heard her secretary yell from her desk in the next room.

“You gonna stop me?” The man’s tone held true menace.

An assistant D.A. for the city of Houston, Kelly recognized the voice of her ex-husband and wondered why he was here. And apparently unhappy. Very unhappy.

A moment later all six feet two inches of Detective Tony Ashcroft barreled into her office. He wore his let’s-frighten-the-socks-off-the suspect expression. “What the hell is going on here, Kelly?” he demanded.

Ash was still an incredibly handsome man with wide shoulders, dark brown hair, and green eyes that sparked with anger.

Teresa Myers, her poor secretary, rushed into the room behind Ash and came to a halt. “Sorry, Kelly. I tried to stop him, bu-but it was like trying to stop a herd of cattle from charging.” Teresa knew of what she spoke, having been raised on a cattle ranch in West Texas.

“Don’t worry about it, Teresa.” Kelly stood. She wanted to be at eye level with her ex—as much as she could—in a position of power instead of looking up at him like a servant. “When Ash makes up his mind, nothing short of calling in the marines could stop him.”

Teresa glared at the detective. “I don’t doubt it,” she mumbled as she walked out of the room.

Ash folded his arms over his chest. He didn’t look amused at the exchange between Kelly and Teresa. “Now that the show’s over, you want to explain yourself?”

It had been close to four years since she’d spoken to Ash. She’d seen him in passing at the courthouse and around city buildings, but they hadn’t spoken since they had cleaned up the property issues remaining after their divorce.

“You want to let me in on what it is you want explained?” Kelly shot back, irritated with his attitude.

“Why was I tapped to do the reinvestigation of the Carlson case since it was originally Ralph Lee’s?” he snarled.

“What?” She couldn’t believe her ears. “You’ve been assigned the case?” Kelly felt as if a bomb had just exploded in front of her, leaving her disorientated and disconnected to the world.

His eyes narrowed. “You didn’t know?” He sounded skeptical. “Didn’t request it?”

“No, I didn’t request it.” Did he think she was nuts? “And no, I didn’t know.”

He crossed his arms over his chest. “I was called into my captain’s office this morning and told to c-o-o-p-erate with you on this case.”

Kelly hated when Ash got that tone in his voice.

“I’ve been pulled off my active cases, which didn’t make my partner happy, and told to report to you. So explain what’s going on.”

Taking a deep breath, she said, “Sit down, Ash, and quit glaring at me. I’m not a suspect that needs to be interrogated.”

“If only it were that easy,” he grumbled.

She had had enough. “Just sit down and stop acting like a hard case.”

“I’m the hard case, Kelly?” His brow arched. “If I recall, I wasn’t the only one.”

She didn’t want to open that can of worms. “This situation is as much a surprise to me as it is to you. I’ll call your captain and see what’s going on.”

He didn’t look as if he wanted to cooperate. He looked more like a man approaching a deadly situation, determined not to let down his guard. He moved to the chair in front of her desk and sat.

Kelly grabbed up the telephone and, with a vengeance, punched in the number of the captain over the detectives. After a couple of rings the captain answered.

“Captain Jenkins, this is Kelly Whalen of the D.A.’s office. Detective Tony Ashcroft is in my office. He says he’s been assigned to the Carlson case. What can you tell me about it?”

Captain Jenkins answered in a nonchalant manner. “Yes, I assigned him the case, Ms. Whalen. Is there a problem?”

Was there a problem? Of course there was a problem. “Could you explain your reasoning to me?”

“Detective Lee is in Amarillo testifying in a murder case, then scheduled for a vacation. Since your office needed someone immediately, I assigned the case to Ash.”

“What about Lee’s partner?”

“He’s retired.”

Well, wasn’t there another man in the entire department that they could assign this case to? Kelly wanted to yell into the phone, but obviously couldn’t say it with Ash glaring at her. “I see. Was there a particular reason you picked Detective Ashcroft?”

“Yes. Ash has just closed several high-profile cases and his caseload is light. And he’s very adept at handling the press and the public.”

Kelly knew when she was being jerked around.

“Also, Ms. Whalen, you’re going to need someone who can stand up to all the different bickering parties in this case. And the man that came to my mind and that of our department lawyer was Ash. Besides, we don’t want Carlson or his lawyer to complain that the Houston Police Department tried to railroad their client a second time. Do you have an objection to Detective Ashcroft?” he asked, innocence in his voice.

Jenkins knew exactly what the problem was. She wanted to ask him if he wanted to work with his ex-wife in the glare of the TV cameras and radio microphones. Their divorce had been messy. But she wasn’t going to let police go one up on her. This was a little game that the police and the D.A.’s office played. Unfortunately, both she and Ash were on the short end of this stick.

“I would’ve appreciated a heads-up on the situation, Captain.” She let her displeasure color her last word.

“Do you want another detective assigned to the case, Ms. Whalen?” he asked again.

“No. Detective Ashcroft will be fine.” As she hung up the phone, she gritted her teeth.

She studied her ex over the desk. She could just imagine the sparks that had flown in Jenkins’s office earlier in the day. “What did you do to make your captain mad at you?”

Ash clenched his jaw. From his reaction, she’d hit the nail on the head. “Why don’t you just fill me in on the case.”

Obviously, something had gone down to put him in the doghouse. And although it was a daunting thought to have to work with Ash, she couldn’t complain that Houston PD had sent her a bad officer. She may have personal problems with him, but he was a fine cop. And a fine specimen of manhood.

Shaking off the errant thought, she sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. “Last Friday the state supreme court threw out the Carlson case. Reversed and Rendered and the man is out of jail. Apparently, Carlson got a new lawyer and he discovered that one of the jurors knew the victim’s parents and was persuasive during the deliberations. Also, the lawyer pressed the issue that the cops had searched his apartment before they had a warrant. The clothing was tossed. I have to refile this case, and I need an investigator to flesh out some new leads.

“My boss is not happy with the court’s decision. Andrew Reed is crying foul and raving how his wife’s murderer was let out to walk the streets. Catherine’s parents, George and Nancy Procter, will probably have everyone on the social register in Houston howling by the day’s end and calling every official they know.” She mentioned the prominent couple to remind Ash of their problems. “I don’t doubt they’ll give interviews to every media outlet in the city.”

She handed him a copy of her file on the case, then stood and walked around the desk.

Ash opened it. “Ralph Lee was the lead detective?” Ash’s solemn tone set her nerves on edge. He looked up and studied her face. From the hard planes of his jaw and cheeks, she had no idea what he was thinking.

“He was, and I’m not happy with the man for doing that search before he got the warrant. He also left several dangling ends. Carlson claimed he was in the Reed house and stole her jewelry, but he didn’t murder her. I know I’m going to need another piece of solid evidence that I can give the jury to connect Carlson with the murder. I’m going to need more evidence now that I don’t have the clothing I can present to the jury.” She didn’t mention that there was something in the file that made her uneasy. Maybe once he’d looked at the file, he could identity it.

Ash placed the file on the desk, stood and met her eyes. The air between them became charged. The magnetic pull that was always there between her and Ash sprang to life, surprising and unnerving her. Her heart started to pound and her stomach dropped to her feet.

Why suddenly had the old chemistry that had burned so hotly between them flared to life now? She tried to ignore it, but it was like trying not to see the elephant in the room.

“When Lee finds out about me taking over his case, there’s going to be hell to pay.”

“Then Lee should take up the problem with your captain. He’s the one who screwed up.”

Stepping away, Ash mumbled a curse, then ran his hand through his brown hair. The thick waves flowed over his long fingers. She remembered doing the very same thing—running her hands through his hair. She knew how it felt, the richness, the thickness of his hair and what it usually led to.

Stop! her mind screamed.

“Just what I wanted—a fight with Lee and working with my ex-wife on a political hot potato.”

His comment jerked her out of her fantasies. What was the matter with her? “Since when did it bother you to go against the establishment?” Kelly snapped. “You always enjoyed poking the powers that be in the eye. And I suspect that was the reason you got assigned to this case. But I need that rebel in you, Ash, to find me something new that I can take to court.” She shook her head. “There’s going to be a lot of publicity on this case. I won’t mention what the mayor had to say about that.”

The meeting she’d attended with the mayor, who’d stressed that Andrew Reed and the Procters were powerful in the city’s political scene and had supported him, could cause them no end of grief. And he didn’t want that headache.

Ash picked up the file folder. There was a question in his eyes and some fleeting emotion that caused her heart to beat faster.

“I’ll review this and get back to you.”

“I’m going to want to refile this case as quickly as I can.”

His brow arched, then he nodded and walked out of the room.

Kelly collapsed against her desk and took a deep breath. She felt as if she’d just finished running a marathon, physically and emotionally wrung out.

She didn’t want to work with Ash. It was bad enough she had to revisit this nightmare. Remembering this case, and what had been going on in her life was painful. Add to that all the political fallout, then Ash being assigned. The captain knew exactly what he’d done by giving this case to Ash.

Ash’s husky voice had sent goose bumps rushing over her skin. When they were married, he’d whisper the things he wanted to do to her, and she’d melt into a puddle at his feet.

But that couldn’t happen again. They were only working with each other. Period. End of story. Nothing more.

Too bad her body didn’t believe that.

Ash marched down the hall of the main police facility, his temper building with each step.

He’d been blown away this morning when his captain announced he’d been assigned to work with Kelly. Then coming face-to-face with her had knocked him for a loop. She was still a gorgeous woman, blond hair, deep blue eyes, and a figure that had stopped more than one attorney at the courthouse.

He pushed open the door of Matthew Hawkins’s office and barreled inside. Ash’s ex-partner now worked as a lawyer for Houston PD. “What the hell were you thinking, Hawk?”

Hawk looked up from his desk and sat back in his chair. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, Ash. It’s kinda the nature of my job. You want to narrow it down?”

“Kelly.”

Ash threw himself in the chair in front of the desk. “You know how I feel about—” He gritted his teeth, not wanting to think about his ex-wife and the tide of emotions their meeting had jerked out of him. Dammit. He didn’t want to work with her.

Hawk put down his pen and studied Ash. “You’re lucky if that’s all the fallout from this past week.” Hawk shook his head. “Wrecking two cars within six days, then you finish up by punching out the suspect’s sister.”

Ash glared at his friend. The first wreck had been his fault, running the light as he chased the suspect who got away. The second wreck, the suspect had rammed him. “The woman was trying to stab me in the neck with a nail file as her brother ran away.”

“Well, you created a media nightmare, and Jenkins was ready to send you to Pasadena on an exchange program, when Kelly called him. When Jenkins talked the situation over with me, asked me what I thought, what was I to say?” Hawk shrugged. “Your butt was in a sling.”

Ash ran his fingers through his hair. “How’d you like to work with your ex?”

“My ex-wife already tried to run that scam on me, remember? And I nailed her on it.”

Ash remembered the incident. It was after Hawk had married his current wife, who turned out to be an heiress. “Yeah, Brandy didn’t take to kindly to your second marriage.”

Hawk shook his head. “She wanted money. But Kelly is nothing like her.”

Years ago, when they were still partners, Hawk and Ash had gone through their divorces within months of each other. They drowned their sorrows together and commiserated with each other on the disadvantages of marriage.

Recently Hawk had remarried and now had a child. He was happy with his life for the first time in years.

“It was Ralph Lee’s case,” Ash grumbled, wanting Hawk to know how truly miserable this situation was. “His screwup.”

“I know.”

“So just throw me into the biggest, darkest pit you can find.”

“I’ll admit Ralph can be an SOB to cross—”

Ash’s brow arched.

“But you can go toe-to-toe with him, Ash,” Hawk finished.

Ash shook his head. “I don’t know if I can do this, Hawk. It was weird standing there, looking at Kelly. I haven’t had a face-to-face meeting with her since we divided the property.” He ran his hands through his hair. He didn’t want to admit the feelings that had ripped through him earlier. Feelings that he never thought he’d experience again. And certainly not in response to Kelly.

Ash glared at Hawk. “I don’t know whether to punch a hole in the wall or the supreme court jurists for letting Steve Carlson loose.”

“My legal advice is that you do neither.”

He shook his head. “So not only do I have to work with my ex, I have to dance around Ralph Lee’s ego. The man’s worse than an old dog with a bone. What a mess.”

“You got it.”

“You know, since you’ve discovered love, Hawk, you’ve become a real pain in the butt.”

“Ash, if you need any help, let me know.”

“What I need is another A.D.A. and someone else to do this case,” Ash grumbled as he left Hawk’s office.

“Unfortunately, you’re it.”

Didn’t he know.

“So, that was your famous ex-husband?” Teresa Myers asked as she placed a letter on Kelly’s desk, then lingered longer than necessary.

If Teresa only knew what Ash and she’d been through—but she didn’t, and Kelly had no intention of sharing. Of course, after this afternoon, Kelly could understand Teresa’s awed tone. Meeting Ash under the best of circumstances was intimidating. Meeting him when he was fit to be tied wasn’t a pleasant experience.

“That was him.”

“Is he always so—uh—dynamic?”

Kelly shook her head. She’d bet that dynamic wasn’t Teresa’s first choice of words to describe Ash. “Pretty much.”

“Really?” Her eyes widened.

“Ash is good and doesn’t take shortcuts.” The words tumbled out of Kelly’s mouth before she thought. “If he brings me evidence, I can count on it. And that’s what’s important right now, not how I feel.”

“So, what you’re telling me is you are going to be able to work with you ex and have no problems?”

That was the question that had plagued Kelly since Ash had left. “Why shouldn’t I?” she answered.

“Because the man’s a hunk.”

Great, just want Kelly needed to hear. She clenched her jaw and forced a neutral tone. “Ash could strip naked in this office and it wouldn’t affect me, except that I would call another cop to cite him for indecent exposure.”

Teresa’s expression said she didn’t believe a word of it. “If you say so.” She picked up the newspaper on the desk. The headline proclaimed Carlson’s release. “Isn’t this going to be a nightmare? My mom asked about double jeopardy.”

“If Carlson had been found innocent, that would be the case. This order throws out the original verdict and part of the evidence, so we have to start all over again. I need to refile on this case. Would you bring me the paperwork?”

“Sure.”

Once alone, Kelly stood and walked to the window. Downtown workers poured from the buildings, hurrying home. Home to their families and loved ones. Kelly didn’t have to worry about anyone waiting on her. She was her own woman. No one to tell her what to do. No one to tell how her day had gone. And she liked it that way.

When she reviewed the case days ago, after the court had ruled, she was distressed with the dangling ends left in the case. Also, although Carlson copped to the burglary, he vigorously denied murdering Catherine Reed. There was fiber evidence to prove he had been in the Reed house, but no blood evidence could be found to connect Carlson with the murder. And it had been a bloody scene.

She shook her head. Working with Ash wasn’t going to be a problem, she assured herself, even though their approach to the law was as different as night and day. He thought outside the box. She wanted all the i’s dotted and t’s crossed. Her miscarriage had intensified those differences, driven a wedge between her and Ash that had finally resulted in their divorce. He hadn’t understood—Kelly stopped her thoughts from going further.

Those were issues that weren’t involved in this case and she wouldn’t have to revisit them. They could work together on a professional level.

Yeah, and since when did the assistant D.A. start lying to herself? asked a voice in her head.

“Since the Carlson case got kicked into my lap,” she whispered.

Ash walked slowly into the building that housed the criminal division of the D.A.’s office. He’d spent the night reviewing the Carlson case. Reed claimed that he and his wife had gone to a society dinner. Then afterward, he had dropped his wife off at their house and gone out for cappuccino at a trendy coffee bar by their house. When he had came back home, he had found Catherine in their bedroom, hacked to death with the Civil War saber that had belonged to Catherine’s great-great grandfather. He’d immediately called the police. Afterward, it had been discovered that their safe had been robbed of two diamond necklaces.

All the pieces fit together into a clear picture—except that there wasn’t any blood evidence on Carlson or in his apartment. Fiber evidence, yes, but no blood. Of course, Carlson could’ve disposed of the shirt, but as bloody as the crime scene had been, it would’ve also gotten onto his pants, too, which had contained fibers.

Carlson’s hands had been cut and bruised, but he claimed it was from changing a tire on his car.

What didn’t make sense to Ash about this case was that Carlson was a burglar. He’d done time for theft. He didn’t have a history of violence, with the one exception of being arrested for hitting his ex-wife. The manner in which Catherine Reed had been killed indicated rage. Carlson’s history didn’t fit with the crime.

Ash wondered why Kelly hadn’t questioned this aspect of the crime the first time around. Then it hit him—the timing of the murder. Five years. Kelly had just miscarried their baby.

No wonder Kelly hadn’t questioned the little nagging doubts in the file. He didn’t doubt that some of the work he had done right after the miscarriage could have been called into question.

It sounded to Ash as if Steve Carlson had gotten the short end of the stick, and he didn’t have a decent lawyer to complain about it the first time around. Kelly wasn’t going to be too pleased with his observations.

When he walked into lobby of the criminal division, Kelly stood next to her secretary’s desk.

“Good,” she sighed, “you’re here.” She didn’t wait on him but walked into her office.

“Is the detective here?” Ash heard someone ask Kelly.

“He is.” Kelly stood by her desk.

Seated in the chairs before her desk was an elderly couple. Introductions were quickly made to Catherine Reed’s parents, George and Nancy Procter.

“So when are you going to rearrest that killer?” Mrs. Procter asked. The elegantly dressed woman pinned Ash with a hard stare, which belied her soft tone. Her husband also watched Ash with cold regard.

Ash looked at Kelly. “There’s a lot of work to do, beginning the case, again. And it’s a cold trail, which makes things even harder.”

“Do you mean you’re not going to arrest that man today?” Mrs. Procter’s voice reminded Ash of a queen issuing an order to her servant. Ash had always resisted being pushed or bullied. It was a quirk he’d acquired in the first grade when an older third-grader had tried to bully him. After a week of taking it, Ash had punched the bully and ended the terror. He’d learned a valuable lesson, never to be victimized again.

Ash opened his mouth, but Kelly stepped forward. “We want to make sure nothing else will go wrong and that we can nail Steve Carlson.”

“And will you press for the death penalty?” George Procter questioned.

Well, it was certain that the Procters weren’t going to be happy unless Carlson fried. Apparently the genteel society folks were out for blood, not that he could blame them. But he had the feeling that the Procters were going to be breathing down his and Kelly’s necks.

Kelly leaned back against her desk. “I’ll have to talk to my boss about the disposition of the case.”

“I want that man to pay for what he did to our little girl,” the older man insisted, “and I don’t care what it takes to make him pay.”

It sounded as if George Procter was ready to take justice into his own hands.

“I’ll be sure to pass your feelings on to my boss,” Kelly told him.

“There’s no need. I’ll tell him myself,” George informed her. “Come, Nancy, let’s go.”

After the couple left, Kelly closed the door to her office. She leaned back against the door. “This is going to be a nightmare. I’ve already had five calls this morning about this case—from my boss, the newspapers, the victim’s husband—all demanding to know what I’m going to do.” Her gaze met his, and she silently asked if he had the answer.

“Have you looked at the file, Kelly?”

Her eyes narrowed. “I have.”

“So you see our problem.”

She sighed. “Yeah, I do. That’s why I wanted the case reinvestigated. I need more to tie Carlson to that crime. I want you to go over it again, Ash. Interview the people at the dinner party that night. Something’s wrong. I didn’t catch it before, but I’m not going to make that mistake a second time.”

“All right. I’ll start digging, but you realize, in the intervening five years, a lot of the people who could’ve helped might not be there. And the evidence from the crime scene, we need to reevaluate it.” He wanted to paint as dark a picture as he could.

“I know that, Ash. Remember who you’re talking to.”

As if he could forget it. He had tried for the past four years to avoid having to deal with Kelly Whalen. He’d been fairly successful in his quest. Until now.

But she had a point. Of all the people in the city, Kelly would know how hard it would be to investigate this murder.

“I know you know how difficult this is going to be. Tell everyone we’re going to have to go from square one and it’s going to take some time,” Ash replied.

She rubbed her neck. “What I need is a miracle. You got one?” Her eyes begged him to have an answer. That look sizzled down his spine, warning Ash that he was walking into trouble.

A loud rap on the door stopped Ash from answering Kelly. Immediately, the door opened and the D.A. walked into the room. Jake Thorpe, a tall man with a shock of white hair, had made his way up through the ranks. He had joined the D.A.’s office in the early seventies after he got out of the army and had gone to college and law school.

“Ah, good, you’re here, Ashcroft. That will make things easier.” He turned to Kelly. “I just got a visit from George and Nancy Procter. I must say they were very concerned about the disposition of this case.”

“I just bet they were,” Ash muttered.

Kelly glared at him.

Jake’s brow arched. “What we need to do is make sure you can refile this case. Are we going to be able to do that anytime soon?”

Kelly’s chin came up. “Ash was just enumerating the problems we’re going to have with the evidence and witnesses.”

Jake turned to Ash. “What problems?”

“As I started to explain to Kelly, the case rested on Carlson’s confession to the burglary, and fiber evidence on his clothes. With the clothes out, all we have is the jewelry. He could claim the necklaces were given to him. We need to connect him with the murder. Over the passage of time, witnesses have left the area and if we don’t have the evidence in storage, then I doubt we can uncover anything new.”

Jake studied Ash. “We all understand the problems, Detective. What we need is a new pair of eyes to view the evidence. But we also need you to do so quickly. I can only take so much heat.”

Ash understood. Jake was between a rock and a hard place, and he didn’t much care for it. He wasn’t the only one.

Ash leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. He reviewed the file Kelly had given him.

“So you’ve been given my case.”

Ash glanced up into Lee’s hardened face. The scowl the older man wore was enough to frighten anyone with a lick of sense or guilt. At six foot, two-hundred-and-fifty pounds, Ralph Lee looked as if he could take down any suspect and beat him into a pulp with his ham-sized fists. It didn’t matter that the detective was fifty. He was still in top shape, with a steely gaze that had been known to bring more than one suspect to his knees.

“You through testifying in your case in Amarillo?” Ash asked.

“The man took the plea bargain the D.A.’s office offered.”

“I thought you were going to go on vacation,” Ash replied.

“I heard about the Carlson case and decided to come back. You’ve been assigned the case?”

“Yeah, Jenkins gave it to me.”

Lee’s expression hardened. “I’ll talk to him.” The older man marched into the captain’s office. Twenty minutes later, Lee walked out of the office. “I’m going to take my vacation. If you have any questions, you just run it by the captain. It seems he’s got all the answers.”

Ash glanced at the captain’s door. It was open and Ralph made sure he’d been heard.

Oh, things were going to hell in a handbasket.

Kelly settled down in her bed and tucked the blanket under her chin. It was an unusually chilly night in Houston, the damp cold seeping into her bones. Ash had always teased her about being a wimp when it came to cold. When he had been beside her in bed, she never had a problem with cold. It was like sleeping next to a furnace.

“What’s the matter with you, Whalen, thinking like that?” she grumbled out loud to the empty room.

It didn’t bode well for her if, in twenty-four hours of working with Ash, she was remembering how it felt to be in bed with him.

Not in her wildest dreams had she thought the cops would assign the case to Ash. He really must have made someone mad. She ought to check it out.

Who would have thought a week ago that she’d be facing this political hot potato and have to deal with her ex.

As she stared into the dark, she wondered if she would survive this case? There were wounds that had been inflicted that had never healed, issues that Kelly had never wanted to deal with. That was the trouble with issues—they always managed to crop up at the most inconvenient time. She didn’t think Ash was anxious to revisit the old wounds, either; nor did he seem pleased to be working this case. Well, if they came to an understanding to leave the past in the past, then maybe they could work together on this case.

That was a plan. She hoped Ash would go along with it. But then again, when had Ash ever made things easy?