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The song played through

He was so close to Lucia he could feel her warhts were a million er burning inside him He resented Lucia’s past He felt powerless, the way he’d felt watching the forensics teaurney with Julia Garcia’s body

"I could do so about Frankie White," Etch said

Lucia set down her shot glass, leaned toward hiain Not even a hint"

"Lucia--"

"You become like them if you do that, Etch It would eat you up The only way to keep your soul fro when you deal with people like Frankie White is not to be like them Don’t hate them Just do your job"

"Is that possible?"

Her eyes were intense, almost desperate "It has to be"

They sat on the porch swing in their funeral clothes, listening to lovecheerfully inside--Ana’s friends trying to reach her, opti to chat about their wide-open futures

ETCH WAS ON COMMERCE, THREE BLOCKS from the office, when he pulled over to take a call

"Bad news," Kelsey said "Ballistics can’t un we found at Navarre’s house Slugs are too badly led"

"Caliber?" Etch asked

"Yeah Right caliber: 357 But the blood on the shirt isn’t Ana’s Could be Arguello’s They’re still testing"

His voice trailed off, wiry and nervous

"What else?" Etch asked

"A body turned up in a South Side du One of Zapata’s cutters, shot point-blank in the gut Our guys have been asking around Seeht This guy and a friend met a heavyset Latino with a ponytail, about the same tiuello"

"You’re saying Arguello has an alibi"

"A bad goddauy?"

"But that would mean he didn’t shoot Ana"

"It’s weak, sir It’s still gotta be him"

Etch heard the indecision in his voice

Kelsey was the equivalent of an Abraet in the distance and wide straight road, he would roll over everything in his path But as soon as he started doubting his aiood push to keep going

"Kelsey," Etch said, "if you think you uello, for whatever reason, if you think you’ve made a mistake, it’s not too late"

He could almost feel the steam on the other end of the line Etch had dared to use the M-word

"I didn’t htly

"All right"

"I’ll keep you posted"

Kelsey hung up, hard

Etch sat back and closed his eyes He tried to convince hi could still work out

With luck, Kelsey would now hound Arguello till Doomsday, and he would think it was his own idea He would think Etch had tried to convince him not to

Etch didn’t hate otten aith murder before He was no better than the Whites Worse He’d married Ana, jeopardized the career Etch had helped her build

Two years ago, watching them at the altar had been more than Etch could bear--Ana in her white dress, her face so rinning like the devil

Navarre and Maia Lee had been at the wedding Then, as now, standing by Ralph Arguello, supporting so hi next to him, the way she had so many years on patrol

Why did you do it, Etch? she asked

It was an accident, he promised her It wasn’t supposed to happen

She turned her face to theIt was no accident You know better

The sound of his cell phone startled him out of his trance

His surveillance man had a short report: Maia Lee had spent the last couple of hours inside the Express-News offices, probably going through the archives Now she was at the Pig Stand, talking to the old guy behind the counter

Etch hung up, hit the steering wheel with his palm

"Miss Lee," he chided "Miss Lee, Miss Lee"

He felt his anger building

Jai The old erous And Maia Leeshe was tooAna’s trail too well

If Kelsey didn’t do his work right, if Arguello started looking bad as a suspect

Etch searched for a fallback plan Only one ca since he debriefed the old deputy Drapiewski It had a certain sense of justice to it