Goddess of Justice by Dwayne Clayden (mobi ebook reader TXT) 📕

Griffin’s hands shook as he drank his coffee. As far as he was concerned, Brad had proven his guilt by disappearing. No amount of talking could convince Griffin otherwise. He didn’t accept Sturgeon’s contention that Brad was under great stress. Griffin called it bullshit. If Coulter could get it together to track the snipers, then none of this was stress related.

Brad had gone over the line, gone to the dark side. They’d both seen it when he came back to work with an edge. For whatever reason, killing Wolfe hadn’t been enough. Brad sometimes talked of the injustices of the court system. Brad had picked the path of a vigilante.

Archer was thinking about what Griffin had said. Sturgeon glanced toward Griffin, who leaned forward, jaw set.

Archer stopped pacing and leaned on his desk. “Let me get this straight, Griffin. You want to be the lead on the case because you believe Coulter is guilty.”

“Yes, sir.” Griffin’s jaw was set. His eyes blazed with anger. “His actions proved it.”

“He’s your partner.”

“No, sir, he was never a partner.” Griffin inhaled and exhaled rapidly, his fists clenched. “We worked a case together, that’s it. Less than a month. He’s smart, but he does his own thing. He doesn’t want a partner. Brad isn’t the same guy he was six months ago. Not even close. The Brad we knew then would never consider being a vigilante. But the Brad who came back would.”

“Maybe, but he was brilliant on the sniper case,” Jackson said. “No one was close to making the connections.”

Griffin leaned forward, anger in every fiber of his body. “I’m not saying he isn’t smart and an excellent detective. He has slipped a cog or two in his brain. He’s changed. And not in a healthy way.”

Archer sighed and sat back, fingers steepled under his chin. “The chief has already assigned Internal Affairs this case.”

Griffin chewed his lip and glared at Archer. “This isn’t some piddly case about a cop getting free dinners at a restaurant or letting his best friend off with a traffic violation, it’s multiple murders. And if you think those pissants from IA can solve this case, you’re—”

Archer held up a hand and glared at Griffin. “Not another word.”

“You know I’m right.”

Archer clenched his jaw. “I can’t argue with your logic. This is bigger than an IA investigation, but you work with Harker and Genereau and report to Jackson.”

“Whoa.” Jackson held up a hand. “I didn’t ask to be involved. I don’t want to be involved.”

Archer swung on Jackson. “Oh, I’m sorry, Staff Sergeant.” Archer’s eyes blazed and his face flushed. “I didn’t realize I had to ask permission before I assigned my staff sergeant to a case. And you, Sturgeon? Where do you stand?”

“The evidence is the evidence.” Sturgeon shrugged. “I’m not deciding innocence or guilt. I will lead my team objectively and evaluate every piece of evidence, no matter who the suspect is.”

Archer stood to his full six-foot-one height. “Imagine that. A cop taking his sworn oath seriously.” He swung to Griffin. “Talk to Harker and Genereau.”

Griffin stood and stomped out of the office.

Archer stared at the closed door. “Fucking incredible. One Homicide detective hunting another. This is a public confidence nightmare.” Archer slumped into his chair. “Every department worldwide has gone through internal struggles, some—like the New York City Police Department—many times. It tears a department apart. This is new for us—we’ve been lucky. We’re trusted by the public. That’s going down the shitter.”

“If Coulter is guilty of murder, then yes, you have a problem,” Jackson said.

Archer glanced from Jackson to Sturgeon. When he spoke, his voice was low, his eyes boring into them. “I want him found and charged with the murders. The courts decide his guilt or innocence, not us.”

Jackson leaned forward, his hands wide in front of him. “Chief, I’ll find him, then we can talk to him.”

Archer pounded a fist on his desk. “Jackson, I want Coulter arrested. Today. Sturgeon, I want you and your team to go over every piece of evidence again.” Archer slumped in his chair. “Fuckin’ Coulter. Pain in my ass.”

Sturgeon pulled his most trusted evidence techs, Gayle and Angie, into his office and closed the door. Gayle was about five-six, with shoulder-length brown hair and sparkling eyes. Angie, a few inches shorter with blond hair and green eyes. With three of them in Sturgeon’s office, there wasn’t a lot of room, and only two chairs. Both Gayle and Angie stood.

“I have an important task.” Sturgeon put his elbows on his desk and rested his chin on his clutched hands. “Once I tell you what it is, if you don’t want to be involved, I’ll understand. I won’t hold it against you.”

They glanced at each other and shrugged.

“What I say next is confidential.” He glanced from one lady to the other. “You talk to no one other than me. Clear?”

They nodded.

“Perfect.” He sat back. “We’re going over the Coulter evidence again. Right from the start, like we’ve never seen it before.”

Angie hesitantly raised a hand. “Did we do something wrong?”

Sturgeon shook his head. “No. That’s not it. When a cop is involved, we have to be sure of our conclusions.”

“Coulter is your friend,” Gayle said. “Do you think he’s innocent?”

“He is my friend.” Sturgeon sighed, glanced at the reports on his cluttered desk, then raised his head. “But that doesn’t change what we do. The evidence will go where it goes. But I’d be lying if I said I thought he did it. That’s why we will examine the evidence again. Is this a problem?”

Gayle said, “Not for me.”

Angie shook her head. “Me neither.”

“Great, let’s get started.”

Chapter Forty

Brad woke with a start. He reached over the side of the bed, but Lobo wasn’t there. He shook his head and cleared his eyes. Where the heck was he? He’d never seen this room before. Cream wallpaper with branches on trees with hanging birdhouses and a white comforter and pillowcases with white and pink roses. He