“You have no probable cause to interview Harrison Monroe. In fact, you made it clear that the Victoria Mills homicide is a local police issue, so you have no reason to interview Mitch or Simon or anyone else.”

“If you continue down this path and you are even partly right, then you could blow the entire investigation, and could very well put a young boy at risk.”

Max glared at her. “I do not blow investigations.”

“We believe that Ricky Albright is alive and in hiding. We think he knows something about his family’s murder, possibly as a witness. We have a plan to bring him home safely, but if he’s scared—and if those responsible find out we have a line on him—he may never come home, and could be in more danger.”

“I would never put a child in danger. Between the two of us, we have far more information than separately.”

“The difference is I have a badge and you have a pen. Would you seriously withhold information in a capital case because you want to be in the middle of the investigation?”

“It’s really hard not to take that as an insult.”

Sean spoke up.

“Max, can you excuse us for a minute?”

Max walked out without comment, closing the door behind her.

“What’s wrong?” Sean asked.

“Wrong? Are you actually taking her side?”

“I’m not taking sides because there is no side to take. We all want the same thing.”

“I want justice. She wants a story.”

“I don’t think that’s fair to Max.”

“That’s not what you used to think. It’s so hard to compete against her!”

That didn’t come out the way Lucy intended, and by the look on Sean’s face he didn’t understand.

“You sound jealous, and you don’t have a jealous bone in your body,” he said.

“It’s her way. I know you and Dillon are friends with her and she is so persuasive and smart, but she’s a reporter. She’s not a cop, and her concerns are not my concerns. I admire her work—she is truly brilliant on so many levels. Her books are textbooks in how to investigate cold cases—but also in what not to do.”

“I think I understand,” he said.

“You don’t.”

“Now you’re not being fair to me, Luce. I know that your hands are often tied, and I know that you wrestle with bending the rules.”

“I’ve done it, to save lives, and I’ve never regretted it.” She’d once broken a rule that resulted in saving a woman’s life … but also let a human trafficker walk. It hadn’t been a hard decision, because life is precious. That woman deserved to survive, and if she hadn’t gotten the information out of the trafficker the woman would have died.

But he walked, and that was a heavy burden to carry.