“Homicide does have top priority.”

“Not to the exclusion of the other details.”

Decker glared at her. “Are you lecturing me?”

Marge met his hostile stare. “Yes, I am.”

Decker was quiet. Then he said, “Are people talking?”

“A comment or two.”

“Saying?”

“You have pets.” Marge faced him. “A big GTA ring was busted yesterday. A couple of the guys were wondering why you were at Sparks’s memorial service instead of patting them on the back.”

“So remind me to set up a chart for gold stars—”

“Pete—”

“All right, all right.” He ran his hand through his hair. She was right. It was a great bust. And yes, he could have been a little more generous with the praise. He had been preoccupied…

Marge dropped the wallet into a plastic bag. “Out of curiosity, why not let Webster and Martinez do the evidence collection?”

“They’re doing Sparks’s car.”

“So what’s more important right now?”

Again, she was right. Batting a cool thou, Dunn. Decker said, “I’ll call them down.”

“No offense, Pete?”

“Not at all.” Decker folded his hands across his chest. “I’ll do a little poking around until they, the coroner and the lab people, get here. Does that scenario meet with your approval, Detective?”

“Touchy, touchy.”

Decker said, “What are you doing Sunday night?”

“I got a heavy date with my video store. It’s two-for-one night.”

“Come for dinner.”

“People’ll talk. Teacher’s pet.”

Decker grinned, threw his arm around Marge. “Let them talk.”

21

Wordlessly, Shockley slapped the lobby elevator’s up button, his angry eyes moving between Oliver and Marge. When the doors opened, he stepped in first. The ride up was silent, as was the walk down the hall to his office. The doctor opened the door and walked in. As soon as Marge and Oliver were inside, he slammed it shut.

“Contrary to what you might think, I’m not the CEO of this company.” Shockley was fierce. “I’m an employee and have a job to do. If I don’t do it, I’ll have hell to pay.”

Marge said, “We’re sorry about coming in unannounced, but—”

“Sorry? You yank me out of a very important meeting with the Board of Directors after strong-arming my secretary—”

“Sir, we didn’t strong-arm—”

“Scaring her to death, threatening her—”

“No one threatened any—”

“This better be important!”

“Kenneth Leonard’s dead,” Oliver said unceremoniously. “So is Reg Decameron. Both of them were murdered.”

Shockley gasped. “What!”

“You want to sit down, Doctor?” Marge said.

A rhetorical question. Shockley had slumped into his desk chair. He tried to speak, but his mouth formed soundless words.

Oliver said, “Detective Dunn and I were called to the scene this afternoon. They were murdered in Decameron’s house. We picked through Leonard’s pocket…for ID. His driver’s license says he’s unmarried. Do you know if he has a significant other?”