“By this time it’s five after ten, and backup shows up, like they always do on car stops, and people are looking, and I’m livid. Another few minutes go by, and I’m sitting there rehearsing everything I’m gonna say, and all the supervisors I’m gonna call, and all the trouble I’m gonna make. Then all of a sudden this woman gets out of the squad car and she’s standing next to my window and she’s beautiful. Right then, my mind goes blank. I fumble around and show her my badge and she tells me to be careful next time. That should’ve been the end of it, but I couldn’t stop thinking about her, so the next day I sent her two dozen roses at roll call and embarrassed her in front of everybody in her unit. Then I kept showing up at the district until she agreed to go out with me. Ever since then, she’s never ceased to amaze me. She’s smart and sexy and sure about everything she does.”

Mann paused as Coletti whipped around City Hall and turned down Fifteenth. “I guess that’s why it was so strange when she called me about seeing this killer,” he said. “For the first time since I’ve known her, she seemed almost afraid.”

“Didn’t that make it hard to believe?” Coletti asked as he made a right on Walnut. “I mean, fear can do strange things to people’s minds.”

“I thought about that,” Mann admitted. “I even tried to get her to change her story. But Sandy saw something on that corner tonight. Hopefully we can figure out what.”

Coletti made a left on Twenty-first and parked behind Sandy’s squad car. As he and Mann walked to the corner, Sandy got out and met them. A smile was the closest she came to a public display of affection for Mann. She showed her disdain for Coletti by rolling her eyes.

“Are you all right?” Mann asked.

“I’m fine,” she said, glaring at Coletti before turning her gaze back to Charlie. “I’m worried about you. It’s hard when you’ve got a partner you can’t trust.”

The hostility in her words wasn’t lost on Coletti. He tried to smooth things over. “Look, Sandy, I—”

“You can call me Sergeant Jackson,” she said angrily.

“Okay, fair enough,” Coletti said. “I just want to clear the air so we all understand each other.”

“Oh, I think we understand each other perfectly,” she snapped. “I heard about what you said to Charlie this morning about shooting at one of his own.”

“Yeah, and I said I was wrong! What more do you want?”

“Yo, you need to calm down,” Mann warned.