Something in his words struck a chord because her flashing eyes went totally cold. "If you're worried that I won't bewatching your back, worry no more, Lieutenant.

What happened this morning was my personal business. I won't allow my personal business to interfere with our work. You have my word on that."

She'd held his eyes through all her words and now that she was done, she continued to stare in a way that dared him to cross her. "I don't know you, Detective, so your word means very little to me." He held up his hand when she opened her mouth to utter what he was sure would be unprintable. "But I do know Marc Spinnelli and he has confidence in your capability. I'll let this morning pass. But if it happens again, I'll ask Spinnelli for someone else. You have my word on that."

She blinked several times, her teeth clenched so hard it was a wonder they didn't shatter "The morgue. Lieutenant. If you please."

Reed put the car in gear, satisfied that he'd made his point. "To the morgue."

Monday, November 27, 10:05 a.m.

Mia was out of Solliday's SUV before he'd come to a complete stop. Threaten to go to my boss, my ass. As if he'd never gotten lost in thought in his life. So blow it off. It's no big deal. Right? She fought not to grind her teeth as Solliday followed her across the parking garage. Wrong. It was a big deal. He was right. Anybody could have surprised her, taken her weapon. She slowed her pace. She hadn't been careful. Again.

He caught up to her at the elevator and she silently pushed the button. Without a word Solliday followed her in and stood close enough that she could feel the heat from his body. He stood like a granite monolith, arms crossed over his chest which made her feel about eight years old. It was all she could do not to cower into the corner. Instead, she kept her eyes locked on the display as the numbers went up.

"I hope you accomplished your goal with that little stunt," he said, surprising her into looking up at him. He stared straight ahead, his mouth turned down in a frown.

"Excuse me?"

"Jumping from the car before it was stopped. I know you were pissed at me, but it's a long way down for you and you could have broken your leg."

Mia laughed, incredulous. "You're not my father. Lieutenant Solliday."

"Be grateful I'm not." The doors open and he waited for her to go first. "I'd have grounded my daughter for a week for a stunt like that. Two, if she gave me any lip."

Don't give me lip, girl. Mia barely controlled the flinch. When she was a kid, the snarled line was usually followed by a slap to the head that left her seeing stars. When she got older, just her dad saying that line was enough to make her draw back, earning his contemptuous laughter. She'd hated his laugh. She'd hated him. My own father.

But it wasn't her father standing next to her. It was Reed Solliday and he was holding the door that led to the morgue. "Do these things bother you?" he asked. "The victim's in really bad shape. Charred beyond recognition."

They did, but she'd die before letting him know about it. "I'm sure I've seen worse."

"I suppose you have," he murmured and stopped at the glass window to the identification room. "Barrington's busy. We'll have to wait."

Mia's stomach tightened and it had nothing to do with the body on the metal table covered with a sheet. Aidan Reagan stood next to the ME looking at X-rays. He'd see her, there was no escaping it. Abe's brother would likely be as angry as his wife had been. Aidan turned from the X-rays and immediately frowned, his eyes meeting hers through the glass. He was nodding at something ME Barrington was saying, but he never broke eye contact with her. He came through the door and stopped.

Solliday moved toward the door, but paused when he realized something was brewing. Interested, Solliday looked from Aidan to Mia, those damn dark brows of his lifted. He looked like Satan, for God's sake. Solliday, not Aidan. Aidan just looked upset.

"Can you give us a minute, Solliday?"

He nodded, obviously still curious. "I'll wait for you inside."

She turned to Aidan Reagan. "Kristen already chewed my ass this morning," she said before he could say a word, "but I'm going to the hospital to see Abe tonight, so if you want to meet me there and take what's left, be my guest."

Aidan quietly assessed her face, just as Kristen had done. "Okay. I will."

His voice was heavy with disappointment. She hated when people were disappointed. And she hated that she hated it. "I have to go."

"Mia, wait." He held out his hand, then let it drop to his side. "We were worried."

"Yeah, I know. Look, Aidan, I fucked up. Somehow I'll make it up to Abe." She moved toward the door, but Aidan caught her arm and she sucked in a painful breath.

Instantly he released her. "You still hurt."

"I'll live," she said curtly. "I'm in far better shape than Abe." Solliday was already talking to the ME. "I really have to go, Aidan."

Aidan followed her gaze through the window. "Who is that guy?"

"Solliday. He's with OFI and my new best pal until Abe comes back or we solve his homicide, whichever comes first. Solliday's fire turned up a body with a bullet."

Aidan grimaced. "Yeah, I got a glimpse of it. Better you than me, Mia."

"Gee, thanks." She pushed past him into the morgue, trying to ignore the odor that always hovered there. It was much worse today. Chemicals combined with the stench of cooked flesh to make her stomach churn. ME Barrington was sliding X-rays onto the light board and Mia forced her mind to switch out of self-pity into detective mode.

The X-rays showed a neat round hole at the base of a skull.

"There's no exit wound," Barrington was saying. "The bullet's still in there, but I can't guarantee what shape it will be in. Detective Mitchell. Good to see you back."

"Thanks." She stared at the X-ray, focusing her thoughts. "Bullet came from a.22?"

"That would be my guess." Barrington pulled the X-ray down. "No carbon monoxide in her lungs. She died before the fire started."

"He shot her execution style," Solliday noted and Barrington nodded.

"I found three breaks in one of the leg bones. Two are current. One is healed, the bone set properly, a few years ago at least, so you know she had access to good health care at one time."

"Her dad's a cop," Mia said.

He didn't blink. Not a damn flicker of emotion. "Well, find out who her dentist was. I'll get her records and make a formal ID. Until then, she's a Jane Doe." The ME walked to a table and carefully pulled back the sheet. Mia took in the sight for a split second. It was all she could manage without losing what little breakfast she'd consumed. It was bad. Worse than she'd expected. Maybe worse than she'd seen before.

Her eyes flashed to Solliday and watched his body go rigid, his skin just a little paler. He'd seen this body before, probably many others just as bad. But it wasn't revulsion she saw on his face. Just pain. He has a daughter, she thought. Young enough to still ground for bad behavior. Thinking that somewhere in the neat suit beat a heart helped her get over her own nausea at the sight of the blackened corpse. She forced herself to look at what remained of a nineteen-year-old girl. She had a job to do.

A macabre blackened face stared up from the gleaming silver of the table. Charred skin stretched tight over her facial bones. A few tufts of hair remained. Blonde, like the driver's license photo Solliday had shown her. She'd been such a pretty girl. So young. She'd been smiling for the DMV's camera. Now her nose was gone and her mouth was open grotesquely, as if on a final, eternal scream. What did he do to you, Caitlin?