The in Death Collection Books 11-15 - J. D. Robb [81]
“I see.” Tibble leaned back against his desk in a way that forced Eve to bite back a small, satisfied smile. “And may I ask, Captain, who made this agreement?”
“It was discussed between myself and several high-ranking members of my division.”
“I see. You decided among yourselves to disregard the chain of command.”
“Yes, sir.” He said it stiffly, stubbornly. “We had reason to believe that the leaks reached up that chain. By informing other departments, we would compromise that investigation before it began.”
“Then am I given to understand that Commander Whitney is under suspicion in your division?”
“No, sir.”
“Perhaps I am part of your internal investigation.”
Bayliss opened his mouth, wisely closed it again to give his brain time to engage. “Sir, you are under no suspicion.”
“Any longer?” Tibble finished silkily. “That’s a comfort, Captain. And having established that neither myself nor the commander were suspected of infractions or crimes that warrant IAB action, you still neglected to inform either of us of this investigation.”
“Witch hunt,” Roth said under her breath and earned a glare from Bayliss.
“It seemed unnecessary to do so, sir, until the operation was satisfactorily completed.”
“Shall I explain to you, Captain, why you are mistaken?”
Bayliss bore up under the penetrating stare. “No, sir. I regret the oversight. And as ordered, Chief Tibble, all records, all documents, all notes on said operation are now in your possession.”
“Including, I presume, all data pertaining to the homicide investigations currently under the hand of Lieutenant Dallas?”
Stubbornness set like concrete on Bayliss’s face. “It is my opinion that the two matters do not connect.”
“Really? Do you have an opinion on that, Lieutenant, Dallas?”
“Yes, sir. My opinion is that Captain Bayliss has made another error in judgment. Two police officers, both from the One two-eight, have been murdered in under a week by the same hand. I believe that one, Lieutenant Mills, was under IAB investigation and will prove to be guilty of accepting bribes, tampering with evidence, and conspiring to undermine a criminal case. Detective Kohli, an IAB plant, agreed to pose as an NYPSD officer who was also taking. While this portion of the operation is acceptable, the investigation into his death was compromised and tampered with by the withholding of Kohli’s status. There is no precedent that I’m aware of that gives IAB the authority to compromise a homicide investigation in order to protect one of its own operations.”
“I am also unaware of such a precedent. Captain?”
“Our operation was at a delicate point.” He was beginning to ruffle, badly, and swerved in his chair to scowl at Eve. “Look, Kohli went into this eyes open. Nobody pressured him. He wanted the extra duty and the extra pay. We had no reason to believe his life was in danger and every reason to believe that he would, in his position at Purgatory, connect with Ricker.”
She wanted to ask what Ricker had to do with Purgatory, but she didn’t dare. Not here and now. “And when he was dead, Captain?”
“We couldn’t change that, but we felt if we maintained Kohli’s cover, let it leak to the primary that he was dirty, it would open opportunities to uncover other leaks in the One twenty-eight.”
“You used one of my men,” Roth shot out. “Do you think I’ve got the only squad with a Mills? Cops on the take aren’t the exclusive property of my house.”
“You’ve got more than your share of them.”
“I was given false information,” Eve cut in. “That’s a violation of code. Above that—above it, beyond it, over it, and under it—trying to push the investigation of a murdered fellow cop into a dead end, using that dead cop as a blind, is contemptible. As far as I’m concerned, Kohli died in the line of duty. He damn well deserved respect.”
“Lieutenant,” Whitney muttered, but without heat. “Enough.”
“No, sir, it’s a long way from enough.” When she got to her feet, Tibble said nothing. “IAB has a purpose,