Chapter 2 - One For My Baby

"You wanna come down and join us at Mac's later?"

Danny was kind to offer for the third time this week, but Diane didn't feel like returning to the scene of the crime just yet. Mac's had, until recently, been a great place to wind down. It only took two meetings with Detective Denby to completely tarnish the charm of the place. She didn't need a drink, but she missed the familiar company that it offered.

"Naw, thanks anyway, Danny. You go have a good time. I think I'll turn in early." She smiled gratefully and began tidying her desk for tomorrow.

"Okay, then Diane. Have a good night." Danny closed his jacket over his shoulder holster and left.

"Thanks, you too," she called out behind him.

Diane was the last one to leave the squad room again. It was easier this way, and she felt like she could relax and think without being scrutinized. With Bobby dead, and her partner gone for good under a cloud of suspicion, Diane had become a figure of tragic nobility. She wore her widowhood like a veil over her heart.

Yet, in her lonely situation, she felt nothing. Fatigue worked on her like a drug and the numbing trance was broken when she thought of only one person.

Detective Harry Denby.

He still weighed on her mind, and when she pictured his face her whole body came alive with anger, and something else she didn't recognize.

He had been around the station a few days since he apologized, talking with Fancy, and interviewing skels in the basement. She had managed to keep very busy and he had kept his distance. After having been arrested in a raid by the squad, Harry had been cleared of charges, but his undercover act had been a little too convincing for most. Everyone was still uncomfortable around him and hoped his case would be wrapped up soon.

Still, Diane was beginning to register a twinge of guilt for things she had said. Not regret. Not really. Just recognizing that her total contempt for him may not have been completely justified. At least not now.

She slid on her black wool coat and flipped up the collar as she stepped out onto the sidewalk. It was cool and clear, and her breath left her mouth in little puffs. In spite of the long day, the brisk evening was exhilarating and she decided to walk the neighborhood a while.