cop interrogate that bastard who stole Becca. You’re the reason my child can’t sleep at night. The reason Becca’s asthma’s so bad she’s been back in the E.R. three times.”
Great, Simon thought, so this was Mr. Hyatt, Rebecca Hyatt’s father. Just what they needed.
“Back off,” Simon said. “Now.”
Hyatt’s gaze flew to Simon. “Are you the detective that let her hold you back? You shouldn’t have let her get in the way. You should have gone after the guy who had Becca Dee.”
Becca Dee? BD. The implications of what the man said rocked him. Simon strode toward him. “Your daughter—Rebecca Hyatt—you call her Becca Dee?”
“Yes! And it’s her fault—”
Suddenly, Commander Stevens was there, striding toward them, breathing heavy as if he’d run all the way down to the lobby, which was probably the case. Accompanying him was Gil Archer, who stepped slightly to the side. “Mr. Hyatt,” Stevens said. “Please don’t do this. What happened to Rebecca was not Dr. Whitaker’s fault. In fact, Dr. Whitaker was instrumental in finding your daughter. Without her...”
As Stevens handled the agitated father, he did so with considerable civility, which alerted Simon instantly. The guy was someone important—politically important—otherwise Stevens would be coming down on the guy more. He’d still be civil, of course, but he wouldn’t condone a man who walked into SIG headquarters and started screaming at the receptionist and a civilian.
Simon’s speculation was confirmed when Archer said, “Kevin, this isn’t the way to handle things. Your grandfather is a friend of mine. I told you we’d bring your concerns to Stevens. That I’d set up a meeting...”
Sensing Nina shift beside him again, Simon looked at her. Damn it, she’d gone pale again. He was getting far too used to seeing that look on her face—the one where she was trying to hold things together despite getting thrown one curveball after another.
Suddenly he remembered what she’d told him the first time she’d visited him at SIG. How Rebecca Hyatt’s father had focused his anger at his daughter’s predicament on her. Simon reached a hand down low, out of eyesight of Rebecca’s father, and grabbed Nina’s fingers. Her hand trembled, but she squeezed his hand back and laced her fingers with his. Brave woman, he thought.
“No,” Kevin Hyatt shouted, his face florid and filled with rage, “that other cop, Officer Rieger, said he almost had a confession out of that nut job. But this stupid shrink here decided to go all politically correct on everybody and shut down the interrogation.”
Shrink. The word sounded obscene coming from Hyatt’s mouth.
How many times had Simon used that word to describe what Nina did for a living? Ten? Twenty?
Had it sounded as disrespectful when he’d said it as it did now coming from this man? And hadn’t that been the whole point?
How much pain had his own thoughtlessness caused Nina over the past few days? Too much, he realized.
“I understand you are upset,” Stevens said. “Even enraged, and I know every father wants to protect his daughter, but this isn’t the way to do it.” He glanced at Simon, silently indicating he should get Nina out of here. That wasn’t going to happen. Not until he made sure Stevens understood the implications this man posed given his daughter’s nickname.
“I tried the regular channels. Filed a complaint, got a lawyer, but he said I could do nothing. But screw that. I’m going to the press and telling them everything I know. That you—” he pointed directly at Nina “—you did this to my daughter. Because of you, Becca Dee was out in the cold, locked in a frickin’ basement for hours. She had asthma. She could have died. Don’t think for a minute I’ll let you get away with this.”
Stevens placed his large body in front of the man, stopping his forward progression. His eyes narrowed in understanding. “Your daughter’s name is Becca Dee?” he asked quietly.
His gaze met Simon’s, who nodded. Then they met Archer’s.
Archer sucked in a breath. “You think—” he whispered, which told Simon that Stevens had talked with his friend about the initials...and probably Nina’s connection to the whole thing.
Was Archer the one who had urged Stevens to explore what Nina knew about the murders? If so, Simon had the strong urge to tell the man whose daughter he’d once dated to mind his own business.
“I need you to calm down,” Stevens said to Hyatt, cutting Archer off. “And I need you to come with me. I’d like to ask you some questions. About your