There Is More Light Than Dark

Chapter Thirty Two

Thursday August 11

The first thing McCoy did on the Thursday morning was find Harper Lewis, who had beaten him in to the office again, and approach her.

'Lewis, you, ah, got a minute? I need to say something before we get going today.'

Lewis thought it odd he wouldn't say it in the office where they were but she stood and followed him to the first interview room. He closed the door behind him.

'Yesterday, some things happened.' He let the pause hang out there. He'd spent plenty of time in this room and knew how that getting a message across was equal parts what you said, how you said them and where you left space.

'You did well. You found the board, you checked it was the right one. And, because of that, thinsg happened. That's good.'

Harper Lewis wasn't sure if this was an apology but if it was she didn't think much of it.

'But you know what else happens in this place?' Dean McCoy's voice rose now and Lewis sensed any semblance of appeasing her, if it had ever been on the agenda, was now past.

'We. Do. Fucking. Work.' His eyes were blazing. 'You think that because you get fucking LUCKY, you find this fucking skateboard that we should all lay at your fucking feet and ask you what we should do next? That we should fucking salute you when you walk past us and ask what we can do to make you feel like you fucking count here?' He laid off as he saw her face twitch and knew he had made his point.

He turned around and dropped his head. He'd warned himself about being too strong. He knew he'd gone too far.

'It's not about anything but respect, detective.' Harper Lewis surprised herself as much as McCoy with how calm and strong her voice was. 'Sure, you're my senior officer. You're the one with experience and smarts.' She was careful not to be patrionsing. 'But we're partners, you know? And I thought that meant we share the work. Share the time. Share what we know and what we need to know.'

Harper Lewis now let the deafening silence of the interview room take over for long enough to count. McCoy felt how perfect it was.

'So, you know, all I'm asking for is to be treated like a partner. That's all.' And even though she felt the urge to go on, she saw Roger Lewis outside the door giving her the knife across the throat, 'shut it down' signal.

She walked to the door, opened it and stood back, her arm out in a signal for McCoy to go first. He walked over to where her arm was out and took her hand. He looked her square in the eye and shook her hand.

'Lewis, I'm sorry.' Now he held her gaze and the silence was there for them both. 'That's something you shouldn't have to ask for.'

She looked at him questioningly.

'It's something that you should expect, no matter what.'

And as they walked back to the detective's room, Katherine McCoy and Roger Lewis stood outside the door of the interview room and watched their children becoming better.