Millie looked across the desk at Dunleavy. He had that cocky look most young men had. Trying to feign confidence when inside they were roiling. Outward confidence was a necessary part of the job, but the nervousness was showing in his eyes. He had seen the FBI agents setting up camp in that conference room and going through all the Les Hilton files. What he didn’t know was that these agents weren’t really interested in Les Hilton.
They were after Maria Varela.
“We look out for our own, right?” Millie said.
“Absolutely,” Dunleavy said.
“But we also look out for ourselves because in the end, our careers depend on knowing when to bend so we don’t break,” Millie said.
The cockiness faded from Dunleavy’s face. Now, he just looked confused.
“I know Maria took you off the scrap heap, but a lot of heat is about to come down on her, and I’d hate to see you get burnt too,” Millie said.
“What’s going on exactly?” Dunleavy said.
“There are questions about Maria’s adherence to the law. Some people wonder if she’s more involved than she appears. She comes across as this super cop, right? But if we’re being honest, she’s no smarter than anyone else in that detective room, but she solves more cases than any of them. Is it luck? Or is she crossing the line? Those are the questions those FBI agents are going to be asking you,” Millie said.
“She kept me in the car for almost this whole investigation. Told me it was to keep me out of harm’s way. A cop was implicated. Politicians. I don’t really know much, to be honest. Not sure what help I could be to anyone,” Dunleavy said.
“What about that call you went on a couple of weeks ago? Before the disaster with your vehicle, you were called to a possible home robbery. Your report says nothing was there, but your partner told me Maria and Michael were at the location,” Millie said.
“What does that have to do with anything?” Dunleavy said.
“The neighbor saw someone inside the house. But there’s no search warrant applied for or approved for that address. So, if Michael or Maria were in the house, that would have been a breaking and entering,” Millie said.
“When we pulled up, Maria was outside. Michael was in the backyard. They said they were just looking in windows,” Dunleavy said.
“What do you think?” Millie asked.
Dunleavy didn’t answer. Just sat there. But now he looked really nervous.
“Look, kid, I admire you not wanting to throw anyone under the bus. Really, I do. But now is when you need to start thinking about yourself, because your career was hanging by a thread as it was. Maria gave you a new life, but you should ask yourself, why? Maybe she just saw something in you worth helping out, but then again, didn’t you two tangle the first time you met each other? How does she get from wanting your supervisor to write you up to asking you to be her partner? Doesn’t seem very likely, does it? But I’ll tell you what does seem likely. She was looking for someone she could control. And you’re barely out of your probationary period, you’re so new the soles of your shoes squeak when you walk down the hallway, and you already had one foot out the door because of your enormous screwup. That’s a person who will do as they’re told. That’s a person she can control,” Millie said.
Dunleavy stayed mute. Rolling over what she was saying.
“So, I have some advice for you, Dunleavy. In a few minutes, you’re going into that room with those FBI agents. They are going to want some answers. If you’re smart, you’ll tell them everything. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Because nobody cares about you, and the only chance you have of not going down with Maria is letting her sink alone.”