out. “I just want to get this over with and get the hell out of here.” He stopped himself, forced himself to take one long, calming breath. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right. I imagine Laura’s father was difficult.”
“I don’t think we’d better discuss Laura’s father. Or Laura, or anyone named MacGregor just now.”
“Then why don’t we discuss Amanda Holloway?”
“I don’t know her, I never met her. I knew her husband slightly when we both worked out of the same house. Precinct,” he elaborated.
“Did you work with him directly?”
“Only once. We took a call together. I hate this,” he said, and finally sat. “Look, cops back each other, because when you go through the door together you’ve got to know the one going in with you is with you. All the way.
“We took a call, domestic dispute. The worst. Guy had been pounding on his wife, kids were screaming. I restrained the man, Holloway took the woman. Her face was bashed up, bleeding, and she’d gone over. I mean, she was going after her husband now. She wasn’t going to take it anymore. I remember her screaming that when Holloway took hold of her.
“He hurt her,” Royce continued. “I had the man on the floor, cuffing him, and I heard the woman cry out. I saw Holloway yank her arm back, it’s a wonder he didn’t snap a bone, and he shoved her back against the wall. I told him to ease off, and he said something like ‘The bitch is asking for it.’ That her husband had a right to teach her a lesson. And he slapped her, backhanded her. I had to leave the husband on the floor to drag Holloway off the woman.”
Royce paused a moment, tried to gather his thoughts. “He had a rep as a good, solid cop. The men liked him. He did the job. I told myself he’d just snapped that day, just lost his grip for a minute. But I kept seeing the way he looked when he hit that woman, and I knew he’d gotten off on it. And I knew if I hadn’t been there, he’d have done worse. So I reported the incident to the lieutenant.”
“Would that be Lieutenant Masterson?”
“Yeah.”
“There’s no mention of an incident such as you described on Holloway’s record.”
“Because the lieutenant ordered me to forget it. Holloway had been defending himself against a violently hysterical woman. Bottom line, he brushed it off, and a few weeks later I was transferred. I was ticked off enough to do a little digging. In the six-month period before I transferred, three 911 calls were logged in from Holloway’s house. Domestic dispute. Officers responded. No charges filed, and the reports were buried.”
“They closed ranks,” Diana murmured.
“Yeah. And Holloway moved up them, beating on his wife whenever he felt the urge.”
“You’ll testify to the incident you were witness to?”
“If I have to. It doesn’t change the fact that she whacked him. You’re going to go for diminished capacity, and this doesn’t add that much to the medical records that she was abused continually over the course of years.”
“It speaks to the character of the man, the despair of the woman and the complicity of the police. She’d called for help, and no one helped. She did what she could to survive. There was no one else to take her part.”
“You have. Laura has.”
“Yes, and now you have. Why?”
“Because maybe it’ll make a difference, and I’d stopped thinking I could make one. And because it’s important to Laura.”
“And she’s important to you.”
“She … matters,” he said, after a moment. “If you need to go over this again, I’ll be available. I’ve got some things to do.”
“I appreciate you coming in.” She offered her hand. “I very much appreciate it.”
She watched him go out, and knew the instant the door across the hall opened. “Well?” Caine demanded.
“He just gave me some weight to add to the Holloway defense.” She looked at Caine. “And he’s in love with Laura. She’s in love with
“It’s all right. I imagine Laura’s father was difficult.”
“I don’t think we’d better discuss Laura’s father. Or Laura, or anyone named MacGregor just now.”
“Then why don’t we discuss Amanda Holloway?”
“I don’t know her, I never met her. I knew her husband slightly when we both worked out of the same house. Precinct,” he elaborated.
“Did you work with him directly?”
“Only once. We took a call together. I hate this,” he said, and finally sat. “Look, cops back each other, because when you go through the door together you’ve got to know the one going in with you is with you. All the way.
“We took a call, domestic dispute. The worst. Guy had been pounding on his wife, kids were screaming. I restrained the man, Holloway took the woman. Her face was bashed up, bleeding, and she’d gone over. I mean, she was going after her husband now. She wasn’t going to take it anymore. I remember her screaming that when Holloway took hold of her.
“He hurt her,” Royce continued. “I had the man on the floor, cuffing him, and I heard the woman cry out. I saw Holloway yank her arm back, it’s a wonder he didn’t snap a bone, and he shoved her back against the wall. I told him to ease off, and he said something like ‘The bitch is asking for it.’ That her husband had a right to teach her a lesson. And he slapped her, backhanded her. I had to leave the husband on the floor to drag Holloway off the woman.”
Royce paused a moment, tried to gather his thoughts. “He had a rep as a good, solid cop. The men liked him. He did the job. I told myself he’d just snapped that day, just lost his grip for a minute. But I kept seeing the way he looked when he hit that woman, and I knew he’d gotten off on it. And I knew if I hadn’t been there, he’d have done worse. So I reported the incident to the lieutenant.”
“Would that be Lieutenant Masterson?”
“Yeah.”
“There’s no mention of an incident such as you described on Holloway’s record.”
“Because the lieutenant ordered me to forget it. Holloway had been defending himself against a violently hysterical woman. Bottom line, he brushed it off, and a few weeks later I was transferred. I was ticked off enough to do a little digging. In the six-month period before I transferred, three 911 calls were logged in from Holloway’s house. Domestic dispute. Officers responded. No charges filed, and the reports were buried.”
“They closed ranks,” Diana murmured.
“Yeah. And Holloway moved up them, beating on his wife whenever he felt the urge.”
“You’ll testify to the incident you were witness to?”
“If I have to. It doesn’t change the fact that she whacked him. You’re going to go for diminished capacity, and this doesn’t add that much to the medical records that she was abused continually over the course of years.”
“It speaks to the character of the man, the despair of the woman and the complicity of the police. She’d called for help, and no one helped. She did what she could to survive. There was no one else to take her part.”
“You have. Laura has.”
“Yes, and now you have. Why?”
“Because maybe it’ll make a difference, and I’d stopped thinking I could make one. And because it’s important to Laura.”
“And she’s important to you.”
“She … matters,” he said, after a moment. “If you need to go over this again, I’ll be available. I’ve got some things to do.”
“I appreciate you coming in.” She offered her hand. “I very much appreciate it.”
She watched him go out, and knew the instant the door across the hall opened. “Well?” Caine demanded.
“He just gave me some weight to add to the Holloway defense.” She looked at Caine. “And he’s in love with Laura. She’s in love with
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