He cleared his throat again, resumed pacing and took the lead. "I really was a street cop once, Detective. Everything was crystal clear and the whole game was to catch the perp and stay clean on the job. Turns out, in the course of events after a few years of catching bad guys, the job decides I posses a certain... identifiable skill that could be of use to the department."

Her icy silence left him undeterred and he ruffled his black hair casually, "You ever wonder what it is that made you a good undercover cop?"

Diane didn't answer.

"Either you're a believable liar who enjoys the pretense on some level or your just plain used to hiding what you feeling and thinking at any given moment."

That caught her off guard and she let out a reflexive noise that told Denby she really was listening. "I tried to make it as easy as I could for you, Detective, given the circumstan..."

Diane whirled around and shouted at him, cutting him off, "Easy for me! You tried everything you could to get me to drink, remember? You made me KISS you! You're telling me that was all part of your precious cover?"

"My cover," he fired back, "was almost blown when I took the chance to get you your ring back. If Don hadn't bought my story it could have killed the whole deal!"

Denby was momentarily embarrassed by his own anger and turned away with his handson his hips. Diane watched him curiously. This was a Denby she had never seen before. If Fancy and Jones hadn't vouched for him she never would have believed this man was capable of serving and protecting. She had judged and sentenced him from the first drink. The possibility that she had been wrong all along galled at her.

"I figured if you hated me, it would be easier for you when this all came out into the light. If I had gained your trust through...other means, it would have been worse for you in the end."

Denby actually seemed sincere at this confession, but when he turned back toward her, she quickly looked away. The room was getting smaller by the minute.

No, she thought to herself, don't listen. How could she know if he was telling the truth or not? Undercover my ass, cops don't do this to other cops.

He circled the table and looked straight down at her, clearly waiting for some response, but she couldn't meet his gaze. Diane took a few steps back. This was too much. She had to get out of there.

"I don't care how you justify what you've done, Denby." She tried her best to look and sound unmoved. "I don't have to like it, and I don't have to play the part of your confessor. If you've got a guilty conscience, find a priest."