“Hey,” Samantha chimed in, “do you think Hudson would be willing to talk to me? I really need to connect with somebody who’s on the inside at Westman’s.”
“I don’t see why not. He’s just as concerned about the deaths of Jacob and the rest of the factory workers as we are. At this point, Hudson’s actually worried about his own safety, too. I’ll find out when I ask him to forward that email to me.”
“Great, thanks. And Ava? Be careful out here.”
“I will,” she replied softly, placing her hand on Samantha’s shoulder. “You do the same. Now that we know what Collin’s really got going on, that puts a totally different spin on all this. He’s got a lot to lose. And knowing him, he’d do whatever it takes to hold on to it. I just can’t believe Chief Wentworth is in on this with him. I’ve known that man all my life. He’s always been a fool for his son, but...damn.”
“I can’t believe it, either,” Gregory said. “One of the reasons I came to Gattenburg was to escape the corruption running rampant throughout the Chicago PD. So to find out what’s going on here is beyond disheartening. But I will say this. I let the situation in Chicago get the best of me. I’m not going to let that happen here.”
“Why not?” Ava asked. “What’s the difference between Chicago and Gattenburg?”
“That situation in Chicago was way bigger than me. I would’ve been in too deep trying to fight the majority of my precinct, politicians, the mafia.” He paused, turning to Samantha with a fiery look of determination in his eyes. “Besides, I have a vested interest in Gattenburg. I have something to prove by solving this case and too much to lose if I don’t. In more ways than one...”
Samantha peered back at the detective. The intensity in his gaze told her that he was referring to more than just the crimes occurring throughout the town. The thought of him being this invested in the investigation for her sake moved Samantha to the point where she was left speechless.
“Well, I appreciate everything you’re doing,” Ava told Gregory just as her cell phone went off again. “I’d better get going. We’ll talk soon.”
“Take care, Ava,” Gregory said.
“Talk to you soon.” Samantha watched as Ava slunk out of the restaurant. She felt a sharp pull in her chest at the sight of her hunched back and distraught expression. She was becoming a shell of herself. It was clear that Jacob’s unsolved murder was eating away at her.
Samantha slid her hand across the table and gently placed it on Gregory’s arm. When he covered her hand with his, a jolt of tingling energy charged up her arm.
“Thank you so much for coming today,” she told him. “I hope you know how much I appreciate you being here with me throughout all this madness. You don’t have to help me, especially considering how this case has become such a conflict of interest for you. Yet you still choose to do so anyway. That really means a lot to me.”
“I’m happy to help, but thank you for saying that. Judging from all this new information that continues to pour in,” he said while flipping through his notepad, “we’ve got our work cut out for us.”
“Yes, we do, starting with getting inside Westman’s Automotive Factory.”
Gregory ignored Samantha’s suggestion. He polished off the rest of his coffee, then pushed away from the table.
“This was a good meeting,” he said. “And helpful. Thanks for inviting me. But before this conversation takes a turn for the worst, I’d better get back to the station.”
“Oh, so it’s like that?” Samantha asked, watching as he stood up.
“Yes, Sam. It’s like that. I’m not about to entertain the idea of breaking into Westman’s. You already know how I feel about that. For now, I’m gonna focus on whether a missing-persons report has been filed on Kenzie. Then I’m going to reach out to my IT forensics guy and give him a heads-up on that email we’re hoping to get from Ava. I’ll be looking into the other drug busts, too, like I’d mentioned. I’m curious to see whether any patterns will emerge.”
Samantha stood up and followed the detective toward the coffee shop’s back door. She waved goodbye to Hannah and walked out into the alleyway, where they’d parked their cars in hopes of not being detected.
“So let me ask you this,” Samantha began. “Would you consider bringing Alex down to the station to question him about Kenzie’s disappearance?”
“I would. First, it will be good for others to see me pursuing a suspect, to let them think I don’t believe Collin or any Wentworth is involved. But also, just to eliminate Alex as a suspect. Because at this point, I do believe that Collin is one hundred percent responsible for Kenzie’s disappearance along with the rest of these crimes. Now it’s just a matter of gathering enough evidence to take to the mayor.”
“That was my exact thought when I asked the question. Get Alex alibied and out of the way so that we can focus on bringing charges against Collin.”
Samantha paused, watching as Gregory clicked his key fob. Despite the unfortunate circumstances they were meeting under, she found herself not wanting to leave.
“By the way,” he said, “I meant to tell you that my IT guy is back in Chicago. So there won’t be any sort of conflict of interest when I ask him to look at the origins of that email.”
“Oh, so you caught that look of concern on my face when you mentioned him earlier?” Samantha asked, smiling at the unspoken connection she and the detective shared.
“I did. But we got sidetracked when the subject of Collin’s drug operation came up. So I just wanted you to know that we’re good on that end.”
“Awesome. Glad to hear it.”
The pair stared at one another, neither of them wanting to part ways.
“All right then,” Samantha finally said after several moments of silence. “Talk to you soon.”
“Talk to you soon. Oh, I’ve meaning to ask you, has the patrol car been showing up and keeping watch on your house?”
“It sure has. Thank you again for getting that set up.”
“No problem,” Gregory told her. “Call me if you need me.”
“I will. Thanks.”
Samantha climbed inside her car and pulled out of the alleyway. On the way home, her thoughts shifted from Gregory to the dire situation at hand.
Now that Kenzie was missing and they knew for a fact that Collin was manufacturing dangerous drugs, her concern for the entire town was at an all-time high.
And although Gregory was completely against it, Samantha knew she had to figure out a way to get inside Westman’s Automotive Factory.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Gregory looked up from his desk through the open door of his small office. Chief Wentworth was walking around the precinct, sipping a cup of coffee while chatting with police officers scattered around the floor. The sight of him acting as if he didn’t have a care in the world, as if he wasn’t involved in Collin’s drug operation, turned his stomach.
After searching several missing-persons databases, from the Illinois clearinghouse to all four federal systems, Gregory discovered that Kenzie’s family hadn’t reported her missing. He assumed they’d fallen for the email message she’d allegedly sent to Alex.
The detective had also begun digging through old drug files. But so far, there was no connection between them and his current investigation.
Just as he refreshed his email inbox yet again to see whether there were any new messages, his cell phone buzzed. He glanced over at the screen. Seeing Samantha’s name caused a string of rapid-fire palpitations to explode inside his chest.
Dude, calm down...
“Detective Harris,” he said coolly, acting as if he didn’t know who it was.
“Hey, Gregory, it’s Sam.”
“Hey, what’s going on?”
“I come bearing gifts.”
“Do you now? What’ve you got for me?”
“I just
received the email from Ava.”
Gregory jumped up from behind his desk and closed the door. “Wait, you mean you got the email from Ava?”
“Yep. Hudson was able to talk Alex into sending it to him, and he passed it on to Ava.”
“That is fantastic,” he said, hurrying back to his desk and opening his laptop. “I need you to forward it to my personal email address.”
“I’m sending it right now. And while I do that, let me tell you this. Ava found out from Hudson that he actually tried some of the drugs that Collin is manufacturing.”
“Really? Wow. I wonder whether he’s a recreational user or a full-blown addict.”
“According to Hudson, he’s a former addict. Jacob was the one who encouraged him to get clean and recommended him for the job at Westman’s. He was hired, and after he completed the one-week second-chance program, one of his assembly team members at the factory invited him out to celebrate.”
Gregory groaned and dropped his head in his hand. “I already know where you’re going with this. But go on.”
“At one point during their night out, the guy tempted Hudson with a drug he promised would be stronger than any black tar or street heroin he’d ever tried. He called it TKO.”
“TKO, huh. Because of its ability to knock people out, I’m assuming?”
“You got it.”
“Clever,” Gregory snarked. “Do you know whether Hudson happened to mention the guy’s name he was out with?”
“Nope. According to Ava, he refused to snitch.”
“Of course...”
“So anyway, after Hudson took the drug, he OD’d and woke up in the hospital the next day. Couldn’t remember a thing.”
“Well, you and I saw that crazy list of ingredients in Collin’s ledger. So hearing that someone OD’d on his product comes as no surprise.”
Gregory once again refreshed his email inbox. Samantha’s message from Hudson popped up.
“Hey, your email just came through. I’ve got my IT guy, Wayne, on standby. I’m shooting it over to him right now.”
“Good. I can’t wait to hear what he comes up with. Oh, and Ava was able to convince Hudson to talk to me. I’ll see how much information I can get out of him. And I’m going to suggest we sit down and talk in person. I think a face-to-face would be more effective than a phone call.”
“I agree. I always get way more information out of people in person than I do over the phone or via email. I wonder if he’d be open to me being there as well.”
“I’m not sure. My gut tells me that the prospect of talking to a detective might turn him off. But I can certainly ask.”
“Cool. Make sure you let him know that you and I are on the same team.”
“I will.”
When the pair grew silent, Gregory began fidgeting with a stack of papers sitting on his desk. He felt himself growing anxious. The detective realized it was because the conversation with Samantha was winding down, and he didn’t want the call to end. He also wanted to do more, to protect her. He didn’t like the thought of her doing these meet-ups alone.
At what point did you let your guard down and get this attached? he asked himself.
“So, um,” Gregory continued, “do you think we should get together and discuss our next moves, aside from waiting on Wayne’s analysis of the email?”
His knees bounced rapidly as he awaited her response.
“Yes, I think that’s a good idea,” Samantha replied without hesitation. “As a matter of fact, we can meet up at my place. I never did make that dinner for you that I promised.”
Gregory sat back in his chair and grinned widely before pumping his fist in the air. “You most certainly didn’t. And if I recall correctly, you were planning on cooking something up that would outdo the meal I prepared for you.”
“Hold up now. I don’t think I said all that,” she laughed.
“Uh-uh, don’t try and back out now. You said what you said. Now be a woman of your word and show me what you’re working with. In the kitchen, that is,” he quickly added.
“Oh, I’ll show you what I’m working with all right,” Samantha murmured. “Actually, I’m free tonight. If you’re available, let’s make it happen.”
Gregory shifted in his seat, unable to stave off a feeling of arousal so strong that it had him gripping the sides of his desk. “Let’s do it.”
“Great. I’ll run by the grocery store and pick up a few things. See you at my place at around seven or so?”
“Seven works for me. How about I bring the wine?”
“Sounds perfect. See you tonight.”
“See you then.”
Just as Gregory pulled the phone away from his ear, Samantha called out his name.
“Hey! Before you go...” she said, her tone filled with mischief.
“What’s up?”
“I know you’ve been really busy, but have you checked out my blog lately?”
“Not in the past few days. Why? Did I miss something?”
“Yes, you did. You missed a lot, actually.”
“Uh-oh,” Gregory uttered, pulling his laptop in closer and typing the web address for Someone Knows Something in the internet’s search engine. “What are you up to now, Miss Vincent?”
“Let’s just say I’m trying to shake things up around this town and bring more awareness to Collin and his drug ring. I want answers, Gregory. And I want Collin, his cronies and Chief Wentworth to be brought to justice. Clearly some of our police force is corrupt. You know several of them are probably being bribed and profiting off Collin’s operation. So I’m using Someone Knows Something to call them out.”
The detective sat silently for a moment, clenching his jaw while searching for the right thing to say. “Listen, Sam. I need you to be cautious. And low-key. Things are getting more and more dangerous out here. You don’t want to draw too much attention to yourself right now.”
He cringed when she sighed, frustrated, into the phone.
“That’s not my intention,” she insisted. “But we’re getting so close to cracking this case. I don’t wanna let up. The fact that Jacob’s investigation went cold and authorities aren’t looking further into the deaths of the Westman’s workers is making me sick.”
“I know it is. It’s making me sick, too. That’s why you and I are doing all that we can to build a strong case against Collin and Chief Wentworth to present to the district attorney. But I’m only going to get one shot at this, so I have to make sure my reporting is flawless. We just have to be patient and stay the course. Let my IT forensics guy figure out the origins of Kenzie’s alleged email. Get everything we learned from Ava, Kenzie and Hudson officially recorded in a written statement. And turn over Collin’s drug ledger—even if they can’t use it at trial, it might still help.”
“And share with the district attorney our findings once we get inside Westman’s Automotive Factory and figure out what’s really going on in there. I want photographic evidence of the drug lab that I am convinced is set up somewhere in that factory—”
“Samantha,” Gregory interrupted, the bark in his voice immediately silencing her. “Listen to me. There will be no breaking into Westman’s Automotive Factory. Did you suddenly forget what happened when you broke into Collin’s house? You almost got yourself killed!”
“But I didn’t get—”
“This is not up for debate, dammit!” Gregory hollered, pounding the desk so loudly that several of his colleagues peered through the window on the door into his office. The detective held up his hand, letting them know that everything was okay. “Now, I’m serious,” he continued into the phone, this time lowering his voice. “I don’t want anything to happen to you, Samantha. Can’t you understand that?”
“Yes,” she replied quietly. “I do understand that.”
Gregory’s intense reaction to
Samantha caused his throat to tighten. He could tell by her low tone that he’d rattled her. Knowing how resolute she could be, he knew that wasn’t a bad thing.
“I don’t want to press the issue,” Samantha continued, “but I also don’t want the DA’s office to find some sort of loophole that would enable Collin and his father to get away with this. We need to have all the evidence we can get our hands on when you go to speak to him. Photographic proof would be the nail in their coffin.”
“Well, I don’t want you to end up inside a coffin trying to obtain that photographic evidence,” Gregory shot back. “We’ll have enough proof. Trust me. Proof that will stand up in court.”
“I wonder if you could somehow get a warrant to search the factory.”
Gregory couldn’t help but chuckle at her tenacity. “You just aren’t gonna let up, are you?”
“Nope.”
“Well, I don’t know about obtaining a warrant. But in the meantime, I’ll continue to focus on what I am able to get my hands on.”
“You do that. And I’ll focus on getting to the grocery store so I can get started on this delicious dinner I’m about to cook up for you.”
Hearing that caused the detective’s stress level to drop from ten to one. “That sounds good. I’m looking forward to it.”
“So am I. See you soon.”
“See you soon. Bye.”
Gregory disconnected the call and reclined in his chair, folding his hands behind his head. He closed his eyes, his lips curling into a crooked grin at the thought of dinner with Samantha.
But when visions of intimate moments on the couch next to her over wine and deep conversation crept into his mind, his eyes popped open.
“Come on, man,” he grumbled, sitting straight up. “Stay focused...”
He refreshed his email inbox. A message appeared from his computer forensics expert.
What’s up, man. Just wanted to confirm that I received your email. I’ll run an analysis on it and see if I can locate the server name and IP address. From there, I should be able to track down the owner and his/her location. If I have any trouble, I’ll reach out to the internet service provider. You already know I’ve got the hookup with them, so I won’t have to go through any red tape or present a warrant if I need to request additional information. I’ll circle back with you once I know more.
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