The Scrimshaw Set: Books 1 & 2
Page 27
"Moving to Montana?" he asked.
"Not right away. Soon, though."
They stepped off the elevator and walked to Emma's office. "Can I get you something?" Emma asked.
"I'm good. I wanted to give you the scrimshaw set. The guy pleaded guilty to the theft, so the case is closed." He set the ditty box on her desk. "The feds won't deal with him, so he'll be going away for a few years. You don't need to come back for sentencing unless you want to."
"I suppose they'll let him serve the state and federal sentences concurrently. We wouldn't want to inconvenience him," Emma said.
"Well, you might want to come back for sentencing, then. Your input could make the difference between five and ten years, especially since you're the victim in both cases."
"I'd love to tell him what I think of him right now. I'm not sure I'll want to dredge this up again by the time he's sentenced," Emma said.
"I haven't told you the latest in our investigation of Jack Hennessey." The detective sat in one of the chairs facing Emma's desk.
"I'm ready. How bad is it?" she asked.
"The worst of it is Jack was up for a promotion and had to resign."
"Because of the DVD?" Emma asked.
"Uh, huh. Jack got nervous after someone broke into his mother's house. He hid the DVD in the briefcase so he'd have access to it. He didn't want to have it in his possession if the shit hit the fan, so to speak," Dolan said.
"Did you find out who broke into Mrs. Hennessey's house?" Emma asked.
"We have a suspect. We can connect him to the agent on the DVD," Dolan said.
"Why was Jack worried about the DVD?" Emma asked.
"He found the DVD in the back of a drawer when he cleaned out another agent's office. The guy died suddenly. At some point, the dead agent got ahold of the DVD. It shows another agent and a call girl in a hotel room in South America. The dead agent didn't do anything about it, but Jack did. He showed it to the agent who was with the girl and then saved it for leverage. He said he didn't have anything specific in mind, but the agent in the video had progressed higher in the chain of command. The DVD could be helpful to Jack in any number of ways."
So, was he engaged in blackmail?" Emma asked.
"Not actively, but the possibility was there. At the very least, he should've brought the DVD to the attention of the agency. That's why he resigned." Dolan said.
"What's the good news?" Emma asked.
"Jack wasn't married. He was taking care of a young woman…Katie. He stayed with her when he was in New York. She says they lived together until Donuts came along. Jack doesn't believe she's his. Well, he says she isn't. The kid looks like him. Anyway, he walked out on Katie when the little girl was born. He supports her and pretends to be her grandfather."
"How did he react to being caught?" Emma asked.
"He said he was thinking about retiring anyway. It bothered him more that you'd been stopped at security because the scanner picked up the DVD. I thought he might regret slipping up or putting you in that position. Then he said you told him you didn't take the briefcase to Montana. He seemed surprised you didn't tell him the truth."
Emma laughed. "He was surprised I didn't tell the truth? That's priceless."
After Detective Dolan left her office, Emma walked to the window and watched him cross the street below. She remembered watching Jack from this window the first time they met. She'd been suspicious of him then because he was a stranger, and he'd asked her to dinner. Still, she should have trusted him after he returned the scrimshaw set. Emma remembered Jack saying it didn't occur to him to keep the scrimshaw set. The statement lacked the ring of truth at the time. He must have known the scrimshaw set was valuable. She'd found it hard to believe he didn't think about keeping it. People who pretend to be better than everyone else are usually worse. Jack Hennessey was a handsome liar. Otherwise, she might have paid more attention to her sense that something about him was not genuine. Harold gave her some valuable advice in the short time she knew him. When they were talking about falling in love, he smiled wryly and said, "Sometimes the most disappointing gifts are wrapped in the fanciest packages."
THE END
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