Touching Evil

by Kylie Brant

  After studying the drawing for a moment he handed it back to Jenna, careful to keep his face expressionless. He rounded the table then, nodding to the attorney. “Mr. Drew. Spencer. I want to thank you both for being here.”

  Drew made a point of looking at his watch. “Spencer has been quite cooperative, but he needs to get to school. I assume I’m free to leave with him?”

  “In a minute. I just have a couple follow-up questions. That okay with you, Spencer?”

  The kid started a little as Cam turned his attention to him, but never glanced at the attorney before shrugging. “Sure. I guess.”

  Drawing out the chair beside Drew, Cam sank into it to face the boy. “We’ve still got your cell, but I’m working on getting that back to you as soon as possible.” He offered a smile he was far from feeling. “Guessing a teenager feels lost without his phone these days, even if it’s just for a few days.”

  Another shrug. “I can just activate my old one.”

  “Good. Glad we won’t be putting you out. I can probably get that phone back to you sooner if you come clean about what you did with it last night before you ran back to your car.”

  That had the kid’s head jerking up, a flare of guilt in his eyes. Drew’s voice was controlled. “Are you accusing my client of a crime, Agent Prescott?”

  “Just an omission.” Cam never looked in the attorney’s direction. His attention was focused on Spencer. “I asked if you had used the phone while you were watching that man. You said you hadn’t. Cyber forensics says otherwise. You took a short video. You used the Snapchat app and transmitted it. Good clarity, I’m told.”

  A look of incredulity on his face, Pals blurted out, “You can’t trace anything on Snapchat! The pictures disappear.”

  “Spencer!” The attorney’s expression was thunderous. “Not another word.”

  Cam switched his focus to the lawyer. “He’s not being charged with anything, but he gave misleading information that might have bearing on this case. I don’t think you want him to further obstruct our investigation.”

  “That’s bull, Mr. Drew. They can’t access anything that goes out…”

  “Quiet,” the man snapped. His gaze never left Cam’s. “I want your word that his involvement is ended after this. That includes no misdemeanor or false reporting charges.”

  “You have it. All I want is an answer to the question so I can act accordingly.”

  After a long moment, the attorney nodded and switched his attention to Spencer. “Whom did you send the pictures to?”

  The kid slouched in his chair, clearly disgusted with the proceedings. “I don’t know.”

  “We can find out.” Cam made sure none of his frustration was apparent in his tone. “It’ll take another day or two but forensics can trace the recipients of your messages. You tell me now, it’ll build up some good will. Make up for lying about it in the first place.”

  “I mean, I’m not sure. All my contacts are grouped and I sent it out to some friends.”

  “How many in the group?” Drew asked.

  “I don’t…” With a quick glance toward Cam, the kid backtracked. “I’m just saying I can’t be sure without looking at my phone and counting. Not many, I know that. I’m guessing…thirty or so?”

  * * * *

  Cam knocked at the SAC’s closed door, a sense of urgency riding him. He was taken aback, however, when Major Crimes Unit Assistant Director Paul Miller opened the door.

  “Sir.” It didn’t take much guessing to figure what had brought the man from his office at DCI headquarters to the agents’ field office. Gazing past the man he could see Gonzalez behind her desk, her expression inscrutable as always. “I can come back.”

  “No, come in. We were just discussing your case.” Miller stood aside and waved him to a chair, demand implicit in the gesture. Feeling like a fly settling on a spider’s web, Cam walked past the man, sitting in one of the two chairs facing the SAC’s desk.

  He wasn’t given to paranoia but he had a healthy sense of self-preservation and Miller’s involvement in this investigation had all his instincts screaming. Cam had been serving in California on a multi-agency drug task force when the former assistant director of MCU had suffered career suicide. Miller had been named in his stead, and the man had always been a little too concerned about public relations to suit Cam. Given the recent twist in this case, however, there was real cause for worry.

  “How long will it take for the internal review on Boggs and Franks to be conducted?” he started when Miller had re-seated himself.

  Miller frowned at him. “Just concern yourself with the investigation, Agent. I’ll manage the personnel matters.”

  “With all due respect, sir, I need to know how long I’m going to be down two agents on the task force.” The assistant director exchanged a glance with Gonzalez. “I can’t afford to wait days—or weeks—to be fully staffed again.”

  “The agents have already submitted reports of the events. We can probably have Franks’ hearing conducted late afternoon. Tomorrow morning at the latest.” He gave a shrug. “Boggs isn’t going anywhere for a while, so his can wait.”

  The timeline was quicker than Cam had expected. And unfortunately, no one could be certain at this point how soon Boggs would have a medical discharge allowing him to resume his duties. “I’ve just come from re-interviewing one of the witnesses to the sexual assault last night. Cyber crimes did a preliminary check and discovered one of the kids took a video on his camera phone. He sent it to a group of friends that he believes numbers around thirty recipients.”

  Miller’s face visibly grayed at the news. “God, this gets worse by the minute.” He took out a handkerchief to mop his balding dome. “Multiply thirty kids who all might’ve sent it out to thirty more… Has anyone seen TV? It could already be on the morning news.”

  “We need to prepare a statement about the events of last night and get it out to the media sooner, rather than later.” He was aware of Gonzalez’s sharp look. The words were a first, coming from him. But he was not unmindful of the nightmare ahead of them if the investigation became dogged with sensationalism. “In the meantime, I’ve directed Spencer Pals to make a list of people that may be on that list and I’ll request that Cyber Crimes cross check the group. Agent Turner can contact each of the individuals on the list the boy is making. If the video hasn’t been made public yet, maybe we can prevent it from happening.” Jenna would be free for the task after the sketch session with Trina Adams was completed. The last thing he wanted was for family of the victim discovered last night to stumble across that video online.

  Miller nodded. “That’s the best we can hope for, I suppose. I’ll take care of the press release myself. Maria, I’d appreciate you making yourself available for the news conference.”

  “Within the hour we’ll have our third composite drawing of the man seen on the riverbank, if you decide you want to release them.”

  The assistant director switched his attention to Cam. “Have copies of the sketches sent to me. How soon before you can determine whether the same man attempted to kill Dr. Channing last night?”

  “I’ve got someone on the way to go over the security footage as we speak. We’ll know shortly.”

  Miller nodded decisively. “I’ll arrange for the news conference as soon as possible, but the focus will be on the man seen by the teenagers without mentioning the attempt on Channing’s life. I believe Maria has already discussed with you her intention of continuing Dr. Channing’s consultation on this case. She believes, and I concur, that Channing’s input can help us narrow our focus on Vance’s accomplice.”

  It was easy to see that he was outnumbered in his feelings about that action, so Cam reserved his argument for the scope of Sophie’s involvement. He shifted in his chair looking for a more comfortable spot. There wasn’t one. “I can have complete case files at Dr. Channing’s disposal,” he began. “Her involvement can be done safely in a controlled setting, with an agent at her side a
t all times…”

  He stopped when he noted the meaningful look exchanged between Gonzalez and Miller. “I’ve spoken to Dr. Channing again since I left her this morning,” Maria began. “And although I have a few reservations about her idea, I think it has some merit.”

  “She wants to fake her death,” Cam stressed. He looked at Miller. “It would involve deceiving the public.”

  “A deception that is forgivable if it leads to her safety.” Cam’s stomach clenched at the other man’s reply. “Dr. Channing is probably safer right now than she has been since her abduction. If Vance and his accomplice believe she’s dead, she doesn’t have to work in a controlled environment, although certainly I believe we should continue to offer protection. With the right precautions in place, she could move around freely, conduct interviews, and attend scenes.”

  With a hitch of his trousers, the man stood. “I believe hers is a reasonable request, one that will offer more safety for her. She’s e-mailing an obit notice to be released to the press and we’ve agreed to a handful of her family and friends who can be let in on the truth. I’ve directed Special Agent Gonzalez to agree to her plan. You will, of course, personally see that she’s accompanied by an agent at all times.”

  “Of course.” It was difficult to force even those words out of his mouth so Cam said nothing else while Miller issued a few more directives for Maria before leaving the office. Only then did he lean back in his chair, pressing the heels of his palms to his eyes.

  “Relax. The news of her death will be greatly exaggerated.”

  “Spare me the literary references.”

  “We’re not going to announce it,” Maria went on. “The obit will be buried in the newspaper with minimal information pending the notification of next of kin. Hopefully that will be enough to satisfy anyone following up to make sure Channing is really dead.”

  “This is totally unnecessary.” Frustration had Cam biting out the words. “She could consult from her current location where she’s already safe with an agent at her side. No one knows where she’s at.”

  “I believe she can be more valuable when she’s not kept at a distance. And I agree with Dr. Channing that we lose a valuable element of surprise if Vance and his partner discover she’s alive. We can make sure she’s no longer a target, and, properly disguised, she can be mobile. Once this thing is solved, we’ll have public sentiment on our side, and there shouldn’t be any blowback for the false obit, since we’re doing it as a matter of protection.” Maria lifted her shoulders in a gesture that was oddly reminiscent of Spencer Pals. “I don’t see a downside.”

  He lowered his hands to stare at her. “You don’t see a downside,” he repeated incredulously. “Jesus, Maria, you’re the same one who told me only days ago that you had second thoughts before naming me lead in this investigation.” And the memory of that conversation still held a bite. “And I’d been back on the job for a year since my stint undercover on that multi-agency task force.” An assignment that had resulted in recurring PTSD, which had kept him from returning to work for far longer than he’d liked.

  An assignment that continued to haunt him to this day.

  “But you don’t think that Soph…Dr. Channing might be too traumatized to consult after being abducted, beaten, terrorized and nearly raped just three days ago?” He surged to his feet, unable to contain his frustration any longer. “Try explaining that reasoning to me.”

  From the looks of her expression he imagined she was gritting her teeth. “I’m not placing the outcome of this case and the well-being of a material witness in Dr. Channing’s hands,” she snapped. “She’s not in charge of the investigation. Are you really saying that her experience a few days ago damaged her credibility? Her expertise? You don’t believe her work on this case can result in any valuable leads?”

  It was his turn to clench his jaw. It was the resulting emotional cost to Sophie that he was really worried about, but there was no way to share that without revealing that his concern stemmed from the personal and not the emotional. But he wasn’t done trying.

  He took a turn around the office as he spoke, making an effort to level his tone. “I’m just asking you to weigh the potential personal cost to Channing. Is it worth it in exchange for the possible leads she can give us?”

  “She’s an adult. She’s responsible for her own choices and I respect her too much to try to second-guess them.” Although some of the temper had dissipated from Maria’s words, they still held a bite. “And I’ll tell you one thing, I have a feeling she wouldn’t welcome your paternalistic questioning of her capabilities.”

  He stopped to arrow a look at her then, one she returned unblinkingly. Rationally he recognized this was his out. Better that the SAC thought he was a chauvinist than to suspect that his concern for Sophie stemmed from something else.

  Something far more intimate.

  He was zero for two since walking into her office. Cam recognized there were no battles left to fight here. Silently he went to the door.

  “Assistant Director Miller has been in contact with lab manager Fenton, and your request last night for priority status on the ballistics testing has been granted. As soon as the evidence has been logged in, they’ll start the tests.”

  It was a sop, but better than nothing. Cam figured the brass and spent bullets collected at the two scenes were their best lead so far, and the sooner they yielded results, the better. He’d left orders that the collected brass at the scenes be taken to the lab immediately. Maybe the tests would be started soon.

  “Oh, and Prescott?”

  He aimed a look over his shoulder.

  Maria’s face was inscrutable. “I’m hoping that the concern for Channing that you’ve stated so eloquently comes from a sincere lack of faith in her abilities. Because if I start to believe you’re more worried about Dr. Channing the woman… The case already has two agents on administrative leave. We can’t afford to lose a third.”

  The warning implicit in her words was impossible to miss, and one he knew better than to respond to. Cam shut the door behind him almost silently, a stark contrast to the resentment seething inside him.

  Chapter 4

  It had been ridiculously easy to find the woman he’d seen last night.

  Sonny stared at the computer screen, his throbbing leg propped on a pillow and stretched out on the recliner. IOSME, he’d discovered, stood for Iowa Office of State Medical Examiner. Which made sense, given that she’d been at the scene last night for Janice. Barely a pang accompanied the thought of the dead woman. All his focus was reserved for the new one.

  Dr. Lucy Benally, forensic pathologist. Lucy. He said the name aloud, savoring it. It fit exactly the woman he felt as though he already knew. The IOSME website showed the office personnel, and there was a picture of the female he’d seen last night. Although the others wore a bright smile for the camera, Lucy’s lips were only slightly curved. Fitting, Sonny thought approvingly, for the seriousness of the job she was entrusted with. A second page on the site informed him that she’d been employed by the agency for the last five years, and listed her schooling and previous jobs.

  A sharp pain arrowed into his wounded leg, and he muttered a curse. Picking up the bottle of pain pills on the table beside the couch, he shook another out into his palm and popped it in his mouth. Davis had done a ham-handed job. He should have shot the bastard while he’d had the chance. Sonny had ordered him to supply him with enough pain medication to get him through his recovery, and the man had been so eager to see the last of him that he’d done so uncomplainingly.

  Sonny turned his attention to courthouse searches. Homeowners gave up a great deal of information about themselves by the simple act of buying property. Of course he couldn’t be sure that Lucy Benally owned a house, but he hoped she did. Not just because it made her easier to find. But because the woman he suspected she was would be anxious to have a home to call her own. To tend to it as lovingly as she had tended Janice last night.

&nb
sp; A few minutes later he was reaching for his cell to log in the address his search had yielded. A bit more digging and he found her home just outside Bondurant, less than twenty miles east of Ankeny, where she worked. Returning to the computer, he typed the address into Google Street View. Instants later his screen filled with the image of a neat older two story sitting on a shaded acreage, a detached two stall garage behind it.

  Sometimes you really had to love the Internet.

  Sonny played with the image, zooming in and out, looking at the property from different angles. Although the house wasn’t fancy, it was plenty big for someone living alone.

  Opening another window on the browser, he set to work combing public databases for a marriage license listing for Lucy Yanaha Benally. Not finding one, he leaned back against the pillow and smiled. It was easy to believe that a clear path toward Lucy meant only one thing.

  They were fated to be together.

  * * * *

  “You’re right.” Cam peered closely at the enhanced image on the computer screen over Agent Samuel’s shoulder before looking down at the composite sketch in his hands again. “It’s the same guy. Not that there was much doubt.”

  “Good thing you added cameras in all the rooms. This is the only place he removed the goggles,” the other agent said, squinting from the screen to the drawing and back again. “What’s he look like…five ten, one-sixty?”

  Cam was silent for a moment as he judged the height and weight of the image on the screen. “I’d say so. And that’s a close match to the description given by Franks and Boggs, not to mention that of the kids.”

  John Samuels looked up at Cam. “Gonna release a description of the guy with the press release?”

  “The news conference was a couple hours ago. This sketch was released at that time.” But Cam would apprise the SAC that they had positive ID. The same man that had kidnapped Vance’s last victim in Edina had been found assaulting a corpse last night. And had then tried to kill Sophie Channing.