“Probably,” I replied, walking to the kitchen.
“That means he is going to use you, Lizzie,” he said, following me.
“I know,” I said, taking two bottles of water from the fridge. I tossed one to him.
“Do you have somewhere you can go for a while?”
“I’m not leaving.”
“Well, you can’t stay here. Amato will probably kidnap you at some point to draw Cosgrove out. She tipped her hand when she threatened him. He’ll use that to his advantage, trust me.”
“Then I suggest, Agent Roosevelt, you do your job and catch them before that happens.”
“I do have an idea about that.”
“Well, good for you,” I said, leading him to the front door. “You should leave so you can put that plan into action.”
“Actually, I need your help.”
“Didn’t we agree to leave me out of this?”
“Do you really think that is still possible?”
Sighing, I sat down on the couch. Mittens jumped on the couch and laid down beside me. I leaned back, put my head on the back of the couch, and closed my eyes. “You’re giving me a headache.”
T.J. sat down next to me. “I don’t mean to.”
“Isn’t there another way to do this?”
Sure,” he replied, “we can keep up the search, waste taxpayers’ money, and use a lot of manpower to look for them. It’s a small town; it shouldn’t take more than a couple of days to search every building, house and alleyway. Of course, by then, they could shoot at each other a few more times; maybe even hurt an innocent bystander. The whole town freaks out, goes on lockdown. Kids can’t play at the park, or go outside for recess at school. But I’m relatively sure we will find them…eventually.”
“Grrrr, alright, alright. Stop talking before my head explodes.”
“Lizzie, if there was another way…”
“Yeah, yeah, spare me the sob story,” I said bitterly. “How long is this going to take?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
“What do you need me to do?”
“Nothing. Keep to your normal schedule. We’ll put a couple of transmitters in some strategic places so we can keep track of you.”
“Oh goodie, a walking bug factory.”
T.J. laughed. “That’s certainly one way to look at it. I think it would be a good idea to have someone here at the house with you at night.”
“Why? I’ve got Babe and Mittens.”
“Get serious. Those two aren’t going to keep anyone out of here who really wants to get in.”
“So then you’ll have a female agent staying here? I hope she enjoys sleeping on the couch.”
“Actually, I have someone else in mind for the job.”
“Who?” He didn’t answer. I looked over at him. “No way. You are NOT staying here.”
Chapter 19
I won’t bore you with the details of the thirty minute argument that went on. All you need to know is…I lost. Having a houseguest meant I needed to go to the store again. He wasn’t thrilled about me going by myself. He insisted I take a taser with me for protection. I wonder what made him think giving a weapon to a known klutz was a good thing.
I gave both dogs an extra treat before putting them in the backyard. Pulling out of the driveway, I headed for the office first to pick up a couple of files to work on. I wasn’t paying attention as I walked in, and ran right into Jake. He grabbed my arms to keep me from falling, and I winced as he squeezed my left arm a little too tight. “Sore from working out too much?” he asked as he let go.
“More like too many close encounters with crazy killers,” I said, gingerly rubbing my forearm.
“Do I even want to know?”
“Probably not,” I said, moving to my left to go around him.
He cut me off. “Tell me anyway.”
“Could we go inside and talk about this? I really don’t want to stand out in the open.”
“Someone trying to kill you again?” I just looked at him. “I was joking about that.”
I shoved him backwards into the building. “I’m not.”
“I have a feeling I am not going to like what you are about to tell me.”
“Probably not,” I said, following him to the office. “Where’s Dale?”
“Home, I guess,” Jake said, sitting down behind the desk. “So, what’s up?”
I dropped into one of the chairs in front of the desk. “Do you want the long version, or the ‘hurry up and give me the highlights’ version?”
“Quick and to the point.”
“Two mob hit men in town, taking potshots at T.J. and each other. One of them breaks into my house, calls the other. Both threatened the other. FBI agent shows up, chases away unwanted houseguest, and plans to stay at my house for the unforeseeable future.”
“If that is the short version, I don’t want to hear the other one,” Jake said.
I rubbed my hands over my face. “Trust me, it’s more than I want to know, too.”
“So which one tried to take out T.J.?”
“Amato.”
“Who broke into your house?”
“Amato. I thought you said that was a good security system you had installed.”
“Apparently not. So you’re upgrading to the FBI version?”
“Not willingly, I assure you.”
“Why have him there at all then?”
“Because he thinks Amato is going to use me as leverage to get Debra.”
Jake nodded. “It’s what I’d do.” I raised an eyebrow. “I mean, if I were in Amato’s shoes, not that I would actually do it.”
“Uh-huh.”
“So what are you doing out in public by yourself?”
“I’m armed.”
“T.J. gave you a gun?!”
“No, a taser.”
“I think it would be better to have an armed guard with you. Where is Mr. Fed?”
“He had a couple of things to take care of before tonight.”
“And you’re really going to let him stay at your house?”
“Not much of a choice.”
“In other words, he’s using you as bait again to draw out Amato and Cosgrove.”
“Basically.”
Jake shook his head. “Why don’t you just leave town?”
“And go where? Leaving town won’t get rid of the problem.”
“Good point. So what are you going to do, work from home until this is over?”
“I’m not sure yet. Maybe for a day or two, until I get tired of hiding at home, or they catch one of them.”
“Hopefully before someone gets hurt.”
“That would be my preference.”
“Is there anything I can do?”
“Could you send someone to check the security system?”
“Sure, I’ll call a friend, but he probably won’t be there until morning.”
“Thanks,” I replied, standing up. “I’m just going to grab those files and go.”
“Let me get out of your way,” Jake said.
I moved behind the desk to get what I needed, putting them in my purse before walking to the door. “Lizzie?”
“Yeah?”
“Be careful, ok? If you need anything, day or night, just call me.”
“I will.”
After a quick trip to the store, I headed home. T.J.’s car wasn’t in the driveway when I pulled in. I will admit that I was nervous about going into the house alone. Since the alarm hadn’t kept Vinnie out, I hadn’t bothered to turn it on again when I left. What was the point?
I slowly opened the door and stuck my head inside. I didn’t see anyone sitting in the living room, so I cautiously walked in. Closing and locking the door, I took the groceries to the kitchen, flipping on the light. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the kitchen was empty, too.
“Are you ever going to get a better security system?” Debra said from behind me.
Chapter 20
I scr
eamed, dropping the groceries on the floor again. “Why can’t you people just knock like everyone else?!”
“Where’s the fun in that?” she replied, picking up the grocery bags. Placing them on the table, she pulled out a chair and sat down.
Shaking my head and sighing, I started putting the food away. “Is coming here a good idea?”
“I just wanted to make sure you were ok.”
“You and everyone else,” I muttered, putting the milk in the fridge. “If all of you would leave me alone, I’d be just fine.”
“I’m sorry you got dragged into this.”
“Not the first time.”
“Hopefully the last time, though.”
“Planning on leaving and never coming back this time?”
“If things go the way I hope, I’m leaving the country.”
“And go where?”
She shook her head. “The less you know, the better.”
I grabbed my purse and pulled out a manila envelope. “Here’s your money.”
“What about my gun?”
“Did you really think I was going to keep it here? It’s locked up somewhere safe.”
“Can you get to it tonight?”
“Maybe, but why do you need it? Don’t you have something more powerful already?”
“Yes, but I need the Sig in case I am in an up close and personal situation.”
That was just more information than I needed to know. “I’ll see what I can do. Anything else?”
“Are you trying to get rid of me?”
“I’m expecting company.”
“Jake?”
“Um…no.”
“Not T.J.”
“Yeah. He told me what happened to his father.”
“Really?”
I nodded. “No one blames you for what happened.”
“I blame me; that’s enough.”
“For what it’s worth, he says he doesn’t have a personal vendetta against you. He truly is trying to help you.”
“That doesn’t excuse how he’s gone about doing things.”
“No, no it doesn’t. But someone has put a contract out on your life, and you need to let him help you.”
“He wants me to rat people out,” she scoffed. “That’s not helping me. That’s setting me up to be shanked in a prison yard.”
I threw my hands in the air. “If you don’t want help, then why get me involved? I don’t have a death wish.”
“I don’t, either,” she said, standing up.
“You act like it.”
“Just get me that gun,” she said. “And stay out of Vinnie’s way.”
“I’m not intentionally looking for him! He keeps popping up.”
“Stay away from him. He’s worse than I am, and that’s saying something.” She opened the back door. “Tell T.J. I appreciate what he said. About his dad and what happened. His family always invited me to their gatherings. It made me feel like I belonged somewhere; like I was wanted. I always thought of T.J. like a little brother. I’m sure he made his dad proud when he joined the FBI.” She left.
I heard a lot of regret in those few sentences. And at that moment, I felt a chill go down my spine.
Someone is going to die.
Chapter 21
Trixie had brought the Sig Sauer over on her dinner break. “Are you sure you want this thing here?” she said as she handed it to me.
“No, not really. But she asked for it, so I should just have it handy the next time she shows up.”
“You mean she was here?” I gave her a brief rundown about the afternoon’s events. “You’ve had a busy day.”
“You could say that.” The doorbell rang at that moment. I groaned. I had hoped she would be gone before T.J. showed up.
“Expecting company?” she said.
“Yes, and I don’t want to hear one word out of you about it,” I warned her before opening the door.
“Sorry I’m late. I got stuck at the office. Hey, Trixie.”
“T.J. What a surprise!” she said, giving him a hug. She looked at the duffel bag and briefcase. “Going on a trip?”
“Protection detail,” he replied.
“Really?” Trixie said, looking at me. “Anyone I know?”
“Out,” I said, shoving her out the door. “I’ll call you later.”
She looked at T.J., then at me. “Sure you will. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” She was laughing as she drove off.
“I see she hasn’t changed,” T.J. remarked as I closed the door.
“I think she is hoping you and I will get back together,” I replied, walking back to the kitchen. “I made lasagna; I hope that’s alright.”
“Sounds great. It’s been a while since I’ve had a home cooked meal,” he said, sitting down at the table.
“I had a visitor waiting for me when I came home,” I said, taking some lettuce, cucumbers, celery, carrots and hard boiled eggs out of the fridge.
“Male or female?”
“Female.”
“What did she have to say?”
“She asked for her gun, and warned me to stay away from Vinnie.”
“We could have used that warning a bit sooner.”
“She said he’s worse than she is. I guess that’s saying something.”
“Did she say anything about turning herself in?”
“Not a snowball’s chance in you know where. Would you set the table, please?”
T.J. went over to the cabinet by the sink and pulled out some plates. “They’ve started the search. Owen’s face turned purple when my boss, Charlie Bell, commandeered his office.”
“I hope he doesn’t find Owen’s secret whiskey stash,” I laughed.
“Where is it?”
“No way. To give up that secret is signing my own death warrant. You tell Bell to get his own.” I put the salad on the table. “How long do you think the search is going to take?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.”
The timer went off and I took the lasagna out of the oven. “Bring those plates over here, and I’ll dish some up. It will save some room on the table.”
T.J. handed me the plates. “Did she happen to mention where she was staying? It would certainly save us a lot of time.”
“Not a word,” I said, putting the plates on the table.
We ate in silence for a few minutes. “I talked to my father last night,” T.J. said. “He wants me to stay out of this case. If Debra goes to trial, he’s afraid that my involvement could be seen as a conflict of interest.”
“What do you think?”
“I don’t know. I would have to ask someone in our legal department about it.”
“There is one thing that puzzles me. How is it she lived here for two years and you didn’t try to arrest her during that time?”
“That I can’t tell you. Classified information.”
“So you just let her wander around free? How many other people did she kill during that two year period?”
“None.”
“You’re kidding,” I said, surprised.
Sighing, T.J. put his fork down. “I can’t tell you anything else, Lizzie. It’s part of an ongoing investigation.”
“Where was she living when she worked at Trixie’s club?”
“Some house on Magnolia Lane.”
“Did you ever see her at that house?”
“That wasn’t part of my duties.”
I stood up. “Let’s go for a ride.”
“Where?”
“I want to show you something.”
Fifteen minutes later, I stopped the truck in front of 243 Magnolia Lane. “This is the address that is on Debra’s W-2.”
“How do you know that?”
“Trixie told me,” I said as I got out. T.J. followed me to the front door.
He put his hand on my arm. “Breaking and entering is against the law.”
“Not if you have a key,” I replied, unlocking the door. I led him inside. “This is not Deb
ra’s house. This is my mother’s house.”
“You’re kidding.”
“I grew up in this house, T.J. Why didn’t you FBI people check the title for the owner’s name?”
“I assumed someone had.”
“You know what they say about assuming, T.J.”
“Why did she put this as her address?”
“I don’t know. Mother’s gone quite a bit. Maybe Debra hid something here during one of those times.”
“And risk the chance of it being found accidentally?” T.J. shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“It wouldn’t hurt to take a look around, would it?”
T.J. rolled his eyes. “I guess not.”
Thirty minutes later, I found something in Mother’s office. “T.J., come look at this.”
“Look at what?” he said, coming into the room.
“I found this journal on the bookcase behind Mother’s desk. It’s not her handwriting.”
He took it from me. “It looks like a bunch of transactions, probably all of Debra’s business dealings. This is great! Just the break we have been waiting for.”
A loud whoosh from outside interrupted us. We rushed outside to see my truck fully engulfed in flames. “Are you kidding me?”
T.J. pulled out his phone and called 911. “I’m sorry, Lizzie.”
“It’s not your fault,” I said, turning to go back inside. A white piece of paper was nailed to the front door. I yanked it loose and read it. ‘Tell Debra I said hello. Vinnie’ I handed the note to T.J.
“At least we weren’t in the truck when he torched it,” he pointed out.
“Oh yeah, that makes me feel so much better,” I replied, sitting down on the front step as the fire truck came around the corner.
Chapter 22
Owen walked up to me as I sat on the front step watching the firemen. “Anybody hurt?”
I shook my head. “We were in the house when he set the truck on fire.”
“He?”
“Vinnie Amato.”
“How do you know?”
I handed him the note. “He left this nailed to the front door.”
Owen read it. “How did he know you were here?”
T.J. walked up to them. “My guess is he is watching Lizzie’s house, hoping she will lead him to Debra.”
5 Death Catches A Killer Page 6