Rules of Engagement (Lexi Graves Mysteries, 11)

by Camilla Chafer

  "What can we do?" asked Flaherty. "That's all anyone wants to know."

  "Garrett says he needs to interview everyone. Can you set that up?" I asked no one in particular.

  Delgado nodded. "I'll run point. Leave it to me. What else?"

  "Do any of you know if there were any threats made against Solomon? Anything at all?"

  "He never mentioned anything to me," said Fletcher. "You guys?" Both Delgado and Flaherty shook their heads, tacitly claiming not to have heard anything.

  "No one came to the agency who was ticked off? No disgruntled clients?" asked Garrett.

  "We get the occasional client that doesn't like what we find but none have ever threatened us with any harm," said Flaherty. "Plus, Solomon has been doing less PI work and leaning more toward the risk division. Even so, we're hired to help our clients. So we're not in a habit of pissing them off."

  "What was Solomon working on?" asked Garrett.

  I knew that. Solomon told me. "He was involved with a bank," I said. "The manager was paranoid that the bank was about to be hit."

  "Yeah," said Fletcher, nodding. "I'm still working undercover there to see if there's any truth in it."

  "Is there?" asked Garrett.

  "So far, no," said Fletcher. “The manager appears to be one hundred percent paranoid.”

  "I'll pass that on to the detectives. They'll need to speak to everyone in this risk division of yours too," said Garrett. "You mind if I send someone over to get started?"

  "Make the call," said Delgado.

  Garrett nodded and pulled his phone from his jeans pocket, stepping outside.

  "Anything you don't want to tell him?" I asked once he was out of earshot.

  "Nothing," said Delgado. His face was stony, but etched with concern. "We've been talking and I gotta admit, I'm pretty confused. Solomon would have mentioned any feasible threat on his life but he never said a word."

  "Maybe there really wasn't any threat," said Fletcher.

  "This could be an old grudge," added Flaherty.

  "Are there many old grudges?" I asked.

  "A few," Delgado admitted. "Solomon's had a long career, and he’s put a lot of bad guys out of business. It's not inconceivable that someone patiently waited him out all this time until they could get to him."

  "What if that old grudge couldn't enact revenge before now?" I asked, Delgado's comment sparking an idea.

  "You mean, like if they were in prison?" asked Fletcher.

  "Exactly."

  "I can start working on some names," he said, and both Delgado and Flaherty agreed they would too.

  "Names, as in plural?" I wondered.

  "It's been a long time," said Delgado. "We've all made some enemies. You, too, no doubt."

  "Tell me about it." I counted off all the bad guys whose plans I'd foiled so far and gave up at a dozen. That wasn't including all the people I'd inadvertently crossed in my personal life. Names that would appear on the latter list would include my criminal ex-fiancé, Anthony Simon Steadman, or, as I like to call him, ASS for short, along with several mean girls from high school, and more than a few colleagues during my temping contracts. If I'd bothered that many people, how many had Solomon affected negatively in his much longer, more diverse, career?

  "Where are we with cases?" I asked. "Solomon mentioned there were some new ones on the table."

  "We're all waiting for new assignments," said Fletcher, "but I'm not sure I want to take on something right now."

  "Shelve them all," I decided, darting a glance toward the door. Garrett would be back any minute. "Recommend a competitor if it's urgent or refer them to the police. I need everybody’s help."

  "You got it. Where do we start?"

  "First thing, I want Solomon under guard at all times. MPD posted a uniform at his room but that officer will be no match if Solomon has a hit man after him. If we split the time up between us, we can each rotate in six-hour shifts."

  The three men looked at each other, nodding. "Consider it done," said Delgado.

  "I want to know everything that the police find out," I said, thinking harder now. "I trust my brother and all but until we know exactly what's going on, Solomon is our case. We're the people closest to him. We've got to figure this out."

  "Agreed," said Fletcher.

  "And I want to speak to the whole agency. Is everyone upstairs?"

  "I took the liberty of calling everyone in for a meeting. They're assembled upstairs now," said Delgado. "And waiting for an update."

  "Let's go speak to them."

  We all barreled towards the door, almost colliding with Garrett as he returned. "Where's the fire?" he asked.

  "We're heading upstairs. I want to brief the rest of the agency on MPD's visit," I said.

  "All of you?"

  "We're Lexi's protection now," said Flaherty. "Where she goes, we go, except when we don't need to."

  Garrett frowned, trying to get his head around what I figured was a purposefully confusing comment. "Let's go," he said, stepping out of the way.

  When we got upstairs, I turned, putting a hand up. "You can't come into this area," I told Garrett. "Solomon restricted it to employees only."

  "I have a badge. I can go wherever I like."

  "Just give me a minute, okay? There's usually a lot of need-to-know work going on in here and don’t forget: our clients value their privacy greatly."

  "More than their boss's welfare?" Garrett asked.

  I drew in a deep breath. "They'll respect agency policy whether he's here or not, because that's what he demands of them," I said. "I'll be a few minutes and I'll make sure everyone is available for interviewing and I’ll also insist that they hand over any pertinent information."

  "So long as it doesn't compromise client privacy," said Delgado. "That is still important."

  "Go ahead," said Garrett.

  I punched the access code into the keypad and the four of us stepped through, closing the door and leaving Garrett alone on the empty landing.

  Delgado put his fingers to his lips and let out a piercing whistle that stopped all the chatter and typing, turning all heads towards us. I took a deep breath, unprepared for the undivided attention.

  "You all heard what happened last night," I started, addressing the assembled employees of PIs, security consultants, ex-cops, and who knows what else Solomon employed. "Solomon is out of surgery but he’s not out of danger yet. The crucial thing now is to find the person who did this."

  "What do you want us to do?" asked Lucas loudly, crossing the floor to us.

  "Stop everything you're doing. MPD are on their way to interview everyone and I expect your full cooperation. If you're not sure if you can say something, check with me first, or Delgado, or Fletcher or Flaherty. If you have any idea about someone who wanted to harm Solomon, I want you to tell them who it is. Then, I want you to tell me. I want to know every single detail that the police know, preferably before they know it. Drop everything you're working on that isn't essential right now. Your only case for the time being is Solomon." I looked around, making eye contact with every person in the room, hoping they comprehended the importance of what I was asking them. "To start with, I need every single one of you to tell me how you got to know Solomon and who might want him dead."

  Chapter Seven

  "Ninety-seven names in twelve minutes." I stared at the slips of notepaper spread across the desk. "Solomon has that many enemies?"

  "Most of them won't be any credible threats," said Delgado. "They're just some disgruntled people shooting their mouths off."

  "But this is just off the top of everyone's head!" I pointed out. "How many more names are going onto the list in the next twenty-four hours? Or by the end of the week?"

  "What do you want me to do with the names?" asked Delgado. He, Fletcher, Flaherty, and I sat around Lucas's desk, with Lucas hovering behind me.

  "Copy all of these names and give the original lists to Garrett. I don't want to interfere with MPD's investi
gation."

  "We can do it ourselves, said Fletcher. As an ex-CIA man, he could probably have gone to all kinds of places I couldn't imagine but it didn't seem like the right step.

  "They can go places we can't. Plus, they can arrest whoever did it and ensure he spends the rest of his life behind bars."

  "I was thinking six feet under," said Fletcher, tapping his gun.

  It entered my mind too, but I was pretty sure that also wasn't the way to go. While I occasionally crossed the line between legal and not so legal, it was usually for the benefit of someone. I couldn't guarantee killing the lowlife who shot Solomon would be for the benefit of anyone, or anything but my own satisfaction. "No," I decided, a little unsure if Fletcher's bravado was shining through or if he really meant it. Either way, I had to make sure he knew I didn't agree with him, at least from a legal perspective. Personally, I had no issue with mercilessly kneecapping the scumbag. "No, we need to make sure the shooter is caught and can’t possibly get away with it when it goes to court. Plus," I added, when another thought popped into my head. "What if the shooter doesn't have an issue with Solomon? They might have just been a hired gun. If someone else ordered this hit, we need to find a way to get to the original source. Can't do that if the shooter is lying in a shallow grave."

  "I could make them talk first," said Fletcher. I shook my head at him and his jaw clenched.

  "If this were truly a hit, then we're looking at money. Solomon would be a high value target, and not easy to surprise," said Delgado.

  "He thought he was answering the door to the pizza delivery guy," I said.

  "Could your phone have possibly been tapped?" asked Flaherty.

  "I don't know. I hadn't considered that. Lucas, is there a way to find out?"

  "On it," said Lucas. He stepped forward, then stopped. "I'll wait until you're done," he said. "I'll know within the hour. I'll make these copies first," he added, scooping up the notepaper.

  "How much do you think a hit on Solomon would be worth?" I asked, and a wave of nausea filled me at saying the words I never thought I'd ask.

  The three men looked between them, having some kind of silent conversation that involved a nod of the head, an eyebrow raise, another one, and then a sharp intake of breath. "A million plus," decided Delgado.

  "A million dollars?" I yelled. All heads turned towards us and I ignored them, asking again in a quieter voice. "Are you serious? A million dollars to shoot a man?"

  "A million plus. Chump change for a few names on the lists," said Fletcher.

  "Who did you see?" I asked.

  "A Texas oil magnate, an airlines owner, and an Arabian tycoon," said Delgado.

  "He and the tycoon already made up," said Fletcher. "He got into a pickle and Solomon helped him out two years ago so now they're good."

  I blinked at them, completely at a loss for words. "Do I want to know more?"

  "Probably not," said Delgado. "But it involved an oil tanker, the tycoon's son, a python, and three ladies of questionable morals."

  "I guess I do want to know now. Keep the name on the list until he's ruled out," I decided. Mentally, I formed a very strange image but I wasn't sure what to do with the python.

  Lucas returned with the photocopied lists. "I made a copy for each of us," he said. "And your brother is at the door right now, scowling."

  "Go let him in and put these copies away," I said. Standing up, I called out, "MPD incoming. Screen sensitive please." Around the room, screens went dark before Garrett stepped in. He spotted me and walked directly over.

  "These are the initial names of people who might bear grudges against Solomon," I said, handing him the slips of paper.

  He took them, scanning them quickly. "How many names are on here?"

  "Ninety-seven. There will be more now that everyone's thinking about it, but these are the top names."

  "I'll get someone on it. We'll need to rule every single person out."

  "Some are probably dead," said Fletcher.

  Garrett raised his eyebrows. "That would be helpful."

  "There's an idea floating around that it could have been a hired killer, rather than someone who just turned up with a grudge," I said.

  "We raised the same idea at MPD."

  "And you didn't tell me?" I asked.

  "You weren't in any state last night, plus, it was only hypothesized this morning. These names will give us a good place to start. Thank you. Lexi, are you ready to go back to the hospital?"

  "A few more minutes," I told him. "I need to make sure the business runs smoothly in Solomon's absence. Everyone here is available to talk to you, if you want to ask around while I tidy up some office business."

  "Let me know when you're ready to go. My detectives will be here in a few minutes and I'll come back after I've taken you to the hospital."

  "I can take Lexi back," offered Delgado.

  "No, I'll take her. Thanks anyway, Tony. I'll go find someone to talk with while you finish up whatever you're doing," said Garrett.

  "Thanks." I waited until Garrett was gone and pulled out the photocopied sheet of names. "How fast can we rule these names out?" I asked.

  "Pretty quick," said Lucas. "If I can use a couple more techies to help run them, we can get through many of these by the end of today."

  "Good. Use whomever you need. I want to know who we can rule out. The dead are the obvious ones. Then, I think we need to know who is out of the country and couldn't physically have done it, even if they could have paid to have it done. Then all the people who couldn't pay to have it done, but could have done it themselves. Then..." Then I ran out of ideas.

  "Don't worry about the details," said Fletcher. "We've been doing this for a long time."

  "Can you all work your contacts? Find out if there were any rumors circulating about a hit?"

  "Already taken care of," said Delgado.

  "Lucas, can you look into the dark web? See if anything came up that sounds like it might be related at all?"

  "Sure," said Lucas.

  "I'll also need you to look into traffic camera footage in the area of our house last night. I saw a motorcycle racing away from the house after Solomon was shot. It might be unrelated but I still want that motorcycle found. The rider could be the shooter, or they could have witnessed something. We need a plate and the registration information."

  "On it," said Lucas.

  "Can someone speak to the delivery guy from Monty's? He arrived shortly after Solomon was shot. See if he saw anything or had a camera in his vehicle. I don't know if he delivers by car or by bike but some people have those little cameras for insurance reasons."

  "I'll find him," said Flaherty.

  "And Garrett mentioned something about the neighboring houses potentially having cameras. We need that footage too. There might be an image of the shooter," I said, trying to think ahead for anything else.

  "If they're connected to a wireless network, I'll get them," said Lucas.

  "If they're not, I'll get hard copies," said Fletcher.

  "Garrett is running a ballistics report on the bullets. As soon as I find out the type of gun that was used, I'll let you know, but I figure it had to be a handgun since it was..." I trailed off, out of breath. Thinking was exhausting me. I checked my watch again. It had been too long now. I needed to get back to the hospital. My mother hadn't called so that had to be a good sign.

  "We have this covered," said Delgado, leaning towards me and resting his hand on my arm. "You don't need to do anymore."

  "Yes, I do," I said. "This is exactly what I need to do."

  "Let's get to it," said Delgado. He scraped back his chair.

  "One more thing," I said, motioning for him to sit down. "I realize I'm at a disadvantage as to how each of you know Solomon. I mean, really know him, not just the nice, neat, little version of how he met you through work or you were old buddies. I need the real background stories. I need to know everything."

  "I think you know my story already," said L
ucas. "He caught me hacking. He could have sent me to jail, but instead, he put me on the right path to develop an actual career. We stayed in touch and when he set up the agency, he asked me to join."

  "What were you hacking?" I asked.

  "Um..." he paused.

  "No secrets," I reminded him.

  "Banks," he said softly. "I ripped off a bunch of money."

  "How much?"

  "A few million. Okay, five hundred million."

  Delgado whistled. "I knew you were good but not that good!"

  "I'm not that good," pointed out Lucas. "I got caught and I got lucky. If it weren't for Solomon, I'd be wearing orange and living in a five-by-five cell for the rest of my life. Instead, I have a job, a fiancée, and I can go outdoors whenever I want."

  "Anything else to the story?" I asked.

  "Like what?"

  "Where were you living at the time, for one thing?"

  "Los Angeles."

  "Solomon, too?"

  "I don't know. I never asked. I guess I figured he did."

  "How did he get whatever charges you faced dismissed?"

  "No clue. Knew people in the right places I guess, and, no, I don't know exactly who they were. I was too grateful to ask."

  "When was this?"

  "Eight years ago."

  "Do you know who Solomon worked with?"

  "I saw a couple guys but I wasn't formally introduced. They picked me up one day, very quietly, and took me to a black site and Solomon showed me all the evidence they had against me. He gave me a choice and I took it."

  "What happened to the money?"

  "I handed over the account numbers and passwords and let them deal with it."

  "Do you know if it was ever returned?"

  "No. I knew better than to ask anymore."

  "If that money disappeared, someone could have five hundred million reasons to want to ensure it stayed hidden. They would also want to eliminate anyone who knew anything about it," said Fletcher.

  "Eight years later?" I asked. "Seems a long time to suddenly remember that Solomon might know something. Lucas, can you look into it? See if anything comes up?"

  "Do you want me to look through his emails in case someone contacted him?"