by Mary Stone
But if Eric didn’t get Alek the location of his witness, then the end result would be the same.
Did he risk Kelly and Ethan’s lives by gambling on the bureau’s ability to track down Natalie within the next ten hours, or did Eric roll the figurative dice on his ability to uphold Alek’s demands?
Neither option was ideal, but he had left “ideal” a long time ago.
Now, he sought survival, and nothing else.
29
A flicker of movement at the entrance to the conference room drew Bree’s focus away from the screen of her laptop as Noah strode through the doorway. After she offered her friend a quick smile, Bree closed the lid of the computer and scooted forward in her chair.
They’d spent the afternoon catching up on all the details gleaned by their fellow agents in Baltimore, but aside from certainty that Natalie Falkner’s kidnapping was connected to Drew’s murder, they hadn’t broken any new ground.
Bree had even gone so far as to stop by the safe house to speak with Eric Dalton, but the man hadn’t offered any useful insights—just more of the same tried and true bullshit.
Once he eased the door closed, Noah took a seat at the circular table. “I just talked to Winter. She said that they’re still looking for Aleksander, and they still aren’t any closer to figuring out who Detective ‘Smith’ is. The audio techs are getting close to the end of the recording, but so far they’ve only heard the three voices, two with Russian accents.”
Tapping a finger against the matte silver laptop, Bree nodded. “Eric didn’t seem in much of a mood to talk earlier. Just more of the same shit about his money laundering adventure with his Russian comrades.”
With a snort, Noah shook his head. “Figures.”
“Any sign of that black Mazda? Or anyone else, I suppose.”
Noah shook his head again. “No. And believe me, I’ve been looking. Haven’t seen anyone out of the ordinary.”
“What about Autumn?”
He shot her a curious look. “What about her?”
Bree folded her hands atop the table. “They’ve seen the two of you together. We’re talking about the Russians here. If they want something from you and they’ve gleaned that she’s important to you, then…” She left the statement unfinished and merely shrugged.
“Oh my god.” With one hand, Noah covered his face and groaned. “Are we going to need someone to babysit her again? She’s never going to want to talk to any of us. She’ll just pack up and move to Alaska or something.”
In spite of the grave situation, Bree snickered. “I wouldn’t worry about it just yet. She’s been paranoid ever since Nico Culetti. Honestly, I’ve been meaning to talk to her about it, but now it seems like I ought to just leave it be.”
“She’s a psychologist who counsels murderers and psychopaths, and she’s friends with a bunch of FBI agents.” Noah’s expression turned matter of fact. “She probably should be paranoid.”
Bree propped her chin in one hand. “Probably. Anyway, did Winter say anything else about what they’ve found so far? I know it happened beneath an overpass, but were there any security cameras nearby that might’ve caught someone driving to or from the scene?”
“She mentioned checking for that, actually. But, to answer your question, no. There weren’t any witnesses nearby, nothing like that. We’ve got good physical evidence, and we’ve got the recording, but otherwise.” He paused to shrug. “No definitive answers about Detective ‘Smith.’”
Of course, there weren’t any witnesses. The Russians didn’t leave witnesses. If there was the threat of a potential witness who could bring harm to their operation, they eliminated the threat.
Bree took in a sharp breath as she snapped her stare back to Noah. “Wait. No witnesses. Holy shit. That’s it.”
A glint of curiosity came to light in his green eyes. “What do you mean?”
“A witness. When I talked to Drew the day before he was killed, he mentioned a case that the Baltimore office made against the Russians. A RICO case.” She paused to meet his curious stare. “A RICO case that hinged on the testimony of one witness. A Russian enforcer who grew a conscience and decided to flip in exchange for him and his family’s safety. Drew said that the Russians were preoccupied by the pending RICO case. That’s what they want. They want that witness.”
Noah’s expression darkened. “That’s the deal they made with Eric, isn’t it?”
Bree nodded. “It has to be. They made a deal with him to find their witness because they knew his son was an FBI agent. It’s a federal case, and the witness is in federal custody. That’s why their errand boy in the BPD couldn’t help them.”
He was going to kill his father.
But something didn’t make sense. “The US Marshals handle witness protection, though. Even if I wanted, I’m not on that case so there’s no way I could find that damn witness. Why would they even begin to think I could access someone like that?”
“Because your father is a liar who lies to save his ass. He probably promised them the stars and the moon, then thought he could sob story you into doing something you aren’t able to do.” She leaned forward, lowering her voice. “Plus, there are ways around it. You just have to know the right people, and apparently, the Russians thought you knew the right people.”
Noah rolled his eyes. “I’m flattered that they think I’m so well-connected.”
Pushing herself to stand, Bree tucked the slim laptop under her arm. “Come on, we need to get this to Winter and Bobby.”
With a nod, Noah followed her out the door.
The knowledge that Eric had been enlisted to persuade his estranged son into coughing up the location of a federally protected witness wasn’t necessarily useful in finding the dirty cop involved in Drew’s death, but at least one piece of the puzzle had finally fallen into place.
Though one piece was better than none, they were still a long way from the finish line.
30
The object of their veritable manhunt had only been in custody for a whopping fifteen minutes, but the Baltimore field office was already abuzz. The man had been caught on his way out of town, and if the clothes and personal items stashed in his trunk were any indication, he didn’t intend to come back for at least a week. Winter and Bobby had walked into the interview room where they’d been met with the hard stare of a man who’d seen and done things Winter didn’t even want to consider.
After watching Aiden’s impressive interrogation of Sergei Kolesov, Winter had been amped up to try to get inside Aleksander Mirnov’s head. But before she or Bobby made it through two questions, Alek demanded a lawyer, and the interview ended as quickly as it started.
However, just because the man wouldn’t talk didn’t mean they were unable to tie him to Agent Hansford’s murder and Natalie and Jon Falkner’s kidnapping. Much like they had with Sergei, the forensics team had confiscated Alek’s clothes, and a couple Baltimore agents were in the process of executing a search warrant for the man’s apartment.
At two in the afternoon, Winter felt like the day had already lasted a full twenty-four hours. She was sure they’d spend the rest of their day sifting through the items obtained from Alek’s residence, but to her surprise, she’d received a call from Bree only moments after she and Bobby gave up on their interrogation.
Well, Winter wasn’t surprised that she’d received a call from Bree, but she had been surprised by the reason for the call.
When she relayed the information—the realization that Eric’s debt to the Russians was slated to be repaid by providing them with the location of a federal witness—to Bobby, the man’s eyes had widened as his mouth gaped open.
Sure, there was some organized crime in Richmond, but nothing on the level of the assassination of a federal witness. They were in uncharted territory, and they’d wasted no time seeking out Marie Judd herself.
Once the door closed behind them, Marie glanced from her to Bobby as she took a seat behind her desk.
Marie
lifted an eyebrow. “The Russians wanted Eric Dalton to get them a witness for a RICO case?”
Winter nodded. “We think so. Agent Stafford said that RICO case had the Russians on edge. We can ask Sergei if we need to confirm it.”
The SAC shook her head. “No, I trust Agent Stafford’s judgment. Right now, we’ve got a dirty cop to track down and a kidnapped young man and woman to find. I take it Alek didn’t give you anything?”
Bobby scoffed. “Asked for a lawyer before we’d been in there two minutes.”
“Can’t say I’m surprised.” Marie took a sip of her coffee. “He’s a little higher up in the food chain than Sergei. They’re willing to spend the big bucks for his lawyer.”
Winter wrinkled her nose. “Shouldn’t that be the other way around? The little guys are easier to get to than the bosses.”
With a shrug, Marie straightened herself to stand. “Maybe. Just don’t tell them that. What’s the plan, Agents?” Her dark eyes flitted back and forth between Winter and Bobby.
Bobby tapped a pensive finger against his chin. “Well, whoever this dirty cop is, he’s got to be sweating a little bit by now. His two buddies are both in federal custody, and we’ve kept almost the whole investigation to ourselves. Maybe we go to the station that was in charge of Agent Hansford’s case before they handed it to us, and we dangle a little bit of information out there. See who bites.”
Winter offered Bobby an approving nod.
It seemed Noah wasn’t the only one who was more clever than he let on.
As Marie gave Bobby a similar approving nod, she looked grim. “One dirty cop undermined all the hard work of a thousand dedicated ones. I hope your plan catches him or her quickly. I’m sure this goes without saying by now, but just let us know if you need our help. Our audio techs are still working on the 911 call. By their best estimate, they ought to have it finished later tonight or sometime tomorrow.”
Winter hesitated before she asked the next question. She knew how sensitive the pending RICO case against the Russians was—so far, two people had been kidnapped and a federal agent had been killed over it. “What can you tell us about that RICO case? Is there anything about it that might point us in the right direction?”
Pursing her lips, Marie looked thoughtful. “I’m not sure that there is, honestly. It’s the biggest case we’ve managed to pull together against the Russians since they moved into Baltimore. There are a couple Russian bosses, or brigadiers, that we put away. They’re being held without bail right now, and so are a handful of others. About half of them are in the country illegally, so they’re looking at the potential for deportation to a Russian prison if they’re convicted.”
Bobby blew out a long breath. “Like SSA Parrish said, shit rolls downhill.”
The SAC’s entire face grew rigid as she leaned forward, pinning both Winter and Bobby to their seats. “I hate dirty cops, and trust me, they are everywhere. It’s time to send a message. Find this so called ‘Detective Smith.’ When we find him, we can tie him to this RICO case. Chances are good, if we get him to talk, he can point us in the direction of any other dirty cops he knows about.”
Winter and Bobby both nodded their understanding.
Perfect, Winter thought as they turned around to leave.
Now, the stakes were even higher.
31
I’d been at the precinct for less than a half-hour when I got word that Alek had been arrested. The officers who’d taken him in had brought him straight to the FBI field office without so much as a pit stop to the police station.
My concern wasn’t that Alek would talk—I knew damn well he wouldn’t—but rather the evidence that had led the FBI to him in the first place. I’d entertained the idea of taking the opportunity to fly to Panama, a country notorious for its lack of extradition laws. But in spite of its flaws, Baltimore was my home. I wasn’t going to tuck my tail between my legs and run from my home unless I discovered for myself that the situation was hopeless.
If it turned hopeless…I was ready.
Under the guise of helping the homicide detectives piece together information about Alek and his operation, I decided to head upstairs. Though the majority of the department’s records about Agent Hansford’s murder had been shipped off to the FBI, I knew the men and women who had been present for the initial sweep of the crime scene.
To my relief, Detective Vinson was in a briefing room by herself when I arrived. My questions were benign to start. I knew I couldn’t immediately ask what she thought the FBI had on Alek and Sergei.
“So,” I said as I draped my gray peacoat over the back of the chair at her side. I glanced to the glossy eight-by-ten photographs she’d splayed along the table as I sat. “What are you working on? I heard the Feds snagged a homicide case from you guys a couple days ago.”
She shrugged. “We didn’t complain. It looked like a doozy, honestly. They thought it might’ve been connected to another of their cases, and then it turned out that the vic was an undercover agent. Captain wants us to get our clearance rates up before the end of the quarter, so he was fine with letting it go too.”
I covertly studied the files on her desk. “Connected with another case? Which other case? One of yours?”
Her eyes flicked to the photos as she shook her head. “No, this isn’t related. This is something else I’ve been working on since the Feds grabbed that case from us. Double homicide, starting to look like a jealousy love triangle type situation.”
I nodded my understanding. “At least those are usually open and shut. Jealous husband caught his wife with someone else, killed them both, end of story.”
Vinson tossed the photos on the desk and rubbed the space between her eyes. “Pretty much, yeah. But they help the clearance rate, so I don’t complain when I get them. They make me look good.”
“Unlike the cases where undercover Feds are killed with no witnesses and no apparent motive.” I had to play this right, not giving away my interest. “And when they’re tied to another case.”
Blowing out a sigh, she leaned back in her chair. “That’s no kidding. Sounds like they did all right with it, though. Arrested two Russians so far, or at least that’s what I’ve heard.”
I bit back the sudden rush of trepidation and forced an air of nonchalance to my tone. “Do they think those two guys were involved with the other case too?”
Vinson nodded. “Even if they haven’t said so, I’d bet my ass they are. There’s some kind of physical evidence from the kidnapping case that links them to the agent’s murder too. I was at the house with a couple agents that were here from Richmond. That place was immaculate, but, man.” She paused for another quiet chuckle. “Those two, I can definitely see why they’re Feds. They knew exactly where to look, almost like the shit just lit up for them.”
I made my best effort to look impressed. “Guess that’s why they’re paid the big bucks, huh?”
“I suppose, but it was weird and interesting how zoned in they were.” Vinson picked the photos back up. I was losing her.
I tapped the folders on her desk. “It’s a good thing they took over that agent’s murder case then, huh?”
Before she could refute or confirm my remark, Vinson’s gaze snapped over to the open doorway. I turned to the newcomers as the corners of her eyes creased in a smile.
Vinson pushed herself to stand. “Speak of the devil.”
Even if the duo weren’t unfamiliar, I would have been able to tell them apart from the city cops by their mode of dress. Not just the man’s sharp black suit or the woman’s slacks and pale blue dress shirt, but the way they held themselves. Their strides were purposeful. Even their smiles were purposeful.
I didn’t have to hear their introductions to know that they were Feds.
The woman’s eerie blue eyes shifted from Vinson to me and then back as she clasped the detective’s hand. The fluorescence overhead caught the shine of glossy, raven black hair that she’d fashioned into a neat braid that fell over one shou
lder. I’d realized long ago that women weren’t for me, but between her dark hair and fair complexion, even I could admit that she was good-looking.
Though she was easily four or five inches taller than Detective Vinson, her male companion stood at least six inches taller than she. Now, this one was more my type. Tiger eyes, fashionably styled dark blond hair, and a tall, leanly muscled frame.
Was being attractive a prerequisite to join the FBI?
I brushed aside the thought before I could dwell on it. I couldn’t afford to be distracted, not right now. Despite the folksy drawl with which he spoke, there was an unmistakable keenness in his amber-colored eyes.
The bureau hadn’t sent their second-string agents.
These were the A-team—the best and brightest the FBI had to offer.
And while they hadn’t announced the reason for their presence, the chill that crept up my back told me I didn’t want to know.
It was weird and interesting how zoned in they were.
When the female agent turned those blue eyes back on me, I knew I needed to get the hell out of there, and I needed to do it now.
32
Though Winter was pleasantly surprised to see Detective Vinson at her and Bobby’s first stop for the afternoon, her attention was drawn abruptly to the man at her side. He hadn’t let his attention drift away from them as he shrugged into his coat. That wasn’t unusual, though. There were a whole host of city detectives who were leery of the FBI.
With a pleasant smile, Winter sidestepped Detective Vinson and extended a hand to the man. “Afternoon. I’m Agent Black, and this is my partner.” She paused to wave a hand at Bobby. “Agent Weyrick. We’re just here doing a little follow-up on a case.”
As he clasped her hand, the detective nodded.
That was when Winter saw it.
At first, she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her, or that the specks of red were part of the fabric of the gray peacoat.