by Karen Rose
‘Yeah,’ Troy said sourly. ‘She went to the news first, not the cops.’
‘And dressed to the nines for her interview,’ Dani noted. She gave Troy his phone. ‘I hope she enjoys her fifteen minutes of fame.’
Diesel rolled his eyes. ‘I hope she realizes that King or Kaiser or whoever the hell he is, is a serial killer and will probably go after her for outing him.’
‘If she’d come to us first, we might have given her protection,’ Troy said, then shrugged. ‘There’s more you need to know, though. Do you know an Evelyn Keys?’
Dani went still. ‘Yeah. She’s my dog groomer. I help her with her baby when he’s sick.’ A new ball of dread formed in her belly. ‘Why?’
‘She’s missing,’ Troy said gently. ‘She didn’t show up for her first appointment and never dropped her son at day care. Her grooming van was found abandoned near Mount Airy Forest.’
‘Oh my God,’ Dani whispered, physically swaying from the horror of the realization, grateful when Diesel wrapped his arm around her shoulders to hold her up. ‘He got away, didn’t he? Scott King or Cade Kaiser or whatever the hell his name is? He got away and he used Evelyn and Jimmy to do it.’
‘That’s the way it looks,’ Troy agreed. ‘We didn’t find any sign of violence. No blood. He may have taken them hostage, and if so, he won’t hurt them. He’ll need them as negotiating leverage.’
Diesel kissed her temple. ‘Breathe, honey. We’re going to find him.’
Dani nodded. He was right. So was Troy. But at the same time, they weren’t. ‘I’ve been a hostage before. He doesn’t have to physically hurt her to do harm.’
Diesel pulled her even tighter against him. ‘I know. But we will find him. We’re getting closer. Just focus on that.’
She closed her eyes. ‘I’ll try. I will. It’s just . . . Evelyn is so sweet. She wouldn’t hurt a fly. And she and Jimmy don’t have anyone.’
‘They have you in their corner,’ Diesel told her. ‘And they have the FBI. Which is almost as good as having you.’
She forced her lips to curve. ‘You’re right.’ Straightening her spine, she gave Troy her full attention. ‘Anything else?’
Troy still looked upset from having to tell her about Evelyn, but he nodded. ‘The casino owner is dead.’
Diesel sighed at that. ‘Yeah, I kind of thought so. Who found him?’
‘His housekeeper,’ Quincy answered. ‘She didn’t get far enough into the house to disturb anything, luckily. She smelled his body, backed out, and called the cops. Security video supports her story.’
‘How did he die?’ Dani asked, clenching her teeth. ‘I hope it hurt. A lot.’
Quincy’s brows winged up at the venom in her voice. ‘ME hasn’t determined yet, but first responders found a syringe on his nightstand. He was an insulin-dependent Type 1 diabetic. We’re testing the remnants of the syringe to see if it was his insulin.’
‘When?’ Diesel asked grimly.
Quincy shrugged. ‘Hard to say. Rigor had passed, so at least twenty-four to thirty-six hours. He was seen at the casino on Friday night, so sometime between then and yesterday noon. I don’t believe either of you are suspects, of course.’
‘Of course,’ Dani murmured. ‘Deacon and Adam are aware?’
‘Yep,’ Troy said. ‘They called to tell me themselves.’
Diesel gave Quincy a questioning look. ‘You said you had a gift for us. Sorry, dude, but none of this news seems like much of a gift.’
Quincy’s lips twitched. ‘No, dude, it’s not. This might be, though.’ He handed Diesel a piece of paper.
Diesel opened it, Dani leaning on his arm to read along with him. She met Diesel’s gaze, then looked at Quincy, her eyes wide. ‘You ran financials on Laurel Masterson’s med-school roommate.’
‘I don’t know what you mean,’ Quincy said. ‘I found that on a printer.’
Troy rolled his eyes. ‘I asked him to run it.’
‘I found it on a printer,’ Quincy insisted, glaring at Troy.
‘Like they’re gonna tell,’ Troy said with another eye roll. ‘It’s fine, Quince.’
Diesel snickered. ‘Blaming it on the printer was never going to work, Quincy. But thanks, and I won’t tell a soul. Why did you ask him to run it, Troy?’
‘Because I didn’t like how she answered Jeremy’s questions last night when we asked her about Laurel’s disappearance. And she drives a brand-new Miata.’
‘Not that expensive,’ Dani said, taking the printout and scanning the numbers, ‘unless you’re a third-year med student.’
‘With no visible means of support,’ Troy added. ‘Her student loans are being paid monthly by someone else, and she’s got a nice balance in her bank account.’
‘With a big fat deposit the month after Laurel Masterson dropped out of med school,’ Diesel said. ‘I’ll look into who’s paying her loans.’
Troy smiled. ‘I kind of thought you might.’
‘But why didn’t the cops find this when Laurel’s brother insisted she hadn’t just run away with this guy?’ Diesel demanded.
‘I don’t know,’ Troy said honestly. ‘And we can’t ask Detective Stuart, who investigated the case. He’s dead, killed in a home invasion.’
Dani jerked her head up from the printout, her gaze colliding with Diesel’s. ‘Home invasion,’ she repeated quietly. Like the two men involved in Laurel being sold into slavery.
‘Why do I get the idea that you two know more than we do?’ Troy asked.
Diesel ran both hands over his stubbled skull, winced, then rubbed his palms on his T-shirt like they stung. ‘Fuck,’ he muttered, then looked over his shoulder to make sure that Joshua hadn’t overheard him swear. ‘You need to check the casino’s server. Now.’
Quincy tilted his head. ‘I take it you have. What led you there?’
‘John Brewer’s financials,’ Dani answered. ‘Brewer transferred the title to the family home, but no money changed hands.’
‘LJM Industries bought it,’ Quincy murmured. ‘Troy told me last night, on our way to the casino after it was raided. We were looking for Scott King. Or Cade Kaiser. We didn’t dig deeper, but now that the casino owner is dead, we will. Obviously. Thank you, Diesel.’
Diesel pointed to the paper Dani held. ‘And we thank your printer. It’s more of the puzzle. Are you going to pick up the roommate for questioning?’
‘You bet we are,’ Troy said with a scowl.
Diesel rubbed his head again. ‘Did the roommate mention a man named Anatoly Markov?’
Troy blinked. ‘Yes, that was the name of Laurel’s boyfriend. The one she supposedly ran away with.’
Dani smoothed her hand up Diesel’s back, standing on her toes to massage his neck, noting his stress. He so wanted to tell them everything, but she knew why he didn’t. It was less a fear of arrest and more a need to provide information in a way that they could legally use.
‘I’m betting he’s paying the roommate’s student loan,’ Dani offered.
‘Will we find his name on the casino’s server?’ Quincy asked quietly, saving Diesel from having to decide what to say.
Diesel nodded. ‘Among others. Like John Brewer.’
‘And a guy named Blake Emerson,’ Dani said. ‘Who looks enough like Wesley Masterson, Laurel’s cop brother, to be him.’
Quincy rubbed his temples. ‘I haven’t gotten enough sleep for this tangle.’
‘We need to tell Adam and Deacon,’ Dani said. ‘Now.’
‘I’ll call—’ Troy glanced at his phone. ‘Speak of the devils. Adam just texted. He’s on his way to pick you up. Command performance for both of you.’
‘With whom?’ Diesel asked warily.
‘Marcus, Scarlett, Deacon, Adam.’ Troy pursed his lips. ‘And Grant Masterson.’
‘Now we know where Grant went on
his “vacation”,’ Dani said to Diesel, air-quoting. ‘I’ll tell the boys that we’re leaving for a bit. You’ll stay with them, Troy?’
Troy nodded. ‘I will. Adam’s dropping Meredith off, too, along with an interpreter. She thought the kids might need to talk to someone after hearing about their mother’s murder.’
‘Joshua might be ready,’ Diesel said. ‘Michael probably isn’t. Not yet.’
Quincy held out a wrapped package. ‘Michael’s video game. Will you give it to him for me?’
Dani smiled at him. ‘Of course. Thank you, Quincy.’
Diesel reached for her hand. ‘We’ll tell them together that we’re leaving and coming back. They need to hear that we’re coming back, Dani.’
She gave his hand a squeeze, her heart squeezing even harder. This giant of a man was so very gentle. So very sensitive to the feelings of children. And my feelings, too. Why did I make him wait so long? ‘You’re right.’
He kissed her hand. ‘And before we leave, I want you to put your processor on. I want you to be able to hear everything around you, so that we keep our promise to these kids and come back.’
She took her processor from her pocket and snapped it on. ‘Right again.’
Twenty-four
Cincinnati, Ohio
Monday, 18 March, 7.15 P.M.
Diesel almost laughed when he saw the group gathered in the Ledger’s office. ‘Just like Stone to get shot to avoid talking to all these cops,’ he said.
Marcus chuckled. ‘Ain’t that the truth.’
‘Sit down,’ Scarlett complained. ‘I’m getting a crick in my neck looking at you.’
Diesel pulled out a chair for Dani, then sat next to her. Marcus and Adam flanked Scarlett, and Deacon took the seat on Dani’s other side. The only stranger at the table was dressed in a starched white shirt and dark pants – with a clerical cassock neatly folded in front of him.
Diesel recognized him right away. ‘You’re the guy Stone and I saw last night when we were leaving the casino.’
‘Yes,’ the man said. ‘I’m Grant Masterson.’
He didn’t look like the photo on the website of his accounting firm. He looked a lot older. Wearier. He looked a lot like his brother.
‘I’m Diesel Kennedy, and this is Dr Dani Novak.’
Grant nodded once. ‘My wife told me you called, Dr Novak. My apologies, but I haven’t gotten around to calling you back. I’ve been busy.’
‘I guess you have,’ Dani said quietly. ‘You’re not a priest.’
‘He used the disguise to get into Stone’s room,’ Scarlett said frostily.
‘Why?’ Dani asked him.
Grant’s cheeks reddened. ‘I didn’t think they’d just let a stranger into his room in ICU. They nearly didn’t let a priest in, but Stone recognized me, too.’
Dani shook her head. ‘No, I mean why did you want to get into Stone’s room in the first place?’
‘To give him this,’ Grant said, moving the folded cassock aside to reveal a big Bible, the kind that churches set on stands or that families used for their genealogy. He lifted the cover to show that the Bible had a hole carved into the pages. In it was nestled a book bound in green leather with purple flowers on it.
‘Mountain laurel,’ Dani said.
‘Texas mountain laurel, to be exact,’ Grant said. ‘It was our sister’s favorite flower. She drew it on everything.’ He pulled a pair of latex gloves from his pocket and lifted the book from its hiding place. ‘I wanted Stone to have this. I didn’t know who else to trust.’
‘Why did you think you could trust him?’ Diesel asked. ‘He told you he was a cop.’
Scarlett made a small sound of surprise. ‘He did what?’
‘He was kidding,’ Diesel said. ‘Being a goofball to cheer me up.’
Dani’s gaze swung from the book to Diesel’s face. ‘Sorry.’
He covered her thigh with his hand. ‘Shh. We’re done with that, right?’
‘Right.’ She turned back to Grant. ‘Why did you trust Stone?’
‘I read some of his articles, both in the Ledger and when he was embedded with the troops. I read that he went to jail once because he wouldn’t give up a source. And I read that some of his Ledger investigations put some very bad people away. When I saw that he was also a victim of Scott King and all this . . . mess, I wasn’t sure what to do. But I figured he’d make sure the information got to the right people.’
‘I still don’t understand why you didn’t go to the police,’ Scarlett said.
‘Because of Detective Bert Stuart,’ Diesel said.
Grant stared at him in shock. ‘How do you know that?’
Diesel sighed. ‘I think we all know different pieces of this puzzle.’
‘Who is Bert Stuart?’ Deacon asked.
‘Detective Stuart was assigned to investigate Laurel Masterson’s disappearance,’ Dani said. ‘But he didn’t. We couldn’t even find a filed missing person report. He also didn’t investigate the roommate who conveniently said that Laurel had run away with her boyfriend. The roommate who now drives a new car and has a very nice apartment that she shares with no one.’
‘She was bribed,’ Scarlett said flatly. ‘You think Detective Stuart was, too?’
‘We can’t ask him,’ Diesel said, watching Grant closely. ‘He’s dead. Killed in a home invasion.’
Grant flinched, confirming Diesel’s suspicion that he knew a lot more of the puzzle than they did.
‘And the boyfriend?’ Scarlett asked.
Diesel hesitated, and Deacon rolled his eyes. ‘Speak freely, Diesel. We know what you do.’
‘And we trust you not to abuse our trust,’ Adam added.
Diesel relaxed. ‘The boyfriend was really a . . . supplier. Of women.’
Grant paled. ‘A supplier?’ he whispered hoarsely.
Diesel winced, reminding himself sternly that Laurel Masterson was Grant’s sister. ‘Yes,’ he said, gentling his normally gravelly tone as much as he could. ‘We don’t know all the details, but it appears that Laurel was . . . trafficked.’
Grant’s throat worked as he tried to swallow. ‘Oh God.’ The words were half moan, half whimper. ‘Oh my God.’
Dani slid her hand over Grant’s, her expression concerned. ‘Do you need to take a break?’
Grant shook his head. ‘No,’ he rasped. ‘Tell me. Please.’
Diesel sighed. ‘His name was Anatoly Markov. He’s also dead. Killed in a home invasion, just like Detective Stuart.’
Grant closed his eyes. ‘Wesley,’ he whispered.
‘Okay,’ Scarlett said, her frost thawing. ‘Now I get why you didn’t go to the police. Let’s start at the beginning.’
Diesel nodded, still watching Grant with concern. ‘Okay. Michael Rowland witnessed his stepfather’s murder on March ninth, at the hand of a bald guy.’
‘Scott King, aka Cade Kaiser,’ Deacon said. ‘Whose birth name is Cadeyrn, by the way, which means “king”. His father is Konrad, which also means “king”.’
‘Wow,’ Dani murmured. ‘Hubris, much?’
‘Much,’ Deacon said with a nod. ‘So, Diesel, you investigated Cade Kaiser.’
‘Not at the beginning. I started out by following the money, all the way through, because I knew Michael hadn’t killed his stepfather. We worried that the big bald guy would come after Michael because he’d seen his face, so I tried to find who else would have wanted to kill the stepfather. I checked John Brewer’s finances. He was broke, had cleaned out the boys’ trust funds, and had transferred the title of the house to LJM Industries.’
Grant stiffened. ‘LJM are Laurel’s initials, but I’ve never heard of that company.’
‘We’re pretty sure your brother created it,’ Diesel said cautiously, because Grant’s head had begun to wag side to side in denial.
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‘That’s impossible,’ Grant said. ‘I do his taxes. I’d have seen it.’ Then he closed his eyes again. ‘Unless he hid it from me, like he hid everything else.’
Oh. It suddenly made sense, why Wesley Masterson had named the businesses the way he had. Leaving the clues in plain sight had been a message to his brother, in case he wasn’t able to tell Grant himself.
Because Wesley wasn’t sure he’d survive whatever it was that he was trying to do.
Beside him, Dani sucked in a quiet breath, glancing up at him from the corner of her eye. She’d gotten it, too. He gave her a slight nod, silently telling her to continue.
‘We’ve been wondering why the businesses were set up the way they were, because it didn’t make sense.’ Dani also kept her tone gentle, because Grant’s skin had grayed and he was taking short, shallow breaths. ‘Your brother created a maze of shell companies. It starts at LJM and criss-crosses with at least eighty different companies before ending at Raguel Management Services.’
‘Raguel?’ Grant whispered. ‘I don’t know him either.’
Dani patted his hand. ‘Raguel was an angel of vengeance.’
‘Oh.’ Grant mouthed the word, his voice failing him.
‘The company names describe Laurel,’ Dani went on. ‘Her time on the lacrosse team at LaGrange High, the dance club, her figure skating, the boy bands that she loved, the fact that she went to the University of Cincinnati’s medical school and completed her first year. That she got an A minus in Human Gross Anatomy.’
Grant’s eyes grew glassy with tears. ‘She was so proud of that A minus.’
Dani smiled at him sadly. ‘She should have been. It’s a hard course. There were business names that made us believe that she graduated from UC and lived at Scioto Hall. That narrowed down her graduating class.’
‘Because Scioto Hall just opened recently after renovations,’ Scarlett said. ‘I got my degree from UC, too. Very nice work, Dani.’
Dani gave her a quick smile of thanks before returning her attention to Grant. ‘There were companies called Laurels Awards & Trophies, LaGrange Lacrosse Laurels, and Laurels Lilies, Rosemary & Poppies. At first we thought they were referring to a plant or an award, but then we realized they pointed to Laurel’s name.’