The Sons of Man
Page 15
Chapter Twelve
“I see what you mean,” Ben Garcia said.
Garcia, at his desk computer, took in the photo of Timothy Union.
“Sonya’s friend said he’s a dead ringer for this Colin guy,” Cal said.
Garcia was talking to Cal on his cell. The weather continued to grow worse, with Garcia looking forward to the end of his day. He had other cases, just returning from an interview with a witness when his phone rang. Cal’s voice was almost chirpy. He explained what Bobby Chambers told Sonya, then Sonya calling Cal and passing on the photo.
“I downloaded Thomas Lang’s book,” Garcia said,”but I haven’t had time to read it. I can give the photo he Feds, but I think they’re getting closer. They made a trip to The Bull’s Eye shooting range. The owner is a real asshole, wouldn’t say a thing. The Feds had to threaten to revoke his firearms permits, so he spilled about the robbery of a carbine. Denied he had any video evidence, but the cameras were obvious. The Feds don’t need a permit, so he finally showed them a video of some kid stealing the carbine. There’s a glimpse, through the front window, of a vehicle leaving the parking lot. But so what? In the meantime, a father of three gets picked off at a gas station. The cashier was the only witness. She quit her job the next day. Can’t get ahold of her.”
“That’s strange.”
“They’ll get her to come in, but what’s really strange is that she took off before I arrived with the Feds. The place was empty. The only reason we knew about the shooting right away was because someone called 911, hearing the gunshots. I think they’ll have more luck with the stolen Jeep and the DMV. They have a lot of leads, but are trying to cover it all themselves. They don’t think they need the local yokels like me to help. But you wait, Cal. The other shoe will drop”
“Did you take a look at the report from Robin Jones’s office?”
“If she finds out I had access to anything from her office, she will be royally pissed. Conflict of interest, anyone?”
“If you had asked her, she would have shared. Besides, the report mostly touches on The Church’s history. Stuff you could find in any article.”
“Speaking of articles, how’s the book going?”
“Due to the weather, I think I can manage to finish another chapter. I just finished the draft on my interview with Matthew Hawkins; that will be on The Marine Press on-line for Sunday. They may even manage to pay me on time. By the way, Hawkins mentioned that his parents are coming for a visit. I don’t think that’s wise.”
“I could offer an escort.”
“Good idea. With the leader of The Church in town, there’s going to be a bigger turn out along with their prayer vigil in the park. Tempting Fate, if you ask me.”