Missing: The Body of Evidence Page 30

Scrambling from the bed, she turned on the bedside lamp. Her dad passed her his cell phone. Holding the phone to her ear with a hand over the mouthpiece, she threw Dad a stare, but he ignored the signal and stood his ground.

  ‘What?’

  ‘You’re in the clear,’ Kyle said. ‘Logan has spoken to Brogan at internal affairs. Bill’s statement clears you from using the phone in McDonald’s. The other statements also confirm Dean threatened you, so there’s a reasonable doubt that you took a bribe.’

  ‘Reasonable doubt? So they accept I was set up?’

  ‘Yes, I mean… no. Oh for God’s sake, Nance. It isn’t me that got you into this mess. Logan wants to arrange for you to meet tomorrow with human resources to discuss a settlement. This whole episode could be all over by tomorrow and we can move forward.’

  We? Speak for yourself. ‘So when you say ‘all over’, you mean I’ll be exonerated from anything to do with the death of Kelly and Dean?’

  ‘No one can give that assurance, you of all people should know better. But understand this, he also sends a warning for you not to continue with any investigation that would prevent a settlement. Incidentally, I spoke to Tracy earlier. I hope you didn’t mind me giving her your dad’s number, but she’s been discharged from the hospital and wants to thank you personally for the flowers you sent.’

  Flowers? ‘No, I don’t mind, but what’s this about a warning?’

  ‘Well, more like advice really. Promise me you’ll stay where you are until tomorrow and I’ll pick you up at three in the afternoon.’

  ‘Since when did he give advice? Knowing Logan, I’ll take your first statement was intended as an order. But why leave it until three?’

  ‘Because things are going down earlier, that’s why. Just promise me you’ll stay at your dad’s apartment until then.’

  There had been urgency in Kyle’s last words, bordering on pleading. Dad was now only inches away from the cell and gave a shake of the head. He leaned forward, putting his hand over the mouthpiece and whispered instructions. Nancy listened and then answered Kyle.

  ‘Fine, I’ll stay here, but don’t take it as a done deal that I’ll accept anything. I’ll need to discuss anything put to me with my attorney. As for you picking me up, forget it. Dad and his buddies will get me to headquarters.’

  The pause lasted an age, when he finally fired off a question.

  ‘Which route will you take?’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Road works. Avoid Arroyo Seco Parkway. If I were you, tell your dad I’d take Huntingdon and cut through Lincoln Heights.’

  ‘Fine, I’ll tell him.’

  She closed the call and exchanged glances with Dad. He stroked the stubble across his jaw. In the depth of his gaze, she could see him working out the possibilities. She was way ahead of him on the conclusion stakes, with visions of an ambush. Her heart performed a slam-dunk, and chewing on her bottom lip, she planted her backside on the corner of the bed.

  ‘You can’t hide in here all the time, join us.’

  ‘I will in a minute. You go.’

  ‘Don’t dwell on what he said; we’ll take a different route.’

  Not dwelling was easier said than played out as she went through Kyle’s every word. He had seemed to be sincere, but for the pause and asking which route they would take. Then she recalled his talk of Tracy and the flowers. She hadn’t bought any flowers for Tracy. There hadn’t been the time. It was hard to work out if Tracy had used the flowers as an excuse for her to call, or if it was meant as a sarcastic remark after her attempt to befriend her when visiting the apartment, when she had spilled her guts on the doubts surrounding the professor’s death.

  With a shake of the head, she pushed herself to her feet and made her way to the living room.

  ‘Where’s Uncle Dave and Jim?’

  Nancy picked up a fishing magazine and flicked the pages. Turmoil swirled around in her mind at the indignation of the authorities taking the easy way forward by sweeping her under the carpet as if she were an insignificant speck of dust.

  ‘Gone to set up an observation camp,’ Dad said.

  ‘Where?’

  ‘Over at Astral Chemicals.’

  Nancy dropped the magazine on the coffee table, overwhelmed by a feeling that she was becoming a pacified observer in events on which her future depended. Like magma seeking a way out through the mantle, her frustration erupted.

  ‘Oh, no. This is stupid. Call them, and have them come back here.’

  ‘I’ll do no such thing.’

  ‘I thought you were going to talk to your FBI contact?’

  Her dad’s voice raised and she squared up to him, hands on her hips. His expression contorted like a gargoyle with evil intent.

  ‘I have talked. Meet with him at lunch time tomorrow and he’s bringing someone along from Homeland Security for an off the record meeting.’

  ‘Thanks a bundle for keeping me informed. Why Homeland Security?’

  ‘If you hadn’t hidden away all day, you’d know, ungrateful bitch.’

  The remark cut like a knife. ‘Don’t you dare call me by that name!’

  ‘What d’ya expect after all I’m doing? Your mom would turn in her grave.’

  A red mist descended that defied reason and she snapped, wagging her finger in his face.

  ‘For me? You mean Mom. Sure, I’m grateful, but not once have you said you’re doing it for me, your daughter, remember?’

  ‘Daughter, yeah, right. I don’t see anyone else stepping up to the mark.’

  ‘Whoa, you two. Calm down,’ said Ben.

  ‘No, Uncle Ben, let’s have it out now.’ She turned to Dad. ‘It’s all about you, isn’t it? This is not about me. It’s all about you being in control. When have you ever treated me like a daughter?’

  His face reddened and he held out the palm of his hand.

  ‘Stuff you, we’re short of beers,’ Dad said and grabbing his keys charged out of the room.

  Nancy called out ‘That’s it, run away.’

  The outside door slammed and she turned to Ben, still trembling.

  ‘Sorry, it just came out.’

  ‘Don’t be sorry. Surprised you’ve not boiled over before. I guess it’s the trench syndrome. It’s what happens when you’re backed into a corner with no way out. The mind just snaps.’

  ‘It’s just that he never confides in me like normal dads. Look at this Bill and Logan business. I mean, what’s so secret he can’t tell me where their paths have crossed.’

  ‘Oh, that. Don’t worry, it goes back to just before you were born and Bill, Lanky and your dad had a big fall out.’

  ‘What, they were friends?’

  ‘Sort of. They were in the army together. At one time, they were in a Special Forces team, but after an argument, your dad was transferred.’

  ‘Special Forces? He never said. So Lanky, I’m guessing, was Logan on account of his height.’

  ‘Yeah, right in one.’

  ‘Do you think Logan and Bill are the type to be involved in anything illegal?’

  ‘Well, you’re going back over thirty-six years since I had anything to do with them. All I can say is in that time I’ve pulled a few dodgy stunts, but I’d never own up to it. So who knows? Anything is possible.’

  ‘So when I joined the police force, Bill would have known who I was, and the same goes with Logan when I joined robbery and homicide?’

  ‘Guess so. But hey, don’t tell your dad I told you, or I’m toast.’

  ‘I won’t. But I just can’t see why no one would own up to them all knowing each other.’

  ‘Like I said, not my business.’

  Nancy still couldn’t help wondering if whatever the feud was, it could have led to Bill and Logan hanging her out to dry as some sort of payback, but then they changed their mind when Dad confronted Bill. It puzzled Nancy, why SWAT hadn’t turned up at the apartment to arrest Dad, after either of his encounters with Bill. Dad had to have something on Bill and Logan from t
heir past, something so serious that they would back off. But just where Kyle fit into all this, other than as a stooge, was beyond comprehension.

  Nancy made her way back to her bedroom to change clothes. Passing Dad’s bedroom door, she stopped. Curiosity, and knowing he kept a box under his bed with his old photos and private papers, drove her through his door.

  Out of the bedroom window, she saw her dad drive out of the parking lot. Nancy stooped and slid the box out from under the bed. Sorting through photos, she delved deep.

  Pulling out a pile of black and white photos, she thumbed through them. One caught her attention. It was a picture of Mom and Dad flanked by another couple and a person knelt in front of them cradling a huge fish. On the reverse of the photo were the names. ‘Bill, Mavis, Me with lump, Jed and Lanky with fish, 1976.’ Nancy flipped back to the picture. Her mom was clearly pregnant, which identified Nancy as the lump and brought a smile to her lips. It was proof, if any were needed, that they had all been friends at one time before her birth.

  Nancy placed the photos back and noticed a sealed letter addressed to her in her dad’s handwriting. It was a curiosity too far, and she reluctantly ignored it, when she noticed a hospital record in her dad’s name. There were several letters from the hospital clipped together. Nancy speed-read them, her heart pounding and feeling nervous that her dad may return and catch her in the act. She closed the lid and slid the box back under the bed. Her mind was awash at the revelation in the hospital letters and she scrambled out of the room and into her bedroom. Launching onto the bed in a dive, she buried her head in the pillow to muffle her anguish.

  Chapter 71

  Nancy reached under her bed and pulled out a small wooden casket. It was fashioned like a miniature-treasure chest with a curved lid and tarnished-brass clasps. Wiping away a layer of dust, she unfastened the clasps and opened the lid, poking her finger around long forgotten mementos. Amongst the coloured pebbles and dried flowers, she took out a pink-hair band and drew it to her lips. Her mom had pulled it from her own hair when sitting in her hospital bed and had given it to Nancy. It still held some of her mom’s hair and Nancy grasped the band. Closing her eyes, she tried desperately to recall times she spent with her mom, hoping her essence had somehow remained entangled with the band.

  The shrill tone of the house line ringing snapped Nancy out of her melancholy mood and she rushed to the Living Room.

  ‘Tracy Gibbons for you,’ Ben said and held out the handset.

  ‘Tracy, how are you?’

  ‘Fine, but you take some doing to get hold of. No one in your department wanted to give me a contact number, but I managed to con it out of Kyle.’

  Nancy smiled that Tracy had pulled one over on Kyle and what she said explained the flowers.

  ‘So are you back at your work?’

  ‘No, I’ve only just got home from the hospital, but it doesn’t mean I don’t know what’s going on with you. How are you holding up?’

  ‘Oh, you heard. I’m fine. But never mind me. Tell me about the fire at the lab?’

  ‘Nothing to tell really, it all happened so fast. Luckily, a fire blanket saved me from the worst of it, or I wouldn’t have lived to tell the tale. Still, I won’t be back at work for some time. I hear you were in a fire of your own?’

  ‘Yeah, it would seem we share a penchant for strange events.’

  ‘Listen, there’s something I have to tell you. A colleague of mine visited and told me they found trace evidence on your hard drive of a computer virus. It can’t be traced back to who put it there, but it’s nothing that is out there in hacking-land. And, get this. They found a tracking device under your hood. They checked with the manufacturer and it’s from a batch supplied to the government. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t say which government procurement department.’

  ‘Not sure how that helps. It could be police issue. Maybe internal affairs put it there?’

  ‘Well, that’s what I thought, but since making the enquiries it must have alerted red flags. My colleague had a visit from Homeland Security agents. Following that, they interviewed me this morning about the professor’s death and I told them you had a copy of the original file. One of the agents was from the FBI, so they’re making joint enquiries. The agent said they’d arrange to see you, but I wasn’t to talk about it with anyone down at police headquarters.’

  Nancy felt for the chair next to the phone and sat. What Tracy had said could explain why Homeland Security was involved in tomorrow’s meeting. Sweat formed on her brow and the handset felt moist to the touch. It flashed through her mind that Dad’s phone could be bugged.

  ‘Tracy, hold on.’ She turned to Uncle Ben. ‘Are we sure this phone is not bugged?’

  ‘Doubt it, your dad’s swept the apartment regularly since all this kicked off and we’ve checked the perimeter for surveillance vehicles.’

  ‘Tracy, you won’t believe this. The medium who gave a statement down at headquarters is connected to Astral. Not only that but I’ve found their base.’ She relayed details of Astral’s location. ‘I’m only telling you this in case anything happens to me.’

  ‘Do you think something will happen?’

  ‘It already has, but it’s a long story. If I come through all this in one piece, we’ll have to meet up and I can tell you all about it over a bottle of wine and a box of Belgian chocolates.’

  ‘Sounds good to me, honey, although I don’t know about the chocolates? I’ve lost ten pounds while I’ve been in the hospital.’

  ‘Good for you.’

  Nancy glanced over at Ben and signalled him with a sway of the head. He took the message and disappeared into the kitchen. She cupped her hand over the handset and in a low tone said.

  ‘Tracy, I need you to do me a favour if you’re going to be able to get about. I have a hunch about something. It’s…’

  Tracy, laughing at the other end of the line interrupted her.

  ‘Hunch? I know better than to say no to one of your hunches. Go ahead, I can get about.’

  Nancy relayed all the details of something she wanted her to check out.

  ‘If you can get hold of your colleague tonight, you could phone me back on the first hunch. I’ll leave a package for you with instructions with the owner of my hairdresser’s for what else I need.’

  The call ended with both agreeing to keep in contact.

  ‘You can come out now.’

  Ben walked back into the room holding a coffee mug and a plate of sandwiches in the other.

  ‘Thought you could use some rations.’

  ‘Thanks, back in a minute, I just need the bathroom.’

  Nancy made her way to the bathroom and stared at the cabinet mirror. Her hair was dishevelled and her face pale as a death mask. She picked up Dad’s brush and comb from the side of the basin and combed his hairs from the brush and setting them aside, she ran the brush though her hair. Filling the basin with tepid water, she cupped her hands and splashed the water on her face, bringing her back to having some colour in her cheeks.

  Staring at her image in the mirror, she reflected on events and came to a decision. From here on in, she would work alone, just as she had always done on the streets of LA, and investigate her way or no way at all.

  Chapter 72

  Six-thirty in the morning and Nancy had prepared mentally for the day ahead. She hoped that she had not disturbed Dad and Ben. The last thing she wanted was another confrontation with her dad. She stood outside Dad’s apartment in the hallway, and pulled the door handle until it reached the catch. Carefully, she placed her shoulder against the door to ease it closed with a final click of the lock. Light of foot, she made her way down the stairway and to her car.

  Her eyes darted in all directions in the parking lot, checking the perimeter. Another five hours to the meeting with Homeland Security and the FBI and she was hoping today’s jaunt would fill in some blanks for what she had to tell them. Nancy opened the car door and edged onto the driver’s seat, placing a large-br
own envelope and her purse on the passenger seat.

  She took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. A flick of her wrist to fire up the ignition, a prayer that the noise of the engine wouldn’t alert her dad, and Nancy was off on her mission. A sense of calm descended as she burned up the road ahead. The feeling was at one-hundred and eighty degrees from yesterday’s convoy experience. Then, she had felt ill at ease; almost embarrassed, which she thought kind of strange. But then, driving around armed to the hilt like some vigilante army, however grateful she had been, was highly illegal and had only added to the tension.

  The hairdresser’s shop came into view and she pulled over. Nancy took a pen-drive copy of Tracy’s report on the professor’s death and dropped it into the envelope with the rest of the contents, before sealing. Leaving the engine running, she took the brown envelope, hurried over to the door, and posted it through the opening.

  A glance around and she was satisfied no one was watching. The thought struck, when getting back in her car that the note she had left on her bed simply saying ‘Gone out, back at lunchtime’, without saying where she was going, was likely to burn more than a few bridges with her dad. She tried to set the notion aside as she headed in the direction of Mary’s home.

  Parked outside the estate where Mary lived, she waited. The temptation to drive up to her house to ask questions was hard to keep under check, and the thought only abated when Mary’s car pulled out of the estate and Nancy followed at a respectful distance. There was no need to drive too closely to Mary’s car; Nancy knew exactly where she was headed.

  Driving along the mountain road, she hit one of those patches where her thoughts were so wrapped up in the questions she needed answering, she lost sight of the immediate task and was driving on autopilot. The car turned at a bend. A shot of adrenalin interrupted her cool karma. Mary’s car came into view and slowed. Nancy hit the brake pedal, but not before she saw Mary talking on her cell phone. Anxiety receded as Mary’s car hit another bend and Nancy slowed to a crawl and on exiting the bend the trunk of Mary’s car disappeared around another bend. As she hit the next straight, Mary’s car turned into ACI.