recover is the missing film that shows Reggio Sanchez at the scene of Jessie Klein’s murder.”
“I just hope he kept it and that it’s here.”
“He’d have to keep it somewhere—as a bargaining tool to use against Reggio. Besides, men as arrogant as Lee who’ve scammed the world as long as he has believe they’re above getting caught.”
“Can you use evidence obtained illegallyin a trial?”
“If we were cops, we’d need a search warrant. But I can guarantee you that Lee is never going to admit the film was stolen from him.”
“If we do find it, who will you give it to?”
“My first choice would be Ray Storm. He’s the FBI agent I was working with before Katrina. But I’ve been trying to reach him for days without success. I suspect he’s on an undercover assignment.”
“And your second choice?”
“The highest-ranking agent in the local FBI office.”
“You have it all worked out, don’t you?”
“I’ve had years to think about taking Lee down. I just never expected it to involve murder.”
Lee had been right about one thing. This was a vendetta for Remy. He must have loved the woman who was killed in Katrina very much.
“Has Lee ever mentionedor shown you a hidden safe?” Remy asked.
“No.”
“Then we’ll start in Lee’s office.”
Their first discovery was that the large desk drawer and a freestanding wooden file cabinet were both locked.
“No big deal,” Remy assured her. He pulled a toothpick-size tool from his pocket. “I just want to do as little damage as possible so that Lee won’t realize right away that we tamperedwith the locks. We don’t want to tip him off so that he gets rid of evidence we might not find before the FBI has a chance to seize everything.”
“That makes sense.”
“You start with the desk,” Remy said as soon as he released the lock. “I’ll take the file cabinet. If you see anything at all suspicious, show it to me.”
Nicole worked quickly, absorbed in the task but jumping at everyunfamiliar sound. The click of the motor when the air conditioner turned itself on or off. The drop of cubes from the ice maker. The chime of the grandfather clock in the entryway.
The ring of the doorbell.
Her heart pounded in her chest as she jumped away from the desk.
“Stay calm,” Remy whispered. “Lee wouldn’t be ringing his own doorbell. Whoever it is will assume no one’s homeand go away.”
“Unless they have a key, as I do.”
The bell rang again.
Remy went to the window and peeked around the blind. “There’s a UPS truck parked in the street in front of the house. It’s just a delivery.”
She exhaled slowly, still holding on to the edge of Lee’s desk with clammy hands. “Have you found anything helpful?” she asked, hoping this foray into the dark sidewasn’t futile.
“A deed for a very pricey estate in Montego Bay, perhaps a retirement property in case things get too hot for him here. Turn on his laptop and see if you can bring up his email.”
She tried but got nowhere. “I need a password to get into the computer.”
“That figures. Play around with it while I search for a hidden safe. The files are too clean. Lee has to have somewhereelse he keeps his dirty records.”
“How do you even start looking for a hidden safe?”
“Look for telltale evidence. Slightly crooked pictures. Furniture at odd angles as if it were hurriedly shoved back into place. Other than that, it’s just a crapshoot.”
“You’d have made a great burglar.”
“Always nice to have options in case the P.I. gig doesn’t pan out.”
“In the meantime,we need to hurry it up,” Nicole reminded him. “Lee could get home anytime, especially if he has to attend an event tonight.”
“I’ll risk it. You shouldn’t.” He reached in the front jeans pocket and pulled out a rattling key ring. “Here’s my truck keys. Clear out now and drive to a nearby coffee shop. I’ll call when I’m done.”
And risk Remy being shot as an
“I just hope he kept it and that it’s here.”
“He’d have to keep it somewhere—as a bargaining tool to use against Reggio. Besides, men as arrogant as Lee who’ve scammed the world as long as he has believe they’re above getting caught.”
“Can you use evidence obtained illegallyin a trial?”
“If we were cops, we’d need a search warrant. But I can guarantee you that Lee is never going to admit the film was stolen from him.”
“If we do find it, who will you give it to?”
“My first choice would be Ray Storm. He’s the FBI agent I was working with before Katrina. But I’ve been trying to reach him for days without success. I suspect he’s on an undercover assignment.”
“And your second choice?”
“The highest-ranking agent in the local FBI office.”
“You have it all worked out, don’t you?”
“I’ve had years to think about taking Lee down. I just never expected it to involve murder.”
Lee had been right about one thing. This was a vendetta for Remy. He must have loved the woman who was killed in Katrina very much.
“Has Lee ever mentionedor shown you a hidden safe?” Remy asked.
“No.”
“Then we’ll start in Lee’s office.”
Their first discovery was that the large desk drawer and a freestanding wooden file cabinet were both locked.
“No big deal,” Remy assured her. He pulled a toothpick-size tool from his pocket. “I just want to do as little damage as possible so that Lee won’t realize right away that we tamperedwith the locks. We don’t want to tip him off so that he gets rid of evidence we might not find before the FBI has a chance to seize everything.”
“That makes sense.”
“You start with the desk,” Remy said as soon as he released the lock. “I’ll take the file cabinet. If you see anything at all suspicious, show it to me.”
Nicole worked quickly, absorbed in the task but jumping at everyunfamiliar sound. The click of the motor when the air conditioner turned itself on or off. The drop of cubes from the ice maker. The chime of the grandfather clock in the entryway.
The ring of the doorbell.
Her heart pounded in her chest as she jumped away from the desk.
“Stay calm,” Remy whispered. “Lee wouldn’t be ringing his own doorbell. Whoever it is will assume no one’s homeand go away.”
“Unless they have a key, as I do.”
The bell rang again.
Remy went to the window and peeked around the blind. “There’s a UPS truck parked in the street in front of the house. It’s just a delivery.”
She exhaled slowly, still holding on to the edge of Lee’s desk with clammy hands. “Have you found anything helpful?” she asked, hoping this foray into the dark sidewasn’t futile.
“A deed for a very pricey estate in Montego Bay, perhaps a retirement property in case things get too hot for him here. Turn on his laptop and see if you can bring up his email.”
She tried but got nowhere. “I need a password to get into the computer.”
“That figures. Play around with it while I search for a hidden safe. The files are too clean. Lee has to have somewhereelse he keeps his dirty records.”
“How do you even start looking for a hidden safe?”
“Look for telltale evidence. Slightly crooked pictures. Furniture at odd angles as if it were hurriedly shoved back into place. Other than that, it’s just a crapshoot.”
“You’d have made a great burglar.”
“Always nice to have options in case the P.I. gig doesn’t pan out.”
“In the meantime,we need to hurry it up,” Nicole reminded him. “Lee could get home anytime, especially if he has to attend an event tonight.”
“I’ll risk it. You shouldn’t.” He reached in the front jeans pocket and pulled out a rattling key ring. “Here’s my truck keys. Clear out now and drive to a nearby coffee shop. I’ll call when I’m done.”
And risk Remy being shot as an
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