“Faye Matthews?”
She glanced up and was about to tell the big bruiser of a man standing at her table that he had mistaken her for someone else, when she quickly remembered that the name Faye Matthews was her alias. She plastered a smile. “Yes, I’m Faye.”
He chuckled and gave her a look like he knew that wasn’t her real name, before sliding into the seat across from her. “So what kind of job do you have for me, Faye?”
She nervously looked around before turning back to him. He had come highly recommended from a friend of a friend. She wasn’t sure this was the place they should talk. It wasn’t crowded, but most of the tables were filled. The last thing she wanted was to have their conversation overheard. However, she didn’t want to go anywhere with this man. She felt safer inside the diner than outside, where the building was surrounded with dark alleyways.
She leaned over the table and said in a low voice, “There’s someone I want you to get rid of. Here’s a picture.” She slid the photo over to him.
He took it and looked at it for a few minutes and then smiled, showing his crooked teeth and a sinister glint in a pair of beastly eyes. “What’s her name?”
“Margo. Margo Connelly.”
CHAPTER THIRTY
RANDI STUDIED THE notes on her computer screen. She was alone in the office Harkins had provided for her use and she was grateful for that. Her meeting with Erickson had been draining. More than once today, while doing her research, she had lapsed into what she’d long ago termed a deep state of concentration. For some reason, her psychic mind was treating this case differently. It was strange how strong the ambiences were, and she was determined not to take any of them lightly.
She knew about Erickson’s sordid past. Most of it she’d decrypted from the time she’d spent with him. A part of her was glad he was finally behind bars for his crimes. But then there were murders he hadn’t been convicted of. Murders he’d never even been linked to. In her mind she had seen the victims, and they were calling out to her. The only good thing was that about 80 percent of those murdered had been assassinated by the same individual, Erickson’s personal hit man. And she hoped she would be able to stop him before he could kill again.
She looked up when there was a knock on the door. “Come in.”
Detective Ingram walked in. “How are things going? Do you need anything?”
Randi shook her head as she leaned back in her chair. This was the first she’d seen of Detective Ingram today. According to Chief Harkins, she’d been pulled to work another case. Randi got strange vibes whenever she was around Detective Ingram.
“Things are going fine,” Randi said. “And, no, I don’t need anything. In fact, one of the officers brought me a fresh pot of coffee a few moments ago. Guess it was obvious I’d be burning the midnight oil. Grab a cup. I’d like to go over a few things with you.”
“Sure. Want me to pour you a cup as well?”
“Yes. Thanks.” Randi looked back at the computer screen. The number three had been flashing through her mind most of the day. She had awakened at three o’clock this morning and had a hard time getting back to sleep. Then her mother had called to remind her that Randi’s twin nieces would be turning three in a few weeks. When she had arrived this morning, the room she’d been given by Chief Harkins had been office three. What did all this mean?
“Here you are,” Detective Ingram said, placing the cup of coffee on the desk.
“Thanks.” Randi lifted the cup to take a sip and glanced over at the detective, who was about to do the same. Suddenly, a flash of one of the recent victims’ faces nearly blinded Randi. “Stop!”
Randi’s word startled Detective Ingram. “Why? What’s wrong?” she said, moving closer.
Randi placed her coffee cup down and said, “Don’t drink that.”
Detective Ingram glanced at the coffee cup she held in her hand. She looked back at Randi, confused. “Why not?”
“It’s tainted with poison.”
*
CHIEF HARKINS DREW in a deep breath and glanced at the two women. For the second time since he’d been summoned, he asked, “And the two of you are sure you’re okay? That you didn’t drink any of that coffee?”
Detective Ingram shook her head. “No. I was about to, but Dr. Fuller stopped me.”
The police chief nodded and then met Randi’s gaze when she said, “No, I didn’t drink any either.”
Harkins’s phone rang, and he quickly answered it. “What have you got, Bill?” Moments later he hung up his phone and said, “It’s not that I didn’t believe you, Dr. Fuller, but I had to follow protocol. That was the lab, and you were right. The coffee was laced with arsenic. A high dosage. Had either of you taken a sip of that coffee, you would have died.”
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Since no one knew Detective Ingram would be returning from that case she’d been assigned to work, I can only assume that coffee was meant for you. Do you recall the name of the person who brought the coffee to your office?”
Randi nodded. “You’re right. It was meant for me. And the name of the officer was Ted Elliott.”
Harkins addressed one of the officers in the room. “Bring Officer Elliott here immediately.”
“Yes, sir.”
The officer left and within a few minutes he returned with Officer Elliott.
“Yes, Chief?”
“Officer Elliott, I understand you delivered a fresh pot of coffee to Dr. Fuller earlier today.”
Officer Elliott smiled proudly. “Yes, sir, I did.”
When no one smiled back, his smile wavered. “Did I do something wrong, sir?”
“It depends. Did you make the coffee?”
“Oh, no, sir. Officer Blackshear made it. Then she got busy and asked me to deliver it for her.”
Chief Harkins raised a brow. “Officer Alyson Blackshear?”
“Yes, sir.”
Harkins turned to the same officer he’d asked to fetch Officer Elliott and said, “Get Officer Blackshear in here immediately.”
“I saw her leave the precinct around an hour ago,” the officer said.
“Then go pick her up for questioning,” Harkins ordered. “And take backup when you do.” The officer quickly left the room.
“Three,” Randi said, getting everyone’s attention.
Harkins asked, “What about three, Dr. Fuller?”
She met his inquisitive gaze. “There are three plants working with Erickson and the assassin. Officer Blackshear is one of them, but it might be too late to question her.”
“Why?” Harkins asked.
“Because Erickson thinks she’ll become a liability and wants to quiet her.” What she didn’t reveal was that she had a feeling Erickson was worried Randi would pick up on his plants’ identities, and he was trying to make sure if she did that they wouldn’t be alive to tell anything.
Nobody said anything for a minute. Then Detective Ingram asked, “You said there were three. What about the other two? Can you identify them? Do they know about each other?”
“No,” Randi said somberly. “I can’t identify anyone, and I have a feeling that although everyone’s identity was to be kept a secret, it wasn’t. Pretty soon the other two will figure things out, especially now that Officer Blackshear is dead.”
“Dead?” the others in the room asked simultaneously.
Randi nodded. “Yes. I see her face, and now she’s a victim like the others.”
For the longest time, the room was quiet...and then Harkins’s phone rang. He didn’t take his eyes off Randi as he answered it. “Chief Harkins.” He pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly frustrated. “I’m on my way.”
He looked at everyone in the room. “An officer was shot down. A female officer.”
“Officer Blackshear?” Detective Ingram asked when no one else did.
“Yes,” Harkins said, rubbing his face. “And it appears she might have been killed with the same high-powered rifle used on the others.”
*
STRIKER GLANCED OVER at Margo as he clicked off the phone. They had taken advantage of another beautiful day to eat their lunch on the patio outside. “That was Stonewall. The sting operation went down and you won’t believe what happened.”