They were quiet for a moment, then Sam decided a change of topic was in order before Fletcher reconsidered.
“So what about the rest, Fletch?”
“Well, we’re still working on how Carter managed to dose the cigarettes and the inhaler, but since the congressman’s briefcase was ‘missing’ for a time and found at his house, we think Carter must have broken in and planted the tainted inhaler. We think that the Metro attack might have gotten Leighton worried, and in his stress he felt like he needed a shot of the inhaler. His wife told me he used it multiple times a day—apparently his lungs were totally shot.”
“I saw a report that she’s running for his seat in the special election.”
“That’s right. I went by her place last night, and she told me she was going to run. Told me a bunch of interesting things, actually. We were trying to figure out why Carter hit the reproductive center in Boulder—he had so many to choose from, why that one?”
“That did cross my mind,” Xander said.
“Turns out that’s where the Leightons were doing their in vitro. It’s one of the best clinics in the country, really cutting-edge technology, and Gretchen Leighton only wanted the best. After their son died, she wanted another child, but Leighton said no. When she found out about Ledbetter, that he had an illegitimate daughter, she put her foot down. The procedures were supposed to happen this week. We assume, since Carter was stalking her, he was aware of their plans, and tried to completely eliminate any chance they had at having another child. A completely perverted way to show his love to Loa.”
Loa. The pawn in all of this, along with her poor daughter.
“How’s Ledbetter taking it all? She’s lost a mother, a father and the father of her child.”
Fletch shook his head. “She’s incredibly pragmatic. She knew he was bad news, that he was gearing up for something. He’d been emailing and calling lately, trying to touch base. She was scared to death of him, but she had no idea that he had any of this planned to woo her with.”
“What about the text? Did you ever figure out who sent it?” Sam asked.
“We are still waiting for the paperwork to clear the service provider. I am starting to think it was a hoax, just a crazy reaching out. There’s no evidence of texts sent to Leighton from any of the players we’ve nailed down, so...
“The first funerals are tomorrow, Dr. Ledbetter and Marc Conlon, one after the other at the Washington Cathedral. Leighton’s service is Monday, and there will be some typical D.C. pomp and circumstance around it.”
“I don’t know if we’ll have Xander cleared to travel yet or not. But if we can, we’ll be there.”
Fletcher looked at her. “There’s only one outstanding problem. Outside of me having to explain to Bianco why Xander isn’t in custody and me having to go to the A.G.’s office and get sworn affidavits that you actually were deputized.”
“It won’t be a problem, Fletcher. I promise,” Xander said.
“Good.”
“What’s the problem?” Sam asked.
“Remember the DNA match from the Indiana killings?”
“Yes, of course. Did the second DNA test eliminate Leighton as a suspect?”
“Not exactly.”
Sam felt the shock on her face. “What? I thought you were sure it was Glenn Temple, the chief of staff, who committed the murders.”
“I did, too. This is between us for now, okay? No, the new DNA came back, and it was a match to Peter Leighton.”
“So Leighton was the killer?”
“Not exactly. It was a familial match.”
Xander and Sam looked at each other. “Who was it?” Sam asked, but then realized who it was. A legitimate mistake in the lab, if two men shared the same name.
Peter Leighton, Junior.
“The DNA showed it was the congressman’s son who was the killer. We think that’s why they shipped him off to the Army. To curb his unnatural tastes. And of course, he died, and there hasn’t been a murder on record that matches the M.O. since. We have a request in with his unit, asking about his behavior. Making sure there are no more victims. But it looks like the case is now solved.”
“But what about Glenn Temple?”
“Temple’s just another guy. Prickly, but outside of using a false name, innocent. We confronted him, to tell him we knew what he was up to, and found him packing for a trip. He was heading back to Indiana to start laying the groundwork with the state for the special election. Gretchen Leighton is a shoe-in. He’s going to be her chief of staff.”
“Wow. God, Fletch. I can’t believe all of this happened in such a short period of time. Are you going to stay at the JTTF?”