All first responders had access to PPE, or personal protective equipment, but putting it on would slow them down.
“This has got to be another part of his plan,” Dani said. “There’s no way he just happened to stroll by this building and decided to pop inside.”
“The fact that it was scheduled for demolition and that asbestos had to be removed first would be public information,” Johnson said through the phone’s tiny speaker, supporting Dani’s point. “He would have had plenty of time to make arrangements.”
“But how would he know you’d be there to chase him into the subway?” Wu asked Dani. “He couldn’t have anticipated that.”
Dani had been thinking the same thing and had arrived at the only conclusion that made sense to her. “He knew we would check the city cams after the murder,” she said. “So he gave us a trail to follow. He’d intended to leave on that subway car all along. I just made him do it faster.”
“You’re saying you didn’t chase him to the subway?” Flint asked her. “You think he ran there on purpose?”
“He had a reversible trench coat to alter his appearance,” she said. “But he knew that would only slow us down briefly because the subway is monitored, so he must have stashed a hazmat suit inside that building ahead of time in order to change into it. He probably intends to blend in with the workers and leave.” She pointed at the screen. “Look.”
Both men followed her gaze. White-clad figures filed out of the building, heading toward a nearby tent.
“That’s the decontamination area,” Flint said. “They’ll take off their gear and dispose of it or have it cleaned.”
Dani turned to the detective. “Can you get a K-9 unit there? Maybe they can—”
“That’s a nonstarter,” Flint said. “The walls have been opened up, and the building is full of loose asbestos. No way are they going to let their dogs inhale that stuff to pick up a scent.”
Had he thought of that as well? Certainly not out of the realm of possibility. This guy was turning out to be two steps ahead of them all the time. She would have to think even farther ahead.
“Where are the police?” Wu asked, frustration sharpening his question.
At that moment, several NYPD squad cars skidded to a stop at the curb. Uniformed officers jumped from the cruisers and ordered the workers to raise their hands.
Dani shook her head. “He’s not going to be one of those workers,” she muttered.
“How do you know?” Wu asked. “They’re covered from head to toe.”
“Because he prepared for this too,” she said, not sure why, but totally convinced. “This is another delaying tactic. While the PD spins its wheels interrogating this crew, and while their hazmat unit responds to search the building, he’s figured another way out.”
“I think Agent Vega is right,” Johnson said, drawing everyone’s attention. “I just heard from the city cam unit. All cameras around the perimeter of the building were disabled prior to the asbestos removal. The only reason we saw him go in was because there happened to be a functioning security camera across the street.”
“Tell them to expand the search,” Wu said. “Pull back and watch for the unsub in all surrounding blocks. We’ve mapped his facial features. We can pick him up again.”
Dani didn’t feel so confident. She didn’t say it out loud, but she pictured the man she had chased dramatically altering his appearance or hiding his face and mingling with the throng of pedestrians that crowded the nation’s largest city. “He’ll have thought of that,” was all she said. “He’s shown a remarkable ability for strategic planning and countersurveillance. We can keep searching, but we won’t find him.” At Wu’s raised brow, she added, “For now.”
“Crime Scene will go through the building,” Flint said. “There’s bound to be evidence for them to collect. Even if it’s microscopic, they’ll find it.”
“Sir, I just got an urgent notification from our video forensics lab,” Johnson said, cutting into their discussion. “While the PD followed the unsub through the city, the JTTF video team isolated his image and ran it through facial recognition.”
They crowded in closer to listen as Johnson continued. “We just got a hit,” she said. “He’s no longer an unknown subject.”
CHAPTER 4
“Who is he?” Dani said, anxious to put a name to a man ruthless enough to kill in cold blood and threaten the life of a child to escape.
She was speaking out of turn, but her supervisor didn’t seem to notice. Wu merely bent closer to the cell phone’s speaker.
“Gustavo Toro,” Johnson said, her voice carrying over the traffic noise coming from beyond the perimeter tape. “I’ll text his photo to you.”
“What do we know about Toro?” Wu asked.
“He has one arrest,” Johnson said. “Charged with murder in Maryland twelve years ago but got off on a technicality. He’s been keeping a low profile since.”
Dani’s lips tightened. Toro had killed before, but a glitch somewhere between his apprehension and the court proceedings had allowed him to walk free. Now someone else was dead by his hand.
“That incident looked like a murder for hire too,” Johnson continued. “And he never gave up any details about it, so there’s precious little to go on.”
“How was the last one committed?” Flint asked.
“No poison involved, if that’s what you’re asking,” Johnson said. “He used a knife.”
“Quick and quiet for a skilled professional,” Dani said. “And no ballistic evidence to leave behind for forensics to collect.”
“That was part of the issue in court,” Johnson said, fingers tapping the keyboard in the background. “There was a break in the chain of custody with fibers found at the scene.”
“Any known association with domestic or international terrorist groups?” Wu asked.
“There’s no nexus that I can find with any known cells or organizations,” Johnson said. “We also scraped all social media platforms. He doesn’t post anything we could link back to him.”
Dani wanted to focus on something that would help her put cuffs on Toro faster. “Where does he live?”
“Last known address is here in the city,” Johnson responded after a moment. “Texting his license to you now.”
Dani stared down at the picture on Toro’s New York driver’s license. She wasn’t sure what she’d been expecting. Maybe horns, fangs, or scales. Some outward indication of the monster that resided within. Instead, she saw regular features that included a square jaw sporting a three-day growth, deep-brown eyes, wavy dark-brown hair, and coppery skin. Some would consider him handsome.
“That address is in Spanish Harlem,” Flint said, looking over her shoulder. “Tell NYPD dispatch Detective Flint needs patrol cars to head over there and set up observation,” he said to Johnson. “No lights or sirens, but they don’t need to hide either.”
“Advise them Detective Flint and Agent Vega are on their way,” Wu added. “They’ll meet up with patrol when they arrive.”
Johnson acknowledged and disconnected.
Flint signaled one of the uniformed officers standing nearby. “Agent Vega and I need a ride,” he said when the officer walked over. “Let your sergeant know you’ll be detailed to us until further notice.”
The officer nodded his understanding and trotted back to his idling cruiser.
Flint turned back to Wu. “I’ll request tactical support,” he said. “We don’t have an arrest warrant yet, so we’re not going in heavy, but I can justify some serious backup due to the nature of the weapon used and the fact that he’s a homicide suspect.”
Wu gave him a quick nod. How they apprehended Toro was the NYPD’s call, and as lead detective, Flint had the ability to coordinate the immediate response.
“I’m authorized for a knock-and-talk with tac backup,” Flint said after disconnecting from a quick phone call to his supervisor. “Let’s go.”
Without either a search warrant or an arrest warrant in hand, they were limited to only a few constitutional exceptions allowing them the right to look for the suspect in his documented place of residence. Dani agreed their best approach was to knock on the door and listen for any sounds. If Toro tried to jump out the back window, PD would be waiting for him at the bottom of the fire escape. If he barricaded himself inside, they would call out negotiators. If he waited in silence, they would hold their positions while Flint’s fellow homicide detectives wrote an affidavit and swore out a warrant. No matter which way he played it, Toro would find himself trapped.
She walked around the back of the squad car and got in beside Flint, who gave the officer the address. He used the lights and siren to get them in the vicinity faster, then shut them off when they neared the closest intersection.