‘If Wyatt was Paula’s captor, why didn’t she know him the day we watched her die?’
Adam thought back to those few days during which he and Paula had communicated via Skype after she’d reached out to him. ‘Because he always stood off-camera. He said that it was “my show” to run. That he’d coach me through it because it was one of my first big cases in Personal Crimes.’
‘Which was condescending bullshit,’ Nash muttered.
Adam sighed. ‘I see that now. We wondered how she’d figured out how to use the Internet and email without raising the notice of her captor right away. Now I’m wondering if Wyatt did this to mess me up. Apparently, he’s always hated me.’
Nash was quiet a moment. ‘After I came out of my funk? I poked around and found that you paid for her ashes to be buried in a proper grave. Out of your own pocket.’
Adam shrugged, uncomfortable now. ‘I couldn’t stand the thought of her ending up in some unmarked grave. I didn’t know if she had family. Hell, I never even knew her last name. Just . . . for a few days, she was mine to protect.’
Nash’s sigh was sad. ‘I’ve been putting flowers there. First Sunday of the month. Maybe next time we can go together. Get some closure.’
Adam’s throat thickened. ‘I’d like that. Thank you.’ He turned away from the photos, just as Deacon came through the door, bigger than life as usual.
But not impervious to hurt, Adam thought. Just like Meredith wasn’t as impervious as everyone thought either. I hurt them both. I hurt a lot of people by closing myself off. Not gonna do that anymore.
‘How long before the lab gets DNA back on Dale Hanson?’ he asked Deacon.
‘Few hours. They moved it to the top of the priority list. It’s so much nicer now with the high-speed methods. Not like the old days when we had to wait a whole day or more.’
Nash rolled his eyes. ‘I love hearing you young pups talk about the old days. You got no concept about—’ He broke himself off, rolling his eyes again. ‘God, I’m old.’
Deacon assessed him seriously. ‘Maybe. But remember we need to hear from the old guys sometimes.’
Adam knew his cousin wasn’t talking about the older detective’s methods, but the dressing-down Nash had given them earlier. He was proven right by Deacon’s next words.
‘Trip, can you drop Adam off at the hospital when we’re done here? I think he needs some time to process.’
Trip’s brows arched. ‘With Meredith?’
Deacon shrugged. ‘Adam might need therapy.’
‘So that’s what you old guys are callin’ it now?’ Trip drawled. ‘Therapy?’
‘I’m not old,’ Deacon protested. ‘You’re just young.’
Nash chuckled. ‘That’s what happens when you call someone old, Novak. There’s always someone younger to come along and pay the insult forward. And “therapy” is a fine word for it, Agent Triplett. Adam could use it.’
Adam actually felt his cheeks heating. ‘Shut up. I’m not going to the hospital for Meredith yet. We are going to find Wyatt Hanson.’ He swallowed hard. ‘I need to.’
‘I know you do,’ Deacon said earnestly. ‘I get that. But you are his target, Adam. By putting yourself out there, you’re putting the rest of us in danger.’
Adam frowned, unimpressed. ‘You’re resorting to guilt, D? What the hell?’
Scarlett looked up from her phone, her expression a little guarded, making him wonder what else had happened, but she simply agreed. ‘It was pretty lame, Deacon.’
Adam gave her a grateful nod, before refocusing on Deacon. ‘Besides, it’s not your call. Until Isenberg decides otherwise, I’m lead on this case and I’m not going to hide.’
‘Isenberg,’ Isenberg said as she came through the door, ‘has decided otherwise. I’m taking the lead.’
Adam turned his frown in Isenberg’s direction. ‘Why?’
‘Because this case just became a big fucking deal, that’s why,’ she said cordially, as if they were discussing a sale on chicken at Kroger. ‘You do not want to be lead anymore. Hell, I don’t want to be lead. I’m doing you a favor, Detective.’ Then she shocked him by laying her hand on his arm and giving it a squeeze. ‘And because,’ she added in a murmur, ‘you were shot at this morning by someone you trusted and haven’t fully processed it.’
Adam wanted to be annoyed, but couldn’t find it in him. ‘I’m fine.’
‘You will be,’ she said, gently confident, completely disarming him. ‘Let’s all sit down. I have information you don’t. Let me tell you all and you will be begging me to take this off your hands.’
‘You might have told him this privately,’ Nash said in a loud whisper.
Isenberg rolled her eyes. ‘I don’t have time for niceties, Detective Currie, and my people are tough enough not to need them.’ But she gave Adam a look of apology before continuing. ‘I briefed the brass on what you all have put together this morning. Let’s just say that the idea that we have a rogue cop out there running prostitution rings and killing innocent people did not go over well. The media haven’t sunk their teeth into the story yet, but it’s a matter of time. Especially since the video Shane made for Linnie went viral.’
‘What video?’ Deacon, Nash, and Trip asked all together. Scarlett was oddly silent.
Adam blew out a breath. ‘Oh, the video. I’d forgotten all about it.’
‘Well, you have had a busy morning, Detective,’ Isenberg said, her eyes filled with I-told-you-so. ‘Tell them now.’
‘It was Meredith’s idea, actually. We were talking about losing Linnie’s trust and how she’d never approach us now, but she might trust Shane. I asked Colby and Wendi to supervise a video of him asking Linnie to come to us, since they’re with Mallory in the same hotel as Shane and Kyle. I figured I’d ask the Ledger to upload it to their website. But then John . . .’ He shrugged. ‘I lost the thread in everything that happened next.’
Scarlett blinked at him. ‘You did all that before your AA meeting?’
He had been productive, come to think of it. ‘Everything but talking to Marcus. I didn’t think he’d be awake at five thirty in the morning.’
‘He wasn’t,’ Scarlett said. Which she’d know because she and the newspaper owner were a couple. ‘But you could have asked me.’
Yes, he could have. And should have. Because he recognized the odd expression in her eyes, now. He’d hurt her too. ‘I’d planned to after my AA meeting this morning. Honest, Scar. As it turned out, though, Wendi and Parrish Colby were already awake. Mallory wasn’t sleeping. Neither were Shane and Kyle. They were all having a Star Wars marathon.’ He glanced at Isenberg. ‘How did it go viral? I never got to ask the Ledger for help.’
‘Diesel Kennedy took care of uploading it to the Ledger homepage,’ Isenberg said, then one side of her mouth lifted in a smirk. ‘He actually cleared it with me first.’
Scarlett looked surprised to hear that. ‘Wow. Diesel’s getting downright civilized. Asking permission and everything. I think that scares me.’
‘Don’t worry,’ Isenberg said dryly. ‘I don’t think he’ll be making it a habit. Anyway, the video went viral. Shane said very complimentary things about you, Adam. He told Linnie to trust you, that you wouldn’t hurt her. That you’re trying to help her. He begged her to come to him, so that they could bury Andy together.’
‘No wonder it went viral,’ Deacon murmured. ‘That’s a heartstring tugger.’
‘Indeed,’ Isenberg said briskly. ‘I asked Diesel to put your name, Adam, and the precinct’s switchboard number on the video. So far we’ve gotten a shitload of calls, but none from Linnie. It’s only been an hour though. And as far as we know she doesn’t have a phone, so she’ll have to see it via another medium. Which won’t be a problem, because the story’s been picked up by every major news outlet in the world.’
Adam stared at her. ‘In the world?’
‘You heard me. A fucking mess is what it is, but that can’t be helped. It can’t even be contained. We can only try to herd the media in the direction we want them to go.’