Page 42 of Sebastian

Just as the agents had described, Smith Harper did nothing suspicious. He barely spent more than a few minutes in the hospital. He loitered in the lobby as he browsed the rack of brochures for volunteer opportunities, then stepped over to the front desk and spoke with the receptionist. From the way he gestured at a few of the brochures in his hand, he seemed to be asking questions about the volunteer work, which the receptionist was happy to talk about.

Then he left. The entire video was less than ten minutes long, and entirely useless for our investigation.

Agent Adder switched off the screen. “This was the last sighting of Mr. Harper before he was attacked. Only about two hours passed between the time of this video and when our agents arrived at his house to find him bleeding out on the floor, so he must have been attacked during that window. Though, as usual, the CAP group was careful not to leave any evidence of their break in.”

The agent started to close the laptop, but Damien stopped him. My brother and I shared a look, nodding at each other, before I leaned back in my chair to let him explain.

“This video has been edited,” Damien said as he hit the play button.

We all watched as the security cameras once again showed Smith Harper stepping through the front doors into the hospital lobby.

Agent Long stepped closer so he loomed over both desks. His shadow cast a dark pall over the video.

“Nothing’s been altered. I handled this recording myself, and I would never allow a piece of evidence to be tampered with.”

I snorted.

Damien cut me a quick look, begging me to stay silent.

“No one is saying that it’s been tampered with. But the video has been edited to start at the moment Smith Harper shows up at the hospital. Where’s the rest? Has anyone checked the cameras during the time before his arrival?”

One would think we had asked the FBI to hand over nuclear launch codes. Neither of the agents had the uncut footage with them, and when they called their agency they were put through an ungodly game of phone tag as they tried to find the right person who could authorize their request.

Not for the first time, I was glad Damien and I had decided to become private investigators, rather than pursuing jobs with official law enforcement. There was far too much red tape for my liking. The paperwork alone would drive me insane.

Half an hour later, the agents finally managed to procure the original footage. It took a few minutes of searching to find the right time frame, but eventually we were looking at the hospital’s front lobby minutes before Smith Harper’s arrival.

Damien pointed at the screen. “Can you zoom in on the brochure display? That’s where Harper went first. It may be important.”

Agent Adder did as Damien asked, though the footage became more grainy the more he zoomed in. Even hospitals weren’t able to afford high quality cameras, it seemed.

Damien and I saw what we were looking for at the same time and ordered Agent Adder to stop the video.

“Right there.” Damien tapped the screen with the tip of a pen. “Most people who visit the brochure display only look for a moment before moving on, but this man stayed there for a few minutes.” Hitting the video controls, he rewound the video back a few seconds. “And right here. He pulls out several brochures only to immediately return them. However, with this one, it looks like he puts back two pieces of paper instead of just one. I’m almost positive that’s the same brochure Harper takes with him a few minutes later.”

Agent Long braced his hands on the desk to lean closer to the screen and readjusted his glasses for a better view. “So, it was a hand off. This man leaves something behind, and Mr. Harper picks it up without anyone realizing what’s happened. Information. Payment. It could be anything. Is there a better angle where we can see this man’s face?”

The mysterious man on the video must have been aware of the hospital’s security, for he either kept his back to the camera or made sure to walk on the other side of someone.

He was careful, but not careful enough. We had to switch to a recording from a different camera, but just outside the doors we managed to finally get a brief look at the man’s face.

Damien immediately slammed the laptop shut, as though afraid the man would somehow see us through the recording.

I said nothing, but reached out and grabbed my brother’s arm as my heart raced inside my chest.

Agent Adder rescued his laptop from Damien’s desk and looked like he was about to protest the mistreatment of his equipment when Agent Long cut him off.

“What’s wrong? Do you two recognize him?”

I couldn’t speak. The man’s voice was screaming in my ears, followed by the sound of a gunshot and visions of my parents on the floor, blood surrounding them.

Thankfully, Damien had my back. He looked just as disturbed as I felt, but he at least managed to find his voice.

“That’s Lorenz Mariano.”

“The brother-in-law of David Russo, the New Jersey Mafia Boss? Are you sure?” Agent Adder arched an eyebrow.

My fist hit my desk so hard it rattled the wood and popped open one of the drawers. “We saw Russo kill our parents, and he wasn’t alone. His brother-in-law was there too. We’ve spent years hiding from David Russo and the rest of the Mariano family after your agency failed to protect us. Yes, we’re damn sure.”

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