Page 60 of Breaking Rules

Sam was glad to see that Harry was getting along with his old boss. It had turned out that Hartman wasn’t a bad guy after all. He’d been investigating the case all along, trying to finally solve it, which was why he’d been in the evidence room.

Holden leaned forward, his expression somber. “I heard from my contacts at the FBI,” he said, his voice low. “They’re almost done searching Hazel Martin’s property.”

At the mention of Hazel’s name, Jo and Bridget’s faces tensed, their earlier excitement replaced by a palpable sense of unease.

“They haven’t found Tammy’s body, have they?” Sam asked, his eyes locked on Holden.

Holden shook his head, his shoulders slumping. “No, they haven’t.”

Reese, who had been sitting quietly, looked up, her eyes filled with sympathy. “But then, where is it?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

The group fell silent, each lost in their own thoughts. Sam glanced at Jo, trying to gauge her reaction. She shrugged as if trying to brush off the weight of the situation, but Sam could see the pain and frustration etched on her face.

“We may have to live with the fact that it will never be found,” Jo said.

“Maybe.” Holden nodded. “Hazel sure isn’t talking about it, but we’ll keep trying.”

Everyone was quiet for a beat, then Mick broke the silence. “What about that guy you arrested in the cabin with Rickman?”

“Tommy Soucy.” Sam said. “According to Tommy, Alex had called Rickman to blackmail him.”

“Apparently, Alex did know about Rickman’s involvement in the robbery all those years ago,” Jo added.

“I wonder how he knew. Do you think his grandfather told him?” Kevin asked.

Sam shrugged. “We’ll probably never know about that.”

“Soucy verified that Alex was drugged in the bar, taken out to the storage building site, and dragged into the open water, then pushed under the ice,” Sam said.

Mick shook his head. “That’s cold.”

“It gets worse,” Jo said. “Apparently, Rickman stood back at the limo and smoked a cigar while he watched them push Alex under.”

“It’s a shame we didn’t get to bring Rickman to justice.” Wyatt said.

“At least he won’t be able to hurt anyone else,” Jo added. “I hate to think of some of the other things that guy has done.”

“Somehow, I doubt Alex was his first victim,” Harry said.

Hartman nodded. “I still think he killed Eric Feldman. I sure wish we could prove that.”

Harry nodded then looked at Sam. “Will you be able to open that old case back up? Maybe get justice for Feldman.”

“I’m not sure.” Sam glanced at Jo. “Maybe we could look into some things in our spare time.”

“We owe Dom that much.” Jo smiled at Hartman. “Things might have ended up differently without your quick thinking.”

Hartman blushed. “Just doing what came naturally.”

Harry, who had been listening intently, clapped Hartman on the back. “I heard about your fancy moves out there,” he said, his eyes twinkling with amusement. “Not bad for an old guy.”

Hartman chuckled, shaking his head. “Watch who you’re calling old, Harry,” he said, his tone light and playful. “I’ve still got a few tricks up my sleeve.”

“So, Hartman, what made you decide to get involved in this case after all this time, anyway?” Harry asked, his voice tinged with genuine interest.

Hartman’s expression grew serious, his eyes distant as if lost in thought. “When I heard about Alex Sheridan’s death and the discovery of the robbery money, something just didn’t sit right with me,” he said, his voice low and pensive. “I started digging around because I never got a chance to solve the robbery case.”

The group listened intently, hanging on Hartman’s every word. Sam could sense the weight of the man’s past bearing down on him, the burden of unfinished business.

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