Page 16 of The Perfect Prey

“We did get some information that might help down the line,” Susannah said.“The medical examiner got back to us a little while ago.As he suspected, the same pillow was definitely used to suffocate both victims.Don’t know what conclusions to draw there, but it’s a data point.”

As she spoke, Jessie noticed Jamil squirming excitedly in his seat.She could tell he was itching to add his two cents.

“Go ahead, Jamil,” she said.

“We finally got access to some of the Hartley’s financial data,” he announced.“It took forever because it’s a Sunday, and a lot of the banks they deal with were reluctant to help without a court order.Luckily, Detective Valentine was quite forceful in suggesting they offer us their assistance.We’re just starting to dive in, but I’ve already noticed one interesting tidbit.”

“What’s that?”Parker asked, perking up.

“The records show large, regular cash withdrawals from the Hartley’s joint account.”

“How much and how often?”Parker pressed..

“$22,000, around the same time every month,” he said.“But so far we haven’t been able to tie the money to any specific purchases.I’m hopeful that once regular business resumes tomorrow morning that we’ll get better answers.”

“Well, that sounds promising at least,” Parker said.

“Even without knowing what it was for, the withdrawals are telling,” Jessie noted.

“How so?”Parker asked.

“Regardless of what the money was for, it came from their shared account,” she said.“So whether it was legitimate or nefarious, they both knew about it.It wasn’t a secret.That reinforces the image we’ve been getting from everyone about them.The Hartleys appeared to have been a devoted couple who were usually on the same page.Whatever this money was for, they were both on board with using it.”

“Maybe it was for the masks,” Susannah suggested.“If they were collectors, it’s possible that they had to pay in cash.”

“We may be able to get an answer to that question sooner rather than later,” Beth said excitedly.

“What do you mean?”Parker asked.

“I just got a text back from the owner of one of the three shops in the city that makes them,” she said.“His name is Marcel DuBois.Apparently he was on an international flight and just arrived back at LAX, so he didn’t get his messages until just now.He says that he designed the masks.He offered to meet with you at his place in the morning.”

“Tell him that’s not good enough,” Susannah said sharply.“Where’s his shop?”

“Beverly Hills,” Beth told her.

“Tell him we’ll meet him there in an hour.”

Susannah then looked at Jessie with a slight hint of reservation.

“Sorry,” she said, “I didn’t think about Ryan.Do you want to push this until tomorrow?”

“No, he’ll be okay for a while,” Jessie said, just as pumped as her partner.“What I want is to catch this killer, and this is the first good lead we’ve had in hours.Let’s go

CHAPTER NINE

He watched her out of the corner of his eye, not wanting to draw attention to himself.

She was on a date at an upscale restaurant in West Hollywood, and it looked like it hadn’t gone well.As he sat on the covered patio of the coffeehouse across the street, he watched through the giant street-facing windows of the restaurant as she stood up, said something to the man across the table, and headed in the direction of the restroom.That all seemed normal.

But then the coffeehouse man noticed that, after walking toward the back of the restaurant, she suddenly veered left, going around the back of the bar.Then she returned to the front entrance, which was out of sight of her date, who had his back to the hostess stand.

She spoke to the hostess and handed her something that he thought might be cash.Then she came out front and gave her ticket to the valet.She glanced back in the direction of her table nervously as if concerned that her date might start to wonder where she was.

As the coffeehouse man continued to watch, he stood up, too.If Evelyn Channing was leaving, that was his cue.This had gone better than he’d expected.He assumed he’d have to sit around all evening, waiting to see if Evelyn would go home alone or with her date.If it was the latter, the plan would have to be delayed.But it looked like he’d be able to go through with it after all.

He adjusted his baseball cap, making sure the brim was low enough to cover his eyes.It was probably overkill.The chances that the police would check surveillance video of the coffeehouse across the street from the where Evelyn ate were small, but he was still going to take appropriate precautions.

As he wandered out of the place, he kept half an eye on Evelyn.She was as beautiful as ever.He remembered the first time he saw her at an event, across the dark but crowded room.Statuesque, with long blonde hair that reached her lower back and a curvy but athletic frame, she was hard to turn away from.

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