Page 33 of Justice Delayed

Mr. Jimmy got to his feet. “I’ll pack the dulcimer in its case.” He drew a leather case from under the table and nestled Sudie’s dulcimer inside.

Melender fought back tears at seeing the beloved instrument disappear from view as Mr. Jimmy lowered the lid. It was silly to feel such pain at being separated from a piece of wood and some strings, but it was almost like losing Sudie all over again.

If she didn’t leave now, she would break down. On her feet, she choked out, “Thank you for letting me see the dulcimer.”

Melender rushed for the exit, not looking back at the two men or the beautiful instrument that had been such an integral part of her mountain upbringing.

ChapterFourteen

“Are these all the files related to the Thompson kidnapping case?” Brogan eyed the three file boxes stacked on top of one another on the floor of Tim’s office at FBI headquarters. It was going to cost him a pretty penny to pay for the copies, but reading the transcript had given him enough doubts that he was beginning to believe Melender’s side of the story. If she was innocent, the story would be worth the investment of his time and money.

“That’s all the documents the FBI collected on the case.”

The way Tim emphasized FBI caught Brogan’s attention. “Who else has documents on this case?”

Tim raised his eyebrows. “You must be slipping in your reporter’s instincts. Maybe the time away from keyboard has dulled your senses.”

Brogan narrowed his eyes. Tim had always loved to pull his chain, but he wouldn’t take the bait. “That’s definitely possible.”

A puzzled look crossed the other man’s face, as if surprised Brogan let the dig go without comment. “Until the ransom note had been discovered, it was only a missing persons case, which was handled by local authorities at first.”

Brogan tapped the top box with his forefinger. “The Thompsons lived in McLean, Virginia, at the time of Jesse’s disappearance. Still do.”

Tim nodded.

“Which means the Fairfax County Police have files related to the initial investigation into the disappearance.” Getting access to the police files might uncover other suspects or avenues to explore.

“Exactly.”

“But wouldn’t those papers, or at least copies of those documents, be included with the agency’s notes?”

The other man shook his head. “You remember who was chief of police for Fairfax County at the time of the arrest?”

“No, I wasn’t around here then.”

“That’s right, you were off in New York making your mark in the world of journalism.” Tim paused, but again, Brogan resisted the urge to bristle at the other man’s comments. Tim would only tease him further if Brogan reacted negatively. “I’ll help you out. It was James Chatham, who had been chief since 1988.”

“James Chatham,” Brogan repeated slowly, as the name faintly rang a bell deep in his memory. He shrugged.

“What about a certain incident back in the mid-1990s involving the attack on a U.S. senator’s maid by Georgetown University’s chancellor?” Tim asked. “It was during a party held at the senator’s McLean home.”

Brogan cast his mind back but couldn’t bring up the event. “No, I don’t recall it.”

“In short, the brouhaha over the FBI’s muscling out the Fairfax County detectives who had done the majority of the legwork and evidence gathering on the maid’s attack irked Chief Chatham to no end. From then on, he only shared the bare minimum of their files with the FBI.”

Tim pointed to the top box. “So, while that has a couple of summary sheets from the county’s case paperwork, there’s probably a box or two in their archives gathering dust with the original interviews from the missing persons case.”

“It shouldn’t be a problem to get those files now, since Chief Chatham has been long gone from the department.”

“Probably not. I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“I’m looking into inconsistencies in an old case.” Brogan didn’t like the direction he suspected Tim was heading with that comment. “I’m doing everything strictly by the book, no shortcuts.”

“That’s not what I meant. I mean with Melender Harman.”

Brogan’s heart kicked up a notch. “She’s only a source for a story.”

“You keep telling yourself that, and maybe, just maybe, you’ll convince yourself it’s the truth.” Tim’s eyes never wavered from Brogan’s. “I can still tell when my buddy’s interested in a girl, and you’ve got it bad for Melender.”

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