Page 26 of Vanishing Point
“I’ve never been careless, Rosalie.”
“Good.” She got to her feet. “I’m doing my own investigation, obviously, but keep me in the loop.”
“I guess it would be a waste of breath to tell you to leave it to the police department?”
“It would indeed.”
He sighed. “All right. I’ll keep you in the loop, if you do the same.”
She nodded, then exited the way she’d come. Not a few minutes later, Laurel entered the office, a woman behind her. Mid- to late thirties, dressed professionally in a blazer and a skirt and sensible heels. Not a cop. Maybe a lawyer?
Hell, he did not want to deal with any lawyers today.
“Thomas, this is Postal Inspector Dianne Kay.”
Thomas stood, held out his hand and shook hers. After he did, she held out a badge. “I’m out of the Fort Worth, Texas, office. I need to ask you a few questions about an envelope you received in the mail yesterday.”
Texas. Envelope.
Suddenly, he was a little more interested in dealing with a postal inspector. “Have a seat,” he said, taking his behind the desk. Laurel took a chair toward the side. “You work quick to be up here already.”
“We try, but we’ve been following this for a while now. We’re investigating a series of fraudulent uses of the mail. All stemming from the police department in Plano, Texas. I was in Denver yesterday when we got word that another set of envelopes had been flagged by postal employees here in Bent County.”
“I did receive an envelope yesterday with a return address of the Plano Police Department.”
Inspector Kay nodded. “As far as our investigation is concerned, no one who works at the Plano Police Department is behind these letters. We’re trying to find out who is.”
“What were in the other letters?”
She smiled at him. “I think you know I can’t tell you that.”
Irritation simmered, because shecouldtell him that, if she wanted. She didn’t have to play things like thatperfectlyby thebook. But if he put up a stink about it, he knew what people would say. That he was too close to the case, and he’d start putting himself in danger of getting taken off it.
He trusted Laurel and Copeland, but that didn’t mean he’d be able to handle not being involved.
“Did you keep the envelope and its contents?” she asked.
“They were somewhat threatening in nature, so we’re doing some analysis. Once I have the answers, you can take a look at whatever you need to.”
“I’m sorry. You can finish your tests, I suppose. But it’ll be a little bit more than taking a look. Those objects are now evidence in afederalinvestigation. I’ll have to take them.”
She said it apologetically, and not like some of the federal agents he dealt with—with a kind of smug superiority. Still, it grated. The last thing he wanted to do was hand it over to someone who had to deal with federal red tape.
“It was addressed to me. The return address had no name. No identifying information. Just the return address of the Plano Police Department.”
“I’m going to need the envelope.” When Thomas opened his mouth to protest, she kept talking. “I don’t need to take it just yet, as I’m planning to stay in Bent a few days, but I do need to see the address now so I can verify.”
“Will a photograph work?”
She nodded. He motioned her to come around to his side of the desk, and he brought up the pictures he’d taken of the envelope.
“Cute. Those your kids?” she asked, pointing at all the picture frames on the desk.
“Oh, no. They’re Detective Delaney-Carson’s,” he said, nodding at Laurel. “We share a desk.”
He should put a picture of Vi and Magnolia up too. But for now, he focused on the computer screen. “Here’s the return address. The address here, with my name as the addressee.”
She had a notebook and was taking notes.
