Page 88 of Deadly Secrets
And boy, Roman was going to enjoy grinding the man under his boot heel when he finally caught him.
Brooke headed for the inside of the mission, skirting law enforcement and crime scene techs. The horror on her face morphed into something else.
Yep, knew it.
She was angry as a hornet’s nest.
Not just angry…enraged.
Roman stayed right behind her, feeling the need to shield her while keeping a lookout for anything—or anyone—out of the ordinary. She’d already had a hell of a day—finding out about his less-than-truthful confession, getting fired from the Smithsonian, now this. Yet, here she was, storming the yellow tape and flashing her brand new Homeland badge as if it were old hat.
“Who did it?” She pulled up in front of Pastor Rogers, who was speaking to Detective Clyffe. “Who killed Jamison?”
Roman exchanged a nod with Clyffe as the minister turned red-rimmed eyes on Brooke. “I was going to ask you the same thing. If you hadn’t asked for his help, he might still be alive.”
Brooke visibly flinched back and Roman sidled up alongside her, lightly resting a supportive hand on her back. “Did he work here today?”
Rogers turned her defensive gaze on him. “He had finals today, then a shift at Giraldi’s.”
Polly closed in, taking up a position on the other side of Brooke. “Giraldi’s? That’s the pizza joint in that little strip mall a few blocks from here, right?”
Rogers nodded. “He was glad to be done with school and was ready for summer break. He and his mother were planning a weekend upstate.”
“Where is his mom?” Roman asked.
“She’s on her way. She works as a night aid for Hospice. She had to find someone to cover for her with her current patient who’s dying.”
“Was the man who called himself Luke here in the past day or so?” Brooke had found her second wind, her eyes flashing with the need for vengeance.
Rogers shook her head. “I would have called you if he had been. Jamison would have called you for that matter.”
Roman wasn’t so sure. He wondered if the kid had actually tried to warn the man named Luke and ended up dead for his troubles. “Anyone around who seemed suspicious?”
“No. Like I already told the detective here, I have no idea who did this.”
Polly typed on her tablet. “Ever seen this guy?” She flipped the tablet around and showed the minister a still from a video surveillance camera.
Rogers squinted as all of them leaned around to eye it. “Is that Jamison?” she asked.
Polly hit a few keys and used her fingers to enlarge the frame. “That strip mall was renovated a year ago and they put cameras everywhere from the back loading docks to the parking lots. I thought I might catch Jamison as he was leaving after his shift and I was right.”
Polly’s hacking skills were nearly as good as Shane’s. The enlarged shot clearly showed the young man speaking to a guy in a black Chevy Tahoe behind the store. The man’s features were slightly blurry behind the windshield, but there was one thing the camera had caught.
“Oh my God,” Brooke said. “He’s wearing the necklace.”
Rogers touched her collarbone where Roman was sure lay her own copy of the cross pendant under her shirt. “I don’t recognize him.”
“I do,” Brooke said. Her face had paled even more than when she’d seen the carving on Jamison’s chest.
“Who is it?” Roman demanded.
She took the tablet, using her fingers to enlarge the picture to the max. “I’m sure it’s the same guy.”
“Who?” Roman, Polly, and Clyffe asked in unison.
“He was here the other day when we walked in and questioned Loretta and Jamison. He jumped up and left like his pants were on fire.”
Roman’s excitement evaporated. “You don’t know his name, though. He was just one of the lunch timers?”
