Page 54 of 3rd Tango
Haley, bless her heart, brings in a fresh pot of coffee and a set of mugs.
“Did you call Gayle?” I ask.
She nods. “I can’t say for sure, but there was the slightest hint of a weird accent when he told me how much he hated telemarketers and that I should go do something profane to myself.”
“Was it British?”
“Close, but like I said, I’m not sure.”
Meg lifts an eyebrow; Matt taps his thumb against his coffee mug. “Accent?” he asks.
I point to theLondon Fogentry. “Svenson is Swedish, or possibly Danish. Maybe our robbers did have an accent—hence their nickname—but maybe it wasn’t British.”
Meg flips her hand over. “So what?”
So what is right. “It’s just one of those details I notice and it bugs me.”
I tap the envelope from Chuck. “We need to get this uploaded to GenCo, Meg. Can you do that? I have a feeling we all know the identity of the remains, but without a definitive match, the best we can do is search for a family member and hope to get more information about our unidentified female.”
“I’m on it.” She takes the file. “What do we do about Gayle and Marie?”
My neck keeps shooting pain into my head, my cheek feels like it’s swelling even more, reaching into my eye socket. JJ’s admonishment to go home rings in my ears.
Maybe Tylenol would help, maybe his arms around me even more. “Let’s not jump the gun,” I say, even though I’m dying to confront them. “Just because Marie painted a woman who looks like our dead bank robber’s girlfriend, doesn’t mean she or Gayle are actually criminals. No judge will grant a warrant based on that. We’ll figure out exactly what their connection to Evelyn is, and if she’s our unidentified woman in the woods. Then we’ll go from there.”
“What about Mom?” Meg looks hesitant. “We should bring her in on all of this, right?”
“Yes. I’ll call her.” My phone buzzes with a text and I see it’s from Taylor. The names of the agents in charge of the London Fog case sends another burst of adrenaline up my spine.
When Matt sees the look on my face, his eyebrows crash together. “What is it?”
I glance at the whiteboard, get up and grab the marker I was using. I add Al’s name under my list ofIs the shooting tied to Mom’s case? If so, how?
Turning back to the group, I tell them the news. “Alfonzo Baez was the lead investigator in the London Fog bank robberies.”
20
Meg
Baez is turning out to be the proverbial penny that keeps turning up. Under the guise of being part of this volunteer cold-case group, he’s inserted himself into my mother’s life. Is it to catch a serial killer or see what she knows?
I rise, more than ready to find out exactly what he wants with her. “All of this can’t be a coincidence. I’ll load the report and see if we get a hit. While I’m doing that, you go home and rest so Nurse Ratched over here doesn’t blow an artery. No offense, JJ.”
“None taken,” he says.
“I have a couple calls to make. Then I’ll go home.”
Beside her, JJ grunts. “Charlie—”
“—I can’t go yet. If I do, I’ll stew all night. Let me do what I need to first.”
Realizing she’s dug in, JJ shakes his head. “You’ve got thirty minutes. Then I’m carrying you out of here if I have to.”
Charlie bats her eyelashes at the Emperor. “Oooh, won’t that be fun.”
They’re so twisted and perfect for each other, my heart does a little dance. JJ is the love of my sister’s life. I sense it in the way her wistful gaze lingers on him, how she talks about him. In the easy gestures and soft touches she gives him almost constantly. As if she can’t stand to break the connection.
“It’s a plan. Half an hour then JJ goes caveman. I’ll be in my office if you need me.”
