Page 22 of Say Nothing
The man hung up the phone and looked at Derek with a smile—he hadn’t looked at Alison once yet."He’ll be right out."The man’s voice was overly chipper.
Derek turned around slowly to take in the office.Alison did the same, but she was drawn back to the man who’d called Jason.She didn't think he was lying, and she’d heard the voice on the other end of the line, but something was off, as if he—
You don't think he’s coming out of the office, do you, and that’s because—
"There’s another way out," Alison said."Stairs on the back of the building.He’s making a run for it."
Derek shot a glance at the man at the reception desk, and he stared back blankly.
Derek and Alison didn't say a word, but they both turned from the desk simultaneously and ran back the way they’d come, sprinting down the stairs back to the entrance.
"Did you notice a rear exit?"Derek asked as he took the stairs two at a time.
"I didn’t," Alison admitted.
They reached the door at the bottom of the stairs, and Derek passed through first, holding the door open for Alison to follow.
As soon as they were back in the entranceway, they spotted Weber pushing through the front door.
"Stop!"Derek shouted.
Weber didn't stop, nor did he look around when he was shouted at.He continued out of the building and broke into a run on the street.
Derek and Alison were on his trail quickly, pushing through the doors to the street and running after him.
"Stop, Jason!"Derek shouted again.
Weber ignored him and took something from his pocket, his keys, and headed for his car.He reached the black Ford and stuck the keys in the lock, unlocking the door and opening it, but Derek was there.
Derek kicked the door shut, and Weber gave a deep gasp in fright.
"Where are you going, Jason?"Derek asked.
"I had to step out for a minute," Jason replied."That's not against the law, is it?"
"Not strictly, no," Derek said."However, you knew we were here to see you, and you made a run for it."
"I’m a busy man," Jason said."Do you have a warrant for my arrest?"
"No," Derek replied."Is that what we need?You won't come with us unless we have a warrant?We only want to talk with you, Jason, and I’d rather you come willingly."
Jason stood by his car for a moment in silence, thinking about it."I guess I can push some things off.If you want to talk, let’s talk."
"Good," Derek said with a smile.He took Jason by the arm."Let’s go down to the station, and we can talk all about why you tried to run from us.I’m sure it’s a fascinating story.
CHAPTER TEN
Alison and Derek were back in the CBI offices, with Jason Weber waiting for them in one of the interview rooms.He wasn’t under arrest, and he hadn’t asked for a lawyer.He presented the image of someone who was happy to talk with them and was sure everything would be resolved willingly.
"What do you make of him?"Derek asked as they stood outside the interview room, ready to go in.
"Honestly, I’m not sure," Alison said."He was alerted to a special agent being there to speak with him, and he tried to escape the building.He obviously heard you shout after him at the bottom of the stairs and ignored you.Yet, when we did catch up with him, he didn't come across as panicked.He might have played the fool and come down here with us, but I do get the impression he believes he hasn’t done anything wrong."
"But?"Derek asked.
"That doesn’t mean he hasn’t done anything wrong," Alison confirmed."If he sees killing people as righting wrongs, then he might believe what he’s doing to be profoundly right.He might also believe that we have no evidence and no way to link him to the crime scenes, which, at the moment, we don’t."
"I have agents looking into the company, checking their servers.Maybe they surveyed the residences of the two deceased for some reason, and he was able to get inside and… plant something?I don't know, it’s all out of the realm of stuff I understand.Is that even how they would get into the security systems?The only thing we know for sure is that Weber’s company was founded long after the two security systems were installed."
