Page 21 of The Perfect Obsession
“I mean it, Hannah,” Kat warned.“Make yourself scarce.In fact, wear your cap and throw on a sweater.If he notices you, it could compromise our ability to follow him going forward.Are we clear?”
“Crystal,” Hannah said, tying her hair up so that it could all fit under the cap.Then she put it on, grabbed the sweater, and hopped out.“I’ll keep you posted.”
Even though it was sweltering out, she put on the sweater as she walked to the café.She didn’t want the mole man to see her in the memorable yellow top she had on underneath.She silently chastised herself for wearing something so eye-catching.The idea when doing surveillance was to disappear into the background.She knew that, but was out of practice.
When she entered the café, she saw that the mole man was in line.The Greenery was one of those fast casual places where folks ordered at the counter, then found a table.She got in line, too.She didn’t need anything but wanted to stay out of his line of sight.Plus, loitering without buying anything might draw the attention of an employee or a customer.
She tried to get close enough to hear him order, but there were three people between them, and he spoke quietly.After he ordered, Hannah watched as he took a seat at an unoccupied table facing the window, where he could see if Wren exited her building.
With half an eye on him, Hannah ordered an iced tea, figuring that she might as well keep mainlining the caffeine.Once she got it, she sat at a table behind him and pulled out her phone, pretending to be immersed in what was on the screen.In actuality, she was calling Kat as she put in her earbuds.The mole man’s eyes never left the window as he took big swigs from the bottle of soda he’d bought.
“What’s going on?”Kat asked.
“He’s waiting for his food,” Hannah said quietly.“I’m trying to come up with some way to figure out his identity.”
“Don’t do anything rash,” Kat told her.
“I won’t,” she promised.“I’m considering waiting until he leaves, then going up to the counter with my phone to claim it’s his and that he’d left it behind.I saw that he paid with a credit card, so I could ask the cashier if she could give me the name from his order, so I could try to get in touch with him.”
“I don’t love the plan,” Kat said.“Even if the cashier remembers him, there’s no guarantee she’d be willing to provide his name.She might just say to leave the phone with them at the café, and they’ll hold onto it in case he comes back.You need an alternative.”
Just then, an employee called the mole man about his order number.He stood up and walked over to get his to-go bag.Hannah watched anxiously, trying to find a way to uncover his identity.Despite Kat’s warning, she was tempted to do something dramatic.
Maybe she could bump into him, spill her iced tea on him, and then offer to pay to have the shirt cleaned.But even for her, that was too bold.He’d definitely remember her after that.And it might not work anyway.The mole man didn’t look like the kind of guy who had his shirts dry-cleaned regularly.The button-down one he had on now was badly wrinkled, and his jeans were littered with small stains.
Hannah was still searching for a solution when one fell into her lap —or, more accurately, the trash.The mole man tossed his plastic soda bottle into the receptacle as he reached the counter to grab his bag.She avoided eye contact with him as he left the cafe.
“He’s heading out,” she muttered to Kat.“I’ll leave in a minute.”
Once the mole man was outside, she dashed up to the counter.Grabbing a napkin, she fished the bottle out of the trash.When she looked up, one of the employees was staring at her with a disgusted expression.Hannah shrugged, not even trying to explain.
“Where’s he going?”she asked Kat as she started for the door.
“Looks like he’s returning to the bench across the street,” Kat said.“It appears to be his preferred stalking spot.”
“Okay,” Hannah said, stepping outside.“I’m coming back to you and I may have good news.”
“What’s that?”
“I have a plastic bottle he used,” Hannah said.“I don’t normally like to bother our friends at HSS, but I think I can convince Jamil to check the prints on this thing.We might have an ID on the guy before the day is out.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Jessie was impressed.
As she and Ryan exited the sweltering downtown heat and entered the Bradbury Building, which housed Alexander Krantz’s office, she couldn’t help but marvel at the place.Even in the middle of a murder investigation, she allowed herself a moment to appreciate its majesty.
The building was over 130 years old, ancient by L.A.standards.But that wasn’t what made it so compelling.From the outside, the place didn’t look all that special.But once one stepped inside, that all changed.The cathedral-like lobby was flooded with natural light through the glass ceilings.Open-air, patterned staircases for the whole five stories were adorned with wrought-iron grillwork and oak railings.The birdcage-style elevators were reminiscent of European apartment buildings.It was so stunning that the building had been used to shoot movies likeBlade Runner.
Unfortunately, Jessie and Ryan weren’t there to take the tour.They showed their IDs to the security guard next to the metal detector.The main areas of the lobby and the first couple of floors were open to the public for gawking.But to access the actual offices, one had to go through security.The guard’s eyes got big when both she and Ryan briefly removed their weapons and put them in the bin beside the detector, but he said nothing.
Once through, they took the elevator up to the 5th floor, which housed Lubow & Crane Investments, Krantz’s firm.They deliberately didn’t schedule an appointment so they could catch the man by surprise.The receptionist buzzed them into the office, and they walked over to her large semi-circular desk.
“We’re here to speak with Alexander Krantz,” Ryan explained, holding up his badge and ID.“We don’t have an appointment, but it’s a pressing matter.Is he here?”
The young woman, who couldn’t have been more than 23, looked briefly startled before regrouping.
“I’ll buzz him now,” she said.“May I say what this is regarding?”
