Page 36 of Let Her Run

"Agreed," Jake said, determination hardening his features. "Let's start with a list of employees."

They made their way to the office, where Fiona had previously been digging into the computer system. Pulling up the employee directory, they began combing through the names, positions, and hire dates.

"Wait," Fiona said suddenly, her finger hovering over a name on the screen. "Hal Troy, office administrator. He would have been responsible for giving quotes. He could have talked to Glen."

"Does he have access to the poison storage unit?" Jake asked, his eyes locked on the screen.

"Wouldn't be hard for him to get a key or code, I'd imagine," Fiona replied, her mind racing with possibilities. "And he'd have access to all the victims' addresses. Could he be our guy?"

"Maybe," Jake said, his jaw clenching as he weighed their options. He slung his side bag around his shoulder and pulled out his laptop. Fiona watched as Jake bit his lip in concentration, pulling up Hal Troy's file in the FBI database.

But as the information began to appear on the screen, Fiona's stomach dropped. According to the file, Hal Troy had a rough past. He'd been arrested and charged with assault in his twenties after getting into a fight in a bar – he'd ended up serving time for it. It was enough of a red flag to make them suspicious of him, but could he really be their killer?

Fiona leaned beside Jake, reading more of the information on Hal. He was thirty-eight and had a wife and a child. There wasn't much else that immediately made him stand out, but that criminal record could be the ticket. The men who were given access to the poison had record checks, but they might not have done one on an office administrator.

Either way, they needed to talk to him.

***

Jake's heart pounded in his chest as he turned on his heels, making a beeline for Anderson's office. The fluorescent lights overhead cast harsh shadows on the linoleum floor, and the distant hum of machinery seemed to grow louder with each step. He could feel Fiona's presence behind him, her own determination driving her forward. They were close to solving this thing--he could feel it.

But now he had to deal with Anderson again, a face he was quickly growing tired of seeing.

He stormed into Anderson's office. The boss looked up from his desk, annoyance flitting across his face.

"Where's Hal Troy?" Jake demanded.

"Excuse me?" Anderson replied, clearly irritated.

"Your office administrator, Hal Troy," Jake repeated, brandishing the list of employees they had printed out. "We need to talk to him."

"Today's his day off," Anderson said, raising an eyebrow at the agents' intensity. "He's not here."

"Damn it," Jake muttered under his breath, clenching his fists. That was convenient. If Hal wasn't here, it would be difficult to pin him down for questioning. And time was running out.

"Did you know Glen Hartwell contacted your company for a quote?" Fiona interjected, her words clipped and direct. Anderson's eyes narrowed, a flicker of wariness crossing his features.

"Of course I did," he replied defensively. "But we didn't get the job. He went with another company."

"Right," Fiona said softly, exchanging a knowing look with Jake. "But now we know there's a connection between all three victims and Insect Away Home."

Anderson's lips pressed into a thin line, and Jake could see the wheels turning in his head. Did he suspect one of his employees was involved in the murders? Or was he worried about the damage this investigation would do to his company's reputation? Regardless, they had no choice but to press on.

"Can you give us Hal Troy's address?" Jake asked, his voice steady and determined. "We need to speak with him as soon as possible."

"You know I'm not keen on giving out employee information," Anderson replied.

"Do I need to remind you we have a warrant?" Jake fired back.

Anderson's expression hardened. "What do you have on Hal, anyway? What makes you think he's worth looking into? The guy's a dweeb--that's why I hired him. He's not a killer."

"Did you know he has a criminal record?" Jake asked.

Anderson scowled. "What?"

"Assault," Jake clarified. "Maybe you don't know him as well as you thought."

"Fine," Anderson spat, scribbling down Hal's address on a notepad and thrusting it towards Jake. "You want to talk to him so badly? Go ahead. But if he's innocent, I expect you to clear his name."

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