gossip that was going to be dropped
into her lap. Gabby may not have a current picture of Sara and Nick
but the Daily Herald had some stock photos from one of the numerous
out-and-about photo layouts that could be pieced together. Sheila
couldn’t help but smile at her good fortune.
CHAPTER 14
He opened the suitcase and checked all the
compartments, the nun zipped the outside compartments, jamming his
hands deep, his fingers probing at the crevices. Next he dumped the
contents from the briefcase out onto the bed and pawed through the
papers and file folders.
“ Damn!” He moved to the bathroom and
checked the toiletry bag again, spilling the contents onto the
bathroom counter. Nothing. It had to still be in the suite but he
couldn’t get back into the hotel yet. There wasn’t anything he
could do now. At least he had already loaded the contents of the
flash drive into the laptop. All he needed now was to decrypt the
information.
The police weren’t sure who the intruder had
been or what he had been looking for. The safe hadn’t been touched.
Had he followed them to Cedar Point to retrieve the flash drive? No
one knew where they were headed. It had been a chance encounter at
the airport. Or had it?
“ Are you sure?” Chief Wozniak rocked
back in his plush leather chair, the crime scene investigator’s
report between thick fingers. Baby fine tufts of red hair sprouted
from the tops of his hands, a softer red than what was on his head.
Beady eyes squinted at the fine print.
Padre sat across the desk from the chief of
detectives, wanting desperately to loan him a pair of bifocals but
he knew John Wozniak’s ego wouldn’t permit anyone to see granny-
type glasses perched on the tip of his bulbous nose. Their
friendship dated back to seminary school before John chalked up two
marriages with the third hanging by an apron string, and Padre
began finding more satisfaction in saving the public from criminals
than in saving souls.
“ As sure as I am that Dagger knows more
than he’s letting on.” The report Padre had shared with the chief
confirmed that the truck the alleged suicide victim fell on was
Dagger’s. “The truck’s serial number confirms that it’s his even
though the license plate was destroyed in the fire.” Padre slid
another report across the desk.
“ What’s this?”
Padre just sighed and motioned for Wozniak to
read. Any other chief would have hauled Padre and Luther in for
dereliction of duty. Since Wozniak was also involved in the Friday
the Thirteenth case, he would be more open to the details of this
case than the average cop. While Wozniak read, Padre studied the
walls cluttered with photos, certificates, awards, keys to the
city, photos of fishing trips. On the credenza behind Wozniak were
pictures of the current wife and his son, Aaron, photos from scout
outings where the chief was a scout leader. Padre fingered the gold
cross under his shirt collar as he watched Wozniak’s eyebrows crawl
up his forehead like furry red caterpillars. His eyes flicked to
Padre.
“ Let me get this straight. A guy is
blown to smithereens in the quarry and the same guy or a twin leaps
out of the twelfth floor of the Ritz Hotel landing on Dagger’s
truck.”
“ Don’t forget the part where we have
records showing Lee Connors had called a cab to take him to
Dagger’s place.”
“ Oh, I read that part where Connors
visits Dagger yet he had already been dead for two days, in the
trunk of his own car no doubt. But how do you tie Dagger to the guy
in the quarry?”
Padre told him how Dagger had jokingly told
him, “The guy threatened me, I killed him and had Skizzy dump the
body in the limestone quarry, but not before some bomb planted in
the guy’s neck blew his head off.”
“ Only thing is,” Padre continued, “it
was all true.” He nodded toward Luther’s report.
Wozniak’s face lined with worry. “I don’t
like this.”
“ Me neither.”
“ What do you know about the guy in
into her lap. Gabby may not have a current picture of Sara and Nick
but the Daily Herald had some stock photos from one of the numerous
out-and-about photo layouts that could be pieced together. Sheila
couldn’t help but smile at her good fortune.
CHAPTER 14
He opened the suitcase and checked all the
compartments, the nun zipped the outside compartments, jamming his
hands deep, his fingers probing at the crevices. Next he dumped the
contents from the briefcase out onto the bed and pawed through the
papers and file folders.
“ Damn!” He moved to the bathroom and
checked the toiletry bag again, spilling the contents onto the
bathroom counter. Nothing. It had to still be in the suite but he
couldn’t get back into the hotel yet. There wasn’t anything he
could do now. At least he had already loaded the contents of the
flash drive into the laptop. All he needed now was to decrypt the
information.
The police weren’t sure who the intruder had
been or what he had been looking for. The safe hadn’t been touched.
Had he followed them to Cedar Point to retrieve the flash drive? No
one knew where they were headed. It had been a chance encounter at
the airport. Or had it?
“ Are you sure?” Chief Wozniak rocked
back in his plush leather chair, the crime scene investigator’s
report between thick fingers. Baby fine tufts of red hair sprouted
from the tops of his hands, a softer red than what was on his head.
Beady eyes squinted at the fine print.
Padre sat across the desk from the chief of
detectives, wanting desperately to loan him a pair of bifocals but
he knew John Wozniak’s ego wouldn’t permit anyone to see granny-
type glasses perched on the tip of his bulbous nose. Their
friendship dated back to seminary school before John chalked up two
marriages with the third hanging by an apron string, and Padre
began finding more satisfaction in saving the public from criminals
than in saving souls.
“ As sure as I am that Dagger knows more
than he’s letting on.” The report Padre had shared with the chief
confirmed that the truck the alleged suicide victim fell on was
Dagger’s. “The truck’s serial number confirms that it’s his even
though the license plate was destroyed in the fire.” Padre slid
another report across the desk.
“ What’s this?”
Padre just sighed and motioned for Wozniak to
read. Any other chief would have hauled Padre and Luther in for
dereliction of duty. Since Wozniak was also involved in the Friday
the Thirteenth case, he would be more open to the details of this
case than the average cop. While Wozniak read, Padre studied the
walls cluttered with photos, certificates, awards, keys to the
city, photos of fishing trips. On the credenza behind Wozniak were
pictures of the current wife and his son, Aaron, photos from scout
outings where the chief was a scout leader. Padre fingered the gold
cross under his shirt collar as he watched Wozniak’s eyebrows crawl
up his forehead like furry red caterpillars. His eyes flicked to
Padre.
“ Let me get this straight. A guy is
blown to smithereens in the quarry and the same guy or a twin leaps
out of the twelfth floor of the Ritz Hotel landing on Dagger’s
truck.”
“ Don’t forget the part where we have
records showing Lee Connors had called a cab to take him to
Dagger’s place.”
“ Oh, I read that part where Connors
visits Dagger yet he had already been dead for two days, in the
trunk of his own car no doubt. But how do you tie Dagger to the guy
in the quarry?”
Padre told him how Dagger had jokingly told
him, “The guy threatened me, I killed him and had Skizzy dump the
body in the limestone quarry, but not before some bomb planted in
the guy’s neck blew his head off.”
“ Only thing is,” Padre continued, “it
was all true.” He nodded toward Luther’s report.
Wozniak’s face lined with worry. “I don’t
like this.”
“ Me neither.”
“ What do you know about the guy in
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