Rausch & Donlon - Can Be Murder 01 - Headaches Can Be Murder by Marilyn Rausch, Mary Donlon Page B

trouble here?”
     
     
    After a hearty breakfast at a mom-and-pop log cabin restaurant on the way to Gooseberry Falls, they drove back to the condo. Just as Jo put the Toyota in park, her phone buzzed. “Hey Frisco. Saw you on the news this morning. Any new developments?” She listened for a bit, and nodded her head occasionally.
    “Yes, I’m sure I want to do this. Let me know when it’s set up, will you?” She flipped the phone shut.
    When Jo didn’t say anything for a moment, John asked, “Anything new?”
    Jo shook her head. “No, not really. He had a thought about getting me into NeuroDynamics’s headquarters, though.” She stared through the windshield for a moment and then turned in her seat to face John. “Just might work. His wife’s cousin has the cleaning contract for the building. He’s going to try to get me into the three-to-eleven shift. Not exactly what I originally had in mind, but I’d be as good as invisible. The best part is that I’ll have access to the building after hours.”
    John nodded. “I’ll hang out here and do some more research on microchip technology and get an idea of what we’ll need to prove our case. Then you’ll know what to look for.” He fidgeted with the zipper of his jacket. “Uh, Jo. Aren’t you worried about the legality of any information we find this way? I mean, will it hold up in court?”
    “While you were hanging out in the hot tub, I obtained what’s commonly referred to as a ‘Sneak and Peek’ warrant. They’re more often used in investigations into the illegal manufacturing of controlled substances, where officers want to confirm the presence of chemicals and to assess the stability of the labs without divulging the investigation. However, it should suit our purposes quite well.”
    John rubbed the back of his neck. “How does it differ from regular warrants?”
    “It gives us a great deal of flexibility, since we don’t have to notify NeuroDynamics that we’re searching their facilities for seven days. Hence the ‘sneak’ in the name of the warrant.
    “And the ‘peek’ part?”
    “It means we can take a look around and come up with probable cause for a regular warrant. We’re going to have to be careful, though. We’re not allowed to disturb or physically seize anything while we’re checking things out. We’ll have some leeway, but there have been a lot of challenges in the courts to these types of warrants, as you can imagine.”
    John nodded. “And the last thing we want is for these guys to get off on a technicality.”
    “You got that right. Also, we’ll have to watch the clock; if we even come close to the seven-day deadline, we’ll file for an extension. It should give us the time we need to find something more solid.” She reached for the door handle.
    “Sounds like you have this all figured out.”
    “We’re going to nail the bastards.” Jo’s green eyes narrowed. “Every one of them.”
     
     

Chapter Thirteen
    Turners Bend
    Early December
     
    Chip re-read his last chapter of Brain Freeze . The discovery of the “Sneak and Peek” warrant had been a plot saver. Now he could get Jo into NeuroDynamics and add more suspense. Feeling smug, he liked the way his story was progressing. He was starting to believe in himself as a writer.
    He sat back and turned his musings to the town of Turners Bend. It had started to feel like his own, a place unlike Baltimore, and yet so like home. People on the street and in stores greeted him by name. Everyone asked about his past and seemed genuinely interested about where he came from or why he was there. He was included in conversations in the Bun and the Bend, and residents shared their thoughts and opinions with him as if he were a long-time friend.
    Population 932, or so read the sign at the entrance to town. Chip had heard residents debate whether the sign had the count from the 1990 census or the 2000 census. They also debated whether that number had increased or