Christmas Male(38)

Fiona nodded at her. “Thanks for your help.”

As the woman hurried away, D.C. moved close enough to Fiona to murmur, “Nice work, Lieutenant. She didn’t like being questioned about her visits to the exhibit.”

They exited the room and started toward the front doors of the gallery. “She didn’t like being questioned about anything. But she was already in a bad mood when I got here. She’d been talking with Regina Meyers, Shalnokov’s personal assistant. And I’m pretty sure the snit she’s in stems from that meeting.”

“Interesting.”

“I could understand her mood better if Shalnokov had threatened to close the exhibit. But he didn’t. And the diamond is back in the display case. If I were in charge of this exhibit, I’d be doing a happy dance.”

Just short of the exit doors, D.C. put a hand on Fiona’s arm. “Could be she’s miffed because she’s one of the people you and Chance are looking at.”

“Well, it makes sense, given that she’s thoroughly familiar with the security surrounding the diamond. She could have opened the security doors.”

“I’d like to think she had something to do with it, too, except that my mother and sister and I can provide her with an alibi that’s probably backed up by security tape. At the crucial time period—between 4:50 p.m. and 5:10 p.m., she was having a little confrontation with some school children right about where we’re standing.”

Fiona frowned. “She could have given the code to someone else, and then made sure she had an alibi.”

Brows raised, he studied her. “I like the way your mind works. Now all we have to do is prove it.”

“Spoilsport.”

He grinned. “There are other possibilities. Since we’re here, why don’t we revisit the crime scene?”

“It’s not on our to-do list,” Fiona said.

“My friend Bobby, the security guard, told me that there was a small, blond woman wearing a Santa hat and a red scarf who was handing out brochures. He places her among the last to exit the building, running down the steps just as the doors were being closed at about five-thirty.”

“And she went right to the sculpture garden.” Fiona rubbed at her temple again.

He was going to take care of that.

“The timing is just about perfect. I’d like to take another look at it. Maybe get a new angle?”

“Sure. Okay.”

“I’ll meet you in there in ten minutes.”





8




WHILE D.C.’S TEN MINUTES STRETCHED CLOSE to twenty, Fiona dug her hands into her pockets and studied the area blocked off by the crime scene tape. Fifteen yards to her left, the ice rink was full. Above the muted sounds of chatter and laughter, a tenor crooned his dreams for a white Christmas.

In front of her, the afternoon sun glared off the few inches of snow still stubbornly clinging to the ground. If the temperatures held, a white Christmas might be in the cards for Washington. Narrowing her gaze, Fiona focused her attention on the spot where she’d first seen Amanda Hemmings the night before. The headache that had been a niggling little annoyance when they’d arrived at the gallery had blossomed into a throbbing ache. And she knew the cause—lack of sleep and the frustration at how little progress they were making.

While she’d been waiting for D.C., she’d made three calls on her cell, the first to Natalie. Chance wanted to meet with them at six to share information. Next she’d checked in on Amanda’s condition at the hospital. No change. But there’d been a visitor, someone who’d identified himself as Amanda’s cousin. The desk nurse’s description matched the way General Eddinger had described Billy Franks.

The question was, how had Amanda’s cousin learned that she was in the hospital unless he knew she’d been mugged the night before?

Frustrated, she whirled to face the gate she’d entered through. Where was D.C? Her third call had been to his cell, but he’d let it roll into voice mail. It both annoyed and baffled her that she wanted to talk with him, to get his take on what little she’d learned. She’d worked with partners before, but she’d never meshed quite so quickly with anyone else. And she was beginning to like him and to value his judgment. There was no denying that she was beginning to have feelings for him. And she knew how quickly feelings could complicate things.

Besides, she should be thinking about the case. Cold stung her cheeks as she turned back to the area roped off by the tape. Once more, she replayed the scenario D.C. had described in her mind. He’d first spotted Amanda along a path that led to an entrance on the corner of Madison Drive and Seventh Avenue. But she’d moved off the path, quickly dodging between trees and shrubs until she reached the four-sided pyramid.