Murder in the River City(48)
“Then why are you going to the charity thing with Austin?”
“Because I agreed before Sam and I sl—” She bit her tongue. “Before we, um, realized we are both unattached at the same time.”
“I really don’t want to hear it.” Mike put his hands on her shoulders. “Be careful, Shauna. If you need me for anything, call me. I’d drop anything for you. You know that.”
She smiled and kissed his cheek. “Don’t tell Brian or Skip, but you’re my favorite brother.”
He rolled his eyes. “You say that to all of us.”
#
Sam was excited about a forensics report he’d just received, and he and John stood in a far corner, away from the crowd coming in after Mack’s funeral.
“Simone is a genius,” he said. “I have confirmation that the mirrored glass found at the Callie Wood crime scene came from this bar. In addition, there was trace blood evidence on Wood’s body—Simone determined it was transferred from the killer to Wood when he strangled her.”
“He wore the same gloves?” John asked.
“That’s my guess. This is solid evidence connecting the two murders. Now, even better, I have a positive ID on the man who bought beer Saturday night and brought it to Duncan’s house. Going off the information Shauna learned when she was snooping in his apartment, I had Riley Knight pull pictures of everyone who works at Coresco & Hunt, everyone we know about, and show them to the proprietor.” Sam handed John a picture. “It was a long shot, but this is the guy who bought the beer. Matches the description of the guy who attacked Shauna.”
The picture was of a guy in his late twenties with blond hair and light eyes.
“Who’s that?” John asked.
“Pete Coresco.”
“He’s young to be a lead attorney.”
“He’s George Coresco’s son. Kid had been in and out of trouble, no jail time. I called Hooper, and Hooper has been looking at him closely because he’s considered a wild card. He has a temper, and may be responsible for several unsolved murders in Reno that involved the law firm. Get this: Pete and Joey went to high school together, here in Sacramento.”
“Another connection.”
“Bingo. Hooper’s working double time putting together a case, and he thinks Pete won’t kill Joey unless he’s forced into it. If we can get to Joey, we may have someone who knows far more than he thinks. Slight change in plans. If we ID Joey, we’re pulling him as quickly and quietly as possible.”
John nodded. “The case is coming together. And Hooper sent me a file today on Missy Polk. She’s on the FBI watch list because of some of her associates.”
Sam pulled out his phone and sent Hooper a message. “Maybe there’s a connection between Pete Coresco and Mack’s daughter.”
“If Mack wanted to get back into the good graces of his daughter, maybe he agreed to do something for her or Coresco.”
“That exactly what I was thinking.”
“The FBI will probably hold off on questioning her, to avoid any leaks to Coresco or Davis.”
Sam’s gaze wandered over to where Shauna and Mike were deep in conversation.
John said quietly, “We’re going to hear everything. Hooper got the warrants this morning. Both Shauna and Butler will be wearing a wire. Nothing is going to happen to her.”
There were pros and cons to a wire, but the big danger was if they were caught. And if Davis was smart, he wouldn’t say anything incriminating or let on that he knows. Then, after the event, kill them both. And maybe not right away. Shauna might be in danger for a lot longer than these few hours.
Sam wondered what she’d think if he moved in with her.
“Sam?”
“Just thinking of everything that could go wrong.”
#
Minutes after Shauna walked into her house, the dress was delivered. She called Austin as soon as she opened the box.
“I can’t wear this,” she said when he answered.
He asked solemnly, “You don’t like it? Green’s your favorite color. It’s your size.”
“I love it. It’s beautiful. It’s too much, Austin. Remember, we’re friends. That’s it. I’m—I’m—” She could hardly breathe as she stared at the full-length gown.
He laughed. “This is why I love you, Shauna. You don’t expect anything. Which makes me want to give you more.”
She froze. He didn’t mean he loved her, not love, love. More love her like a friend.
“Austin,” she whispered, “I don’t think I should go tonight.”
“I’ll be there at five-thirty. I have a limo for the evening. Go on. Get ready. I can’t wait to see you in the dress.”