Threads of Suspicion(88)
“Evie . . .”
She grinned. “I know. Letting it rest. I just like spinning stories of WITSEC and spies and skullduggery. It lightens an otherwise miserable day.”
David laughed. “I’ll concede that.”
“Do we need to tell Englewood detectives anything more than what they already have in Lori’s statement?”
“We’ll pull a photo of Philip Granger and see if he’s in one of the photos Saul took that night,” David proposed. “See if we can learn his real name. Why was he in WITSEC? He must have told cops something useful in another case to get moved to Houston. The fact he’s dead is going to complicate things, but maybe he had a relative who would also know something about the night Saul died. We make sure those names show up on the Englewood gamblers list. If necessary, we say a source gave us the names, but we don’t have to bring Lori into it.”
“That works for me,” Evie said.
It was midnight when Evie walked the Englewood detectives to the door after their briefing in the Ellis offices. They would be back with a van in the morning to pick up all the boxes from the Saul Morris case.
She pushed open the suite doors and realized David had once more turned on the Triple M playlist. She found him sorting folders into a box. “That went well. They liked your whiteboard wall.”
He glanced over his shoulder, smiled. “Saul’s life, recorded in the names of those who knew him. I only wish something here pointed more specifically to who killed him. We know why, where, and when, mostly how. We still don’t have who.”
“Blake Grayson. Go to the top of the list for who pulled the trigger and actually killed him, and maybe evidence one day confirms it.”
David fit a lid to the box. “Given who Blake is today, they’ll have their hands full trying to find someone willing to talk. But it’s their problem now. In one day my case goes from being a stuck mystery to mostly resolved. It rarely happens this elegantly.”
“You want me to come with you tomorrow when you talk with Cynthia?”
“I would, but grief is a complicated reality. It’s probably best she not have to deal with a new face when she hears the news. I’ll make sure she has a friend or neighbor to be with her before I leave. So”—he set another box on the table—“tomorrow it’s back to Jenna Greenhill.”
Evie could barely remember the last detail she’d been working. Multiple concert ticket purchases by loyal fans? “You could pursue Tammy Preston’s high school boyfriend, Lucas. Maybe she ran off with him and got in trouble. If we can take Tammy off the list of similar crimes, this gets simpler, even if it means we lose the theory that the guy lives around Milwaukee.”
“I’ll take another look for Lucas,” David agreed. “You look staggeringly tired, Evie.”
“How come you’re not? We got called out to the scene at like seven a.m.—and I’d had a short night.”
“Adrenaline hasn’t faded yet, I guess. It’s nice having an answer to prayer be so obvious, even though it’s a grim scene. And you still owe me an answer on that short night of yours.”
“We’ll pass on my story. But given it’s Chicago in January, I should have realized any answer from heaven would have to be indoors. If I’d been sharper on the mark, I could have guessed he’d be found in a floor or a wall, and looked smart when I turned out to be right.”
David laughed. “A missed opportunity. Why don’t you plan to sleep in tomorrow? I’ll join you at the hotel after I’ve talked to Cynthia. Maggie gets in tomorrow, and I’ve promised her an introduction to you before the charity event. Maybe we’ll do that as well.”
Evie had lost track of the calendar. “The mayor’s event is this Friday night, forty-eight hours from now? I need to go shopping.”
“You’ll find something wonderful, I’m certain.”
“It’s not the dress; it’s the inevitable high heels to accompany it. You’re comfortable with Maggie’s security for this?”
“Given the number of VIPs attending, Maggie will be in one of the safest locations in the city Friday night. I’ll confirm again tomorrow that there will be security video for the rope line for us to review. I think odds are good the guy we’re interested in comes to see her arrive. It’s one reason I’m so relieved to be able to pass along Saul’s case, which needs devoted attention to reach a conclusion. I need to be focused on who is using Triple M concerts.”
“Maybe we’ll get lucky and spot a familiar face. We should be able to ID the diehard Maggie fans by looking for those who leave the minute she disappears inside.”