Bad News Travels
- Автор: Суэйн Джеймс
- Серия: Lancaster & Daniels #3
- Год: 2020
- Язык: английский
- Год: Thomas & Mercer
- ISBN: 978-1-5420-1644-5
- Жанр: Триллеры
Электронная книга - «Bad News Travels». Краткое содержание книги:
No sooner do they arrive than suspicions are aroused. There’s the pair of Russians who seem to be watching every move the family makes. A final, cryptic phone call Martin Daniels made to his granddaughter. Strange blood evidence on his estate. More than $1 million missing from Martin’s account. And his cell phone, wiped clean, along with clues to a double life. To Beth, it’s disturbingly clear: the man she loved was a stranger.
As she and Jon delve into Martin’s past, they have no idea where the secrets will take them. Or how dangerous it will be to expose the conspiracies, the cover-ups, and the terrible truths of Martin’s life — and death.
The video ended, and the second screen went away. J. T. stared at Daniels from a thousand miles away, his eyes boring a hole into her soul.
“Special Agent Daniels, can you identify the individuals in the video?” he asked.
“Certainly. The man in the handcuffs is Jon Lancaster. The man wearing the sports jacket and necktie is Detective Sykes with the Saint Augustine Police Department,” she said. “I don’t know who the three uniformed officers are, but I’ll guess they’re also members of the Saint Augustine police.”
“Were you aware of this video?” her boss asked.
She placed the tips of her fingers together, as if praying. There were more nerve connections between the hands and the brain than any other part of the body, and hand gestures were a gold mine of information during an interrogation. Steepling the hands was an indicator that the suspect was telling the truth.
“I was not,” she lied.
“Did Lancaster tell you the Saint Augustine Police tried to rough him up?”
“I haven’t talked to Jon in days.”
“Is that a yes, or a no?”
“It’s a no,” she lied.
“So Lancaster didn’t talk to you about it. How do you know Detective Sykes?”
“I spoke with him two days ago in his office about my father’s suicide. Sykes had my father’s cell phone, which he let me look at.”
“And what did you find?”
“Everything on it had been erased, which I found suspicious.”
“Was Lancaster present during that meeting?”
“Jon was there, yes.”
“Did he say something out of line that angered Sykes?”
“I did most of the talking. I don’t believe Jon said more than a few words.”
“What is your take on Sykes?”
J. T. was staring at her legs. FBI agents were taught to always believe the feet, as they were the most honest part of the body. She realized she was locking her ankles, a sign that she was holding back. She uncrossed her legs, and answered truthfully.
“My take is that Detective Sykes is hiding information,” she said. “I don’t believe that my father erased the data on his cell phone before he took his own life. I believe that Detective Sykes erased the data later on.”
“Why would Sykes destroy evidence?”
“Any answer I give you will be purely speculative,” she said. “So let me tell you what I do know. There’s over a million dollars missing from my father’s bank account. A young Russian woman named Katya was in a relationship with my father, and appears to have been blackmailing him. I believe that Sykes is involved.”
“What’s the connection between Sykes and the Russian?”
“Katya was being fronted by two Russian brothers named Sokolov. The Sokolovs were trafficking young women into Saint Augustine through the private airport. I believe Sykes was being paid by the Sokolovs to look the other way.”
J. T. spent a moment considering what she was saying. Daniels sat up straight in her chair, her posture confident, her face expressionless. She felt like she’d passed the test, and wasn’t ready for what came next.
“Special Agent Daniels, I don’t believe you’re being honest with me,” he said.
J. T. paused, waiting for her to reply. She wisely said nothing.
“Are you lying?” he asked.
“No, sir,” she lied.
“I believe everything you’ve told me, except the part about Lancaster not telling you that he’d had a dustup with Sykes,” J. T. said. “That just doesn’t ring true.”
“Why is that, sir?” she asked.
“I’m the one asking the questions, Special Agent Daniels,” he said curtly.
“You’ve called me a liar in front of my peers,” she said sharply. “I believe I’m due the courtesy of an answer.”
J. T.’s face grew fire engine red. Erce and Rojas both shifted uncomfortably in their chairs. She wasn’t going down without a fight.
“I’ve known you since you were in the academy, and I’ve seen the relationships you’ve had,” J. T. said. “None have seemed to satisfy you. Your relationship with Lancaster is different. He makes you happy in a way your other suitors did not.”
It was Daniels’s turn to grow red.
“Really,” she managed to say.
“Yes, really,” J. T. said. “The most challenging aspect of our work is the shackles the system places upon us. Lancaster doesn’t play by the rules, and that appeals to you. He succeeds where other law enforcement officers often fail. You like that.”
“I suppose,” she said.
“Lancaster is your alter ego. Which is why he told you about his encounter with Sykes. For him not to tell you would have been a betrayal.”
J. T. had nailed it on the head. But she wasn’t going to tell him that. To do so would have been professional suicide. She put her elbows on her knees, and leaned in.
“When Jon and I first started dating, we set ground rules,” she said. “We agreed not to discuss current or past investigations, and so far, we haven’t.”
“I find that hard to believe, Beth,” her boss said.
She ignored the remark. “We had to do this. Jon was a Navy SEAL, and went on a hundred and fifty missions in hostile countries. The navy expects him to adhere to his nondisclosure pledge, and will severely discipline him if he doesn’t. Since a part of his past is off-limits, we decided not to discuss our cases. By doing that, neither of us will divulge sensitive information to the other.”
J. T.’s face was hard as stone. It softened, and he nodded.
“I believe you, Special Agent Daniels,” he said. “I apologize for questioning your integrity. I was out of line.”
“Apology accepted.”
“Do you know where Lancaster is now?”
“I do not.”
“Can you get in contact with him?”
“I can certainly try. He’s usually good about getting back to me.”
“Please reach out to him. I want to see where this situation with Sykes is heading. Lancaster is linked to the bureau because of his relationship with you, and we need to keep him in check. If such a thing is possible.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“I’m sure you will. Once you’ve made contact with Lancaster, please communicate through Special Agent Phillips and Director Rojas what you find out.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Goodbye, Beth.”
The screen went dark. The air trapped in her lungs slowly escaped. Phillips and Rojas rose, and she did as well. She exchanged goodbyes with Phillips, and accepted Rojas’s offer to be shown out. Rojas walked her to the parking lot. They stood in the building’s long shadow, facing each other.
“That was quite a performance,” Rojas said.
Rojas’s eyes had a mischievous glint, her lips a faint smile. Daniels felt trapped. A woman knew when another woman was lying, and Rojas had her dead to rights.
“Oscar caliber?” she asked.
“You would have given Meryl Streep a run for her money,” Rojas said.
“Do you think J. T. knew?”
“Not at all. You snowed him. Good job.”
“So you’re not going to tell him?”
“Absolutely not. Since the day I landed in this job, I was made aware that things weren’t right with certain members of the Saint Augustine Police Department, but I couldn’t pin down what they were doing. You’re getting close. Keep at it.”
“I will. Thanks for the support.”
She had made a new friend. They shook hands, and Daniels got in her vehicle. She backed out and saw Rojas move her finger up and down. She lowered her window.
“I want you to remember one thing,” the director said.
“What’s that?”
“We have your back. Call me if you need help.”