by Alec Peche
“So, she likely has no endgame in mind with starting fires other than not to be caught?”
“Yes. She might pull back from her current course if she gets medication or therapy restarted. Otherwise, her compulsion is going to continue to be a problem for her. The monster has been let out of the bag, and she can’t put it back in without some external help. Does that help?”
“It makes sense. When I was in medical school and doing clinical rotations, I avoided psych rotations to the degree I could and still graduate. I have the wrong temperament for that profession. In my career as a medical examiner, I didn’t need to understand psychiatry. Rather, I needed to understand the difference between a self-inflicted death and an accidental death, and that’s probably the closest I got to delving into my patients’ psyche.”
“Yes, you did select the right clinical track to stay as far away from psych as you could. It’s impossible to psychoanalyze the dead. You should expect her to continue to set fires. Remember she has a compulsion driving her, and the fact that she went after Agent Sanderson suggests that she is not slowing down anytime soon.”
“Okay, I think I have it. Thank you. How’s the planning going for your gourmet meal and wine tasting event?”
Melissa and Jill continued to talk through her plans to offer a gourmet meal and then ended the call.
Maybe it was time to call her fake Detective Mullin and see what he was up to and boldly ask him if he had any relation to the military. She weighed the positives and negatives of alerting him to anything in the investigation, and then she decided to go for it. She dialed his number.
“Yes, Dr. Quint?”
“Hello fake Detective John Mullin; whoops, you told me to call you John.”
“Do I detect a note of sarcasm in your voice?”
“You do. Tell me, are you connected to the military?”
“No,” came the quick response. There was something in his voice that said he wasn’t telling the truth.
“We know who our suspect is and that she served in the Navy, and that she was dishonorably discharged. I assume that’s because you folks didn’t know she was an arsonist when you signed her up to be a munitions expert. Imagine the military training an arsonist to blow stuff up. That’s what I call a match made in heaven, no pun intended.”
“Hello?” Jill couldn’t believe he had ended their call. She looked at her phone just to make sure she was hung up on. She debated whether to call him back and see if it was a mistake, but she knew it wasn’t, or he would have called her back by now.
Sometimes she made a move in a case to agitate a reaction, and she sure got one with “John.” Jill was sure he was connected to the military given his reaction to Jill’s statements and his overall bearing. However, it was hard to separate the look and behavior of someone in the military from someone in law enforcement.
She should probably confess to Leticia what she had just done in case it came up in the conversations between the FBI and the military. She sent her an email describing her conversation. She couldn’t think of anything more to work on with the case, so she packed Trixie into her car and returned to her vineyard. It was too early to do extensive pruning of her vines. Instead, she walked the property looking at where an arsonist might do damage to her property. She also visited her barn, cellar, and house, checking out the alarm and smoke detection systems. There was nothing more she could do to prepare to defend her property if the Burnt Widow turned her attention toward Jill. A couple hours later, she returned to Nathan’s house, restless, but without any new information to process for this case.
Chapter 29
After the call from Dr. Jill Quint, Jeff Lawrence was in a bit of a panic. He had been impressed with her investigative skills, but still, he was surprised that they had identified Amanda Moore as the arsonist. It was time to talk with the Director again about cooperating with the civilians. They knew who she was and some of the details of what she’d done while in the military. Now she had killed an FBI agent, and the stakes were much higher for the Navy to work with the FBI. He had made an appointment to speak with his commander by phone as soon as he abruptly ended the phone call with Dr. Quint. He was about to connect for his phone appointment.
“Sir, thank you for agreeing to my call.”
“Special Agent Lawrence, what news do you have for me?”
“Sir, I just received a disturbing call from the forensic pathologist and private investigator working on this case. She said that she and the FBI know their arson suspect has a military background and was dishonorably discharged.”
There was silence on the other end as his superior thought about his next steps. Then he heard a sigh.
“We seem to be getting hit by all sides on the issue of this arsonist. Naval Command received a request for a meeting to discuss the arsonist, making direct reference to her military service.”
“What do you want to do, Sir?”
“I wanted to keep her misdeeds hidden, but the civilians seem to be faster than the military in bringing this case to a conclusion.”
“Sir, the civilians have different weapons than the military, and they aren’t trying to keep a lid on the case. However, she did kill an FBI agent. At least we haven’t lost any additional service members, thanks to her.”
“Yet. As long as she is on the loose, she could still cause more damage.”
“That’s correct, Sir. In fact, there have been a series of recent brushfires at our bases in Northern California. She was quietly living out her life and starting the occasional fire, but now her behavior is changing, and she’s become extremely dangerous. I would recommend that you meet with the civilians. Perhaps in San Diego, so it’s on your turf, Sir.”
“Of course, Agent Lawrence,” said the Director, who then ended the phone call.
Jeff had called his superior for direction, and he hadn’t received any that he could see as he recounted their conversation. What should he do next? He had his answer an hour later when he received a command to be at the Director’s office just before five that afternoon for a meeting with the FBI and his office. He felt better after receiving that message. That likely meant he wasn’t being fired today. He called base operations at Lemoore Field to see if they had any planes flying to San Diego in time for his meeting. If not, he would look to the Fresno airport to get him south on time. It was nearly a six-hour drive, and he couldn’t make it by car in time. He wondered if Jill Quint was going to be invited to attend.
He found she was invited when she approached the gate he was waiting in for the flight to San Diego.
“Hmmm, I think my guess was correct; you are associated with the military, and now we’re going to the same meeting regarding the Burnt Widow. It’s a small world, Detective John Mullin.”
“Actually, I’m Special Agent Jeff Lawrence of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, or as they say on TV, NCIS.”
“Sometimes, during an investigation, you have to shake a few trees to see what falls out. My call to you was exactly that.”
“Yeah, well, it worked. Naval Command was also being pressured by the FBI, so the case was being worked on from both ends.”
“Good. Are you going to tell me about Amanda Moore or Allison Montgomery?”
“Who is Allison?”
“Your sources aren’t the best, are they? Amanda changed her name to Allison. She has a California driver’s license issued in the name Allison Montgomery.”
“I knew you were a good investigator from the moment I met you at that murder site. When this case is over and if I still have a job as an investigator with the Navy, I’d like to have you come present this case and any other interesting cases you solved to our other investigators.”
“I can do that. Someday you might also invite the FBI. Even though we’re civilians, our methods would work in the military, I think.”
“Probably. Service members have fewer rights and less privacy compared to their civilian counterparts. So tell me what you know about Amanda.
”
“And spoil your surprise in the meeting later?”
“Remember, the capture of Amanda Moore is a cold case. She served her time in a military brig and was released for parole but never showed up. I’ve been hunting her for at least seven years.”
“Ouch. Did the DNA on the cigarette butt match her DNA?”
“How would I know that?”
“Doesn’t the military keep records on all members, including a DNA sample?”
“Yes, we do, and we did get a match for Amanda for the butt.”
“You didn’t think to tell me? I can’t see how it would have prevented Agent Sanderson’s death or the death of the man in Shasta County, but why wouldn’t you tell us?”
“You’ll find out at the meeting we’re going to. Is the FBI coming as well, or are they sending you as their spokesperson?”
“Special Agent in Charge Leticia Ortiz is based in San Francisco. She’s flying out of SFO to San Diego. I live in the Central Valley, so Fresno is the closest airport. Where are you stationed?”
“Lemoore Naval Air Station. We have all the Pacific fighter squadrons based there. There are about fifty-five thousand people on the base between military, civilians, students, and families. I tried to catch a flight to San Diego from the base, but I missed the last one out today.”
“What lousy luck you have to find me on the same flight.”
“I don’t think so. As I said, I admire your intelligence and investigative skills.”
They got called to board, so there was no more conversation until after they landed and settled in a taxi together.
“Will this taxi get into the base? Or will we be walking from the front gate?” Jill asked, looking at her watch. They had about forty-five minutes to reach their destination on time, and she wasn’t sure how far away the base was.
“My ID will get us past the front gate. This taxi company has been approved by the military.”
“So, we should arrive on time.”
“Yes, with time to spare. Was SAC Ortiz landing before or after you?”
“Before. There are many more flights between San Francisco and San Diego than fly out of Fresno. She should be there before us by about fifteen minutes.”
Indeed, when they arrived at the front gate, Leticia was waiting there as her transport wasn’t allowed on the base, but she could ride along with Lawrence and Quint when they arrived. It was a crowded back seat with the three adults. Jill performed introductions.
SAC Ortiz quipped, “So you’re fake Detective John Mullin. It’s going to be an interesting conversation. I believe the military has a lot of explaining to do.”
“We’re not answerable to civilians.”
“When one of your members goes on a civilian killing spree, then I think you are. Besides, doesn’t NCIS report outside of the Naval command structure directory to the Secretary of the Navy?”
“Ex-member. She hasn’t been a part of the military for many years.”
“Yes, but you were on the lookout for her and have been for quite some time. If she was an ex-member, why the interest in her?”
“I’ll let my superior explain it all to you.” With that non-starter, their conversation ended.
Jill couldn’t remember being on many military bases. She supposed as a child she had visited one for an airshow or something. She’d never had a desire to serve and frankly thought she would be lousy at following rules simply because someone of higher rank ordered her to do so. Still, she was grateful that people chose to serve, and she knew several of her fellow physicians had paid for their medical education with a stint in the military or the reserves.
Special Agent Lawrence directed the cabbie to a building. He apparently knew his way around this base even though he was stationed elsewhere. Most of the buildings looked similar—square or rectangular government looking buildings in off-white with clay tile roofs. In the distance, she caught sight of some big ships and lots of people in various uniforms.
The cabbie stopped in front of a building that said Pacific Fleet Command, and they got out.
Jill thought of several things to say but wisely kept her mouth shut as she was on unfamiliar ground. She didn’t know the rules the military played by, so she would keep quiet until she figured that out.
The two women followed Special Agent Lawrence inside the building and to a conference room. They all took a seat and were offered bottled water. Shortly, an older, Hispanic man arrived in a business suit.
“Hello, I’m Director Gomez, NCIS Pacific Fleet.”
Jill stuck out her hand and said, “Dr. Jill Quint, a forensic pathologist and private investigator.”
Leticia followed with, “Leticia Ortiz, Special Agent in Charge, Northern California, FBI.”
The Director looked at Jeff Lawrence, who replied, “Dr. Quint and I shared a plane ride and a taxi here, and we picked up Special Agent in Charge Ortiz at the front gate, so we already know each other.”
“Ah. I believe we have a mutual problem by the name Amanda Moore.”
“Yes. She murdered one of my agents early yesterday. By the way, she’s changed her name to Allison Montgomery. That was after she murdered five civilians. Why is the Navy searching for her?”
“We’re about to have a confidential conversation that I expect to stay in this room as I’ll be talking about a service member’s personnel file.”
“That may be true, but the FBI is searching for a serial killer. Her crimes outside the military likely outweigh anything she did inside the military. I think she served her time in the brig and was released, and then you lost her to follow-up. Is that correct?”
“Yes. That is correct. We want her recaptured, and we’ll do a psych eval and put her away for good.”
“That won’t fly. You lost her once, and now she’s murdered several men including Special Agent Brandon Sanderson of the FBI. We always get our man, or woman in this case. My officer’s fiancée deserves to know that she was caught, faced trial, and will spend the remainder of her life in jail. Besides, even without this meeting, we have a head start on NCIS. We’ll find her and arrest her before you ever have a chance. Dr. Quint has been the source for much of the evidence in this case. Someday you might consider adding someone with her skills to your staff.”
Jill was downright embarrassed by Leticia’s remarks. They were cringeworthy and probably could be attributed to a lack of sleep and the stress that the agent was under at the moment.
“Tell me about the evidence you have,” Director Gomez requested.
Jill wondered what Leticia was going to say to that request. They had gone to the trouble of flying to San Diego. In her mind, that meant they should have a rational conversation about the case.
Jill was out of her element as she was just a consultant hired by the Sacramento Coroner’s Office for one case. The fact that the case had blown up into something much bigger left her in uncertain territory. She had no personal stake in the case, and her personal safety had never been threatened, so she stayed silent.
“Jill, why don’t you tell Director Gomez everything we learned about Amanda from the first death forward.”
Okay, Jill thought, some direction going forward. She spent the next ten-plus minutes describing each crime scene and the evidence collected as well as the video of Amanda walking away from Agent Sanderson’s house to the white truck. She also described the registered recreational vehicle that she towed behind it.
Once she finished, there was silence in the room as the two NCIS people focused on the new information. Once they finished absorbing what Jill described, she turned the tables on them and asked a few questions of her own.
“What did Amanda do that earned her a stay in the brig, and why have you been keeping this investigation a secret?”
The Director replied, “As you know, we trained an arsonist to be a munitions expert. A huge mistake on our part. She damaged the enemy, our property, and then, accidentally, one of her fellow soldiers. She’s highly intelli
gent and has no family. She served a term in the brig and then was dishonorably discharged from the Navy. The first thing she did was violate her parole, and she hasn’t been seen since. We’ve been looking for her since then.”
“Why?” Jill asked. “Why put all this effort into one woman who didn’t show up for parole? Surely you have bigger enemies to chase?”
Special Agent Lawrence stayed quiet, so Jill looked to Director Gomez for an answer and waited. He seemed to be weighing his thoughts on what to say.
“You never told the injured serviceman that she and the military deliberately caused his injuries and that you trained her and gave her the equipment to be as good as she is,” SAC Ortiz guessed. “You’re hiding a screw-up on the part of the military.”
“No, Ma’am, we’re just trying to capture a service member who has violated the laws of the military code of honor.”
“I don’t believe you. I guess we have nothing more to talk about. Her history will come out when she is taken into our custody, and at that time, you’ll have to explain the grievous mistake you made in enlisting her. To be fair, arson is a rare trait among females, not something you can test for, but someone wasn’t watching her behavior. You trained someone with an obsession with fire on how to be better at it. You gave her a variety of chemicals and methods she could continue to use as a civilian. I wonder how much damage and how many fires she has started thanks to her training here.”
SAC Ortiz stood up and said to Jill, “You ready to head to the airport? We both have flights to catch home. We also have an ex-military member to apprehend.”
They left the room, and the Director said, “Special Agent Lawrence, arrange for transport off the base for those women. They’ll waste time trying to figure out how to be picked up. Stay close to them. We can always hope to take Amanda Moore into custody before they can.”
