“I’ve always said all this computer stuff is a double-edged sword.” Jeb nodded. “Sounds like both you and Lila ended up in the crosshairs of someone.” He cast a glance at Cody. “Based on the way you were looking at Lila, I’d say your feelings for her are still in play.”
“I didn’t expect to see her.”
“Don’t know how you would be. Every time I saw your Mama, I was thrown. Tina was beautiful and exasperating. I didn’t know which way was up. A real head scratcher.” He glanced at the passenger side mirror.
Cody angled the SUV on to the highway. “Lila pulled a gun on me when I walked in.”
Jeb reared back, emitting a hearty laugh. “That’s rich. She had you shaking in your boots.”
Cody grimaced. “Wasn’t funny at the time. I thought she was going to shoot me thinking I was an intruder. Then when she saw who I was, I still thought she’d unload on my ass.”
“She was madder than a wet hen. Where you able to state your case?”
“No. I wasn’t the only one in shock. She didn’t want to say much, even when I asked her about her mentor’s death.” Cody sighed. The memory of Lila standing wide-legged holding that gun sent his mind in a dangerous direction. He shut down the illicit thoughts. No use going there when she hated his guts. He turned back to Jeb. “Did you have a chance to look into the Struthers murder?”
“Lila arrived with some work documents for one of the firm’s partners and found him full of bullet holes. My source tells me the firm has gone on lockdown. Not one employee has agreed to say a word about the dead man on camera.”
“That’s weird.”
“Damn straight. Jack Struthers was a partner in one of most highfalutin’ law firms in Texas, probably the country, and no one is saying anything? Not a secretary talking how he great he was as a boss or another attorney talking about his prowess in the courtroom.” Jeb shook his head. “According to my police source, the hit appeared professional. No leads so far. The killer searched the bedrooms and office of the penthouse but none of the bullet casings were found.”
“Did anyone hear the gunshots?” Cody sat straighter.
“No.” Jeb adjusted his hat. “Those fancy apartments have soundproof walls and the attorney had the only occupied unit on that floor. Lila was lucky.”
“She could have been seconds from walking into a murder in progress.” Cody blew out a breath as his heart thundered with dread.
Forty minutes later, Cody slowed as the safe house came into view. As the officers had said, they’d boarded up the two front windows shattered in the shootout. Cody followed the drive to the back of the house and cut the engine.
“I want to check the car Lila drove here.” Cody opened the garage, which sat about a hundred yards from the house. He stepped inside, approached the front of the white sedan and inspected the undercarriage.
Jeb started at the rear. Seconds later he straightened. “Bingo.”
Cody raced around the car and fell to his knees. He detached the tracker, jumped up, and slammed the device with his foot. “Now we know how we were exposed.”
When they approached the back entry, Jeb studied the door. “No splintered wood or torn hinges but with the busted-out windows from the gun fight we know they had easy access.”
“These locks are the best money can buy.” Cody entered the code and the door clicked open.
They stepped into the kitchen and destruction greeted them. Every cabinet and drawer had been emptied out. The pantry demolished with canned goods and staples scattered on the wooden floor. Plates and glasses had been shattered and cookware scattered on the floor.
“The Alliance recently obtained the house, but this is the first breach of any of our safe sites.” Cody pointed to a set of footprints embedded in spilled flour. “Looks like at least one of them was a huge man.”
Jeb bent to inspect the footprints. “Judging by the tread, I believe this guy was wearing hiking boots. I’d estimate at least a size 12 boot. Could be the same guys who rooted around your house.” He rose and studied the chrome drawer pull on one of the drawers now discarded on the floor. “I’m willing to bet they left no prints. I’ll check the rest of the house.”
Cody continued through the kitchen and into the living room. Similar destruction met him. Couch stuffing lay in puffy clouds around the room. Books, pillows, and various knickknacks lay in fractured pieces. The Alliance had been careful to avoid anything personal in the safe houses and went to extreme measures to mask the identities of all members. Cody punched in the code to the hidden data center. Unlike the rest of the house, he was relieved when he discovered the room remained intact.
A whistle sounded from the door twenty minutes later. “You guys are serious about security.” Jeb entered the room. “They searched the rest of the house. Even picked up all the bullet casings. Since the locals don’t have a desire to investigate the Feds might be able to pick up some evidence.” Jeb ambled around the room. “These guys were looking for something.”
Cody sank into one of the chairs and logged on to the computer. “They didn’t find anything. I’m sure of it. We’re careful not to leave any sensitive information. I was here working on implementing even more secured measures.”
Cody hated the thought that Lila could have been alone in the house when the gunmen arrived. Although she knew how to handle a weapon, she might not have been able to hold the gunmen off. Then what? Were they sent to kill her? Take her prisoner? They were obviously looking for something when they invaded the house, but her death could have been a secondary task, performed when their main goal had been thwarted. Someone had been snooping around his house, so he could have also been the target, as well.
Jeb leaned over him as Cody pulled up the security camera footage. After forwarding through the gun battle which showed both he and Lila were lucky to have escaped without injury, Cody hit the Play button when two gloved men dressed in black materialized on the screen. They climbed through the front windows shattered during the gunfight. Once inside, one man went through the house searching through drawers, shelves, and closets while the other collected all the bullet casings. After twenty minutes, one of the men made a call. He nodded, hung up, then slammed a vase against the wall in apparent frustration. That’s when they began destroying furniture and anything within their grasp. Then suddenly they stopped and fled the scene.
“They were pissed their mission failed and probably heard the police coming and hightailed it out.” Jeb continued to stare at the screen. “They’re wearing bulletproof vests. Your bullets just stunned them. They work for someone, and my theory is these guys are in big trouble.”
“Just like Lance to put his foot on the necks of his flunkies.” Cody watched as the men climbed out of the window. The exterior cameras caught them jogging back down the street. “They must have parked somewhere down the road.”
“They knew you’d have cameras. Yet they didn’t make any attempts to destroy them once they were inside.” Jeb scratched his forehead. “Either they were stupid, or they wanted you to see this.”
Cody sighed. “You’re right.” He made a copy of the surveillance footage and logged off. “Let’s get Lila’s vehicle at the hotel. I have a party to get to.”
Chapter 10
Find 7011 and Jennings. Docs important.
Lila stared out of her office window at the traffic below, her thoughts on Jack’s dying request. Find 7011 and Jennings. She turned away from the window and slid into her desk chair. She didn’t recognize the name Jennings as an employee of HTP, but with over a hundred attorneys she didn’t know everyone. Swiping her phone from the desk, she pulled up the public website for HTP and searched the attorney listing for a Jennings. She came up empty.
Damn.
No attorneys had the last name Jennings but perhaps the name was a client. She hit a key on her keyboard and her monitor awoke. HTP had a database of clients. Attorneys, paralegals, and assistants consulted the database prior to taking on a new client to ensure
there were no conflicts with existing clients. She could run a search for Jennings, but she’d leave a footprint. If she logged into the system and scanned the database, she doubted anyone would notice. Seconds later, the database populated her screen. She sorted to put the client names in alphabetical order. A quick scan of the data came up empty.
She shifted gears and searched the database for client number 7011. She couldn’t imagine documents as important as Jack indicated would be housed in HTP’s database, but she had to try. Perhaps Jack hid them in plain sight. Using the same method of scanning the database she scrolled to the 7000s. Seconds later, she stared at the client FoxSt7011, with the word church in the industry column. Her heart clanged inside her chest. Fox St?
Fox Street Christian Church? The same Fox Street Christian Church where she spent countless volunteer hours with their tutoring program?
She dared not open the file. Based on the general information contained next to the client number, she noted this file had been initiated several years ago. If that were the case, then these files should be in the file room. She’d have better luck at cloaking herself with hard copy files than on the system. She hit the X in the corner and logged out of the system.
The cadence of her heartbeat ticked up. Jack was the church’s attorney? She’d never heard him talk about representing the church nor had she ever assisted him. In the two years she’d work under him, she’d never known him to represent any religious organization, not that his services wouldn’t have been appropriate in some capacity.
A knock interrupted her thoughts. Lila crossed the small office and opened the door. “Is it lunchtime already?”
Gia gave her a hearty hug. “Yes. Do you want to eat here or—”
Lila grabbed her purse. “Not here.” Lila didn’t say much as she led the way across the street to a coffeehouse. They ordered tea and salads, then took a booth in the back.
“I’ve been worried about you.” Gia stirred sugar into her tea.
Lila, sitting across from her, leaned in close. Talcott’s warning not to talk entered her mind but she dismissed the admonition. She could trust Gia. She explained how she’d found Jack. “I tried to save him.” Lila shook her head. “His poor family. I have to go see them, deliver his last message. It’s the least I can do.”
“I’m sure Jack was comforted that you were there. Do you want me to go with you?” Gia covered her hand.
“No. I should do this alone.” She focused on her salad, sliding the tomato wedges to the side.
“Was the police interview awful?” Gia’s eyes were wide.
“No, not too bad. Hilary showed up as my attorney during the interview. I went along with it, especially since I don’t know anything. I didn’t see the killers.”
“How was your meeting with Hilary and Talcott?” Gia munched on a bite of her salad.
Lila shrugged. “I still have a job. I’ll be working with Steve Dorman. Hilary is working with us on Veridian cases.”
“They can’t fire you because your mentor died. They wouldn’t dare!” Gia’s eyes narrowed, as she held her fork in midair. “How does Hilary have anything to do with corporate cases?”
“First, they can fire me for any reason, but I’m glad they didn’t. Second, Hilary has a good relationship with the senior executives at Veridian, and HTP feels her presence will help us secure the rest of their outside counsel work.” Lila’s gaze shot up as two people passed their table. The man and woman slid into a booth three tables away. Thankful Gia agreed to meet her after the rush of the lunchtime crowd, Lila was able to relax a little in the half-full restaurant.
Gia scrunched her nose. “Good luck working with the ice queen. I can’t imagine the rumors are true that she’s having an affair with some bigwig and has to keep it secret.”
Lila shrugged then leaned forward and whispered, “Gia, you can’t repeat any of this. Talcott has warned me not to talk to anyone. They are clamping down on everyone, but especially me since I’m now involved. I don’t know who killed Jack or why but Talcott and Hilary, maybe even others, are very nervous.”
“They don’t want any bad press, but this seems a bit overboard.” Gia sighed. “You have my word. Do you want to stay with me for a while?”
The swish of bullets flying past her filled her mind’s eye. Cody could have been killed and despite her anger at him, she would have been devastated if something had happened to him. For most of her life she’d felt like a pariah, too toxic to be around anyone. Carson’s best friend Nina Prince had almost been murdered because of Lance’s vendetta against his sister. In his mind, he had reason to come after any of the Alliance members. No one was safe. Lila shook her head. “No, I’m staying at a safe house. That’s as much as I can say.” Lila folded her napkin, as the food suddenly took on the flavor of sawdust.
Gia nodded. “You know I understand but it won’t stop me from worrying about you.”
When her relationship with Gia had deepened to best-friend level, Lila had told her about some of her past. She’d wanted Gia to make the decision whether to be in her life or not. Gia hadn’t hesitated, promising, “I won’t toss my friendship with you overboard because you have a dangerous past.”
“Thanks, Gia. We better get back. I have a Veridian conference call. And we both need to get ready for the charity benefit this evening.”
Gia smiled. “I can’t wait for Jimmy to see my dress. Maybe he’ll get the hint and propose.”
Lila laughed as they exited the restaurant. It was nice to talk about something other than death and danger.
Lila entered Steve’s office five minutes before the conference call. The dichotomy between Jack’s and Steve’s offices stood out like a red marble sitting atop a bucket of white ones. Jack’s office had been understated and filled with images of family life and his hobbies such as fishing and hiking. Steve’s office was an ode to himself. Photos of him smiling with the rich and famous of Dallas were plastered on his walls. Lila’s heart stilled. A photo of Steve, a woman she didn’t recognize, and Lance, hung at the top of a conglomerate of other photos. Steve knew Lance, her cousin, the Grand Commander of The Order?
Steve slithered up beside her as she stared at the photos. “I like to donate to various charities. These benefits and balls are not only for noble causes, but they’re also great for business. I’ve met some interesting people and have built quite a client base.”
Perspiration tickled her neck. How well did Steve know Lance? Did he know about their familial connection? Her thoughts twisted and heaved as she conjured wild possibilities. She didn’t believe Lance would allow her and the rest of those who railed against him to live a safe life. He would retaliate.
Hilary breezed into the room with a leather notebook in one hand and a coffee cup in the other. She tapped her watch. “It’s two.” She took a chair at the round worktable tucked into a corner of the office and spread open her notebook.
Steve motioned Lila to the table, then punched in the conference call number. Moments later, Steve introduced everyone in the room to Robert Gumfrey, Chief Legal Officer of Veridian.
“Hilary, it’s great to talk to you,” Robert said. “What are you doing prowling around this subject matter? Are you jumping ship from the criminal division?”
She laughed. “Robert, you know I live to defend all those poor unfortunate souls who find themselves accused of some heinous act or another. In light of Jack’s death, we’ve had a few personnel changes. As one of our most important clients, you get the star treatment.”
“A little client management from the top of the glass ceiling.” He chuckled, then turned serious. “Condolences to HTP and Jack’s family. He will be missed.”
Lila had seen photos of Robert Gumfrey and had limited interaction with him, but his sentiment didn’t appear sincere.
For the next hour, they discussed three companies available for takeover. Robert indicated that the patented technology they would usurp would take a few of their classified projects to the n
ext level. By the end of the discussion, Lila and Steve had mapped out their legal tasks. Before ending the call, Mr. Gumfrey reminded them of the charity ball hosted by Veridian at their headquarters. “I look forward to seeing all of you this evening.”
Steve nodded and grinned. “You can count on my team, including Ms. Caldwell, being there. Thanks for the invitation.”
Lila, once again, bristled at the notion that Steve would accept an after-hours invitation on her behalf, but as the junior associate she couldn’t renege on an important client function.
The call ended, and Steve pumped his fists. “This is a major coup. My goal is to become the go-to firm for everything Veridian. I don’t want them taking a shit without calling us. It never fails that this social media crap will one day land them in hot water, and we’ll be here to save their asses.”
Hilary rose and shot Steve a glare. “Veridian has been on our radar and within grasp for a while now. As a full-service firm, HTP can handle anything Veridian needs. We’ll bring millions to the firm. We expect a decision after this event. Please be on your best behavior.” She ambled to the door and turned back. “Steve, I know you and Jack had some sort of testosterone-fueled rivalry going, but we need everyone to bring their best. We can’t let Jack’s death derail our goals.”
Lila clamped her mouth closed. So much for everyone being broken up about Jack’s murder.
She waited until late afternoon to leave her office. HTP had given everyone the option of taking the afternoon off in response to Jack’s death. The majority of the support staff had left and only a smattering of attorneys on her floor were still working. Banking on not being disturbed, Lila made her way to the library where she weaved through the stacks and stopped in front of a door. A panel was mounted next to the door. After entering her unique code, the panel turned green and the door clicked open. Automatic lights switched on when she stepped inside. Rows of banker’s boxes were stacked high on shelves lining the large room. Four tall tables sat on one side of the room, providing a working area for those wishing to review the contents of the boxes. Lila had spent a few weeks working in here during her first year. Filing tasks were assigned to familiarize new associates with the firm’s system, but the project was viewed as a bit of a hazing tactic for new attorneys.
Order of Truth Page 7
