by Joanna Wayne
“That’s not quite it. I really need to talk to you in person.”
“Certainly. Why don’t you stop by my hotel sometime after three? I’m tied up until then.”
“I’d like you to meet with both Jack and me at PPS Headquarters.”
The silent pause was so long that she feared she’d lost the connection.
“I have no interest in meeting with Jack.”
“It’s important, Mitchell. I’ve learned some things about Nick’s finances that are very troubling. I need to find out what you know of the situation, and the data I need to discuss it intelligently is at PPS.”
“I see. In that case, I guess I have no choice.”
“Can you make it for three?”
“I’ll try. I may be a few minutes late.”
“Good. Hold on and Jack can give you directions.”
Jack turned into the parking garage entrance of PPS and swiped his card at the security control before putting her phone to his ear.
A minute later Kelly was holding Alex’s hand and walking across the well-lit garage to the private elevator that led directly to the top floor and the entrance to PPS. She was still in her jeans and wearing sensible, low-heeled boots, a canvas tote slung over her shoulders.
Strange how the priorities in her life had changed over the last sixty hours. Fashion and keeping up appearances meant nothing. Now it was all about staying alive.
THE YOUNG WOMAN behind the reception desk today bore little resemblance to Angel. Her skirt was brown, her shirt was a nice shade of lavender, and her stylish blazer was a muted plaid. More striking differences were the absence of chunky, dangling silver from her ears and gauche studs in her nose and lips.
“Where’s Angel?” Alex asked, obviously displeased that her new friend wasn’t there to greet her.
“It’s Angel’s day off,” Jack said. He introduced them to Elisha. The attractive brunette was both soft-spoken and businesslike.
“Mrs. Prescott asked that you stop by her office. Shall I tell her you’re on your way?”
“Sure thing. What about Lenny? Is he in his cube?”
“I think so. I know he’s in the area.”
“Then I’m sure I can find him.”
“Angel painted a spider on my fingernail,” Alex said, holding up her thumb for Elisha’s admiration.
“That’s nice,” Elisha said, then went back to whatever she’d been typing into her computer.
“It’s Sunday,” Kelly said as they took the hallway in the opposite direction from the way they’d gone yesterday. “Don’t PPS employees ever take a day off?”
“Sure, just no particular day. If you’re on an assignment you work the days and hours it requires to get the job done right.”
“But the tech guys must work regular hours.”
“There’re always a few on duty, and I’ve yet to be here at any time of the night when there weren’t at least a couple of agents in the office. Danger doesn’t watch the clock.”
Alex danced in front of them, letting her fingers trail along the white walls and occasionally stopping to peek through an open doorway. High tech meant nothing to her. PPS was just another playground.
“Evangeline must be quite a woman to keep a place like this going. What is her background?”
“She’s a former FBI agent and her husband, Robert, was an undercover agent with M16 before he came to the U.S.”
“What’s M16?”
“Great Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service. M16 is their external division, handling espionage outside the UK.”
“That explains the sophisticated equipment and the heavy emphasis on investigation. What did you mean yesterday when you said Angel was one of Evangeline’s projects?”
Evangeline adopts people, or I guess it’s more like she rescues them. I didn’t get the story firsthand, but word is that she was raised in a foster home and she’ll go the extra mile to help out people who might have experienced the same kind of misfortune.”
“I like her already.”
“Everybody does. That’s her standing by the door to the corner office.”
Alex made a beeline toward Evangeline and was excitedly showing her the gory work of art on her fingernail by the time Kelly and Jack caught up.
Jack made the introductions, and Kelly was duly impressed. Evangeline looked positively regal in a pair of gray slacks and a cashmere sweater the shade of buttercups.
“I’ve looked forward to meeting you,” Evangeline said, as Kelly and Jack took a seat. “It’s a little-known fact around here, but I used to escape to my office at least once a week to watch the soap you were on while I ate lunch. Your character was one of my favorites. You wore such beautiful clothes.”
“We had a terrific wardrobe lady.” Kelly was glad Evangeline hadn’t said it was her acting that she’d loved. The statement would have killed her credibility.
Evangeline reached into her desk drawer, pulled out a box of washable markers and a drawing pad and set them on the edge of her desk.
Alex eyed them immediately and sauntered over. “I like to draw.”
“Would you like to use my markers?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Alex smiled sheepishly at Evangeline. “I like red.”
“Me, too,” Evangeline agreed.
Alex took the markers from the desk. “I’ll draw you a red picture.”
“I’d like that. Here, take the pad and you can draw lots of pictures.”
“I brought some other things to keep her busy, too,” Kelly said. She patted the tote bag she’d set down beside her chair. “There are a couple of DVDs, some books, some games, and her Pooh bear. When she gets tired, she likes to cuddle with him. And there’s a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in there for her lunch and some grapes and cookies if she wants a snack. I didn’t bring milk. Jack said there was always milk in the PPS refrigerator.”
“Always,” Evangeline said. “There might even be peanut butter in the kitchen. Occasionally an agent won’t go home for dinner for days.”
“I don’t know if Lenny has a home,” Jack joked. “I think he’s taken over one of the campsites.”
“We’ll kick him out today and make room for Alex if she needs a nap.”
“I don’t take naps,” Alex said.
“Then we won’t worry about that. You can draw pictures, watch videos and play with Sara. She stayed with you in the hotel. Do you remember her?”
“Uh-huh. She’s fun.”
“She thinks you’re pretty fun, too. Jack, why don’t you take Alex to Harry Gayfer’s office? Sara’s confiscated it for the afternoon so that Alex will be more comfortable.”
“I’ll draw her a picture,” Alex said. “And Mommy one, too. But not you, Jack. You have a fish.”
Kelly hugged her daughter and gave her a parting kiss on the cheek. “Be good, sweetheart. I’ll be back to get you soon.”
Kelly knew this was a setup for her to be alone with Evangeline. She figured she’d know why by the time Jack got back.
Evangeline settled in the leather chair behind her desk. “I’m sorry about your husband, Kelly. No matter what kind of relationship you had, I know this is difficult for you.”
Kelly wondered if everyone at PPS knew about her and Nick’s relationship. “You’re right, it is difficult, and doubly so since the danger has extended to my daughter.”
“And to you. Jack said you had a very close call on the way to the airport.”
“If Jack hadn’t been driving, we’d almost certainly be dead.”
“Jack is one PPS’s most experienced and knowledgeable agents. He’s not one to sing his own praises, but under the circumstances I thought knowing his capabilities would give you added reassurance and hopefully relieve your mind a bit.”
So that’s why Evangeline had made a point of talking to her without Jack present. “Thanks, I do have confidence in Jack, but I’m not sure how long I’ll be able to stay in Denver.”
“Jack’s convinced that the ranch
is the safest place for you and Alex right now. I must say I agree.”
“It’s not the safety of the ranch that concerns me. I’m eager to return home because I haven’t told Alex about her father’s death yet. It seems cruel to give her that kind of news when she has nothing familiar around her to cushion the blow.”
“She has you, Kelly, and I’d be willing to bet you’re the most important constant in her world. When it’s time to tell her, I’m sure you’ll do it well.”
“I wish I were that confident. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in the past and most of them have come back to haunt me.” Kelly glanced to the window and the spectacular view of the city and the mountains beyond. “I don’t know why I’m telling you this.”
“Sometimes it helps to talk, especially when you’ve been hit with so much at once.”
“And it just keeps coming.”
“Jack says that you’re a smart woman and a super mother, Kelly. You’ll come through this just fine. So will Alex. Trust Jack and PPS with your safety and trust your own instincts with everything else.”
Their conversation was interrupted by Jack’s return and the urgency in his voice when he reminded her that they needed to see Lenny before they left for their meeting with Detective Carter.
Evangeline walked them to the door. “I’ve assigned Lenny to work with you full-time until this is resolved, Jack.”
“Thanks. I’ve got a hunch I’ll need him.”
“Keep me posted.”
“You got it.”
Jack started down the hall, but Kelly lingered. “It was a real pleasure meeting you and thanks for the pep talk.” She extended her hand, but Evangeline pulled her into a quick but warm hug instead.
“Good luck, Kelly. I have every confidence this will all work out. You and Jack make a great team.”
Her and Jack a team? An interesting concept, but not one she had time to think about now.
She hurried to catch up with Jack. She was still nervous about the meeting with Detective Carter, but she felt better about the general situation. At least she did until they reached Lenny’s cubicle.
“Good news and bad,” he said before they’d even said hello. “Which do you want first?”
“The good,” Kelly answered.
“I think I know which TCM Nick was referring to.”
“And the bad?” Jack asked.
“The TCM Nick was referring to.”
Chapter Nine
Sunday, 11:22 a.m.
PPS Headquarters
Lenny tapped a few keys and pulled up the home page of Tri Corp. Media. “Are either of you familiar with this company?”
“I am,” Kelly said. “In fact the wife of the head of the company is in Denver this week for the film festival. You saw her, Jack. Friday night. She was that woman who grabbed my arm and insisted I come to her party as you were herding me out the door of the theater.”
“I remember her. Thought I might have to shoot her to get her to let go of you. So what was Nick’s connection to TCM?”
“He’s one of their big-time investors,” Lenny said. “Really big-time, which helps explain why he doesn’t have money to pay his creditors.”
“How did you find that out?” Kelly asked.
“From his bank account records.” Lenny pulled up a new screen, this one a spreadsheet of three bank accounts bearing Nick’s name and social security number.
“Isn’t it illegal to tap into someone’s bank accounts?”
The redheaded technician looked at her as if she’d dropped from an alien planet. “The information’s there. I’m just looking at it, not stealing his money. Not that he has much to steal. Besides, I didn’t tap into his bank accounts. I tapped into his online files with his accountant firm, using information I obtained from you, by the way.”
Jack leaned closer so he could see what Lenny was pulling up on the screen. “Here’s a check for sixty-two thousand dollars made out to Chance for Children last week. Is that a legit organization?”
“I haven’t had a chance to check it out.”
“It’s legitimate.”
Both men stared at her. “Are you sure?” Jack asked. “I’ve never heard of it.”
“I’m positive,” she said. “I established and manage it. We choose promising students from poor families and try to give them an opportunity to succeed. We see that they have at least two healthy meals a day, decent clothes and shoes to wear, attend a summer camp and we provide tutors and some kind of private enrichment classes such as dance or music lessons.” She stopped for breath. “Sorry, didn’t mean to get up on my soapbox. Just the stress.”
“That’s nice work,” Lenny said, his fingers still flying over the keys. “Lot of rich people don’t care.”
“But many of them do,” she said, “and a good many of those contribute to our fund. Even Nick occasionally, but I never got that check.”
“TCM’s not the only company Nick was investing in,” Lenny said, “but it got the bulk of his money.”
“How much bulk are we talking about?” Jack asked.
“A million dollars last year.”
Jack gave a low whistle. “That’s a lot of bulk.”
“Is that why you said the bad news was Tri Corp.?” Kelly asked, trying to get all this straight.
“I said that because Tri Corp. has a lot of people making huge investments.”
Jack turned back to Kelly. “Which means the company is exceptionally talented at getting people to make sizable investments.”
“Is that illegal?”
“Not at all,” Jack said. “It’s the way big business runs.”
“And TCM is a growing business with their fingers in lots of pies, so there probably is money to be made there.” Lenny handed Jack a printout. “Here’s a list of Nick’s other investments. As you can see, they were mostly in extremely speculative real estate ventures or in shady companies promising huge profits and a quick rate of return.”
Kelly watched as Lenny started highlighting the checks related to Nick’s investments. The amount of money involved was staggering. “Why would he keep investing money when he was sliding into financial ruin?”
“It’s not that uncommon,” Jack said. “It’s similar to having a gambling problem. The more desperate he got for funds, the more money he’d invest in get-rich-quick schemes, hoping for the big payoff.”
“But it never came,” she said.
“He wasn’t a complete failure at his investments,” Lenny said, pulling up yet another screen. “Three weeks ago, Nick made two million dollars profit selling TCM a hundred acres he owned in Puerto Escondido. The deal was sealed in Mexico and profit from that sale never went into any of Nick’s American bank accounts.”
“I guess you found that out on the Internet, too.”
“Some of it,” Lenny said. “And I’ve got connections in Mexico. You know, you scratch my back, I scratch yours.”
Naturally. This was PPS. “Why would TCM pay so much for the land?”
“No doubt so that they can make even more profit,” Jack said. “Tourism is booming down there and they could be planning to develop a high-end resort.”
“Or they could think there’s enough oil and natural gas to make drilling profitable,” Lenny said.
Kelly was still puzzled. “Why wouldn’t Nick put his profit into the bank to cover his bills? Two million would have gone a long way.”
“Maybe he has more millions stashed in a foreign bank,” Lenny said. “He could have been planning to escape his debts by faking his death and moving to some exotic island in the South Pacific. Happens more than you know.”
“Not Nick. He’d never have willingly given up his life here,” Kelly said. “He loved being a movie star.”
Jack stood and shoved his chair out of the way. “Bottom line is that even if Nick was trying to tell Kelly the location of the money he made from his sale to TCM, we still don’t know why Nick was killed or why Kelly was targeted.”
“Goo
d point,” Lenny agreed.
“I want to take another look at those bank accounts later, but we need to leave now so Kelly can make her noon appointment with Carter.”
“By all means,” she said, with no attempt to hide her frustration. “Let’s not keep the detective waiting. Maybe on top of all of this, I can get thrown in jail for killing my husband.”
“Oh, I forgot,” Lenny said. “There is one bit of good news. The blizzard they were forecasting for tomorrow afternoon appears to be stalled. Weather-man says it won’t get here until late tomorrow night.”
Good news for Lenny, maybe. Kelly was sure her blizzard had already arrived.
Sunday, 12:17 p.m.
Denver Police Station
THE MORE SATISFYING bit of good news was that Detective Carter didn’t arrest Kelly the second she stepped into his small and extremely cluttered office. He didn’t even take her to an intimidating interrogation room. In fact, he was very accommodating, even offering her a diet soda. He did, however, insist that they talk without Jack being present.
She and Jack had talked on the way over. He hadn’t recommended she lie to Carter, but he had suggested that she only answer direct questions and that she not volunteer any of the information that Lenny had learned. He stressed that PPS had a lot better chance of identifying the danger if nothing of what Lenny had learned was leaked to the police or the media just yet.
The detective walked back into his office and handed her a cold can of soda, then dropped into the seat of power behind his desk. He wadded an empty fast-food bag and tossed it into the trash can, but left a half-eaten steak sandwich resting on a paper napkin at his right elbow.
“Did you know Hal Hayden?” he asked.
“Not well, but he was a friend of Nick’s and had parts in his last two movies.”
“Would you say he and Nick were close friends?”
“I don’t know enough about any of Nick’s friendships to classify them.”
“I’ve heard they were extremely close.”
So he knew now that Nick was gay. It hadn’t taken him long to discover that. She was glad, though Mitchell wouldn’t like it. The lies had gone on too long.
“That could well be,” she admitted. “I know they spent a lot of time together.”
