“Ms. Mor—”
“I’m not just ranting. Did you speak with her assistant at Transformation magazine? Did she tell you that Cathy was threatened?” Hollis knew she shouldn’t raise her voice, but she couldn’t stop herself. “A couple of days ago someone broke into my condo. Nothing of obvious value was stolen. I don’t know what he was looking for, or even if he found it, but I’m telling you, there should be some very high profile suspects in this case.” Spent, she sat back in the chair.
“If you would just let me speak, Ms. Morgan.” He turned the clock back around. “Detective Faber told me of your break-in. Unfortunately we can’t find a connection be—”
“Wait. Look at this.” She put a small plastic bag with the notepaper she had found in her condo. “See? They knew I lived there. I was targeted.”
Cavanaugh picked up the bag and peered at the paper. He frowned and put the plastic bag and its contents in his side drawer.
“You said Ms. Briscoe had a personal assistant. How did you find her? No one at Transformation mentioned an assistant. What’s her name?”
Hollis licked her lips. She wasn’t ready to acknowledge she had kept copies of the notes that Cathy left with her, but Mark’s words of warning came back to her.
“She wasn’t a personal assistant. I meant to say she assisted Cathy.” She rushed, “Look, I made a copy of Cathy’s notes. You have the originals. I only discovered her through a fluke—by running into her in the bathroom. Transformation management didn’t tell us, either.” She paused. “Her name is Gail Baylor.”
He wrote down the name.
Hollis feared her growing impatience would turn Cavanaugh against her. “Will you please consider that maybe Cathy had something that a celebrity like Fields might want?”
His blue eyes seemed to look through her. She could tell he didn’t believe her.
“Tell me, Ms. Morgan, you’re a student of the law. Are you aware of California Penal Code Section Thirty-two?”
She could feel a rush of blood climbing up her chest.
“I’m not withholding information to obstruct justice,” Hollis said. “I want justice. I want to make sure you look in all directions regarding Cathy’s death.”
“And so you—”
“All right,” she sighed. “And so I made copies of Cathy’s notes. On one page there was a phone number that led me to her assistant.”
He leaned back, a satisfied smirk on his face.
“Does Miss Baylor consider the threat to be real?”
Hollis hesitated. The last thing she wanted was to make trouble for Gail. Withholding information could be just as problematic as being an accessory after the fact.
“No, I don’t think so. She’s the real nervous type. I don’t think she linked the two.”
Cavanaugh continued to stare at her. “But you did?”
“Detective, I think it’s obvious. We never found Cathy’s research materials. Any writer, let alone an attorney, would have her research saved to back up any claims. Her final article was really more of a tease for a future series on non-profits. I think Cathy was murdered by someone on Dorian Fields’ staff. I doubt that Fields would do it himself. That person killed Cathy and took all her incriminating research material. You asked me; now that’s what I think.”
It was her turn to lean back in her chair and cross her arms.
He flipped his pencil over and over, point to eraser, eraser to point.
“Is there anything else you’re withholding?”
“There is no ‘else.’ I never withheld anything. I’m on a legal team representing Transformation magazine. We have a right to collect information in defense of our client.” Gathering her purse and folders, Hollis rose to her feet. “I didn’t have to come here.”
Cavanaugh walked around his desk and blocked her exit. “That’s right, you didn’t. But if you really think you have pertinent information about your friend’s murder, then you will serve her best by working with us.”
She gave him a broad smile. “Then you’ll look into Dorian Fields’ role in all this?”
He lightly touched her elbow, guiding her to the door. “Remember what I said. Work with me on this. We already spoke with Miss Briscoe’s assistant, but we’ll go back and ask her about the information you just gave me.”
Hollis nodded. She was worried that Gail would not like being questioned about their conversation. She remembered the call Gail took. Hollis knew it had something to do with Fields, but she wanted to make sure her hunch was correct. She had no illusions about the lightly disguised threat.
She allowed herself to be ushered to the other side of the door, which Cavanaugh pushed closed behind her.
Hollis couldn’t get back to her office fast enough, but after fifteen minutes on the phone she was still trying to convince Gail of her intentions.
“I’m not questioning your motives; I just want to know if you made a copy of Cathy’s research.” Hollis bit her lip to keep her exasperation in check.
“Cathy trusted me, and I wanted to make sure I didn’t overlook any text. Resorting to memory isn’t professional.”
“Gail—”
“I never knew when or where she might call me.”
“Gail—”
“Offices get hacked all the time and I didn’t want to be caught—”
“Gail, please.”
“Yes, I have a copy.”
Hollis took a deep breath. “Good, I’m going to need that copy. Can you email it to me?”
She looked up to see George looming over her desk. How long had he been there? She turned slightly away from his gaze and put the phone to her other ear. He took the hint and left.
“Are you still there?” Hollis said.
“I have to think about this. Cathy never wanted to save her work on our system. She was afraid of it being stolen. I don’t have it on our server.”
“Well, then, where is her research?”
“It’s on a thumb drive.”
“Okay, I’ll come by to pick it up.”
“No, I don’t want management to think I’m disloyal. If you come by again, they will suspect we are working together.” Gail paused. “I’ll mail it to you.”
Hollis was glad Gail couldn’t see her frown of disbelief. “Gail, we are working together. I’m defending one of your writers.” She mentally counted to six. “Look, I don’t trust the mail. Let’s just meet somewhere.”
There was muffled dialog. Someone had evidently entered Gail’s office.
“Oh, my God, the police are here to question me.” Panic was clearly evident in her voice. “I don’t want to be arrested. I’ve got to go.”
Hollis stood. “Wait! Mailing the thumb drive is fine. The police may want a copy too, but make sure you put one in the mail to me. Okay?”
“What? Yes, no problem. Goodbye.”
“Wait, you don’t have my address. It’s—”
But Gail had already put down the phone.
Hollis arrived at Mark’s office late, but he was too preoccupied to notice. They went through copies of her notes and Mark pored over Hollis’ draft court motions.
She pulled her sweater close. The air conditioner seemed to be set to just above freezing. Maybe it was just to impress clients, because there was little need for air conditioning in the Bay Area.
Hollis recounted for Mark her phone call with Gail.
Mark raised his head. “That thumb drive is critical. It could be the answer to all our questions.”
She nodded. “If what Gail told me is true, having Cathy’s research takes us from a possible lose to a probable win,” Hollis replied. “We have a lot going for us. I just know those non-profits are bogus. Wherever Fields’ money is going, it’s not going to them.”
“I agree that’s what it appears to be, but we need to get the court to see it our way.” Mark stuffed pages into file folders. “Let me know as soon as you hear.”
“If she puts the thumb drive in the mail today, I should have it
by day after tomorrow or maybe even tomorrow. I’ll let you know as soon as I get it.”
“I read through the questions you drafted for the depositions; they’re excellent. You’re going to make a great attorney, Hollis.”
“Thanks, I hope the State of California agrees with you.” Hollis couldn’t hold back the smile that eased across her face. “Are you sure you don’t want me to assist? I’ve met all of them and it helps to have a second pair of eyes.”
Mark shook his head. “Nope, you go ahead and wrap up the Koch case. You’ll be able to get George off your back. Besides, I would rather have your help with the settlement hearing.”
“Don’t worry about George, he’s happy. Margaret’s letters indicate she doesn’t have any heirs and we can close the matter.”
“So why bother with Kelly?”
Hollis glanced at Mark and then looked away. “She has one more letter, and I’m trying to get her to let me read it.”
“Again, why?”
“Because … because Margaret’s story has me hooked. I’m not being nosy. I just want to … I’m hoping … to find out what happened.”
How could she explain to him what she couldn’t explain to herself? Just then his desk phone rang and she took a deep breath. From his end of the conversation, she could tell it was the front desk.
Mark laid down the phone. “My client is here. I’ve got to go.” He gathered up a legal pad and pen. “When you get Cathy’s thumb drive, start transcribing and ….”
He saw the look of irritation on her face and stopped.
“Mark, if you don’t want me to leave you working this case alone, don’t even pretend to tell me how to do my job.”
“It’s the stress.” He pretended to duck from her imaginary blow.
Hollis used the time on the trip back from Mark’s office to consider her next move if she didn’t hear from Gail. When she got back to the firm she would call every fifteen minutes if necessary. She had to get her hands on that thumb drive.
She rushed through the lobby.
“Hollis, wait!” Tiffany called to her. “You had a visitor. She wouldn’t leave her name. She said she couldn’t stay but would call you in the morning.”
Hollis’ heart took on a rapid staccato. “What did she look like?”
“Older, kind of scattered and really nervous.”
Gail.
“If for any reason she calls or comes by again, and I’m not at my desk, can you come and find me? It’s truly important that I speak with her.”
“Sure.” Tiffany paused. “I think she had a package for you, but she held on to it. I gave her your card.”
Hollis voice sounded strained to her ears. “Was it a small package?”
Tiffany nodded slowly.
Hollis started for her office again. She didn’t have a good feeling about missing Gail. The woman might take it as some kind of omen that Hollis hadn’t been available. She picked up the phone and dialed Gail’s number, but there was no answer.
By four-thirty Hollis wanted to scream into her purse.
“Tiffany, I have to go to the mail room. I’ll bring the office mail back.”
It was a long shot, but she was in desperate need of a distraction.
“Thanks.” Tiffany’s look of surprise did not go unnoticed.
Hollis hated the mail room. It was a maze of right and left turns that usually brought her back to where she started. At least this time she could hear machine sounds and she followed them carefully. The hallway opened into a large windowless room.
A fan whirred loudly and she had to raise her voice over the noise.
“Mail for Triple D?”
The young man with an iPod bud in one ear nodded, pointing her to a long table covered with a dozen white square plastic containers brimming with mail. She quickly went through the firm’s half-filled box and sighed.
Gail’s package was not there.
Hollis tossed and turned through the night, berating herself repeatedly for not getting that thumb drive. She should have been in the office when Gail came by.
The next morning she went to work planning to go straight to Transformation’s offices, but remembering how Gail had been so uncomfortable being seen with her, she decided to call from a nearby coffee shop and ask her to come down. They needed Cathy’s research, or else Fields’ attorneys would tear their case apart.
Even though she wasn’t sure how things could have happened differently, without that thumb drive she felt she had let Mark, and more importantly, Cathy, down. She checked her voicemail for the third time and then picked up her tote to leave for lunch.
Her phone buzzed, startling her.
“Yes, Tiffany?”
“There are two detectives here to see you, Hollis. Shall I put them in the conference room?” Her voice sounded shaky.
Hollis groaned.
What now?
“Yes, that’ll be fine, put them in the small conference room. I’ll be right out.”
She could have told Cavanaugh on the phone that Gail still hadn’t given her the thumb drive and spared him the trip to her office.
She couldn’t hide her expression of surprise when she entered the conference room.
Cavanaugh and Faber stood as she walked in. “Ms. Morgan, thank you for seeing us. I brought Detective Faber because it seems he has an interest in this new case as well.” Cavanaugh took a chair.
Faber nodded her way. She thought she caught a smile, but it was gone too quickly. She sat across from the detectives.
“What new case?” she said.
Cavanaugh pulled out a small notebook. “Yesterday evening, along Skyline Ridge, a body was discovered by a park ranger. We have since identified the body as Gail Baylor.”
“Oh, no,” Hollis gasped, and put the back of her hand to her mouth. “How was she killed?”
“We’re still checking into that,” Cavanaugh replied. “But tell me, the other day you seemed convinced Ms. Baylor had information we would find useful in the murder of your friend. We want to know exactly what you hoped to find.”
She frowned and glanced over to Faber, but his face wasn’t revealing any clues.
“The first thing you need to know is that Gail came to see me yesterday afternoon.”
The detectives exchanged looks. Faber slipped out his notebook.
“Ms. Morgan, I warned you—”
Raising her hand, she stopped Cavanaugh’s sentence.
“Wait! Before you get all wound up, I didn’t know she was coming here. I never met with her. I missed seeing her. I’m not even positive what she wanted.” Hollis clasped her hands to keep them from shaking.
“What time was she here?” Faber spoke this time.
Hollis shrugged. “I had a one o’clock meeting out of the office. I was back by two o’clock.”
Faber asked. “I understand you had just met with Ms. Baylor?”
“That’s right,” Hollis said. “Cathy never mentioned her. I stumbled on her … I think it was Cathy’s notes.” At the last moment she remembered her earlier statement to Cavanaugh.
“Why didn’t she come forward when she heard about Briscoe’s death?” Faber asked.
She rubbed her forehead. “I don’t know. Gail worked for several of Transformation’s writers. Cathy Briscoe was just one of her assignments.”
Hollis hoped the frustration in her voice wasn’t too apparent. It didn’t seem to matter, though. Cavanaugh didn’t even glance her way.
“I see,” Faber asked. “What do you think she wanted to see you about?”
She looked away. She wasn’t ready to give up her theory about what she found in Cathy’s file; it was still just a theory. But she also remembered Cavanaugh’s warning.
“There is a thumb drive that might have Cathy Briscoe’s research on it. Mark Haddan and I think it will prove Cathy’s contention that Dorian Fields is a crook, and it should also give a probable motive for Cathy’s—and I guess now, Gail’s—murder.”
She h
ad their attention now.
Cavanaugh began to pace as he talked. “We collected quite a bit of material from Ms. Baylor. We are still going through it all. However, there were a number of thumb drives. It seems she would keep backup documents on each subject file. We did not find one for Catherine Briscoe. Where’s Miss Briscoe’s thumb drive?”
Hollis leaned across the table. “I don’t know. I think Gail was bringing it to me yesterday. Our receptionist said she carried a small package, but she wouldn’t leave it.”
Cavanaugh’s face looked grim. “Did you encourage her to withhold information from the police?”
“Of course not.”
“Were you expecting her to come to your office?”
She shook her head. “No, the only thing I can think of is that she must have gotten my address from our first meeting, when I told her I worked for Triple D. We had only talked about her mailing the drive, not dropping it off.”
Cavanaugh stopped pacing. He sat down and started to tap the top of the table with his pen. “I take it you’ve checked the mail?”
“Yes.”
Cavanaugh placed his palms on the table and leaned toward her. “I know you and Haddan took up your friend’s court case, but if you come across any information relative to either victim—and I mean anything—I want you to contact me immediately. This is now a double murder case.”
“Don’t worry, Detective. You’ll be the first to know.”
Gail’s murderer had the thumb drive, and the three of them knew it.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
From her desk drawer, Hollis pulled Margaret’s returned letter to Eric Ferris. She needed to finish the Koch matter so she could concentrate on Cathy’s murder. There were just a few loose ends she wanted to clear up before her meeting with Kelly at the end of the week.
Ferris’ address was in Vacaville. Using a reverse phone number search online, it took a few calls to back trace the address to a phone number. A young woman who had been renting there for less than a year answered. While she knew Ferris was her landlord, she and her husband communicated with him through a property management company.
“Can you give me the name of the property management company?” Hollis asked after introducing herself.
Sticks & Stones (A Hollis Morgan Mystery) Page 12
