Dead Hunt dffi-5

by Beverly Connor

  Chapter 27

  ‘‘Diane,’’ said Vanessa, ‘‘Laura and I have been trying to get in touch with you since ...well, the board meeting . . . and now the papers. Someone invaded your home? Are you all right? Can we talk?’’

  Vanessa and Laura looked like they were going to the same concert as the Meyersons. They glittered and shined in flashy evening clothes.

  ‘‘Aren’t the two of you going to be late somewhere?’’ asked Diane.

  ‘‘We have time,’’ said Vanessa.

  Both were staring at Diane’s forehead.

  ‘‘You’re hurt,’’ said Laura.

  ‘‘Not much,’’ said Diane. She looked at her watch. ‘‘I really have to go...’’

  ‘‘Diane, please,’’ said Vanessa. ‘‘Take a little time and talk to us?’’

  Diane shrugged. ‘‘Very little time.’’

  She led them across to the mammals section, unlocking the door with her key. She called security and asked them to keep the day lighting on until she told them otherwise, but to keep the museum locked down. Then she called Andie, who was still at her desk.

  ‘‘Is Jacobs still interviewing Kendel?’’ she asked Andie.

  ‘‘Yes. I put them in your conference room.’’

  ‘‘Okay, just checking. Call me on my cell if you need me,’’ she said.

  Diane led them through to a seating area in the Pleistocene room and they sat down near the giant sloth.

  ‘‘Someone is interviewing Kendel,’’ said Laura. ‘‘Is that about the Egyptian artifacts?’’

  ‘‘Yes. An FBI agent from the art theft division is here. That’s why I don’t have much time.’’

  ‘‘Are they stolen?’’ whispered Laura.

  Out of the corner of her eye, Diane thought she saw the flicker of a shadow near the flora around the Smilodon, the saber-toothed tiger, across the huge room. She stared a moment. Nothing. She was beginning to become frightened of shadows. Get a grip, she told herself firmly and turned her attention back to her two friends.

  ‘‘The artifacts aren’t what we purchased. The FBI is looking into it. It’s a long story and I’ll brief you when I have more information and more time.’’

  ‘‘Diane,’’ said Vanessa, ‘‘you’re angry, aren’t you?’’

  ‘‘I’m just weary, Vanessa. And yes, I’m still angry with Madge and Barclay.’’

  ‘‘Madge meant well,’’ said Vanessa. ‘‘She just didn’t understand the implications.’’

  ‘‘Meant well . . .’’ Diane shook her head. ‘‘No one seems to understand the harm she did. This will follow Kendel and the museum forever. You can’t get rid of accusations. Had Madge just referred the reporter to me rather than confirming something she had no idea was true or not, the museum could have come out of this looking like a hero rather than appearing as if it has something to hide. Did you see the paper today? Director backpedaling? I’ve done nothing of the kind. They just attributed Madge’s recant as coming from me.’’

  ‘‘What if the accusations against Kendel are true?’’ said Laura. ‘‘I know you don’t want to consider that—’’

  ‘‘Of course I have to consider it. But whether or not they are true doesn’t make what Madge did right. If Kendel turns out to be guilty it will just make matters worse because Madge’s behavior will be reinforced, and the next time a reporter calls her they might be accusing Kenneth of illegal business practices, or me of embezzling, or you, Laura, of unethical conduct with patients. And Madge will just confirm whatever the reporter says because she likes her name in the paper and, after all, things turned out just swell the last time.’’

  ‘‘Nothing like this is likely to happen again,’’ said Laura.

  ‘‘Why not? The reporter knows who to call to get a confirmation about anyone connected with the museum. Her duty is done. She checked out her story with an authoritative source and now she can print it,’’ said Diane. ‘‘After all, Madge is a board member and an upstanding citizen.’’

  Vanessa and Laura exchanged glances.

  ‘‘We do see your point,’’ said Vanessa. ‘‘And we really do see the harm that has been done by this. I’ll do everything in my power to fix it.’’

  Diane glanced at her watch again.

  ‘‘I can see how this is upsetting,’’ said Laura, ‘‘but—’’

  ‘‘Upsetting? Laura, I’m tired and my day isn’t nearly over. Clymene O’Riley escaped from prison yesterday and the U.S. marshals are talking to me because I was her last visitor. Someone broke into my home and killed her on my living room floor last night. At least they had the good manners to drug me so I wouldn’t wake up in the middle of it. While I was in the hospital examining room in one of those ghastly insufficient gowns with my bare butt hardly covered, someone tried to kill me. I don’t know if it had to do with Clymene or the artifacts. Riddmann tried to arrest me for Clymene’s murder, but fortunately Garnett stepped in.’’

  Diane took a deep breath. She had never been cross with either Laura or Vanessa before, but it felt good at the moment.

  ‘‘Now, I find not only was I drugged,’’ she continued, ‘‘but the FBI profiler I was with was probably drugged too. And it probably happened in the museum restaurant, because he fell asleep at the wheel of his car and had an accident on his way home from dinner here. Oh, and I can’t move back into my apartment until the crime scene cleaners remove the two quarts of blood on the floor. Yes, Laura, it’s all upsetting to me.’’

  While she spoke, both Vanessa and Laura paled, their eyes wide and mouths open, speechless.

  ‘‘Diane,’’ said Vanessa at last, ‘‘I had no idea—the newspapers...’’

  ‘‘You can stay at my home,’’ they both said simultaneously.

  ‘‘Thank you, really. I appreciate your offers, but I’m staying with Frank. Now, Agent Jacobs is somewhere in the museum. I have to go.’’ Her head actually felt clearer. Sometimes venting was a good thing.

  Vanessa laid a hand on Diane’s arm. ‘‘What does all this mean?’’ she asked. ‘‘Clymene O’Riley is dead? I can’t say that it makes me unhappy. Archer O’Riley was a good man. I liked him very much.’’

  ‘‘She’s dead, but we don’t have a body. Someone dragged it out of my apartment and dumped it using my car.’’ She paused again and looked over at the saber-toothed tiger. The long, sharp canine teeth reminded her of the knife found in her car.

  ‘‘What? Why?’’ said Vanessa.

  ‘‘I don’t know,’’ said Diane. ‘‘None of it makes any sense, except to cast suspicion on me for some reason. If the attack at the hospital was related to the homicide at my home, why didn’t they just kill me there? I was completely vulnerable. I’m thinking that the hospital attack was related to the artifacts because of something he said. I believe he thought I deal in stolen antiquities, but why, I don’t know. Now I really have to go. Follow me and I’ll let you out the doors into the lobby.’’

  After Diane saw Laura and Vanessa off, she headed to her office. The knife, thought Diane. Why clean it, then leave it in my car with other blood? That doesn’t make any sense—nothing did—Clymene’s murder in her apartment or the stolen artifacts. She hurried to her office to see Agent Jacobs.

  Chapter 28

  When Diane walked into Andie’s office, Agent Jacobs had just finished speaking with Jonas Briggs. Jonas sat down on Andie’s sofa next to Kendel. Diane looked at the two of them. They didn’t look beat up, so she supposed it went well. She smiled at them and went into her office, where Agent Jacobs was gathering his notes. He glanced up at her.

  ‘‘I appreciate your cooperation, really,’’ he said. ‘‘You don’t know how many times I get stonewalled by museums.’’

  If stonewalling would work, I might do it, thought Diane. ‘‘We need this solved,’’ she said. ‘‘Do you have any idea who the artifacts belong to?’’

  ‘‘Only the girdle is in the database, but I haven’t had a chance to check with my sources fo
r the latest looting,’’ he said.

  ‘‘Is there any chance we can get the items we purchased? I suppose you don’t know if they were burned in the fire?’’ asked Diane.

  ‘‘Not all of the building was consumed. The contents are being inventoried. And fortunately a lot of the artifacts are stone, so something will be left. I hate to think of all those antiquities gone forever.’’ He sighed.

  Diane could see that he loved his work—saving the world’s historical treasures.

  ‘‘I didn’t get a chance to look at your books,’’ he said, ‘‘so I’ll be back tomorrow.’’

  ‘‘Let me know what you need,’’ she said. ‘‘Kingsley will be coming tomorrow also. Perhaps you’ll run into each other.’’

  Jacobs made a face. ‘‘Should he be up and about?’’

  ‘‘Probably not, but this Clymene thing calls like a Siren,’’ said Diane.

  Jacobs smiled. ‘‘It must. Maybe the two of you can fill me in over lunch. You’ve gotten my curiosity up.’’

  Diane wanted to ask him what he thought about the investigation here so far, but she knew he wouldn’t tell her. She walked him to the door and gave him directions to a good bed-and-breakfast.

  She returned to her office to debrief Jonas and Kendel. She pulled up a chair across from them and leaned forward, resting her forearms on her thighs.

  ‘‘I’m so sorry,’’ said Jonas. ‘‘I’m supposed to be curator of archaeology and I’ve completely fallen down on the job. I just don’t know how this happened.’’

  ‘‘It’s not your fault,’’ said Diane. She reached over and squeezed his arm. ‘‘Come on, I get enough illogic from my board. Don’t you start.’’

  ‘‘It just doesn’t make sense,’’ said Kendel. ‘‘I told Agent Jacobs that.’’ She sat with her shoes off, hugging her legs.

  ‘‘We’ll sort it out,’’ said Diane. ‘‘I promise. There’s some sense to it. We just haven’t found the key yet. Why don’t you go home and relax. Come in late tomorrow if you like.’’

  ‘‘He’s going to be back tomorrow,’’ said Kendel. ‘‘He said he might have more questions. I don’t want it to seem like I’m avoiding him.’’

  ‘‘Okay,’’ said Diane. ‘‘If you need to relax tomorrow, you can use my office couch.’’

  It occurred to Diane that if she had told Jacobs about the attack on her at the hospital and what the guy said, it might have taken some of the suspicion off Kendel. She hadn’t thought about that angle. She’d have to tell him tomorrow. Maybe tomorrow her mind would be clearer.

  ‘‘We’ll sort everything out. I have David on it and he’s very good,’’ she told the two of them.

  Kendel smiled. ‘‘He did ask more questions than the FBI agent,’’ she said.

  ‘‘Is this going to hurt the museum?’’ said Jonas, still looking glum.

  ‘‘I’ll tell you what I told the board. We are going to run across problems like this sooner or later. We have to acquire objects in a field filled with looters and smugglers, and sometimes it’s tough. Right now it’s tough, but we’ll be okay.’’

  Diane turned to Kendel. ‘‘Vanessa said when this is sorted out, she’ll do everything she can to restore your reputation. You’re the one who has taken the biggest hit on this. We’ll do everything we can to fix it.’’

  Kendel nodded. ‘‘You know, it’s usually people who are afraid of me, not the other way around. I’m not used to this. I don’t know what happened.’’

  ‘‘You were blindsided. You’ll get your mojo back,’’ said Diane. ‘‘Now, you two go home. You too, Andie.’’

  ‘‘I told them you would make everything right,’’ Andie said.

  Diane hoped that was true. It was useful for them to believe that she could, if only for a good night’s sleep.

  ‘‘How can we help?’’ said Jonas.

  ‘‘Right now, cooperate with Jacobs. He’s definitely going to be looking for a culprit, but I don’t think he’s looking to pin it on just anyone,’’ said Diane. ‘‘Remember too, no one has claimed these artifacts as theirs. Only one piece showed up in the FBI National Stolen Art File—the girdle—and that was stolen fifty years ago. So far there’s actually no crime. The artifacts had just arrived when the newspaper article came out. We can prove what objects we intended to purchase. I showed Jacobs our exhibit and told him how the artifacts we thought we were buying were to fit into our display. The artifacts that Golden Antiquities sent don’t fit in. We are the victims here because we didn’t receive what we ordered and paid for.’’

  ‘‘When you put it like that, it doesn’t seem so bad,’’ said Jonas. ‘‘But I have to tell you, I hate being the department that has the first scandal.’’

  ‘‘It’s because of what archaeology has to display,’’ said Andie. ‘‘Nobody’s going to show up and accuse Mike of stealing rocks.’’

  Diane laughed. It felt good. Jonas and Kendel joined in with a weak chuckle.

  ‘‘Golden Antiquities burned. David told me,’’ said Kendel. ‘‘Randal Cunningham was killed. How is that going to affect us?’’

  ‘‘Not much, I would think,’’ said Diane. ‘‘It looks like Cunningham Jr. was neck deep in something bad. The FBI were already watching him. Jacobs said the father was clean, but when the son took over, things started to get shady.’’

  Kendel stood up and smoothed out her skirt and slipped on her shoes. ‘‘Diane, thanks for sticking by me. You don’t know what it has meant to me. Everyone here . . . I just don’t know what I would do without the support.’’

  ‘‘Okay, I’m leaving before I cry,’’ said Andie. She stood up and heaved her purse strap onto her shoulder.

  ‘‘What do you have in that thing,’’ said Jonas, ‘‘rocks from geology?’’

  ‘‘You know those ceramic tiles with wolf paw prints that the museum store is selling? I bought eight of them. They are just the neatest things.’’ Andie grinned.

  Diane called security and told them to turn on the night lighting in the exhibit rooms. She had waited to give Agent Jacobs time to get out of the building. To get to the outside doors from Diane’s office you didn’t need to go through any exhibit rooms, but as Jacobs said, it’s a big building, and she hadn’t wanted him to get confused in the dark. The night lighting was mainly floor lighting, not particularly good lighting for anyone lost among the exhibits.

  ‘‘I’ll see all of you tomorrow,’’ said Diane. ‘‘Get a good night’s sleep and remember what I told you. We are the victims in this fiasco. Let’s not act like the suspects.’’

  The three of them left and Diane closed up her office. She wanted to take her own advice and go home with the rest of them, but she still needed to talk to her crew. She had spoken with them hardly at all since last night. There were things rattling around in her head, questions she had, and she needed to brainstorm with them.

  She turned off the lights in her office and left, taking a shortcut through the Pleistocene room with its huge mega fauna looming in the darkness. The bones of a woolly mammoth were the centerpiece of the Pleistocene room. Standing thirteen feet at his shoulder, he was impressive. He stood in the center at the entrance, greeting the visitors from the lobby. In the dark, he looked like he could be fleshed out and alive. She smiled as she walked past him into the mammal exhibit, heading to the elevators.

  The brain and its processing of visual images are amazing things. Diane reacted before she realized she had seen anything reflected in the glass of the wolf diorama.

  Chapter 29

  Diane’s arm shot up in front of her face just as a garrote of rope came over her head. The attacker, a black shadow that she had barely seen reflected in the darkened glass, pulled hard, trying to strangle her. Diane’s hand grasped the knot in the rope that was there to make choking her more efficient. She held on tight while pushing it away from her neck, trying to duck out from under it. She stomped hard on his instep and elbowed him in the ribs. She also managed to scream at the
top of her lungs.

  ‘‘Why don’t you just die, bitch?’’ His voice was a whispered grunt.

  Diane recognized the voice. It was the same as her attacker in the hospital.

  Diane elbowed him again. She still held the rope, but he had her hand against her windpipe, cutting off her scream and her air. She worked her other hand behind the rope and pulled. She took a gulp of air and kicked at him furiously.

  ‘‘I hate you,’’ he said. ‘‘I hate you, bitch. What business is this of yours? You’re spoiling everything. You’re going to die right here.’’ His words sounded like acid and came out in short, hoarse bursts.

  His anger was giving him strength. Diane’s panic gave her her own adrenaline rush. She focused only on getting free of him. She dug the two-inch heel of her shoe into his foot as she pulled furiously on the rope.