by Carsen Taite
A few beats of awkward silence passed. Business was over, and Ellen figured neither of them wanted to dip back into anything personal. Except she did. Badly. But Danny had made it clear she wasn’t interested and no way was she going to push the point.
“You want to bring the wolf back in?”
“Wolf?”
“Special Agent Pushy. The way she stares at me, I can’t tell if she wants to tear me apart or eat me alive.”
“Ha. Probably both.”
Danny left the room and Ellen heard her whispering to Flores. She sat at her desk and waited. She couldn’t help but wish Danny looked at her the way Sarah did.
*
Danny herded the protesting Flores to the elevator.
“She could do anything with those records while we’re gone. I can’t believe you agreed to wait to see them. What’s your thing with her?”
Danny placed a finger over her mouth and waited until they were alone in the elevator car. “Is this how you guys usually conduct an investigation? Boy, do I feel sorry for the prosecutors who have to work with you on a regular basis.” Sarah opened her mouth to speak and Danny hushed her again. “Look, whatever evidence you get will wind up on my desk for me or some other lawyer to use at trial. I’m involved at this point for a reason and that’s to make sure you do things the right way. We don’t have a subpoena. You pressure her too much and you’ll have a fleet of lawyers in court arguing to the judge that you’re not entitled to these records. If you have to get a subpoena, I’ll have to explain to the judge why we want these records, and right now, I’m not convinced I’ve got enough to show a connection to the murders. The fact that these victims belonged to a sorority once upon a time probably won’t cut it. Chicken, egg. We need the records to prove a connection, but we need to show a connection to get the records. The judge will tell me we’re on a fishing expedition and he’ll quash the subpoena. That could take days. So you can wait a few hours or a few days. You decide.”
Sarah, mouth open, stared at her.
“What?”
“You’re kinda hot when you’re all riled up.”
“Back off, Flores.”
“Guess you’re all business all the time.”
The echo of the words she’d spoken to Ellen burned. “Whatever.”
“Except when it comes to a certain Ms. Davenport. Seems like you were real anxious to get me out of the room so you two could have a little alone time.”
Leave it to Miss Behavioral Analysis not to miss a thing. She’d have to be more careful. Good thing she’d made it clear to Ellen work trumped attraction. “I threw you out of the room to keep the witness from clamming up in the face of your overly aggressive tactics. For someone trained in behavioral analysis, I thought you would be better at handling a witness interview.” Would this woman ever stop getting under her skin?
“You haven’t even begun to see my skills in action.”
“Don’t even.”
“Don’t worry. Your all business self is safe with me. And I’m okay with waiting a little while to see those records, but I have to say it’ll be hard not to see the lovely Ms. Davenport again until this afternoon.”
Danny refrained from punching her, but not out of fear of the consequences of assaulting a federal agent. No, her primary concern was keeping her desire for Ellen Davenport a secret. A change of subject was in order. “Why don’t you take me back to the courthouse so I can get my car? I’ll meet you back here at two.”
Sarah’s stare was penetrating, but Danny didn’t wince. She wanted to ditch her to check in with George, see if there were any new developments, and she didn’t want to share. Besides, if they were going to spend the next few days working together, she needed time alone to steel herself. The only bright side to this particular project was Ellen Davenport. She pushed the thought away. Ellen was a distraction and one that she couldn’t afford if she was going to do her part to keep this case.
Chapter Ten
Danny grabbed a grilled cheese from the cafe in the basement of the courthouse and took it to her office on the eleventh floor. She dialed George’s cell, and then scarfed down a few bites before the call connected.
“Ramirez.”
“Anything new?”
“Nice to talk to you, too, Soto. Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?”
She swallowed and took a big drink of iced tea. “Good news. We get access to the files this afternoon.”
“That is good news. I can assemble a team and have a room ready. Just give me a shout when you get here.”
“Hold up. By we, I mean Flores and me. Ellen agreed to give us access without involving their lawyers or us having to get a subpoena if we would look at them at her office.” She left out the part about how they’d agreed to keep the information confidential.
“Okay, just make sure you cover all the bases and that she’ll keep the access open. We’re bound to get a break soon. What time are you headed back over there? I’m about to e-mail you Winter’s report on the latest victim.”
“Two. I’ve got time. Send it my way. Anything interesting?”
“Not necessarily, but take a look and see what you think. There are some good shots of the new wounds. If this guy’s escalating, I think these are the key.”
“Send it. I’m eating so you have perfect timing.”
“Bon appetite.”
Danny opened her e-mail account and waited for the report. They already had the preliminary report from Dr. Winter, but this was the final, official version. Toxicology results didn’t show anything of note. Cause of death was the gunshot wound. Same as the others. She flipped through to the photos. They brought back the memory of standing in the autopsy room, bracing against the onslaught of senses. She could almost smell the raw, aching smell of death, and she tossed the rest of her sandwich in the trash.
First the noose. Around Randolf’s neck. The more she examined it, the more convinced she was that Joyce Barr’s death was related to the current murders. What were the chances Barr had committed suicide with exactly the same type of noose that had been found around the neck of each of the recent victims? They needed to have the rope analyzed. She consulted the file on Barr. Luckily, the ME who’d pronounced Barr’s death a suicide had logged the noose into evidence. Hopefully, it hadn’t been destroyed yet. If they could compare it to the same ones they were accumulating on this case, maybe there was a connection. Problem was, the lab Dallas County sent all its forensic evidence to was backed up beyond belief. It had taken Winter herself standing over them to get the toxicology report back in record time.
The FBI lab, on the other hand, had a reputation for quick and efficient work. And their database of information was crazy big. She’d have to ask Flores, though, if she wanted their help, and the request would give the feds another inroad to taking over. Maybe she should get George to ask the brainiac Flores had brought with her. Buckner. He didn’t strike her as a power hungry type. She sent George a quick text asking him to give it a go. Time to go meet Ellen. And Sarah.
Sarah was waiting for her in the lobby to Ellen’s office. Sleek and powerfully pretty, she lounged on the sofa while still giving off the impression she was ready for anything. If they’d met under other circumstances, Danny might have asked her out. They were in the same line of work, and as much as she hated to admit it, Sarah was sexy. Too sexy. Wham, bam, thank you, ma’am. That one wasn’t going to stick around for a picket fence and kids.
She shook away the thoughts. Relationships were all she seemed to think about lately. Her mother was to blame. Begging her to get back out there, find a mate, and settle down. Now she evaluated every woman she met as the future Mrs. Soto. Crazy really, since her first foray back into the game had imploded.
Even as she wrote off Flores as potential date material, she resolved to establish a rapport, but only because they had to work together. That woman was trouble.
“Hey.”
“Hey. Jill said Ellen would be ready in a minute. They’re setting up
a conference room for us.”
“Great. How do you want to do this?” Danny had a plan in mind, but she figured it wouldn’t hurt to get Sarah’s perspective.
“I figured you’d charge in, throw me out, and then spend the afternoon looking at files about old biddies with pretty girl in there.”
“Don’t be an ass. I’m trying to be nice, you know, include you. Act like you’re an adult and answer the question before I change my mind.”
Sarah held up both hands. “Truce. I guess it depends on what kind of information they keep. We should definitely gather everything we can find on any alumnae in the same age group as the victims.”
“And the same graduation years.”
“Good point. Some of the graduates could have been older students who started college late. Although it’s not common for older students to rush.”
“And you know this because?”
“Because I was a Chi Omega. Still am last time I checked.”
“You’re fucking kidding.” Danny was so surprised she didn’t hear Ellen approach.
“I’m going to assume that wasn’t an insult.”
“So am I. Although Chi-Os aren’t Alpha Nus, that’s for sure.”
Danny and Sarah both turned to face Ellen. She sounded amused, but her expression was hard to read. Sarah sprang out of her chair and shook Ellen’s hand.
“And that’s a bad thing?” Sarah said, “I don’t think so.”
“You wouldn’t, of course.”
Danny glanced back and forth between them, unable to process what had just happened. Had Ellen and Sarah just bonded about their Greek sisterhood? Unbelievable. She’d never have pegged Sarah as a sorority girl, but it was more than that. Jealousy grabbed her gut. In the span of a few moments, Sarah had gone from wolf to sister, and she didn’t like it.
She interrupted their friendly rivalry. “Shouldn’t we get started?”
“Absolutely. Follow me.” Ellen led the way, and Sarah made a big show of waving Danny ahead of her. She should have been happy to spend the afternoon with Ellen, but all she could think about was having to spend the next few hours listening to Ellen and Sarah reminisce about their college Greek experience. Making up with Sarah had been premature. Right now, she hated her guts.
*
Ellen ushered them into the room. Weird. Danny was obviously angry about something and Sarah was suddenly super nice. Maybe they’d exchanged personalities before they arrived. “Would either of you like something to drink?”
Danny spoke first. “Not me. I’m ready to get to work.”
“I’d love a Diet Coke if you have one.” Sarah apparently wasn’t as focused.
Ellen handed her a can from the small refrigerator in the corner of the room and grabbed a couple of bottles of water. She placed one in front of Danny. “In case you change your mind.”
Danny grunted a reply.
“I’ve placed a copy of all the alumnae files on this laptop.” She pointed to a stack of papers beside it. “These are new files that haven’t been input in the system yet.”
“I don’t understand. Wouldn’t you have a file set up if they were already members when they were students?”
“Not necessarily. We keep the information in separate databases, and besides, some graduates elect not to join the alumnae organization. Some wait a number of years to join, especially if they aren’t making much money after college.”
“You allow poor kids to be part of your exclusive club?” Danny asked.
Ellen chose to ignore the derisive tone. “We have a diverse membership and programs set up to allow for sliding scale membership dues for our student members. The alumnae dues are fixed, though, and not everyone chooses to pay them right out of school. We often have members who wait a few years, until they are established, before they sign up for the alumnae organization. If you’re interested in graduates who haven’t joined the alumnae group, you’ll have to check a different database. If you want, I can get you access to it as well.”
Danny didn’t respond, but Sarah was eager with questions. “If we identify the range of women we’re looking for, can you just run a cross search on the other database to keep us from having to review both? We may eventually have to look at both databases, but for now, it seems like that might be more efficient.”
“I can do that.” She’d do just about anything they wanted to keep control of the computer information. In the few hours while they were gone, she’d made a couple of changes to the database. Her mother’s name was now Vivian Donnelly and her address was in Chicago. Not entirely dishonest. Vivian’s maiden name was Donnelly and the address in Chicago belonged to her husband. Her dad was still married to her mother, after all. She hoped the distance would make it less likely they’d try to contact Vivian, and the name change…well, no doubt Danny would think it odd that she hadn’t mentioned her mother was an alumnae and the same age as Marty Lawson. Bringing it up now would seem odd, and there was no way she was going to expose her mother to police questioning. Besides, Vivian was using her maiden name while at Cedar Acres. She’d insisted on it to maintain privacy. Only two other people knew where Vivian was. Her dad and…make that one. Marty Lawson was dead. Anyway, she promised to keep her mother’s secret and, while she couldn’t make her father stick around, keeping quiet about where she was and why was just one small thing she could do. As long as no one knew where Vivian was, she was safe from any harm. “Tell me what you’re looking for and I’ll start running searches.”
Sarah pulled her chair over and huddled close. “Let’s start with an age range. Fifty-five to sixty.” She glanced at Danny. “Sound right to you?”
“Sure, whatever.”
Something was up. Ellen couldn’t tell if the something was between her and Danny or Sarah and Danny, but the tension in the room was palpable. She turned the laptop toward Danny. “You want to drive?”
Danny’s frown dissipated. “Yeah, that would be great,” Danny said as she scrunched closer, her arm nudging Ellen’s as she took over control. Ellen knew she should move over, give her room to work, but she liked being close. She liked the spark that passed between them. Her mind wandered to the kiss they’d almost shared, and seconds later, she found herself staring at Danny’s lips instead of the computer screen. She looked over at Sarah to see if she noticed her trance. Sarah had moved away a bit to give them room, but kept a hand on the arm of her chair. I’m like a law and order sandwich.
She spent the next few minutes showing Danny how to formulate searches on the database. When she had the hang of it, she stood up. “Guess I’ll leave you to it. If you need something, you can get Jill on the phone by pressing the first extension.”
“Wait.” Sarah, not Danny. “I have a few questions about how your organization runs. Maybe you could answer those. Of course, we don’t want to keep you from your work.”
“My work will keep. This is important and I want to do whatever I can to help.” She looked at Danny whose fingers typed furiously. She hadn’t raised her head and didn’t appear to be listening or even care about her discussion with Sarah. “Ask away.”
“How did you know Joyce Barr had died?”
Not exactly a question about the organization. “We often get notice from friends or family about a death of one of our alums. We publish a monthly newsletter that includes memorials for members who’ve died.”
“So, if I give you a list of names, you can tell us how you heard about their deaths?”
“Sure. If they were recent, I’ll probably even remember off the top of my head.”
“You understand you can’t share this information with anyone.”
Danny jerked out of her computer trance long enough to say, “She gets it, Flores. She said she wouldn’t tell. Give it a rest.”
“Easy, Soto. I hear you. I trust Ellen gets it.” She flashed a big smile and handed Ellen a note card with four names. Marty Lawson, Joan Gibson, Rita Randolf, and Sally Jones. “Heard of these women?”
&nb
sp; “Well, Marty, of course. She’s who Danny and Detective Ramirez came to see me about last week. The other women don’t ring a bell.”
“Can you run their names for us? We have reason to believe they are connected to the sorority in some way.”
Ellen looked at Danny who pushed the laptop her way. She typed in a few searches. “Gibson is here.” She pointed at the screen, “but Rita Randolf and Sally Jones aren’t coming up in this database.”
“Does that mean for sure they aren’t alumnae?”
“Not necessarily. They might be in the other database, the one for former students. I’ll have to go to my office to check.”
Sarah stood. “I’ll come with you.”
“Okay. Danny?”
“I’m good. I’ll keep working here.” Danny’s response was clipped and she didn’t raise her head. She’d obviously meant what she said about keeping things purely professional between them. Fine. Now that she was poking around in the sorority’s files, it was probably best to keep her at arm’s length.
*
Danny looked up as the conference room door closed. She could barely stand being in the room with Ellen, but the minute she left, she realized she couldn’t stand being away from her either. This was ridiculous. No reason she should spend so much energy thinking about Ellen, when it was obvious Ellen wasn’t giving her a second thought. Ellen and Sarah were probably enjoying each other’s company, bonding over sisterhood, girl power, and all that. Pretty clear she wasn’t part of their little clique. If being close to Ellen didn’t drive her crazy enough, seeing Sarah fawn all over her was going to push her over the edge.
She did her best to focus on the database. The number of registered alumnae was staggering, even after she narrowed the search by age. And these women were located all over the country. Hard to believe that if the sorority was the common thread, that the kills would be confined to the Dallas area. Either there were similar murders scattered throughout the country or geography was just as important a factor as membership in the sorority. She had a feeling her searches were going to turn up unsolved crimes in other jurisdictions that would only complicate matters. Once Dallas was no longer the only jurisdiction where the murders took place, the feds would have a legitimate reason to take over the case.
