by John Milesky
“I hope it hasn’t been too upsetting for you to be there under the circumstances?” Alverez asked.
“A little, but I am dealing with it,” Maggie continued. “I’ve been going through her things, and I found a box of pictures from my sister’s life. She was quite the traveler.”
“Oh?” Alverez responded.
“She definitely saw the world,” Maggie continued. “There are pictures of her in Paris, Milan, London, Dubai, and a lot of places I haven’t been able to identify.”
“We went through those pictures while we were doing our investigation,” Alverez admitted. We kept a few of the pictures of your sister, which had other people in them, but we left the rest of the pictures behind. We didn’t think they were vital pieces of evidence. We will return the other pictures to you when we catch the killer.”
“Well, thank you for leaving the others for me,” Maggie said. “I have enjoyed going through them. It has helped me get a firmer idea about who my sister was as a person. So, have you had any luck with the investigation?”
“No,” Alverez admitted. “That’s why I am calling you.”
Maggie was intrigued, and a slight look of hope came over her face.
“We’ve narrowed down the contacts in your sister’s phone book and the numbers on her cell phone. There is also a person of interest listed in your sister’s journal,” Alverez continued. “So far, we’ve been able to eliminate most of her contacts, except for the few I mentioned.”
“That’s good news then, if you’ve been able to eliminate most of the people from her things, right?”
“Yes, it is good news,” the detective admitted. “However, I’ve been thinking about what we had talked about the last time I saw you, and I’d like to discuss that a little more.”
Now Maggie was really excited. She didn’t know why it excited her to be able to pretend to be her sister, but it did. Perhaps it was the notion that she would be able to be a regular person for a while.
“How can I help, Detective?” Maggie asked.
“Well, there are four contacts we have been unable to get a hold of,” Alverez said. “I was hoping that I could run them by you and see if any of them ring any bells.”
“Of course,” Maggie responded.
“Three of them are identified by just initials. We have identified the other one, but we’ve yet to make contact with him.”
“How can I help?” Maggie asked again.
“Would it be ok if I stopped by your place to go over a few things with you?” Alverez asked.
“Of course,” Maggie said.
“I’m at the station right now, but should be able to get away in about an hour,” Alverez said. “So, how about I stop by in a couple of hours?”
“That will be fine,” Maggie said.
“Ok, then. I will see you in a little while,” Alverez said, as he hung up the phone.
Maggie was excited and anxious about the possibilities that lay in front of her. Could she actually pretend to be her sister? She wandered around her sister’s apartment again and stopped at the photo of the two of them on the beach. She picked up the photo and stared at it for a long time.
“I promise you, I won’t let you down,” she said aloud. “I’m going to find out who did this to you, and I’m going to kill them myself.”
Chapter Ten
It took Alverez almost three hours to arrive at Genevieve’s apartment. Maggie was anxious until he arrived. The buzzer to the elevator startled her.
Maggie buzzed Alverez into the elevator and waited by the door for him to arrive. It seemed like an eternity until the elevator doors slid open, and he stepped out.
“Hello, Sister,” Alverez said to Maggie.
“Hello, Detective, and welcome,” Maggie responded. “Please come in and have a seat. I made some coffee, and I also have some mineral water, if you’d like.”
“Just a glass of regular tap water would be fine,” Alverez responded.
Alverez made his way to the room with the view of the city. He was carrying a large briefcase with him. Maggie went to the kitchen to retrieve a glass of water for the detective. When she arrived in the living room, Alverez had taken up a spot on the couch and had his briefcase opened on the table in front of him. Maggie placed the glass of water next to his briefcase.
“It looks like you are making yourself at home here,” he said.
“I don’t know where my home is anymore,” Maggie admitted.
Alverez was concerned about her remark. “Well, I know it’s not the convent, but this place suits you,” Alverez admitted.
“I’ve just been so confused over everything that has transpired,” Maggie admitted. “This is still my sister’s home, but the convent seems a bit confining to me right now. Like I said, I really don’t know where I belong anymore.”
“I can understand that,” Alverez agreed. “Have you given any thought to what you will do with this place?”
“I guess I will sell it,” Maggie said. “Maybe give the money to charity or some of the parishioners from my church. I also spend a great deal of time working with battered women, so I may be able to help out there as well.”
“I’m sure you’ll do whatever you feel is right,” Alverez said.
Alverez picked up the glass of water and drank down nearly half of its contents. He placed the glass back on the table and quickly started to sort through his bag. He started by pulling out Genevieve’s belongings. He put the cell phone and journal on the table and picked up the day planner and started to thumb through its contents.
“We have a lot to go over, so please bear with me,” he admitted.
“Take your time, Detective.”
“Like I told you earlier, most of this is in code. We managed to break much of it, but there are three initials in here that we haven’t been able to put to bed just yet. Like I expected, your sister was friends with some pretty, powerful people. Some of the phone numbers in your sister’s cell phone belong to some major players in DC. She had clients all over the hill,” Alverez admitted. “That’s Capitol Hill.”
“I assumed that,” Maggie confessed.
“Some of your sister’s clients were congressmen and other political players in Washington,” Alverez continued. “Let me tell you, it wasn’t easy to get in to see many of them. Most of them were reluctant to get involved with a murder investigation. Truth is, most of them didn’t want any association with the murder of a dead prostitute. They also didn’t want any implications they even knew a prostitute.”
“I can imagine,” Maggie said.
“Now you can understand why someone would put pressure on my captain for me to hold off filing a report on this case,” Alverez admitted.
“The pressure could be coming from anyone, not just the killer,” Maggie said. “I can see how a congressman wouldn’t want news of a possible involvement with a prostitute getting out.”
“Exactly,” Alverez added. “We were able to be discrete and eliminate most of them by talking with their aides. After the initial embarrassment of being associated with a prostitute wore off, most of them realized the consequences of not complying with the investigation. They offered up their own day planners, and most of them had alibis.”
“Were there other people in the address book besides congressmen?” Maggie asked.
“Tons,” Alverez replied. “Your sister didn’t limit herself to just political figures. There were some other major people in here. There were a lot of businessmen, and some of those men were pretty powerful people as well. Several Fortune 500 companies had ties to your sister. A few lobbyists and there was even one man who has ties or suspected ties with organized crime. He’s the one that’s been out of town since the murder, and we’ve been unable to clear him. Which bring us to your sister’s day planner and journal.”
Maggie was overwhelmed by all of the new information. Alverez continued. “There are four names we are concentrating on. The first one we have is the initials, S.A. We have continuousl
y called the phone number listed with those initials, but it’s to a disposable cell phone that has been turned off since your sister’s death. The second set of initials we have is C.C., who we have yet to identify because there is no contact information. There are only a few listings in your sister’s day planner. We’re hoping he will call, and we can get an idea as to whom he might be. The third set of initial is A.D. We have been able to get an ID on him as Antonio D’Adamo. He’s the one with suspected ties to organized crime, and the one who has been out of town since the murder. He owns a dumpster company and his office tells us he’s been in the south of France for a few weeks now.”
The fourth name we are concentrating on is someone named Jack. According to your sister’s journal, I think it was more than a client relationship. I think she was having an affair with him since there are so many entries about her feelings towards him and how he made her feel intimately. He’s a wild card, because we don’t know anything else about him, and, none of the fingerprints we lifted from the apartment belonged to anyone named Jack.
“That’s a lot to take in,” Maggie admitted.
“I told you we had a lot to go over,” Alverez said, as he picked up his glass of water and drained the remaining liquid from the glass. “I guess I was thirstier than I thought.”
“Let me get you some more,” Maggie offered. She picked up the glass and went to the kitchen to refill the detective’s drink. When she returned, Alverez had Genevieve’s journal in his hand.
“Is that my sister’s journal?” Maggie asked.
“Yes, it’s a copy,” Alverez answered. “I was wondering if you would take a look through the journal to see if anything jumps out at you. Maybe pick up on something we may have missed.”
“I’d be delighted to take a look,” Maggie responded.
Maggie took the journal from the detective. She scanned through a couple of pages before she stopped. “I can’t wait to read it,” she said. “If anything, perhaps this will help me get to know my sister a little better.”
Chapter Eleven
Maggie was intrigued by the evidence and the progress of the investigation. Now that she had her sister’s journal, she felt more involved. She took Genevieve’s journal and sat back by the window. She didn’t know why, but the view gave her comfort. It also caused her great conflict. There was a whole world out there that she had never seen. This is where her doubts in God came into question. She started to skim through the journal and became absorbed by some of the entries.
“Is everything alright, Sister?” Alverez asked.
“I was just reading some of her entries. This guy, Jack, seemed to be very important to her. I’d say she was in love with him,” Maggie said.
“Yeah, I got that impression too,” Alverez responded.
Maggie turned to look at him. “We’ve known each other for several weeks now,” Maggie said. “I think I would prefer it if you would just call me Maggie from now on.”
“Ok, Maggie.” It sounded strange to Alverez, but yet, it seemed to sound warmer. For a second, he was lost in his thoughts. He couldn’t help but feel an undeniable attraction to Maggie.
“What can I do to help further this investigation?” Maggie asked.
“That’s why I’m here,” Alverez admitted. “I thought about what we had discussed. I was thinking about your taking on the role of your sister and possibly pretending to be a prostitute.”
Maggie was surprised, but she tried to maintain a calm demeanor. “I’ve been giving it a lot of thought as well,” Maggie admitted. “I want to catch this monster very much. Like I said to you earlier, being here amongst her things, I’ve been able to get to know her a little better. I’d like to find whomever did this to her and put him away for the rest of his life.” Maggie was lying. She secretly wanted him dead, so he wouldn’t hurt anyone else.
“Well then,” Alverez started, “let’s talk about your idea.”
“Let’s,” Maggie said.
“I have yet to run the idea by my captain. I’m afraid he won’t go for the idea, and the investigation could come to a halt. I find it’s best to ask for forgiveness than permission sometimes. Besides, he’s the type that just looks at the end result. He doesn’t care about how we get there. He just likes to see a conviction. I think he’s more interested in playing the political game.”
This made Maggie smile. “In this town, it seems everyone is playing that game.”
“Here’s what I have planned,” Alverez started again. “We somehow make contact with the four people we have yet to investigate. We will try to draw them out of the woodwork. I’ll have a duplicate cell phone of your sister’s. Every time your sister’s cell phone rings, the duplicate will ring as well. I’ll be able to listen in on any calls. Now, you’ll have to make some initial contacts to help us draw the four suspects out. Are you comfortable with that?”
“I will be,” Maggie admitted.
“Now you have to understand, this is going to be very dangerous for you. Do you think you will be able to handle it?” Alverez asked.
“Detective, this was my idea, remember?” Maggie admitted. “I want to help my sister any way I can. Since I was unable to help her while she was alive, going out of my comfort zone now, is the least I can do for her.”
The detective seemed impressed by Maggie’s dedication to her sister. “Now there’s the concern of sex,” Alverez said timidly. “Most of the men who show up here are doing so under the assumption that you will be having sex with them. I know you have taken a vow of celibacy, so how do you plan on handling that?”
“I am a resourceful woman,” Maggie said. “I think I can pretend to be my sister and somehow avoid having sex with these men.”
“I thought about having you meet them in a public setting, so it wouldn’t be a problem you will have to face, but the killer would most likely be uncomfortable with that situation. Most of your contacts will need to be here.”
“I’m ok with that, Detective,” Maggie said. “As long as you are here or close by, I think this might be the best way to draw my sister’s killer out into the open.”
“Now, it’s imperative that you not allow anyone into this apartment unless I am here,” Alverez insisted. “That’s the only way I can keep you safe.”
Chapter Twelve
“Now this is your sister’s day planner,” Alverez said. “It is filled with appointments and contacts that your sister had over the past few months. Unfortunately, there were some appointments in there that were over the past few weeks. We assume those contacts came here to your sister’s apartment and got no response when they rang the bell to come up. We also assume those contacts probably called your sister to see what the situation was. Both ways, we’ve most likely gotten in contact with most of them, and they are aware that your sister is dead. We’ve been able to eliminate most of them from the suspect list.”
Maggie seemed overwhelmed by what Alverez was saying. Alverez noticed the confused look on her face and quickly stopped. “We’ve been able to cross reference most of the names in your sister’s day planner with the cell phone messages and her journal entries and narrow our list down to four possible suspects,” Alverez said.
“I see,” Maggie said. “This is all very interesting.”
“Here is your sister’s cell phone,” Alverez, said as he handed the phone to Maggie. Maggie took it without hesitation.
“We’ve been able to connect that cell phone with a clone,” Alverez added. “Any time your sister’s cell phone rings, the duplicate will ring as well. We’ll be able to monitor the calls as they come in. Hopefully, we’ll be able to identify whoever is on the other end, and they won’t have to come here at all. That should take some of the pressure off of you. If by some reason, we are unable to identify the caller, and he does show up, I’ll try to be here to assist you. Like I said, you cannot allow anyone into this apartment without my being here.”
“This all seems overwhelming,” Maggie admitted.
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�It’s rather simple,” Alverez continued. “Here is a list of cleared names. These people know your sister has been murdered, so I doubt very much they will be calling you. As you can see, each name has its initials next to it, so if your cell phone does ring, you can see who the caller is and just ignore the call.”
“What do I do if a call shows up that is not on the list?” Maggie asked.
“That’s your call,” Alverez said. “Either way, I’ll be listening.”
“What if someone shows up at the apartment without calling?” Maggie asked.
“I thought about that,” Alverez said. “You’ll have to get creative and make up something so they’ll go away. Now I told you the four names we are concentrating on. S.A., C.C., A.D., and a man named Jack. We already know who A.D. is. Antonio D’Adamo. His office said he has been out of the country for several weeks; however, we have not been able to find any flight records on him, so he obviously doesn’t want to be found.”
“What if he is the killer?” Maggie asked. “Why would he take the risk and come back?”
“Truth is, we don’t know what he knows?” Alverez admitted. “Guys like this find out the police are looking for them? Well, there could be hundreds of possibilities why he wouldn’t want to talk to us. He probably just told his office to lie about where he is. You’re going to have to start acting like your sister,” Alverez said. “That means dressing like her and talking like her, especially when you answer the phone. Do you think you will be able to do that?”
“I’m not as fragile as you might think,” Maggie answered.
“I noticed your sister had an appointment scheduled with her hair stylist tomorrow. I think it would be a good idea to keep that appointment and go get your hair done like your sister’s.”
