by C. M. Sutter
Joe smiled. “Why do you think the FBI hired me? Plus, it helps to have a clean record and a lot of training under my belt. How much footage is there?”
“I copied everything from six thirty this morning until about eleven o’clock. The actual amount I needed was less than an hour long.”
He smirked. “That’s what you think.”
“Meaning?”
“We’re considering this an abduction, correct?”
“Yes, of course we are. Half of Milwaukee’s finest is probably headed to the condo right now.” I felt my throat tighten with anxiety and heard my voice crack. Joe gave me a concerned look and squeezed my shoulder. I could barely hold back my tears.
“Jade, we’re FBI, remember? We’re experts at our jobs. Everything on that tape is going to be considered suspect until proven otherwise. We may even need more footage, who knows. One way or another, we’re going to solve this case because of that tape.” Joe drummed the tabletop with his fingertips and gave me a nod. “People don’t disappear into thin air. If their vehicles were driven out of that parking garage like you say they were, then we’ve got something to work with. We’ll get J.T. and his sister back safely. Now come on, let’s buck up and dig in.”
I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand and sat up a little prouder. I shook off my doubts. “You’re right. Let’s figure this out. J.T. is counting on us.”
Joe hit the tab to start the video, and we watched the early morning scene play out again. Things I hadn’t noticed earlier, because I had been so focused on the garage, now caught my attention.
“I guess I put all my energy into staring at the garage earlier, but now I’m noticing even more.” I saw people walking their pets, sitting at the bus stop, joggers here and there, school buses, and cars pulling out of the garage. “That’s about it. Julie pulled out and then J.T. did fifteen minutes later. They both turned the wrong way, though, opposite the freeway. Oh, wait, I did see a split second of movement at the balcony after Julie left but before J.T. did.”
“Which unit is theirs?”
“It’s the third set of balcony doors on the second floor, right above the main entrance.”
“And what time was that?”
I checked my notes. “The flash of movement I saw was at the seven seventeen mark. It looked like the curtains fluttered. I even backed up the footage but couldn’t tell what caused it. For all I know, Ralph might have bumped the drapes.”
“Sure, but I’ll forward the footage to that time and freeze it. Maybe we can make out an image if it’s zoomed in a bit. Because we’re watching the complex from an angle and a block away, we aren’t going to see everything as clearly as we’d like.”
I watched as Joe tapped a few keys and framed the balcony at the seven seventeen mark. With each click of the mouse, he enlarged the image on the screen.
“This is about as big as I’m going to get the image without it pixeling on us.”
We both leaned in and stared at the screen.
“Okay, Julie had already left, so that would leave Ralph and J.T. in the condo. The movement was about halfway up, so that would rule out the dog. I think it’s J.T.’s hand. Maybe he’s making sure the slider was locked before he left.” I checked my notes again. “The timing would make sense considering his car pulled out of the garage five minutes later.”
“I have to agree with you, Jade. So likely it’s saying that all was well inside the condo five minutes before J.T.’s car left the complex. Unfortunately, that lends to the theory of a blitz attack from someone waiting in the garage, hence the items on the floor at both of their parking spots.”
Joe rubbed his chin while his eyes were glued to the computer screen. “Has anyone checked for camera surveillance on buildings behind the complex or to the west?”
“I only saw the day care center and ran over there, but I should call Spelling and get somebody checking for other tapes. We need to see what’s going on from all angles.”
Joe nodded. “Get on that, agent. I’ll keep watching the footage.”
Chapter 8
“Curt, can you hear me? Tell me you’re still alive. You can’t die on me, man. You need to hang on.”
A moan sounded on the other side of the enclosure. “Who’s there?”
“It’s me—J.T. Look to your left. I’m over here.”
The blood loss had weakened Curt, and he could barely turn his head. “J.T.?”
“Yeah, it’s me, and you need to listen closely. Take off your belt and cinch it above your shoulder. You have to slow down that bleeding, or you won’t make it. I can’t help you. I’m locked up on this side and handcuffed.”
J.T. watched as his former colleague tried to pull his belt off. Every movement caused him to cry out in pain.
“Come on, Curt. You have to do this.”
“I don’t have the strength.”
“Yes you do. You’re the toughest agent I know, now do it!”
“They have Julie, J.T.”
“You saw her?”
Curt groaned with each word. “She was in a small room, and I only saw her for a second before they slammed the door.” Curt fell quiet.
J.T. turned around and grasped the links with his hands. He shook them violently. “Wake up!”
“What? I’m fading, bro.”
“No you aren’t. Get that belt around your arm and stop the bleeding. Don’t you dare give up on me. You have friends and family who care about you, so fight to stay alive. What do these people want with us?”
“I don’t know. They said they wanted my FBI log-in information, but I wouldn’t give it to them.”
“Do you have any idea who they are?”
“Hang on, I’m cinching the belt.”
“Do it tight.”
Curt cried out as he pulled the belt and tightened it around his shoulder.
“Make sure you buckle it so it holds. Who are those men?”
“I have no idea, but there were three of them in the room with Julie.”
“Yeah, and the two I saw were enormous.”
“There was blood on her.”
“They hurt my sister?” J.T. ran into the wall of fencing as hard as he could but bounced back and fell to the cement. He yelled, “Son of a bitch, I have to get out of here! How long have they been holding you?” He waited for a response. “Curt? Curt!” J.T. knelt on the floor and stared through the links at his friend. Even in the dim lighting, he could see that Curt had passed out again. J.T. yelled with everything he had. “What do you maniacs want with us?”
The warehouse remained silent.
Chapter 9
I paced the tech department’s tiled floor as Spelling updated me over the phone on the events taking place at the condo.
“The PD had the waste management company come out and tip the dumpsters over in the parking lot. Several officers are going through things as we speak.”
“That sounds like an awful job.”
“Well, it will be time consuming since they’ll have to dump out every garbage bag. Meanwhile, Forensics is printing the areas near the markers as well as the earbud and pin. All of the evidence is going back to the crime lab as soon as they’re done.”
“They’re printing every doorknob and the elevator too, right?”
“Yep, no stone will be left unturned. This is one of our own and his sister, Jade. Forensics is being very thorough. I’m not sure how optimistic I am about the dumpsters, though. I’m not confident even a stupid criminal would deliberately leave evidence at the scene of the crime.”
“Right. Anyway, we’re going to need some people scouring the neighborhood for more cameras. To get the entire complex, we need the west and back views of the building. The day care center camera wouldn’t pick up somebody entering from areas out of their range.”
“Sure. I’ll put somebody on that right away.”
“Thanks, boss. I’m going to get back to watching the footage.” I hung up and told Joe that Spelling was having the Whitefish
Bay PD send officers to the neighborhood to look for more cameras.
“That should help.” Joe waved me over. “Take a look. What’s your take on these two grounds crew guys?”
I shrugged and leaned in close to the computer screen. “I guess the time of day is right. Most gardening and landscape crews start their workday early. Those guys probably have a bunch of apartment and condo complexes to maintain.”
“Yeah, maybe, but where is their equipment and work truck?”
“They could be scoping out what needs to be addressed before grabbing their clippers and weed whackers. The camera doesn’t capture the entire block. Their truck could be parked farther down and out of the camera’s view. Does something seem off about them?”
“Not yet, but like I said before, everything is suspect until it isn’t.”
Joe tapped a few keys to zoom in on the image of the two men standing together on the lawn.
“Are you looking for something specific?”
“A company logo on their coveralls, but I don’t see one. They aren’t facing the camera at the right angle, though.”
“The management company for the complex shouldn’t be tough to track down. I’ll find out who runs the HOA too. I’m sure they can direct me to the right place.”
“It’s too bad the camera only caught the cars as they came out of the garage and turned. You can’t even see who’s driving.”
Joe’s statement startled me. “Are you thinking somebody else was behind the wheel in both cars?”
“We’re considering this an abduction, so yeah, unless there’s someone in the backseat, calling out orders. Two vehicles mean two abductors.”
“And there were two men with no lawn care equipment talking among themselves in the front yard.”
Joe nodded. “Looks like the agent might be on to something.”
I stood and gave Joe a grateful hug. “I’ve got to find the person in charge of the lawn services. Thanks, bud.”
“You guys did rule out a family emergency first, right?”
“Yeah, Spelling did that right away. There wasn’t any, but that still doesn’t explain the lack of communication and the items we found on the garage floor.” I headed for the door. “I’ll keep you posted.” I power walked through the two hallways that took me to the parking structure exit then raced through the garage to the cruiser. I descended the three floors to the street level and sped off on my way to the condo.
After turning onto J.T.’s street, I found the entire complex wrapped in yellow police tape. Squad cars, cruisers, and the forensics van were parked at the curb directly in front of the building. I continued on until I found a spot to pull in a half block away. With the engine killed and the doors locked, I took the sidewalk back to the activity going on behind me.
Four officers rummaged through mountains of garbage on the far left side of the parking lot. The disgusting odor of days-old trash filled the air. The overhead garage door was open, likely to get more light in that underground space. In the distance, I saw officers walking the neighborhood. I hoped they would find more cameras mounted somewhere, but since this was a residential area, they would be looking at every house on each block that surrounded the complex.
The front door was still propped open when I entered. A half dozen officers milled about, searching nooks, crannies, and maintenance closets. I pushed through the stairwell door and nodded a hello to the officers searching the stairway.
Halfway down the hall on the second floor, the door to J.T.’s condo was guarded by an officer standing at the doorframe, his hands clutched in front of him. Spelling, Val, Maria, and Cam sat inside and filled the chairs at the dining room table. They looked to be engaged in a brainstorming session.
Spelling peeked over the top of his reading glasses when I entered. “Anything new on the video?”
“Possibly.” I took a seat. “There are several things I need to follow up on, but first Joe was able to enlarge and zoom in on an image I saw on the tape. It was after Julie left but before J.T. did. It looked like he was checking to make sure the balcony door was locked. I saw a short movement right at the handle height, which would make sense if he was ready to leave for the day—locking up before he walked out.”
“Meaning nothing was wrong inside. He was getting ready to head out and meet you for breakfast.”
“That’s the way I see it, sir, otherwise he wouldn’t have left for another half hour.”
“It would be too risky to ambush him in the hallway, and with the earbud on the ground near his car, the perp must have been waiting just outside the elevator. Unless the guy was wearing gloves, there has to be some prints or biological evidence from a struggle near the car.” Spelling jerked his head at Maria. “Run downstairs and tell Forensics to be especially thorough at the elevator, the walls, and the support pillars right by J.T.’s parking spot. My question is how did the perps get into the garage?”
Cam spoke up. “With all of the people heading off to work at that time, they could have slipped in on foot right after someone pulled out. The garage door is on a sensor, which probably keeps it up for a good ten seconds or more after the driver pulls away. We can test that easily enough.”
Spelling rubbed his brows. “Yeah, these types of places give people a false sense of security just because you have to use a card to get into the garage. There’s probably five different ways to enter the building undetected. Anyway, write that down, Cam, so we don’t forget to test it.”
“Speaking of security, sir, I may have something interesting. I noticed this when I was at the day care center, and Joe commented on it as well. Granted, the angle of the camera from a block away doesn’t capture everything, but we saw two large men dressed in grounds maintenance coveralls, talking with each other on the front lawn. They parted ways and disappeared off camera after a few short minutes.”
“That makes no sense at all. If they were going to do groundwork, then why wouldn’t they go get their equipment?” Val asked rhetorically.
“Exactly our thoughts too. Unfortunately, the camera couldn’t reach the entire curb along the front of the building, so we didn’t see a work truck.”
Cam whistled and raked his hands through his hair. “What time was that, Jade?”
I flipped to the last page of my notepad. “They were standing in front of the building at six forty-seven a.m., which was twenty minutes before Julie left and a good half hour before J.T. did.”
“And when did Carson arrive on site?”
Spelling picked up his phone and dialed. “Maria, find Officer Carson and ask him what time he arrived for the wellness check on the unit. Call me back right away.” Spelling clicked off.
“So, if Carson didn’t see a work truck or anyone grooming the grounds when he arrived, well—”
I interrupted. “Well, that in itself is telling us a lot. This complex has to take up at least five or six acres if you take into consideration the pool and clubhouse areas. There are a lot of bushes to trim, lawns to cut, and sidewalks to blow off. There’s no way they wouldn’t still be here, even when we arrived. We need to find out who the grounds maintenance provider is. Has anyone talked to the management company yet, and do we even know who they are?”
Spelling pointed toward J.T.’s bedroom. “Val, grab that folder with the deed out of the filing cabinet again. I’m sure the management company has to be listed in there.”
Val rose and headed to J.T.’s room. Seconds later, she was back with the folder and began browsing through it. As soon as she returned, Spelling’s phone rang.
“Yes, Maria, he’s sure? Okay, good enough. Check on everyone’s progress as long as you’re down there.” Spelling clicked off. “Carson arrived at ten after eight.”
I wrote that in my notepad along with the time we arrived. “And we got here at eight twenty. I’d assume under normal conditions, it would take a crew about three hours at a minimum to groom these grounds. That’s probably with a few more people too.”
�
��Got it.” We turned to Val as she pulled out a sheet of paper and closed the folder. “The management company is Meadowbrook Management. Don’t know if they’re still the ones running the HOA here, but there’s one way to find out.” Val pulled the phone from her pants pocket and dialed the number listed on the sheet. Then she tapped the icon for speakerphone and placed her phone in the center of the table.
“Meadowbrook Management, Bea speaking. How may I help you?”
“Hello, Bea. This is Special Agent Valerie Moore from the FBI calling.”
“FBI? Oh my word, what is this about?”
“I’m at the Summerset Commons Condominiums. Does your company still manage this complex?”
“Yes, we certainly do. Is there a problem with an owner?”
“No, ma’am. What we need to know is the name of the grounds maintenance company you use here.”
“Of course. We use the same company for all of the complexes we manage. It’s called Green Space Landscape Services. We’ve used them for seven years now. Have they done something illegal?”
“Not to my knowledge, Bea, but where do the funds come from for the work they provide?”
“From the HOA fees everyone pays quarterly.”
“And you keep records of every visit, the type of work they do, and how long they’re at each complex?”
“Yes, indeed. We have to know how much to pay them.”
“Ma’am, will you please look to see when they’re scheduled to go to Summerset Commons and how long they’re usually there?”
“Sure. It’ll take a minute to pull it up on the computer.”
“No problem.”
We heard the tapping of computer keys as we waited for Bea to find that information.
“Here we go. They’re set at a ten-day schedule for Summerset Commons, and it looks like tomorrow is when they show up. The average amount of time they spend there is between three and four hours.”
“And they’re scheduled for tomorrow?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Val gave us a thumbs-up. “And can you tell me, Bea, what kind of work uniform they wear?”
