Innocent Conspiracy_A Sam Prichard Mystery

by David Archer

  11

  “Jade Miller is on line 3,” Jenna said. Sam picked up the phone and punched the button.

  “Jade? How’s it going?”

  “Actually, it’s going very well, sir,” Jade said. “My cover is working perfectly, and everybody has been very cooperative. I understand you had a bit of an adventure here today, though.”

  “Yeah,” Sam said. “We found out their head video producer was the one who gave information to the shooters. He’s being questioned, and he’s cooperating. Did you get the photo I sent you?”

  “Yes, sir, I did. I had a thought on that, by the way. I’ve been given access to all of their video, including the raw footage from all the cameras in the arena that night. I can access it from home, so I thought I would take a good look tonight and see if I can spot either of them in the audience.”

  “That’s an excellent idea,” Sam said. “Bear in mind, the tech guys say that they would have been sitting right about the middle of the auditorium, right under the spot where camera 4C would have been at that moment. That would be the most important area to look at.”

  “Excellent,” Jade said. “I’ll let you know what I find. Now, the other thing I learned today is that this company makes an awful lot of money, especially for one that is not publicly traded. It turns out that only a few people own stock in the company, and John and Annie hold the majority of it between them, like over ninety percent. The rest was given as bonuses to some of their top executives, but nobody owns more than two or three percent. What that boils down to is that John and Annie are each taking home well over a hundred million a year.”

  “Isn’t capitalism a wonderful thing?” Sam asked with a grin. “Makes me wish I was the kind of genius who could come up with ideas like that.”

  “Yeah, you and me both. The thing is, I was going over the stats on the website today for a little while, and an interesting little side note on this shooting is that their traffic is up. Now, I would’ve expected to see a spike for a day or so after the shooting, but it’s been four days. The traffic has gone up each day since the night of the shooting. What that translates to is an increase in the ad revenue the site generates. There’s also been a surge in subscribers to their e-zine, WebVid. At almost 30 dollars a year, that’s going to add up to some additional income, as well.”

  Sam was quiet for a moment as he thought. “Jade, are you getting any sense that the company may have known something like this was going to happen?”

  “I’d have to say absolutely not, sir,” she replied. “I wasn’t meaning to imply anything like that, I just found it pretty interesting. To be honest, I don’t think anybody could have predicted that something like this would actually increase their profits. I mean, that just seems completely opposite of what I would expect.”

  “Unless it’s the car crash syndrome,” Sam said. “People tend to go toward a car crash, rather than away from it. Same for a building fire, people rush toward it to get a better look. It’s an unhappy part of human nature, I guess. That could be what you’re seeing, that something bad happening to the company is drawing more attention to it.”

  “Well, my dad was in show business for years,” she said, “and he used to claim that there was no such thing as bad publicity. I mean, take a look at a lot of the big companies today. Something goes wrong for them, and for weeks they’re all you hear about. Somewhere in the middle of all that news, the bad stuff seems to fade away and the news starts getting better. Look at Tesla; they had problems with their autopilot and somebody was killed, but they came through that and now they’re more popular than ever.”

  “Maybe that’s what it is,” Sam said. “Bad publicity drawing attention to the good parts about the company. How did things go with Stacy, by the way?”

  “Hey, she’s awesome,” Jade said. “They told everybody she was an efficiency expert, and she jumped right into the role. She’s been all over people about turning off lights when they leave the room, making sure they recycle everything, it’s almost like she’s actually done it before. We both laugh about it when we find ourselves completely alone for a minute.”

  Sam grinned. “Just remember, she’s there to watch your back, not just have fun. Anything else?”

  Jade hesitated, and Sam caught it. Before he could ask, she began speaking again.

  “I was going over some of the feedback on the website,” she said. “There was one feedback message that caught my attention, but I don’t know if it really means anything or not. It was done anonymously, so it doesn’t really matter a whole lot, but it said Web Wide Awards should watch its back, and that this might only be the first tragedy to strike them. It didn’t go into any kind of detail, and it wasn’t exactly worded like a threat, but it bothered me.”

  “Yeah,” Sam said. “Did you show it to anyone?”

  “Actually, I showed it to Annie Porter. She read it, then just shrugged her shoulders and said she didn’t think it really meant anything. I don’t know, Sam, it just bothered me.”

  “All right,” Sam said. “If you run across anything else like it, let me know. Other than that, just keep watching and listening, and make sure your back is covered at all times.”

  “Yes, sir,” Jade said, and then she was gone.

  Sam left the office right after and was driving home when his phone rang. He pulled it out and glanced at it, saw Ron Thomas’ number on the display, and put it to his ear.

  “Ron?”

  “Hey, Sam,” Ron said. “Just checking in. How’s everything going back there?”

  “It’s pretty wild,” Sam said. “I posted my report just a bit ago, but I’ll give you the gist. We found the insider. One of their video producers was blackmailed into giving a schedule of how the show was supposed to go to a couple, a man and a woman. We’ve identified the woman as the one who actually mounted the gun on the camera, and we’ve managed to get photos of their faces. Indie is running them through facial recognition now, but it’s likely to take a while to get any results. I’ve got Jade inside Web Wide Awards, working undercover as we planned, and she’s trying to get a feel for the people who work there. Summer checked a guy out, but he turned out not to be a problem. As it stands right now, we’re just trying to identify our suspects and track them down.”

  “Good. Jeff and I will be stuck out here for at least the next two weeks, so you’ll need to handle anything that comes up. Keep me posted, and I’ll check in when I can. That may be kind of sporadic, it turns out this conference is a lot bigger than we thought. Representatives from just about every country are gathering at the Javits Center to talk about the future of the internet, including a ridiculous number of internet gurus and several world leaders. Our own Secretary of State will be there, along with leaders and diplomats from a dozen other countries. They’re going to be talking about things like satellites that will make the internet free for everybody, and how internet video is going to take over what we think of as television and movies. It’s pretty exciting.”

  “It sounds like it,” Sam said. “Where are you getting the security personnel?”

  “We’re actually subcontracting with several other companies,” Ron said. “We had to come up with almost four hundred security guards, and that was the only way to do it. Anyway, like I said, keep me posted.”

  “You got it,” Sam said. He put the phone back in his pocket and drove home.

  Mackenzie opened the door as soon as she heard the Mustang pull in, and Sam swept her up into a hug as he entered the house. Bo was in the playpen in the middle of the living room floor, standing up and clinging to the side as he said, “Da da da da,” over and over. Still holding Kenzie, Sam leaned down and scooped him up as well and carried them both to the kitchen.

  Indie was putting the finishing touches on a large homemade pizza, and turned around to wrap them all in a hug and steal a kiss from her husband. She held onto them for a moment, just looking into Sam’s eyes.

  “What?” Sam asked with a grin. “You’re staring
.”

  Indie shrugged and shook her head with a grin of her own. “I was doing a little spring cleaning today,” she said, “and I opened one of the closets upstairs and found my old suitcases. Remember those, the ones I had when you found me and Kenzie living in my car?”

  “Of course I remember,” Sam said. “That was one of the best days of my life.”

  She let go and stepped back, and Sam set Kenzie on the floor.

  “It was absolutely the best day of mine,” Indie said. “I remember tracking you down at Taco Bell and begging for food, and you checking me out and finding out about Mackenzie. I was so scared at that moment, because I knew if you turned me in right then, I would’ve lost her. Instead, you offered us a place to stay.”

  “Yeah,” Sam said, “and you thought I was trying to get you into a compromising position.”

  She giggled. “Yes, I did at first,” she said. “And I was actually going to accept it, because I was that desperate. But then you said no strings, and you convinced me you were serious. I think that was the moment when I actually started to fall in love with you.”

  “Baby,” Sam said, “I look back over the last few years, and I realize that I started falling for you the moment you sat down across the table from me. By the time you’d been here a week, I already knew I wanted to be with you forever.”

  “Wow,” she replied. “We’re actually quite a love story, aren’t we?”

  “Yes, we are,” Sam said. “And homemade pizza only makes it better.”

  Indie smacked him lightly on his arm, then turned away to put the pizza in the oven. Sam set Bo in his high chair and got a bottle of water out of the refrigerator, then sat down at the table beside his son.

  “Herman having any luck?” Sam asked.

  Indie looked around, a grimace on her face. “Nothing,” she said. “They’re not in the FBI’s facial recognition database, or the NSA’s, so I’m going to check Interpol. I don’t know how they managed to stay off the radar so far, but I’m not giving up.”

  “Daddy,” Kenzie said. “Is it getting warm enough to go swimming?”

  “Well, the air is plenty warm enough, but the water might be cold. Maybe we can give it a try this weekend, see how it feels. I’ll go out in a bit and take the cover off the pool, then I can turn on the filtration system and start getting it ready.”

  “Yay!” Kenzie yelled. “I love swimming!”

  “Would be nice get into the pool,” Indie said. “We could invite some friends, fire up the grill, and have a pool party.”

  They sat around the table and talked about the possibility until the pizza was done, then sliced it up and carried it into the living room. They found a movie to watch together, and Sam decided to put work away for the evening. He was at home, with his family, and he wanted his mind to be there with him.

  12

  Summer had left the office a few minutes before Sam, feeling a little frustrated. The only leads she had uncovered in the case thus far had been dead ends, and she liked to feel productive. She had spent part of the day going over the list of employees again, trying once more to find someone who might be part of the problem, but with Charlie Barr’s confession, she knew the odds of finding anyone else inside the company involved were pretty slim.

  She had taken her phone out and looked at the photo of the suspect couple. The tall, bald man was probably the alpha of the pair, but the only one they’d actually seen involved in setting up the shooting had been the woman. It wasn’t often that true hit men worked in teams, and she’d never heard of a couple working together as hired killers before. The whole concept got her adrenaline flowing, and made her want to find a way to bring them down.

  Sitting at home in her apartment didn’t seem appealing, so she decided to go out for a drink. Summer was a girl who liked the heavy beat of rock music, and she absolutely loved to dance, but she knew better than to drink on an empty stomach. She zapped a couple of chimichangas, took a quick shower and changed into dancing clothes, then pointed her Jaguar toward her favorite watering hole.

  The Proof is one of Denver’s hottest night clubs, with music videos playing for the patrons to dance to. The music is a mix of modern and retro, but it’s always full of energy and fun. Summer had begun going there not long after moving to the city, and a lot of the regulars knew her well enough that she heard her name called out as she entered. She turned in the direction it came from and broke into a big smile.

  “Harvey!” she yelled back. “You ready to dance, boy?”

  “Oh, yeah, baby,” the guy called back, forcing his way through the crowd. “Let’s shake it up!”

  Harvey Reilly was one of the first people she had met when she moved to Denver a year earlier, and the first man she’d dated there. They had gone out together for a couple of months, but both of them were busy with their respective jobs and had a habit of canceling dates. They’d finally decided that being friends was easier than trying to have a relationship, and still managed to have fun together whenever they both ended up at the club.

  Harvey caught up to her and they went to the bar to get her a margarita, then found an empty table near the dance floor.

  “So, how you been, sweetness?” Harvey asked. “Ain’t seen you in a while.”

  “I’ve been busy,” she answered with a smile. “Like always. How about you?”

  “Same old same old,” he said. “Got a new gig since we saw each other last, I’m working for Channel 6. I’m the new cameraman for Wendy Dawson.”

  “Wendy the reporter? Wow, you’ve come up in the world. Is she as big a bitch as she seems to be?”

  “Who, Wendy? She’s a sweetheart! As long as you’re not on the wrong end of her microphone, anyway. The girl does ask some pretty hard questions, but that’s just her job.”

  Summer stared at him. “Oh, Lord, you’re sweet on her. Getting anywhere?”

  Harvey made a face that told her the answer. “I am not,” he said. “Besides, she’s into cops and tough guys. What are you working on these days?”

  “Ahaha,” Summer said. “I’m not telling you, or you’ll be bringing Wendy around looking for a scoop. Let’s just say I’m on something big and leave it at that.”

  “Ouch, you hurt me! I’d never tell Wendy what you’re doing, that wouldn’t be cool at all. Besides, she ever gets a look at you, I’ll never hear the end of it. That would guarantee I’d never have a chance—assuming I ever wanted one!”

  “So? We’ve been over for a long time. I’m no threat to her.”

  “And if I’d told you back when we were dating that I knew this other gorgeous blonde who was sexy as hell and that I sometimes hang out with, would you have been okay with it?”

  “Hmm. Okay, probably not. So, you won’t tell her anything, then?”

  He dragged his finger across his chest in a big X. “Cross my heart and hope to get lucky.”

  Summer stuck her tongue out at him. “Keep hoping,” she said. “Okay, fine. You heard about the shooting at the Canterbury Arena the other night, the awards show?”

  “Oh, yeah,” Harvey said. “That was nasty! What are you doing on that?”

  “Web Wide Awards hired us to find out who did it,” Summer replied. “I’m on the Windlass investigation team, remember?”

  “Well, yeah, I know that. I mean, are you getting anywhere with it?”

  “Not very fast. We managed to get a lead on the people who set it up, a man and a woman. They used a remote controlled rifle mounted on one of the overhead cameras. We don’t know who they are, yet, but we got a picture of them.”

  “Cool, lemme see! I won’t tell Wendy anything, I promise, I’m just curious.”

  Summer looked at him for a moment, then took out her phone and called up the photo. She turned the phone so he could see it, and watched his face as he looked into the eyes of the killers.

  He stared, and something about the look on his face made Summer’s neck crawl. “What?” she asked.

  “These are the people
who shot that kid?” Harvey asked. “Are you sure?”

  Summer nodded. “We’ve got video of the woman actually placing the gun on the camera, and they blackmailed one of the employees for the cue sheet. That’s the schedule of camera angles and stuff.”

  Harvey grunted. “I know what a cue sheet is, sweetness. The reason I’m asking if you’re sure,” he said slowly, “is because I know that guy.”

  Summer’s eyes flew wide open. “You what? Who is he?”

  “Okay, let me rephrase that,” Harvey said. “I don’t actually know him, but I’ve seen him several times. He’s been staying in my building for the past couple months. I think I’ve seen the girl with him, too, but I’m not sure.”

  Summer’s eyes were about to bug out. “Are you freaking serious? Harvey, what apartment is he in?”

  “3G, right across the hall from mine. Listen, if you’re gonna call the cops to go get him, I really should let Wendy know.”

  “Not just yet, I’m not. I’m going to go down there and make sure it’s them, first.” She got to her feet. “Would they be there now?”

  “Now? Well, I don’t know, but I think they’re usually there in the evenings.”

  “You still live in the same building, right?”

  “Well, yeah, but…” He started getting to his feet. “Wait, I’m going with you.”

  “Harvey,” Summer said, “do you carry a gun?”

  “Well, no…”

  “I do, and if it’s them, they’re wanted for attempted murder. Stay here.” She turned and headed for the door before he could say anything else.

  Harvey lived in a nice apartment building on Washington Street, near the 7th Avenue intersection. It took her about twenty minutes to get there, and she parked her car around the corner at a different building.

  She walked to the front door of Harvey’s building, holding out her phone and staring at the picture so that she’d have it memorized. She put the phone back into her pocket as she got inside, took the elevator up to the third floor and turned right to get to 3G. Harvey’s door, as he said, was directly across the hall and she stopped and knocked on it, instead.