No Escape

by Heather Lowell

  “This is a pretty convoluted setup,” Tessa began carefully. “Lots of people, each with different goals and jurisdictions. I’m not sure if it’s a workable solution.”

  “I don’t need workable, I just need enough room for your team to move and deniability for myself if you screw up. I figure if anything goes wrong with the task force investigation, there’s enough for me to lay it all at the feet of the Bureau as lead agency. Part of your job will be to make sure that they can’t blame you for anything bad that happens to their case.”

  “What about actually solving the case?” Tessa asked. “Is that an expectation, or am I merely acting as a raised middle finger to the FBI?”

  Now Carmen laughed. “You wanted to be in charge of a major case, Tessa. Welcome to the big time. I have absolute confidence you’ll get a conviction and make me look good. The fact that a Deputy D.A. will get more done than the FBI could in a year will not go unnoticed, and will be a fabulous boost for your career as well.”

  “How long do I have to work this miracle?” Tessa asked.

  “You have a week to make progress. Ideally, I’d like enough information to go for a grand jury indictment by then. If you can’t come up with something in that time, then we’ll use a crowbar to make a place for your case at the next multiagency task force meeting. They’ll have to reprioritize and get moving. In the end, you’ll have to share information and credit with the FBI, but you’ll help ensure that the D.A.’s Office is there for the back patting when a local criminal organization is taken down.”

  “Have you ever tried to force your way onto an existing team? It’s next to impossible, unless everyone is feeling extremely helpful and cooperative.”

  “That’s why I’m sending you. People look at the body and the blond hair and think you’re harmless. I trust you’ll show some teeth and use them on Peebles’s fat ass when the time is right. I’m counting on you to make this happen for the D.A.’s Office, Tessa.”

  “I appreciate that. But what if they actively obstruct my progress?”

  “Then you make sure we have enough to cover our butts. If it all falls apart, and the shit starts flying, I’ll put on a Teflon raincoat and walk away.”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  “It’s politics, Counselor. Nothing personal. Just make sure that the situation doesn’t come up, and we won’t have to worry about it, okay?”

  “Sure.” Tessa wondered if she had enough medicine in her desk to take on the headache she was developing to go along with her heartburn. As if her life wasn’t in enough turmoil after last night, now she was being told flat out to perform a minor miracle at work, or her boss would throw her to the wolves.

  But it was nothing personal.

  “So what’s next for our investigation?” Carmen asked.

  Tessa fumbled a manila folder from the stack in her lap. “Ah, it seems that Ricky Hedges fancies himself a real estate entrepreneur. I thought I’d pull articles of incorporation and see if he has any other businesses besides Club Red where he might be hiding or laundering money. I’m guessing there are copies of personal and business records in these boxes—probably stuck in the back of the folders.”

  “I take it the FBI didn’t look into this?”

  “No. They pulled the financials for Club Red only, but the rumor I heard was that their forensic accountant clashed with the team lead and left the Bureau. They haven’t replaced her yet, maybe because they didn’t see the need to hurry. The agent we talked to also hinted at budgetary constraints and the fact that Club Red just wasn’t a high priority.”

  “Contact this bean counter,” Carmen said.

  “I have,” Tessa replied with a grin. “I didn’t see any evidence of the FBI looking into the accounting side further, or into Ricky’s personal accounts. To be honest, they seem kind of stumped by the financial records, because Club Red doesn’t have a lot of liquid assets, and they were looking for straight drug or gambling profits.”

  “Sounds like the Bureau,” Carmen mused. “Always going for the big stuff.”

  “This may be bigger than they realized,” Tessa explained. “After thinking for a few days and talking with Ed about it, I realized there may be another corporation or three involved. That would explain where the funds are going. I’m hoping the forensic accountant can confirm this when we meet her in two days.”

  “Then take the ball and run with it. Just remember that everyone aims for the person with the ball.”

  “I feel sick,” Tessa said, only half-joking.

  “Just go like hell. You can do it, especially if you have good backup.”

  Tessa thought of Luke, MacBeth, Ed, and Ronnie. “I’m meeting Ed for lunch today. He’s very good at making his way through the bureaucracies, so I hope he’ll have a few tips for me.”

  “Of all the people involved, I think he’s the one least likely to steer you wrong,” Carmen agreed. “Just make sure you don’t screw things up and cost him his pension.”

  “Thanks. One more thing to worry about.” Tessa stood and grabbed her folders.

  “Did I already welcome you to the big time?”

  Chapter 30

  Downtown Los Angeles

  Saturday afternoon, March 13

  “I love your version of a table with a view.” Tessa took the hoagie sandwich Ed Flynn offered her and looked around at the LA skyline. They had parked their cars in connected lots fifty stories below, then taken an elevator to the rooftop terrace of the new California West Bank building for a picnic lunch.

  “I know one of the retired cops who does security for this building. The owners said we could come up and check it out today—the view is great, isn’t it?” Ed took a bite of his sandwich and stared out at the city below.

  It was windy and cool up at the top of the building, and there weren’t any comfortable seats except the low wall they perched on, but he’d figured Tessa would appreciate the novelty of eating on a rooftop.

  “It’s fantastic. Much better than the revolving restaurant at the hotel—I get nauseous up there. To be honest, I’m having enough trouble with my stomach today as it is.”

  “Your meeting with Carmen went that well?” Ed asked around a huge bite.

  Tessa made a face. “Remember that saying about being careful what you ask for?”

  “Because you just might get it, yeah. What did you ask for?”

  “An important case. I’m learning that life in the fast lane isn’t all I’d imagined.”

  “What’s up?” Ed asked. “You look pretty damned good to be whining so piteously. You got a new boyfriend or something?”

  Tessa inhaled her soft drink. She coughed and blotted at her streaming eyes, and Ed pounded helpfully on her back.

  “Did you finally notice the sparks zinging between you and Luke?” Ed asked gleefully. “You’re kinda dense where men are involved, so I wasn’t sure.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “I slept with him. This morning, as a matter of fact.”

  “Christ, Tessie!” Ed narrowly avoided choking on his own drink. “Don’t tell me stuff like that. Talk about too much information.” He shook his head repeatedly, as if trying to dislodge the image that had formed in his mind.

  Tessa laughed for the first time that day. Being around Ed always made her feel better. He glared at her as she kept laughing helplessly.

  She finally recovered herself and smiled sweetly at him. “You’re the one who brought it up. Thanks for taking my mind off Carmen, though. She kind of dropped a bomb on me a little while ago.”

  “What kind of bomb?” Ed asked, wanting desperately to drop the subject of sex and Luke Novak.

  Tessa briefly told him about her conversation with the district attorney that morning. His playful mood evaporated as he realized how complicated the situation was. “She really expects you to just horn in on an investigation led by the FBI?”

  “I think she mentioned using a crowbar to pry a space for myself on their team,” Tessa said. “I could use some advice
on how to do that without totally pissing off everyone.”

  Ed chewed thoughtfully. “It’s all a game of give-and-take. You’ll need to bring something to the table, a piece of information or an angle that they haven’t looked at yet.”

  “I’m trying. But we’re looking at different crimes. The Feds won’t really care about the rape-and-kidnapping charges we’re pursuing. I thought about focusing on the organized prostitution, but they already know about it. Right now I’m looking at the shell corporations you and I discussed and their potential for money laundering.”

  “Yeah? What kind of evidence do you have?”

  “Nothing yet. But I did find out today that Ricky Hedges is either an owner or board member of at least two other companies incorporated in the state of California. It makes me wonder about how many other businesses he’s involved with, and whether he’s using them as fronts for laundering illegal funds or something.”

  “What do the companies do?” Ed asked.

  “The one he owns in California is a consulting firm. He also sits on the board of a property development consortium that’s active in the Lake Tahoe area.”

  “What kind of consulting?”

  “I don’t know yet. I’ll have to look up their articles of incorporation and dig a little further,” Tessa said.

  “How long do you have before Carmen starts getting impatient?”

  “She wants to go to the grand jury in a week. So I have until then to get enough information on Ricky Hedges. Otherwise, I’ll have to piggyback my investigation onto the task force’s ongoing case.”

  “And you have to balance the Feds and other agencies on the task force in the meantime,” Ed added.

  “Nice to know Carmen has such faith in me, huh?” Tessa wadded up her sandwich wrapper and made a rim shot into the trash can. “Who am I kidding? I have no idea what I’m doing. To be honest, I’m making it all up as I go along.”

  “That’s all anyone does. The person who tells you different is a liar.”

  “Come on, you know what you’re doing. So does Luke.”

  “We’re just making educated guesses based on previous experience. But you’ve got good instincts, girl, and you can think on your feet. That counts for as much as experience. Sometimes it’s worth even more.”

  “I feel like everyone has a copy of the rule book, and I don’t. Now I’m being told to force my priorities into an active investigation, one where I’m probably not wanted. The other team members have had a year to get to know each other and learn strengths and weaknesses. And to build a dynamic.”

  “You’re right—you’ll be starting way behind everyone else and will have only a fraction of the time to come up to speed. And no one is going to cut you any slack, either.”

  “Geez, Ed. Try not to sugarcoat it too much.”

  He chuckled. “You can handle it. You’re smart, and you have an idea that could result in a strong lead for the team. You’ve got to use that. If you have something they want, things will go much easier for you.”

  “I guess Luke and I will spend the weekend online looking through the papers in my trunk. And I hope he has access to multiple state databases, because I need to look at bank and tax records.”

  “He will,” Ed said.

  “You always have a lot of confidence in him. How long have you known him?” Tessa asked.

  “I was assigned to a task force he was leading eight years ago after a series of violent home invasions. That was right after I was switched to working major crimes. The team formed just before Mary passed away, but I got to know him a lot better after her death,” Ed said. Mary Flynn had been Ed’s wife for fifteen years. She’d died suddenly after a short battle with ovarian cancer, and he’d taken it hard.

  “I’m sure that was a tough time, with your wife so ill,” Tessa murmured.

  “Yeah. I was walking through life like a zombie, not handling things very well. Luke and I were having a planning session and got into the shit late one night, a few days after Mary passed. He wanted to know why I wasn’t pulling my weight like I had in the first few months of the investigation.”

  “He actually said that to you?” Tessa asked.

  “No. He asked what was wrong and what he could do to help me deal with it so I could focus on the investigation again. He said the team needed me. I told him about losing Mary, and that her funeral was the next week. I said I just needed some personal space to get through that time, then I’d try to pull it together for the team.”

  Tessa stroked an understanding hand down Ed’s arm. She hadn’t known his late wife, but she did know that he’d never gotten over her loss. “What did Luke say to that?”

  “He expressed his condolences, then sent me home. The next day the team got a notice from him canceling all meetings for the next ten days. And during Mary’s funeral I looked up and Luke was there with the other mourners, listening to the eulogy. He’s a good man.” Ed smiled faintly and cleared his throat at the memory.

  Tessa blinked against the unexpected tears, then made herself busy for a moment clearing the rest of their lunch trash. She must have it really bad if she was getting all weepy over a kind gesture Luke had made to her good friend eight years ago.

  “You did the right thing bringing him into your investigation, Tessie. He’s got access to information and contacts that will make things a lot easier,” Ed said.

  “Yes. He’s organized and very smart—much more so than I gave him credit for initially.”

  “I’ve never seen him so thorough and methodical, so I think that might be your influence. You two make a great team. I hope you’re both smart enough to realize how rare that is.” Ed leaned forward and tried to look her directly in the eyes.

  But Tessa was busy turning various shades of pink, so she ducked her head. “You and I work well together, too.”

  “Yeah, but I’m talking about what happens after leaving work, and I think you know it. Where is this thing going with you two?”

  “Geez, Ed. We got together last night, and you’re already picking china patterns?”

  “I’m just saying I’ve never seen you so flustered. Or so, I don’t know, glowing. Maybe that’s the word.”

  “Just keep your glowing observations to yourself, okay? This is all new to me. It happened too fast, and I think we both want to take it slow and easy. It may not go anywhere at all,” Tessa warned.

  Ed snorted. “Not likely. You’re breaking all your personal rules for him. That’s got to mean something.”

  “Why? Because I have such a great track record? I’ve had a couple of long-term relationships in the last ten years, and each one ended with the guy asking for too much, getting frustrated, and leaving. I don’t think I have it in me to give what most men seem to need.”

  “Or you just haven’t wanted to give it. But something tells me Luke doesn’t ask for what he wants or needs. He takes it.”

  “So how many women has he bonked over the head with his club and dragged back to his cave?” Tessa asked sourly.

  “None that I know of. He’s had different lady friends during the times we worked together. But nothing serious. He was with the SWAT team part-time in those years, and that’s the most demanding field in law enforcement. After a few midnight beeper calls, most women tend to vanish.”

  “Mary didn’t.”

  “No. But that’s love for you. And I got off my own SWAT rotation after I fell for her. I didn’t see any need to face the prospect of dying every day at work, not when I had her to come home to. Detective work was less exciting, but a hell of a lot safer. Love changes everything, Tessie.”

  She was uncomfortable talking about love and Luke Novak in the same conversation. She had so little experience with either one.

  And yet both seemed frightening, out of control, and seductive at the same time.

  Tessa checked her watch. “Darn. I need to get going. I’ve got a lot of research to do today before I meet Luke at four.” She had about three and a half hours, and
hoped to get some uninterrupted time on the library computer. It was a gorgeous spring day, so hopefully most of LA would be enjoying the outdoors, leaving the computer terminals and bandwidth to her. And if something she needed wasn’t online, she could use the help of the reference librarians to point her in the right direction.

  She and Ed picked up their things and took a last stroll around the rooftop terrace. He pointed some old landmarks out to her and helped her find the direction of his house off in the distance. She took a few breaths of fresh air, trying not to think about the faint brown haze on the horizon, and mentally braced herself for the next phase of the investigation.

  It was a lot to ask of her—the expectation that she would bring new information or leads to a multiagency task force headed by a senior FBI agent.

  “Stop worrying. You’ll find something soon, or keep at it until you do.”

  “Really, why do I even think I can dig up something that the FBI has somehow overlooked?” Tessa shook her head.

  “First of all, because the FBI is made up of people—some good, some bad. Most of them are busy, and they all bring their own preconceptions and prejudices to the table.”

  “So you think that might make them skip over pertinent information?”

  “You bet. Plus, if I know the Feds, they’re looking for something big. Something sexy. They would probably blow off anything that didn’t reach out and grab their attention, or at least look like it could grab headlines. When you add to that the new culture of budget cuts, it makes for a lot of crimes slipping through the cracks.”

  “I guess I’ll start small, then. Something tells me that Ricky Hedges isn’t the type of person to plan the crime of the century anyway. You know the Ianellis, the Mafia family he’s working with? Luke says they’re pretty low on the food chain in LA.”

  “He’s right. A lot of people think of organized crime and assume it has to be a big and brutal organization, like John Gotti’s empire. But a lot of criminals just stumble onto something, then milk it for whatever they can get until it either runs dry, they get caught, or they find some other scheme. It’s not all about 50-million-dollar drug busts.”