“Were there any other employees around?”
“No. Kind of looked like a one man operation.”
“Address?”
He scooted himself up in the chair. “I have the classified listing right here on my phone. You want me to grab it?”
I nodded.
He slid his hand into his jeans and pulled out his cell phone. He flicked away at a few buttons on the screen and then turned the phone toward me. “Right here. I told you I just bought it. This listing was first posted two days ago. The address is right there.”
The address listed was a ten minute ride from the station. We needed to get out there and get someone from Forensics into that van as soon as possible.
“We’re going to need to take the van for testing, Mister Lilke.”
His voice raised an octave. “For how long?”
“As long as it takes.”
“Shit. Am I going to get the van back? What about my six grand?”
“If everything was legal about the sale, you should get the van back as soon as we are through with it.”
He slouched back down. “Dammit. I shouldn’t have gone through with it. The guy seemed off.”
“Off how?”
“It seemed like he was in a rush to leave. The deal was just too good to pass up. Man, my girl is going to be pissed. I bought the van to start a pest control business. The six grand was everything we had in the bank.”
“Sit tight for a bit, Mister Lilke. Someone will be back with you in a minute.”
He looked down—upset with his purchasing decision. I left the room and found Hank and the captain in the hall.
“Let’s verify this guy’s story about being at work,” I said.
“Already did,” the captain said. “I just talked to Nick at the airport. He checked out—reported for his shifts all week.”
I jerked my chin at Hank. “You get the title?”
He slapped a folded paper against his hand. “Speedy’s Plumbing and Supply.”
“Owner?” I asked.
“Incorporated. We’ll have to get someone from records to look it up.”
“I want you to put a team together and get over to that warehouse. Jones and Donner still around?” the captain asked.
“They’re still out looking for more video as far as I know. I need to check in with them.”
“Call them back. I’ll get on the phone with District Attorney Welsch for a warrant. I should have it within a half hour.” The captain pulled his cell phone from his pocket and started dialing.
“OK. Where’s the van?” I asked.
The captain covered the mouthpiece of his phone. “Just north of Hillsborough on Dale Mabry. There is a restaurant on the corner. It’s in the lot. When I’m off the phone with Danes, I’ll get a wrecker dispatched to bring it in.”
“Alright. Hank, you mind wrapping up with Lilke here. I’ll get on the horn with Jones and Donner and get them back in. Meet me in the briefing room as soon as you’re done.”
Hank nodded.
Chapter 23
Tom’s pocket bulged as he walked down the street. Six thousand and two hundred dollars in cash strained the stitches of his wallet. A half mile away was his destination—a superstore that sold prepaid credit cards and cell phones. He’d activate the phone with a bogus name and use it to book his flight online—he’d pay for it with the prepaid credit card. It was perfect, and all completely untraceable.
He’d kick back at the shop until around midnight before heading out. After a quick stop at Judge Casey’s, he’d be on his way to his new life.
Chapter 24
I grabbed my cell phone to dial up Jones. The screen told me I had an email from my sister and two text messages from Callie. I dialed up Jones as I entered the briefing room. He picked up within a couple rings.
“Detective Jones.” He drew in large, loud breaths.
“Jones, it’s Kane.”
“We’re walking back now.”
“What did you guys find?”
“Nothing. Somehow they guy disappeared in between JFK and Jackson. Telwan and Henry went another block up. They still got nothing.”
“Are Telwan and Henry still with you?”
“Yeah, they’re following us back.”
“You and Donner got a few more hours in you?”
“I don’t mind putting in another few hours, do you?” Donner said no in the background. “Yeah, Lieutenant, if you still need us, we can hang around for another few hours.”
“Good. Grab Telwan and Henry and meet me in the briefing room as soon as you can. There’s a warehouse that we need to look into.”
“Be up there in a couple minutes. We’re just crossing the park now.”
“Sounds good.” I hung up and grabbed a seat.
I clicked the button on my phone to view the email from my sister. There were five photos of my nephew sitting on a small train. I’d have to look at them later. I clicked the icon for Callie’s text messages. The first asked me when I thought I’d be done with work. I clicked for the next message. It was a photo of her looking sad asking why I didn’t want to talk to her. I dialed her up.
“Hey, Babe. Are you busy?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’ve been running non-stop. We got a couple breaks in the case. I’m about to head back out in a minute. I just figured I’d call you back quick while I had a second.”
The balancing of work and checking in with someone was something I hadn’t done since my ex-wife Samantha. I had to remind myself that someone was out there thinking about me. It was a good feeling, and I made a conscious effort to make the calls when I could.
“You didn’t need to call if you were in the middle of something. I just wanted to hear your voice.”
“How does it sound?”
“Sexy.”
I smiled. It was the first time for the day. “Yours too.”
“You’re such a liar. Any idea what time you’re going to be done tonight?”
“I’ll have a better idea later.”
“I have off tonight and don’t start until noon tomorrow, so I was thinking that maybe I could come out by you?”
“Sounds perfect.” Hank walked into the briefing room. “Hey, I have to get back to it. I’ll call you as soon as I know when I’ll be done.”
“Alright. Be safe.”
“I will.”
“Bye, Babe.”
“OK, I’ll see you later.” I hung up.
Hank grabbed a chair. “Callie?” he asked.
“Yup. Checking in.”
“That’s weird, huh?”
“What do you mean?”
“Someone worrying about you while you’re at work. Karen makes me check in with her a couple times a day.”
“I dealt with it with Samantha, but yeah, I know what you mean. Speaking of Karen, did you tell her about the car?”
“Yeah, had to. She got on the phone with the insurance company. An adjuster will be out today at five to take care of it.”
“She laid into them?”
Hank nodded. “I’ve been on the other end of the phone when she gets going. It’s not a happy place.”
“Well, it’s good that it’s getting taken care of.”
Hank flopped his arms up on the table in front of him. “Jones and Donner on their way back?”
“They should be here any second. Let’s get the owner’s name on that business.”
Hank walked to the phone in the back of the room and called down to our records department. The door of the briefing room opened with Telwan, Henry, Jones and Donner piling in.
Jones slid out a chair at the front. He turned it backward and rested his giant arms on the backrest. “What’s the news, Boss? Where we headed?”
I filled them in on the details.
“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go,” Donner said.
“The captain is bringing us down a warrant for the business. Hank is on the phone with records now trying to get the business owner’s n
ame.”
“You want us to assist?” Henry asked.
“Yes.”
Hank hung up the phone in the back of the room and walked back up. “Owner’s name is Tom Spearman.”
“Let’s get a home address and sheet on him?”
“I’ll go pull it.” Hank walked from the briefing room.
Captain Bostok came in with the warrant a few minutes later. “All set. Hot off the press.” He handed it over.
“Thanks, Cap.”
“Where’s Rawlings?”
“He’s getting a sheet on the business owner, Tom Spearman.”
“Tom Spearman? That name sounds familiar.”
“Familiar how?”
“I don’t know, just familiar.” The captain furrowed his brow in thought. “Let me think about it for a minute.”
Hank walked in holding a couple sheets of paper. “I got an address and a background. Driver’s license says he’s six three, weighs two ten and has red hair.”
“The description fits.”
“Get this. The guy was cited in a car accident a year back. There was a fatality. His wife died at the scene. There’s something else on here. Two 18 U.S.C. 111’s.”
“Assaulting an officer?” I asked.
“Yeah, but it looks like he just got off with some counseling though.”
“That’s how I recognized the name,” Captain Bostok said. “He attacked two of our patrol guys at Tampa General.”
Hank held up a finger. “That’s not the kicker. Care to venture a guess what his wife’s name was?”
Hank handed over the sheet to me. I flipped it around and took a look. Claire Spearman.
“Shit. That’s our guy. We need to get it across the wire. You said you have a house address, Hank?”
He nodded.
“You’re going to need to split up. Rawlings, Kane, take Telwan and Henry and go execute the search warrant on the warehouse. Jones, Donner, grab a couple of guys from Timmons and hang tight until I get you a warrant for the house.” The captain went to the phone to dial up District Attorney Welsch again.
Hank, Telwan, Henry and I headed out—warrant in hand.
We suited up in the police station’s parking structure. Vests were snugged tight, lapel radios were clipped on. Henry and Telwan each took a marked squad car. Hank and I loaded into an unmarked gray Charger. Hank’s shoulders sunk as we passed his crushed hybrid on the way out. I didn’t have the same remorse for the smashed cruiser that I had driven into work.
We pulled to the side of the road just in view of the warehouse. A plan was made for how we wanted to approach. The building was tan, metal pole shed with a three foot brick facade around its base. It stood alone in the center of small parking lot. I imagined it may have been an automotive service station or used car lot in a past life. A glass front door faced us under a small overhang. Two windows sat to the sides of the front door. Across the street was a gas station. Houses sat twenty feet off the warehouse’s side. A block up I spotted the sign for a Quigley’s supermarket.
Two additional units in marked squad cars caught our chatter over the radio and met us to assist. I laid out the plan. Hank and I would take the front with one of the patrol units as our backup, Telwan and Henry could take the back. The other two officers could back them up. It was simple and effective. We got back in the cars and rolled up to the property—no lights, no sirens.
I slid the Charger in park and Hank and I stepped out. The two officers providing our backup did the same. I watched as Telwan and Henry drove around the back of the building. He radioed us that there was a single closed garage door and a service entrance at the back. They had eyes on them and were in position. Hank and I moved to the entry of the building. Through the glass, I could see the lights were off. I pulled at the door handle—it was locked.
I banged on the glass. “Tampa Police! Search warrant!”
We waited. There was no response. I hit my lapel radio. “Any action back there, Henry?”
“Quiet as a church mouse.”
I banged the glass door again. There was still nothing. I cupped my hands over the glass and looked in. The back wall was a display of different sinks, faucets and fittings. Miscellaneous banners for plumbing companies and a small counter sat to the side. Beyond that I could see back into the warehouse where there were shelves to the ceiling filled with piping and bins.
“Hank, watch this door. I’m going to go see if Henry or Telwan can get us in the back.”
“OK.”
I rounded the side between the building and the neighboring house and found Henry and Telwan standing ready behind their car doors.
“No answer out front?” Telwan asked.
“Nope.”
I gave the back garage door a couple good raps. “Tampa Police! Search warrant!” There was no answer. I tried lifting the door, it didn’t budge. I went to the service door next. It was made of steel and locked up tight.
I got back on the radio. “You see any movement in there, Rawlings?”
“Negative.”
I walked over to Telwan and Henry and looked at the front of their cruiser. “One of you guys want to take a shot at getting us in back here?” I slapped the push bar bolted to the front of their car.
Telwan smiled. “Push in the garage door?” he asked.
I nodded. “Just push it in enough for us to get through and still have line of sight to cover each other. Don’t go blasting through like the movies.”
“I got it, Lieutenant.” He slid into his cruiser and fired the motor.
He drove over slow and put the edge of the push bar against the metal garage door. He looked at me for approval. I nodded. He stepped on the gas and the cruiser edged forward. The door crumpled and folded in. The nose of the car broke through into the building.
“That’s good, Telwan!” I shouted.
He stopped and clicked the car back into reverse—pulling out. He shut the car off and jumped back out. There was enough room to duck down under the door and get inside. I crouched next to the opening trying to get a view inside.
“Tampa Police! We have a warrant!” There was still no response. The lights were out but there was enough coming in from the front of the building to see. I pulled my service weapon from my shoulder holster and made my way in.
Chapter 25
I stood as soon as I cleared the folded in door and looked left to right. There was no one. The service door sat to my left. My back pressed up against the wall and pistol ready, I slid along the wall to the door. I unlocked it, and pushed it open.
Telwan and Henry came into the building—shotguns in hand. I flipped on the lights for the warehouse located next to the doorway. We announced our presence again and then fanned out through the back of the building. Workbenches lined the base of the walls, above them were racks holding long stretches of pipe. The rear center, where I stood, was open allowing parking for a vehicle. To the sides of center were two shelving units that created a hallway and spanned to the ceiling. I could see Hank standing at the front door outside.
We cleared the back and made our way to the front. A square, enclosed office sat to our right. The door was standing half open. Officer Henry went to it and pushed the door the rest of the way open with his foot. “Clear.”
I watched the front through the doorway while Telwan checked the restroom beside me.
“It’s clear, Lieutenant,” he said.
We pushed on. The warehouse ended with a makeshift wall and doorway before leading into the front showroom area. I hit the radio on my shoulder. “We’re clear in the back. You see any movement in that showroom, Rawlings?”
I could see Hank looking through the door.
“Negative,” he said.
We approached the doorway. I crouched and poked through covering the right, Henry against the wall over my shoulder covered the left. “We clear?” I asked.
“Clear,” Henry said.
I stood and holstered my weapon. The building was empty. Te
lwan flipped on the lights in the front showroom and opened the glass door for Hank.
He walked through. “All good?”
“Yeah it’s empty.” I pulled my cell phone from my pocket. “You guys get started. I need to let Jones and the captain know that he isn’t here.” I walked outside and dialed up Jones first.
“Detective Jones.”
“It’s Kane. What’s your twenty?”
“10-51 to the address. I should be there in a couple minutes. We had to wait until the captain got us our warrant. What’s the scene over there?”
“Nobody home. Just giving you a heads up.”
“Alright. I’ll relay the message. We’ll be ready.”
“Call me with an update as soon as you can.”
“Will do.” Jones hung up.
I relieved the two additional patrolmen that showed to assist us and then dialed Captain Bostok.
“What did you find, Kane?”
“Building is unoccupied. We’re going to start looking through it now.”
“I just sent off Jones and Donner to the house with the warrant. Let them know that he was not present at the business.”
“Already did.”
“Good. I’m digging into this guy on my end—trying to get more details on the accident and his attack on our patrolmen.”
“OK. I’m heading back in.”
“Call me if there’s a development.”
“Alright.” I hung up and walked back inside the building.
Hank was looking over the showroom for any clues or evidence that may have been left behind. Telwan and Henry had gone back into the warehouse. I noticed paperwork hanging out from the back of the front counter.
“Hank, dig around in there and see what all that paperwork is. I’m heading back to go through the office.”
Hank knelt behind the front counter and started sliding out the papers.
Through the door to the back, I made a left for the office. Henry was already inside.
I stood at the doorway. Papers covered the top of the desk. A single roll-away chair sat behind it. A file cabinet made up the back wall along with a small table with shipping supplies. “You see anything, Henry?”
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