Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 66839 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 334(@200wpm)___ 267(@250wpm)___ 223(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 66839 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 334(@200wpm)___ 267(@250wpm)___ 223(@300wpm)
I exhaled a heavy breath and rubbed a hand over my face.
“Fuck, this has to be one of the worst parts of the job.”
Jason chuckled. “It’s not that bad. As long as there’s an endless supply of junk food and the possibility of catching this guy doing some shady shit, then it’s all good.”
“You and your glass-half-full attitude. I swear, I don’t know how you do it.”
Jason shrugged, playing with the straps of the binoculars that hung around his neck. “It’s just easier living life like that. You should try it sometime.”
He gave me a wink and went back to observing the property. Without looking at the bag between his legs, he reached down and grabbed a bag of sour gummy worms. The bag crinkled open, and the sweet scent of over-sugared candy filled the interior of my car, giving me a much-needed boost. I grabbed a handful, brushing against Jason’s hand as we went in at the same time.
“Careful,” I said, “if we pick the same worm, then we have to Lady and the Tramp it.”
Jason gave me a “yeah, okay” look before shoveling a handful of rainbow-colored worms into his mouth.
My phone started to silently vibrate against my leg. I swallowed the mouthful of candy and pulled out my phone. Anya’s name appeared on my screen. I quickly answered the call on speaker and locked the phone so that the car plunged back under the comforting dark. I kept my eyes glued to Colton’s home as Anya started to explain what she had found.
“I’ve got good news and not-so-good news. Let’s start with the not-good news first: I couldn’t track the number belonging to ‘Leo.’ It’s being bounced around by about a hundred different cell towers.”
We were expecting that to be the case, but it was still disappointing news to confirm. “And the good news?”
“I was able to dig up some outgoing messages from Leo’s line. And these messages all went to numbers associated with past victims. They’re all similar kinds of messages, flirting with them and asking if their partners know about them talking to him. In Sammy and Wendy’s case, he changed from being Leon to Leona.”
“How creative of him,” Jason quipped, rolling his eyes before replacing the binoculars over them. “Is that how he makes sure he’s killing people who are cheating?”
I nodded. “I think it’s exactly that. But why weren’t any of these messages recovered already?” I asked. A bush rattled in the distance as a Godzilla-sized rat leapt out and scurried into the neighbor’s open garage.
“It seems like he’d delete them off the victims’ phone before he left the crime scene. Except nothing digital is ever really deleted, especially not when I’m looking for it.” Anya’s cocky smile was obvious in her tone. It was a smile she very much deserved to wear. She was a tech savant, a machine magician, a true digital detective. From everything Jason had told me, it seemed like Stonewall Investigations owed a lot to her and her expertise. I could now add my own debt to the list.
“Can you send us over those messages you found, Anya?” Jason asked as he peered through the binoculars aimed up at the only window without the blinds drawn.
“You got it.”
“Thank you, Anya.” Before I hung up the call, I had to throw out a line. “And if you ever think about shifting away from freelance work, I can talk to a few people and get you working for the FBI.”
Anya chuckled. I heard the telltale clink and fizz of a beer can being opened. “I’m good. Thanks, though. I’ll call if I find anything else.”
She hung up, and the car plunged back into silence.
“I can’t believe you just tried to poach one of Stonewall’s best.” Jason shot me a side glance. “Rude.”
“I was just seeing if she wanted a job, that’s all.”
“Anya lives in a multimillion-dollar penthouse in New York and likely gets to work in her pajamas all day, every day. Think she’s going to get that with the FBI?” Jason’s words held some acidity in them. He seemed strung up since he had gotten to Stonewall earlier in the day, and it didn’t take a genius to understand why: Dr. Smith and the way he flirted with me. It must have upset him.
“The FBI isn’t giving anyone that kind of life,” Jason continued, unprovoked. “They sell you on straight-up lies and false promises before they use you and cut you loose.”
I cocked my head, keeping my eyes glued to Colton’s property, the rain-and-dirt-soaked tiles beginning to form a safari of abstract shapes in my head. “That’s a little harsh, isn’t it? I owe a lot to the bureau, and so do all the people we’ve helped along the way.”
Jason set the binoculars in his lap. I took a moment to look away from the house and at Jason’s furrowed brow. He chewed on the inside of his cheek as he looked away from me, toward the backside of Colton’s property. “I’m not saying you guys don’t do any good. I’d never say that. But I’ve seen behind the curtain, and I just didn’t like it.”