Chapter 12 #3
“You continue the interrogation, darlin’,” Dane said.
“We’ll be here watching from close up instead of across the street.
All together. These gentlemen had already obliged us the privilege of watching and it doesn’t seem like much to quibble over where we do our watching.
” He stopped and eyed both sides, lingering on Evans and continuing to avoid Peck, she noted.
Evans gave a nod and said to her, “Carry on.”
She went back into the interrogation room, feeling hot and aggravated. But she also felt a swirl of warmth in her chest and more confident knowing that her team was in the next room, knowing that Dane was there and that he had her back. Still.
She took a deep breath and opened the door and went back to her seat. Without Peck. Her tension was gone. She no longer cared that she was wearing a Saturday-night dress and spike heels.
“What was that all about?” Mrs. Whitaker asked.
“Men.”
Mrs. Whitaker nodded and Shana resumed the interrogation.
“Listen, Fiona. I know you’ve been a loyal, faithful wife and that you never stole a thing. But you know all about your husband’s exploits—”
“No, I—”
“You do now. I want you to tell me everything you know. From the beginning.”
Fiona pouted. Shana realized the woman was fully made up and primped like she was going to her prom and Shana watched the woman calculate what to do. Finally, after Shana sat with her hands folded for almost a full minute, Fiona shrugged. Then she talked.
“When Sebastian was getting out, he wanted all the money and planned to get it, but was worried about Harry the Hacker because he came back looking for more money—he had only gone to jail a short time because he’d cooperated with the prosecution.
Sebastian was also worried about Acer knowing about the money.
He asked some guy he met in jail for help. I don’t remember his name.”
“Why didn’t your husband come home?” Shana asked.
“Because he was afraid of my father. Dear Dad had warned him off—didn’t want him moving back in like nothing ever happened.
So he stayed away and needed to start accessing some of his money.
I could only sneak so much of Dad’s money to him.
I’ve had to rely on my father’s largesse all these years. It was humiliating.”
“So you’re saying that your husband arranged to have Harold Small and Mr. Acerman killed by the sniper, Wallace White?”
“Sure. I don’t know the details of course.”
“Why are you telling me all this now? Why are you giving up your husband?”
“Because I’m certainly not taking the fall for any murder. I don’t deserve to get into trouble for any of this. The worst thing I did is keep my mouth shut about the money. Nothing violent.”
“He killed the hacker. And you knew it.”
Fiona shut her mouth. Shana tried prying out of her what she knew about Harry’s murder but Fiona said nothing. The woman began to cry.
“What about the Swiss bank account, Fiona?”
The woman’s head shot up before she realized she ought to play it cool.
“What Swiss bank account?”
“The one with your name on it.”
“My name?”
Shana knew the woman wanted to correct her and say there were two other names on it too, but Fiona was worried about admitting to knowing too much.
* * *
Dane still stood in the doorway and he knew he shouldn’t say anything, but the tension in the observation room spiked with the talk about the missing money.
“Special Agent Peck,” Dane said mildly, “How do you suppose the Whitakers managed to hide that money away without you knowing about it back when you made the arrest and had Sebastian thrown in jail for embezzlement?”
“I knew nothing about any Swiss bank account,” Peck said.
He sounded reasonable and unoffended. “We looked for the money back in the day, but Harry the Hacker hid it real good and as far as I know, that’s why he got himself killed—you heard Fiona—Sebastian had him killed right after he got access to his money because he didn’t want to share with the guy that had sent him to jail. ”
“I’m sure what you’re saying is true, Peck,” Evans said. “But you know there’ll need to be an investigation once we button up this case against the Whitakers.”
Dane was listening to them talking so he almost missed the next part of the interrogation.
Shana was consoling Mrs. Whitaker and got her to quiet down enough to ask one more question.
“Any idea who might have tried to run me down outside the beauty salon that day I came to talk to you?”
Fiona wasn’t good enough to hide her surprise, but Dane believed she truly knew nothing about that anyway. Apparently, Peck hadn’t coached her on what to say to this question because she sat mute.
“What’s this about?” The SAC asked Peck. Peck shrugged and Evans turned to Peter and David and Cap and then finally to Dane for an explanation.
It wasn’t time for Dane to talk yet, so he shrugged his shoulders.
While everyone turned back to the monitors to continue watching the interrogation, Dane slipped into the hall with a wave of his hand at Peter.
He had called the man at the local police station where the Harold Small case had been handled and asked them about their system.
And their backup drives. They provided a link to their backups and sent the information to Acer’s iPad.
He needed to find out what Acer had found—this would be a good time. Much longer and Peck might be able to slip it under the rug with everything else about this case.
Dane walked a few steps away from the room and punched in Acer’s number.
“What do you have for me?”
“You’re lucky I got anything. This guy’s good—whoever erased the files was almost thorough.
But I found the ballistics tests on the bullet that killed Harry Small.
It did not match the one in my shooting—Cap had sent them the report on the bullet I confiscated.
The Harry Small bullet was shot from an HS Precision Series 2000 Sniper Rifle. ”
“A standard FBI-issued rifle,” Dane said. “Gotta go—you get back here ASAP.”
Dane hurried back into the room and zeroed in on Peter. This would be a good time to stand next to the governor—an implied use of his authority.
When there was a pause in the interrogation room on the monitor, Dane spoke up.
“I have new information. I would like Peck, Captain Lynch and me to be brought into the interrogation room with Fiona, Sebastian, and Wallace White. It’s strategically important for us all to be in the room at once for further interrogation.”
“What’s this new information?” Peck asked before the SAC had a chance.
Dane looked at him and said nothing. Peter looked cool, as if he knew what it was all about. Cap looked intensely concerned, but that was a perfect role for him.
David had adopted his bored Brit look and said to him under his breath, “Are you setting up a Ms. Marple scene where you assemble all the suspects and accuse someone in the room of murder while you then unfold the story for us all?”
Dane twitched the corner of his mouth. While Evans and Peck discussed the matter, he said in a whisper, “It’s the British in you that figured me out.”
“This is a bullshit idea,” Peck said.
“This is the FBI’s interrogation and we will run it as we see fit,” the ASAC, Mark Richards said. “You’re lucky you’re even here, let alone dictating how we—”
“It was a suggestion,” the governor said. Peter looked at Owen Evans who was silent up until now and wisely considering his options.
Dane decided this was a good time to cut to the chase. It would be his role to push the matter and allow the governor to remain reasonable.
“Or if need be, we can keep the information all to ourselves. Until later when you have your press conference.” He stared down the SAC, not in his shark-like way, but in his serious-as-an-undertaker way.
“Mark,” the governor said, “we would rather share the information and see you get credit to ensure that whoever shot at our friend Mr. Acerman comes to justice.”
Evans knew an opening when he saw one and nodded. He dispatched his assistants to assemble the suspects. Not including Peck, who in Dane’s mind was the biggest suspect of all.
Dane watched Peck turn blood red and hold his tongue like he was a teapot boiling over. Peck was not stupid and he might not have figured out what Dane had up his sleeve, but he knew it was something.
Dane was the first to intrude on Shana’s party. He swept open the door and walked straight for the chair next to her. Peck followed, with Cap right behind.
The two agents lead Wally the sniper and Sebastian Whitaker each to the other side of the table. Sebastian, Fiona and Wally sat on one side of the sturdy table in that order, while Dane, Shana, Cap and Peck sat on the other side.