Chapter 43
Senator Ronald Scott was what Matthew would have looked like in another thirty years. Tall and distinguished, he wore his authority like he wore his designer suit, appearing expensive, charismatic, and above all, dignified.
Belinda, his wife, wore her grief with an exquisite, almost painful beauty. Her pale hair and makeup were flawless, her dress and heels both flattering yet staid enough to not look as if she’d put effort into her looks.
Jane had no doubt the couple loved their son, but how much of a burden did they feel about what had happened to Matthew? Were they to blame in any way?
She met her boss and ASAC Haversham in Haversham’s office, where the Scotts were seated on the couch together, holding hands. Haversham sat in one of the chairs across from them. Grimshaw sat in the other. To Jane’s relief, the SAC was nowhere in sight.
She had enough to deal with just handling the Scotts and her bosses. Jane didn’t need the big man in charge hovering over her as well.
“Apologies for my delay,” Jane said as she entered the room after a brief knock. “I was downstairs looking into some things.”
Haversham stood. “Agent Cannon, please come in. Senator and Mrs. Scott are here to get an update on where we are with the case.”
Considering it had not yet been twenty-four hours since Matthew’s death, they were hoping for a miracle.
The senator stood when she entered and reached out a hand. She shook it then leaned down to take Mrs. Scott’s hand as well and found the woman’s grip surprisingly firm.
“Senator, ma’am.” Jane nodded in respect. “I’m so sorry for what’s happened. Matthew was an amazing boss and dedicated agent.”
Senator Scott nodded stiffly and sat.
She had to add, “And a genuinely good person.”
His mother broke down in tears once more, and it was all Jane could do to hold it together. “Thank you for saying that,” Belinda said through a watery smile. “He spoke highly of you, Jane.”
That was news to her.
“He liked you very much,” Senator Scott said, his voice deeper than Matthew’s, but their inflections were similar.
“And I liked him.” Jane cleared her throat. “He never shied from the truth.” She did her best to not appear as if studying the Scotts for guilt.
In any case, she saw nothing but sadness.
“We realize you can’t divulge what Matthew was working on, but it seems that his death wasn’t random,” the senator said.
Jane glanced at Haversham, who nodded.
“I was telling the Scotts that Matthew was involved in a special case the four of us were working.” Interesting that Haversham included Grimshaw, who had been working with them on it before only peripherally through Jane.
“Yes, sir.”
“What made you go to his house yesterday?” Belinda asked.
Since Haversham was playing along and he’d been aware of Matthew’s concerns, Jane followed his lead and fished subtly for answers.
“Matthew had been looking into a suspect we’ve been investigating for some time. His name pops up now and again, but nothing sticks. He wanted me to keep aware and to let him know if I heard things.”
“And had you?” Mrs. Scott asked and leaned forward. “Did this person kill my son?”
Her husband reached for her hand again and gripped it.
“We don’t know yet. I was worried because I hadn’t heard from Matthew since Monday. We’d been texting about the case, sharing details. Because it seems like the case I’m working on now does involve that suspect to some extent.”
Haversham sighed. “It’s August Kaminski, Ronald. I know you know who he is.”
The senator blinked. “I’ve heard that name, yes, but in higher circles. He’s a rumored manipulator. No one’s ever seen him in person.”
Jane jumped in with both feet. “He’s never contacted you? Because your name is supposedly on the Collective list.”
Senator Scott took a beat to answer, his voice calm with the right shade of confusion. “Collective?”
That pause told Jane all she needed to know. A glance at Haversham showed he’d seen it too.
He explained, “The Collective is a group of eleven wealthy benefactors who have an agenda.”
“What agenda?” Belinda Scott looked perplexed. “What does this have to do with Matthew?”
“We think the Collective has a problem,” Jane continued since Haversham looked to her to explain.
“They’re working to some end we don’t yet understand, but not everyone is on board.
The families involved, the Duvalls and Coatneys, the Strands and Hartes, have been killed or threatened by the leader of the Collective. We don’t know why yet.”
“Matthew was working on this?” Senator Scott asked, obviously disturbed.
“He was aware of it,” Haversham answered. “But Jane is the lead agent on the case under Natalie.” He nodded to Grimshaw. “They’ve kept me aware and up to date on everything. As you know, the Duvalls, Coatneys, and Strands are all dead.”
Belinda’s hand rose to her throat. “Their families too. It’s horrible.”
“It is,” Jane agreed. “We believe August Kaminski is behind this Collective. And that he and his associates aren’t seeing eye to eye. So some of them are being eliminated.”
Belinda’s eyes widened. “Whole families, though. He’s killing children!”
“Yes. And we’ve been trying to stop him, but nothing connects to August.” She studied the senator. “Until we found your aide, Louis Miller, deceased.”
Belinda crumpled her tissue in a tight fist.
Jane continued as if she hadn’t noticed. “A notebook was found at the scene of the crime, which connects his death to the home invasions I’ve been investigating. The name August Kaminski was found in that notebook.”
If the Scotts were involved, nothing she’d told them would be news. But if they weren’t, they knew as much as Jane did. None of what she’d shared would hurt her case.
“I don’t understand.” Senator Scott frowned. “Why kill Louis? Why Matthew? It doesn’t make sense.”
“It does if Kaminski and his underlings are trying to blame each other for the deaths.”
“How?” Belinda’s breath hitched. “My son was investigating this Kaminski person. So Kaminski killed him?”
“I believe he or his companions were sending a message to each other.”
“What?”
Haversham cleared his throat. “One of the people working for August Kaminski goes by the name Rook. We believe Rook is the mastermind behind Kaminski’s organization.
But August and Rook have had some kind of disagreement.
One of them is killing the wealthy families on the Collective list. We don’t know what the end result will be.
Or what the Collective is after—was after—in the first place. But we’re trying to find out.”
Belinda looked at Jane. “You didn’t hear from my son, so you worried something might have happened to him.”
“I did.” Jane nodded. “Had you heard from him at all this past week?”
“No.” Belinda sighed. “He’d told us we might not hear from him for a while since he was working on something important. Usually, he’d call every few days. We had weekly dinners. And when Louis went missing, he said he’d help us.”
“He tried,” Jane said. “Matthew was dedicated to bringing Kaminski to justice. Nothing you or any of us could have done would have prevented him from his job. From doing the right thing.” She stared at the senator, who studiously avoided her gaze.
The room went silent for a moment and then ASAC Haversham said, “Again, we’re so sorry for your loss.
For all our losses. You know, Matthew was a great friend of mine.
” His eyes were glassy. “I still can’t process it.
I can’t even begin to imagine your pain.
I’ll do everything I can to find the truth.
We’ll find out who killed him, Ronald, Belinda. You have my word.”
They stood. Senator Scott shook his hand, but Belinda gave him a hug and said, “You do that, Jon. And don’t forget to come to dinner later this month. I’ll be expecting you.”
“I will. I’m so sorry, Belinda. For everything.”
She wiped her eyes once more.
SSA Grimshaw, who’d been quiet up to that point, expressed her condolences as well, shaking hands. Until only Jane stood between the exit and the Scotts.
The senator extended a hand, his eyes warm when he said, “Thank you for being his friend, Jane.”
She sniffed.
His expression turned to one of real grief and he stepped aside so his wife could say goodbye as well.
“I’m so sorry we never got to know you, Jane,” Belinda said. She took Jane’s hand between hers and squeezed. Then she leaned in to whisper, “He really, really liked you.”
Angry at the tear that escaped, Jane quickly wiped it away and nodded. “The feeling was mutual. He will be dearly missed.”
They left.
Haversham and Grimshaw studied her. “Do you need some time, Jane?” Grimshaw asked, her voice kind.
“No one will mind,” Haversham agreed. “I’m taking today. I told the director I’d like to arrange a special ceremony for Matthew later this week.”
Grimshaw nodded. “That’s more than appropriate. I’ve heard nothing but great things about my predecessor.”
Haversham gave her a sad nod. “He was a great man.”
Jane’s phone buzzed, thankfully giving her an out from all this maudlin talk. “Excuse me one moment.”
She stepped aside and answered her cell. Hal had come through. “Hey, what do you have for me?”
“I sent you the file. It wasn’t corrupted so much as it had a funky protocol set to protect it. It’s a list of August Kaminski’s holdings and investments into a place called Castle Capital.”
“That is amazing work. Thanks, Hal. I owe you.”
“The offer for that equipment is still on the table.”
“Gotta go.” She hung up before he could offer to slit the enemy’s throat or string him up by his thumbs.
“Sir, ma’am, we have a major break in the case. A direct tie from August Kaminski to Castle Capital.”
“Castle Capital?” Haversham said. “I know that name.”
Grimshaw’s eyes flashed. “That’s because it’s the private equity company Harte uses to invest the money the Collective gives him.”
Haversham grinned. “And we can now tie that to August Kaminski. Finally. Let’s find something to nail the bastard.”