Chapter 4
Chapter Four
The global headquarters of Ashford Industries was located in a twenty-five-story high-rise in midtown that Dominic Ashford had built several years ago.
While the top five floors of the building were reserved solely for Ashford Industries, the rest of the building was leased by other large and successful companies.
After passing through security, Kara and Tyler were escorted upstairs by a suited man who had little to say except that he'd take them to see Mr. Ashford.
When the elevator doors opened, they stepped into a luxe office suite, where their escort conversed with the receptionist before asking them to take a seat in the reception area.
They didn't bother to sit down. She was determined to see Dominic as soon as possible and was prepared to use her badge to force her way into the office if she had to.
Thankfully, the receptionist got up from her desk and took them through a pair of double doors and down a short hallway to Dominic's office.
Dominic got up from behind a massive mahogany desk and came around to greet them.
He was a very attractive man in his mid-thirties, impeccably dressed in a gray suit, his blond hair perfectly styled, his face clean-shaven.
He had that executive glow that spoke of expensive skin products.
After they'd introduced themselves, he waved them toward a corner where two black leather sofas surrounded a coffee table.
"Please sit down," he said with a British accent.
"First, we're very sorry about what happened to Samantha Barkley," she said as they sat down. "We understand the two of you are romantically involved."
"Yes," he said shortly. "How can I help you?"
"How long have you been seeing Ms. Barkley?" she asked.
"About three months. We met at a charity fundraiser.
" He paused, his blue-eyed gaze reflective.
"I have to admit I wasn't looking to date a lawyer.
But Samantha was beautiful, smart, and passionate about her work.
I couldn't resist. That said, I can't imagine the details of our relationship would be helpful to your investigation. "
"Samantha texted Max Malone, who I believe works for you," she continued. "He claims he didn't know what she wanted to speak to him about. Do you know?"
"I don't. I was surprised she reached out to him directly. She must have had a question about something related to her caseload."
"Do you think she felt threatened?" Tyler interjected. "She didn't mention anyone with whom she had a problem?"
"No. Samantha is a strong woman with little patience for incompetence. I would venture to say she could have been easily annoyed by many people."
She didn't find that difficult to believe, remembering the dirty look Samantha had thrown her when she'd moved into her personal space.
"What about her current case?" Tyler continued. "Did she talk to you about it?"
"She mentioned that members of a renowned accounting firm in the city were under indictment, and she was going to prosecute them for fraud.
We didn't discuss the details. I know you're looking for a lead, but I don't have one.
Maybe one of her coworkers or the DA would know more, especially if this attack was related to her work. "
His tone was smooth, his answers seemingly helpful, but he also wasn't telling them much. She needed to shake him up a little. "What if the attack was related to you? Do you have enemies who might see your girlfriend as a way to get to you?"
He stiffened at her words, but he quickly composed himself. "I haven't received any threats in recent weeks. And I pray she didn't get hurt because of me. I don't think I could live with myself if that were the case."
"We found a file in Samantha's apartment," she continued.
"It appeared to be an itinerary for your upcoming trip to Tajikistan.
There was handwriting on the last page; I don't know whether it belonged to Samantha or to someone else.
But the note had two words: danger and cost, with a question mark. "
Dominic's lips tightened. "Samantha was concerned about an infrastructure project my company is breaking ground on next month. The region can be dangerous, but I have a security expert who will make sure our event is as safe as it can be."
"And would that expert be Max Malone?" Tyler interjected.
"Yes, it would," Dominic replied, not offering any further details.
"The man Samantha wanted to talk to," Tyler continued.
"Well, now that you mention the file, I'm thinking it's because she was worried about me, about the trip.
There was an incident last year with my security in a different region of that country.
We were ambushed, and two of my security guards were killed.
That's why we moved the project to a different area. "
"But Tajikistan is not that big," Tyler said. "Do you really think the danger is gone?"
"We will have more support this time."
"And that will be expensive," she said.
"It usually is," Dominic replied. "But this is an important project. It will change lives. It's an enormous investment for the company, but it will be worth it."
He sounded passionate, sincere, or he might just be a great salesperson.
"Do you have any leads at all into the bomber?" Dominic asked, changing the subject.
"Not at this time," she answered.
"That's disappointing. I've been racking my brain trying to think of who might have wanted to hurt Samantha.
While we didn't talk that much about her current case, she mentioned that the accounting firm had clients tied to organized crime.
One of those clients is Armen Petroysan, who owns a chain of automotive dealerships. "
She nodded. Armen Petroysan had been on both the NYPD and the FBI's radar for years, but there had never been enough evidence to bring him in on anything. "That's interesting. We're still trying to get the case files from the DA's office."
"What's the problem? Do I need to make a call? I know the DA. I can put some pressure on him."
"They're going to release the files; it's just a process," she said. "And to be quite frank, we don't know if Samantha was the target or just in the wrong place at the wrong time, so we have to look at everything. But we appreciate the tip, and we will look into that case."
"Is that it?" Dominic asked as he rose, clearly ready to end the meeting.
"One more thing," she said as she got to her feet. "How long have you known Max Malone?"
"Max?" Dominic echoed, surprised by the question. "A long time. We went to boarding school together in the UK—Harrow. We were there for two years together."
She hadn't been expecting that answer. "I didn't realize you were friends."
"Well, we lost touch for a long time, but we've reconnected, and Max is very good at his job."
"Because of his CIA background?" Tyler asked.
Dominic's eyebrows rose slightly, as if he wasn't sure how to answer that question, but he said simply, "You'll have to talk to him about his background. Let me show you out."
They were at the door when Tyler paused, "Mr. Ashford, can you account for your whereabouts Monday morning between seven and nine a.m.?"
Dominic's expression turned stony. "You're asking me for an alibi for an explosion that almost killed a woman I care about?"
"Standard procedure in an investigation like this," Tyler said calmly.
"I was here." Dominic said tightly. "I had a conference call with investors in Dubai at eight a.m." The warmth drained from his demeanor. "My assistant and my security people can confirm that." He pointedly opened the door.
"Thank you for your time," she said, noting how quickly the door closed behind them.
When they got into the elevator, Tyler said, "What do you think?"
"He answered our questions. His emotions seemed appropriate."
"But?" Tyler asked.
"I felt like there was something he wasn't saying."
"I felt the same way. I wouldn't be surprised if this bomb had more to do with him and less to do with Samantha. Maybe someone wanted to send him a message. We need to find out what happened on his last trip to Tajikistan."
"And maybe more about Armen Petroysan. I'd like to know how Samantha's case is going to affect him."
"Well, we should get her case files soon. Let's go back to the office."
The rest of Tuesday delivered little progress, Kara thought, as she stretched and rolled her neck around on her shoulders a little after five.
The files from the DA's office would arrive in the morning, so she'd spent most of her time re-interviewing witnesses and using social media to find out more about Samantha Barkley and Dominic Ashford's relationship.
They'd spent a lot of time at philanthropic events and political fundraisers, with a few dinners and birthday parties with local politicians and CEOs, all of whom appeared to be friends with Dominic.
But she wasn't as interested in his friends as she was in his enemies.
When she'd asked him if Samantha could have been targeted because of her relationship to him, it was clear that he couldn't rule out that possibility.
But it was going to be difficult to find real information about Dominic on the Internet.
Which meant she needed to talk to Max again.
He hadn't returned any of her calls, but she had managed to get Wes to trace his phone to a Chinese restaurant on the edge of Chinatown.
Maybe it was time to check that out. She put on her coat, grabbed her bag, and headed down to the garage.
Twenty minutes later, she arrived at the Golden Dragon restaurant.
There appeared to be a door next to the restaurant that led to an upstairs apartment.
She wondered if Max might live there, although it didn't seem like the kind of a place a guy who owned his own security company and had a billionaire for a client would live.
Although it did seem like the kind of place that a CIA agent might use as a cover.