Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
Kara knew she should take Max home instead of to her apartment, but he wanted to work on the case together, and she was tired of living in her own head.
He might also have insight that she didn't have.
He might not be FBI, but he was well-trained in intelligence gathering, and she trusted him to be honest about what made sense and what didn't. It felt a little wrong that she wanted to work with him more than with her own team, but after what had happened at the safe house, she needed to keep things tight.
She just had to go with her gut, and for now, her instincts were telling her that Max was on the right side. Until they told her otherwise, she was going to go with that belief.
Her apartment was just as she'd left it, including the pillow and blanket that Max had used the night before when he'd slept on her couch.
She moved over to her dining table and opened her laptop computer while Max sat down across from her, pulling out his phone. "What are you searching for?"
"Information on Wexler Properties and the Meridien Tower. You?"
"Same, but I'm also going to finish my search through Samantha's case files. I've already gone through five years, but maybe there's something further back, something to do with Meridien Tower."
For the next half hour, they worked in comfortable silence. It didn't feel nearly as boring knowing Max was trying to help her find the answers she desperately needed.
Finally, she found the case she was looking for.
"Here we go," she said. "Seven years ago, Samantha prosecuted a case against Redstone Technologies, a company that made smart systems for high-rise buildings.
But that system failed in the Meridien Tower, resulting in an explosion on the nineteenth floor and a fire that killed six people and injured seven others.
" Her gaze skimmed the cover page. "The Meridien Tower was owned by Wexler Properties. "
"What happened? Did anyone go to jail?" Max asked.
She shook her head. "No. The defendants made plea deals, and a civil case resulted in a significant cash settlement to the affected families."
"But no one was actually punished."
She lifted her gaze to his. "No, they weren't punished. And the city Building Department was named in the civil suit as well."
"Let me guess, the inspector was James Cooper."
"Yes, but according to the city's defensive statement, the building was up to code, and they had no way of knowing that the smart system would fail, as it was a new technology and had met all the requirements.
" She thought for a moment, seeing the wheels turning in Max's gaze as well.
"Samantha let the case drop. James Cooper might have approved something that wasn't quite right. "
"And someone has been looking for justice for a long time."
"Not justice anymore—revenge. That's what this is about. That's why the strikes are targeted, with minimal collateral damage."
"But an explosion," he continued. "Just like the one that killed those people. Who were the deceased?"
She turned back to her computer and pulled up the list of names.
"Lauren Canejo, age sixty-one, homemaker, Ron Canejo, age sixty-three, software engineer, Angie Palmeri, age forty-three, tax accountant, Harry Faulkner, age thirty-nine, manager of the Franklin Art Gallery, and…
" Her voice caught in her throat. "Tori Hartford, age thirty-six, a homemaker, and her six-year-old daughter, Ariel.
They were survived by David Hartford, age thirty-seven, a venture capitalist."
"Hartford?" Max questioned as she met his gaze. "As in Dominic's friend?"
She nodded. "I had no idea he was a widower, that he'd lost his wife and child, but it makes sense. He had a sadness about him. But he couldn't be behind this. He seemed like such a meek and mild-mannered man."
"One who has money to buy whatever he wants. What about the other surviving family members?"
She glanced back at the page. "The Canejos had an adult daughter, Alexa, twenty-three. Both Palmeri and Faulkner were single but had parents and siblings."
"Here's some more detail," Max said, interrupting her.
"This is from a follow-up article on the lawsuit, which was brought by the named survivors: Alexa Canejo, Palmeri's father, Joseph Palmeri, and Faulkner's father, Wilson Faulkner, also David Hartford.
" He paused. "I know Wilson Faulkner, too.
He plays golf with Dominic. He's an investment banker. "
"Any of them could want revenge. Maybe all of them."
"I'm betting the settlement was extremely substantial. This wasn't about money."
"No, I don't think it was. And the fact that two of the survivors have plenty of cash doesn't mean they don't want revenge. They also have the money to finance it. What's Faulkner like?"
"Loud, likes to name-drop and brag about his bank account."
"And Hartford is the opposite." She frowned. "I hope it's not him, because he seemed nice when I met him." She held up a hand. "And you don't need to remind me that a lot of killers seem nice, which is how they disarm you."
"Exactly."
She thought for a moment. "Okay, we've narrowed things down to the tower explosion, to the victims and their survivors. Let's focus on the targets."
"Samantha dropped the ball, let the defendant plead out," he said. "Cooper signed off on the project."
"Redstone Technologies," she muttered, glancing back at the file. "The owner is Mason Redstone. At the time of the explosion, he was forty-four years old and living in Tribeca."
"He's fifty-one now, still in Tribeca," Max said, keeping up with her search on the Internet. "His company changed its name to RK Sensor Solutions several months after the settlement."
"And then there's Stan Wexler, the owner of Wexler Properties. We haven't been able to talk to him yet. But since one of his buildings was blown up, he is probably no longer a target. Who else?" An odd expression moved through his gaze. "What are you thinking?"
"There's a conference at the Nexus Forum in Hudson Yards on Tuesday. It's called The Future of World Cities. The focus is infrastructure, capital, and politics all in one place, and Dominic is one of the featured speakers. Wexler Properties and some of the other targets might also be involved."
She opened a new window to search for the conference, and it popped up immediately, the list of speakers and attendees ranging from local to state and world leaders, as well as private equity firms, builders, and technology companies. "This will be a target-rich environment."
"With a great deal of security," he reminded her. "And so far, the strikes have been surgical in nature. An attack on the summit would be completely different."
"Wexler is attending. Redstone is as well. I'm betting Hartford and Faulkner will be there, too. This sounds like the climax."
He nodded, his expression serious. "It could be. At least it's a few days away. We have a little time."
"Three days. That's not much. And what if we haven't reached the climax yet? What if someone else, some lower-level participant needs to go down first, someone who won't be at the summit?"
"Good point. Let's see if we can find someone considered culpable but who wouldn't be at the summit. They could be the next target."
They spent another half hour trying to find out everything they could about the tower fire.
"There are several possibilities," she murmured.
"It depends on who someone would find the most responsible.
There was an architect and several different contractors in addition to Redstone Technologies involved with the building of the tower.
There was the smart system installation team, too.
And then you could look at the DA's office.
Samantha wasn't the only attorney involved.
A judge signed off on the plea deal," she said, her fingers flying across the keyboard.
"Judge Michael Androni. He wouldn't be at the conference on Tuesday.
If someone wanted to get to him, they'd have to find him at home or at the courthouse.
" She paused, looking at Max. "Obviously, I don't know if he's next, but he could be. "
"There are a lot of people who could be next," he said, fighting off a yawn. "It's almost midnight. I think we should call it a day, because the calendar is going to turn in three minutes."
"I can't believe it's that late," she murmured, having lost all track of time.
"You definitely know how to go all in on something," he said with a smile.
"Which is why I'm still single."
"If I leave, you're not going to stop working, are you?"
"I might just do a little more," she said honestly. "But you should go home. I'm sure you didn't sleep that well on my couch last night."
"Actually, I slept fine." He took a breath. "In fact, I was thinking I might try the couch again."
"You don't have to stay here and watch over me, Max. I'm a federal agent. I'm armed. I'm good."
"I know. But I'm tired, and it's cold outside, and I'll have to get a cab or a ride… Can I buy another night on the couch?"
"Well, you don't have to buy it. I owe you for putting up with my family, so if you really want to stay, you can stay." She wasn't sure that was the best decision, but she also didn't really want him to leave.
"Then I'll stay." He got up from the table, walked over to the couch, and sat down.
"Are you going to sleep now?" she asked. "I can take my computer into my bedroom."
"I think you should close the computer and come sit over here."
She gave him a wary look. "Why would I do that?"
He laughed. "You're very suspicious, Kara."
"And you're giving off shady vibes again."
"I just want to talk to you. We're both wired with too much information right now. Sleep won't come easy. Let's try to calm our brains down by discussing something else."
He had a point. She was so tired, the names were starting to blur in her mind.
He patted the couch next to him. "Come. Sit."