Chapter Thirty-Three
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
A rchie’s heart was in his throat as Erica drove him to the hospital. If Erica and SVU were involved, whatever had happened was bad.
“What’s her name?” Erica asked.
“Harlowe St. John.”
“That sounds like a fake name.”
“I thought so, too, but she said she was named after her maternal grandmother. She said my name sounded fake, too, because I go by my last name exclusively.”
Erica chuckled. “I don’t even know your first name.”
“No one does. It’s Francis. I was named after my grandfather. He called me Franny, which wasn’t my favorite name as a kid. In school, I only answered to Archie, and I’ve stuck with that ever since.”
“Can’t say I blame you. How do you know her?”
“We met at a party at the home of mutual friends.”
“What do you know about her?”
“Not much. She’s in sales for one of the big food companies. Grew up in the Pittsburgh area, came to DC for college and never left.” He glanced over at Erica. “What happened to her?”
“We don’t know the details yet, but she was beaten, raped and left for dead by the river. A fisherman found her and called it in.”
Archie groaned.
“We don’t know for sure it’s your friend.”
“You said the physical description matches.”
“It does. She seems to have amnesia and couldn’t tell us the most basic facts, including her name. The memory loss could be the result of trauma. I’ve seen that before.”
His mind was racing as he learned more details. He wasn’t sure whether to hope the woman in the hospital was Harlowe or not.
As he followed Erica through the hospital’s main entrance, his legs felt rubbery, as if they wouldn’t support his weight for much longer. It was a feeling he’d never experienced before, and it did nothing to help his unsettled state.
They took the elevator.
He couldn’t have said later what floor they landed on, what room she was in, or which Patrol officer was positioned outside her door, things he’d normally take note of and remember as a trained detective. His years of experience went out the window when he saw the woman he’d begun to care about in a hospital bed, her face bruised, her lip swollen and cut and her eyes wild as she seemed to shrink into the bed at the sight of him and Erica.
“It’s her,” he said quietly so only Erica would hear him.
Erica approached the bed. “This is Archie. He’s a friend of yours. He said your name is Harlowe.”
“I… I don’t know him, or anyone with that name.”
Her distress touched him deeply, making him wish he could put his arms around her and assure her that she was safe now. But he kept his distance out of respect for what she’d endured.
Erica spoke to her gently for a few more minutes and then ushered him out of the room.
“What do I do, Erica? Tell me what to do. ”
“Give her some space to recover. Hopefully, her memory will come back.”
“What if it doesn’t?”
“Let’s just wait and see.”
“They did a rape kit, right?”
“Yes, and it’s with the lab. I asked for a rush.”
He leaned back against the wall and exhaled a deep breath.
“Is there anyone you could call for her?”
“I don’t know her people. We hadn’t gotten that far yet.”
“What about the company where she works?”
Archie tried to clear the noise in his brain so he could think about what she’d told him about her job. “I can’t remember the name of the company, but she said it was sales for a food company that stocks restaurants and grocery stores.”
“That helps. I’ll do some digging. Why don’t you come back to HQ with me?”
“I’d rather stay close here since she doesn’t have anyone else.”
“She’s not comfortable having you in her room.”
“I’ll stay out here. Just in case.”
“Of what, Archie?”
“I’m not sure. Whatever she needs.”
“Stay out of there. I mean it. She’s very fragile, and she didn’t recognize you. I’d feel better if you came back to HQ with me.”
“I care about her, Erica. I mean… I’ve only known her a short time, but there was a connection. I’ve been out of my mind with worry about her since she went silent on me a few days ago. The Harlowe I know would want me here.”
“The Harlowe you know isn’t in there right now, and she needs you to keep your distance. Come with me so you don’t get yourself in trouble.”
“I won’t get in trouble. I promise. I’ll stay right here with Officer… Smyth and stay out of the way. ”
Erica looked to the tall, muscular officer. “Keep him out here.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Archie didn’t remind them that he outranked them both. That wouldn’t serve his purpose of being allowed to stay close to Harlowe.
“I’ll check in in a bit,” Erica said.
“I’ll be here.”
After she left, he slid down the wall, withdrew his phone and got busy. Hearing what she’d endured, he was determined to do what he could to help her, starting with the thing he’d hesitated to do before now—a deep dive online.
Sam was in the conference room with her team, going over each piece of evidence in the Myerson case, when she received a text from Erica Lucas.
My vic is Archie’s friend. She doesn’t recognize him and is nervous about having him in the room. He’s undone in a way I’ve never seen before and insisted on staying outside the room. Officer Smyth is under orders to keep him out of the room.
I’ll check on him in a little while.
He gave me some good info I can use to track down her family. I’m on that when I get back to the house.
Let me know if we can help.
Will do.
Captain Malone came into the conference room and handed Sam two printed pages. “Warrants for the Myerson girls’ second cell phones. Judge McHenry said he wants solid proof they’re involved before he’ll issue any more warrants.”
“Does he realize that’s what we’re trying to do?”
“I believe he does, but since they’re minors, he’s treading carefully.”
“What’s the latest from CSU about the processing of the house? ”
“They’ve done the basement and are finishing up on the first floor. They haven’t found anything they would deem helpful.”
“I’d like to look through the girls’ rooms myself. Let’s head over there, Freddie.”
“I’m with you, boss.”
“Let me run these warrants up to IT first. I’ll be right back.” Sam went up the stairs and into the IT cave. “Who’s Archie when Archie isn’t here?”
A young man with brown skin and close-cropped dark hair stood. “I’m Sergeant Walters, Lieutenant. How can I help you?”
Sam went to him and handed him the warrants. “Can you get me a dump on these two lines ASAP?”
“Do you have the phones?”
“No, just the numbers.”
“That’ll take longer because we have to go through the carrier to get the data. They tend to resist giving out that info about their customers.”
“Even when we have a warrant?”
“Even then.”
“How about when lives might be at risk?”
“I can pass along that info, but in my experience, using the word ‘critical’ doesn’t help to expedite things.”
“What word would help to move it along?”
“I’ve yet to discover that word, ma’am.”
Sam wanted to scream with frustration, but she couldn’t do that there. “We’ve got two young people suspected of murder on the run. We need to find them.”
“I’ll get right on it and do what I can.”
“Thank you, Sergeant.”
“Is everything all right with Lieutenant Archelotta? It’s not like him to run out of here without a word to any of us.”
“He found out a friend has been injured. I’m sure you’ll hear from him soon. ”
“I’ll text him to let him know not to worry about things here.”
“I’m sure he’d appreciate that.” Sam handed him her card. “Call me if you have any luck with the phone company.”
“Will do.”
“Thank you, Sergeant Walters.”
“My pleasure, Lieutenant.”
Sam went back downstairs, collected Freddie and hurried toward the morgue exit, hoping to get to the Myerson home, do what needed to be done and then get home for dinner with her kids since Nick wouldn’t be there.
Those words, Nick wouldn’t be there , were enough to send her mood plummeting as Vernon drove them to Crestwood.
Her phone rang with yet another call from a number she didn’t recognize. “Holland.”
“This is Jillian Danvers. I’m a, um, friend of Juan Rodriguez’s. Your, um, partner gave me your card.”
“You’re the friend from the coffee shop?”
“Yes, that’s me. No one will tell me anything about what happened to him, and now people are saying he’s alive, and… I haven’t known him that long, but…” Her voice broke. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Let me make a few calls. I’ll have someone get in touch with you.”
“Do you promise someone will call? Juan always said you and your husband were good people…”
“I promise someone will call you.”
“Thank you very much.”
Sam slapped her phone closed. “This goddamned situation with NCIS is making me crazy.”
As always, Freddie frowned at her using the Lord’s name in vain. “What now?”
“That was Juan’s girlfriend, or whatever she is, upset that no one will tell her anything.” Sam found Truver’s name in her contacts and made the call .
“Truver.”
“I just got off the phone with yet another friend of Juan’s who’s heartbroken and concerned and can’t get anyone to tell her what’s going on.”
“Who?”
“Jillian Danvers.”
“I’ll take care of it.”
Before Sam could say anything else, the line went dead. “Charming.” She closed her phone. “Remind me later to check with Juan’s girlfriend to make sure she heard from NCIS.”
“I got a text from the marshals that the doctors are keeping Jada for one more night. They’ll have her back to DC tomorrow.”
“Damn. She must be pretty banged up.”
Her phone rang again, this time with a call from Cameron Green. “What’s up?”
“I found something interesting with the twins’ grandparents.”
“What’s that?”
“They’re completely broke. They have less than a hundred dollars in all their accounts. I took the liberty of checking into Cleo’s sister and brother-in-law, and they’re down to their last thousand.”
Sam’s heart began to beat rapidly. “Do we know what caused this financial disaster?”
“They were sued by two former employees, who prevailed to the tune of six million dollars, which was ordered paid two weeks ago.”
“Well, well, well. Isn’t that interesting?”
“I thought you’d think so. I’m sorry it took so long. It took some serious digging to put the full picture together. They’ve gone to some considerable effort to keep the situation private.”
“This is fantastic news, Cam. Thank you so much.”
“I hope it helps to make this go away.”
“I’m pretty sure it will. I’ll let you know.” She closed the phone and dug the secure BlackBerry out of her coat pocket to call Nick.
“Hey, babe,” he said. “How’s it going?”
“It’s going extremely well. I asked Cam to look into the financial situation of the twins’ grandparents, and what he found is very, very interesting.” She filled him in on the details.
“Holy shit. You were right. It’s a cash grab.”
“What was that second thing you said? Could you say that again?”
He chuckled. “This is huge news, Sam.”
“Trust me, I know. Should I call Andy?”
“Absolutely.”
“I’ll let you know what he says. Where are you?”
“Somewhere over Nebraska.”
It gave her the willies to think of him thirty thousand feet in the air. “Text me when you land.”
“You’ll be the first to know. Love you.”
“Love you, too.” Sam ended that call and used her flip phone to call Andy. When his assistant answered, Sam said, “This is Sam Cappuano. May I please speak to Andy?”
“Are you able to hold for a minute, ma’am? He’s finishing up a meeting.”
“I can hold.”
“Did they put the first lady on hold?” Freddie asked, amused.
“It’s fine. He’s finishing a meeting.”
“Hey, Sam,” Andy said when he came on the line two minutes later. “Sorry to keep you waiting. What’s up?”
Sam told him what Cameron had uncovered about the financials.
Andy let out a low whistle. “Our people had gotten nowhere on cracking the firewall around their financial situation.”
Sam felt a surge of pride for Cameron—and her entire team. She worked with the best of the best, and this was just another example of their skill. “Will this help to make the case go away?”
“It should. I’m going to call their attorney and let them know if they don’t drop their custody demands, we’ll file a countersuit that’ll make public their precarious financial status and call this the money grab from their orphaned grandchildren that it is.”
“Excellent. Let me know how that goes.”
“I’ll be back to you.”
“Thanks, Andy.” Sam closed the phone and texted Nick on the BlackBerry to update him.
He wrote right back . I’ll let Eli know what’s going on. He’ll be happy to hear this. He’s been very upset.
“This is great news, Sam,” Freddie said. “You must be relieved.”
“I am, but I still want to do whatever it takes to make them go away for good, up to and including adopting the three of them. I can’t go through this every few months. My nerves can’t handle it.”
The BlackBerry buzzed with a text from Eli to her and Nick. He, too, had a BlackBerry so he could talk to Nick securely.
I’m so glad to hear this news, but we have to do something to make it so they can’t do this again. I can’t function when they’re coming after us. Do you think it might be worth a one-time payment to Cleo’s family that would come with some sort of signed agreement to go away and leave us alone?
Nick replied, While I understand the thinking behind that, I’d hate to see you reward them for what’s basically blackmail, especially since they haven’t reached out to any of us to see or talk to the kids for all these months. It would be one thing if they’d stepped up for the kids, but they haven’t. At all.
I agree, Sam said. We offered the opportunity for them to see the kids, and they never made a single overture. They’ve shown us who they really are, following the MURDER of their daughter and son- in-law/sister/brother-in-law. They don’t deserve a dime of your father’s hard-earned money.
I want them to go away , Eli wrote. Whatever it takes.
Let’s leave it to Andy for now, Nick said. We’ll discuss again after he’s had the chance to speak to their attorney. Try not to worry. Our position is solid, and this is an obvious attempt to get at the money. There’s not a judge alive who wouldn’t see it that way. Hang in there, and we’ll keep you posted.
Thanks for everything, guys. Not sure what we’d do without you.
You’ll never have to find out, Sam said. We love you.
What my lovely wife said!
“Everything okay?” Freddie asked.
“Yeah, it’s good. We’re talking to Eli about what Cam found about the grandparents’ financial position, or lack thereof.”
“I can’t believe they’d be shameless enough to come after their orphaned grandchildren’s money.”
“I can. They’ve been disgusting from the start. Imagine not showing a scrap of compassion for your daughter’s devastated children.”
“I can’t. I would’ve been on the first plane to take them home and love them forever.”
“I think a lot about what would’ve become of them that night in the hospital if Nick and I hadn’t already been licensed foster parents.”
“Thank God you were and that you stepped up for them when they needed you most.”
“We love them so much. They’ve only been with us for a short time, but it’s like they’ve always been part of us. I can’t imagine life without them.”
“You won’t have to. The minute Andy tells their lawyer you’re on to their scheme, they’ll run away with their tails between their legs. And then you and Nick will adopt the three of them, and no one will ever be able to threaten your family again.”
As if Eli had heard what Freddie said, the BlackBerry buzzed with a new text from him. I’ve also been thinking a lot about the adoption idea, and the more I consider it, the more I think it makes sense to shut the door on this bullshit forever. I talked to Candace, and she agrees that it would protect all of us, and she knows how much you guys mean to me and the twins. What do you think of Armstrong-Cappuano?
Sam’s eyes instantly filled with tears.
“What?” Freddie asked. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she said softly as she handed the phone to him so he could read Eli’s text. “Nothing is wrong. Everything is just right.”
Sam and Freddie spent three hours sifting through the contents of Zoe’s and Jada’s bedrooms. What stood out to Sam after the first hour was how neat both rooms were, which was in sharp contrast to the mess in Scotty’s room most of the time.
“Is the neatness a little weird?” she asked Freddie as they were finishing up.
“I think it’s intentional. They knew we’d end up here and were ready for us. Or Elaine cleaned their rooms when she was home alone on Sunday.”
Sam peeled off the latex gloves she’d worn to search the rooms. “Possibly. I hate that we wasted our time.”
“Nothing is a waste of time if it checks a box.”
“That’s true, I guess.” She checked her watch, saw it was nearly six and decided to call it a day. “Let’s go home and regroup at eight tomorrow. I’ll hand off to Carlucci.”
“Sounds good.”
They checked in with the CSU detectives still on-site before they left the house.
“Find anything interesting?” Lieutenant Max Haggerty asked.
“Not a single thing. ”
“Us either. We’re thinking someone did a sweep in anticipation of our investigation.”
“We picked up the same vibe upstairs.”
“What’re you thinking?” Max asked as he rubbed the back of his neck. He and his team had been working nonstop lately because of the scene at Stahl’s house.
“I’m almost positive the older daughter and her boyfriend took out the mother. They’re on the run, so they’ve more or less confirmed my hunch by running. The marshals are working on finding them.”
“How old are they?”
“Seventeen and eighteen.”
“Damn.”
Sam’s phone rang with yet another number she didn’t recognize. “Holland.”
“This is Sergeant Walters. I wanted to let you know that I’ve requested the data from the second cell phones and emphasized the urgency. I’ll keep you posted.”
“Thank you.”
“Also, Lieutenant Archelotta had asked me to look into whether either of the daughters were true-crime fans, and on the original phones, I learned that Zoe listened to numerous true-crime podcasts and followed about a hundred true-crime accounts on TikTok.”
“There it is.” Sam’s entire body lit up with the buzz that came from closing in on a killer. “That’s how she planned this whole thing. One how-to podcast at a time. This is very helpful, Sergeant. Thank you.”
“Happy to help.”
Sam closed the phone and relayed the update to Freddie as they headed outside.
“What’re you thinking about Jada’s involvement?”
“She wasn’t part of it,” Sam said, feeling certain now. “This was all Zoe and possibly Zeke.”
“Why’d they take her with them when they ran? ”
“Maybe to make it look like she was in on it, too?”
“Our interview with her will be key to the whole thing.”
“Yep. Drop you at the Metro?”
“Sure. Columbia Heights is nearby.”
When they pulled up to the Metro station a few minutes later, Sam said, “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Call me if anything breaks in the meantime. I can come back if need be.”
“Hopefully, we can get a night at home before we wrap this one up tomorrow.”
“That’d be good. Later.”