Chapter 46
Renz and I loaded the elevator with the boxed files for the Michael Lenstein murder case. When all ten boxes were in, I pressed the button to take us up to our floor. From that point, we would carry the boxes and try to organize them by number and date once they were in our office.
Our office was a comfortable size, but with ten file boxes sharing space with us for the unforeseeable future, it would definitely feel like the walls were closing in.
“Okay, they’re in our office. Now what?” I anchored my hands firmly on my hips and waited for Renz to figure it out. Because he was a guy, I knew he’d have no clue where to put them or stack them correctly so we wouldn’t trip over them. We still had Torrie’s belongings in there too.
Renz stood frozen in place with his eyes darting across our shared space. He finally pointed behind my desk. “That should work.”
I laughed. “So I can’t even pull my chair out to sit down? There’s more space behind your desk.”
He shook his head. “I’m bigger than you, so I need more room to pull out my chair.”
“Why did we bring every box up here now? We can’t go through them that fast. It’ll take a few weeks to go through each one.”
Renz shrugged. “Convenience?”
I tipped my head. “Really? I don’t see anything convenient about this, Renz. Let’s keep two in here at a time and stack the rest in the hallway outside the door.” I placed boxes one and two against our office wall and, using my foot, pushed the others out the door.
“Um.”
I ignored Renz while I stacked the boxes in order of date and number. Number ten went at the bottom of the stack. When I was done, I had two towers of boxes. Boxes ten, nine, eight, and seven were one stack, and six, five, four, and three were the other.
I slapped my hands together, gave Renz an eye roll as I passed him, and took two singles out of my wallet. “You coming? I thought you wanted coffee.”
“Taft isn’t going to let us keep those boxes in the hallway.”
“Why? Everyone who works here is in the FBI, and it’s a secured parking lot and building. Nobody is going to steal files from a ten-year-old unsolved case.”
Renz shook his head while walking to the cafeteria with me. “You want to make a bet?”
I punched his shoulder. “Your stupid basketball bet got us in this spot to begin with. Next time, carry some cash with you.”
Minutes later, we were back at our desks with hot coffee and enough room to pull our chairs out so we could sit down. I was content with that, but I wasn’t overly excited about working a case for which no one before me had ever found enough evidence or probable cause to arrest a suspect.
“Any suggestions on how we should start? I mean, you’ve gone down this rabbit hole before.”
Renz rubbed his forehead. “I’ll start going through box one again while you read the summary in that folder.”
I gave him a nod and dug in. Seconds later, my mind began to wander. “Do you think James Smith will ever be caught?”
“Maybe if he’s actually caught committing a crime.”
I gave Renz a frown. “Will Bill Gavin keep us in the loop?”
Renz set down the document he was reading. “We aren’t going to get anywhere with this case if you aren’t concentrating on it.”
I laughed. “What was everyone’s excuse during the last ten years?”
“I don’t know. Maybe we should interview all the key witnesses again before we waste a month reading what everyone before us has already read.”
“Yeah, I like that idea. Get out of the office and talk to people. Chances are their memories are fuzzier now, though.”
Renz agreed.
“I’ll go through this summary while you jot down the names of people you want to interview again. Then we have to see if they’re still in the area.”
We worked for several hours looking for the people who would have the most impact—neighbors and relatives of Matt Shane—and why they’d thought he was responsible for Michael Lenstein’s death.
We also went through the list of Ohio people who were interviewed and compared them to the local accounts.
Everyone had the same opinion of Matt Shane—he was a violent and dangerous man.
Some said his beef with Michael Lenstein was about drugs and money.
Renz added his opinion. “If you live a risky lifestyle like that, anyone can take you out.”
Of course Renz was right, and while Michael should have known the consequences of dealing in illegal narcotics, especially with somebody who had a hair-trigger personality, unexpected things could happen.
“Okay, I think we should meet up with two of the original witnesses before our workday ends. Let’s go pay them a visit.”
As we walked to the car, I asked Renz what those people had witnessed.
“One said she saw Matt on an outdoor camera as he confronted Michael. That camera was fifty feet away and at night, plus there wasn’t clear evidence of who the two men were.
We need to know more. Were they together before dark?
Did that witness hear their conversation?
And if so, what was it about? The other witness said Matt threatened to kill Michael multiple times.
Granted, even the witnesses are liars and were heavy drug users at that time.
Nothing anyone said could be taken as truth. ”
“But all of those questions must have been asked already.”
“They were asked years back, and the responses were documented. I want to know if the recollections are the same or if the answers changed over time.”
“Interesting. And those two people still live at the same addresses as before?”
“Yep.”
We climbed into a fleet car and drove away.
“So one is a neighbor?”
“Yes, and we’re going there first. If she doesn’t answer, I’ll try the house that Michael lived in ten years back. Maybe his family still owns it.”
Typical of unsolved cases, with nothing being easy, the woman next door to Michael’s old house didn’t answer. We walked across the yard to the next house and waited on the stoop as Renz knocked.
An older woman peered around the curtain, and Renz held out his badge. She looked like she was contemplating whether to answer, but she released the curtain and opened the door.
“What can I do for you agents?”
“Mrs. Lenstein?”
“Yes.”
“I’m Agent DeLeon, and this is my partner, Agent Monroe. We’ve reopened Michael’s case and were wondering if you had a few minutes to talk.”
She looked apprehensive. “What more can I say than what I’ve told every officer and agent that has talked to me over the last decade?”
“We understand,” I said, hoping a female voice would soften her disappointment.
“Sometimes, people remember things that they’ve buried deeply in their minds.
Other times, people have been warned to keep their mouths shut, but over time, they’ve decided to do what’s right to bring justice for their friend or loved one. ”
“Do you think we’re hiding something because we were threatened?”
I smiled. “I’m new to this case. I don’t have any expectations, preconceived notions, or personal opinions about anything. Haven’t spoken to any witnesses yet either.” I pointed at the neighbor’s house. “We were hoping to speak with Lynn Tenny, but she doesn’t answer the door.”
Mrs. Lenstein poked her face out and looked right. “We don’t speak much these days. I think she knew more than she told law enforcement.”
“Why is that?” Renz asked.
“Because Michael was at her house that fateful night. He was kind of sweet on her, but then Matt showed up, and the two men began arguing. I’ve always wondered if it was a setup. I’d seen Matt there plenty of times too. Maybe he was jealous and wanted Michael out of Lynn’s life.”
I frowned. “But I thought it was a disagreement about drugs and money.”
Mrs. Lenstein shrugged. “I think it was a disagreement about Lynn and money, and I think she was in on it. I didn’t see Matt kill Michael but…”
“Mrs. Lenstein? Did you think of something?”
She swatted the air. “No, no. There’s nothing else I can think of. I’ve probably said more than I should have.”
“Ma’am, you haven’t been threatened, have you?” Renz asked. “Is Matt Shane still in the area?”
“He comes and goes, and when I do see him, I lock my door and close the curtains. My husband and I parted ways after Michael was killed, so I’m here alone.”
“Well, we’re going to try again to solve this case.
What we need is actual proof that Michael was murdered by Matt Shane.
Plenty of people have said Matt has a very volatile temper and is a dangerous man.
We need the actual physical proof, and for some reason, that never came to light.
” Renz pulled a card out of his FBI wallet and handed it to Michael’s mom.
“You stay safe and call us if you feel the need.”
With a nod, she closed the door at our backs, and I heard the dead bolt click.
“She knows the truth, Renz.”
“I know, but we can’t act on hearsay. We need evidence, and for the last ten years, we haven’t found it.”
We would keep trying to reach out to Lynn and get her to talk to us.
There were a few other people who had spoken up against Matt Shane that we’d try to contact tomorrow.
Some, we could speak with on the phone if they still had the same number.
I didn’t feel like the case would go anywhere, and as Renz had said, it could be nothing more than a placeholder to keep us busy until Taft assigned us something new.
I was sure she wanted to take our focus off of James Smith and fill our time with an FBI-related case.
For the moment, we would return to our headquarters and call it a day.