Sherlock said, “Another question. Was there anyone else before he picked up Claudia?”
“Had to have been,” Dane said.
Ollie said, “Look at Claudia—those eyes, cold and blank as the calculus blackboard in high school.”
Savich handed around computer-scanned copies of Annie Bender’s photo that Elsa Bender had given them. “Compare the photo to our artist’s sketch of Claudia.”
Ollie said slowly, “I know Elsa Bender told you and Sherlock Claudia looks like her daughter, but I don’
t see it. General coloring, yes, but that’s it.”
“That’s because the photo of Annie Bender shows a real live person, one who feels and thinks and cares. This girl—” Dane Carver shrugged.
Savich said, “Maybe it’s just time for us to get lucky, and the cops will spot the Aerostar. I’ve called Detective Ben Raven with the Washington PD. He’s instructed them not to bring Moses and Claudia in by themselves. They might be the most dangerous individuals they’ll ever see on the street.” Savich fell silent. “I can’t think of anything else to do except continue going through my old cases. The key is there, I know it. We’ll give it a couple more days, and if we don’t spot the Aerostar by Sunday morning, Mr. Maitland will call a press conference and give the media the sketches of Moses and Claudia.”
Ollie said, “One more call to your cell might help. Wouldn’t it be a gift from the Almighty if it ended that way?”
Agent John Boroughs laughed. “We should be so lucky. Ain’t nothin’ ever easy, that’s what you told me when I joined the unit, Savich.”
There was some laughter, which felt good to everyone. The meeting broke up. As Savich stuffed papers into his briefcase, Ollie asked him, “So what did Dewayne Malloy think of meeting Director Mueller?”
Savich grinned. “He said he was pretty cool, for an old guy. He was so juiced about helping us solve this crime, he asked if he should consider becoming an FBI agent. I told him to go for it.”
Sherlock stood at the door of the conference room with the other agents, one eye on Savich and Ollie. “
Listen to me, guys. I can take care of myself, even though Dillon doubts that. It’s him these people are after. Please don’t let him go off on his own. We have to keep him safe.”
“That’s enough, Sherlock.” Savich spoke very quietly. The other agents glanced at him, nodded to Sherlock, and left them alone.
Sherlock knew this was as important to her as breathing. She looked him straight in the eye. “I told them the truth, nothing more. I intend to discuss this with Mr. Maitland as well. I’m thinking this is winding down, Dillon. I’m thinking we should stay in Washington, together, with all our people. I have this feeling that Moses and Claudia are going to try something very soon, and it’s going to be directed at you. We want to be here and we want to be ready.”
It was odd how often their instincts meshed. He closed his hand around her arm and said quietly, “You don’t need to speak to Mr. Maitland about this. I was thinking the same thing.”
She pulled away from him, started walking down the wide hallway before turning back to say, “Let’s go get Sean. I spoke to Graciella before the meeting. She wants to come home.”
“All right. I’ll call Ruth, tell her what’s going down here. We’re only two and a half hours away if something happens in Maestro.”
She gave him a crooked grin. “Much less by helicopter.”
Dane Carver came trotting up to them, his cell phone still in his hand. “Interesting news, guys. The police found an abandoned white van with a lawn mower and the words ‘Austin’s Gardening Service’ on its side in front of a warehouse on Webster Street. It looks like Moses didn’t just ditch it—he set it on fire.”
Savich sighed. “He knew we probably tracked that call Claudia made and might have a description of it. No point in waiting now. It could be they headed out of town.”
Dane said, “But you don’t believe it.”
Sherlock was silent for a long moment, twisting a lock of curly hair around her finger, a habit when she was thinking hard. “No, Moses isn’t about to leave, not until he takes his final shot at you.”
Savich nodded. “Then we’d better get ready.”
CHAPTER 28
MAESTRO, VIRGINIA FRIDAY MORNING
AT TEN O’CLOCK, Dix called Gordon’s office at Stanislaus.
“…I don’t know why I need to tell you that, Dix. She’s not a student here. I don’t see the point in involving her. Listen, it was nothing, a brief fling, nothing to make the earth move for either of us.”
“I can keep you nice and warm in my jail, Gordon, until you tell me what I want to know. Is the woman you left out Cynthia, Tony’s wife?”
“Cynthia,” Gordon said. If Dix wasn’t mistaken, there was a hint of distaste in Gordon’s voice.
“Well, good for you,” Dix said. “That’s a relief. Talk to me, Gordon.” The silence dragged on. Dix said, “
I’m thinking handcuffs would make a nice visual for all your professors and students—”
“No, Dix! You can’t do that. I’m simply trying to protect a woman’s reputation, nothing more. You think I would sleep with Cynthia?”
“A woman’s reputation?” Dix asked. “Not a girl’s? Could it be there was maybe even a thread of gray in her hair?”
“No, she’s gorgeous and she’d sue me—”
Dix shook his head. “And here I thought Ginger would have the good taste not to sleep with a man her father’s age. You never know, do you? At least it wasn’t Cynthia. Now, that wasn’t so hard, was it?”
Gordon finally gave it up. He told Dix he’d slept with Ginger Stanford two years ago, and all right, her mother, too, if they were interested, but the two of them lasted only a couple of months, hardly enough time to even regard it in the grand scheme of things.
When he paused to take a breath, Dix asked, “Who broke things off?”
“We ended up not liking each other very much. Ginger told me she’d expected more from me because she’d heard I was experienced, and that I didn’t give her what she wanted. She told me to take myself to a sex education class. Can you imagine the gall? Sex education! Me!”
“And Gloria Stanford? Was she unreasonable in her demands, too? Like mother, like daughter?”
A ruminative pause, Dix thought. “She’s immensely talented, you know that, Dix, but the fact is we were never really that attracted to each other. She never criticized me like her bitch of a daughter.”
Before he punched off, Dix warned Gordon, “Don’t even think about calling Ginger, Gordon. If you do I won’t give you an extra blanket in your cell.”
“SHERIFF, AGENT, WHAT are you doing here?” Henry O was on his feet, the question out of his mouth the moment Dix and Ruth came into the office. “Oh, I see. You don’t know anything more than the last time you were here, do you?”
Good, Dix thought, Gordon hadn’t called. Henry O looked natty in a crisp white shirt and well-made dark gray wool trousers, belted high.
“Actually, Henry, we’re here to arrest Ms. Stanford,” Ruth told him. She gave him a little wave and kept walking, Dix behind her.
“Are you nuts? You don’t arrest a lawyer; she’ll sue your socks off. Wait, wait! Oh, lordie, Ms. Ginger, they rolled over me!”
“Hard to believe,” Ginger Stanford said, rising slowly, dropping her beautiful black pen on the desktop. “
It’s okay, Henry. They’re not going to snap on the cuffs, I don’t think, are you, Dix?”
Dix gently shoved Henry out and closed the door. “Good morning, Ginger. Time for you to tell us about your short, uninspired affair with Gordon Holcombe.”