“I’m not familiar with HughesNet,” Skylar said.
Tory turned her way. “It’s a satellite-based internet provider. They specialize in locations not serviced by cell towers.”
“I’m guessing you used them a lot at Triple Canopy,” Chase said. “Doing all that Third World security work.”
Tory didn’t comment while processing the revelation that they knew more than his name.
Chase grabbed the phone again. “Time to call David and see if he’ll meet. Same story.”
Tory nodded. “Okay. Expect a hostile call.”
It was Chase’s turn not to comment. He punched the fifth button and set the phone back down. It rang and rang.
“No way to leave a message?”
“Nope. No message capability on these lines. It’s a security precaution.”
After twenty rings, Chase disconnected. “Has David always answered in the past?”
“Technically, yes. But I’ve only called him twice.”
“Your best guess?”
The irony of his honest answer put the bitter taste of bile in Tory’s mouth. “It looks like your problem is taking care of itself. You needn’t have bothered with me.”
Chase dwelled on that in silence while sipping coffee.
Tory seized the opportunity to recite his favorite refrain. “I really need that hospital. You know everything I know, and now you have a way to locate Aria. Assuming she stays alive.”
Chase set his mug down a bit more firmly than was necessary. “There’s one partner you’ve been hiding all day. It’s time to talk about him now.”
“Partner? What partner?” Tory was genuinely surprised, and he let it show.
“The funeral home owner.”
Tory would have rolled his eyes were it not for the blistering pain. “He’s just a guy I bribed.”
“Yeah, right. Hey, would you mind leaving the back door open so I can cremate someone alive?”
“Strange as it seems on the surface, that’s about right. Except that I don’t actually mention a body.”
“I don’t believe you.” Chase sounded angry and sincere, but Tory knew that both were easily faked.
“Virginia wasn’t the only location where I used that disposal mechanism. It’s just the only one I got the replacements to walk into. The other times, they were already drugged. I actually made special arrangements with a total of five funeral homes.”
Skylar stomped on that turd. “You got five separate morticians to give you midnight access to their facilities?”
Tory studied his victim turned captor. “Why are you surprised? Funeral home owners spend their days draining the bank accounts of grieving widows. Why wouldn’t they leap at the chance for an easy hundred grand? All they have to do is forget to set the alarm, leave the back door open, and switch on a few lights. I’m in and out like a ghost. The only trace that I’ve come and gone is the cash under their mattresses, so to speak.”
Chase shook his head while Tory talked. “I might believe you if I hadn’t seen the metal detector. You can’t convince me that funeral homes need those. Therefore, I don’t believe your BS story. And because of that, I have to question everything you’ve told me.”
“I don’t buy it either,” Skylar said. “People aren’t like that. Ordinary people aren’t that evil, or that willing to take risks. Most would call the police.”
Tory knew they’d never buy the actual metal detector explanation. Even to him, the brother-in-law story sounded pretty thin. Still, he refused to hit an impasse. He had no choice in the matter. Not if he wanted to live. Fortunately, there remained one way to convince them. “It’s easy enough to prove.”
“Nice try,” Chase said. “But we’re not going to let you out of our sight. And we’re not going with you to commit a felony.”
Tory shrugged, provoking a wince. His hands were suffering big time from the limited circulation. “I can’t do it over the phone. If I’m not there with cash in hand, they’ll think it’s either a setup or a prank—” Tory stopped himself. He could get Murdoch from Williamsburg to vouch for him. Especially if he offered a referral fee. “Actually, there is a way.”
Skylar and Chase waited while Tory thought it through. The money might be a problem. He’d literally shown Murdoch and the others the cash. “If I prove this, are we good?”
His captors rose and walked to the other side of the room, where they whispered words Tory couldn’t hear.
“By your own deduction, it’s an acid test,” Tory called. “Confirmation of my entire story. Proof you have everything I know. Everything you need.”
They returned to the table. Chase studied Tory’s face before giving him the right answer. “We’ll need to copy your hard drive first, since the police will confiscate your computer.”
62
Hidden Jewel
ARIA CAUGHT SIGHT of her shadow as she strode from the ocean onto the sand. She would never tire of having a thirty-year-old, never-been-pregnant figure. What a joy, to not worry about wrinkles or sags. To never fear the mirror. Forget the immortality, the halted aging alone was priceless.
She spread her arms and studied her shadow. With Allison out of the picture, she was undoubtedly the sexiest fifty-six-year-old alive.
The warm air and gentle breeze had her dry by the time she stepped onto her bedroom’s tiled floor. Detecting her presence, the sensors in the wall reported in over a concealed speaker. A feature of her new security system. “Good afternoon, Aria. You missed a call.”
She checked her iPhone. No missed calls.
She checked her burner phone. Two missed calls. One from Pierce, one from David. As she considered which to call back first, the phone decided for her. It began to buzz. “Hello.”
“Aria, it’s David. I’m calling to see if you’re all right?” There was something in his voice. Two calls from David. One from Pierce. None from Lisa.
“I’m fine. What happened? Is it Lisa?”
“She died on her plane.”
Aria flopped onto the bed. “Oh, my goodness. Was there a crash? What happened?”
“The authorities aren’t saying, but they’re calling it a homicide.”
“Not an accident?”
“Not this time.”
There was something in David’s voice. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“She was on her way to Bali. Her bags were packed with cash and mementos.”
Aria suddenly felt very alone. “She was running away?”
“Apparently.”
Aria needed to set up her own Google alerts. At this rate, she could soon be the only Immortal left alive—and not know it. “Wait a minute. How did the police know it was her, and not her replacement senator veteran person?”
“She hadn’t yet fully switched over. She was flying as herself. As Tory will explain when your time comes, there’s a transition. A tapering into one identity and out of the other.”
When my time comes. That suddenly sounded overly optimistic. “I’m supposed to be getting mine this week. I’ve been trying not to think about it. Not to think about anything related to—our group.”
“Me too.”
The soft sound of David’s soulful voice sent a tear down her cheek. These were good people. Good friends. Why would someone want to kill them?
Aria lay back on her bed. Suddenly she didn’t want to let David off the phone. His voice was like a lifeline.
“How are you protecting yourself?”
“I’ve taken a sabbatical from the lab, moved to a hotel under a pseudonym, and started driving a rental car. I’m treating it as a vacation, but I have to admit that it’s not particularly relaxing.”
“I know the feeling. I know I’m safe here, unless the killer has planned a missile strike. There’s nobody coming and going.”