Page 66 of Lost Cause
He seemed to be telling the truth, and hopefully the fingerprints from Sam would confirm it. Until then, Abby needed to ask one more question. “What about guns? Do you own guns?”
“No,” he answered. “I mean, not really. At least not any I’d ever touch. I have no need to. But my father left a display case of antique ones locked up in my bedroom. I haven’t looked at them since the day he showed them to me.”
“Are you the only one with a key to the cabinet?”
“As far as I know.” His eyes narrowed. “Since my father told a different story about the safe to Sylvia, maybe he gave cabinet keys to someone else too.”
“Will you give us the key and allow our forensic expert to process them?” Abby asked.
“Sure. No reason she shouldn’t look at them.” He pulled a ring of keys from his pocket and removed one for her.
“Just an FYI.” Coop’s deep voice boomed through their headset. “We’ll be beginning our descent to the compound soon. If you look to the right of the aircraft, you’ll see the lights in the thick stand of trees. Any questions before we land?”
“I’m good, and thanks for such a smooth flight,” Abby said.
The others didn’t speak.
“Since there aren’t any questions, I’m Cooper Ashcroft, your pilot for the evening and at your service. I hope you’ve had a pleasant flight and will fly with us again, but for now sit back,relax, and enjoy the remainder of your flight.” His deep laugh rumbled through the headsets.
Abby laughed along with him, even more so, because much like Burke, Coop was often extremely serious. He’d mellowed a lot since he’d married Kierra, and they’d had three children.
Abby glanced at Burke. Would he chill out too if he got married and had kids? The smiling faces of a little boy and girl popped into her mind. The boy, a spitting image of Burke, and the girl looking like her. She quickly shook her head to erase the picture from her mind and looked out the window.
Stars sparkled in the distance as the lights from the compound lifted up to welcome her. The site was breathtaking at night. She’d only ever arrived at the compound via ground transport, and breathtaking was the last word she would have used to describe the secured entrance. More like alarming.
The helicopter slowed and began a gradual descent, soon engulfed in a layer of clouds.
“It’s quite the sight, isn’t it?” Victor glanced over his shoulder at her. “At least until we got stuck in the clouds, but it’s even impressive.”
“It’s interesting you feel so at home in a helicopter,” she said.
“I know it seems odd because I’m not the pilot and in control, but for some reason when I’m in a helicopter, I feel like I have control over my life.”
Burke mumbled something she couldn’t make out. She glanced at him, giving him a questioning look.
“It’s nothing,” he said, his tone warning her not to ask any additional details.
“It’s clear you don’t agree, Detective,” Victor said. “Like I said, it doesn’t make much sense. But it’s like being in a dream for me. It has the same floaty, ethereal feeling. We’re insulated inside a small, comforting space, and it seems like I could direct the pilot to go almost anywhere. No restrictions.”
She nodded, but she wasn’t quite sure if she understood what he was going for. Considering Burke’s skeptical look, he had no clue.
The helicopter made a sharp descent, and Victor swung his focus back to the window.
Burke continued bobbing his knee, but he tipped his head at Victor, then gave her a pointed look. Maybe he was thinking about Victor’s answers to their questions. Instead of finding closure, his answers had given them more questions to ponder. But then, that’s how investigations worked.
She prayed that the new set of questions would indeed give them answers before someone tried to make another attempt on Victor’s life.
The helo settled on the ground with a bump. Burke took off his headphones and released his seatbelt. He didn’t know what to expect in the compound. He hadn’t taken any classes with Blackwell Tactical, but a couple deputies in his department had, and they’d come back almost glowing from the visit. He’d wondered if their descriptions had been over the top in an effort to make their fellow deputies jealous. He was finally going to find out.
The door slid open, and Coop waited outside as refreshingly cool air rushed in.
Burke waited for Abby to unbuckle and move to the door. Coop offered his hand. She took it without hesitating.
What?Any time Burke offered his help, she’d rejected it. He didn’t know what to make of that, but he didn’t have time to ponder it. He wanted to get outside ahead of Victor so he could help him down.
Victor got up slowly and limped his way to the door. He hooked the end of the cane over his arm, then let Burke and Coop take his elbows to heft him safely to the ground.
Victor looked around, his gaze searching. “You’re sure this place is safe?”
