Page 19 of Lost Cause
“I figured as much.”
“Let me pull everyone together, and we’ll call you right back.” The screen went dark.
She’d wanted to tell Sam about the crown, but couldn’t unless she took part in the investigation. So it felt good to tell Gabe, and it would feel even better to get her whole team’s viewpoint. Hopefully they could shed light on tonight’s mysterious happenings and help her formulate a plan to find this most prized missing artifact in time.
5
In his cubicle, Burke stared at Victor Lemoine’s DMV record on his monitor. The man didn’t have a criminal record, not even a speeding ticket. No surprises there. He’d received his Oregon driver’s license forty-one years ago, had listed the Lemoine Mansion as his home address, and had regularly renewed it when due.
A 2012 all-electric Nissan Leaf was the only vehicle registered in his name. Burke had expected a larger car for a man with such opulent taste, but it made practical sense to have a small, all-electric vehicle on the island. None of this information helped, especially since Victor was a self-professed hermit.
Burke opened his notes on his phone and typed, Ask Victor when he last left the island.
He entered Estelle Lemoine’s name into the county database, hoping her record provided a lead. Her picture confirmed the photo in the locket. Her driver’s license had been issued on the same day as Victor’s, but she failed to renew it when it came due, which would fit with her disappearance. He made another note to ask Victor about the official date of her disappearance. Healso noted that she was ten years younger than Victor, though he didn’t know if that was of any significance.
Shifting to his department’s investigation database, he entered her name. The search returned a missing person investigation but zero details. Many of the department’s old paper files hadn’t been digitized, and hers were probably buried in basement storage at the Sheriff’s Department’s old location. The only way to get them was to file a request, requiring Ryder’s approval.
Burke leaned back and stretched his arms overhead. When he first arrived at his office tonight, he checked to make sure Ryder was in, but didn’t stop to talk. Burke wanted to wait until he knew for himself what he’d like to do about the forensics and partnering with Abby and her team.
The preliminary information they’d gathered indicated this could be a much larger investigation than expected. His department didn’t have the staff necessary to assign additional people to this case, and he wasn’t about to fail in finding the crown. If he could contain Abby’s pushy behavior, partnering with the LLL team would be a good idea.
And the forensics? No one had been hurt or killed, or at least they didn’t have proof of a murder yet. Just a simple theft, so the state lab wouldn’t prioritize their case. Could mean a serious delay in processing, resulting in an equally serious delay in his investigation. Also risking the crown’s disappearance. Poof. Vanished. Gone. Just like Estelle.
Decision made, he sat forward.
He would propose using one of the forensics teams Abby suggested, and he would form a partnership with her. Ryder would have to decide if their partnership included deputizing her or not.
He pushed away from his desk, sending the wheeled chair bumping into the cubicle wall and bouncing back at him. Beforetalking to Ryder, he needed to slow his roll and take hold of the jitters he hadn’t been able to shake since seeing Abby. His boss was an intimidating guy and extremely perceptive. No way Burke wanted him questioning his ability to do the job, especially because of a woman.
He strode down the hall, took a deep breath, and poked his head into the office.
Ryder sat behind an old metal desk, stretching nearly the width of the small space. At roughly six feet tall, he had military-cut, sandy-blond hair and a hint of his summer tan on his face.
He looked up. “I hoped you’d stop in so we can give a positive report to Commissioner Blankenship in the morning. We gonna close this burglary fast?”
“About that,” Burke said, dreading telling him it was going to take longer. “It’s not as straightforward as we thought.”
Ryder gestured at a chair in front of his desk. “Sit and bring me up to speed.”
Burke lowered himself into the padded chair and updated his boss on the situation.
Ryder ran a hand over his stubbled jaw. “No one had any idea about this?”
“The way Lemoine wants to keep it, if possible.” Burke explained Victor’s reasons.
“We can do our best, but you know we can’t promise it won’t get out.”
“I know,” Burke said. “We can refer to the crown as a ‘missing artifact’ when talking to others.”
“That works.”
“The wife’s disappearance could be related to the theft,” Burke said. “I’ll need your permission to request her missing persons file from storage.
“It’ll take time to retrieve it, but bring me the form, and I’ll fast-track the request. Hopefully, I’ll have someone available tosend out there first thing in the morning, and I’ll pressure them into getting it to me by end of day.” Ryder steepled his fingers. “You need to get this thing closed fast if you want the powers that be not to question removing your probationary status and keeping Ramsey permanently at detective.”
Burke couldn’t screw this up. If they demoted him again, he couldn’t possibly survive having to work under Ramsey on a permanent basis. He would definitely have to leave his job and start over at another agency. Might mean going back to patrol and working his way up. Not something Burke wanted to do for sure.
“What resources do you need to get this investigation going?” Ryder asked.
