Page 19 of Nowhere to Hide
“He needed time to process what she told him and decide how he wanted to respond. Then seeing the news of Timothy’s death could have triggered him.” The latter seemed likely toSandra. The fact he used the estate lawyer ruse to gain access confirmed Ryan knew Timothy was dead.
Kreiger puffed out a deep breath. “We’re just talking out our asses here. There’s nothing to prove any of this.”
“You’re right,” Sandra agreed. “But as I said a moment ago, the strong possibility exists that there is a letter from the aunt. Possibly a deathbed confessional of sorts that laid everything out.”
“I’d say our next step is seeing if we can even connect Susan Crawford to Timothy Hanson.” Neal snapped his fingers. “Gibson, dig into that specifically, see what you can find out. Also, see if you can track down any friends of Teresa Crawford’s. While she might have kept things from Ryan, she could have mentioned something to them. They might even be able to tell us if there was a letter.”
Gibson spun to face his computer again.
“I can look into the friends,” Sandra offered.
Gibson held up a thumb to acknowledge her.
Neal’s phone rang, and he informed the team it was Officer Moore. He didn’t put her on speaker, but his face blanched while he listened. After a few seconds, he hung up and filled them in about the red X through Edward Hanson’s face.
Kreiger turned to Sandra. “You still think you can get him to surrender before there’s a bloodbath in there?”
TWELVE
12:30 PM
Eric’s stomach was unsettled as he knocked on Sergeant Levine’s doorframe. His old mentor was seated behind his desk, buried beneath a mound of folders.
Todd looked up, smiled, and waved him in.
Eric’s nausea gripped him tighter. There was no way the man he’d idolized was corrupt. There must be some mistake or oversight with the file. Some innocent explanation that would clear up everything. Really, it was ludicrous to consider that some hopped-up hostage taker was getting into his head so much. Or as a cop driven to find justice and truth, was Eric seeking out wrongdoing that didn’t exist, as he thought before? He’d rather believe that was the case than the alternative.
“What brings you by, Birch? You lost?”
“Why can’t I just be coming around for a quick visit?” The offhand joke was to lighten things up for himself. It failed. The coffee he’d finished a few minutes ago churned in his stomach. “You got a minute?”
“Sure. Come in. Sit, sit.” Todd pointed at the visitor chair across from his desk with the tip of a pen.
Eric took the offered seat and strived to make himself comfortable. He lengthened his legs and crossed them at theankles and crossed his arms. Then he unfolded himself and leaned slightly forward. It was better to appear casual and interested rather than closed off. Not that the repositioning put him at ease. Nothing likely would.
Todd’s eyes narrowed. “What’s weighing on your mind?”
“There’s a current hostage situation involving the Hanson family.” He gave the highlights. Five hostages, including four Hansons being held inside their estate. He’d also learned the hostage taker’s identity from a text he’d received from Sandra. Holding that back from Todd didn’t feel good, but Eric needed to safeguard the investigation as best he could.
Todd set his pen on his desk. “I was aware of the hostage incident. Officer Moore’s assisting in the field.”
Eric had heard of Moore. On the track to becoming a detective. Solid cop, solid instincts, if just a touch impulsive. Like he used to be. On the upside, Todd hadn’t shown any reaction to the Hanson name.That has to be a good sign.Right?“Then you heard about the hostage taker’s demands?”
“Nope, but I’ve got a feeling you’re going to fill me in.” Todd was watching him closely. It was in that scrutinizing sort of way he’d often employed when training Eric. Back then the gaze intimidated. Eric was ashamed to say that after all these years it still did the same. But today it came with an added implication, a challenge. He was being called upon to rise above it and do his damn job no matter how difficult.
“The hostage taker wants an old investigation opened. It was a fatal crash that happened thirty-three years ago.”
“Wow. Really? That’s a long time ago. Though I’m not sure why you’re talking to me about this, or how it even involves you.” Todd angled his head.
“I’ve been asked to look into it.”Some favor…“The file lists you as the responding officer and your sergeant at the time, Dean Finley, signed off on the crash report.”
“Okay, well everything should be on file and in storage.”
“Yes, well one would think that.”
“They’re not?”
“No. Just a copy of your crash report is attached to the digital file. There’s not even anything from the Major Crash Investigation Unit.”
