Page 91 of Concrete Evidence
“All right. In the morning, I’ll have an agent from Houston accompany me to interview a few people on my list.”
“Who’s the agent?” the lieutenant said. “I have a right to know.”
“I’m not sure yet.”
“Yes, you do. Wilkins, you’re off the case.”
“You have no authority.” Marc maintained a stoic demeanor. “The governor requested the FBI work the investigation. You don’t want me on the case? Take it up with him.”
52
MARC SAT IN THE SENATOR’S LIBRARYlong after everyone had left. The senator requested a private conversation with Shipley and walked him to his truck before he drove back to Fort Worth. The two men’s discussion wasn’t against the law, but that didn’t mean Marc approved. In view of their earlier disagreement, perhaps they discussed how the two might cooperate.
Marc weighed each person’s words and delivery from tonight to discern truth and lies. He’d always believed motivation led to the killer. Other investigators swore finding the killer determined the purpose of a murder. Perhaps both.
The guilty person or persons had gone to a lot of trouble to set up the senator, Avery, Craig, Buddy, and Saundra. Craig surfaced in the money equation... But if guilty, he’d been reckless. Unless Marc had totally misjudged character, he wasn’t convinced any of them were guilty. But he’d been wrong in the past, and successful crimes demanded brilliant minds.
The woman who’d phoned Marc while Roden underwent surgery called the senator’s insiders the “committee,” but the senator referred to them as the circle. The Elliotts had a long list of enemies. No secrets there. What secret was buried so deep that to keep it hidden dictated murder and placed thousands of people at risk? The motive always swung back to the senator, Marc’s father, and Liam Zachary. Two of those men were dead, and the third feared for his granddaughter. Who had the agenda and tools to cover up one crime after another?
The senator entered the library and closed the door. He walked slower and his drawn features showed his stress. “I’ve contacted those in the circle, and I’m ready to give you names.”
Marc pulled out his phone to take notes. “Okay. Let’s do it.”
“Shipley, Congresswoman Jeannine Blackford, Congressman Frank Benton, the railroad commissioner, and the Texas attorney general. All are aware of the investigation. We’ve been friends for years, mostly to support each other and provide a person each could trust. We are a full circle of friendship.”
Marc’s mind exploded with the political fervor about to erupt. No surprise Shipley objected. “Okay. I’ll contact them tomorrow. If Houston can’t send an agent, I’ll talk to the sheriff about helping out.” He studied the senator. “Have you told me everything?”
He nodded. “Fresh out of ideas.”
“Where did you go when you left the ranch the night of Liam’s death?”
“Austin. Late that night, the circle met.” He started for the door, then turned to Marc. “See you in the morning. Me and the Lord have some serious talking to do. Good night, Marc. Abbott would be proud to see you digging for truth.”
“Thank you. I wish we’d stayed in contact.” For the first time, Marc wished he’d experienced what others had witnessed.
The door closed and weariness settled on him. He missed Roden.They’d been partners too long for Marc to work on a critical case without his input. The clock read 11:20p.m. He tapped his finger on the arm of the chair. Roden played the night-owl game. Unless sedated, he’d be awake reading a sport biography or watching TV.
He pressed in Roden’s number. If he didn’t answer on the second ring, Marc would end the call. One ring.
“Hey, Marc. Are you breaking broncs and fishing at the ranch?”
The familiar upbeat voice sounded good. Real good. “I wish. Checking on you.”
“Doing much better. Bored out of my mind. How’s the case?”
“Complicated. Do you feel up to advising your partner?”
“Bring it on. Victoria’s waiting on me hand and foot, and the girls hover over me like helicopters. Driving me nuts.”
Marc took the next several minutes to detail what had transpired since Roden’s hospitalization.
“And you’re running down each of the circle members in the morning?”
“Right.”
“Like you, my take is Senator Elliott and Avery have been framed. Craig Holcombe doesn’t seem a likely suspect, especially since he’s probably dead. Buddy and Saundra aren’t smart enough to pull this off. My guess is they’re sitting back hoping the family business reverts to them. Now, they might have hired someone to do their dirty work.”
“True. Both are a little squirrelly,” Marc said. “The evening Senator Elliott disappeared, Buddy drove to Austin. That’s in my notes. I have a request in to check traffic cams. I want to know where he went and who he saw. I’ve ordered a background and the ME report on Bruce Ingles, the diver who conducted two video inspections of the dam. Another thing is Craig fired a ranch hand, and I’ll talk to him in the morning.”
