Little Girl Gone (An Afton Tangler Thriller #1)(48)

*

THE door to the interview room opened, and Keith Sunder casually strolled in.

“Excuse me, Detective,” Sunder said. “I hope you don’t mind if I sit in for a few minutes.”

“Be my guest,” Max said. If he was surprised that the FBI agent was joining them, he didn’t show it. “You all know Special Agent Keith Sunder, don’t you? From our local FBI office?”

Darden and Slocum grudgingly bobbed their heads.

“Good,” Max said. “We were just about to move on to Mr. Darden’s job status.”

“Past or present?” Sunder asked.

“Let’s focus on the past,” Max said. “Novamed. You had a nice salary there with plenty of fancy benefits and stock options. A pretty sweet deal.” He paused. “Why’d you leave?”

Sunder leaned forward in his chair. “And why is your ex-employer so closemouthed about your departure?”

Darden didn’t answer. He just stared at the floor and unconsciously jiggled a foot. Afton recognized it as a classic stall pose.

“We’re waiting, Mr. Darden,” Max said.

The silence in the room was palpable. Even Afton could feel it through the glass. She wondered if there’d been mismanagement of funds or too many golf junkets on company time.

Finally Darden said, “It was time to move on.”

“And it’s blatantly obvious that you did,” Max said. “The question remains, why you chose to move on.”

“What happened over there?” Sunder asked. “Were you caught stealing proprietary information?”

Darden gave a disdainful snort. “I wouldn’t do that.”

“Help us out here,” Max said.

Darden lifted his head and said, “There was sexual misconduct.”

“An affair,” Sunder said.

“There was no affair,” Darden said. “Just an implication of sexual harassment.”

“Who’d you harass?” Max asked. “Who was the woman?”

Darden cocked his head and gave Max an incredulous look. “What? No, you’ve got it all wrong. It was a woman who was pressuring me!”

“What?” Max said. Now it was his turn to look surprised. “What woman? Who?”

At which point Slocum interceded. “That’s not relevant,” he said smoothly. “The issue is over and done with and there are sealed documents for both parties. Mr. Darden has cooperated with you voluntarily. Now, if you need any more information, you’re going to have to obtain a subpoena.”

“We can do that,” Max said pleasantly.

“Richard?” Slocum said. He stood up and cocked his head toward the door. But Darden remained seated.

“You’re going to find this guy, Al, right?” Darden asked Max. “You’re going to bring him in and question him like crazy?”

“Right away,” Max said.

“If he dared to take Elizabeth Ann . . .” Darden clenched his fists and got to his feet. As he stumbled toward Slocum, he looked like a man who was completely defeated.


*

CRAP on a cracker,” Thacker burst out from where they were seated. “He was carrying on with another woman? What is this guy, some kind of modern-day Don Juan?”

But Afton was studying Darden as he shuffled out of the room. “I don’t think he stole his own baby,” she said softly.

“What?” Jasper said, turning toward her. “What’d you say?”

“I think Darden’s a lech and an arrogant jerk,” Afton said, with more assurance in her voice now. “But he’s no kidnapper.”

“He looks guilty enough,” Thacker said. “He could have hired this guy Al to do the job for him. Maybe Al was the guy you tangled with last night.”

No, Afton thought. Darden’s demeanor and posture told her he was a broken man. Though he was floundering in an ocean of self-pity, she doubted that he’d masterminded the kidnapping. Or had a hand in last night’s attack.

“We gotta huddle with Max,” Thacker said. “See if he wants us to send in a SWAT team to grab this guy Al.”

“Al Sponger,” Afton said.

Thacker and Bagin filed out, leaving Don Jasper behind. He fixed Afton with an inquisitive look.

“What?” she asked. She was afraid he was going to lay a mild flirt on her, hit on her. Or did a part of her want him to hit on her?

“Try not to lose that empathy,” Jasper said. “The best investigators retain their humanity despite having to endure a daily trudge through the mud. As long as you can wipe your feet off at the end of the day and remain human, you’re doing okay. Better than okay.”

“You think?” Afton said. She was feeling a little forlorn. None of this had been pretty.

Jasper gave her a wink. “I know.”





22


THE drive down Hennepin Avenue was sloppy and slow. Slush spattered the windshield as Afton navigated her Lincoln past a hodgepodge of mom-and-pop businesses set alongside slick national chain stores. She was glad she’d offered to drive, even though she was feeling tense. Max had decided that the two of them would go in and talk with Al Sponger. SWAT would hang back and keep their distance unless needed.