Never Tell (Detective D.D. Warren #10)(61)

“So to recap,” she said briskly now, sitting at the head of the table, “you”—she skewered Flora with a glance—“took it upon yourself to call an Atlanta FBI agent and invite her into my investigation.”

“Technically, I invited her to assist in my investigation,” Flora said.

Yep, definitely D.D.’s confidential informant had gone rogue.

Flora continued. “I have an interest in all this, too, you know. What was Conrad Carter’s association with Jacob? Were there other men or predators he was meeting? Does this mean he was part of some larger network of sociopaths and I missed it? Then, talking to SSA Quincy and hearing about other missing women—”

D.D. held up a hand. She pointed at the other newcomer in the room, who appeared to be around thirty years of age, could’ve passed for a Tom Ford model, and was sitting a lot closer to Flora than strictly necessary.

“And you? What’s your role in all this?”

Kimberly Quincy was already smiling, which meant this was going to be good.

To the man’s credit, he planted both elbows on the table, leaned forward, and met D.D.’s stare. “My name is Keith Edgar. I’m a computer analyst, and, um … I run a forum for true-crime enthusiasts. In particular, we’ve been working the Jacob Ness case for the past six years.”

“You’ve been working the Jacob Ness case?”

Kimberly Quincy’s smile was growing.

“We’ve always suspected there were other victims. The degree of sophistication and planning that went into Flora’s abduction … no predator gets that smart overnight.”

If Flora was offended to be discussed as little more than a case study, she didn’t show it.

“And you know this because you’re a computer analyst?” D.D. pressed.

“No, I know this because I’ve done a great deal of reading on the subject—”

“Internet true-crime porn.”

“And I work with a group of talented experts, including retired BPD detective Wayne Rock.”

That caught D.D.’s attention. She’d known Wayne before his retirement five years ago. Great man, brilliant detective, who had lost his battle with cancer just a few months ago. The whole department had grieved, herself included.

“Wayne also believed there were other victims?”

“Absolutely. Most predators follow a pattern of escalation. With a self-proclaimed sex addict such as Ness, he probably started young as a voyeur, then evolved to inappropriate touching, before engaging in full-fledged sexual assault, and finally, ultimately …”

Edgar gestured awkwardly toward Flora, who still remained completely expressionless. Briefly, D.D. felt her heart soften. This was Flora’s life. To be forever defined by a monster, whether she wanted to be or not. For the two years D.D. had known Flora, the woman had always refused to discuss her past. So to be part of this conversation now, to have invited a feebie no less, was an act in courage, whether D.D. liked it or not.

“Which brings us to you.” She switched her attention to SSA Quincy. “The agent who actually figured out Ness was a long-haul trucker and organized the SWAT raid. You must’ve recovered a helluva lot of evidence.”

“Yes and no, that’s the problem. Ness’s rig offered up some hair, other DNA samples. But his computer—which, according to Flora, he logged onto daily—”

Flora nodded.

“—was suspiciously lacking in content. Not even porn.”

“He always watched porn.” Flora spoke up.

“Completely wiping a hard drive is nearly impossible.” The computer analyst spoke up. “He must have used a tool or app. Let’s see, we’re talking 2010.” Edgar paused, seemed to be considering. “I’m guessing SteadyState, which was a free Microsoft app that worked with all XP operating systems. Microsoft offered it as a home computer safety system. It basically reverted the computer to a prior clean slate every time the laptop was rebooted, effectively deleting any malware or viruses kids might have inadvertently downloaded while playing online. The app worked so well, many computer professionals used it as well, myself included.”

Edgar regarded Quincy with open curiosity.

“Ness’s laptop did indeed contain SteadyState,” she volunteered tersely.

“Interesting. Because it takes some time and capability to set up the app. To pick which items on the hard drive should be cleared and which should be left alone each time the system is rebooted. That alone proves an interesting level of computer sophistication for a man who didn’t even graduate high school. And you’re saying you didn’t recover a single book in Ness’s truck on computer programming, Windows operating systems, anything?”

“Nada.”

Edgar and Flora Dane exchanged a look. D.D. wasn’t sure she liked it.

“Ness’s cell phone?” she interrupted now.

“No smartphone,” Quincy supplied. “We recovered a cheap, prepaid flip with hardly any usage. Certainly no texts or anything useful.”

“I don’t remember him ever using a cell,” Flora said. “I would’ve guessed he had no one to call.”

“Meaning the lack of evidence is the evidence,” D.D. filled in. “Someone must’ve taught Ness how to cover his tracks, both with this computer app, and the prepaid flip.” She glanced at Flora. “But the only time you remember him meeting up with another person was the one time you saw Conrad at the bar?”