Shattered (Michael Bennett #14)(58)

I didn’t recognize the voice that answered the phone by saying, “Tech Unit, William speaking.”

“Hello, William, this is Mike Bennett at Manhattan North Homicide.”

There was silence for so long I thought we had lost our connection. Then I heard William sputter, “Detective Michael Bennett? Really? I’ve never gotten to handle any of your stuff before. I read about it in the newspapers and hear people talking about your cases. This is a real honor, sir.”

I like compliments as much as the next guy, but I really didn’t have any time to waste hearing flattery like this. I had to get this done before someone shipped me back to New York, whether I wanted to go or not.

I said, “I appreciate all that, William. But I need to talk to one of your best techs about a Google warrant to figure out if someone was in a certain area during a homicide.” A Google warrant was a general term for a glorified subpoena to the tech giant. Once a judge signed a Google warrant, the company could provide information on the subscriber. It had to do with how often their phones, even iPhones, interacted with Google programs, such as Google Maps. It was a new process that cops and Google were still trying to navigate.

William said, “As luck would have it, I’m your guy. I’m the official liaison with Google and Microsoft. I know all the Google reps in their law-enforcement liaison office.” His voice kicked up a notch with every sentence.

I had to smile at his enthusiasm. “Good deal. The only thing is, I’m looking in the Baltimore area. Is that a problem?”

“Not at all. I know your cases take you all over the place. I heard about you going to Estonia. Baltimore is like a suburb of New York compared to that.”

I started to scribble a few notes. I said, “William, what’s your last name?”

“Patel. P-a-t—”

I interrupted him. “I know how to spell Patel. Are you any relation to Bobby Patel?”

“Sure, he’s my cousin.”





Chapter 75



I felt my world start to spin a little bit. What are the chances I would call the NYPD and reach Bobby Patel’s cousin?

Then William Patel said, “In fact, I have six cousins named Bobby Patel. You do realize Patel is the most common Indian name in the US, right? We’re like the Smiths in India.”

“What about Bobby Patel the FBI agent in Washington, DC?”

“Oh, that Bobby.”

I suddenly felt like I couldn’t catch a break. Was this some kind of conspiracy? All I could say was “He’s your cousin?”

William chuckled on the other end of the line. “No, I was just testing your gullibility. You failed. Now, let’s see if we can help you solve a homicide in Baltimore.”

I liked this guy’s attitude. I briefly explained the circumstances of the homicide. I left out why I was involved. I let him assume that it was somehow connected to a homicide in New York.

William said, “It helps if you can narrow down the parameters of your search as much as possible. The fewest possible phone numbers. The smallest spread of dates. And a relatively small geographic area.”

I gave him the date of Michelle Luna’s homicide. I even gave him the exact location within Baltimore.

William said, “Fairfield doesn’t sound like such a bad neighborhood. It’s not like Compton.”

“Bad things can happen anywhere, William.”

Then I gave him the phone numbers to Robert Steinberg’s, Rhea Wellmy-Steinberg’s, and Beth Banks’s cell phones. I didn’t want to risk using the names. Although William might keep things quiet, there was no telling what people at Google might leak. I decided to keep the suspects’ names to myself.

William asked, “Do you have enough probable cause for the Google warrant?”

“I’m trying to see if any of those three were in Baltimore. They knew the victim. I’m just trying to build a case. I’m not trying to charge anyone based on the information from the warrant.”

William’s enthusiasm didn’t fade. “Got it. I have a lot of friends over at Google. I might be able to do a quick check just to see if there’s anything worth sending them a warrant for. They’re good about little things like that. Know what I mean?”

I knew exactly what he meant. The world of investigations depends on people helping one another. I was a little worried about this being a major case. Then I remembered I wouldn’t be the one bringing charges. The FBI or the DC police would. I just had to hand over information to them.

It was an odd conundrum. If I waited on a warrant, the information wouldn’t come back until after I was sent home. Possibly by force. I made an executive decision. I said, “Go ahead and check first. All I need is a yes or no. I don’t need any details yet.”

William said, “I’ll call Google right now.”





Chapter 76



I had to do something to keep occupied. I sat at the little writing desk in my hotel room. I gazed down at the eight file folders I’d created. Each held a different screwed-up pile of information. I shuffled them around for a moment and then felt a wave of relief when my phone rang. Not that I expected any answers from my friend William in the Tech Unit, it’s just that it gave me something to do.

When I looked at the phone, I was surprised to see it was Mary Catherine. A smile spread across my face as I answered, “Hello, beautiful.”