Fatal Reckoning (Fatal #14)(89)
“Is there… I mean, if I had to pay back the money, I couldn’t.”
“You won’t have to. Don’t worry.”
“Oh good.” Her sigh of relief came through loud and clear.
“I know it’s painful for you to think about, but is there anything about Steven’s last few weeks that stands out in your memories? Anything different or unusual?”
Alice took a moment to think about that. “He was stressed out about something.”
“He didn’t say what?”
“Only that work was extra busy, but I sensed it was more than that. I never could get him to tell me what was wrong.”
Sam wrote down every word she said. “If you think of anything else Steven ever said about Roy Gallagher or anything having to do with him, no matter how minor it might seem, please call me.”
“I will. You don’t think that Roy had something to do with Steven’s death, do you? They were such good friends.”
“I honestly have no idea.”
“Wouldn’t that be something? After all these years, to finally know what happened, to have answers.”
“Yes, it would.”
“Thank you for all you’re doing. Even if it doesn’t yield answers, it’s nice to know that people still care about my Steven.”
“Of course we do. He was one of us. He always will be.”
“Means a lot.”
“I’ll be in touch.”
For a long time after she ended the call, Sam sat perfectly still and tried to think it through from all angles. Someone had paid Steven ten grand before his death and then had made sure his widow was cared for afterward. Was it the same person? And if so, was that person the one who killed him?
Malone came to the door. “We found the messenger bag in the trunk of Conklin’s wife’s car.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
SAM SAT UP, feeling as if she’d once again been electrocuted. “Can I see it?”
“Not until we process it.”
“Why did I know you were going to say that? Was there anything in it?”
“From what we could tell on first glance, it contained files and other personal items.”
She took a series of deep breaths. “I feel like I’m going to be sick. That he had it for all this time and never told anyone…” Much to her dismay, tears flooded her eyes. Determined to keep it together, she blinked them back and forced herself to stay calm.
“If it’s any consolation, you’re not the only one who feels sick.”
“It is. I know a lot of people around here loved my dad, and this will hit them hard. Tell me we’re charging Conklin’s wife too.”
“You’re damned right we are.”
“Good.”
Chief Farnsworth appeared next to Malone, and the two of them stepped into her office and closed the door, the chief’s jaw pulsing with tension. “This might be the most unbelievable thing that’s ever happened.”
Sam wasn’t sure that was true, but since it wasn’t like the calm, cool, composed chief to make such pronouncements, she chose not to argue the point. After all, it was pretty fucking unbelievable. “What does he have to say about it?”
“Hill asked him that, and he said he doesn’t know how that got into her car because he’s never seen it before,” Malone said.
“I hope we’re dusting it for prints.”
“As we speak.”
“Does he realize yet that we’ve got him screwed, glued and tattooed?”
“I think it might be starting to register with him,” Farnsworth said.
When someone knocked on the door, the chief opened it to Hill and Faith Miller. “Come in.”
They stepped in and the chief closed the door.
Sam couldn’t recall the last time she’d had that many people stuffed into her small office.
“Conklin’s attorney is requesting a deal in exchange for his cooperation,” Hill said.
“What kind of deal?” Sam asked, hesitant. The last thing she wanted was for him to get any leniency after what he’d done.
“A reduced sentence in exchange for information that’ll help to hook a much bigger fish,” Hill said. “Those are his words, not mine.”
“I think,” Sam said, “the bigger fish is going to be Roy Gallagher.”
The others looked at her with stunned expressions.
“As in Councilman Roy Gallagher?” Faith asked.
“The one and only.”
“I heard from City Hall this morning that he’s championing legislation that would name HQ in honor of Skip,” Farnsworth said.
The gesture, like so many things lately, hit Sam like a punch to the gut, leaving her momentarily breathless as tingles rained down her spine, making her more certain than she already was that they were onto something with Gallagher. Reading from her notes, Sam went through the things she’d discovered during her deep dive into the past relationships between her dad and Roy as well as Steven and Roy.
“Wait a minute,” Hill said. “Are you suggesting the Coyne shooting might also be related?”
“I’m having one of my feelings about him, so I’m suggesting it might be possible.”