Fair Warning (Jack McEvoy #3)(31)

“Partner up? But it’s my story.”

“Of course it is, but sometimes stories get bigger and need more hands—more experienced hands. Like I said, she knows people down there. You also have the police situation to deal with.”

“What police situation?”

“As far as I know, you’re still on their person-of-interest list. Have you talked to them lately? Have they processed your DNA?”

“I haven’t talked to them today. But that’s not a situation. As soon as they run the DNA I’ll be off the list. I was planning on going down to Orange Nano first thing tomorrow.”

“That sounds good but that’s what I mean. I don’t want you going there without preparation. Have you done any backgrounding on the lab or its people?”

“Not yet, but I will. That’s why I came back to the office, to do some research.”

“Well, talk to Emily. She’s already done some work and maybe you two can come up with a plan of action.”

I didn’t say anything. I just looked down at the table. I knew I wasn’t going to change his mind, and maybe also knew—grudgingly—that he was right. Two reporters were better than one. Besides, having half the staff on the story would make Myron more invested in it.

“Okay,” Myron said. “Then I’ll let you two get after it. Keep me in the loop.”

Myron got up and left the room, closing the door behind him. Before I could speak, Emily did.

“Sorry, Jack,” she said. “I didn’t go asking to be part of this. He pulled me in.”

“Don’t worry,” I said. “I’m not blaming you. I just thought I had things in hand, you know?”

“Yes. But while we were waiting for you I did do a preliminary workup on William Orton, the guy who runs Orange Nano.”

“And?”

“I think there’s something there. Orton left UC-Irvine to start Orange Nano.”

“So?”

“So, you don’t just leave a UC job where you’re tenured and have a full lab at your disposal and unlimited doctoral candidates at your beck and call. You can start an outside company or lab but the university is your anchor. You keep that affiliation because it works for you. It’s easier to get grants, professional exposure, everything.”

“So something happened.”

“Right, something happened. And we’re going to find out what it is.”

“How?”

“Well, I’m going to work UCI—I still have a few sources there—and you do what you said, you work Orange Nano. I don’t want to step on your toes but I think I can help here.”

“Okay.”

“Good, then.”

“This is how I think we should work it …”

Over the next hour I shared everything I knew so far about the deaths of the four women and GT23. Emily asked many questions and together we made an action plan that had us attacking the story from two angles. I went from being reluctant to being glad she was on board. She was not as experienced as I was but she was impressive, and I knew she had probably broken the most important stories FairWarning had put out in the last couple of years. I left the office that night believing Myron had made a good move putting us together.

It was eight o’clock when I got back to my Jeep and drove home. After parking in the garage I walked to the front of the apartment building to check my mail. It had been a week since I checked the box and this was primarily to empty it of all the junk mail I received.

The building’s management provided a trash can next to the bank of mailboxes so junk mail could be quickly transferred to its final destination. I was going through my stack, dropping one piece after the other into the bin, when I heard steps coming from behind me and then a voice I recognized.

“Mr. McEvoy. Just who we were looking for.”

It was Mattson and Sakai. Mattson was back to saying my name wrong. He was carrying a folded document and held it out to me as he approached in the dimming light of the day.

“What’s this?” I asked.

“This is a warrant,” Mattson said. “All signed, sealed, and delivered by the City Attorney’s Office. You’re under arrest.”

“What? Arrest for what?”

“That would be section 148 of the California Penal Code. Obstructing a police officer in the discharge of his duty. That officer would be me and the investigation of the murder of Christina Portrero. We told you to back off, McEvoy, but no—you kept harassing our witnesses and lying your ass off.”

“What are you talking about? I didn’t obstruct you or anybody. I’m a reporter working a story and—”

“No, you’re a person of interest and I told you to back off. You didn’t, so now you’re fucked. Put your hands up on that wall.”

“This is crazy. You’re going to create a major embarrassment for your department, do you know that? You ever heard of a thing called freedom of the press?”

“Tell it to the judge. Now turn around and put your hands up there. I’m going to search you for weapons.”

“Jesus, Mattson, this makes no sense. Is it because you don’t have jack shit on Portrero and you want a distraction?”

Mattson said nothing. I did what I was told and moved to the wall, not wanting to add resisting arrest to the bogus charge of obstruction. Mattson quickly searched me and emptied my pockets, giving my phone, wallet, and keys to Sakai. I turned my head enough to check out Sakai and he didn’t look like a man who was fully on board with this move.