State of time, p.21
State of Time, page 21
Virgil heard Henderson’s greeting and said, “Well, I hope it was something good.”
“In a manner of speaking,” Henderson said. “Anyway, what’s up?”
“I need a favor. It’s not that big of a deal, but it might be a little sensitive.”
Henderson, who knew he didn’t have any cards to play in the moment, said, “Sure, let’s hear it.”
“I’d like to have a few of my guys come down and go through Reynolds’s place one more time, and I was hoping you wouldn’t have any objections.”
“I don’t, but I have to tell you, our crime scene people gave it more than a casual look.”
“I’m sure they did a fine job, Ed. But we’ve got our own people to answer to as well, and this thing isn’t over yet. So…any objections?”
“Can you hang on for just a second?”
“Sure,” Virgil said.
Henderson pushed the Mute button on his phone, looked at Rosencrantz and said, “He wants to go through Reynolds’s house. Should I make the ask myself?”
“I don’t see a downside,” Rosencrantz said.
Henderson took the phone off of mute, then said, “Sorry about that. Yeah, send your guys. Let me know when they’re coming and I’ll meet them there myself.”
“Thanks, Ed. They’ll be on their way shortly.”
“I’ll be waiting,” Henderson said. “And listen, as long as I’ve got you on the phone, I need a little favor myself…”
Virgil finished the call with Henderson, looked at Ross and said, “You’re all set. I want you guys to go through that place with a fine-toothed comb. If Blackwell makes a move, Murt and I will let you know.”
After everyone had left, Murton looked at Virgil and said, “What’s going on with Henderson?”
“Nothing we can’t handle,” Virgil said, as he punched in a number on his phone. “He has a little problem, and I’m hoping to help.”
“Who are you calling?”
“A former governor who will make it go away.”
“Small?”
“Nope. Someone better.”
Murton laughed and said, “I’ll be sure and tell her you said so.”
Virgil ignored his brother, mainly because Mac had just answered his phone.
“Good morning, Jonesy. I didn’t think you usually started this early.”
“I try not to, but sometimes duty calls. Sandy told me you guys had a meeting today with Turkis. I hope I’m not interrupting.”
“If you were, I wouldn’t have answered,” Mac said. “As a point of fact, we just finished. Sandy tells us that you’re making significant progress regarding everyone’s mutual problem.”
“We are, and if she’s filled you in, you’re up to speed. I’m actually calling about something else.”
“Let’s hear it then, because I’ve got another meeting in about ten minutes.”
“Can you tell me off the top of your head what the royalty percent is for Shelby County regarding the sonic drilling operation?”
Mac snickered into the phone. “You know, for someone who can afford to serve up Wagyu beef like it’s buffalo wings down at the local pub, I would think you’d pay better attention to the numbers.”
Virgil rolled his eyes. “Says the guy who was—and the key word there is was—about to lose an entire company because his own banker had been using said company to launder drug money. Besides, I let my underlings watch the money for me.”
“I’m not married, as you well know,” Mac said. “But I am heavily involved with a wonderful woman who happens to have a little money herself. Want to know what she’s taught me?”
Virgil decided to bite. “Okay, let’s hear it.”
“I’ve learned that referring to your significant other as an underling will not get you very far.”
Virgil laughed. “I wasn’t referring to Sandy, Mac. I was speaking of you.”
“Well, it won’t get you very far with me, either.”
“Are we done playing now?” Virgil said. He was becoming mildly impatient.
“Boy, you private dicks are wound a little tight.” Then before Virgil could respond, Mac gave him the number he was looking for.
“Okay,” Virgil said. “That’s what I thought. As I recall, the contract is open on our end. Do I have that right?”
“If you’re asking if we have the power to renegotiate if and when we choose, then yes. May I ask why you’re suddenly so interested in all this? Did you misplace a royalty check of your own?”
“You’ve been hanging out with Murton too much, and no, I didn’t.” Then Virgil outlined the problem Henderson was facing, and asked if Mac would make a call on his behalf.
“Sheriff Henderson is one of the good ones, isn’t he?” Mac said.
Virgil knew Mac was referring to Henderson’s loyalty, and not necessarily his administrative skills. “Yes, he is. He’s backed our play any number of times.”
“Then no, I won’t make the call.”
Mac’s answer surprised Virgil. “Well, why the hell not?”
“I can see why you only made it as far as First Gentleman of the state. Clearly you don’t understand the nuances within the political arena.”
“I don’t get it.”
“I’m delightfully not surprised,” Mac said. “There’s a better way to handle these types of things, Jonesy. Consider it done.”
“What, exactly are you going to do?”
Mac laid it out for Virgil, then said, “Tell Ed he’ll be fine. It might not hurt to casually mention that he owes us one.”
“Thank you, I will. To tell you the truth, I wouldn’t mind witnessing the whole thing.”
“Virgil, please, stay away. I’ve heard the stories about your negotiating skills…”
Murton finished his coffee, then said, “What was all that?”
Virgil narrowed his eyes. “The difference between married money and adopted money. C’mon, let’s go sit on Blackwell.”
Virgil sent a quick, one-word text to Rosencrantz, then he and Murton headed outside.
Rosencrantz’s phone dinged at him, and when he saw the message from Virgil, he smiled.
“What is it?” Henderson said.
Rosencrantz slid his phone across the kitchen table so his friend could read the message. Henderson read the text, which simply said, ‘Done.’
“Does that mean what I think it means?”
“Let me give you a known fact about Jonesy, Ed. If he tells you he’s going to do something, he does it. I’m not sure how or when it will all play out, but I’d consider the matter handled.”
Henderson smiled, then took out his own phone and made a quick call. “Betty, it’s me. Get every reserve deputy we have on the roster out to the Reynolds residence. I want them there within the next twenty minutes. No. Not this time, Betty. Just do it.” Then he ended the call. He shoved the phone into his pocket and said, “Christ, that woman really knows how to grind my gears sometimes.”
“What are you up to?” Rosencrantz said.
“Repaying a favor. I’ve got at least ten guys who can help the MCU with their search. We’ll have it done in no time at all.” Henderson stood, clapped Rosencrantz gently on the back and said, “Okay, gotta roll. I’ll check back with you when I can.”
“Bring me a cheeseburger next time, will you? No joke, man. I don’t care what the doctors say. I need some real food.”
Henderson laughed. “If Jonesy comes through for me the way you said he’s going to, I’ll bring you the whole fuckin’ cow.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Virgil and Murton found where Blackwell was staying, the tracker leading them straight to his vehicle in the hotel’s lot. Murton found a place to park the Rover that would give them a good view of both the main lobby exit and Blackwell’s car. Then they settled in to wait.
Murton looked over at his brother and said, “I’ll tell you something, Jonesy…Blackwell is our guy. If he wasn’t, there’d be no reason for him to be hanging out down here when his office is up in Chicago.”
“You think he’s sitting on the drugs and simply waiting for us to find the notebook for him?”
“Why else would he be here? He said it himself; he’s basically a property manager with a badge.”
“And a gun,” Virgil said, as he watched the hotel lobby door. “I guess I can’t really argue the point, Murt, but it’s no different from anything else we have on the guy. It’s another piece of circumstantial evidence that doesn’t mean anything unless we can find a way to prove it. For all we know, he’s taking vacation time.”
“At a Super 8 on the south side of Indy?”
Virgil didn’t get a chance to respond because Murton’s phone began to ring. He pulled it from his pocket, checked the screen, then answered by saying, “Hello, love of my life. What’s shakin’?” He put the phone on speaker so Virgil could hear the conversation.
“I love the way you greet me,” Becky said. Then she got right to the point. “I’ve got good news, bad news, and something that ended up being sort of interesting. Which do you want first?”
Murton, ever the optimist, said, “Let’s have the good.”
“The safe house up in Crows Nest?”
“What about it?” Virgil said.
“Oh, hey, Jonesy. Didn’t know we were on speaker. Anyway, the place where Cooper was killed…it sat right at the very end of the cul-de-sac.”
“How is that good news?” Virgil said. He was already losing interest.
“Well, if you’d let a girl finish, I’ll happily explain why it’s so good.”
“Sorry.”
“That apology sounded awfully lame, but I accept,” Becky said. “The houses on either side of the one where Cooper was killed both sit at an angle in relation to where the van was parked. Sarah just got a report from Teller, the new lead detective for Metro Homicide. The report says that one of the houses had a Ring doorbell, and the angle is good enough to have captured the plate on the van.”
“Man, that is good news, Becks,” Virgil said. “Tell Sarah to get a BOLO out on that right away.”
When Becky didn’t respond, Murton said, “This is where the bad news comes into play, isn’t it?”
“I’m afraid so,” Becky said. “The homeowner wasn’t a subscriber to the video capture portion of the system. He used it only for delivery notifications.”
“So we don’t have any video?”
“Not yet,” Becky said. “I may have overstated the bad news part of the equation. We’ll have the video by noon at the latest.”
“How are you going to manage that?” Virgil said.
“Simple,” Becky said. “I’m going to sneak into the doorbell company’s system and grab the video. I’m halfway in as we speak. Nicky and Wu are helping.”
“How can you grab something that doesn’t exist?” Murton said.
“I didn’t say it didn’t exist. I said the guy doesn’t subscribe for that portion of the service. The doorbell company captures the video whether someone subscribes or not. The only difference is, if the homeowner wants to have access to any of their recordings, they have to pay for it. I don’t think very many people know that. Anyway, the video exists for every Ring doorbell out there…and that obviously includes the one we need.”
“Good,” Virgil said. “Get it done, then once you have it, tell Sarah to get that plate out statewide.”
“Might want to have her get the paper started on a subpoena for the doorbell company as well,” Murton said. “No sense in being over-exposed.”
“I’m on it,” Becky said.
“What’s the news that’s sort of interesting?” Virgil said.
“I’ll tell you in a second. But first, know this: We’ve backed out of the DEA’s system.”
“Why?” Virgil asked.
“Because there was nothing of value we could find to help us. It’s like Murton just said…there’s no sense in exposing ourselves to that level of scrutiny, especially if there’s nothing to gain.”
“Okay, fair enough,” Virgil said. “So, the interesting news?”
“Something weird is going on in Shelby County.”
Virgil laughed without humor. “As many times as we work that area, I’m not surprised. What is it now, and does it have anything to do with what we’re up against?”
“I think it does,” Becky said. “One of the Shelby County council members—the vice president, no less—is involved in a bit of a flame war on Twitter, or X, or whatever they’re calling it these days.”
“I can’t believe I’m about to ask this,” Virgil said. “In a flame war with whom?”
Becky let out a little chuckle. “Betty, of all people, which really isn’t all that surprising if you’ve ever met the woman, which I know you have. By the way, if they’re now calling the platform X, are they still calling the posts tweets?”
Virgil shook his head slightly, even though Becky couldn’t see him. “Becky, I don’t pay any attention to that social media bullshit. What does any of this have to do with our case?”
“I’m not exactly sure,” Becky said. “But I do know they’re accusing Ed Henderson of dereliction of duty over what happened with that Reynolds nitwit.”
“Yeah, we know all about it,” Virgil said. “Didn’t know about the war, but I already talked to both Ed and Mac about the situation. The whole thing is being handled.”
“Okay, just thought you should know.”
Murton, who could read the tone of his wife’s voice said, “It sounds like there might be more to the story.”
“In a manner of speaking,” Becky said. “I did a little digging, and get this: The vice president of the council—the one who is going back and forth with Betty—is a woman named Stacey Louder.”
“So what?” Virgil said.
“I’ll give you so what, mister. Care to guess who her husband is?”
“Or you just tell us,” Virgil said.
“Boy, somebody sure knows how to take the fun out of everything,” Becky said. “Okay, our flame-throwing Stacey clearly wants Ed out of office, and she’s doing and saying just about everything she can to make it happen. Betty, on the other hand, is defending her boss like they’re the last two standing at the Alamo.”
“And this affects us how, exactly?” Virgil said.
“Exactly this way: Stacey married a guy by the name of Mathew Louder, owner and operator of Louder Truck Rentals, right here in Indy. I’m wondering if that’s where Cooper got the van that was seen driving away from the safe house in Crows Nest.”
“That might be a bit of a stretch, Becks,” Virgil said. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s a good thought, except it would also be a hell of a coincidence, don’t you think?”
“Since you guys are the actual detectives, I’ll let you decide. But you might want to keep a couple of things in mind as you do.”
“Like what?” Virgil said.
“In their report, Mayo and Ortiz stated their witness told them that the van had either an L or an I as their logo.”
“Okay, that might be something,” Murton said. “What else?”
“You mean other than the fact that I’m rather good at what I do? Because I—”
Virgil dropped his chin. “Becky?”
“Yes, Virgie?”
Virgil could practically hear her batting her eyelashes over the phone. “Could you please just tell us?”
“That’s what I’m trying to do, but you keep interrupting me. What I was going to say was this: I kept digging until I found something solid on Stacy Louder. As it happens, she’s related to your crooked DEA agent.”
Virgil couldn’t believe it, and said so. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope. It turns out her maiden name was Blackwell. I looked at their family tree, guys. Stacey Louder and Ethan Blackwell are brother and sister.”
When Ross, Wilson, Mayo, and Ortiz arrived at Reynolds’s house, they found the sheriff and ten of his men waiting outside. “Didn’t think you’d want us to start without you,” Henderson said.
“Appreciate it,” Ross said. “Tell you the truth, I didn’t think we’d have so much help. Not that I’m complaining. You brief your men yet?”
“Just the basics,” Henderson said. “It’s your show.”
Ross turned to the deputies and said, “I know this place has already been searched, but we’re going to do it again. We’re looking for either a notebook that details the crimes committed out at the old Salter compound, or anything that will help us find the damn thing if it isn’t here. We don’t know what this notebook looks like, only that it contains the information we need.”
One of the men jerked his thumb toward the house and said, “According to that sticker on the front door, if we go inside, the United States Federal Government isn’t going to be very happy with us.”
Ross smiled and said, “Are they ever? Let’s go.”
Mayo walked past Henderson, and gave him a friendly clap on the back. “Good to see you again, Sheriff.”
Henderson caught the meaning of the gesture and felt the tension slip away. Then he turned to his men and said, “Let’s get to it, fellas.”
Louder called her brother on the phone and got right to the point. “That woman makes me want to scream. You wouldn’t believe the things she’s saying about me online.”
“I don’t know what to tell you,” Blackwell said. “Maybe you should drop the whole thing.”
“Drop it? Are you kidding me? Bobby and I had a good thing going, and Henderson could have done something to protect him.”
“Bobby Reynolds was an idiot, Stacey. I’m surprised he lasted as long as he did. And based on what I’ve seen, he would have ended up dragging you down with him.”
“That is not true. I loved him. We were planning a future together.”
“And what about Matt? He’s a successful businessman, and has always been good to you.”
