“There’s the fax room and a couple of offices. Everything’s been processed?”
“Yeah. Her prints are everywhere, but we think she was in this office at the end of the hallway.” Ross walked in. “Her prints are all over the arms of the chair in front of the desk, like she was sitting there, and that wouldn’t be normal for her.”
“Who pushed the chair back in?” Jack stood behind the dark, wooden desk and looked it over. The family pictures sat on one corner. The phone, with a headset, was within easy reach on the left side of the desk. The high-back, leather office chair was pushed into its spot at the desk.
“I’ll check and make sure this is how it was found, but it was probably either the victim or the Governor,” Ross answered.
“The PC is missing. This one was taken?” Jack asked.
“Yes.”
Jack walked to the door. “Let’s run through it again, make sure we’re not missing something.”
Chapter 4
The deli wasn’t crowded so they had their pick of wrought iron tables covered with plastic, blue and white checked tablecloths. Jack picked a table by the window looking out over the street. The plastic utensils and the paper napkins sat at the center of the table in a mason jar with paper menus propped against it.
“Whoever invented air conditioning was a genius,” Jack said. He settled into his seat and looked over the menu.
“Have you eaten here?” Ross asked.
“No, but it has to be good. Main street of Wayzata, facing the lake. It wouldn’t survive if it wasn’t good.”
“Hi guys. Can I get you something to drink? Or are you ready to order?” The waitress had her blonde hair tied up in a ponytail and her blue eyes stood out against her tanned skin.
Jack ordered a sandwich and an unsweetened iced tea. Ross ordered a salad and a lemonade. Jack watched the waitress walk back to the kitchen and then turned to Ross.
“What about her? You’re new in town and could use a date. Want me to find out if she’s available? Nice tan and looks like she works out.”
“Too young and GUD.”
“GUD?”
“Geographically Undesirable. I don’t date anybody over ten miles away. I may drive this far to take a date out to dinner or for drinks, but I don’t drive over twenty minutes on a regular basis to pick up my dates. I don’t have the time.”
“Picky, picky.” Jack looked back towards the kitchen. “Your loss.” He settled into his chair, which wobbled as he shifted his weight, and then crossed his arms and directed his gaze at Ross. “So, we know what happened in the bank. We learned a little this morning. What’s your theory? How did he leave the bank?”
“What do you mean, how did he leave the bank?”
“By land or by sea?”
Ross thought for a second before answering. “I assumed he drove. It was early morning, nobody around. No reason not to drive.”
“You didn’t even check the lake?”
“I assumed he drove so we’re concentrating on that. But, we’re checking the lake. Looking at rentals, reports of stolen watercraft. It’s a big lake.”
“There are a lot of roads.”
Ross replied, “We’re checking the videos from the convenience stores, highway traffic cameras, the other banks, and ATMs. They should be done with the analysis in the next day or two.” Ross glanced outside. Jack remained quiet.
Ross spoke, facing the window. “I’ll get some people to walk the tracks in both directions twice as far as we went yesterday, see if they find anything.” He looked back at Jack. “And I’ll contact the Sheriff’s office to see if any of their boats reported finding anything strange on the lake. I’ll coordinate pulling tapes from stores around the lake and interviewing store owners near the landings and marinas.”
“You’re learning.” Jack looked towards the kitchen at the waitress carrying two plastic baskets with their lunches. “Now observe.”
The waitress placed their lunches in front of them on the table. “Anything else you gentlemen need?”
Jack answered. “Well, miss, my friend here is new to town and is trying to figure out where he should live. Do you know this area very well? Have any ideas where he might look?”
“I know there’s a realty office down the street here. My mom works there. Ask for Mrs. Whalen. Tell her I sent you. My name’s Beth.”
“Thanks, Beth. We’ll do that right after lunch.”
Jack watched the young woman walk away and picked up his sandwich. “You were right, she’s too young.”
As they ate lunch, they talked about the heat and the lake. They talked about how Ross was going to deal with both in the triathlon after the Fourth. They weren’t in a rush, so they ate slowly and motioned to Beth to refill their drinks. Ross was watching the jet skis fly across the lake.
“What do you think is going on over there?” he asked.
Some trucks pulled into the park across the street and stopped under the trees. A van with a satellite dish on top and a logo of a local television news station pulled to a stop at the curb.
Jack leaned back in his chair and watched the activity as the drivers and crews got out of their vehicles.
“Oh, didn’t I tell you? There’s a press conference this afternoon. I thought we’d observe. Another learning experience for you. We’ll hear what questions the press has. See how the Wayzata police chief responds. You can see an FBI spokesperson in action.”
Ross glared at Jack. “No, you didn’t tell me. What, you forgot? I thought this was my case. I need to know what’s going on.” Ross pushed his chair back from the table.
Jack stayed seated. “Whoa. What’s the hurry? It’s ninety-two degrees in the shade.” Jack looked at the watch on his wrist. “The press conference starts at three o’clock. Sit down. Have some more iced tea. Observe from this sanctuary and stay out of the heat. We’ll go out in thirty minutes.”
Ross looked out the window, but didn’t move.
“Come on Junior, sit.”
Ross remained still. Only his eyes moved as they tracked something as he looked through the window. “It’s Ross.”
“Come on. Sit down. Let’s talk.” Jack turned and looked out the window to see what had Ross’ attention. Standing next to the news van parked under the trees was a beautiful woman. She was small, slender, Hispanic, with bronze skin and long black hair. Her designer sunglasses hid her eyes, but they complemented her facial features and her hair. She wasn’t dressed for physical work, but rather wore a coffee and cream-colored sleeveless top that accentuated the color of her skin and showed off her strong, feminine arms. She moved with grace and energy around the truck as she spoke with a cameraman. Her jewelry, a gold necklace, earrings, and watch sparkled in the sunlight that filtered through the leaves.
Jack stood up and threw some bills on the table. “I guess we’re done here.” He walked past Ross towards the door, stopped, and looked back. “Junior… Ross, you coming?”
Jack crossed the street, heading straight for the woman as she and her news crew worked on readying the van for the press conference. A couple of cameras lay in the grass, the satellite dish was raised, and cables were pulled from the door. Ross trotted after Jack. “Where’re you going?”
“We’re going to a press conference, Junior.”
“No,” Ross grabbed Jack’s arm, and nodded towards the woman ahead of them who walked around to the far side of the van. “Where are you going?”
Jack looked at Ross and exaggerated a nod in the same direction. “We’re going to a press conference. Let’s go.”
