The Line Between Here and Now

Congressman Mercer every time you address me. It’s Cliff.”

Casey sank into a chair. “And we’re Casey, Marc and Claire. You also met Hero. We’re all part of Forensic Instincts.”

“Yes, the name I’ve seen on every TV crew monitor I’ve walked past today.”

That took care of ensuring Mercer had seen the YouTube video.

“Exactly,” Casey confirmed, the smile vanishing from her face. “I’m sure you can understand how unhappy that video made us. We’re trying very hard to fly under the radar.” Another quick glance at Fenton. “I don’t know how much you’ve filled Cliff in on.”

Fenton looked as stiff as he had last night, and even more aloof after the tension generated by their conversation. “About your hunt for Paul Everett? Little to nothing. Cliff and I have been discussing Amanda and her baby. We both saw the video. Frankly, I was surprised you’d given Amanda permission to use your company as a contact point.”

“Actually, we didn’t. We didn’t even know about the video until this morning. We were as surprised as you were.” Casey carefully watched Fenton’s expression. His gaze was still averted from hers, but he didn’t fidget or exhibit any increased signs of uneasiness. Fine. He hadn’t known Amanda was making that video. No shocker there. It wasn’t part of his agenda. Very little Amanda did was-except saving her son. On the other hand, if, thanks to the video, Paul should crawl out of the woodwork, Fenton would be all over it like white on rice. So, if anything, Amanda had aided her uncle without realizing it.

Which meant he’d be sticking close to his niece-and keeping closer tabs on Forensic Instincts.

“This whole situation with Amanda and her baby is tragic,” Cliff Mercer said. “She’s a wonderful young woman, and a very talented photojournalist. She covered my campaign when I ran for reelection. My heart goes out to her.”

Mercer was setting the stage, beginning by letting them know he had a good relationship with Amanda Gleason-a working relationship.

“What you did for her today was a kind and generous thing,” Casey continued. “Not many public servants show that much compassion for one of their constituents.”

A shrug. “As I said, I know Amanda. I consider her a valued colleague. Plus, I had very little to do. Giving blood is something I do regularly anyway. In this case, it was even more essential. It’s a long shot that I’ll be a match. Lyle and I both know that. But maybe it will set a precedent for others to do the same.”

“That’s what we’re hoping,” Fenton added. “I was about to offer a reward to the person who wound up being a donor match. But Amanda is convinced that person will be Paul. Besides, Cliff’s gesture is much warmer and more personal than writing a check. I think it will touch people and make them take action.”

Casey wondered if they’d run lines together. This certainly seemed like a scripted performance.

“What can I do to help counter the impact of that video?” Mercer asked. “I could have the calls routed to my office, to take some of the burden off you.”

Right. And to make sure any leads went first to Fenton.

“That won’t be necessary, although we appreciate the offer,” Marc put in. “We’ve already put a bank of receptionists into place and routed the overflow to a call center we’ve hired. This way, we won’t miss any leads, but we’ll take the burden off our office.”

“Then how can I help?”

“We were hoping you could continue to draw attention to the importance of being tested to see if there’s a match for Justin,” Claire said in that gentle, sensitive tone of hers. “Maybe make a statement about that to the press. Shift the emphasis off finding Paul Everett to saving an infant’s life. That will ease the pressure off our investigation and onto Justin, where it belongs.”

Mercer looked puzzled. “I have no problem doing that. But why would you want to downplay the search for Justin’s father? Isn’t he the best hope for a donor match?”

“Yes,” Casey replied. “But he’s also a controversial figure right now. The circumstances of his disappearance-or what was presumed to be his death-means that something criminal went on. We need to find out if that criminal activity happened to Everett or was made to happen by Everett. Either way, the last thing we need to do is to alert the wrong people to the fact that he’s being hunted down by a professional investigative team.”

“I see your point.” Mercer nodded. “But hasn’t that ship sailed already?”

“To a point, yes, thanks to the first three or four hours during which time the video went viral. But we’ve already done damage control on that front. We’ve worked with Amanda and substituted the toll-free number for ours and eliminated our contact information from the video. So if you check out YouTube now, you’ll see a different message at the bottom. The phone calls and the connection to FI should start petering out.”

“I see.” Mercer’s gaze flickered ever so briefly to Fenton’s. “Then of course I’ll help you. I’ll issue statements to everyone out there, and send written statements to the rest of the press. I’ll also be on live TV in-” he checked his watch “-seventeen minutes. I’ll stress Justin’s predicament and I’ll have the stations air the toll-free number, if you give it to me.”

“Thank you so much, Cliff.” Claire was studying him as she spoke. “This could make all the difference in saving Justin’s life.”

“I hope so.” Mercer rose. “So unless there’s anything else?”

“Just one quick question,” Casey said swiftly. “Mr. Fenton told us you barely knew Paul Everett. So I realize there’s not much you can tell us. But it’s clear to me that you’re a good judge of character. When you met Everett, did you sense anything about him that made you uncomfortable or suspicious?”

Okay, it didn’t take a psychic to sense the tension in the room. Mercer cleared his throat and blinked a few times. And Lyle Fenton looked pissed as hell.

Mercer recovered first.

“As you said, I met Paul Everett once, maybe twice. He was an enthusiastic supporter, which explains why he was at the campaign party where he met Amanda. We were introduced, he spoke highly of me and my political platform, and that was it. He seemed friendly, personable and intelligent. That’s about all I can tell you. I didn’t sense anything off-putting about him. Then again, I doubt he’d show that side of himself to me if it existed. He wanted my support in the construction of his hotel.”

“That’s true.” Casey backed off as fast as she had started. She’d gotten what she needed. Now it was time to part friends. She never knew when they’d need to speak to Mercer again-as an ally or an adversary.

“I appreciate your time, Cliff,” she said. “We’ll leave the way we came. And thank you so much for helping us out.”

“My pleasure,” the congressman replied.

Hardly, Casey thought. I wish I could be a fly on the wall when we leave you and Fenton alone.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

The Forensic Instincts team had just driven out of the hospital parking lot when Casey’s cell phone rang.

The caller ID flashed Unknown.

Glancing at the other occupants of the van, Casey pressed the button on her steering wheel.

“Casey Woods.”

“Ms. Woods, this is Detective Jones of the New York State Police’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation. I need to speak with you about the case you’re currently working on-the one that involves Paul Everett’s homicide.”

Casey slowed down the van and pulled over to the curb. “May I ask why, Detective?”

“I’d rather not get into details on the phone. When can I meet with you at your office? Time is of the essence.”

Casey could have told him that she was driving by his neck of the woods right there in Long Island. But she didn’t. “I’m out of the office right now,” she said instead. “I won’t be back for several hours.”

“I see.” Jones cleared his throat. He was dying to ask her where she was and why. Casey could sense it as clearly as if he had spoken. Just as she had a strong hunch that he knew exactly what she was working on.