“That’s a shame.” Dante frowned. “So you’re not working on anything exciting right now?”
“Actually, I am,” I replied. “That’s part of the reason I stopped by. I wanted to get your input on something.”
“Really?” Dante’s eyes lit up. “Let’s go talk in my office, then.”
He led me past the work area and through a door set into the side of the adjoining building. The office was clean and professional-looking, which clashed considerably with Dante’s wild hairstyle and fashion sense.
“Okay,” he declared as he plopped down into his chair and propped his feet up onto his desk. “Give me the details.”
I gave him a quick rundown of the case, about how the female suspect had gotten away, and about how our biggest lead had been killed in the hospital while we were awaiting a chance to interrogate him.
“Wow,” Dante hummed as he drummed his fingers against his desk. “That’s a crazy series of events. Doesn’t it seem like a message?”
“What do you mean?” I asked. “What seems like a message?”
“Slitting the guy’s throat,” he clarified. “I mean, just think about it. You know there are a lot of other ways to kill people. Cleaner, quieter, more discreet ways. The only reason to off the guy in such a messy and show fashion--”
“Would be to leave a message,” I finished his thought for him. “He was in a hospital. It would have been easier to just smother him with a pillow or inject him with a dose of something lethal. Then everyone would have just assumed that some nurse made a really serious mistake. Instead, whoever did this made it really clear that it was a murder.”
“Bingo,” Dante replied. “Whoever offed the guy wasn’t just trying to silence him. I think this was a warning. You said he threatened that lady with going to the cops, right?”
“Yeah, he did,” I replied. “Right before we arrested him.”
“Well, there you go.” Dante shrugged. “They took him out as a warning to others. Don’t talk to the cops like this dope, or you’ll end up with your neck slashed, too.”
I frowned grimly at his insinuation. Everything he’d said so far was spot on, but if he was right, then that meant there were many more people involved in this. Enough to warrant this kind of warning, at least.
“You know,” Dante muttered, “hearing all the details like this, it almost sounds like something the mafia would do.”
“Yeah, it does,” I replied curtly. I’d been thinking the same thing, but I’d also been hoping it wasn’t connected to the mafia, if only because that would make this entire case infinitely more complicated.
“Then again, we wouldn’t be sloppy enough to kill something that publicly,” he snorted. “Well, I don’t think, anyway. Some of these new guys can be kind of dense. Take Elliot back there, for example, taking the rims off the wrong car. I love the guy, but I wouldn’t trust him with a hit. He’d probably whack the wrong guy.”
I barked with laughter. It felt a little weird, laughing at such a dark joke, but it felt good, too. Dante was one of the only people I could talk to about these kinds of things.
“Well, I think I should get going,” I said after we spent another few minutes talking. “I think you have a good point about the way Ryan was killed being a message. I should talk with my partner about it.”
“All right,” Dante replied. “I’ll let you know if I happen to come by any information through the Family. And don’t be a stranger. You know Ma misses you, right?”
“Yeah, I know,” I chuckled. It was funny how both of them had made sure to remind me to visit the other. “And I’d appreciate that. Just make sure you don’t do anything to get yourself in trouble.”
“I’ll be getting in trouble, anyway.” He grinned. “Oh, and before you go, I have something else I’ve been working on.”
I watched as he bent down to rummage through one of the drawers in his desk. He grinned as he pulled a small USB drive out of the drawer and held it out to me.
“What’s this?” I asked curiously as I took the mall device from him. It didn’t look any different from an ordinary USB drive.
“There’s a special program on it,” he replied. “Plug it into a computer, and it’ll automatically start making a copy of everything on the hard drive.”
“Wow, really?” I asked as I turned the small device over in my hands.
“Pretty cool, huh?” He smirked. “Anyway, let me know how it works. Good luck with your federal mission or whatever, have fun chasing down bad guys.”
“Okay,” I snorted as I got up to leave. I felt a lot lighter after having spoken with Dante. Not just because I now had another clue as to what was happening with the case, but because it just felt nice to be able to talk like old times. There were only a few rays of light left in the sky now, and I wondered if Jase was still at work.
12
Jase
I let my thoughts fade away as I pulled the trigger again, and again, and again, each time striking the paper target directing at center mass. I’d always loved guns, ever since I’d first used one. It was like a puzzle, figuring out just the right angle after accounting for external interference like drag and how much velocity and height would be lost depending on the distance between me and the target. And having to do it all in a matter of nanoseconds unless I wanted to get shot. Out in the field, I didn’t have time to set my position carefully or consider the direction of the wind or calculate exactly how far my target was. Every split second counted.
Here though? Here was different. The SDCT had its own small shooting range in the basement of the office building. It wasn’t the most well-equipped place I’d ever been, but it
