“We’ve had a forensic entomologist look at the grasshoppers that were lodged in Mr. Knox’s mouth and nose. He wants more time to study them, but he is almost positive that they are…” He looked helplessly at the crime lab’s representative to the task force.
“Melanoplus femurrubrum,” he supplied.
“Thanks. It’s a small, red-legged grasshopper found in parts of the Midwest and in Mexico. The grasshoppers found on Knox were roasted and coated in what we are fairly sure is chili powder. That makes Mexico more likely. The entomologist said that in Oaxaca these are commonly caught in communal fields and prepared fresh to be sold in the city each day. A local delicacy called chapulines. But these must have been caught last summer or fall and kept for some reason-perhaps for this.”
“So someone in Oaxaca was saving grasshoppers, hoping for this creep to show up again?” Ciara asked.
“Maybe ‘expecting’ would be a better word,” Agent Moore said. “We know from the snuff films that several of Knox’s victims were Hispanic. His wife said he had traveled to Mexico, Peru, and Brazil.”
“We’re asking Mexican authorities to help us to discover if anyone matching Knox’s description was in Oaxaca,” Alex said. “Do you have identifications on any of the boys who were his victims?”
“A few,” Moore said. “We’re still working on most of them. I’ll try to find out if any members of the known victims’ families have traveled to Mexico lately. I’ll also ask if the team that has been working on the snuff film cases has any more specific records of Knox’s travel.”
“Thanks,” Alex said.
“When will we have the results of these DNA tests?” the captain asked.
“Our backlog is six months,” the crime lab representative said, to a chorus of groans. “We’ve moved this work up to the front of the list, but it will probably be at least a week before we have anything for you.”
Nelson hesitated only slightly before asking, “Could the FBI lab get them to us any faster?”
Agent Moore gave him a brittle smile. “No, the test itself takes a certain amount of time.”
Nelson turned back to Alex. “What about the situation in Palmdale?”
“We’ve got preliminary identification on the two victims,” Alex said. He gave them what little information the detectives had been able to gather at the scene. “I haven’t been out there personally yet, but we’ve got a good team there. We’ve got a warrant on the phone records, just as we do from Del Aire. And we’re hoping to discover whether or not the bullets match either of the guns from Mulholland.”
“And we’re almost sure we can rule out suicides on Mulholland?” Nelson asked.
“Yes, sir.”
Agent Moore’s cell phone went off. He answered it. “Just a minute,” he said to the caller. “Let me get out of earshot.” He walked out of the room.
“They want to know if you want them to overnight the FBI etiquette manual to you,” Ciara said as the door shut behind him, causing the others to laugh. She got another laugh when she asked Alex in an overly polite manner if she might be excused.
“Alex, what’s the plan now?” the captain asked when she had left.
“We need to look for connections-not just between Addison and Whitfield, but between them and any of the fugitives. So far, we’re having some difficulties-many of the people who knew them are extremely wealthy, and there are a lot of layers of protection around them. Many are being advised by attorneys not to speak to us without an attorney present-”
Someone made a cash register sound.
Alex smiled. “Maybe. But even without their help, we’ve learned that Addison and Whitfield went to the same school. And one member of the fugitives list grew up in Malibu-Gabriel Taggert.”
“That’s the suspect in the killing of that film producer and his family?” Hogan asked.
“Right. I’ve tried contacting the school, but it’s closed for the summer and none of the live-in students are present. Apparently, it’s under new ownership and they’re doing renovations-there are signs of construction work going on, although I didn’t see any crew around when I drove up to the gates today. We’re tracking down the owner of the company that bought it. Once we reach him, we’ll try to talk to faculty and staff who might have known any of those three former students.”
He was interrupted when a sergeant hurried into the room.
“We’re getting reports of a surrender by one of the top ten fugitives. Not sure which one it is, but some lawyer has been calling the media to say he represents one of them and that his client will be giving himself up to the FBI in Long Beach.”
Alex and the captain exchanged a glance.
“Any idea of the exact location?” Alex asked.
“Not yet.”
Alex’s cell phone rang and he answered it.
“Alex? It’s John-”
“John, let me call you right back. All hell is breaking loose.”
He had no sooner hung up, than it rang again.
“I’m following that snake from the FBI,” Ciara said.
“Which one?”
“Moore, of course.”
“Don’t you think he’ll spot you?”
“Doesn’t matter if he does. When I stepped out into the hall, I heard him taking down directions. Something about one of the fugitives giving himself up.”
“My God-” He motioned to Nelson and Hogan, who were about to leave the room. “Where is Agent Moore going?”
“Third and Pine Avenue in Long Beach. I might as well have stayed at home-it’s just a few miles from where I live.”
“So it is Long Beach. We won’t have any jurisdiction there. Hell, I guess all we can do is sit back and watch. You have any idea which fugitive it is?”
“No, didn’t catch any names. I’ll keep you posted, though. I’m hanging up now-I want to make sure there aren’t any last-minute changes in plans.”
Alex told Hogan and Nelson about Ciara’s pursuit of Moore.
“I’d better give the sheriff a call,” Nelson said. “And although they probably heard about this before we did, let’s make sure the Long Beach PD knows about this. Alex, maybe you should go down there, too. If the FBI will let us talk to him, at least we can find out what the lure has been for getting them to California.”
“Both Taggert and Sloan are Californians, both from the L.A. area. May have been here already. In fact-I was going to pursue this earlier, but we’ve had so many scenes to process-let me get to my desk. I’ve got some files there on Taggert and Sloan.”
They followed him out. Along the way, they were stopped by Nelson’s assistant, who said Sheriff Dwyer was calling. The captain left them to take the call.
“So what is it you’re after?” Hogan asked Alex.
“The lawyers. Both Sloan and Taggert have adult criminal records in California. Taggert had a couple of cocaine possession charges. Sloan had a murder conviction before he escaped from prison.”
“He’s the last of that gang that escaped from Lompoc?”
“Yes. There were four of them-Sloan was the leader. They became trusties, learned the routine for outside deliveries, murdered two guards and a truck driver, and escaped. Three were quickly recaptured, but Sloan managed to slip through the net.”
“This is the one with the wife, right?”
“Right. The FBI thinks his wife helped him-she was one of those women who think of a murder trial as a singles bar-sigh over a defendant and start writing love letters to him. The Sloans were married in prison.”
“Since she’s no longer breathing, I guess they needed the old Graybar Hotel for their love nest. Why do these women do it?”
Alex smiled as he looked through the files on his desk. “Because nice guys are so boring.” He found Sloan’s and Taggert’s files. He started with Taggert’s. “Here-I knew I had this somewhere. Taggert used high-priced attorneys-his sister usually posted bail for him, and I imagine she paid the bill for these guys, too.”
He then opened Sloan’s file. “Sloan had a lawyer in Pasadena, but recently hired a new one to handle appeals
