man carried into the crime scene a certain substance on his shoes painted a very pretty picture. The prosecution would be hamstrung if they couldn't mention a key piece of evidence pointed them toward the killer.
Of course, none of that would really matter if Emma Campano was found alive. They were coming up on twenty-four hours since the girl had been taken. Each minute that passed made it less likely she would be found.
Will shook the vial, seeing darker specs in the gray powder. 'What do you think it is?'
'That's the million-dollar question.' He added, 'Literally,' not needing to remind Will that analyzing the powder would be a costly test. Unlike Hollywood dream labs, it was very rare for a state laboratory to be equipped with all the cutting-edge computers and microscopes that made it so easy for the heroes to solve crimes in under an hour. They had two choices: send the sample to the FBI and pray they could get to it or shell out the money for a private lab to do the analysis.
Will felt the heat catch up with him, sweat rolling down the back of his neck. 'How important do you think this is?'
Charlie shrugged. 'I just collects 'em, boss.'
Will asked, 'Do you have another one of these?'
'Yep, one for each location.' He pointed to another vial in the tray. 'You've got the sample from the rug, so it's more likely to have cross-contamination.' Charlie gave him a curious look. 'What are you going to do?'
If he hadn't been to Georgia Tech the day before, Will probably wouldn't have even considered it. 'Beg somebody to test it for free.'
Charlie advised, 'This is a hell of a lot more complicated than letting you have that key yesterday. A key either fits a certain lock or doesn't. With the powder, it's all down to one person's interpretation. We have to document everything. I've got a form you can take with you.' He rummaged around in the van and pulled out a yellow sheet of paper. 'This is a sign-in sheet. You're going to need a witness every step of the way. First, I need you to sign a release saying you've taken the sample.' He found another form, attached it to a clipboard, and offered it to Will. 'I've got the other sample if you hit on something. We can always run it through a lab to confirm whatever you find.'
Will stared at the form, finding the X and the straight line. His signature was the one thing he could manage without having to think about it, but that wasn't the problem. If there was a geological characteristic to the sample that pointed to a specific location, then that might give them an area to search for Emma Campano.
Will tried to keep his tone even, but he felt a tingling at the base of his spine, like he was walking perilously close to the edge of a steep cliff. 'The defense could argue that anybody brought in the powder. If we make an arrest off a lab analysis, and the judge says the analysis can't be used, the killer could walk away free.'
Charlie lowered the clipboard. 'Yes, that's true.'
'But, if we just happen to find the girl…'
He returned to his computer, tapping the keys to wake it up.
Will turned around, checking on the cop at the end of the driveway. The man still had his back turned to them, and he was at least twenty feet away, but still, Will lowered his voice when he asked Charlie, 'Have you catalogued this yet?'
'Nope.' He scanned the bar code on an evidence bag and tapped some more keys.
Will tightened his hand around the vial, which fit neatly into the palm of his hand. He had never been the kind of cop to bend the rules, but if there was a way to find the girl, how could it be right for him to stand idly by?
Charlie said, 'Did you see the Toxic Shocks are battling it out with the Dixie Derby Girls this weekend?'
Will had to repeat the words in his head before he understood their meaning. Charlie was a big fan of women's competitive roller derby. 'No, I didn't see that.'
'It's going to be a real knockout.'
Will hesitated. He checked the cop at the end of the driveway again before putting the sample in his pants pocket. 'Thanks, Charlie.'
'Don't mention it.' He turned to face Will. 'Okay?'
Will gave a quick nod. 'I'll let you know when you can swab the dad.'
Charlie gave a sarcastic, 'Great. Thanks.'
Will tucked his hand into his pocket, wrapping his fingers around the vial as he walked to the carriage house. He was really sweating now, though the temperature wasn't in the unbearable range yet. There had been times in Will's career when he had walked the tightrope between right and wrong, but he had never done something so blatantly illegal-and desperate. Not that it made a bit of difference, but nothing was breaking on this case. They were a day into it, and there were no witnesses, no suspects and nothing to go on but the gray powder that may or may not lead to anything but Will getting fired from his job.
He had actually stolen evidence from a crime scene. Not only that, but he had implicated Charlie in the process. What gave Will the most trouble was the hypocrisy involved. The disapproving cop standing guard in the Campano driveway suddenly had the moral high ground.
'Will.' Hamish Patel was sitting at the top of the steps that led to the apartment over the garage. He held a cigarette between his thumb and forefinger.
Will took his hand out of his pocket as he climbed the stairs. 'How's it going?'
'All right, I guess. I've got the computer hooked up to the phone line, but nothing's come in. Mostly, they've been getting calls from family and neighbors. The father's been pretty abrupt with them and no one's called this morning.'
'And the family?'
'The mother's been in the bedroom pretty much from the get-go. A doctor came in this morning to check on her, but she refused sedation. Hoyt Bentley was here most of the night, but he left around an hour ago. The father left a few times, too, but mostly he just sat at the bottom of the stairs. He got the morning paper from the end of the driveway before I could stop him.'
'What about his parents?'
'I think they're dead.'
Will rubbed his jaw. He felt an odd sort of loss at the news. At the home, the older a child got, the less likely he was to be adopted. Paul had been twelve when his foster parents had petitioned the court to make it official. They had all waited for him to be returned like an ugly tie or a broken toaster. When Will himself left at eighteen, they were still waiting.
From nowhere, Hamish said, 'I have to say, man, that Abigail Campano is one good-looking woman.'
The inappropriate observation wasn't altogether a surprise. Hamish was one of those cops who liked to put on a front, as if the job was just a job.
Still, Will said, 'I thought it was against your religion to covet other men's wives.'
He flicked ash off his cigarette. 'Southern Baptist, baby. Jesus already forgave me.' Hamish indicated the pool area, which looked like an oasis in the backyard. 'You mind if I take a break while you're in with them? I've been here all night. I could use a change of scenery.'
'Go ahead.' Will knocked lightly on the door, then let himself in. The main room of the apartment was large, with a full kitchen on one side and the living room on the other. He guessed the bedroom and bathroom were behind the closed doors at the rear of the room. Hamish Patel's laptop was set up on the kitchen table, waiting for the phone to ring. Two sets of headphones were hooked into an old-fashioned tape machine that was the size of a cement block.
Paul was sitting on the couch, his hand on the remote control.
The television was muted but the closed-captioning scrolled across the screen. Will recognized the CNN logo in the corner. The reporter was standing in front of a weather map, her arms waving as she described a storm system moving across the Midwest. The coffee table was littered with newspapers-
'Trash,' Paul said.
Will didn't know whether or not to correct him. The man's daughter was missing. Was now really the time to dig up old grudges?
'They're fucking idiots,' Paul said, waving the remote at the TV. 'Two days now, and they're still saying the
