Maggie certainly wasn’t going to share what little information she gleaned from Jeremy. She was primarily interested in whether or not the two stories were in sync.
The sergeant returned with a manila file. Maggie pulled out her notebook. “According to the officer on scene, Mr. Sykes was run off the road by a dump truck. Sykes was dazed and could only remember a few details. He said there were no discernible markings on the truck, no plate, but again, he said it happened extremely fast.”
“And that was it?” Maggie wondered if he was going to reveal the morphine connection.
“As I mentioned, it’s an ongoing investigation.”
“And no one has come forward?” Maggie was scribbling doodles. She already knew the answer.
“Not yet, I’m afraid.”
Over the years, Maggie became proficient in reading things upside down. She saw the wordsmorphine vial found in vehicle; owner denies any knowledge. She also noticed that the ink was blue for that passage, whereas the other part of the report was written in black ink. Theowner denies knowledgemust have been added. She made a mental note.
“I thank you very much for your time. If there is any other information you can share, please give me a buzz.” This time, she handed over her official business card.
“Will do,” he said, but Maggie doubted it.
The sergeant may not be part of the cover-up or the setup, but she was certain something was amiss.
By the time she got back to the hotel, her stomach was growling for some real food. She had met her junk food quota for the day, and the basket of snacks was empty. She phoned the front desk and asked for a restaurant recommendation, and the nearest grocery store. Time to replenish the basket. The front desk recommended a local bistro that had authentic local cuisine. Maggie wasn’t sure what that meant, but she was up for finding out.
Before she left her room, she phoned Annie to bring her up to speed with what little information she had.
“The police were cordial but failed to mention the morphine found on scene,” Maggie said.
“What was your sense from Jeremy?”
“Honestly, I don’t think he stole it. I think he might have been framed.”
“But why?” Annie asked.
“I don’t know. Yet. I am going to see him again tomorrow. They only give you fifteen minutes of visitor time.”
“Okay. We also need you to get to Tempe. It’s under four hours by air. Can you wrangle your schedule? I’d like you to go back to Pensacola and dig deeper into this morphine thing. You really believe the guy was telling you the truth?”
“There was something about the expression in his eyes. I dunno. But you know that gut feeling thing.”
“You know I do. I make most of my decisions based on it. I can get the jet ready for you after you meet with Jeremy again. What time were you planning on going over there?”
“Probably ten.”
“Good. Once you’re finished with your fifteen minutes of Jeremy, you hustle to the airport. If we get wheels up by noon, and with the time difference, you should be able to get to the Tempe police station by two. Three at the latest.”
“I should also meet with Theresa.”
“Yes. I’ll ask Lizzie to arrange it. You’ll spend the night in Arizona and then take the jet back to Pensacola. We have to get Myra to Florida in the next two days.”
“Roger, dodger.” Maggie wrote everything down. “I’m going to upload my notes, grab a bite to eat, and then jump on the call at nine.”
“Okay, dearie. Talk to you in a bit.”
Maggie opened her laptop and typed her notes. From there, they went to a secure hard drive. When she was finished, she sent them to the secure network so the Sisters, Charles, and Fergus would have access to the information.
As Maggie was leaving for the bistro, her phone buzzed. It was Lizzie, letting her know she contacted Theresa and giving Maggie the when and where to meet the following day. Things were beginning to move quickly, but that was the only way the Sisters operated.
Just before nine, Annie, Fergus, Charles, and Myra headed down the stone steps to the War Room. After the requisite salute to Lady Liberty, they took their seats at the table. Charles had fired up the monitors earlier. They were ready to roll.
At the stroke of the hour, the sound of pings, dings, and chimes echoed through the room as everyone logged into the system with their smiling faces. Greetings, tossed kisses, and waves filled the screens.
