“It’s one of your more endearing talents. You can grow roots everywhere. Me, I’m not good at that, which is why all the gallivanting around the States comes easy to me. But on you it’s hard, and don’t try to tell me otherwise. I know you too well.”
George had to think about that for a moment. Daniel was right. He had an easy time getting homey in places. He needed it too. It gave him a sense of stability and purpose he otherwise missed. Which was the reason he had never stayed in one precinct longer than a year and a half until now. Just thinking about prolonging his stay in Charleston was taking him into territory he had subconsciously avoided so far.
“You think I should consider staying here for longer? Seriously?”
“You’re calling me because you’re worried about leaving a partner you’ve been working with for what now, six months? Before Andi, I could call myself lucky when I found out your partner’s name before you transferred to the next precinct. Hell, I know more about Andi than about any other person you ever had in your life, apart from family.”
“What about my plans?”
“Plans change, George. They can be altered, as you well know. And see it like this—if you decide to stay longer, you get some breathing space to examine your feelings and goals. Perhaps something has changed and you haven’t noticed because you were so busy trying to fulfill your five-year plan.”
George mulled this over. It was too big a leap to simply embrace it. He would have to sleep on it, catalogue it, examine his feelings, as Daniel had put it. At least he had a plan now.
“Thank you, Daniel. I needed to hear that. I guess I have a lot of thinking to do.”
“Try not to overdo it. I don’t want to be responsible when your brain explodes.”
“And I’m not grateful anymore. Have a nice evening, you ass.”
“Love you, too, little brother. Call me anytime.”
“Love you, Daniel. I think.”
The line went dead, and George stared at the blank screen of his TV. It was a good thing he had been running, otherwise he wouldn’t be getting much sleep tonight.
THE MORNINGwasn’t good. George hadn’t slept as well as he had hoped, Andi was staring tight-lipped into his herbal tea, the dark circles under his eyes indicating his night hadn’t been any better, and Shireen was already waiting for them in the hall, motioning them to follow her into her lair. After a slurred “Good morning” from Andi, Shireen went straight to the heart of the matter, not even complaining about the additional work they had unloaded on her the day before.
“Good morning to you too. And before you ask, I haven’t found anything on the darknet yet. But Mrs. Ingman from the Palmetto Conversation Foundation has sent me an email with some lovely pictures. I contacted her after you sent me the info about the wildlife cameras. Apparently two biologists are researching the movement patterns of the wildlife in the Lake Moultrie region, and they have several cameras in close vicinity to the cabin because they want to see how human settlement affects the animals. The two searched all the cameras and sent me everything non-animal they found from Wednesday through Friday.”
“Your satisfied smile says there was something of interest?” George longed to hear something that would help them.
“Yes. I hope. It definitely qualifies as a lead.” Shireen pulled up several images of a bulky-looking dark green car, the first four in color, the next in varying shades of gray, as was typical for pictures taken during the night. “This car, a BMW X1, was caught by two of the cameras, both times coming and leaving. On Wednesday it drove toward the cabin at around five o’clock and left about an hour later. On Thursday it came in at eight in the evening and left only twenty minutes afterwards. I understand this coincides with the cabin being empty before the victims came and then with the night of the murder.”
George looked at Andi, who was staring at the pictures with furrowed brows. “The first time span fits. An hour is enough time to break into the cabin and doctor the beers, then leave again. But twenty minutes isn’t enough to get three grown men, no matter how drugged they were, out of the cabin and into a car. Are there any pictures where we can see who’s inside the vehicle?”
Shireen shook her head. “Sorry, George. The cameras’ position is too low for that. But it’s just the right height to catch the license plates.”
“Which you did.” Andi was still staring at the pictures.
“Which I did because I’m the best, you wanted to add.” Shireen winked at George, not the least bit offended by Andi’s absentmindedness. She changed the picture on the screen, showing two names and an address. “Meet Tabitha Clemént and Josephine Garr, the owners of that beautiful beemer.”
Shireen tapped some more, and two license pictures popped up on the screen. One showed an African American woman with short hair, the other a stockier-looking Caucasian woman with dark hair, eyes, and skin complexion that hinted at Mediterranean ancestors. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail, and her round face with the sharp nose didn’t show any traces of makeup. “Tabitha Clemént, forty-three.” Shireen enlarged the picture of the African American woman. “A lawyer for family law with Dexter & Partners. She’s one of the senior partners and lives in East Cooper in a pricey house she shares with Josephine Garr.” Shireen changed pictures to the other woman. “Josephine has a PhD in chemistry and works for a skin-care company, Natural Beauty, here in Charleston. They produce high-end stuff, and Josephine is in charge of their research department.”
“Any connection to the victims?” George was wondering what a family lawyer and a researcher had to do with three business sharks.
“None I could find yet. The women both graduated from Yale, and they seem to have known each other before. I have to dig some more.”
“Do that, but could you concentrate on the immediate family? We’re going to pay these two a visit now, see what they have to say.”
George didn’t have to look at Andi to know his partner was with him on this. Tabitha and Josephine would either be additional suspects on their seemingly endless list, or they would be able to dismiss them, an option George would prefer. They left Shireen to her hacking and got into the car.
HOBCAW BLUFFDrive in East Cooper was lined with beautiful houses varying in style from respectable Southern Belles to modern buildings with flat roofs and plenty of glass and steel. The driveways and front gardens of these houses were beautifully groomed, showing a wide variety of autumn blooms such as Angel’s Trumpet, Autumnal Blues, Balloon Flowers, and Belladonna Lilies. Their rich colors were like a last rebellion against the upcoming cold season, very much welcomed by the arthropods, who not only fed from the plants but also used them as shelter as George had learned by now. Naturally Andi was a well of information about the living habits of creepy crawlers and their abilities to adapt to almost every environment, which never ceased to amaze George.
The home of Tabitha Clemént and Josephine Garr was very modern, the driveway with the gray pebbles lined with rhododendron and baygall bushes. Two huge gray pots housed pyramids made of willow branches on which Black-eyed Susans climbed upward, accentuating the steel construction in the background with their bright yellow beauty.
George drove by very slowly, giving Andi a chance to take a quick internal peek. “Anybody home?”
Andi nodded. “Yes. We have to be careful.”
