Too shook up to argue, I opened my drawers and started doing just that while Kirk cleared off the rest of the top of my desk.
The memory vanished, leaving behind the realization that if Kirk had given meanything after I’d been fired, it had to be in that box. The box I’d put in the trunk of my car before heading to Addison’s after I was fired. Because Addison and I had gotten plastered that night, and I’d been arrested the following morning, my car—and that damn box—had been parked in Addison’s garage ever since. I’d never gone through the box. Kirk could have slipped money into it, but somethingtold me Randal wasn’t looking for a few bills. The money had to be significant if he’d been willing to kill Kirk over it. Still, the box was my only option.
Hoping we’d find something in it, I nodded to Nicolai. “Yes, take me to Addison’s.”
The inside of the van darkened when we pulled into Addison’s parking garage. Anxious to find the money, but dreading what would happen to me after I did,I leaned back and closed my eyes. My mind and body were exhausted as I struggled to piece together the new details I had.
Randal White was responsible for Kirk’s death.
In hindsight, it made perfect sense. The spreadsheet, the skewed numbers, Kirk’s anger at me for going over his head. He must have been skimming from the company, and my whistle-blowing had only drawn attention to him. Allthis time I thought I was innocent, but it turned out I’d played a huge part in Kirk’s murder. I didn’t know how to feel about that.
“Is it in the condo?” Nicolai asked.
“No. My car.”
He frowned, studying me. Most likely he’d slashed my tire, so it was probably frustrating for him to know he’d been so close to what he was looking for.
The van rolled to a stop. The driver’s side door openedand closed, and then Brian opened my door. With both their guns trained on me, I got out of the van and made my way to the trunk of my car.
Brian tugged my keys out of his pocket and unlocked the trunk. The box sat smack dab in the middle, just waiting for us.
Nicolai gestured toward it with his gun. “The money’s in that?” He sounded nearly as skeptical as I felt.
I shrugged. “The last timeI saw Kirk he helped me pack up this box. I don’t know if the money is in there, but maybe something that will lead us to it is.”
Nicolai and Brian didn’t look happy, but they must not have had any better ideas, because Brian stepped forward and inspected the box. “It’s clean. Looks like stuff from her work desk.”
Itwasstuff from my work desk, but hopefully Kirk had slipped in something extra.“If he added anything, I’ll know,” I said.
Nicolai considered my words a few seconds before gesturing me forward. “Okay, but no tricks or I’ll shoot.”
Randal had not only taken all my tricks, but he’d burnt my sleeves. The garage was silent, my only allies were busy at some fundraiser, and I had nothing on me but a pair of spiked heels and the bobby pins in my hair. Since I couldn’t imaginethem allowing me the time necessary to take either of those off and use them as a weapon, I went to work emptying the box.
Piece by piece, I removed each item, examined it, and placed it in my trunk. Unfortunately, I hadn’t been working there long enough to accumulate many personal items. In less than ten minutes I was staring at an empty box, wondering what to do next.
“Where is it?” Nicolaiasked, jabbing his gun at me.
“I don’t know, okay?” I replied. “This was the only place I could think of. He brought me this box and...”
Then it hit me. I flipped the box over. Nothing was taped to the bottom of it. I felt the insides, looking for some hidden compartment or something. Nothing. But there was a piece of cardboard taped to the side.
“Hand me my keys,” I said, holding my handout to Brian.
He shook his head, taking a step back.
I rolled my eyes. “There’s no weapon on them. What do you think I’m going to do with them? Key you to death?”
When Brian didn’t answer I turned to Nicolai. “Give them to her,” he barked.
Brian handed me my keys and I used one to cut through the heavy box tape. The flap sprung free, and a torn piece of paper fluttered to the bottom of thebox.
“What’s that?” Nicolai said, looking over my shoulder.
I set my keys down in the trunk and picked it up. A web address written in Kirk’s handwriting. Below it was his usual username, followed by a series of letters, numbers, and special characters.
“I think this is what we’re looking for,” I said.
Nicolai leveled his gun at me. “Good. Give it to me.”
