“We’ve been keeping an eye on Franco for a little over a week, hoping something would break. He only recently surfaced on our radar. No prior arrest record, nothing that alerted us to him right away. We didn’t expect him to go rogue the way he did last night, which is why we weren’t there to stop him.”
“Why were you watching him?” Beau asked.
“One of our informants came forward with information that Franco was the man responsible for a string of hit-and-run murders, including the recent attempts on Ms. Jones’s life. Unfortunately, we didn’t have enough evidence to arrest him.”
Beau flicked a glance at Cassidy, who seemed as intrigued by the FBI man’s presence at the house as he was. Giannetti was dead. Why was Taggart there?
“Go on,” Beau said.
“Aside from the man’s hit-and-run, murder-for-hire scheme, we found out one of his paying customers was a man named Clifford Jennings. We were hoping, once wehad Franco in custody, we could get him to roll on Jennings. Unfortunately, that isn’t going to happen now.”
Beau took a sip of his coffee, hoping the caffeine would kick his brain into gear. “So the man you’re after is Clifford Jennings?”
“Yes and no. Jennings works for Malcolm Vaughn. I understand you’ve spoken to Vaughn, that you went to see him in regard to your father’s murder.”
“That’s right,” Beau said, keeping his answers simple till he knew what the hell was going on.
“The man we’re interested in is one of Vaughn’s largest investors,” Taggart continued.
Cassidy caught Beau’s eye, silently asking for his approval. Beau nodded. If they helped the feds, maybe the feds would help them.
“Vaughn’s connected to a man named Luca Reichlin,” she said. “He’s not the guy you’re looking for, but he might help you find him.”
“We know about Reichlin. The man makes his money as a service provider, working at the highest levels. One client at a time, charges big bucks, and anything goes. Currently he’s employed by a Texas billionaire named Jamal Nawabi.”
Beau dredged up a memory from his sleep-deprived brain, something he had read or seen on TV. “I’ve heard of him. Lives in Houston.”
“That’s right. He lives there now, but Nawabi was born in Kabul, Afghanistan. Made his money in oil and gas and moved to Houston ten years ago. Net worth approximately thirteen billion.”
Beau’s eyebrows went up. “Definitely not chump change.”
“No, it isn’t.”
“And the FBI is interested in Nawabi because . . . ?”
“Because lately his name has been surfacing in terrorist-related Internet chatter. We have no idea if it amounts to anything or not, but Nawabi lost his family during the war.There’s a chance he might want some kind of payback. We think it’s possible he’s involved with members of the same cell your friend Cain butted heads with last year. That’s why I was assigned the case. We think someone from that cell may have been responsible for the terror attack last week in Houston.”
Beau’s head spun as he tried to put the pieces together. The Houston attack had been all over the news. And everyone in Texas knew about Cain’s clash with the terrorists who had tried to smuggle stinger missiles into Dallas. But how were the attacks related to Franco Giannetti? It made no sense.
Maybe if he got a few more hours of sleep he’d be able to think more clearly.
Taggart turned to Beau. “We’ve asked the Howler County district attorney to hold off on any proceedings against you, Beau. We think your father’s death may somehow be related to our investigation. The DA’s agreed.”
Relief eased some of the tension in his shoulders. “That’s some good news at least.”
“Unfortunately, Beau and I have an even bigger problem,” Cassidy said. “Apparently there’s a contract out on us. We think Mal Vaughn may be behind it.”
Taggart frowned. “I thought Giannetti was the problem.”
“Franco tried and failed,” Beau said. “There’s someone else out there now and it looks like the guy’s a professional. Nearly took us out a few days ago.”
“You report it?”
Beau nodded. “To Detective Briscoe in Pleasant Hill and also the Dallas PD.”
“I met Will Egan, your head of security, when I arrived. I know Frank Marino. He’s a good man.”
“I’ve got round-the-clock protection,” Beau said. “I’m doing everything I can to keep us safe.”
