The Chase Group building was cloaked in darkness, huge tarps concealing the destruction from the bombing. Ian rode up to the penthouse and tossed his jacket on his desk where a picture of Cassie smiled up at him. He caressed the photograph before he headed down the hallway. The Eagle’s Talon communication room suffered structural damage, so the boardroom was bustling with two full tactical teams.
“Come sit, bro.” Kieran pulled out a chair.
“Someone want to tell me what’s going on?”
“We have some new theories. Why don’t you fill us in first?” Kieran deferred.
Ian moved to the head of the room. “Okay, folks. First, thank you for today. I’m aware everyone is running on empty. Mike, I want you and your team to stand down for the next forty-eight hours. See your families and get some rest. Kieran’s team, take the forty-eight after that. I spoke with our mom, and she’s gonna cover a few days off for Jamie, Eric, Pete, and Tuck, who’ve been working nonstop. The Paulsen sons are all well trained. Kieran assigned two to head over to the house and equip them with coms and night vision. Fill them in on our security codes. The five are all SEALs with leadership, interrogation and sniper skills between them.”
“Humble bastards,” Martin said.
“San Diego is sending Mia en route with half her team to help us backfill. If we need more, call Denver and New York."
Ian’s breath was haggard. "Before I go further, we have a leak. Kieran and I want to believe it’s not coming from any of you. As we speak, technical analysts are going over the estate with a fine-toothed comb, looking for electronic surveillance. I want everyone to place their electronics in the bomb box in the hallway.” He swiped his face and grimaced when using his injured arm.
Once the room filled again, Martin stood. “Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve worked together quite a while. I need to ask, does anyone have a new person in their life? Any of you go out together to decompress and talk a little loud? Think.” Martin’s question was met with a choir of “no’s.”
Ian rolled up his sleeves. Everyone saw, but no one mentioned the bandage. “This afternoon, Metro discovered another dead woman—killed like Phyllis Wilson. Turns out there are eleven more dead young women with the same MO.
“Cassie sustained similar injuries six years ago. She is the only survivor. The police made the official confirmation Ames was involved in two of those deaths—as well as the original attack on Cassie. My guess is, as they complete their evaluation, there will be more. Ames told Cassie she would have brought a good price. The police are looking, and I want us to look into potential survivors and potential human trafficking.
“Preliminary cause of death for Joe Maddox is suicide. I’ve sent our forensics team to take a second look. It’s not adding up. As far as the baby goes, we have round-the-clock surveillance on the grave. DNA results don’t come back fast. Sometimes I wish it was like TV,” Ian said. The men and women laughed.
Zach walked into the office wearing an expensive suit, his expression blank. “Sorry I’m late. I just left Whitman, Tyler, and Bates. The security system in their offices is military grade—doesn’t fit the type of business. The head of security, Monte Wickham, is slick. He also matches the description of our ghost. I put in for the background check.
“Bradford is the senior partner. Tyler and Bates were reluctant to speak, but both men stated Bradford never keeps a secretary past her twenty-fifth birthday. Garett and Daddy argue often. Son is more capable than the father. This is the kicker: since mid-May, Son has been working from home. When I pushed, I learned Garett hasn’t been back to the office since the Helping Hearts dinner.”
Martin puffed his cheeks and blew out a breath. “The restaurant hostess obliterated the theory of the parking lot fight.”
Ian’s expression hardened. “Well, that gives us no choice. We need to go back to the Whitmans, which includes finding Garett. This is where it started, and I think this is where it ends. There are a lot of bits of circumstantial evidence, but if they’re behind these attempts, they’re well equipped to cover their bases. Our plan needs to be bulletproof.
"We know there is a Russian connection. Every time Cassie tells her story, she lapses into Russian. The gentlemen who tried to take Christian and me out were hired by a Russian mobster. Ellis Art Finds maintains business connections with Sabitov Galleries. I spoke with Mark Devereaux today; he is coexecutor of Cassie’s father’s estate. He mentioned speaking to Luke Paulsen. I hate to think about it, but Luke could be an unintentional leak. I need a full dossier on Devereaux and any known associates. Check his finances through before Cassie’s dad died. Also, is there any connection between him and the Whitmans?”
Kieran stood. “While you were in California, I went through the files from Cassie’s original attack. I thought fresh eyes might help. I started with the physical evidence. Our discussion confirmed the bites were from Sebastian and another male. Given their friendship, plus the number of calls between the two, the senator’s son is a good place to start. I've arranged to get DNA and a bite cast. This is where the case gets… well, intimate. Cassie was not sexually active at the time of her attack. The DNA from Baby William has half Cassie’s DNA and half the sperm donor’s DNA.”
“Rapist,” Ian said.
Kieran held up his hand and exhaled. “I had a discussion with Hunt, Tuck, and Pete.”
When Kieran flashed the anatomical picture from the rape file on the screen, Ian stiffened. Kieran circled a laser pointer over a specific area. “They believe this swelling was caused by an artificial insemination attempt—I guess success.” He rested his hand on Ian’s left shoulder and flicked on the lights.
“It is my theory that Cassie was attacked twice six years ago. First the insemination—and second, the assault. At the time, police classified the bruising as caused by a foreign object. Hunt explained it took skill to leave only minimal bruising. He felt it couldn’t be caused by non-medical personnel. Considering the severity of the other bruising, we thought the theory is plausible. Two of my team are speaking with the doctor at the Franklin Clinic again. It is unclear why he didn’t make the connection in light of the ease with which Hunt and our PAs made it.”
Ian controlled the rate of his breathing. “How does Cassie figure into this, and who wanted that baby?”
“If we consider the insemination as the first attack and the sexual assault as the second, then the common denominators for the attacked women were they were all wealthy and innocent. I learned the original perception of Cassie’s attack was a drug-filled night of rough sex. According to the police, the families of the other victims were very private. The fear limited family cooperation.”
Kieran assigned two more of his team to work with technical analysis to find any intersection between the senator’s son and Ames. “Search for any unsolved dead or missing girls with our MO in that timeframe. Circle back to each man’s past whereabouts, searching for any patterned unsolved assaults or disappearances.”
Ian continued, “Find out if Ames’s mom or Adrienne Whitman could perform a procedure like that. Maddox was a surgeon. I’m sure he could do it. I assigned two analysts to assist PD in searching for Maddox’s files. His wife is cooperating—she swears he wouldn’t kill himself.
“Run every call from every cell phone present at the dinner again. My priority is finding Garett; he’s been avoiding us. I want eyes and ears in both Whitman homes and offices. I need to know where they are at all times.”
“Ian, to do this amount of surveillance, we need at least twenty operators for each person. We’re gonna need a couple of days to get everything in place. We do have other clients,” Kieran said in a cautious tone.
Ian nodded. “Unless something becomes acute, let’s meet back here in ninety-six hours.”
* * *
