Finding Amy. Carol Steward

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СКАЧАТЬ and smiled. “The tough silent type isn’t nearly as attractive as Hollywood wants us to believe. Marriages in this country wouldn’t be nearly as endangered if couples realized that honesty is far more desirable than physical appearance.” Jessica lifted her briefcase to the chair and shook her head. “If I can convince half the women in the shelter of that, my own pain won’t have been wasted. Now, so I don’t waste any more of your valuable time, why don’t we get to work?”

      He couldn’t believe she’d condensed his own opinions and verbalized them. It unnerved him. He’d never cared half as much about looks as he did personality. Had his mother told Jessica to say that? She must have. How else could Jessica have known?

      There was no doubt in his mind who was on the other side of the door when that fist hammered on the glass. Sam backed his way to the entry, hoping the captain would appreciate the humor in the situation. His hand paused on the doorknob.

      “Why don’t we go to the Stagecoach for a cup of coffee and go through this?”

      She stepped close. “You wouldn’t be trying to get out of this, would you?”

      “Vance! Out here, on the double.” A loud voice resonated through the door.

      The humor just left the office. “Honestly, I was, but since it’s for such a good cause, I’ll go through with it.” Sam turned the doorknob. “I’ll call you to set up a time to meet.”

      One eyebrow lifted and Jessica’s gray eyes sparkled. “I’ll be waiting, but remember, I have to get this done before my surgery.”

      Captain Sullivan’s eyes widened in surprise when Jessica eased her way past him. “Excuse me, Captain Sullivan.”

      Sullivan eyed Sam, then Jessica. “I didn’t mean to interrupt, Ms. Mathers. Sam, I really am sorry to break this up, but we have a major problem in the jail.”

      A major problem could only refer to one inmate— Dr. Lionel Valenti. “I was on my way there. He’s got to crack one of these days.”

      Sullivan’s grimace didn’t leave much doubt what the problem was. “Your suspect just became the victim. He’s dead.”

      “Suicide?”

      “No, doesn’t look like it.” Sully nodded a greeting to Jessica and looked at Sam. “When you’re finished here, we need to get started on the investigation. Mayor Montgomery called the press. He’s making a statement on the evening news. We need to be ready with an announcement before rumors get started. Jessica, good to see you again.”

      She smiled. “You, too, Captain. Sam, give me a call and we’ll discuss what you’d like to do.”

      “Let’s make it over dinner at seven, and be sure to bring Amy. I could use a little laughter.”

      Her astonishment was obvious as the words caught in her throat. “Tonight? Where?”

      “I’m not sure yet, I’ll pick you up.”

      “Do you…”

      He laughed. “I’m sure I can find your address somehow. I have connections.”

      Sam watched her leave, dreading the job ahead of him. He would definitely need some cheering up tonight, even if it involved Jessica Mathers.

      He and the captain spent the remainder of the afternoon on the Valenti homicide, interrogating other prisoners, jailers and guards. No one had seen anything suspicious. They examined the visitors’ log and moved on to question the kitchen staff. It could be days before they’d know if anything showed up in the blood tests. The crime scene investigators finished taking pictures and logging the contents of Valenti’s cell. Sam stayed behind, looking under the mattress and in every nook and cranny for anything that might have been hidden.

      Once back at the precinct, Sam dug deep into each witness’s profile, hoping to find some connection to the Diablo Syndicate, Venezuela, or local drug dealers. He couldn’t believe they had a connection and he’d slipped right through their fingers. Sam contacted Valenti’s next of kin, depressed to think that Valenti’s parents had to hear the news from a total stranger, under such incriminating circumstances.

      This job never got any easier.

      He spent two hours on the phone with the director of Doctors Without Borders, trying to evaluate whether they had noticed any problems with Lionel Valenti before the burglary that injured Adam Montgomery. He kept digging, hoping someone could identify locals in the area that Valenti had been seen with when off duty.

      Either Dr. Valenti led a very isolated life, or he was very adept at keeping secrets. No one seemed to have known anything about Valenti’s personal life, who his friends had been, or where he’d lived.

      Before Sam realized it, it was time to go to City Hall. The crew had set up the cameras and lights in the conference room. Colleen Montgomery, reporter for the Colorado Springs Sentinel, stood by as her father prepared for his speech. Mayor Montgomery stepped behind the podium and began by giving a picture-book description of Colorado Springs as the idyllic city.

      “For the past year, however, we’ve experienced a drastic increase in violent crimes and drug-related violence.” Montgomery encouraged the community to join together to help city officials work to bring justice to criminals. Twenty minutes later a local television reporter interviewed Sam for the evening news.

      Jessica closed down her computer at the Galilee Women’s Shelter, ready to call it a day. She locked the door behind her and shouldered the strap of her backpack, then walked past Susan Carter’s door. “See you tomorrow, Susan,” she said to the director.

      “Come here a minute. You might be interested in this story on the news. The mayor is going to speak after the commercial.”

      “Mayor Montgomery? I wonder what is up?”

      “I’m not sure, but I received an e-mail from his secretary requesting my attendance at a task-force planning meeting on Wednesday.”

      “Do you need coverage? I’ll be here Wednesday, but not Thursday or Friday, remember?”

      Susan nodded, sending her corkscrew curls into motion. “I have your sick leave on my schedule. Are you getting nervous about the surgery?”

      “No, I’m so ready. I can hardly make it through the evening with Amy some nights. That’s just not fair to her—”

      Their conversation was interrupted by the return of the program. Mayor Montgomery’s picture came on, and then they moved to clips from his speech. “Violence is like a virus—it mutates and spreads, and it will take over our city if we don’t do something now. We are going to stamp out crime in Colorado Springs. Our law enforcement will work to eradicate domestic abuse, drugs…”

      “That must be what the meeting is about,” Susan said.

      “They have a huge job ahead of them. I admire the mayor’s determination. Someone has to do something.”

      As Jessica headed for the door, Sam appeared on the television screen. Jessica stopped to watch. She admired him, anxious to see him at dinner tonight. Even if it would be official business.

      “That is one handsome man,” Susan said СКАЧАТЬ