Page 63 of Devil's Hour
Chief opened up her drawer, pulled out her pastry container, then actually growled when she saw it was empty. “Son of a bitch. The FBI is coming, and I don’t have pastries. I need more carbs to deal with them.” She let out a deep sigh. “Well, we have a few hours before they invade and take things over, so let’s get busy interviewing the staff at the club to see if anyone noticed something out of the ordinary last night. I also want an ID on this crazy pastor.”
“Holly is coming in to give me a list of dancers and bartenders, so we’ll start there. I have no idea which local clergymen set up the stunt outside The Alley Cat, but maybe I can get some names from the police report. I’m going to make a list of churches and create a lineup from the official photos of clergymen from their websites to see if Ginny or the dancers can identify him.”
Rigby nodded. “It’s not likely you’ll find an official police report since McGraw had the police commissioner in his back pocket. If nothing pans out, you could always pick a random cleric from the directory and ask them. Gossip spreads like fire through churches, and I promise you the other clergymen have heard about the stunt and know who initiated it.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said.
“You have a team of capable people, so use them. Delegate tasks and make sure everyone reports back to you in a timely manner. While I don’t think we’re going to solve this case before the feebs arrive, we’ll have more intel to devise a game plan.”
“You don’t plan to hand the case over to them?”
“Not without a fight,” she countered. “I’m going to propose a joint task force between us, the FBI, and the GBI. I don’t have a clue if I’ll be successful or not.”
“What do you think the feds were trying to find on McGraw? Their agent has been here for three years and couldn’t discover his prostitution ring? We know why our investigations tanked, but what’s their excuse?”
Rigby leaned back in her chair. “I don’t think prostitution is what they were after. The feds will turn a blind eye to a certain extent when the small fish they catch in their net can be used as bait for a bigger predator.” She was right. They’d easily justify looking the other way for prostitution if McGraw was their ticket to busting up a human trafficking ring, big-time drug dealer, or even organized crime. “I can tell something is weighing heavily on your mind, Locke. Why don’t you unburden yourself?”
“We have enough going on right now as it is.”
“Have I ever struck you as a woman who is incapable of multitasking?”
Royce smiled for the first time since entering her office. “No, ma’am.”
“Spill it.”
Royce told her about Marcus and the IA investigation, which had prompted him to go digging for answers. He trusted her with the truth about Marcus’s affair with the undercover agent who was found dead that morning. Then he lowered the boom about Humphries.
“Let’s start from the top,” she said. “The department has denied Candi Wilkes her husband’s benefits?”
“Delayed is more like it. They never gave Candi a reason, but then IA came knocking with a warrant. They confiscated their computers and some files, but that was it. That was two months ago, and she’s heard nothing from the benefits department.”
“I’ll get to the bottom of this,” she assured him. “I don’t know what to say about Humphries. I cannot see anyone in our unit helping that son of a bitch walk. I also want to know why this wasn’t brought to my attention.”
Royce looked her in the eyes. “I assure you that neither Marcus nor I planted the DNA evidence as the defense is suggesting.”
She waved him away. “I know that, Locke. You might push boundaries, but you never cross them.”
“Sawyer went to talk to Tobias to see what he knows.”
“I’m going to be pissed if he knows something I don’t,” Chief said gruffly.
“I’ll let you know what I find out.”
“At least someone will. I’ll start making calls to see what I can find out about Marcus’s investigation. They’re not required to inform me in this situation, but I’m hoping they’ll play nice. If not, we’ll make sure Candi gets representation. You should’ve brought this to my attention sooner.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I want you to run this homicide like you normally would until you hear differently from me.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“The commissioner authorized overtime and surveillance on the three paroled arsonists.”I just bet he did.“All hands are on deck until we arrest The Purists, or I call you off.”
“Yes, Chief.”
Rigby insisted on updates, then dismissed him. Sawyer was waiting for Royce in the bullpen, two different types of devil cups in his hand. The Tasmanian devil mug in his right hand belonged to Royce and was one of the last things his mother had bought him. The other cup was Sawyer’s hoity-toity Duke Blue Devils cup.
“Thought you could use this,” Sawyer said, handing his mug to him.