Page 51 of Line of Sight (Second Sight #4)

GARY STRETCHED, arching his back. “I think my ass is becoming permanently attached to my chair.” He’d finished typing up his report on the previous day’s interviews, leaving the afternoon free for their meeting with Senator Jason Kelly.

Riley grinned. “Ask Dan if he’ll massage it for ya tonight.” He glanced at Dan. “You wouldn’t mind doing that, would you?”

Dan narrowed his gaze, his lips twitching.

Gary folded his arms. “So what do we now know about Heather Kelly that’s of any use to our investigation?” They’d interviewed her closest friends and the staff at her office.

“She didn’t talk about her husband,” Riley commented. “Okay, so maybe most women don’t talk to their friends about their husbands, but a husband who’s running for senator ? You’d think she’d want to share stuff about that, especially if she was keen to be Mrs. Senator Jason Kelly.”

“When she was at her office, she usually worked late, even at weekends,” Dan added. “And she was there a lot. Her secretary kept Heather’s schedules. It looks as if she was in Boston more than she was in Maine.”

Gary laced his fingers behind his head. “There were no cameras in the lobby of her office building. All we have is the name of the company who provided cleaning services, and they said that according to the roster, no one was working after nine that night.”

“Except for the mystery cleaner that the security guard is a little hazy over,” Riley observed. “How much more do you think we’ll get out of the senator?”

Dan smiled. “That depends how much we shake him up.”

Gary was in favor of a little shaking.

The door opened, and a uniformed officer entered, holding a package wrapped in brown paper.

Gary sat bolt upright. “Three guesses what this is going to be?” he muttered.

Riley huffed. “Gee, let me think.”

The officer handed it to Dan, then left.

Dan tested its weight in his hand. “Feels like a book. What a surprise.” He tore at the wrapping.

“You don’t want to send it to Forensics first?” Gary asked.

He snorted. “What’s the point? This guy never leaves prints, and we know what we’re going to find between the covers, right? Another cryptic message?” He tossed the paper onto the desk and stared at the book.

“Which one is it this time?” Riley demanded.

“ The Silence of the Lambs .” Dan opened it, and a sheet of paper slid out.

“Let’s see what the cat wants to share with the mouse.

” He read aloud, “Thomas Harris has a way with words. ‘Beats of silence.’ Beautiful phrase. Will you be silent when I finally catch up with you, Mr. Porter? Or will you beg me to spare you? I’ll tell you now—save your breath.

I loathe beggars. Do you want to know what I’m doing right now, Mr. Porter? I left you a clue.”

Riley groaned. “It’s another freaking highlight, isn’t it? Let me see.” Dan handed it over, and Riley leafed through the pages. “Yeah, there ya go. ‘I’m thinking about you both.’”

Gary noted Dan’s tight expression. “He’s trying to unnerve you. You know that, right?”

Dan scowled. “Well, it’s working.”