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CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO

COTTONWOOD, ARIZONA

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29, 2023

9:00 A.M.

When Ali went to work on Wednesday morning, she bypassed her own office and went straight to Cami’s. No longer working in the lab, she had taken over B.’s former digs.

Once inside, Ali hurriedly walked around the desk and wrapped Cami in a welcoming hug. “How are you feeling?”

“Jet-lagged,” Cami replied, “but glad to be home.”

Ali closed the door behind her before taking a seat. “I understand from Frigg that between you and Margaret Smythe’s divorce attorney, you’ve done a good job of putting George Smythe in a tough spot.”

“I hope so,” Cami said. “With Angela Baker’s help I was able to use his financial connections to point the investigations into the murders of Adrian Willoughby and Bogdan Petrov in his direction. My understanding is that Inland Revenue is going after Smythe, too. I’m told they’re very thorough but incredibly slow-moving.”

“So we should hide and watch but not hold our breath?” Ali asked.

Cami nodded. “Exactly.”

“How did Rachel Bloom work out?”

Cami laughed. “It looks as though hiring her was an unnecessary expense, but she was great.”

“Purple hair and all?” Ali asked.

“That was a wig, but a very realistic one,” Cami replied. “I’m pretty sure nobody suspected her of being my bodyguard. She told me that when she was in the Israeli Defense Forces, they called her Tank. Anyone who tangles with her does so at their own risk.”

“Effective, then?”

“Very,” Cami said. They both laughed about that.

“What about sales?” Ali asked.

“A couple of good prospects that should come through eventually, and a few more maybes, but I plan to spend today working up the proposal for Dozo International.”

“Great,” Ali said. “The sooner we reel in that big fish, the better. I’ll leave you to it.”

With that she headed for her own office. Later that morning, around eleven, Frigg called. “Big news from Edmonds, Washington,” she said. “The police chief is about to do a live news conference on the Chuck Brewster homicide. It’s due to start in five minutes. Should I livestream it to your phone, computer, or iPad?”

“To the desktop in my office, please.”

After turning on her computer, Ali sat for the next few minutes staring at an empty lectern in a room filled with milling reporters and cameramen. Eventually a cop in a blue dress uniform stepped up to the mic. At that point the room fell silent.

“Good morning,” the officer said. “I’m Richard Nelson, chief of police in Edmonds, Washington. Earlier this month our community was shocked by the brutal murder of local video game executive, Charles Brewster. This morning, I’m happy to report that, as of last night, the two individuals we now believe to be responsible for the homicide have been taken into custody in Huntington Beach, California.

“At this time I am unable to give you their names because they have not yet been officially charged. One of them, after a brief police chase on I-405 in Huntington Beach, was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon and kidnapping, when a seriously injured man was found bound and gagged in the trunk of his vehicle. At this point, our prosecutors are preparing formal charges against both individuals in regard to the Edmonds homicide. They are also in the process of initiating extradition proceedings for both of them.

“Early on in the investigation, Edmonds homicide detectives found enough evidence to charge Clarice Brewster, the widow of the victim, as the perpetrator of the crime. We now believe that the individuals responsible for the homicide deliberately manipulated the crime scene in order to frame her for the offense. Later today, prosecutors are expected to go to court with a motion to have the charges against Ms. Brewster dropped.

“That’s all I can say for now. I won’t be taking questions at this time, but we will provide updates as they become available. Thank you for coming.”

With that, Chief Nelson exited the press conference.

“Wow!” Ali said into her phone.

“Would you like to know the names of the two individuals who were taken into custody in Huntington Beach last night?” Frigg asked.

“I certainly would.”

“Marc Atherton and Joel Franklin,” the AI replied.

“You called that shot,” Ali said.

“Excuse me?” Frigg asked. “Doesn’t calling the shots mean ‘being in charge’?”

“That may be the official definition, but in pool or billiards, it means saying which holes a ball is going to go into before the shot is made.”

“You’re correct about that, then,” Frigg agreed after a moment. “I did call that shot.”

“What about the injured man in the trunk of Joel’s vehicle? Did you get an ID on him?”

“That would be Mr. Adam Brewster. He was transported by ambulance to Huntington Beach Hospital where he’s in stable condition due to a stab wound.”

“He’s no longer considered a suspect in his father’s murder?”

“Not at this time.”

“Thank you for this, Frigg,” Ali said. “I’m hanging up now to go tell B.”