The pages were organized chronologically.Each text message was printed with a time stamp, the sender's phone number, and the content of the message.Barrett settled into the chair and began reading from the beginning.
Sullivan was silent while Barrett worked through the documents.The only sounds in the office were the faint hum of the fluorescent light overhead and the distant murmur of the bullpen beyond the closed door.Sullivan drank his coffee and waited.
The early messages were cautious.Kal and Olivia discussed the property in general terms, feeling each other out.Kal mentioned the conservatory's value and the development potential of the lot.Olivia responded with details about Celia Ann's daily routine, her health, and her stubbornness about refusing to sell.The tone was transactional, two people circling a shared objective without stating it plainly.
Barrett turned a page, and the conversation shifted.Kal's language became more direct when he referenced Celia Ann's refusal to sell.
"The conspiracy started months before," Barrett said, looking up from the page."Kal mentions that Celia Ann refused to sell the property and how convenient it would be if she wasn't around to refuse."
"Yes," Sullivan said."And Olivia understood what he meant and went along with it.Celia Ann's natural age decline was their cover."
Barrett returned to the transcripts.The messages grew more specific as the weeks progressed.Olivia reported on Celia Ann's medications, her schedule, her vulnerability.She described how she controlled what Celia Ann took and when she took it.There was a clinical detachment to her words that was chilling.She wrote about an eighty-one-year-old woman's life as though it were a problem to be managed rather than a person to be cared for.
"As the months progressed, it's clear Olivia planned to incorrectly dose the medications, assuming that no one would check," Barrett said.
Sullivan's expression was grim."The mind of a killer."
Barrett kept reading.The middle section of the transcripts covered the months when the plan was in motion.Olivia's messages described Celia Ann's worsening symptoms with a detachment that turned Barrett's stomach.Notes about the dizziness, the confusion, and the weakness matched the journal entries that Cadie had documented in her timeline.Celia Ann had been dying slowly, and the woman sitting beside her bed each day had been the one ensuring it.
Barrett leaned back and ran a hand through his hair."I'm sure you noticed the association was more than business," he said."Olivia obviously expects that once the deed is done, she and Kal will be together."
Sullivan nodded."I'm sure that's how he manipulated her.It's a classic tactic."
Barrett had seen it before—not in this exact form, but the dynamic was familiar.A man with power and resources identifying a vulnerable person, cultivating their loyalty through attention and false promises, then using them to do the work he was unwilling to do himself.Kal had found a woman who craved intimate connection and had weaponized that need against an elderly woman who trusted her.
Barrett let out a breath and shook his head."It's disheartening.The texts reveal that Olivia watched Celia Ann get weaker yet continued to deliberately mistreat her."
Sullivan set his coffee mug down and folded his hands on the desk."This fits with Dr.Holloway's findings.That pair orchestrated Celia Ann's death and have been waiting for the estate to settle."
"So they can cash in and be together."Barrett paused."Not on my watch."
"This is evidence of conspiracy to commit murder.These text messages show premeditation."
Barrett put the transcripts on the desk."What do you need to wrap this up?"
Sullivan laid it out: "Once I have the medical records, including the pharmacy, I'll put it with your report on witness interviews and Cadie's timeline of her aunt's journal entries," he said."You can contact Guardian Investigations and touch base with Weston to see if he has any more financial documentation.More money might have changed hands since the death."
"I'll do that right away," Barrett said."Fortunately, the murderers don't know that we're investigating."
"No," Sullivan said."But I do want to be thorough.I intend to interview them separately, starting with Olivia."
Barrett understood the strategy.Olivia was the weaker link.She was the one who had carried out the physical act, and she was the one whose emotional investment in Kal made her vulnerable to pressure.If Sullivan could get her in an interview room and present the evidence methodically, there was a reasonable chance she would crack.
"Olivia first," Barrett said."Smart."
Sullivan stood and extended his hand."I'll have the transcripts copied for your file," he said."Stay close.This is going to move fast once we have everything assembled."
"I'm not going anywhere," Barrett said, shaking his friend's hand.
*****
After leaving the station, Barrett pulled his phone from his pocket to check for messages.There was nothing from Cadie.
She had been at Boone Properties for at least an hour, possibly longer.If the meeting was still in progress, that likely meant it was going well.A short meeting would have suggested a dead end.A long one meant there was substance to discuss.
Barrett got into his car and sat behind the wheel for a moment without starting the engine.He wanted to call her, but hesitated.She was taking care of business, and he wouldn't interrupt that.She had told him she wanted to explore what Boone Properties could do for Stratton House, and he didn't question her ability to manage that conversation.He would be there when she was finished.
He started the car and pulled out of the lot.Boone Properties wasn't too far, so he headed in that direction.He could park near her car and confirm that she was still inside without making his presence obvious.If she finished before he arrived, she would text.If she was still in the meeting when he got there, he would wait.
