Page 70 of Flash Freeze

“On our way,” Samuel answered and clicked off the call. “That was fun,” he said to Travis. “I’ll take it over staring at screens, but I could’ve done without the kids in the street.”

Travis had to agree.

Chapter 32

Detective Bach breezed up to meet Athena in the hallway outside the interview room. The reek of cigarette smoke encircling him like a cloud announced he’d been out for a smoke break. At least he’d shaved that morning. He popped a breath mint and straightened his tie.

“Ready?” he asked.

Athena and the team had dug up more useful information on Mora and were ready to use it. At that moment, lab techs were examining every inch of his GMC Canyon and were bound to turn up something. Still, a confession would serve their case much better than a pile of circumstantial evidence.

She had freshened her lipstick and fussed with her hair. Paulson had said her sharp-edged beauty would intimidate even the namesake, the mythical Greek goddess. The boots didn’t hurt. “Ready.”

Bach opened the door, and Athena strode in with unhurried grace, inspecting Isaac Mora with cool calculation. An utterly ordinary-looking man sat before her, relaxed and seemingly at ease. He was the sort of man who could disappear into a crowd without going anywhere. Tanned skin, dark brown hair, stubbly scruff, casual clothes—nothing about Isaac Mora demanded a second glance.

Except his eyes. Smoky quartz and keenly observant, they didn’t quite match the amiable expression. Athena’s impression was that he studied her right back behind his thin smile.

Bach pulled out her chair, settled her into it, and took the one beside her. “I’m HPD Detective Bach, and this is ASAC Bouvier of the FBI. This interview is being recorded. Mr. Mora, you’ve been read your rights. Would you like to have an attorney present for questioning?”

“I don’t believe that will be necessary at this time,” he answered smoothly. “I hope to apologize for leading your agents on a chase, answer your questions, and pay any restitution the law requires.” He spread his palms as far as the handcuffs he wore allowed. “If I deem it necessary, I’ll let you know I need to call my attorney.”

Very sure of himself, Athena thought. “If you don’t mind my asking, how is it that a janitor can afford his own lawyer?”

Mora’s eyes sparkled. “Friend of the family. Now, on to your questions. I already testified to changing a spark plug in the outdoor generator last Friday morning—early, between 9:00 and 9:30. I didn’t see any sign of a bomb. Then again, I wasn’t looking for one.”

“And then you performed a quick clean in the office,” Bach added.

“Yes. Mr. Booker asked me to make sure it was in acceptable condition for the OSHA guy’s inspection.”

“The ‘OSHA guy’ had a name,” Athena said, tone clipped. “Federal EPA inspector Jeff Nolan, who was participating in a joint inspection with OSHA. How long have you worked for Gulf Allied Chemicals?”

Mora considered her with an amused expression. “I’m certain you have already obtained basic information such as my employment record, Agent Bouvier. You know I’ve been there for almost five years.”

Bach opened his folder and flipped a few pages. “Yes, Mr. Mora. You’ve had quite a colorful career path thus far. Scholarship to MIT, a chemical engineering major. But they didn’t understand what big things you were destined for and expelled you just for being curious and using school equipment without permission.”

Athena expected a passionate reaction from him, or at least a flinch. Instead, Mora took a calm breath and shrugged. “A misunderstanding. It was their loss, really.”

“Uh, huh.” Bach turned a page. “Then you bounced around between chemical companies and research jobs because you were arrogant and difficult to get along with. Couldn’t hold a job to save your life. It must have been frustrating, since you were clearly smarter than your coworkers—heck, probably your bosses too.”

“I was young,” he excused in an even tone. “Full of myself, didn’t understand how the world outside a classroom operated. I’m more mature now. If you checked my record at Gulf Allied, you saw not a single complaint lodged.”

“Yes, about that,” Athena said, redirecting his attention to her. She looked for the familiar signs of desire she could often spark in a man. They weren’t there. Could he be gay? Or maybe he doesn’t care about sex at all. I suppose I might not be his type. She’d known happily married men to practically drool over her.

“How does a chemical engineer switch career tracks so drastically to private investigator and then janitor? I must admit that you are grossly overqualified for your current post.”

“Why would any reasonable human being remain content to do the same thing year after year, decade after decade, when there are so many choices, so many experiences out there to be had?” Mora adopted a philosophical air. “I don’t care to lock myself into a single mold or be defined by my job. Gulf Allied Chemicals pays a decent salary and isn’t demanding. It leaves me time and energy for my creative endeavors.”

“Such as?” Bach asked.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Mora mused. “Writing, painting, communing with nature. Call me a Renaissance man.”

Athena frowned. “My agents found no paints or canvases in your residence. But they have found quite a bit that you’ve written.” She nodded to Bach, who selected a sheet from his folder.

“You’ve published several anti-authority theses and what can only be described as anarchist poetry. Your ideology suggests all authority figures are corrupt and operate within a conspiracy to manipulate society and how it progresses.”

Mora steepled his fingers, slowly nodding as he stared at the wall between them. “That’s all true. So is every word in my essays and poems.”

“You believe all authority figures are corrupt and have conspired to beguile the public into believing and behaving in ways of their, our, choosing?” Athena considered herself an authority figure, though not on a par with governing officials. She knew for certain she wasn’t corrupt or manipulative—except when it came to gaining criminals’ confessions. This accusation was insulting.