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Emma considered calling Casey with an update but decided to wait. Gia would be rushing off any minute to see her parents, after which she had a bunch of clients she needed to see before tonight’s dinner. And that would leave Dani here alone, anxiously waiting for a call from Patrick. Emma’s heart went out to her. She’d keep her company—and, in doing so, maybe gain more insight into Dani and her childhood that could help FI’s investigation.
Offices of Forensic Instincts
“I didn’t think we’d ever see home base again,” Casey muttered, grateful to see a parking spot right across from the brownstone. After a two-plus hours’ drive from New Rochelle, most of it spent in bumper-to-bumper rush-hour traffic, she was practically leaping out of her seat. Relinquishing control was not something Casey did willingly.
“Me, either.” Claire stretched in her seat. She had a lot more patience than Casey did, and even she was on edge. “We should have taken the train.”
“In retrospect, you’re right. I thought driving was the better choice. Never again. I can?
?t believe that all those commuters do this every day. I’d implode.” Casey turned off the ignition, simultaneously unbuckling her seat belt and reaching for the door handle. “Let’s see what Ryan’s accomplished.”
The instant Ryan heard Yoda announce Casey’s and Claire’s arrival, he loped up the stairs from his lair, Hero at his heels.
“Hey, when you called in to say there was traffic, I didn’t think you meant a standstill.”
“Yeah, well, things went from bad to worse,” Casey said, tossing down her handbag and squatting to scratch Hero’s ears. “So let’s not waste time discussing lousy roadwork and obnoxious drivers.” She rose. “What’s happening here?”
Ryan heard the impatient tone loud and clear. “I did some digging and have preliminary results. Where do you want to talk?”
“Main conference room.” No surprise there. That was Casey’s favorite place to work. “Claire and I will head up there right after we hit the ladies’ room. You go grab your notes. In the meantime, I’ll try to calm down. I might even drink a cup of Claire’s herbal tea and do some deep breathing—that’s how revved up I am.”
“Gotcha, boss.” Ryan gave her a sympathetic nod. “Be there in a few minutes.” He retraced his steps, hurrying back down to his lair.
They’d just settled themselves around the expansive oval table, Hero lying beside Casey’s chair, notes spread across the table, tablets poised and ready, when Casey’s cell phone rang.
She glanced at the number, then pressed the answer button, followed by the speaker button, and placed her phone on the table. “Hi, Emma.”
“Hi.” Emma’s voice was tentative. “Is it a good time? Today is such a crazy day.”
“It’s fine. I’m at the office with Claire and Ryan. I just put you on speaker. What’ve you got for us?”
Emma heard Casey’s tone and got right down to business. “Gia wept on the phone with her parents before she took off to see them. Dani was a basket case waiting for Patrick to call, which hopefully will be soon. I hung out to keep her company for a while. Then, she got a call from her veterinary practice, so I excused myself and left.” Emma sighed. “I probed for as many childhood memories as I could without sounding like I was interrogating her. I have no idea if any of what I learned is significant, but I’m on my way back to the office and you’ll tell me. Oh, and I’m going to Lina’s place at six thirty for a girls’ night.”
“Sounds like a good day’s work,” Casey said. “And you talked to Lina out of earshot?”
“Yes. I went out on the patio when Gia and Dani were talking privately and Gia was preparing herself to talk to her parents. I don’t think they even noticed I was gone. All cool.”
“Nice job,” Casey praised.
“Thanks. I’ll be back soon. I’m hopping on the train now.”
“At least you were smart enough to take it,” Casey muttered under her breath. Then, in a normal voice, she said, “See you here,” and disconnected the call. Immediately, she turned to Ryan. “We’ll fill you in on all the details of our meeting with the Russos when Marc and Patrick call in. There’s no point in repeating the story twice. Instead, you tell us what you found.”
“It’s more of what I didn’t find,” Ryan replied.
“Nothing in the New York County Clerk’s office?”
“That part’s underway. I hacked in, zeroed in on closed adoptions from January to February of twenty-seven years ago, and am slowly isolating the ones that could even remotely fit the bill. We should have an answer soon.”
“Great.” Casey frowned. “More waiting.”
“You said that something you didn’t find was important,” Claire interrupted to ask. “What was it?”
“Constantin Farro. The man doesn’t seem to exist. And believe me, I’ve hacked into every related database, from national birth and death records to the American Bar Association. I traced the name—spelled three different ways, in case the Russos remembered wrong—all the way back to thirty years ago. Zip. Which tells me that whoever the lawyer was who handled the adoption—assuming he even was a lawyer—used a fake name. If that’s not a warning bell that this whole adoption process was illegal, I don’t know what is.”
“Anything else?”
“Yeah. While I was waiting for the County Clerk results, I poked around a little into Lina’s life, just in case there was something of interest we should know. As it turns out, I didn’t have to get past page one of a Google search to start the process.”
