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The elderly neighbor had still ended up brutally murdered, and Brook had no idea if she was going to be the first of many on the evolution of Jacob's surfacing in Brook's life this time around. The one thing that she knew to be true was that the FBI was currently monitoring the comings and goings of all individuals throughout the building. Harden had already informed the lead agent assigned to the case that she was actually Brooklyn Walsh, sister of their person of interest. Miraculously, such a revealing had been kept out of the media, but that could change the moment the FBI thought it would be to their advantage to do otherwise.
Maybe she'd been going about this latest round with Jacob all wrong.
"You know what, Charlie?" Brook's lighthearted question had him smiling, as if he'd already won the lottery. "You're right. I should take a chance every now and then. How much is everyone putting in this time around?"
"Ten dollars," Charlie shared as he opened the thick envelope. "Besides you, the only one I need to collect from is the new tenant. Have you met him yet? Fine young man. Mrs. Upton would be pleased that he's a tea drinker, too."
Brook had taken off one of her leather gloves so that she could reach into the side pocket of her purse. She'd known that the owner of the building had been showing the condo on the northeast side of her floor. Still, she wasn't so sure that she was ready to have someone else move in after what had taken place two months ago.
Lorraine Upton had been a staple of this building long before Brook had moved in as the older woman's neighbor. It wasn't right that Jacob had robbed her of the years that she'd had left, just as it wasn't right that Brook was now putting Charlie in danger.
Wasn't that what she had been doing by engaging him in such a long conversation in public? Granted, they were inside their building, but Jacob seemed to have eyes and ears everywhere.
Should Jacob be near or have coerced someone to keep tabs on her, he would almost emphatically take her sociability as a taunt. It was certainly the reaction that she was hoping for, but she needed to have Jacob turn his rage onher…not someone who unknowingly put themselves in danger by simply taking part in a meaningless conversation.
"I didn't know that a new lease had been signed," Brook replied warily, handing Charlie a ten-dollar bill. She ordered takeout frequently, so she always kept cash on hand to tip the delivery person. "I take it that you've met the new tenant?"
Charlie had mentioned the man being young, but that could mean anything from twenty-one years old to fifty years old. Once she was supplied a name for said tenant, she would be able to run him through the system. Seeing as Graham had ensured that the firm's lawyers had applied for all the proper licenses, S&E Investigations, Inc. had access to several databases that could help them with in-depth background checks on those connected to their cases.
In Brook's opinion, the new tenant fell into that category since the investigation into her brother was currently part of S&E Investigations, Inc.'s caseload in spite of her not sharing that fact with her new team.
Yet.
She would fill them in eventually, but she wasn't ready to do so this morning.
"Colin something or other." Charlie continued to think on the surname as he slid the ten-dollar bill into the envelope. He held a finger up in victory after slipping the envelope into the interior pocket of his blue uniform jacket. "Vogel. Colin Vogel. He's due to pick up the keys to his condo sometime this morning."
While Charlie continued to talk about Colin Vogel, Brook took her time in resecuring her leather glove. Everything that she needed was either inside her purse or her briefcase, and that included her favorite set of two-inch black heels that she would change into once she reached her office. In the span of a minute, she'd learned that Colin Vogel was a lawyer, in his late thirties, single, and had an exceptional credit rating. That didn't include the small detail of the man preferring tea over coffee.
Charlie was almost good enough in his investigative skills to secure a job with her. Unfortunately, his openness about the other tenants made her wonder if he'd talked to anyone about her lately. It was something that she needed to inquire about before she began her walk to her favorite café.
"Charlie, has anyone been around the building asking about me lately?"
"Not that I'm aware of, Ms. Sloane." Charlie frowned, his thin eyebrows practically meeting in the middle. "The press hasn't been around for a few weeks. Is there something that I should know?"
"No, not at all," Brook reassured him as she readjusted the straps of her bags on her shoulder. She heard the elevator signal that someone had arrived on the first floor. It was undoubtedly Mr. Tomlin, who resided on the twentieth floor. He was an early riser like she was, and he liked to have breakfast at the diner across the street. "You know how the media likes to sensationalize everything. Anyway, I'll let you and Mr. Tomlin talk about your fantasy football league."
"Be careful, Ms. Sloane," Charlie warned before she could turn toward the exit. "The sidewalks are still a bit slick this morning. Maintenance already spread that ice melt stuff, but I don't trust it as much as I do good ol' salt."
Brook was finally able to push open the glass door, bracing herself for the impact of cold air. It hit hard, and she sucked in a breath as the chill went straight into her bones and settled there as if it had found a new home.
The first thing she did was search out the ubiquitous service van that would be parked nearby to monitor the building. The Bureau either had some mom-and-pop locksmith shop name on the side or a twenty-four-hour emergency service van for one utility or another. The agents inside the van who monitored their surroundings needed to blend in with the area, but if one knew what to look for, the van stuck out like a bride wearing a big white wedding dress on the subway.
The agent in charge of Jacob's case would only be budgeted for such a surveillance expense for another few weeks, at most. Still, she spotted the dark HVAC service vehicle in the parking lot across the street. While those individuals inside might believe that they had fooled the average criminal with their urban camouflage, Jacob wouldn't be so easily deceived.
Her brother operated on a different level than even the most ingenious counterespionage agents. Jacob prided himself on his professional tradecraft. So much so that he had never even remotely been close to being apprehended by any law enforcement agency.
The day that he had murdered Mrs. Upton hadn't been his most recent foray into the city. He'd already spent hours upon hours, if not days upon days, discovering a way to monitor her without being caught in the crosshairs of law enforcement. She could only wait until the agent in charge of the case was given instructions to pull the surveillance, because only then would Jacob reach out to her once more…if that was truly his intent.
Jacob might very well be stalking another victim on the other coast as the FBI sat with their thumbs twiddling, wasting their surveillance budget.
Her brother was immeasurably patient.
He was willing to wait in the shadows for years before striking out of the clear blue. He held the initiative in his hands as if it was a priceless diamond, and he appreciated the crisp, cutting edge of the irony of his situation.
Jacob lived for that one moment, but it was always that much more stimulating to him when his carefully laid plans worked out as if he were a Swiss watchmaker, determining their fate down to the second.
It didn't take long for Brook to stop at her favorite café for a large caramel macchiato. The charming place already had a long line, but the owners had implemented an online ordering platform where she could have a standing order, pay online, and pick up her beverage at an approximate time. She was running a bit late this morning due to Charlie, but the small kitchen area in the new office space was equipped with up-to-date appliances. They even had a deluxe coffee machine that could make macchiatos, but she wasn't about to alter her regular routine now that she suspected she had Jacob so close at hand. She would simply put her caramel macchiato in the new microwave for a minute to warm it up.
