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Victor slowly and reluctantly made his way upstairs, with Connor following close behind, his hand on the other man’s arm.
Cami thought he was starting to realize the seriousness of what he’d done. Especially when he said, in a muffled-sounding voice, "Look, I can explain."
She was waiting for an explanation. She didn’t think it would be a good one, but she thought it would happen. But it didn’t. Instead, showing a startling turn of speed, Victor ducked to the right as he reached the French door and twisted his arm out of Connor’s grasp.
Before either of them could make a countermove in his direction, he was out, racing across the untended lawn, as Connor let out a surprised shout.
With his long legs working at full speed, Victor charged down to the bottom of the garden and there, he leaped over a low fence. Beyond it was countryside - woods and fields and long untended grass.
Letting out a heartfelt oath, Connor muttered to Cami, “You stay put.”
And then, Connor raced after him, jumped the fence, and set off in pursuit.
Cami stared in consternation.
In the space of a few moments, their investigation had been derailed. Their suspect had bolted, and thanks to that surprise move, he’d disappeared. He had sprinted straight for a thick knot of trees that led to a large tract of forest beyond.
Should she defy Connor’s instructions, and join the chase? Fidgeting anxiously, she stared out of the French door, considering her options.
Probably, she accepted, it was already too late to try to join in the chase.
Running wasn’t her forte, and running through uneven, muddy ground with lots of cover for a suspect to hide, still less. She wouldn’t be a help out there and might even be a liability. She’d seen the way his eyes had scanned her, briefly, before he’d ducked out of that door.
He knew she was no threat. And clearly, this was a man who could think on his feet and seize opportunities. Cami didn’t want to become one of those opportunities herself.
But hanging back – that felt like the coward’s way out. She needed to try to do something to help Connor catch him.
Maybe it was the thought of hiding that put the idea in her mind.
Had Victor taken his phone with him?
It had obviously been downstairs. And a guy like that, who had compromising evidence on his computer, might have even worse material on his phone, so he would surely not have left it there. Connor might even have told him to bring it up. Or else, it could have been in his pocket.
Cami really didn’t want to go downstairs again, into his lair, with that gruesome video playing. The thought made her skin crawl. But she needed to. It could help Connor. And they couldn’t risk the case being stalled.
Cami crept down the stairs, going slowly at first and then taking the last few fast because she wanted to get it over with.
She arrived downstairs in a rush.
The screen was on a generic homepage with a plain black background. That horrible, hate filled, violence inspiring video had finished. Remembering it strengthened her resolve to find him.
Taking a look around, she saw that the phone was nowhere in sight.
Victor must surely have it with him. It made sense that he would have taken it.
And that gave her an opportunity.
There was no way for Connor to have set up a trace on Victor's cellphone. They didn't even know his number yet, as it hadn't been on his official records. And even if they had found it out, Connor was using all his time racing through the woods in pursuit. He couldn't call the office and set up a trace on it – which, in any case, would take a few minutes to organize at least.
What if she could do it quicker from here?
What she needed to do was to find out how closely the laptop and the phone were linked. Was there a way of locating the phone from the laptop? This was possible with a lot of smart setups, and given the fact he was playing illegal videos and that he had a big wifi booster on his roof, she suspected that he would have a smart setup to go with the rest of his technology.
Quickly, she accessed his laptop, making sure to stay away from any videos. What links were there to the smartphone? Was there anything that could help to pinpoint his location?
Her mind raced as she navigated the menu. What could she use that was downloaded? Installing something new would take time.
What about this?
