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With a lightning bolt of awareness, Joe knew without a doubt he didn’t want to return to the FBI. He didn’t want to deal with another broken person making life-altering mistakes that cost them and others so much.
He wanted Midnight Security and Lia.
He only had to catch this jerk to have them both.
Lia kept herself as busy as she could in order to keep her emotions locked down. It was a technique she’d learned in med school and it had served her well over the years. A busy brain didn’t have time to dwell.
The new security cameras and alarms arrived soon after Marcus had taken away the photo, so she focused on helping Joe install the systems. She kept part of her brain occupied with how she would set up the equipment she’d ordered in each of the rooms and with thoughts about how to use the two waiting room areas. She needed an office of some kind and a secure place to store files and equipment. Maybe she should have Aisling partition off part of the front room to provide a large closet she could secure. Or would that be better off on the second floor?
They were upstairs installing a window alarm in the front room when Joe’s phone rang. “It’s my team in Sacramento. Maybe they’ve got some news.”
Lia nodded and moved to give him privacy for the call. She wandered the rest of the top floor with Moose at her side, forcing her brain to think about how it would look when it was done. One of the bedrooms lacked a window because it was next to the saloon wall. That would make a better office and the primary bedroom would have the window. She wondered how Hamish and Alastair had decided who got the best room.
She walked into that room to think about furniture placement and keep her mind off whatever bad news Joe was hearing. Moose plopped to the ground with a dramatic sigh. “Do I keep interrupting your snooze when I move? Poor baby.”
Joe walked into the bedroom where she was dreaming and her tension ratcheted up, worrying about more bad news. He stopped behind her and dropped his hands on her shoulders. His fingers rubbed her stiff muscles and she dropped her head back with her own dramatic sigh.
“It’s been a rough couple of days, but my team has a lead, thanks to you.”
She whirled around to face him. “What’s the lead? Who is it?”
He kept his hands on her shoulders. His eyes were serious. “The husband of the woman who died in Ann Arbor has taken some time off work.”
“Isn’t that normal after a spouse has died? The poor guy is in mourning.”
He nodded. “It would be, except he isn’t at home. His car is gone and his neighbors haven’t seen him in days.”
“Could he be away visiting family?”
His face told her the answer before he spoke. “They live in Canada and his passport hasn’t been used to cross the border.”
“You think it’s him? He’s the one?”
Joe nodded slowly. “Maybe. The team will keep looking for him and check into his banking history. It’s difficult to disappear for any length of time without using a debit or credit card.”
“Don’t you need a warrant for that? For all of it?” She knew she was grasping for anything to make it less real.
Joe kissed her forehead then pulled her in for a hug. “We have a warrant. The judges tend to agree to them quickly when a federal agent has been threatened.”
A shiver ran through her and she snuggled in. “I don’t want him to hurt you.”
“He’s not going to hurt either of us. Now that we have a face, we can be on the lookout. Let’s go see Marcus and fill him in. We can use his picture and ask people we know if they remember seeing him that day.”
She blew out a breath. “Can you show me his picture and tell me his name? Did you recognize him?”
Joe squeezed her once before releasing her and pulling out his phone. “He looks vaguely familiar to me. I think he’s Z from Josie’s sketches. Which pisses me off. I’m supposed to be observant but I can’t remember if I saw him here or in Ann Arbor. It’s only a vague sort of recognition. I didn’t have any interactions with him in Michigan, but I might have seen him.”
“I don’t have a good memory for faces. We’ll have to show Josie.”
“I’ll text it to her and Nico.” He typed for a minute then turned the phone to show her.
It wasn’t a mug shot, it was a headshot from a website for an insurance brokerage company. Isaac Simmen. The man looked totally normal. Short brown hair, friendly smile. Nothing behind the eyes to say killer. “He doesn’t look like someone who could kill another person.”
Joe shoved the phone back in his pocket. “They rarely do. That would make it a whole lot easier for everyone in law enforcement.”
They moved downstairs with Moose thumping along behind them. The downstairs alarms were in place, so Joe set them and then they headed along the street towards Phail General and the police depot.
Moose bounced along, sniffing at everything and greeting everyone who would talk to him with a smile and a lick.
