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"That's right. Lori Snyder was the second victim."
"You always maintain that the first victim is the most important, because that is where the unsub would have made his initial mistakes." Theo tapped the second file with his finger a couple of times. "While Melanie might have been killed first, I think Lori was who garnered the unsub's attention to begin with. According to the crime report, Lori had called the police three times in the year prior to her death, though the incidents were only mentioned as an afterthought in her mother's statement. It was as if the investigating officer didn't believe that they were relevant. Nothing was brought up at trial. Coincidentally, Bobby Anderson was represented by Nick Dorn. He's the military lawyer who also represented Austin Ridley. We should probably bring him into this soon, but I think it's best we speak to the inmates first without him present. There's no need to have him running around and stirring up the mud. We don't need the hassle if it isn't probative."
"Were Lori's previous incidents written up by local law enforcement?" Brook asked, picking up the file and joining Theo on the couch. Melanie Harlock had died six months prior to Lori's death, but Theo's meticulous screening of the crime reports might have given them their first dangling thread. "Or did Lori report these events to her immediate supervisor?"
"According to the statement of Mrs. Snyder, one time it was to the guard on duty. The other two were to her immediate supervisor, but I'm not so certain it was ever reported to NCIS outside of the mother's statement. Nothing criminal occurred—no threatening notes, no harassing phone calls, and no physical contact was made." Theo sat back against the cushion of the couch and crossed his arms in contemplation. "What if Lori was his first choice, but her ability to detect his presence had him taking out his frustration on Melanie Harlock first?"
"I have a meeting with the NCIS agent who was in charge of Kelsey's case tomorrow morning. He's in town from North Carolina, and he's visiting someone at Quantico," Brook explained, still skimming through the mother's statement. "If all goes well, I'm hoping that he'll be an ally instead of an obstacle. He wasn't too keen to get pressure from above stemming from Graham's contacts."
"I wouldn't imagine that he was," Theo replied wryly. This was the first time that they'd had some one-on-one time since this morning. Brook braced herself for whatever he might say regarding Jacob, but he continued to talk about the case at hand. "General Elliott doesn't strike me as someone to disregard unless it's at one's own peril. With that said, I like him. He seems solid. I can't imagine the pain that he had to endure losing both his daughter and then his wife."
Brook often thought about Graham and the two tragedies that he'd suffered so close together, but she did her best to compartmentalize her relationship with him. He was her business partner, and a silent one at that. He'd only done so to use her skills to get justice for his daughter. She could respect the lengths he'd gone to, and he seemed to be sincere in wanting to give the same thing to the numerous other families who never got answers regarding the deaths of their loved ones.
"As Graham said this morning, he's made his fair share of enemies." Brook finally closed the file that she held in her lap. "The mother made reference to Lori being followed by someone at the mall, but then also said she felt uncomfortable on base. All of the female victims were either in the Marines or the Navy, which indicates there might be other files buried at NCIS that might be relevant to the inquiry."
"Which means if you can get the NCIS agent you are meeting with tomorrow on board, he could get his hands on any and all complaints filed by anyone during that time period," Theo pointed out, his attention being drawn to the foyer. Her door was still open, and there was no mistaking Bit's running shoes squeaking on the marble tiles. "Not having the backing of the Bureau can definitely be a drawback, but I'm finally beginning to realize that we have a way around that."
"Bit will continue to do things within the constraints of the law," Brook warned Theo, not wanting any of them to get the idea that the law should be routinely bent in any way, shape, or form. What she'd had him do in the past had been personal at the time. It was more of a situation ofdo as I say, not as I do. The video footage that Bit had found of Jacob driving near where their father resided in a nursing home could never be used in a court of law, not that it would come to that. That was neither here nor there, though. "Everything is to be on the up and up should we ever need to testify in court."
Theo had narrowed his eyes upon Brook's statement, but he could take it any way he wanted in the interim. What he didn't know couldn't come back to bite him in the ass.
"Boss and Big T," Bit called out as Sylvie followed close behind him. She had on her dress coat, scarf, and gloves. Her purse and what appeared to be a tote bag that she'd brought in with her this morning were hooked over her shoulder. "We're safe and secure here at S&E. Try it out."
"You'll get used to him," Brook murmured as she handed the file off to Theo. She had an electronic copy that she would go through this evening. With seven victims, she hadn't had time to comb through each statement given by either a relative or friend. Once she had the profile finetuned, she'd then concentrate on all the other details that Theo, Sylvie, and Bit were able to find in the search and discovery part of the investigation. "Let's take a look at his handiwork."
"You should have seen his face when I offered to have him scan my other eye," Theo whispered before gesturing that she should exit her office first. He was still attempting to keep her at ease over the day's events. "I'm pretty sure that he thought I was serious."
"Okay," Bit exclaimed with excitement as he led them all through the main double glass doors. He then used his key to lock them out before turning his attention toward the biometric scanner on the thin portion of the wall to the right of the doors. "Boss, would you like to do the honors?"
Brook tilted her head in agreement and stepped forward until she was literally eye level with the machine. Without much fanfare, the software inside the small box recognized movement and immediately began to scan her iris. The audible click of the lock indicated that it had been thrown and she was now able to enter the offices.
"You have fourteen seconds to open the door," Bit explained, going into detail with how he'd come up with that setting. Considering his logic was sound in regard to how three to four seconds was long enough to take two steps to open the door, fourteen seconds was actually reasonable. "The doors will automatically lock behind you. Now, I know that we kept the main doors unlocked today, but given our circumstances, I think it might be in our best interest to keep them locked twenty-four-seven. I've gone ahead and ordered a switch to be installed near the receptionist's desk. Since whoever it is that you hire will have a clear view of who is coming and going from the elevators, the receptionist can then have discretion over who to allow inside with a simple press of a button. There is also an intercom."
"He has a point," Theo reasoned, stepping up to the scanner now that the time allotted to enter the office had passed. "Let's see how good this thing is."
"Do you mind if I go next?" Sylvie interrupted as a bit of color seeped into her cheeks. "I have a date, and I'm running a bit late."
"Date?"
Bit suddenly seemed to have lost interest in his new toy.
"Well, not really a date," Sylvie began to explain hesitantly as she stepped around Theo. She stood in front of the biometric scanner, proving that it worked just fine. Once again, there had been an audible click to let the employee know that they could enter S&E Investigations' offices. "It's more of a coffee kind of thing."
"...whether or not the catalyst is a sell-the-news kind of deal."
Two gentlemen came through the double wooden doors of the financial firm across the hall. They were in a deep discussion, but the fact that four people were standing in the main foyer testing out a security system had captured their attention.
"You all must be the new tenants. We were wondering what it was that you do to require something like that."
The younger of the two stepped forward to shake hands, taking lead on the introductions.
"I'm Chet Johnson," he replied with a genuine smile. "This is Kyle Paulson. Nice to meet you. Are you a government contractor? Word around the water cooler is that most of you came from the FBI."
"Do the two of us look like we worked for the Feds?" Theo asked, purposefully shifting his stance so that he was standing next to Bit.
Sylvie had been the one who had to hide her smile, while Brook had reluctantly taken notice of Kyle Paulson. He appeared to be in his forties. He was dressed as if he had a lot of money, but the brand of shoes gave him away. Why did men always believe that the suit mattered? They always forgot about the accessories. He also wasn't wearing a wedding ring, although she doubted that was why his attention was solely on her.
As for why she felt uncomfortable in his presence, she was almost certain it had to do with his last name. It sounded too similar in relation to Sally's surname for comfort.
