Most Wanted (16 page)

They reached the basement, and the elevator doors opened. Melanie hesitated and swallowed hard. But Dan was with her. It would be okay.

“This way,” she said, stepping out and leading Dan back down the mustard yellow corridor toward the metal door.

“You came down here without an armed escort? Man, you got nerves of steel.”

“Yeah, and you should’ve seen the autopsy photos I was looking at when the lights went out! Severed limbs and everything!”

She managed a weak laugh. With Dan at her side, the whole experience might have been an amusing caper, or so she tried to tell herself. But when they reached the metal door, her laughter froze on her lips. The door was closed, her black bag missing.

“My bag is gone!”

“Huh. Maybe the guards found it?”

“Wouldn’t they have said something?”

Dan looked up and down the hallway. Ten feet away her bag lay on the floor beside some trash bins.

“There it is!” he said.

She ran over and grabbed it. Turning it upside down, she dumped the entire contents onto the floor, and began rifling through to see what was missing.

“Anything taken?” Dan asked, coming to stand over her as she opened her wallet.

“I had about thirty dollars cash,” she said. “It’s gone, but my credit cards are all here. Oh, look, the compartment with my checkbook is open! I always keep it snapped.”

“Any checks missing?”

“No. But the checks have my home address on them. Do you think that’s why he opened it? To see where I live?”

“It could have just come open when the guy tossed your wallet. With the money missing, this looks like a simple purse snatch to me.”

“Wait a minute!” Melanie exclaimed, suddenly realizing what wasn’t on the floor.

“What?” Dan asked.

She picked up the black bag and looked inside. It appeared completely empty. She stuck her hand in down to the bottom, feeling around to be sure. Nothing. The tape and the animal-torture Polaroids had been in there, and now they weren’t. They weren’t on the floor either. They were plain gone. She looked up at Dan, thunderstruck.

“I found some important evidence tonight in your wiretap boxes. It’s gone. I can’t believe it! Why would a thief care about that?”

“What evidence?”

“A wiretap tape and some photographs. From an apartment belonging to a Jasmine Cruz. Who is she?”

“She was the subscriber on our busiest phone. A stripper at a club in Times Square if I remember right, probably a top guy’s girlfriend. We never intercepted her in a drug call, so we left her out there when we took the case down. Why?”

“I think she was
Slice’s
girlfriend.”

“What makes you say that?”

She described the pictures in detail, how they showed the black dog being trained to kill and how they led her to the transcript of the call between Slice and Jasmine.

“I remember that call,” he said. “Pretty scary stuff, the way he talked. We were looking to ID that guy when we took the case down. I played that tape for every cooperator in the case, and they all claimed not to recognize the voice. More than once I wondered if they were lying to me.”

“I’m sure they were. They were all scared to death to rat on Slice.”

“Yeah. Huh.” He seemed troubled by something.

“But, Dan, it’s missing! The tape and the transcript and those torture photos. Oh, and something else. Information about a young woman who worked at Jed Benson’s law firm. I think she might know something. Stealing money I can understand, but why would a thief take evidence? Nobody would want that stuff unless they were involved with the case.”

“Jesus, look at this,” Dan said, his attention caught by something over her head. She stood up and twirled around, following his glance. A security camera, mounted to the low ceiling, pointed directly at the entrance to the file room. She hadn’t noticed it before. Standing on tiptoe and stretching out his arm, Dan was tall enough to reach it. He pulled a piece of shiny gray duct tape off the lens and showed it to her.

“This tape looks new. Somebody taped the lens, probably just now while you were in there.”

“Who would do that?” she asked, although she had a pretty good idea.

“Somebody who really didn’t want his picture taken,” Dan said gravely.

“But not a custodian, right?” A chill shot right down her spine.

“I doubt a custodian would think about taping a lens, even if he’s dirty and planned to toss your purse. That’s something a pro does when he’s planning something big. You could have been hurt.”

He looked at her intently, like he was afraid she would disappear before his eyes.

“Do you think it was Slice?” she asked, giving voice to her deepest fear.

“I have no way of knowing that for sure. But maybe.”

“Probably, right? Who else could it be? Jasmine Cruz wanting to hear the sound of her own voice?” She giggled nervously, but her whole body was trembling. “How the hell could Slice have gotten in here? He looks like a total thug. Even if the guy at the front desk is asleep at the switch, he’d’ve noticed someone like Slice. And the rest of the building is sealed up pretty tight. No windows that open, all the external doors alarmed.”

“I agree it’s strange,” Dan said.

“I mean, how would he even know where to look for me? He must’ve had inside help!”

“From who, a guard?” Dan asked skeptically. “That’s a serious charge. A guard probably wouldn’t do something like that. Lazy is one thing, but dirty is something else entirely.”

“Then how, Dan? You explain it to me.”

“I don’t know. If we can grab whoever chased you, we’ll ask him how he got in, okay? Who knows—maybe it
was
Slice, and maybe he’s still around. I need to do a floor-to-floor search.”

“I’m coming with you. I’m not staying here by myself,” Melanie said.

“Of course not. You shouldn’t have been down here alone in the first place. This is a serious case. We should be taking more precautions. You can wait in my car. I don’t want you in the line of fire if I find this guy.”

Under other circumstances she would have protested, but now she was too shaken up. When she went after the Benson case like a demon, she’d never imagined the killer might train his sights on
her
.

MELANIE RUSHED INTO THE KITCHEN AND THREW her arms around Maya, who sat in her high chair smiling like the Cheshire cat, green muck dripping down her chin.

“You’re still up! Mommy missed you so much!” she cried, hugging her daughter close. Maya surveyed her domain as if not a thing was wrong in the world. But Slice was out there. Dan had done a floor-to-floor search back at the office and come up dead empty.

“Mel, not that that’s much of an outfit, but you’re about to ruin it,” Linda warned. She’d been gingerly administering pureed peas from two feet away in a futile attempt to protect her own clothes. As if on cue, Maya spit a fine green spray.

“
Mi’ja
, I told you, this is Versace!” Linda’s bracelets jangled as she deflected the neon green spatter away from her midriff-baring blouse, which showed off the ruby in her navel and the large butterfly tattoo spreading its wings across her lower back. She sported a diamond-encrusted choker bearing the legend BORICUA CHICA. Melanie envied her sister’s glam Puerto Rican style. Sometimes she wished she could be more out there herself, but she just wasn’t like that.

“I’m happy to see her, but why is she up? It’s past eleven! And why are you feeding her this late?” Melanie asked.

“
Muy buenas tardes
, Linda,” Linda said. “
Muchas gracias
for baby-sitting, Linda.”

Melanie caught a whiff of something and leaned down, sticking her nose under the high-chair tray.

“
And
she’s poopy!” she exclaimed indignantly, straightening back up.

“Ingrate! Remind me not to do you any more favors. Look what time it is! I’m gonna be late for my date with Alberto, and this is the thanks I get.”

“Wait a minute, Alberto? You mean Chester the Molester?”

“Did I call him that? Oops.”

“He’s almost sixty!”

“I decided I like older men.”

“Since when?”

“Since he promised to help me pitch my show idea. Listen to this: a makeover show!
Me
giving beauty and relationship advice. I’m calling it
Muy Linda
! Get it? It means ‘very pretty’ in Spanish.”

“Yes, thank you, I speak Spanish.”

“God, you are
nasty
tonight.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry, I should be more grateful. I
am
grateful. It’s just …I’m under so much stress lately.”

Linda held out her arms. “
Ven aquí, chica
.”

Melanie walked over and put her head down on Linda’s shoulder, burying her face in her sister’s perfumed dark hair. Linda patted Melanie’s back.

“Poor baby! Hey, who would’ve thought it would be you leaning on me? Some role reversal, huh?” In the roles they’d played since childhood, Linda was the popular, glamorous, wild sister, and Melanie the smart, sensible, together one.

“Could you
try
to sound a little less pleased about my life being messed up?” Melanie disentangled herself from Linda’s embrace.

“It’s nice to feel needed, that’s all. Hey, you really do look upset. Bad night?”

Melanie filled Linda in on the incident in the file room.

“Oh, my God!” Linda said. “You could have been killed.”

“Tell me about it! The FBI agent I’m working with said the same thing.”

They were both silent, thinking about that.

“So who’s the guy?” Linda asked after a moment.

“The killer?”

“No, the FBI agent. Were you two working late together?”

“Linda!”

“Aha, you’re blushing! I’m onto something, right? What an instinct!”

“Can’t you be serious for once?”

“I
am
serious. What’s more serious than you working late with a hot guy?”

“Who says he’s hot?”

“He’s not hot?”

Melanie rolled her eyes and walked over to the sink. She grabbed a piece of paper towel, wet it, and began swabbing Maya’s face.

“Yuck, how did it get in your hair? You need a bath,
nena
.” Melanie lifted Maya from her high chair and carried her to the changing table in her bedroom. Linda followed. Melanie undid the tabs on the diaper and scrutinized its contents.

“Why do you have to
look
at it?” Linda asked, making a face.

“It’s good to see their poop. That’s how you know they’re digesting okay. I wasn’t with her all day, so it makes me feel like I know what’s going on.” She wiped Maya’s bottom and shoved everything into the Diaper Genie.

“When it comes to dirty diapers, ignorance is bliss if you ask me,” Linda said.

Melanie carried Maya naked to the bathroom, Linda buzzing after her like a hungry bumblebee at a picnic. As Melanie poured Baby Magic under the running water, Linda closed the toilet-seat lid and sat down.

“So what about this guy? I always tell
you
everything.”

“I could have been killed, and this is what you’re concerned about.” Shaking her head, Melanie tested the temperature of the water, then lowered Maya’s squirming body carefully into the bath seat. She used a plastic cup to splash water over chubby, glistening limbs, eliciting gurgles of pleasure.

“He must be a loser, or you’d tell me. The real hotties never went for you anyway. You had the looks, but you refused to do yourself up. Like you were above it or something.”

Melanie knew Linda was baiting her, but she couldn’t help herself. A lifetime of competing with her flamboyant sister won out.

“He happens to be incredible.”

“
¡Mami
! So go for it!”

“
¿Eres loca
? I’m a mother. I can’t just go around having affairs!”

“Why not? Steve did.”

That stopped Melanie cold. Each time she was reminded of it, it hurt like new.

“You know I’m right,” Linda insisted, nodding her head. “Revenge is in order here. Show Steve he can’t walk all over you.”

“That’s a sick attitude. No wonder none of your relationships last more than two weeks.”

“Maybe my relationships don’t last because I don’t want them to. Marriage sucks. Mom and Papi were at each other’s throats. Steve cheated on you right after Maya was born. I mean, how low can you get? Not that I didn’t warn you. I saw through that guy from day one. Too smooth for his own good, I said. But you like that. Reminds you of Papi.”

“Shut up.”

“It’s true. Didn’t I tell you what a bad sign it was that Steve cheated on other girlfriends? You had this information when you married him,
chica
.”

“Those were girls he dated casually. No vows involved.”

“Vows, my ass. Once a sleazebag, always a sleazebag. But no, you were too into him to listen to any sense.”

“Linda, this is getting me mad.”

“Why are you sticking up for him? I don’t get it.”

“He’s my husband and the father of my child!”

“So? He didn’t respect that. Why should you?”

Melanie squeezed out the washcloth, not saying anything, her mouth setting into an angry line. She felt like an idiot leaping to Steve’s defense, the way he’d betrayed her. But Linda’s cynical attitude didn’t sit well either. Maybe she just didn’t want to believe that her marriage was over.

“Hey, it’s your life,” Linda said. “But give me one good reason for staying with this bozo.”

“One good reason? Maya! If it was just me, I would’ve served him with divorce papers by now. But what would that mean for her?” Melanie gently lathered Maya’s dark hair.

“So you’re not in love with him anymore?” Linda asked.

“I never said that.”

“You’re not sure, are you? You’re not sure whether you still love your husband.”

“That’s not true. I definitely do.” She did. Otherwise it wouldn’t hurt this bad. She took a deep breath and fought back tears as she rinsed Maya’s hair. “He swept me off my feet, you know? It was like something out of a movie. He had everything. Gorgeous, smart, well traveled, from a prominent family. All these fancy white girls chasing him, and he picks
me
, a nobody from nowhere, a kid from the block.”