Mariah Stewart - Last Words

“It’s fine. Thank you.” Mia took the can he offered her.

“You want a glass?”

“No, this is fine.”

“Let’s get on with it then.” He gestured toward the conference room.

She followed him in and stood while he made introductions all around. She stole a glance at the fax machine that stood on a table near the back of the room, and was disappointed to find the tray empty. She’d have to put in another call for that NCIC report she’d requested.

“FBI Special Agent Mia Shields, meet Sergeant Lisa Singer. Officers Susan Martin and Duncan Alcott.” Beck started on the left side of the table. “Hal Garrity, former chief here in St. Dennis, back on the force to help out in the summer. His brother, Phil, works part-time when we need him but he left for Canada on Sunday for a bird-watching trip.”

Mia walked from one to the next, shaking their hands and making eye contact, then took a seat near Hal, who leaned over to pull the chair out for her. She smiled her thanks and started to say something, but the door opened and a trim woman in her mid-fifties blew in.

“Beck, what the hell is going on?”

“Mayor Christina Pratt, this is Special Agent Shields,” Beck said calmly. “Agent Shields, this is Mayor Pratt.”

“Don’t get up,” the mayor told Mia. “Nice to meet you.” She turned back to Beck. “I’d like to know what’s going on. What’s this about a missing woman-”

“Please, take a seat. I was just about to fill everyone in.” Beck closed the conference room door, then leaned on the back of the chair nearest him. “You all know about the body we found in the backseat of my Jeep yesterday. We assumed that the body was that of Mindy Kenneher, the woman who’s been missing from Cameron for the past few weeks. Unfortunately, it is not Mindy.”

“Do we know who it is?” Mayor Pratt asked.

“We have a damned good idea.” Beck took the photograph he’d brought back from Sinclair’s Cove from his pocket and held it up. “Holly Sheridan. Age twenty-five, summer employee at Sinclair’s Cove.”

Beck shared what he’d learned about Holly with the group.

“ Duncan, I’m going to assign you to figure out her itinerary between Colorado and Maryland, what route she would have taken, find out what credit cards she had and see if you can trace them. Contact every state between here and there and see if her car’s turned up anywhere. I have her family’s contact information and I can give you that to get you started.”

“When you were in her room, did you find anything that might give you a lead?” Hal asked.

“Nothing.”

“Except we do know that she went into town several times each week,” Mia interjected. “Her roommate mentioned that. And we found a pile of magazines, a local newspaper, and a paperback book on the floor next to her bed. She could have purchased them locally.”

“Did you notice which paper?” Hal asked.

“It was the Chesapeake Weekly, ” Beck answered. “Which could have been picked up anywhere. Neither the magazines nor the book had any stickers that might tell us where she bought them. Now, there are several places in town where they sell magazines, but only two or three where you can buy paperbacks.”

“I’ll make a copy of that photo and show it around town,” Hal told him. “I’ll start with Bookends, maybe Barbie will recognize the girl. Only other place I know of in St. Dennis proper that sells books is the Food Mart. I’ll see if Bruce or one of the boys remembers seeing her around.”

“Make it a clean sweep of all the shops, Hal,” Beck said. “We don’t know what other interests this woman had, so let’s cover the bases right the first time.”

“Shouldn’t someone talk to the people she worked with?” the mayor asked.

“We’ve got that covered,” Lisa said. “Beck and I already discussed that. I’m on it.”

“How long before we know for certain if the body found this morning is Holly Sheridan?” Mayor Pratt looked worried.

Beck looked at Mia. “How long before your lab people get back to you?”

“Well, considering we haven’t given them anything yet, I can’t really answer that,” Mia replied. “If we can send samples out today, maybe in a few days we’ll know for certain. Unless there’s another means of identification. Maybe get dental records, ask the ME to take a look.”

“I’ll put a call in to her parents as soon as we’re done here, see how quickly we can get those records.”

“Why don’t you just take the photo out to the ME’s office and look at the girl and see if that’s her?” Mayor Pratt looked from Mia to Beck.

“I’m afraid she doesn’t really look like this anymore, Christine.” Beck held up the photo.

“But she hasn’t been dead all that long, right? Just a week or so?” The mayor looked confused.

“She was sealed in plastic, Mayor Pratt.” Mia turned to explain.

“Yes, so, that should have preserved her, wouldn’t it? I mean, no bugs would have gotten to her.”

“It’s been pretty hot here this past week, as I understand it,” Mia said gently.

“Yes. So?”

“So imagine what might happen to a piece of meat if you wrapped it tightly in plastic, then set it out someplace where the temperature was in the high eighties, low nineties every day.”

“It would…” Christine Pratt blanched.

“Right. It would cook.” Mia nodded. “Actually, it would sort of liquefy.”

“I see. Well. If we’re done here…” The mayor stood and looked at Beck. “Beck, if I could see you in the hall…”

She left the room without looking back, leaving a silent group behind. Beck stepped out behind her.

“She was in a hurry all of a sudden,” Hal noted dryly. “Left her handbag on the back of the chair.”

“I’ll run it out to her.” Lisa took the bag and left the room.

“I didn’t mean to upset her.” Mia told Beck when he returned.

“Hey, she asked.” He shrugged, then looked around the room. “Anyone have anything to say? No? No questions? You all know your assignments, let’s get moving.”

Everyone stood and started toward the door.

“Oh, one more thing. No one talks to the press or to anyone else. No one.”

He made eye contact with each member of his staff.

“If anyone in this room does not understand what that means, speak up now, because if there’s a leak, if I hear something coming back that I didn’t personally put out there, someone’s head will roll. Any questions?”

There were none.

“All right then.” He pushed in the chair he’d leaned on. “Agent Shields, if you’re ready, we’ll take a run out to see Dr. Reilly. Maybe she’ll have something to tell us.”

The lab was located in the basement of one the county-owned and-operated assisted-living facilities.

“This is a little weird,” Mia noted as she parked her car near the entrance. “You have all these elderly folks out here for their afternoon strolls, and downstairs you have the morgue? Am I the only one who thinks this is strange?”

“Hey, the county had the space here.” Beck shrugged. “At least you didn’t make any lame jokes about the residents not having far to go when they pass from one life to the next.”

“Don’t think I wasn’t tempted,” she said as she got out of the car. “Which way?”

“Door around the side of the building.” Beck joined her on the sidewalk.

“Well, that’s certainly better than using the elevator in the main lobby.”

He laughed and led the way to the door leading to Dr. Reilly’s quarters, one flight down behind a black door. Beck knocked, then tried the knob.

“Hey, Beck,” Vivian Reilly greeted him as he opened the door into her office.