be out doing something, looking for Sean, proving his innocence. But Patrick was right. She wouldn’t be allowed to help the police, she could potentially blow the case against Elise—who, according to Brad—had been the one who killed Mona. And she might put Sean in more danger if there was a perception that she’d contaminated evidence or a witness statement.
So she waited.
And waited.
Her phone rang, and she grabbed it, desperate for news. It was an unfamiliar number, and her heart sank.
“Kincaid.”
“Agent Lucy Kincaid?” a man said.
“Yes. Who’s this?”
“Bill Anderson.”
Erica’s ex-husband. “Yes? Have you heard from Erica?”
“I’m scared. She called me, wouldn’t explain, wouldn’t say anything other than to get the kids out of town and someplace safe. I don’t scare easy, but I’m packing my kids up right now because I am scared. I’ve been trying to call her back, but she won’t answer.”
“I need that number.”
Bill gave it to her. “It’s not her regular number. I don’t know what’s going on, Agent Kincaid, but this isn’t like Erica. She’s spooked.”
“Did she give you any idea where she was calling from?”
“No. You have my number, please call me if you hear anything. I’m taking my kids to my dad’s place, he lives in the middle of nowhere. We don’t really get along, but he loves his grandkids and it’s safe.”
“I’ll call when I know anything. Thank you.”
Lucy called Kate. She told her exactly what Bill Anderson said. “Erica Anderson knows the prison system. Could she be behind Sean’s transfer?”
“She’s not in corrections anymore.”
“But she knows people there. I can’t find her; no one knows where she is.” Lucy gave Kate the number Bill gave her. “Can you trace it?”
“I’ll see what I can do, but it’s going to take time. I’ll call you back.” Kate ended the call.
They were getting close … but not close enough.
A knock on the hotel room door made her jump. She looked through the security hole and saw her sister-in-law, Megan.
“I’m so glad to see you,” she said.
Megan was carrying a large box, and she put it down on the desk. “I just spent an hour talking to the AUSA prosecuting Michael Thompson.”
“The hit man Hunt testified against?”
“Yes. The AUSA—Neil Barnes—had Thompson dead to rights on killing a Houston council member last year, which was tied to a San Antonio case three years ago. During the investigation, which was a joint FBI/DEA/local investigation because of the multiple jurisdictions and evidence of drug running, the DEA determined that Thompson had been hired for both murders. He refused to talk.”
“San Antonio three years ago? That was right before I moved there. Was it connected to Rollins or Hunt?”
“There was no evidence at the time, but now they think the victim in San Antonio was connected to the Hunt family drug network. After the murder, they connected the victim to the drug trade. They had a description of Thompson and his vehicle—a rental. He had a fake identity, but they got his prints. Thompson disappeared for two years. When the councilman was killed in Houston, they found his image on security and a shell casing they recovered at the scene.”
“Not a smart hit man.”
Megan shrugged.
“He could have been rushed, or something distracted him. But the San Antonio victim is connected to Jimmy Hunt, and Hunt claimed he took the hit out on him because he was skimming and thought that he’d been compromised to the DEA. The second victim—no connection to the drug trade.”
“Do they know why he was targeted?”
“Not yet. After the councilman was killed, they identified Thompson, got warrants for his financials and learned he’d been paid $100K for each murder. That’s the assumption—they can prove that the large sums of money were deposited into his account from an unknown source. Thompson files tax returns and claimed the income from a company called Fair Play Inc. Thompson hasn’t spoken since his arrest. He pled not guilty, and that’s it. He didn’t testify in his defense and has no plans to. He wouldn’t cooperate during the investigation. But somehow the investigators knew to talk to Hunt, and he was questioned while he was in prison. He said that Thompson had been hired to kill Davidson, a teacher in San Antonio, because Hunt’s people believed that he’d been compromised and that the DEA was looking into him.”
“Were they?”
“No, but they had been looking at a drug-related death at a local high school where the victim taught. Hunt claimed that he was a ‘weak link’ and feared he’d turn