NYPD Red 6 - James Patterson Page 0,53
Boom. Boom. Bang.
Perfect shot.
He didn’t watch Jamie drop to the floor.
He packed up the rifle quickly, and with the models still strutting down the runway and the crowd still keeping time to the music, he made his way downstairs to the parking lot and headed home to the woman he loved.
CHAPTER 47
ADA BILL HARRISON had spent the morning tied up in court, so by the time we got a face-to-face with him it was midafternoon. At that point Kylie was fed up with the justice system, and of course, she did nothing to keep it a secret.
“They’re not just airing these videos, Bill,” she said, pointing a finger at Harrison. “They’re tampering with evidence.”
“And you can prove that, Detective?” Harrison said.
“Oh, give me a break. They got an envelope from the kidnapper. I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt and say that they opened it in good faith. But once they knew what was on that flash drive, they passed it up the food chain. If there were any prints or traceable DNA on that drive, they’re gone. That’s tampering. Not to mention that they didn’t call us the minute they got it. Zach and I didn’t see the video till we tuned in with the rest of the world. And you’re telling me you can’t stop them?”
“I talked with Mick Wilson,” Harrison said. “He’s sympathetic to the issue.”
“But?”
“But he’s the district attorney, not the Gestapo. ZTV is standing behind the First Amendment.”
“You mean hiding behind it. They’re a reality-TV network. They don’t care about freedom of the press. Their stock-in-trade is exploiting the human condition. Surely you can find a judge who isn’t afraid to come down on them for that.”
“I watched a video of the show when I got back to my office. You’re right. ZTV is milking this kidnapping for all it’s worth. But I also saw the note that came with the video. ‘Air this and do not call the cops or she will die.’ That’s the bigger issue. I have no problem finding a judge who is willing to tangle with the media. But finding one who is willing to silence the network and take the fall if Erin is murdered is impossible.”
“Thanks for nothing.”
“Hey, I haven’t exactly been doing nothing,” Harrison said. “So don’t take it out on me because Brockway is making the police department look bad. I saw that FBI agent he put on camera. I’m sure that crack about the feds stepping in and taking over is going to reverb throughout One PP.”
“Well, at least Agent Dobin fired a warning shot,” Kylie said.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Harrison said.
“It means that a friend of mine works for the Southern District, and she told me that the U.S. attorney would love nothing more than to sink his teeth into a high-profile case of a kidnapped actress and a multimillionaire mother-in-law who won’t lift a finger to help her.”
“You’re telling me that the U.S. attorney thinks he can step in and take this case?”
“He didn’t go on national TV and announce it like that idiot from the FBI, but he’s talking about it behind closed doors.”
“Son of a bitch,” Harrison said.
My cell phone rang. It was Rich Koprowski.
“I need you and MacDonald at the Brooklyn Army Terminal forthwith,” he said.
“What’s going on?” I said, hitting the speaker button.
“We tailed Jamie to a fashion show at the Brooklyn Army Terminal. There was a shooting. A sniper killed Veronica Gibbs. ESU is searching the venue for the shooter, but so far we’ve got nothing.”
“What about Jamie?”
“He’s okay. Nobody heard the gunshot, but he was sitting right next to her when she dropped like a stone. He went to help her up, but she was already dead.”
“We’re on the way,” I said and hung up.
Koprowski had used the word forthwith, which is cop-speak for “immediately, without delay.” But Kylie wasn’t quite ready to leave. She turned on Harrison.
“This morning ZTV broadcast a show to millions making Veronica Gibbs the heavy—the person who wouldn’t cough up the money to save her daughter-in-law and her unborn grandchild. Somebody saw that show and decided things would work out better if Jamie inherited the money in a hurry, so that person killed her.”
“You don’t know that for a fact,” Harrison said.
“Here’s what I do know, and you can pass it on to Mick Wilson,” Kylie said. “Harris Brockway and ZTV may not have Erin’s blood on their hands, but they sure as hell have Veronica’s.”
CHAPTER 48
SINCE WHEN DO