says to invite her up.”
Almost as if she had heard the words, Loriann looked into the camera, pointed to the side, and walked into the coffee shop that had opened at five for the morning’s business. Coffee’s On had the best coffee in the city, though I might be prejudiced. I was a regular. The security video from Coffee’s On appeared on the next screen. I looked at Tandy, who wore a defiant expression. “JoJo’s work. We have an in for Yoshi’s Deli’s security cameras too. In case someone goes after the neighbors.”
“And do they know we’ve invaded their privacy?”
Tandy might have flushed just a bit, though it was hard to tell in the darkened room.
“We’re too kind,” I murmured, indulging in unfamiliar sarcasm. I shook my head and went to wake Rick, who was sleeping better as dawn approached. With a thick, darker-than-once-before fingernail, I tapped on the cage, the tone both woody and metallic. Rick rolled over, the motion all cat, lithe and languid, in contrast to his wrinkled clothing and scruffy, unshaven human face. “Nell,” he said. He seemed in control.
I unlatched the cage and said, “You have a visitor. Loriann Ethier is in Coffee’s On.”
Thoughts and reactions crossed Rick’s face. He rolled to his feet and stretched. “She didn’t wait to be invited.” He raised an arm, sniffed, and made an awful face.
“Shall I go let her in?”
He reached around his cage, grabbing his four-day gobag from the corner. “I need to shower.”
“What if you get called to your cat while we make her wait?”
He grimaced. “If I meet her looking like this, the initial interview shifts in her favor. Remember your Reid method. I’ll lock myself in and I’ll be fast.”
The Reid interrogation technique was a method that got subjects to talk, and included a behavior analysis interview. Rick needed to be dominant to use Reid against a potential danger.
Back in the conference room, I made a pot of coffee and opened the box of Krispy Kremes that an early arrival had left on the table. The box contained eleven donuts and appeared to be half lemon-filled and half raspberry-filled. I left a five and two ones, because I’d have more than one, chose a lemon, and bit in. It was scrumptious.
Occam came in behind me, walked to the tinted windows, and stared out at the sky. His eyes were hollow and dark with visions of the crime scene. He didn’t speak, but stood so still he might have been a vampire. Something about him suggested restrained violence, a need to break something … or kill someone. I started to reach out to him, but Tandy shook his head, eyes wide, telling me to leave Occam alone. I dropped my hand and walked from the conference room.
I stayed in my cubicle, finishing up my EOB—end-of-business—report and snipping dead leaves out of my hairline, listening to the soft murmur of voices as Tandy guided Occam to talk and they caught up on the night’s events. I heard enough to know that Occam was talking about the crime scene, and though I wanted to know everything, there was pathos in his tone. Occam needed this time with the empath. When he had talked himself out, I went back to the conference room, passing Rick in the hallway. He was dressed in clean black slacks, starched white shirt, cuffs folded up, and black shoes. Fancier than the usual casual black he normally wore. He was freshly shaved, his hair wet and slicked back. His badge and ID were clipped at his waist and he was wearing a shoulder harness with his Glock GDP-20 in its Kydex holster. I had expected him to look tired or upset, but he looked steady and oddly excited.
“Call her,” he said to Tandy as he strode into the conference room. “Tell her to come on up.”
“Call who?” JoJo asked. She was standing in the middle of the hallway, vibrant in orange and purple, hues that looked perfect on her.
“Loriann Ethier,” Rick said. “She’s in Coffee’s On, having a croissant and a cup of coffee.” He tilted his head at the screen.
“Well. That’s ballsy,” she said, skirts swirling as she whirled into the conference room.
Tandy dialed and held out the office phone to Rick. The boss shook his head and Tandy shrugged, saying into the phone, his tone emotionless, “Someone will meet you at the door.”
Rick made a slashing motion across his own throat and Tandy ended the call. Quickly, Rick gave us instructions.
“I’ll