this is over, the better.”
Sadie made the call to 911.
Then she sat down to wait and keep an eye on the woman. Naomi Taylor wasn’t going anywhere before the police arrived.
She should have known better than to worry. Just before the sirens sounded in the distance, Naomi had a seizure and stopped breathing.
Sadie started CPR.
Probably something the crazy old woman had added to the weed.
The cops arrived and took over the situation, but there was no reviving the woman.
She was gone.
Sadie walked away. Whatever happened next didn’t matter to her. She had what she wanted.
She knew who had killed Asher.
She should have known from the beginning.
48
4:00 p.m.
Federal Holding Facility
Birmingham
Sadie waited in the interview room.
Like all interview rooms, even those operated by the feds, the walls and floor were a bland grayish-whitish beige. The table was utilitarian with enough wear and tear to be called vintage. A clock hung on the wall. Something to remind whoever was on the wrong side of the table how much time had passed. To make them sweat. To ensure the tension continued to build. Just watching the second hand tick, tick, tick around the face of that basic, no-frills clock was frustrating. The sound it made was similar to a leak in a faucet. That drip, drip, drip that echoed in the night, the sound carrying through the darkness.
The air was stale, the temp too warm. Later it would be too cold, then too warm again. But it was the chairs that were the worst. Hard, slick. Uncomfortable for five minutes, downright painful after half an hour.
She’d been waiting five or so minutes. The attorney had set up everything. All she had to do was show up with her ID.
The door opened, and a guard escorted the fallen Mason Cross into the room. His hands were cuffed at his waist. A longer section of chain connected the cuffs on his wrists to the ones on his ankles. The latter making him shuffle forward a few inches at a time rather than taking his usual confident strides.
The guard pulled out the chair opposite Sadie, and her father dropped into the seat; then the guard left, closing the door behind him.
“Thank you for coming.”
Sadie had barely kept her emotions in check since talking to Naomi. She didn’t want to lose it now. Not until she had what she came for.
“What is it you want to talk about?” she demanded. “Did you make some big deal for your freedom? I’m sure you know all kinds of good shit to bargain with.”
“No. I’m not taking any deals, though several have been offered. I’m providing all that I know with no strings attached.”
His declaration surprised her, but she refused to give him any credit for doing the right thing. For all she knew, he could be lying. He’d done it plenty of times before.
“There are things I need to tell you before you hear them other ways,” he offered.
“I have two questions for you,” Sadie said flatly. “The only things I want to hear are answers to those questions.”
“Let me have my say, and then I’ll answer any question you ask.”
If playing his little game would get this over with more quickly so she could get out of this room, why not?
“I used to be a good man. A good agent. Maybe even a decent father and husband.”
No comment.
“After your mother died, I was lonely. In time I met a woman. She was an attorney for one of my informants. She made me smile when I had nothing to smile about; my wife had died. I was working all the time. I had no time for my only child. Ultimately, Emma and I started an affair.”
Sadie made a dry sound. “You had an affair with Carlos Osorio’s daughter. Wow. I guess I inherited my ability to get involved with the wrong people from you. Looks like we both got screwed by the cartel.”
He nodded.
Jesus Christ. Naomi had been right. Warren was the old man’s daughter.
“As time went on,” Mason continued, “Emma and I grew closer, and I began to share things with her.” He shrugged. “Pillow talk. I had no idea she was using me to plant bugs in my office. I didn’t know until much later. All along I thought she was some vibrant, selfless attorney, and she was merely amassing markers. Building her reputation and power, and I helped her. Eventually I learned the truth, and we broke it off. But the damage was done. She had me.