Pete looked as if he hadn’t moved. He still sat hunched over the pile of paper on his desk, still chewing the end of a pencil, tapping his fingers as he read. Only the color of his shirt gave away the fact that he’d made it home last night, at least to change his clothes. But he hadn’t been gone for long. The pile was definitely smaller.
“What you find so far, partner?” Adam placed a paper cup of coffee on Pete’s desk.
Pete leaned back and exhaled loudly, running both hands through his sandy hair until it stood on end. “Not much. Lots of names. Lots of motives. But nothing that connects. Not yet.”
“You know the killer might not be in there. This murder might not be anything related to his cases.”
Pete nodded as he took a sip of coffee. “I know, you’re right. There is one case, though…” He reached across his desk to dig through a pile and Adam held his breath.
“Casinos.”
Adam let his breath out. “Casinos?”
“Yeah. As a judge, Ryan-Mills struck down a proposed injunction by the governor’s administration that would have stopped one of the Native American tribes from negotiating a new gambling compact with the U.S. Interior Department.”
“Wait, Oliver Ryan-Mills struck down the injunction? You mean he helped the casino development move forward?”
Pete nodded at Adam, raising his eyebrows. “That surprises you? Because that part on its own didn’t strike me as odd. Why wouldn’t a rich judge support a casino being built in town?”
Adam thought of what Matt Thompson had learned, about Ian Heyward and the civic association. “Nothing, I guess. Sorry. Just not what I expected. Don’t know why.”
“Uh-huh. Because you think I can’t tell when you’re lying to me?” Pete smiled. “Never mind, I probably don’t want to know. No, there are a couple things weird about it. For one, one of the defendants in the case, Roc Lubrano, has a known association with the mob.”
“Known association? Known but not proven?”
Pete nodded. “That’s about it. Someone who caught my attention, that’s all.” He dropped the file and looked up at Adam, who had perched on a neighboring desk. “Why’re you asking, Kaminski? You’re not on this case, remember?”
“I know, I know. I’m curious. It’s my sister, Pete. You know I gotta care.”
“I know.” Pete looked down. He glanced around the squad room, but everyone else was minding their own business — on the phone, on the computer, talking to each other. The noise would have been overwhelming, but both men knew how to ignore it. How to use it to their advantage.
“Look, I’m not done yet. Still waiting for the tech’s report. Still have this pile of papers to finish.” He slapped his hand down on the pile remaining in front of him. “But what I know so far? We have a few people to look at.”
“Like who?”
“The son. Harry Ryan-Mills. He lives in the area. And he’ll inherit.”
“Everything?”
“Well, he’ll split it with his brother. But this is a substantial estate we’re talking about. Half of twelve million is nothing to sneeze at. And the brother, Thomas, lives in Chicago with his wife and family and can prove he was there last night.”
“Sounds promising.” Adam nodded, indicating the other files with his chin. “What else?”
Pete looked down. “I’m still interested in this case on the casinos. First, as a judge, he blocks an injunction that would have stopped the casinos from being built. But interviews with his family and neighbors show he’s been involved in a community movement against the casinos. A group led by a Dr. Ian Heyward.”
“Yeah, I’ve heard of him.”
“You have?” Pete looked up, surprised. “A curator of old books?”
Adam smiled. “I get around, all right?”
“Right. So, the developer involved, Roc Lubrano. Like I said, word is he’s got connections. Always a red flag.”
“And Julia?”
Pete shook his head. “She’s still on our radar. She’s probably fine, we just need to be thorough in crossing her off our list. She did own the murder weapon, after all, and they were her fingerprints.”
He tapped his hand on the files in front of him. “Look, don’t worry. More people may still be added to that list. I’ve got this whole pile of people to go through. Everyone who came before the judge over his last year on the bench, if you can believe that.”
Adam took a breath and nodded, hoping his expression wasn’t betraying him. He trusted Pete. He was a great cop. He could let Pete handle this. Find the truth.
But Pete worked for the captain, who worked for the deputy commissioner, and the list went on. It wasn’t up to Pete. And it was just a matter of time before Pete found Julia’s name on that list.
He needed to find the truth before that happened. Before his friends and colleagues got their hands on his little sister, bringing her in for questioning, linking her to this investigation.