Cash woke up at six, not having had enough sleep but unable to sleep longer. Her mind was going too fast. She checked her phone: the warrant hadn’t come through. But of course it wouldn’t have at that early hour—after writing it up, the judge would have to put through the paperwork and register it, and that couldn’t happen until court staff came in to work in the morning. She’d be lucky to get the warrant by noon.
She threw off the covers, took a long shower, dressed, fired up the espresso machine, and tossed down three doubles. She needed to get some real food, but then she saw they’d stocked the bar fridge. Real food would take too long. She ate a packet of macadamia nuts, a can of Pringles, and two packets of Reese’s Pieces. The fruit basket had also been filled, and she ate a banana and an apple, trying to make herself feel better about her terrible food choices.
Six thirty. She texted Colcord and got an immediate reply. He hadn’t heard from the judge either.
And now it was time for her to babysit the guests as they left. She left her room and went down to the main hall of the lodge. Even at that early hour, it was a scene of controlled chaos, with guests rushing this way and that, bellhops wheeling around carts piled with luggage, and valets bringing up cars from the garage.
She saw Maximilian to one side, speaking into his radio.
Okay, Maximilian, here we go. She walked over to him. He finished his call. “Good morning, Agent Cash.”
She wondered if he knew she’d been demoted. Probably, since McFaul was so free with information that should remain confidential.
“You know, of course, all about what happened up at the Jackman Mine yesterday.”
“I do,” Maximilian said, “and I’m extremely upset to hear about the death of our security employee Johnson. That was a tragedy, and Erebus is deeply concerned. On the other hand, I commend you on the discoveries you made.”
She let him talk for a while, and when he fell silent, she continued looking at him steadily.
He faltered after a long moment. “Is there … a problem?”
“Yeah. A big problem. If you had told us about the existence of the Jackman Mine, we could’ve searched it five days ago. Maybe Johnson would still be alive, the perps caught, the case solved.”
He returned her look with a cool one of his own. “I firmly believed that twelve years ago we completely and totally closed off that mine, every shaft and entrance. We even blocked some of the interior tunnels with steel. In retrospect, yes, I wish I’d mentioned it, but I didn’t, because it simply didn’t seem relevant.” He looked at her intently. “Frankly, we blew it.”
She continued staring at him, saying nothing.
“I see you’re not happy with my answer,” he said. “I don’t blame you, and I apologize. But I’m not sure searching the mine would have made much difference. They weren’t camped in the mine or living there.”
Cash continued looking at him. Christ, he was so sincere and convincing. But she wasn’t convinced. They were hiding something.
“You said something about steel doors?”
“Right. The Jackman Mine had tunnels that connected with the Fryingpan and Hesperus. When we built our labs, we blocked those tunnels with steel plates. They’re not doors, they’re solid steel.”
She let the uncomfortable silence build again.
“Agent Cash, I don’t blame you for being suspicious. I would be too. But we want to catch these bloody madmen as much as you. They killed one of my men. Why would we want to hinder the investigation?”
Why indeed? she thought.