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Sara parked and sat in her car for a moment, thinking about how to move forward.
She wanted to talk to the security guards and see if they would be able to tell her exactly when Matt left his office, as well as when he left the mine property. Matt told his wife he’d be home around 5:00, surely in time to make their 6:00 dinner reservations, yet his car accident had not happened until 10:45 at night.
What had held him up?
Could one of the HiTech Minerals employees have paid him a visit?
The Peak Mine office buildings and grounds likely had security cameras. The guard building looked modern.
Everyone has security cameras these days, thought Sara, as she pulled down the visor and glanced at her reflection in the mirror.
I’ll just ask if I can see it. I can tell them that I’m writing an article. I won’t have to say anything about my suspicions of murder.
She reached into her purse and pulled out a tube of red lipstick. After applying a few quick swipes, just to freshen up her appearance, she examined her reflection once more.
Almost there, she thought. Just a touch up on my eyes.
She applied the mascara quickly, and then fluttered her lashes to judge the effects.
Why am I fussing so much over my looks? she wondered, as she screwed the mascara brush back into the bottle. Is it because I might meet Amir?
She glanced over at his car again, and then surveyed her surroundings. As she looked at the gate house again, she saw the door open.
A man stepped out of it.
She knew, right away, that it was Amir.
The sight of him took her breath away.
The cliche phrase “tall, dark, and handsome” described Amir to a T. His muscular, lean frame was clad in black slacks and a pale blue button up shirt, rolled up to his elbows. A gold Rolex glistened from his wrist, matching a signet ring on his pinky and the gold rims of his aviator glasses. His dark hair was stylishly cut and a faint hint of a beard covered his jawline.
Sara turned quickly in her seat, so that she was facing away from the gate house. She flicked her eyes up to her rear-view mirror, where she could see Amir’s reflection clearly.
He stepped down the three steps from the gate house onto the parking lot, and began walking swiftly towards his BMW. Sara felt her heartbeat speed up as she reached out for the door handle and pushed the car door open.
As she stepped out of her car, she caught Amir’s attention.
He glanced her way, and gave a friendly nod, but didn’t slow down. He had almost reached his driver door now.
“Excuse me... Hi!” Sara said, holding a hand up to wave.
This slowed him down. “Hi,” he said. “Do I know you?”
“No,” Sara replied, stepping around the back of Amir’s car, so that she could face him. Now only a few feet from him, she saw that his features were as well-proportioned as the rest of him.
He’s as handsome as a prince in a fairy tale, she thought. She extended her hand. “We haven’t met yet, in person,” she said. “But I believe that I may have spoken to you yesterday on the phone. I’m Sara White.”
He smiled. “Ah! Sara White. Yes—from the newspaper. Amir Malick. Nice to meet you.” His handshake was warm and strong. Sara felt a pleasant shiver run up her spine.
“What brings you up here to the mine?” he asked. His voice was even richer, now that she was hearing it in person. A subtle English accent hovered around the edge of each syllable, and his tone was deep and smooth.
“Research,” Sara said. “How did yesterday go for you? Were the lawyers able to agree on anything?”
Amir nodded. “You are looking at the proud new owner of Peak Mine,” he said, as his full lips stretched into a happy smile. He slipped his hands into his pockets.
“Congratulations,” Sara replied. She tried to sound bright, but Amir’s news, along with his relaxed manner, only made her feel more tense. Seven other mine owners had died, simply because they owned mines that HiTech wanted.
Was Amir going to be next?
“Thank you,” Amir said. “And if you want a second interview, I’d be more than happy to give it. Though I’m sure you’re busy now. What kind of research are you hoping to do today?”
Sara hesitated. “Amir, there’s something you should know.” She paused, trying to think about how to put her suspicions into words.
At the sound of Sara’s serious tone, Amir removed his sunglasses. His eyes, a piercing blue, drilled into Sara, taking her breath away. “What’s that?” he asked.
“I may have come across something, in my research yesterday,” Sara began. Dear Lord, I hope I don’t sound like a paranoid fool, she thought. She forced herself to continue. “You mentioned that HiTech has a monopoly on rare earth element mines. I looked into it, and found that they’ve bought up quite a few in recent years. In fact, I found six acquisitions in the last two years.”
“Yes, I’m aware of that,” Amir said.
“Are you aware that all of the owners died in car accidents, at night?” Sara asked.
Amir frowned. “Really? No. That can’t be right.”
“It is. I was very careful to get my information from reliable sources. I do this for a living, Amir.”
“Seven accidental deaths. What are the chances?” Amir asked.
“Extremely low,” Sara said.
“What is your theory?” Amir asked.
“I think HiTech might be behind the accidents,” Sara said.
“You think the mine owners were killed? By the same person?”
“Or persons,” Sara said. “There could be a group of them. I don’t know.”
“You think this person, or persons, works for HiTech?” Amir asked.
Sara nodded. “It makes sense. If they gain a monopoly over this industry, they’ll benefit greatly. They thought that if they got Matt out of the way, they could buy up the mine. They weren’t expecting you to outbid them. It’s enough motive for murder.”
Amir’s intense eyes didn’t leave Sara’s as he asked, “Have you gone to the police with this theory?”
Sara shook her head. “Not yet,” she said. “I need to get some proof first. I’m sure each and every one of those deaths was investigated, individually. Washton PD treated Matt’s death as unusual circumstances, and conducted an autopsy and an examination of his vehicle. I’m sure other departments did the same thing. If I bring up the fact that Matt and the others may have been killed, it’s the same thing as calling the PD incompetent at their jobs. Before I do that, I’d better have something to show them.”
“Something... like what?”
“I don’t know, exactly,” Sara said honestly. “I’m looking for any evidence of foul play. Matt’s wife said that he was due to be home around five. His car crash didn’t happen ‘til almost eleven. What was he doing between five and eleven? That’s the first thing I want to know.”
“I can help you figure that out,” Amir said.
“You can?”
“Sure. I own this mine now. These security guards work for me. Let’s go see what kind of camera footage they might have.”
He turned, heading for the gatehouse. Sara fell into step with him. It felt surprisingly natural to walk at his side.
“I was thinking about security cameras too,” Sara said. “I don’t know if we’ll be able to see his office, but that would be a good place to start. Hopefully we can catch him walking out to his car, getting in, and driving away. I’m wondering what time that occurred.”
Amir looked down at her. She could feel his eyes on her as he said, “You’re good at this, Sara.”
Her name sounded so nice on his lips. She wanted him to say it again.
She felt her cheeks flush. “I wouldn’t go that far,” she said. “I’m just a reporter.”
“You’re inquisitive. I like that,” he offered, as he pulled the door open for her. She stepped inside. Was he flirting with her?
She could still feel his eyes on her.
There was definite tension between them. It’s not just me, she thought. He feels it too—this strange connection between us. I’ve only just met him, yet it feels like I’ve known him for so much longer. It feels so good to stand at his side.
A desk filled half of the small room, and behind it sat a woman in her forties, wearing round, wire rim spectacles. She had short cropped hair, and severe features, which were bathed in the pale blue glow of the computer screen in front of her. She looked up, away from the screen, and stood at the sight of Amir.
“Mr. Malick, sir,” she said. “You’re back.”
Then she glanced past Amir to Sara. “Ma’am,” she said, with a curt nod. “What can I do for you?”
Amir stepped up to the desk and placed his hand on it. “Miss White would like access to the security footage from the evening that Matt Ferris died,” he explained.
“And... you’d like me to give it to her?” the guard asked.
“Yes, please.” Amir said. “And actually, I’d like to see it too. We’d like to locate him before five pm, and watch him until he leaves the grounds, whatever time that may be.”
The guard looked a little put out at this request. Her shoulders sagged and she glanced at her clock. “It’ll take some time to find it,” she said, making sure that Amir knew it was extra work she was assigning her.
Amir remained silent.
She continued. “Which is no problem, of course, sir. You do know that the cops already checked on the footage, right?”
Sara nodded. “Yes, we’re aware of that,” she said. “They may have missed something important, though.” She added this more for Amir’s benefit than for the guard’s.
“I’m sure they saw it all,” the guard said. “I even watched the tapes myself. He leaves at quarter to five.”
“You’re sure?” Sara repeated.
“One hundred percent,” the guard said. “You can see for yourself, if you really want to. He gets into his car and drives off,”.
“Yes, I’d like to see it, if you don’t mind” Sara asked.
“You got it, lady.” The guard pushed her rolling chair away from the desk and stood. She hitched up her blue cargo pants, which were fastened with a belt, but weighed down by a heavy radio. She walked to the other end of the desk, where three more monitors were located. She stooped over the desk and began navigating the screens by moving a computer mouse in her right hand.
“Here we go,” she said after a minute. “Here’s the afternoon of the 28th. Four o’clock, you wanted?” She looked up at Amir.
Amir, in turn, looked at Sara, giving her the chance to answer for him.
“Four thirty,” Sara said. “That’s when he called his wife to say he’d be leaving soon. I want to see what he did after that phone call.”
“Can we come around to your side of the desk?” Amir asked.
“You’re the boss,” the guard responded.
Sara and Amir walked towards an opening between the desk and the wall. As they reached the opening, Amir placed a hand on the small of Sara’s back, guiding her ahead of him into the opening wide enough for only one. Sara felt her cheeks flush at the sensation of warmth from his palm.
Quarters were cramped on the other side of the desk. It was clearly a space designed for one body, not three. The view of the computer monitors was excellent, and soon Sara’s senses were tuned into the action on the screen rather than the delicious smell of Amir’s cologne.
She recognized Matt from the articles she’d already read about his car accident as well as the photograph at the Ferris’s house. He was an average build, balding, and wore a suit, minus the coat, with a striped tie.
“Where was this footage taken?” she asked the guard.
“This camera is up in one corner of his office,” the guard said. “There are other views, but like I said, we’ve been through all of this with the cops and this view is the best.”
Amir pointed to the screen. “There—he’s taking out his phone.”
“This must be when he called his wife,” Sara said, glancing at the time on the footage. 4:31, the blinking digital numbers announced.
Matt seemed upbeat as he spoke on the phone. The conversation lasted only a minute, and then he placed his cell back on his desk and began typing on his computer.
“He does this for about ten more minutes,” the guard said. “Then he puts his sport coat on, and leaves. Want me to speed it up?”
“That would be great,” Sara said. She didn’t take her eyes from the screen as Matt moved in jerky, fast-forward motions, closing up folders on his desk, putting a few papers into a brown briefcase, and then standing and grabbing his blazer from the back of his chair. He put it on, and then headed for the office door.
“Then he leaves and walks to the parking garage. Want me to skip to the garage?” The guard asked.
“Hang on,” Sara said. She watched Matt turn and go back to a small table in his office. She recognized the white pastry box sitting on the table. She watched Matt untie the bow, open the box, and pull out a pastry.
“What’s this?” Sara mused aloud.
“A snack for the road,” The guard said. She zoomed in on the treat. Sara could see the flaky layers of pastry and pale, golden chunks of fruit. It looked like an apple pastry.
“Looks good, too,” Amir said. “I can see why he grabbed it.”
The three watched as Matt polished off the delicious looking treat. Then he walked out of his office, leaving the door half open behind him.
Once he left the office, he was out of view of the camera. All that was visible was the door, left half open, his empty desk, and the pastry box.
“Can we watch him go down the hallway?” Sara asked.
“Sure... let me pull that up,” The guard said.
With a few clicks, she had it. Matt walked briskly down the hallway. The view was from behind him. Then he exited the building. “From here he goes straight to the parking garage,” The guard said.
“Let’s see him walk there,” Sara said. She didn’t want to miss anything.
The walk, however, was uneventful. When he reached his car, Matt got inside. He put the car in reverse, and then drove towards the security camera, and then off of the screen.
“Can you back up the video?” Sara asked. Something about Matt’s outfit had caught her eye. He looked different, for some reason. She wanted to take a closer look.
“What do you see?” Amir asked.
The guard stopped the video, backed up several minutes.
As the three of them watched Matt’s car reverse for a second time, Sara answered Amir. “I’m not sure, but it looked like he might have been wearing something different. It might be his tie. It looked lighter.”
“A lighter tie?” the guard asked, puzzled.
“There!” Sara said. “Pause it, please.”
The guard did as asked, and then zoomed in on Matt. It was a clear shot of him, in his car. Sara pointed to the screen. “Polka dots,” she said. “I see polka dots. Do you?” she turned to Amir.
Amir nodded, and grinned. “Not the most stylish of choices, I’ll admit. Why are you interested in it?”
“Because,” Sara said. “He was in stripes, before.”
“He was!” the guard said. “You’re right!”
Sara nodded. “I know. I helped my father pick out his ties for ages, before he met his new wife. He was a single guy, with atrocious fashion sense. I had to help him out.”
“I can only imagine your pattern choices as a teenage girl. Let me guess: you went with smiley faces? Hearts? Little flamingos?” Amir joked.
He is flirting with me, Sara thought happily. She smiled back. “No—I like to think I chose well. Solid colors. Dark, usually. Maroon, navy, occasionally a pastel blue.”
“Very nice,” Amir said, with a nod of approval.
They were standing very close, and Sara felt giddy as she noticed the subtle heat between them.
“Ah hem.” The guard cleared her throat.
Apparently, Sara wasn’t the only one noting the tension between she and Amir. The guard seemed to sense it too, and it was making her uncomfortable. “If you two don’t mind explaining... why is it important that Matt changed his tie?”
“He didn’t change his tie,” Sara said. “Why would he wear one tie all day at the office, and then just before going home randomly decide to change ties?”
“Beats me,” the guard said. “But he did. We can see the new tie right here.” She pointed to the computer screen.
Sara shook her head. “We’re not seeing a new tie. We’re seeing old footage. This video has been doctored.”
“Why?” Amir asked.
“I don’t know,” Sara said. “He was wearing the striped tie right up ‘til he was about to leave his office. He called his wife, ate an apple pastry, and then it looked like he left his office for the day. We only saw the back of him as he walked down the hallway. What if he never left his office? Or what if, the minute he stepped out, someone guided him back in?”
“Why wouldn’t he leave his office?” the guard asked.
That stumped Sara. “I really don’t know,” she said honestly. “All I know is that at some point between the time when he was in his office, and when he reached his car, the real video was cut and replaced with an old video. It’s all digital, I’m assuming?”
The guard nodded. “Sure is, ma’am. We upgraded to new software last year. That was around the time that we added more cameras onto the grounds. We don’t have security guards on duty overnight, so it’s up to the cameras to catch any funny business.”
“Why are there no guards here at night?” Sara asked.
“Because the point of having us guards around is that we can monitor the delivery trucks that come in to take loads from the processing plant. At night, the plant is locked down. When the plant is locked down, we know nothing of value is going to leave the grounds. The only thing of real value on these grounds lies inside that plant.”
Except for human life, thought Sara. The security system clearly wasn’t designed to prevent murder.
“Makes sense to me,” Amir said.
Sara wasn’t satisfied. “So you pay close attention to trucks,” she said. “But what about foot traffic and cars? Do they have free access?”
“Everyone stops in here at the gate house and signs in on a log,” the guard said.
“Can I see it?” Sara asked.
The guard walked a few paces to the side, and reached for something sitting on the desk. It was a binder. She slid it over towards Sara.
Sara peered at the names, wondering if Byron, Davis, or Lucy Smith would have been bold enough to sign in. She didn’t see their names.
She burrowed inside her purse, pulled out her phone, and pulled up her camera app. “Mind if I snap a picture of this?” she asked Amir.
“Not at all,” he said.
Sara flipped to the page that said “May 28th" on the top, and took several pictures of the list of a dozen names.
When she was done snapping photos she turned to the guard and said, “Do the names Byron, Davis, or Lucy Smith sound familiar to you?”
The guard shook her head.
“What’s next?” Amir asked, as Sara returned her phone to her purse.
“I’d like to go in and look at his office,” Sara said. “Matt’s wife, Gabby, said that she already cleaned it out. But maybe we’ll see something that she missed.”
The guard glanced between Sara and Amir. “Ma’am, you’ll need clearance to go in and poke around. I’m supposed to keep people off of the grounds until we open back up on Monday. Sir, is this alright with you?”
Amir nodded. “Good with me,” he said. “In fact, I’d like to go look around myself. Can I tag along, Sara?”
I’d like nothing better, Sara thought happily. Aloud she said, “That would be fine.”