June 28
ONCE THEY ARRIVED AT the Embassy Suites, Jim braked the car and looked over at Ellen. The day had been pure hell and he needed her. He placed his hand on her shoulder and gave it a small squeeze. “You did a good job today. Those weren’t easy interviews.” Touching her helped him. He saw tenderness shining in her eyes, and it made him feel better about their rotten day.
Ellen’s heart galloped. Jim’s eyes were soft and dusky and full of promise. His fingers lingered and then began caressing her shoulder. Ellen absorbed his caress as if she was starving. She wanted him to stay here with her. She wanted to turn and face Jim—and then what? Anxiety riffled through her. No. She had to get away from him in order to think clearly. Of course, he wasn’t trying to confuse her, but he didn’t realize how vulnerable she was, especially with this case they were investigating. With shaking hands, she gathered up her notes and briefcase. “I’m glad I could help.”
Reluctantly, Cochrane lifted his hand away. His heart sank when he noted the anxious look in her eyes. Perhaps he’d overstepped his bounds with her. But somehow, Ellen’s presence opened him up, and he was acting in a way he never had before. Clearing his throat by way of apology, he rasped, “You did a hell of a good job of interviewing Tommy. I’m impressed.”
“Thanks, Jim. That means a lot to me.”
He didn’t want her to leave just yet. “Tell me about yourself? We’ve got a few minutes.” Seeing the surprise in her eyes, he added, “Were you a wild redhead growing up?”
Sitting back, Ellen laughed. “My parents were in law enforcement, so I was a good little kid, contrary to what you might think about red hair.” She drowned in his hungry gaze and her spirits lifted. “I lived in Minneapolis, Minnesota. I come from German and Irish stock, and according to my mother, who’s still a police officer, I’m stubborn as all get-out.”
“Stubbornness can be good,” Jim said. “Especially on an investigation where you can’t give up. You have to finish it.” He smiled over at her. “How did you become an analyst?”
“I love people. I have forever been curious as to why they act and react the way they do. Even as a teenager, I was fascinated with people and how they dealt with life.”
“Did you have patients back in Washington?”
Shaking her head, Ellen said wryly, “You aren’t going to believe this, Jim, but it’s too painful for me to be a therapist. That’s why I went to work on the mind-set of bank robbers, to create a profile on them for the FBI. I guess I’m incapable of staying at arm’s length with people’s feelings. Mom calls me empathetic—I feel another person’s pain. I’m not apologizing for it either. I’d rather be in touch with my emotions than suppress them. And that’s what I’d have to do in order to be a psychotherapist with patients.”
“You used all your skills today. I saw how you worked with Tommy.”
“My education does come in handy every once in a while.” Ellen flashed him a hopeful smile. “I’m glad you see me as a positive now, and not a negative.”
“You weren’t the problem,” he said apologetically. “It was me, Ellen. Having a partner isn’t so bad, after all.”
“I think you were so used to working by yourself that when I crashed into your life out of the blue, it threw you off balance.” She laughed. Her anxiety over his unexpected caress melted into raw need. Ellen wanted to sit here and just talk with him—about so many things. To explore Jim on all levels. When he touched her shoulder once more, she sighed in response.
“You always seem to know when I need that,” she murmured. His hand was butterfly light, and she ached for more contact.
The desire to lean over and kiss her nearly overwhelmed Cochrane. Shocked by his need, he cleared his throat. “Get going, Ellen. I know you’re trying to line up an apartment. You’ve got plenty on your plate even after work. I’m going to drop over to see my daughter. I’ll be home after that, trying to catch up on our other cases. Let me know if you need anything.”
Ellen felt relief, then sharp disappointment. She had seen the look in Cochrane’s eyes: he’d wanted to kiss her. Even more shocking, she’d wanted him, too. “Okay. I hope you enjoy your time with Merry. You’re right, I’ve got a list of apartments to call about and then check out.” She raised her eyebrows. “Then I’m going to unexpectedly drop in for a visit with Ann Hawkins.” She lifted her hand. “See you later, Jim.”
As she scooted out of the car, Ellen felt deeply for him. Even mentioning his little girl’s name made his eyes lighten with love. As she closed the door and turned toward the hotel, she found herself wanting him to look at her the same way.
ANN HAWKINS’S FACE mirrored surprise and then shock when she opened the door to Ellen.
“Hi, Lieutenant Hawkins. May I come in? I’ve got a few more questions that need to be answered.” Ellen saw the redness around the woman’s eyes and knew that she had been crying.
“Well, I guess.” Ann hesitated. “Come on in.”
“I know this is an awkward time,” Ellen said as she entered the foyer of the apartment. “I appreciate your letting me in.”
After shutting the door, Ann ushered her into a small, cozy living room filled with Japanese black lacquered bamboo furniture. “I thought the investigation was over,” she said, gesturing for Ellen to sit on the beige-and-green couch.
Ellen eased onto the sofa. “We’re still collecting evidence.” She opened her briefcase and took out her notepad and tape recorder. “You went with Susan to the Ares Conference, didn’t you?”
Ann became more guarded. “Yes. Why?”
“Well, aside from dealing with some of the squadron boys, the Ares Conference is another logical place to investigate.” Ellen wouldn’t mention the photos or the file they’d gotten from Susan’s condo. At least, not yet.
Ann stood, folded her arms across her chest and paced the length of the room. “I don’t know anything,” she said in a clipped tone.
Ellen sensed the woman’s mounting nervousness and decided to pull back a little in her questioning. “Can you go over the last phone conversation you had with Susan before she died?”
Whirling around, Ann snapped, “I don’t want to talk about anything, Agent Tanner. It’s too much. I—I’m too upset!”
Ellen set aside her notes and shut off the tape recorder. She stood, her gaze locked with Ann Hawkins’s tear-filled eyes. “Something happened, didn’t it, Ann?” Ellen softened her voice. “Susan was a very unique woman. You were her best friend, her confidante. What aren’t you telling us? You know her father is blaming Susan and calling her a coward for taking her own life. I think you can help us. Please?”
Tears streamed down Ann’s taut face as she pulled her arms tighter around herself. “I just can’t,” she cried. “If I do, I’m the one who will suffer.”
“How’s that?” Ellen whispered.
“My career! I lied to you in that interview. I panicked because I was afraid of getting in trouble.”
“Ann, if you love Susan, and I know you do, I think you’ll take the high ground on this investigation. Would Susan have lied to us about you to protect herself?”
Shaken, Ann looked away and her shoulders drooped.
The tension was palpable between the two women. Ann seemed to struggle against a barrage of emotions. Ellen waited, allowing the silence and pressure to build.
“Would you turn off that thing?” Ann gestured angrily toward the tape recorder.
“I already have.” Ellen showed her the machine.
“Thank you,” she whispered, her anger seeming to dissolve. “Susan called me the night she died.” Wiping tears away with trembling fingers, she continued, “Only, I wasn’t home. Oh, God, I wish I’d been here for her. I’m sure I could have stopped her.” Ann covered her face with her hands and sobbed.
Ellen put her arm around the woman’s waist and led her to the couch. “Come on, sit down,” she coaxed. Once she located a box of tissues nearby, she handed several to her.
“Th-thanks.” Blotting her red eyes, Ann whispered in a choked tone, “Susan’s message was on my phone recorder when I got home at 0300.” Blowing her nose, she added, “When I heard her voice, I went into shock.” She squeezed her eyes shut. “I’m so ashamed of myself—of what I did.”
Ellen’s fingers tightened on the woman’s shoulder. “What did you do?”
“I was a real coward.” Ann’s lower lip trembled. “I was afraid for my career, so I drove to the nearby convenience store and stopped at a pay phone. I didn’t want the call to be traced to my apartment, in case something happened.”
“I see.”
Raising her head, Ann said in a raw voice, “I made that 911 call to the La Mesa Police Department. Then I drove over to Susan’s. The police were already there. I didn’t stay long because I knew the worst had happened. I don’t know how I got home, I was crying so hard. I was so worried, so ashamed of myself, my cowardice.”
“You did what you felt was right,” Ellen said consolingly.
“It was too late, too late.”
“Do you still have that tape?” Ellen asked, holding her breath in anticipation.
Ann dabbed at her eyes. “Yes, I have the tape. I—I should have told you before.” She gazed miserably at Ellen. “I’m not the friend Susan thought I was. But it really doesn’t matter, does it? I lied to an investigator and I’ll pay the price. I didn’t help Susan when she needed me the most.”
THE DOORBELL KEPT RINGING. With notes and legal papers strewn across his belly, Cochrane had fallen asleep on his couch. The doorbell jerked him awake, and when he sat up, the notes fluttered all over the polished white pine deck. He rubbed his face and looked at his watch: 2330. Who the hell was at his door at this time of night? Disgruntled, he got to his feet.
“Hold your horses! I’m coming, I’m coming,” he yelled down the passageway. Pushing strands of hair off his forehead, he jerked the door open. Ellen Tanner stood there, her face flushed, her eyes bright with anticipation.
“Do you know what time it is?” he asked thickly, though he was glad to see her.
“Yes,” she said excitedly, “I do.” She brushed past Cochrane. “You’ve got to hear this, Jim!” She dug into her briefcase and produced a small cassette tape. “I went over to Ann Hawkins’s place and we hit pay dirt.”
Frowning, Jim took the tape and rubbed his eyes. “What are you rattling on about?” Her cheeks were tinged with pink and her eyes were dancing. She was the last person he’d expected to see, but the one he most wanted to. He’d been feeling damn lonely tonight. Ellen filled his heart and made him hope again.
“Susan called Ann the night she died. She left a message on this tape. You’ve got to hear it, Jim! Right now! It’s going to help us,” Ellen said breathlessly.
He turned and led her to his bedroom. The place was a mess, the bed unmade. He went to his dresser, where he pulled out a cassette tape player. “Let’s mosey to the kitchen. This had better be good, Ellen. I was asleep,” he growled.
“I think you’ll forgive me after you hear the tape.” In her eyes he looked like a disheveled, vulnerable little boy. Jim’s eyes were puffy, his movements slow, his speech even more thickly accented than normal. Her heart opened widely, and all she wanted to do was throw her arms around him and hold him. What was it about Jim Cochrane?
“Don’t count on it.” They sat down at the kitchen table, the only family heirloom Jim had begged from his parents. It was an old hand-hewn, maple table that he’d eaten all his meals on while growing up. Still groggy, he had trouble placing the tape into the recorder. Ellen shifted from foot to foot, obviously unable to contain her excitement.
Clicking the machine on, Jim turned up the volume.
“Ann? This is Susan. By the time you get this message, it will be all over. You’re my best friend. I’m sorry, so sorry, but I can’t go on like this. Jesus, I don’t want to die, but I don’t see any other way out of this. S-something horrible happened at Ares, you were right. Something was wrong with me, but I couldn’t tell you. Not even you. I can’t let it be found out. P-please forgive me. We’ve been through so much together. Goodbye. Tell my brothers…tell them I love them. I’m such a coward at heart. A failure. I hope you can forgive me for what I’ve done. I hope all women can forgive me. Goodbye, dear friend…”
Jim’s fatigue vanished. He sat there, stunned by the anguished last words of Susan Kane. Barely aware that Ellen had sat down at his elbow, he rewound the tape and played it again. This time, he took his pad and pencil and wrote down some of the phrases. After the second time, he shut off the machine and looked at Ellen. “Ann Hawkins had this tape all along?”
“Yes, and she was afraid to tell us about it.”
He sat there for a long minute, pondering the notes he’d written. “This is a nice piece of work, Ellen.”
She smiled. “Even if I roused you out of a dead sleep?”
“You did the right thing.” He tapped the pencil against the pad. “‘Something horrible happened at Ares. I can’t let it be found out.’” He glanced at Ellen. “Mighty interesting statements, aren’t they?”
Heaving a sigh of relief, Ellen said, “Yes. I was so excited by this information that I had a hard time driving over here. I must have gotten lost five times before I found your place.”
Chuckling, Cochrane got up and poured himself a glass of water and drank. When he put the glass on the counter, he said, “Well, all the evidence was pointing to a suicide. What we were missing was a suicide note.” He tapped the cassette tape. “This clears up that missing link. Now I reckon we should aim our investigation at what Susan was hiding regarding the Ares Conference. And that makes the file we found at her condo very valuable.”
“Something terrible must have happened. What else could make Susan take her own life?”
“Good question,” Jim said as he sat back down. He fingered the tape recorder. “She sounded desperate, felt as if she was a failure.”
“I know.”
“I found out off-the-record from my JAG friend Hillyer that a hell of a lot went on at Ares. Hillyer spends a lot of time with the Top Guns over at the O Club at Giddings. He’s a good resource for me.” Jim shook his head. “But I can’t believe a leg shaving, butt pinching or being groped in a passageway would make Susan Kane want to die. That doesn’t make a pile of sense.”
“Jim, don’t jump to that conclusion. One person’s depth of shame might not be someone else’s. Susan was walking a tightrope, especially here at the station. Even Ann said that Susan’s most important duty was to serve as a perfect role model for other women. What meant more to Susan than anything—her image?”
Jim heaved a sigh. “There’s a list of possibilities. Could Susan have gotten drunk? Slept with another aviator? Was the aviator a male or female? And was she being pressured by that partner? The scenarios and motives are endless. One thing I’ve learned in my years as an investigator is not to guess. We need facts.” Cochrane rubbed his unshaved jaw and continued to think out loud. “No, it might not be so obvious. Maybe something else…”
Eagerly, Ellen stood up and brought her briefcase into the kitchen. She set it on the table and opened it. “When I left Hawkins’s place, I dug through Susan’s Ares file, and look what else I found.” She pulled out another packet of photos. “These are the other pictures Susan was referring to in her letter to Tommy. The ones she’d been collecting and hadn’t sent him yet. Cameras supposedly weren’t allowed at the conference. It’s obvious that Susan had collected the pictures from many sources. And they are incriminating, from what I can see. But you’d be a better judge.”
Jim scowled. Silence settled in the kitchen as he studied each photo carefully. His mouth tightened and he glanced up at Ellen. “Yeah, you’re right on all accounts. These are damning photos.”
“If my memory serves, didn’t the Tailhook scandal happen because aviators and others came forward with photos to identify the guilty parties?” She pulled out a chair and sat down next to him.
“Yes, ma’am. There’s a central computer back in the Pentagon at BUPERS, the Bureau of Naval Personnel, that has pictures of every person in the military. They scanned the photos, sent them to BUPERS. When they got a match, they had a name to put with a face. Then these individuals were questioned as to what they saw and so on.”
“Why couldn’t we use that computer system now?” Ellen asked.
Jim rubbed his eyes, then spread out the photos. “I’m sure we’d be able to, and it’s a good idea. Since Tailhook, there’s been a genuine effort to make the Navy gender neutral. Judging by some of these photos, sexism isn’t dead, after all.”
Turning several over, Ellen said, “I already checked the backs of these photos, and there are no names on any of them. No source or date, either. I haven’t really studied the pictures too closely. I was hoping Susan might be in one of them.” Her heart picked up in beat as they sat side by side. Jim was so close, so agonizingly close. Perhaps she was too tired, or maybe too excited about her coup, but all Ellen wanted to do was turn and throw her arms around his shoulders, squeeze the hell out of him and celebrate their victory. How long had it been that she wanted to share anything, good or bad, with a man?
“You don’t know my luck, Ellen. That would be too good to be true,” Cochrane drawled as he sifted through the photos. “That’d be as unlikely as a fifth ace showing up in a poker game.”
“I’d say having these photos is a fifth ace that just came our way. We can examine the ones that Tommy gave us, too.” Ellen slowly sorted through them. “You’re right. From the looks of some of these shots, not everyone was on their best behavior, were they?”
“Wait! That’s another tie!” Cochrane said, straightening. A lopsided grin spread across his features. “The good-conduct medal was missing from Susan’s uniform! I’ll be damned! Something did happen at Ares! Something that made her take off that medal before she died. In her own way, she was clueing us in. I was just too darn stupid to note that it was missing.”
Ellen’s eyes widened considerably. She placed her hands on her hips and stretched her back as she straightened. “Okay, but what happened? Who was involved?”
“We probably won’t find out until we begin interviewing the jocks over at Top Gun. Most all of them were at that conference, according to my info.” Cochrane looked with disgust at some of the photos. “Wednesday is the earliest we’ll be able to interview them. I’ll make a call to BUPERS and get us hooked into the main computer for identification purposes tomorrow morning. We’ll scan these photos and send them by e-mail to the Pentagon. As soon as we get names, we can compile a list for interviewing.”
“What if some of the people are on a carrier? Or at an overseas station?”
“No problem.” Cochrane shrugged. “We make a phone call via satellite hookup to their ship or station. We’ve got an Iridium sat phone at JAG.”
“That sounds like a plan, Jim.” Ellen saw the glint in his eyes, like a dog on a scent. There was no question he loved this detective work, and she did, too. Even more, she liked being in his company. Feeling happy, yet unsettled, Ellen realized that she was now ready to move on. She could keep Mark in her heart but she had to focus on her present and future. And with one heated look, Jim awakened her dormant sexuality and longing. She wanted a special man in her life. Her emotions felt out of control just then, so she tucked them away for later, in the quiet of her hotel room.
“I’ll start making calls tomorrow, Ellen. In the meantime, you can leave the two packets with me. I want to look at our information a little more closely.” Jim gathered the photos and pushed them to the side of the table.
“No problem. I’ll see you at 0800 tomorrow?” A part of her didn’t want to leave. She was alone here with Jim. Her heart clamored for closeness with him. What should she do? Jim would not initiate any serious intimacy. He was an officer and a gentleman. Yet he seemed to feel the same attraction. Had she read the intent in his eyes correctly? Ellen gulped, feeling unsure of herself.
“Zero eight hundred is fine.” Then he added, with a note both of teasing and sarcasm, “I didn’t think you civilians started before 0900.”
“Just try and keep me away from the office, Mr. Cochrane.” Ellen gave him a dazzling smile when she saw the burning look in his eyes—toward her.
“Well, I reckon I just discovered my first-ever dedicated government employee. A civilian at that. My tax dollars are finally being well spent.”
“Jim, you can be a real pain in the butt. You know that?” Ellen returned his silly grin.
“You hurt my feelings,” he drawled. Putting his hand dramatically over his heart, he said, “Me? A pain in the posterior?”
“I’m not going to feel sorry for you, if that’s what you’re trying to weasel out of me,” Ellen said. “And no apologies either for my opinion.”
He brightened considerably. “My ma always said I was meaner than a copperhead snake throwed into a hot skillet.”
“I think that picture fits you perfectly on your bad days.”
He sighed and tried to get serious. “I probably had that coming.”
“Wow, I’m too excited to go to sleep,” Ellen stated. “Getting the tape and photos from Ann Hawkins was a real high.”
Cochrane scowled. The words damn near flew out of his mouth: Stay here with me. Spend the night. Shocked by his thoughts, by his yearning, he muttered, “You still need rest, Ellen. Go home and get some.” He stared at the packets. “We’ll start going over these pieces of evidence later. Tomorrow is soon enough.”
Ellen nodded. “Good night.” Before she could head toward the door, she saw his hand reach out. It settled on her shoulder and brought her to a halt. Her eyes widened. Something new burned in his stormy gray gaze as he studied her.
Automatically, her lips parted. His fingers tightened slightly on her shoulder. He wanted to kiss her! Panic tore through Ellen. The grieving widow in her shied away, but the woman emerging from darkness wanted what he was offering. Torn, she saw him move closer, until his body was scant inches from hers.
“You have the darnedest effect on me, Ellen Tanner.”
Her breathing ragged, she saw a teasing light in his eyes, along with desire. Her skin tingled beneath his masculine touch, and her heart seemed like a freight train chugging so loudly he had to hear it. Ellen lifted her lashes and met his burning look.
“Jim, I’m scared.”
The words were so softly spoken Ellen could barely hear them herself. Yet they had an impact on Jim. Instantly, his fingers slid from her shoulder, and he took a step back. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his Levi’s, a contrite, little-boy expression on his face. At that moment, he looked completely vulnerable.
“I mean…” Ellen stepped forward and lifted her hand. Following her instincts, she slid her palm up to his strong, uncompromising jaw. She felt the beard stubble beneath her fingertips, that dark shadow that made him seem so dangerous and mesmerizing. To hell with it. She couldn’t live her life always being scared. Standing up on her tiptoes, she placed her lips softly against his other cheek. “Good night, Jim. I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”
June 30, Sunday
AFTER DROPPING OFF MERRY at Sunday school, Cochrane arrived at work fifteen minutes early. Jodi would pick her up afterward.
He stifled a yawn as he trudged up the stairs to his office. Ellen and he had worked until midnight the night before. They had gotten everything done, including the Pentagon hookup to the computer. Normally, no one worked the weekends, but the pressure to solve Susan Kane’s case made it an exception.
He shortened his stride when he noticed his office door was already open. When he spotted Ellen working hard at her desk, he immediately relaxed. His heart raced as he remembered her soft hand sliding across his jaw, that tender kiss on his cheek. Hell, he couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Rubbing his recently shaved chin, he slowed his pace, giddy teenage feelings roiling in his chest. He’d wanted to kiss Ellen that night. Looking back, he wondered if he wasn’t tetched in the head or something. After swearing never to fall for another woman, Jim found himself in a helluva dilemma. Ellen’s wild red hair, that soft mass of curls framing her face, those guileless green eyes, had all conspired against him that night. He’d seen the uncertainty mixed with yearning in her eyes. Well, he’d felt similarly. It was a stalemate of sorts, and he’d backed off. They’d worked like the good team they were becoming, both very careful not to touch one another.
Why had Ellen kissed his cheek? Was it out of platonic affection or something more? Or was she simply celebrating finding Susan’s tape? Women did crazy things, and he couldn’t begin to understand their behavior.
As he stepped through the open door, he realized she was wearing the same clothes as yesterday. When she looked up, he saw telltale dark circles under her eyes.
“I thought you were going to head for home right after I left,” he muttered, placing his briefcase beside the desk. The sudden thought entered his mind that she could have come to his apartment, to his bed. She was like the mythical mermaids along the coast of Scandinavia, singing her siren song and leading him to uncharted territory. All Ellen had to do was look at him, and Cochrane felt himself melting like ice cream on a blistering hot summer day. His lower body felt especially scalded and needy. Did she realize how much she affected him?
Pushing her curly hair away from her face, Ellen sat up and rubbed her neck. “I was going to go home, but I was too excited about sending the photos to the Pentagon. I wanted to see if we’d get any identification.” She yawned. “It was worth it, Jim. Come and look at what the computer found.”
He walked over to her desk as Ellen spread several items in front of him. With all the paper cups strewn about the desk, he figured she’d fought to stay awake all night by drinking a hell of a lot of machine coffee.
“You must have a cast-iron gut, Ellen.”
“Hmm? Oh, the coffee. Yes, well, it keeps me going.” She smiled warmly over her shoulder and crooked her finger. “This is going to blow your mind.”
Cochrane leaned across her shoulder and said, “Fire away, you’re on a roll.” His nostrils flared, detecting the a slight spicy fragrance of her perfume. How easy it would be to slide his hands around her small shoulders, turn her around and…No, he couldn’t go there. Ellen Tanner was his work partner, and he’d sworn off women. That jerked him back to reality as nothing else could.
“Okay, here goes. Last night I fed into the Pentagon computer the names of Susan’s Top Gun colleagues who attended the Ares Conference. That info was run against the scanned photos. People from Top Gun came up as hits with these photos Susan had in her Ares file. Equally noteworthy is that only three—Hodges, Michelson and Bassett—are missing from Tommy’s photo packet.” She hesitated, letting her comment sink in, and then continued. “That could signal the possibility that they’re either involved in something with Susan or not at all. For me, it was an interesting anomaly. I’ve collated the two categories.” She pointed to a stack of faxes and photos clipped together. “All three pilots were in photos of what I’m terming ‘problem areas’ at certain rowdy-looking defense contractor suites. Furthermore, four different photos show them at the Leopard Radar Corporation suite, where some of the worst action seemed to have taken place.”
Ellen straightened and rubbed the muscles across her lower back. “I had to ask myself why Susan didn’t send any photos of these three to Tommy. You want one more surprise?”
“I reckon I could handle it,” Cochrane said, rummaging through the neat stacks of her handwritten reports and various photos.
Ellen raised an eyebrow. “How about the fact that Brad Kane was at the Ares seminar?”
Stunned, Jim stopped flipping through the reports and stared at her. “What?”
“Yup.” She grinned mischievously. “I checked the official attendance list and he’s on it.”
“I’ll be damned,” Cochrane rasped. “That good ol’ boy told us a big windy. He must have seen Susan there.” Putting the report aside, Jim said, “You’ve come up with a lot. Nice work, Ellen.” In the worst way, he wanted to trail his fingers along her flushed cheek, but checked himself. His voice deepened with concern. “You’re plumb tuckered out. My pa, who’s a fiddle player, would say you look as worn out as one of his fiddle strings.”
“Gosh,” Ellen said, wrinkling her nose and smiling, “that sounds pretty tired to me.”
“Why don’t you go back to the hotel and take the rest of the day off?” What he wanted to say was: Hey, let’s go to the beach and make a day of it. We can sit and get to know each other…. But kept the thought to himself.
“That’s an idea whose time has come.” Ellen walked over to the corner and lifted her knapsack off a wall hook. Turning, she pointed to another note on Cochrane’s desk. “NCIS just e-mailed us that they sent a team over and searched Susan’s office at Top Gun on Tuesday.”
“Damn! I was hoping we could get over to her office before they tracked all over everything. It’s not likely we’ll find anything there once they get done.”
“According to their e-mail, they’ve packed everything up. The office was sealed on the day she died, which made it off-limits to everyone until it could fully be checked out. I’d really like to go over there with you if you’re going to search. Maybe I can learn a thing or two more about investigating?”
Jim nodded. “Let’s try to squeeze it in first thing Monday. I’m going to schedule Lieutenant Hawkins in for another interview on July 1, and clean up this 911 call thread that’s hanging loose. You should go hit the rack, Ellen.”
She grinned tiredly. “What are you going to do?”
“After work today I’m going to meet Jodi and Merry and have dinner at the zoo. My little girl loves animals.”
Smiling softly, Ellen said, “Isn’t that interesting? We’re both going to be doing something that Susan Kane loved to do. After taking a nap, I’m going to the beach to unwind, and you’re taking your family to the zoo.”
He gave her a dark look, a grin lurking at the corners of his mouth. “Come on, Ellen. You gonna start that psychobabble synchronicity stuff with me again?”
Laughing, she shook her head. “Not with you, Mr. Cochrane. I’ll see you Monday morning. Have a great evening with your family.”
Jim sat down after Ellen left. It took minutes before his heart would settle. He found himself wishing that he could introduce Merry to Ellen. Somehow, he knew his little girl would get along famously with her. Again, it was not to be, so he tucked that tender desire deep into his heart. He rummaged through her findings and shook his head in disbelief. So Brad Kane had been at Ares. What did he know? Something, that was for sure.
Muttering under his breath, Cochrane got busy reading the information spreadsheet Ellen had put together, relieved and happy they’d finally been given a break in the investigation.
“We’re going to find out what happened to you, Susan,” he said, looking critically at each photo. “One way or another. And by default, you just might have given us the biggest clue we need to break your case.”