Page 55 of Dirty Looks

“His phone wasn’t on him when Astrid shot him,” I said.

“And it was nowhere in Astrid’s home,” Daniels added. “We did find a few work shirts and pants that would have fit him in her closet, and there was an extra toothbrush in the bathroom. But no phone. Nothing in the guardhouse or his vehicle either.”

“Interesting,” Martinez said. “I guess someone didn’t want us to see what was on that phone.”

“The logical choice would be Astrid since she put three bullet holes in him,” I said. “But if he was the inside man whatever was on his phone would probably expose a lot of people. No more pings?”

“Nope,” Derby said. “Last known location was at the estate. Hasn’t moved. But I can do a run on recent calls and get a transcript of text messages.”

“Good,” Martinez said. “We need to pay another visit to Alex Wheeler in the morning. I got the report you sent on the statutory rape charges. It’s worth digging into. He was on the premises, and it sounds like things were hectic enough at the stables that he could’ve slipped away. Not to mention no one can verify his whereabouts during the time we think Evie was taken.”

I rubbed at the headache brewing at my temples. Food and caffeine were only going to take me so far. I was bone tired.

“I think I’ve got something on Emma Lidle,” Doug said. “One of Robert Lidle’s properties is listed under Emily Jane Lazarus. It’s a Prince Frederick address.”

Doug brought a driver’s license up on the screen and I recognized the girl from the Lidle family portrait. Only now her name was Emily Jane Lazarus.

“New name, new address,” I said. “I guess Robert greased the wheels. There’s no record of a name change. It’s as if she always existed.”

A falsified birth certificate appeared next to the license. “She’s got a whole history,” Doug said. “Parents are deceased. Died in a car crash when she was nine. There was a write-up in theBaltimore Sun,and she was raised by an aunt. Her age is listed as twenty-two instead of eighteen. She’s got a passport and bank account. She’s filed taxes. And her place of employment is Miss Mossy’s Landscape Design.”

“Why would she hide from her parents?” Jack asked. “Her siblings?”

“Maybe she didn’t feel like she had a choice,” I said. “But I think she’s the key.”

“Why don’t you two see if you can track her down in the morning,” Martinez said. “I’m going to drive out to Bowling Green and go over Alan Goble’s place. See if I can find anything interesting. And I want to talk to Alex Wheeler again.

He looked at Jack. “What do you want to do about Robert Lidle? After his phone call I can only assume I’m not high enough on the totem pole for him.”

“Jaye and I will pay him a visit after we see the granddaughter,” Jack said.

Martinez looked down at his watch and winced. “Time flies. I didn’t realize it was so late. Let’s get out of here and start again in the morning. There’s nothing more we can do tonight.”

“Oscar and I have a late night ahead of us,” Doug said. “It’s probably best you drive through somewhere for some sustenance to get us through the night.”

“I didn’t realize Oscar would be pulling an all-nighter,” I said. Oscar was currently curled up on the seat sawing logs, so I wasn’t too hopeful about his staying power.

“Are you kidding?” Doug said. “This dog is a crime-fighting machine. You can see it in his eyes.”

Oscar chose that moment to crack open an eyelid and then close it again. He seemed unimpressed by Doug’s endorsement.

“I think he wants tacos,” Doug said.

Jack sighed. His body was a temple. Living with me and Doug was a daily strain on his personal convictions, but I was proud of him for standing strong.

We left the taco place with two bags, and the car smelled good enough that Oscar couldn’t fake being asleep anymore.

And as we passed over the bridge that led to Heresy Road I was glad to see the water in the creek had receded, and that there were no cars stuck on the side of the road. It had become common practice over the last weeks.

I’d grown up on Heresy Road in an old Victorian that had looked out over the Potomac River. It had been full of trees and secrets and lies, but it had lent itself to the privacy my parents needed to live their lives as criminals.

Jack had built his home at the opposite end of Heresy Road. The view and the trees were similar, but there were no secrets and lies, and somewhere along the way coming home to Heresy Road had brought me peace instead of heartache.

Oscar ran to the front door and waited patiently for Jack to unlock it, his tail wagging. I wasn’t sure I wanted to go inside after the mud incident, but I stepped over the threshold and was pleasantly surprised to see things were in order.

“I told you I’d take care of it,” Doug said, reading the expression on my face. “Geez, no faith at all. Come on, Oscar. Let’s eat our tacos. They don’t appreciate guys like us around here.”

Doug and Oscar trotted into Jack’s office with the bags of tacos and Jack and I followed behind.

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