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Viper hesitated, then nodded just as someone knocked on the door.
A beat later, Leo walked in, followed by a woman Stone didn’t recognize. “Who do you think she has on the case?” Leo said.
Stone bit back a grin. He had an inkling of what had gone down. “Mantis talked to Charley and Charley called you guys, didn’t she?” he asked the cyber expert.
“Technically, I was already helping,” Leo said, taking a seat and pulling his laptop out. “But her call spurred us to get involved more officially.”
Juliana cleared her throat. “I figure you must be Leo, Joey’s boyfriend.” She switched her gaze to the petite woman withstrawberry-blond hair and striking blue-green eyes. “But who are you?”
She smiled, and Stone knew without a doubt that her almost fey look hid more than he could probably ever comprehend.
“You must be Juliana Morganstern. I’m Sabina Warwick. And we’re your cavalry.”
38
Juliana had never met Sabina Warwick before but knew her to be the wife of the oldest of William Warwick’s grandchildren, Chad. She’d heard about her, of course. The town loved to talk about the Warwicks—especially at the library.
Despite everything she’d heard, though, Sabina’s appearance surprised her. The Warwicks were not small people. The men were all tall and built, with dark hair and dark eyes—all eight of them looked so much alike it was almost comical. And Charley and Joey, the only girls in that generation, weren’t petite, either—they weren’t as curvy as she, but they were athletic and tall.
Sabina, on the other hand, looked like a sneeze might blow her over. Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration, but not much of one. With her delicate features, pale hair, and tiny build, she could be a fairy fresh from the woods.
Sabina dumped her bag on the table and pulled out a chair. Sherman promptly dropped his snout on her thighs, and she reached down and rubbed behind his ears. “Brian Gregor is smart for a small-time criminal, but he’s small-time,” Sabina said without preamble. “Like really small-time comparedto what HICC is used to tracking.” She paused and typed something into her computer.
“You must be Stone,” Sabina continued, darting a glance at him. Simon nodded. “And Monk and Viper?” she asked, directing the question to the two men, who also nodded. Sabina’s face broke into an easy smile, the kind that told Juliana she smiled often. “Glad to finally meet some of you. I know Noah, of course. But Will and Clare, my kids, keep us from getting out too much.” She paused, then wrinkled her nose. “Not because wecouldn’tgo out. There are plenty of people who’d watch them, so don’t think I’m blaming my kids for my lack of social life, but mostly we don’t go out because we like spending time with them.” Sabina paused, then gave an airy wave. “But I digress.”
“When I told Sabina I was looking into things for you, she figured it was her best chance to meet you without having to go to Rita C’s,” Leo said.
“Not to mention that I hate corrupt politicians,” Sabina said. “One killed my mom and, well, to say I hold a grudge would be an understatement. So, let’s get this party started,” she said, flexing her fingers and focusing on her computer.
Juliana turned to Simon, who looked as speechless as she at the tiny tornado who’d blown into their lives.
“To fill you all in while my computer finishes its security protocols,” Sabina said. “HICC works with the FBI all the time. It’s sanctioned and legal and blah blah blah. The long and short of it is, everything we do is official and can be used in building cases against Lowery, Polinsky, and Gregor. Oh, and Juliana?” She looked up but didn’t stop moving. “You asked Leo—or Stone asked him—to look into how your aunt and uncle might be involved?”
Juliana nodded. Sabina looked to Leo.
“Your uncle traded a key vote on a federal land use designation for a chunk of cash from Gregor,” Leo replied. “It had to do with post-Hurricane Katrina land grabs. Although, between us, your aunt probably orchestrated it all. The money went into her account.”
Juliana blinked. That seemed to be about the extent of her abilities at the moment.
“You have proof of that?” Parks asked, her tone laced with hope, not challenge.
“Of the transactions and timeline? Yes,” Sabina answered. “We sent it to you a few minutes before we arrived. We’re working on identifying when Gregor and Aunt Petunia might have met.”
“Petunia?” Simon said. “Her name is Margot.”
“Petunia is the horrible aunt from Harry Potter who took in her sister’s son and treated him terribly,” Juliana answered. She didn’t even want to consider whether Sabina was guessing about her childhood or knew things Juliana hoped she didn’t.
“Okay, so here’s where we are,” Sabina said, her gaze fixed on her screen. “The three men are still in San Francisco going about their business, but that shouldn’t surprise you. They’ve been hiring out their dirty work all along as they sit safe in their castles.”
“Evidence of the hires?” Parks asked.
“Yes, but I’m not done. Once I have everything, I’ll compile it and send to you.” She paused and looked at Simon. “Thanks for the video of the arsonist; it was a huge help. We ID’d him this morning, and that opened the door on tracing all the unusual payments into and out of Gregor, Lowery, and Polinsky’s accounts.”
“I sent that to the fire chief,” Simon said, more confused than anything.
“And Mitch, my husband’s cousin, is the local arson investigator. HICC has agreements with several federal agencies as well as local law enforcement. He sent it to us,” Sabina replied.
“The arsonist’s name is Leandro Brown,” Leo said. “You probably already figured out he’s the same guy who came to Juliana’s place the morning after she overheard the conversation at the museum. That confirmation came from your neighbor’s doorbell camera. And no,” Leo said, turning to Parks, “don’t ask any questions about that.”
