Page 82 of Philly
“Now that you’ve pointed it out, I’m a little embarrassed we missed it,” Leo said. Sabina nodded. “But what does this have to do with Annette Bain?” he asked, handing the paper back to her.
“The Mickey Mouse Club,” Chad said. “Annette Funicello.” Callie nodded. Sabina and Leo drew back in surprise. “What on earth made you make that leap?” Chad asked.
“I identified both the Nolans and Quayle based on two other drawings,” she answered. “Once I realized what those marks were, I looked at every victim to see if there was any connection to ‘mouse’ or ‘rat.’”
Sabina studied the paper again, then handed it back. “That’s our next step, then,” she said. “Tomorrow, we look into Annette Bain.”
“Callie,” Chad said. She turned. “We will do our best, but connecting Nolan to Liza’s death might be…”
“Close to impossible,” she finished, a wave of sadness washing through her. “It’s the first time I’ve said that aloud, but I can assure you it’s not the first time I’ve thought it.” Her three new colleagues nodded in sympathy. “In a perfect world, we’ll demonstrate that not only did Nolan fund the bombing but that heknewLiza would be there that night. We already have a good case for the former, but—” She hesitated. “I hear you on the latter.”
“Is looking into Annette Bain the best use of our time right now?” Leo asked. She met his gaze, encouraging him to continue. “Not to sound brutal, but if we think Nolan and a yet-to-be-identified FBI traitor conspired to have Liza there that night, Annette was little more than a means to an end. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s worth looking into her, but I’m not sure that’s the connection we should prioritize.”
Callie considered his observation, then, after several seconds, nodded. “You’re right. Anything we learn about Annette would supplement a case. We need to focus on the hard stuff first, the possibility of Nolan in league with someone at the Bureau. Someone who could have tipped him off about Liza’s interest in his dealings.”
“Someone who would have started the chain reaction that led to Liza going to Paris and being in that bar that night,” Sabina said, nodding slowly.
Leo exhaled. “Okay, that’s our plan of attack for tomorrow. I’ll find out who might have been at the restaurant at the same time as Aiden Nolan’s once-a-month lunches and compare it to the list of directors you drew up.”
“A big task,” Callie said, not wanting to think too hard about how Leo would tap into the tech resources he’d need to find the information.
“Not hard, but a little tedious,” he said with a smile.
“I’ll owe you a drink or two when this is all done,” she replied with her own smile.
He shook his head. “You won’t owe any of us anything. This is what we do. What we live for.”
“Although, to be fair, every now and then, an easy confession wouldn’t go amiss,” Chad said, drawing laughs from the group.
“But then we’d all be so bored,” Sabina said, bumping her husband with her hip.
He barked a laugh. “Babe, if you think I’m ever going to be bored around you, you need to engage in some self-reflection.”
Sabina grinned. “On that note, why don’t we call it a day and come back fresh tomorrow?Aftershowing our significant others how not-boring we are.”
Leo rolled his eyes and shook his head. Callie smiled, still a little uncomfortable with the blurred lines between personal and professional. She’d adjust eventually. Not today, but eventually.
And eventually, she realized, she might even like it.
44
“How’s Joe?” Callie asked as she hung her coat on the coat rack in the mudroom and toed her boots off.
Lost in watching her go through the mundane actions, realizing this was his life now, he processed the words but took a moment to respond. “Rian called a few hours ago. They upgraded him to stable. Recovery will be long and hard, but he’s going to make it.”
She stepped into the room and smiled. A freight train running through the kitchen couldn’t have stopped him from crossing over and pulling her into his arms.
“Hi,” he said, smiling down at her.
Her hands came up and rested on his chest. “Hi, yourself. Did you have a good day? Get caught up?”
“I did. Nothing too exciting, which was a nice change from the past few days.”
She laughed softly. “Admit it, you liked the ATV-ing.”
“If you’re there to wash me off after, you could convince me to go again,” he said before dipping his head and kissing her. A kiss that didn’t lead to where he wanted it to because her phone rang.
Leaning back, she reached into her pocket and pulled the device out. Glancing at the number, her eyes widened before darting up to his. “I need to get this.”
