Serial Volume Three Read Online Free PDF Page B

received the report,” Reynolds stated without bothering to look up from his card game. “We received a description of a car. The witness believed it was a black Aston Martin, but I have my doubts. The possibility that a person who owns that type of car is involved in this is unlikely. The damn car costs more than my house. He could easily rent a high-class escort and do anything he wants with her. Per our profile, the man we are looking for won’t have money.”
    My feet stopped in place, my head wrenching to the side to eye Agent Reynolds. “Why is this the first time I’m hearing about this, Reynolds?”
    He shrugged and I made a mental note to pull him aside later on to chastise him about his lackadaisical response to my question.
    “It’s like I said, Blake, I don’t think it’s our guy. The woman who told me about the car mentioned that she didn’t see it stop. My gut tells me it was a rich asshole who’d somehow gotten lost on the wrong side of town on his way into the city. It happens all the time. Most times, they don’t even bother stopping for red lights once they realize they could get jacked if they slow their vehicle down past ten miles per hour.”
    “How many Aston Martins are owned by Portland residents? I would assume if the car is as expensive as you say, not many people who have it registered under their name.”
    “I haven’t looked.” His eyes never left those damn cards and I walked quietly to stand behind him. “How much do you two have riding on this hand?”
    Agent Cartwright looked up and answered, “Five hundred big ones.”
    I smiled. “Reynolds is holding an Ace, a pair of threes and a jack and queen.”
    “I fold!” Throwing down the cards, Reynolds turned in his seat to glare at me. “Dammit. I was bluffing. I could have had that round.”
    “Yes. You could have. But now you don’t. That leaves you free to walk out of this room and go check with Portland Police about the identities of any persons who own a black Aston Martin in the Portland area.”
    “That gives us nothing, Donovan. What if the guy was just passing through the area?”
    I grinned in warning. “After you determine who owns the car, you’re going to walk the streets again until you find someone who can give you more information about it. Find someone, Reynolds. I doubt that nobody saw a waitress getting shoved into a car that costs more than your house. Do you understand me, or do I need to explain it in more basic terms?”
    He was riding my last nerve. “What terms are those?”
    “The kind that cause you to lose your job if you don’t locate what I’m after.”
    Point made, I walked away from him, fully expecting that he would pound cement until he found the person who could tie one of our victims to that car. Only when I heard the door to the room open and slam shut again, did I bother to look back up.
    Emily glared at me, finally satisfied with the polished state of her fingernails. “Was that really necessary, Blake? We’re all feeling the pressure right now. You didn’t have to weigh down Reynolds’ shoulders with our collective failure.”
    “His refusal to investigate a lead does not constitute a failure on my part, Agent Chase.” Her behavior was becoming more aggressive and combative in the past few days – her anger at my lack of emotion was a simmering rejection inside her.
    “Cartwright and Ward. You’re excused from the room. Go make yourselves useful by assisting Reynolds while Agent Chase and I discuss her objection to my direction of this team.”
    The two men strode out of the room, their shoulders no longer wilted by the tension between Agent Chase and me. The door slammed shut and the room was rendered silent, the fury of a woman scorned glaring up at me from where she sat propped in her chair.
    “You have something to say, Agent Blake?”
    It was becoming apparent to me why I couldn’t remain interested in Emily. Her mind was too strong, her backbone contained a bit