I think thats the overall verdict around the station, too, the other officer said.

Rachel completely understood how it could be seen this way but it just didnt sit right with her. All the same, Id like to keep looking. As soon as his lawyer arrives, Branson is welcome to question him all he likes. But we cant just sit around and assume we have our guy only to end up with another dead body on our hands.

She got two nods of respect from the officers and a knowing grin from Jack. He turned to the officers and said, You guys good with that?

Yeah, sounds good to me, the tech said.

Rachel and Jack made their way out of the office, bypassing a now frazzled-looking receptionist who would likely be doing little more than answering phone calls from confused and concerned clients for the next few days.

Any new ideas where to look? Jack asked as they made their way back into the hallway.

Nothing new, she said. And with her mind once again turning to the phone records that had, so far, provided plenty of fruit, she said: I was thinking there might still be something to find in the old ideas.

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

When they pick up the phone, they imagine this must be the feeling an alcoholic gets when touching the first bottle of the night. There was a thrill of anticipation and the absolute certainty of how the night was going to go. Picking up the new burner phone was like picking up that first bottle. Punching in the numbers was popping the top off the bottle. And when the phone rang on the other end, that was the first delicious sip.

The clock on the wall read 5:47. The timing had to be right. It had taken some time, some trial and error, to figure it out exactly, but they were confident now. And theyd done this enough in the past to know the right words to say, how to sway a mood or a mind that seemed already to be set on one course.

The phone rang twice and was answered by a man with a thin, uncertain voice. Hello? he asked with suspicion and annoyance, which was typical of someone answering their phone to an unknown number in this age of telemarketer assaults.

They responded quickly, wanting them to hear a real, authentic voice. A comforting voice, a voice that cared.

Hello. Im looking for Paul Vance.

Yeah, this is him.

Paul, please forgive the abrupt nature of this call, but I was told you were in a particularly bad place. I was told you may need some help.

There was a pause on the other end and then, as theyd expected, an almost angry response. But it was an anger rooted in hope. Yeah, and who the hell told you that?