Nick met her eyes and nodded. “Very important. In fact, it’s a matter of life and death.”

“Very well then,” the senator said, stepping aside to allow Nick to enter. “We’ll talk in my study—but if you don’t mind, leave that ugly cur outside. What a pathetic-looking creature.”

“I’d like to keep her with me,” Nick replied. “She’s a service dog.”

The senator grimaced. “A service dog? What service could that mongrel possibly provide?”

“She’s sort of a seeing-eye dog. She picks up things that I have trouble spotting.”

They moved to the senator’s office and took seats—the senator in his usual captain’s chair, and Nick and Victoria across from him. The dog sat quietly on Nick’s left.

“Now what’s this all about?” the senator demanded.

Nick held up the scrapbook and looked at Victoria. “Do you know what this is, Mrs. Braden?”

“I’m not sure I do. May I see it?”

Nick handed it across.

Victoria set the scrapbook in her lap and slowly turned the pages without changing expression. She recognized the documents immediately. It was the same scrapbook her mother had shown her at the Endor library—but how did Polchak get it?

When she finished she looked up at Nick and said pleasantly, “Yes, I’m familiar with its contents. Why do you ask?”

“Is your husband familiar with its contents too?”

She felt a quick twist in her gut but managed to conceal it perfectly. “It’s just a bit of family trivia. I’m not sure John would be interested.”

“It’s a little more than ‘trivia,’ Mrs. Braden.”

The senator turned to his wife. “What have you got there, darling?”

Victoria closed the scrapbook and smiled at her husband. “Just a few old family mementos that were presented to me during my visit to Endor. Nothing of interest, John—I’ll tell you about it later if you like.”

“A man was murdered tonight,” Nick said. “Danny Flanagan—the FBI agent in charge of the investigation at the Patriot Center.”

Braden sat up straighter. “Murdered? How? Where?”

“At the Endor Regional Library, just a couple of hours ago.”

Victoria felt a wave of nausea.

“How do you know this?” Braden asked.

“I was there. I found the killer preparing to dispose of Danny’s body.”

“Is the killer in custody?”

“Yes. We’ll have a full confession soon.”

“Has a motive been established for this terrible deed?”

“A very clear one.”

Victoria’s face felt hot and she wondered if it showed. Polchak’s answers weren’t answers at all—they were assaults, specifically designed to prod her for a response. She kept her eyes fixed on her husband, but she could feel Polchak staring at her from the side.

The senator hesitated for an instant before asking his next question: “Is this murder connected in any way to the investigation at the Patriot Center?”