[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
scratches and dirt on the copier s glass and optical system. And this can be traced? You bet your sweet bippy, Swift said enthusiastically. The odds against two copiers having exactly the same pattern are astronomical. Our victim didn t have a copy machine in his apartment, Mike explained, so I sent plainclothes officers to all the copy shops in town, checking for the same pattern. And it paid off. He glanced at the message. Kinko s. Memorial and 51st. Shall we? Mike was not surprised to learn that Sergeant Tomlinson was the man who had tracked down America s Most Wanted Photocopier, or that he had pored through three months of credit card receipts before Mike arrived. Tomlinson had always been the king of go-the-extra-mile. That was how he had ended up as Mike s partner, until Kate Baxter came along. Actually, Tomlinson said, I ve been through them twice. Working from the approximate date and cost. But nothing even comes close. If he just made a single copy, he wouldn t use a credit card, Mike reasoned. Probably just small change. Which was too damn bad. Because a credit card receipt would ve given him a name. And, more than likely, an address. He addressed the clerk, a pimply teenager named Sid. Any record of cash purchases? The kid shook his head, stiff-necked. Mike couldn t decide if he was intimidated because this was his first encounter with law enforcement or because it wasn t. People come in all the time to make one or two copies. There s no way to trace them. And you re not likely to recognize any of them, either, Mike thought, but he was going to give it a try, just in case. He pulled out a digitally reconstructed photo of the victim. Ever seen this guy before? It didn t matter what the kid said, because Mike could tell the moment his eyes lit on the photo that he had. If nothing else, the boy had the sense not to lie. Yeah. I recognize him. He s been in the store before? He hesitated only a moment before answering, but it was a moment that told Mike everything. A few times. But that s not how you know him. Page 88 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html Sid glanced over his shoulder, as if hoping some photocopy emergency might extract him from the interrogation. I ve just . . . seen him around. You ve bought drugs from him, haven t you? Agent Swift asked, out of the blue. What? God, no. I don t do drugs. What about Ecstacy? You probably don t consider that doing drugs. Right? Well . . . Come clean, kid. It s the smart thing to do. The kid looked at her, but didn t answer, which spoke volumes. Mike was impressed. Chalk up one for the FBI. It s all right, son, Mike said. We re not looking to make a drug bust. We need information about this man. The boy remained silent. Of course, if you don t help us, I ll have to consider what I might do to persuade you. Like maybe a search of your work locker. Your car. Your apartment. His name s Manny, Sid said. Manny Nowosky. And I ve only seen him a few times. You know anything about him? Not much. He was holed up in a rental house not far from where I live. Used to run into him at the pool parlor. I haven t seen him lately. And there s a reason for that. There must ve been something else, Mike said. I wouldn t know what it was. Did you hear any rumors? Even hints? Maybe about something big going down. A big score. A big bust. Manny coming into a big wad of dough. Anything. Sid shook his head adamantly. No, nothing. I never had that much contact. We just . . . did business a few times. And that was all? He was a carpenter, I remember. Took his stuff up to the flea market sometimes to sell. And? Sometimes we . . . talked about cars. Cars? Just cars? Race cars. Kind of a hobby for us. We were both into drag racing. Swift blinked. Drag racing? Like zoom-zoom?American Graffiti ? Page 89 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html Right. We could rattle on for hours, talking about mag wheels and stick shifts and stuff. He seemed a little old for that sort of thing. But as I learned, he raced pretty regularly. On the street? When the cops weren t looking? No, man. On designated drag strips. It s safe. Legal. When he talked about his favorite strip, he called it what was it? the happiest place on earth. And you re sure he wasn t talking about Disneyland? Positive. Drag racing. I didn t know there were any strips around Tulsa. Tulsa? The kid was incredulous. He wasn t from Tulsa. He was just passing through. Taking care of some business. His strip was near Evanston. Evanston? Swift s eyes widened. As in the suburb of Chicago? That s the one. Swift gave Mike a long look. Well, guess what, boys and girls? I think you re going to be paying a visit to my neck of the woods. Mike nodded. Sounds that way. We can t get a flight till tomorrow morning, though. He gave Sid his card. If you think of anything else you know about this guy anything at all give me a call. Okay. Sure. They prepared to leave. And kid? Yes, sir? The federal penitentiary in McAlester is a really ugly place. Take my word for it. You don t want to go. No, sir. So keep your nose clean. Tomlinson? Yes, Major? Nice work. He slapped his old friend and protégé on the shoulder. Wanna grab a sandwich? You can fill me in on what you and Karen and that girl of yours have been up to. And what s going down with the uniforms. Especially the gossip. I love the gossip . . . 16 Christina! Loving bellowed. You re needed in the conference room. There s like thirty of em in there! I ll be just a minute. She met him in the hallway. I ve been reading your reports. You ve covered a heck of a lot of ground. The burly man tipped an imaginary hat. I aim to please, ma am. Page 90 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html I really appreciate your tracking down all of Johnny Christensen s friends and frat brothers. Yeah. Too bad none of em knows nothin. He shook his head. I gotta tell you, Christina. No one saw Tony in the vacant lot, and no one saw him moved to the frat house. I know. But it was late, and there was no reason for anyone to be there. Keep on it, okay? Natch. You might get with Jones and see what he s got on this ANGER group. Maybe a little infiltration would turn up something useful. I ll check into it. Good. Get a copy of Paula s report on Tony and the man who shot Brett Mathers. It s very thorough. Good starting place. Will do. Christina started for the conference room. Wanna help me in here? He grinned sheepishly. You don t want my help, Chris. I d just hire the cutest one. Right. She pushed the door open and entered the conference room which was packed solid with young law students. And Jones. Have you talked to Ben about this yet? he asked. No. He doesn t want to be involved. He might want to be involved in acquiring new staff! We don t have the money to hire an intern. Find it. Where? It s not as if you re getting paid big bucks. I don t know. There must be someplace. I could take it out of your salary. She paused. Someplace else. She laid her clipboard on the table and addressed the sea of eager young faces. Good morning, and thank you for coming. As I m sure you all know, we ve been handed a major case with an extremely tight deadline and we need help. If you re looking to make a fortune overnight or to get another line on your résumé, leave now. But if you want to knuckle down and do some seriously hard work and maybe get a crash course in how criminal cases are tried line up over here. Be prepared to tell me what your goals are why you wanted to be a lawyer in the first place. We ll start [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ] |