Deception (19 page)

Carter hiked through the San Francisco terminal, making plans for how to find Marcus, and then Patti. He’d take a taxi to the local FBI office first. He didn’t care how irritated the people in that office became, they would locate Marcus for him, or pay the consequences.

He pulled out his cell phone. Hopefully, the reception would be better now that he was on the ground. He hit the redial button hoping Patti would pick up this time. No such luck. It went straight to voice mail. Her phone must be turned off.

“Carter.” A voice yelled.

He turned.

Marcus marched towards him.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Carter wasted no time getting to him. Obviously, his call to the FBI office produced results. Marcus must’ve checked the airlines to find his flight number and meet up with him.

“Thank God, you’re here, we’ve got big problems. Patti is in San Francisco somewhere. She flew out here last night.”

“What?” Marcus yelled. “She’s going to get herself killed.”

“I’ve been calling her cell, but no answer. It must be turned off. She found Jamie’s address.”

“Got any luggage?”

Carter shook his head.

“Let’s go. I’ll fill you in while we drive. I’m right out front. One of the few FBI privileges.”

Carter and Marcus walked through the sliding glass door with a dozen other people.

A car sat at the curb. A blue Honda Civic that had seen better days. He glanced over at Marcus with an arched eyebrow. “I guess the FBI doesn’t pay well.”

“Shut up. I borrowed it from an agent. They’re supposed to be getting me a rental car, but they keep having an excuse why they haven’t done it. Budget cuts, you know. We’ve had no luck finding Jamie. Her apartment and office have been checked. A few friends have been contacted, but not many. We didn’t want to alert the wrong people. We’ve been looking for her companion, but can’t seem to find him, either.”

“What’s his name?”

Marcus looked both ways and then turned right on red. “His name is Joseph Hamed. We haven’t been able to find a paper trail linking him to any known terrorist activity, but according to what he tells Jamie the link is there. He won’t give her any specific details and we can’t find any evidence to arrest or convict the man.”

“How long has Jamie been working on this case?”

“Not quite a year. She knew Hamed socially and when she reestablished contact with him, she overheard something that made her suspicious. We started investigating, and she got more involved than she should have.” Marcus took his gaze off the road and looked at Carter. “Hamed is Sabrina’s father.”

What a mess for Sabrina. Her mother was most likely dead, and her father was a suspected terrorist. And her aunt was missing.

“We’ve got to find Patti, or that little girl ends up alone.”

“Not true. My wife and I will gladly make her part of our family.”

That eased his mind for Sabrina, but not for Patti.

“Jamie had no idea he was a terrorist. She looked him up to tell him about Sabrina. That’s when she came to me. I should have told her to ignore it and disappear from the man’s life. Thank goodness, she never told him about Sabrina.”

“So Hamed is in charge of the cell?”

“A man known by the name of Rahmed is. We haven’t got a clue who Rahmed really is. That was Jamie’s assignment. To identify the name this man operates under.”

“Apparently, she got too close to finding the truth.”

“That’s the way it looks.”

Marcus pulled up in front of an apartment building. He hadn’t shut off the motor before a short, balding man rushed over to them.

“Sorry sir, you can’t park in front of the building. This is a no parking zone.”

Ignoring the request, they both stepped out of the car.

The doorman pointed at the car and raised his voice a few notches. “Didn’t you hear me? This is a no parking zone, sir. You can’t park here. You have to move this car.” The word car was said with particular distaste. “Immediately.”

Marcus flashed his FBI badge at the man, and then slipped it back in his pocket. The man didn’t seem impressed.

“Can I see your badge a bit longer, officer?” He sniffed as though the word smelled bad.

“Sure. No problem,” responded Marcus with an easy smile. He pulled the badge back out andgave it to the doorman. The doorman examined it for several long moments before he handed it to Marcus.

“Well, I guess if anyone can park here, you can,” the doorman said with a wry grin. He stuck his hand out to Marcus and then to Carter. “I wasn’t trying to hassle you, just doing my job. No hard feelings.”

“No problem.”

“Can I help you with something, sir?” the doorman asked.

Carter made a motion of deference to Marcus. After all, it was the FBI’s investigation.

Marcus gazed back at the doorman. “I’m Special Agent Marcus Hanks. “

“I’m Robert McDonald.”

Carter bit his tongue as they exchanged pleasantries.

“Well, Robert, I need to know the last time you saw Jamie Jakowski.”

A puzzled expression crossed Robert’s face. “Why do you want to know?”

“If you don’t mind I’ll ask the questions,” Marcus’s tone was calm, but firm.

Robert’s bald head shone in the brightness of the afternoon. “I can’t give out information about our tenants. Is she in some sort of trouble?”

Marcus stepped closer to the man. “Why do you ask?”

Robert shrugged and took several steps away from Marcus. “It’s the second time the FBI has been here about Ms. Jakowski. They asked me to call when she got home, but she said it was all straightened out. She’s a lovely person and I wouldn’t want her to be in any trouble.”

“That’s what we’re trying to find out, Robert. We want to know if she’s in any trouble, as well,” Carter broke in before Marcus could say more. “Again, when was the last time you saw Ms. Jakowski?”

Robert glanced up to the sky, then back at Marcus. “I guess I would have to say today.”

“You don’t sound very positive.” Before the doorman could respond, Marcus asked another question. “And when did she get home from her business trip?”

“I can’t...”

“Yes, Robert, you can tell me, and I suggest you do, or I can take you down to the FBI offices and we can continue this conversation there.” His demeanor had changed from an easygoing good guy to cop, in the blink of an eye.

Robert stammered his response. “L...l...ast night.”

“Has she been acting differently?”

Carter didn’t miss the surprise on the doorman’s face. He watched the internal struggle play out on Robert’s face and lost his patience. He took a menacing step towards the doorman. “Look, we aren’t playing games. We need your help.”

Fear danced across Robert’s face as he stepped back. “I’m not trying to play games, really. It’s just I’m not sure. Something strange did happen and well...I’m not sure.”

“What happened?” Marcus and Carter both asked at the same time.

“Ms. Jakowski came home last night, or at least, I thought it was her, but she’s been acting strangely. Not quite herself.” He squirmed.

“How so?” Carter asked.

“It’s sorta crazy. First she told me she lost her key along with her luggage.”

“So? That makes sense,” Carter said.

“We don’t use keys. We have the magnetic cards, sir. Then Carrie, the girl who delivers groceries, came over last night like she always does when Jamie returns from a trip. When she came back down, she said Jamie was acting pretty weird.”

“OK, maybe she was tired,” Marcus suggested.

“Nah, Carrie came by today and showed me the grocery receipt Jamie signed. She signed the receipt with the wrong first name, and then when Carrie –”

“Was the name Patti Jakowski?” Carter’s voice increased several decibels.

“Yes, that was it.” He stopped talking for a moment, and then narrowed his eyes at the men. “And then she asked the strangest question. She was with her friend, Mr. Hamed, and she asked Carrie for his first name. Carrie told me she thought Ms. Jakowski looked scared.”

Carter stood on the sidewalk seething. “And it didn’t occur to you that maybe you should call the police, or the FBI?”

“Well...I...uh.” Robert wiped at the sweat trickling down his face. “Guess I made a mistake.”

Carter glared at the man.

“You said the other FBI agent left instructions to call if Ms. Jakowski came back home.”

Robert blinked rapidly and his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. He didn’t say anything for a few moments. “Ms. Jakowski said everything had been taken care of and so there was no reason to call.”

“Do you know where she went?” Carter was anxious.

Robert looked at Carter, much preferring his question to Marcus’s. “Mmmm. She said something about some kind of charity function. She was all dressed up. She looked great.”

“What charity function?” Marcus asked.

“I don’t rememb...wait a minute.” He looked at the two men blankly. “But I can’t remember. I wasn’t really listening. I was trying to figure out why she signed someone else’s name.”

“Think, Robert. This woman is in big trouble. We’ve got to find her before she gets herself killed.” Carter wanted to shake the man to make him remember.

Robert’s eyes bugged and the blood drained from his face. “I can’t remember. I’m sorry. If I could remember, I’d...hey, wait a minute, Carrie was there, too. Maybe she can remember. Let me go call her.”

Carter let out a breath.

Finally, something going their way.

In less than five minutes, they were on their way to the Children's Fund benefit.

30

She’d blown it.

Patti stared at the drink she’d taken from Joseph without a thought. Her heart raced and sweat pooled in her palms. If she’d fooled Joseph at all, he certainly knew something was off-kilter now.

It hadn’t occurred to her Jamie wouldn’t drink, but it made sense.

Jamie needed to keep her mind focused when she was around these people. Or maybe her sister had developed an alcohol problem.

Either way, it didn’t matter.

What mattered was Patti had made a major blunder. It was imperative to get off the yacht.

Joseph had been scary, but compared to his brother, he was a pussycat. Looking into Raymond’s black eyes, she’d felt evil in the man.

Suzanne was still mindlessly chattering away.

As Patti thought back to the whispered conference she’d seen take place between Joseph and Dennis, she couldn’t help but wonder if Suzanne was part of the plot.

Patti stood and Suzanne jumped up as well.

“I’m going to the restroom,” Patti explained.

“I’ll go with you.”

“Not necessary, Suzanne,” Patti said firmly. Then she smiled. “Really, I can handle being alone that long.”

Suzanne looked worried. “No, I have to go with you.”

“What do you mean you have to go with me?”

Suzanne flushed and stammered an explanation. “Be…because Dennis told me to stay with you.”

Patti’s heart almost jumped out of her chest. “Why?”

“I don’t know. He told me to stay with you and not to let you leave.”

“That’s just ridiculous, Suzanne. I’m quite capable of going to the bathroom, or anywhere else I choose, without you watching me. Don’t worry so much. Go have fun. This is a party, isn’t it?”

Suzanne looked around as though searching for someone who could help her decide what to do. “You promise you’re coming right back?”

Without answering, Patti waved as she threaded her way through the throng.

Taking a final glance at Suzanne, Patti could see she was already hunting for Joseph or Dennis.

The woman might be Jamie’s friend, but she wasn’t willing to risk Dennis’s wrath.

The engines of the yacht started up. The floor vibrated beneath her feet.

Panic seized Patti.

If the yacht left before she could get off, she’d be in big trouble. If only Carter was here.

She broke into a slow jog, not bothering to say ‘excuse me’ to people as she bumped into them.

It was getting hard to breathe. The heat from the people pressing in threatened to strangle her.

Laughing and having a good time. No idea of the danger.

The music blared, but she could still hear her heart throbbing in spite of the noise.

It seemed like forever, but she slipped through a door and the warm salty breeze caressed her face. Taking a deep breath of the ocean air, tension oozed out.

Almost there
.
All I have to do is find the exit and I’ll be safe.

There were less people out on the deck than in the ballroom and it was quieter. She could breathe again.

She played back the layout of the yacht and turned to the right. If she was correct, she’d be off the ship in a minute.

As she turned the corner, Raymond Hammond stood in front of her talking with a group of men. His back was turned.

Patti’s feet froze. If Raymond saw her, he wouldn’t let her leave. She turned her back to Raymond and headed back the other way.

“Jamie, hold on a minute,” Raymond called to her.

She turned with a smile and gave a small wave. “I’m looking for Joseph.” She called back over her shoulder as she kept walking. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

Without looking, she hiked off in the other direction as fast as her legs would let her.

Within moments, Raymond was beside her and grabbed hold of her elbow. He smirked. His eyes were cold and hard.

Her pulse raced.

“No reason to do that, Jamie.” Patti didn’t like the way he said Jamie’s name. “I know exactly where Joseph is. After all, he is my brother, as you well know. I’ll be glad to take you to him.”

“You don’t have to do that. I’m sure I can find him on my own, and you probably have important business to take care of.” She twisted away, but his hand remained on her arm. She tried again to slip from his grasp, but failed.

He pressed his thumb and forefinger into her arm until it became painful.

Tears sprang to her eyes.

“It’s no bother at all. I was going that way, anyway.”

Patti abandoned all sense of politeness. “Let go of me, Raymond.” Her voice was rising. “Or I’ll start screaming and ruin all your little plans.”