“That’s a tough offer to resist, but I have a meeting in about an hour, and every time I eat crabs, I end up making a mess.”
“Well, I guess we can’t take you anywhere, can we?” The waiter chuckled.
“I’m afraid you’re right. Lola can save me some of those steamers for later, though.” Beck smiled.
“We can do that, and right now we can send out a big plate of crabs and spaghetti for you and your friend.”
“That sounds wonderful. I’m in,” Mia told him.
“Chief?”
“Sounds good to me.”
“You want a cold glass of beer with that?” Jim asked.
“Now, James, you know I’m working. What would people say if they saw the chief of police sitting here drinking in the middle of the day?”
“You have that big plate of spaghetti in front of you, they’ll say, Jimmy, bring me some of what he’s got.”
Beck laughed and handed over the menus.
“I’ll bring over some iced teas then, if that’s all right.”
“That’s fine for me.” Beck looked at Mia, and she nodded.
“Now, is he a contemporary of Miss Lola’s?” Mia asked after Jimmy disappeared into the kitchen.
“Nah. He’s just a young pup. Barely eighty.”
“Sounds as if someone in St. Dennis has discovered the secret to longevity.”
“Unfortunately, some life spans have been shorter than others,” he reminded her.
“How do you suppose Mickey found out about Annie being here this morning? I know some towns have a great grapevine, but that’s pretty fast even for a small town like this one.”
“I’m guessing his mother told him,” Beck said dryly.
“His…” Mia’s eyes widened. “You mean Mayor Pratt?”
“Right.”
“Different last name,” she said. “Divorce, remarriage?”
“You’re pretty quick for a fed.” He leaned back while their drinks were served. “Sorry. No offense intended.”
“None taken.” Mia looked across the room to where Vanessa was engaged in an animated conversation with Mickey Forbes. “Did you notice she was taking notes this morning?”
“Was she?”
“How discreet is she? I mean, is she the type who’d leave her notebook on the kitchen table for anyone to pick up?”
“I hope not. I’ll remind her, though.”
“Why is she so involved in this investigation?” Mia frowned. “I don’t remember the last time I saw an elected official sit in on a case conference.”
“Under our town charter, the mayor is in charge of public safety, which means the police department. Technically, we answer to her. Fortunately, she stays out of my way for the most part, but she does feel her position gives her the right to know what’s going on with any case at any time. I have no grounds to argue with her, so generally, I don’t. I think she’s more involved with this case because it’s caused such a firestorm and she’s gotten a lot of calls from residents. I guess they feel if the killer can get that close to the chief of police, no one is safe. And they’d be right.”
“What does he do for a living?” She watched Mickey Forbes from across the room. “And please don’t tell me he’s in real estate.”
“No, he’s not-he sells luxury cars and owns a sporting goods store-but his father is in real estate.”
Mia raised an eyebrow.
“Commercial real estate. He owns a lot of rentals here in town and built a few of those strip malls you passed on the way into town.”
“Do you think Mickey fits the profile?”
“Good Lord, don’t even put that idea in my head. The last thing I want to think about is my little sister dating a serial killer.” Beck rested both forearms on the table and stared at Mickey Forbes from across the room for a long time. Finally, he said, “Jesus, I guess just about anyone in this room fits it in some way.”
He exhaled and took a long drink of water.
“The guy in the yellow shirt over there at the bar? Carl Jackson? He’s the town Realtor. Last I heard, he was renting properties over in the beach communities. The guy next to him? He lost custody of his kids to his ex-wife after he was brought in on domestic abuse charges.” Beck seemed to know everyone in the place. “The guy in the plaid pants? He still lives with his mother over on St. Mary’s Place. Never married. Momma never liked any of the girls he brought home. He turned fifty-one last week and Momma is still buying his clothes.”
He looked across the table at Mia. “If that isn’t control, I don’t know what is.”
“You checking them out?”
“Sure. Jackson, however, as you may notice, weighs about three hundred pounds and he’s pushing fifty. He’s on crutches a lot because his knees are taking a pounding. You think he’s capable of carrying anyone anywhere?”
“Well, there is the real-estate connection, maybe someone in his office…”
“Only person he employs is his wife. And frankly, we both know the condo, the beach house, were most likely bait. Those places might not even exist.”
“True. If you’re planning on killing someone, lying about owning a condo at the beach probably isn’t a real issue.”
“The truth is, you start breaking down a group, you’re going to find a number of men who can fit the profile. So you tell me, how do you start to eliminate some and focus on the others?” he asked. “How do you cull from that herd?”
“Actually, the herd will start to cull itself,” she told him. “Like Annie says, sooner or later, he’ll lead you to him.”
“How many more women are going to die between now and then, Agent Shields?” His face hardened.
“I can’t answer that,” she told him, “and it’s Mia, please.”
“All right, Mia. How do we get him to identify himself?”
“You’ve scheduled your meeting for tonight, right?”
He nodded.
“Let’s see who shows up. Let’s see who shows the most interest. Open the meeting to Q and A, see who asks the most questions, who makes suggestions. Maybe we can start to make a list of people to take a closer look at.”
“You really think that’s going to work?”
“You have a better idea?”
“In the absence of any physical evidence, I guess not.”
“By the way, we have agents assigned to track down and interview the victims of those beach assaults from two, three years ago. I’ll let you know as soon as we have something on them.”
“Terrific. Would love to get a description out of them.”
“Be honest. You’re hoping the descriptions of the rapists in all three cases match up, and you’re hoping to get a name out of it.”
“Yeah, but I’m also hoping to win the lottery next week. That probably won’t happen, either.”
Beck’s phone rang, and he answered it immediately. He said little, then finally, “Thanks. Thanks for staying on it.”
He placed the phone on the table and told Mia, “That was Lisa. She received the dental records on Holly Sheridan and drove them out to Dr. Reilly. She waited to see what Viv would have to say, and she didn’t have to wait long, as it turned out. Holly Sheridan apparently had extensive reconstructive work done after a riding accident when she was fourteen. All of her teeth on the left side, top and bottom, had crowns. All Viv had to do was open the girl’s mouth and look.”
“Crowns?”
“Capped north and south.”
“Well, at least we know for certain.”
“Yeah, and so should Holly’s family.” Beck stared at the mountain of pasta in front of him. “Look, if you wouldn’t mind, I think I need to get back up to the office.”
“I don’t mind,” she told him.
“Sorry to bail on you…”
“Don’t apologize. I understand completely. Go on. I’ll finish up and meet you back there.”
He started to signal for the check, but Mia stopped him.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve got it. Just go. Do what you have to do.”
“Thanks.” Beck stood and pocketed his phone. “I’ll see you back at the station.”
Mia nodded and watched him leave the restaurant, his face darkening with every step he took.