that the bandana belonged to Tommie Oakes, a gang member who went by the name of Cruiser. We found the murder weapon in his closet.”
Jessica nodded as she no doubt recalled the case that had caused such a rift between the two of them. She took a deep breath. “Although his DNA was on the bandana, he had an alibi that the police and the DA ignored. They argued that the DNA on the gun probably belonged to another gang member who wasn’t in the system. Your new partner at the time couldn’t wait to close the case, and he kept on until the DA had Oakes arrested and charged. He was convicted and is now serving a life sentence in prison.”
“That’s right.”
“So why are we rehashing this now?” Jessica said through gritted teeth.
“Because the DNA found on the gun that killed the Harveys has been in the system ever since. The lab sent the DNA from the convenience-store robbery to the database, and it matched the results from the Harvey case.”
Jessica’s eyes grew wide. “So if the DNA from yesterday’s robbery is Lee Tucker’s, then he must have been the person who shot the Harveys.” She shook her head. “But the evidence from the Harvey case has been in the system for four years. Why didn’t it show a hit on Lee Tucker before now?”
Ryan shrugged. “The lab people don’t know. The important thing is that it does now. Tucker had to be at the Harveys’ home the night they were killed.”
“So Oakes might not have been the killer.”
He nodded. “Maybe not. The real killer could be—”
“Lee Tucker.” Her expression changed instantly. Alarm took over her features as she no doubt realized the danger that he had come to understand moments ago. “The police have to stop Tucker before he follows through and kills Jamie, too.”
“I know,” Ryan said. He tried to keep his anxiety reined in.
“But Lee Tucker could be anywhere,” Jessica said. “How would you decide where to start looking?”
Ryan held up one of the papers from the report. “I think we start with the car that you saw leave the scene after the shooting yesterday. The license plate is registered to the reelection campaign of Hayden Mitchum.”
Jessica’s eyes grew wide. “The US senator?”
Ryan nodded. “Yes. When we called his reelection headquarters this morning, they said they hadn’t realized it was missing. It’s one of the cars that the senator’s aide uses when he’s in town, but he is in Washington right now with Senator Mitchum.”
The phone on Mac’s desk rang at that moment, and Mac answered. “Detective Barnes.”
Ryan waited until Mac hung up before he said anything else. “Do we need to answer a call?”
Mac shook his head. “No. That was the captain. He needs me to bring him up to speed on the investigation into Gerald Price’s murder.”
“I read about that,” Jessica said. “He’s the man whose body was found in a riverfront parking lot. The newspaper report said the police believe he was killed in a carjacking.”
“That’s right.” Mac turned to Ryan. “I can go over everything with the captain. You stay here and talk to Jessica.” He reached over and patted her on the shoulder. “It’s good to see you. I hope you’ll come back to visit soon.”
She smiled. “Maybe I will, Mac. Take care of yourself out there.”
He nodded and walked from the room. Ryan waited until Mac had closed the door behind him before he spoke.
He stuck his hands in his pockets and took a deep breath. “Jessica, yesterday I thought I was going to a store to make sure my brother was okay. Since then, what was thought to be a robbery has snowballed into something that appears to be much deeper. And somehow it has ties to the murders we investigated four years ago.”
“I know,” she murmured as if she was lost in thought.
He sat down on the edge of his desk again and faced Jessica, who took the opposite chair. “What is Lee Tucker’s connection to the murders of two reporters four years ago and to what appeared to be a random robbery yesterday? And why was the getaway car stolen from a US senator’s parking lot? It doesn’t make sense.”
She nodded in agreement, then added, “If it really was stolen.”
“That’s a possibility. The senator’s office could have been lying about that.” He stood up, paced to the far side of the office and came back to sit in front of her. “And why did my brother suddenly disappear?”
“And why did I receive a threatening telephone call?”
Now it was his turn to be startled. “When did that happen?”
She shrugged. “Last night. A man called I think just to scare me so I couldn’t sleep. I have to say it worked.”
“What did he say?”
“When I asked who was calling, he said it was the friend I met earlier. So it must have been Lee Tucker,” Jessica answered. “I asked him what he wanted, and he said he didn’t want anything at the present time. But he’d let me know if he changed his mind.”
Ryan pounded his fist down on his desk. “That settles it. I have to find out what’s going on.”
“How are you going to do that?” she asked.
He thought for a moment before he responded. “I think I’ll take a few days’ leave and poke around on my own to see what I can find out. Maybe I can turn up something.”
She pushed out of her chair. “Well, I wish you luck. Let me know if I can help in any way.”
He stood and faced her. “You can. How about working with me for a few days? Let’s see if we can find out what’s going on.”
She stared at him as if he’d lost his mind. “You can’t be serious.”
“I am. After all, Lee Tucker is a fugitive and you’re a bounty hunter. If we find him, maybe we can answer some questions we’ve always had about Cal’s and Susan Harvey’s murders. And you may get to bring in a fugitive who’s skipped bail.”
She stared into his eyes without blinking. “Ryan, I don’t know...”
He reached for her hand and clasped it in his. “Please, Jessica. It’ll be like old times. The two of us working on a case. What do you say? Want to be my partner again?”
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