Chapter 9
"Detective Bagley, I see you got my message," Francine called out.
Detective Bagley jogged across the trash-strewn lot to meet Francine and Tom Edwards where they waited. "Yeah, I was just heading out to lunch when dispatch grabbed me. Not what I was expecting to do this afternoon," he stated. He looked around and pointed to the area still marked off with police tape. "That's the spot over there where the latest victim was found. What exactly are you looking for?"
Francine walked purposefully toward the corner of the lot, Tom followed closely behind. "I'm not really sure. We want to take a look at all the locations, see if there's anything your boys may have missed," she stated, looking around.
Francine stopped walking but Tom ducked under the police tape to get closer to the dumpster. He stood on his tiptoes and peered inside only to find the dumpster empty. He raised his hand to get Detective Bagley's attention but before he could say anything the portly detective stated, "We had everything brought to the crime lab at the State Police barracks. They went through everything but didn't find anything."
Francine surveyed the area and took careful notes about the surrounding buildings. "Detective, most of these buildings around here are unoccupied, is that correct?" she asked as she pointed.
"You're correct, Ms. Desmond. All the buildings in this section are either abandoned or listed for lease by owner," Detective Bagley replied.
"How often does the dumpster get emptied?" she questioned.
Detective Bagley blinked then admitted, "I don't follow."
"Well, here's a dumpster that is still actively being used if it was full enough for you to have to go through the contents. That means two things. One, someone is still using it regularly and two, that someone is paying a company to empty it," she reasoned.
"We didn't look into that. We just naturally assumed it was abandoned like everything else around here," Detective Bagley admitted.
Tom spoke up, "There's a sticker here on the side. Atlas Dumpster. And a phone number."
"Write it down. We'll check it out later," she directed. She looked around once more. "There's not much else here, so let's head to the location for victim number seven," Francine declared.
Detective Bagley waved his hand and said, "Follow me. It's about a ten-minute ride from here."
Francine and Edwards followed Detective Bagley to the other seven dump sites, each one yielding roughly the same results. The surrounding buildings were empty or abandoned with an active dumpster on site. The dumpsters, however, were marked by five different companies with different phone numbers. The trio parted ways after deciding they were not going to glean any additional clues from the empty lots.
Back at the Agency, Francine delegated Tom the job of researching all the dumpster companies while she was going to go over Amanda's findings on the pamphlets. "We can meet again in the morning to go over anything you find, okay?" Francine declared.
"Would you mind if I left early today? I know tomorrow's Saturday but I'm still on the duty roster this weekend and I'll be here early. It's just… I promised Lauren I would pick up Charlie for her this afternoon. It's tax season and she needs to finish up a bunch of things at work," Tom explained.
Francine fought the urge to snap at him with a scathing comment about how Charlie wasn't really his responsibility. She remembered a conversation, just after Amanda had come back from California, that Lee made a comment very similar about needing to leave to get Amanda's boys. At that time, she was not aware of how involved Lee and Amanda truly were. She angered him with her sharp tongue when she stated Philip and Jamie were not his problem. She sighed and conceded, "Sure, just make sure it gets done before our ten o'clock meeting. I want to give Billy some kind of indication we're actually doing something."
A smile cracked Tom's face as he thanked her, "I promise, I'll be here no later than seven-thirty and I'll have it all done before the meeting." He turned to walk away but stopped once more. "Francine, I really appreciate you giving me another chance."
Francine bit her lip to hide the grin that threatened. "Go, before I change my mind," she stated. She chuckled softly as he carefully long-stepped across the bullpen to the awaiting elevator. "I must be getting soft," she muttered before she pulled out her chair. "Amanda said she'd leave it in the Q Bureau," Francine reminded herself. She pushed the chair back in and headed in the same direction Tom just went.
In the hall, Francine saw Leatherneck pressing the button for the elevator. "Up or down?" she asked.
"Huh?" Leatherneck replied, confused.
"Are you heading up or down?" Francine clarified.
"Oh, up. How are you, Francine?" Leatherneck smiled.
Francine returned his smile and laughed, "Better now. What are you working on? I thought you and Amanda were running background checks on the new recruits?"
"We are, which is why I'm headed up to the Q to see what she found for me," Leatherneck explained. The doors to the elevator slid open and he held the jackets aside for Francine to join him.
"Well, Mrs. Stetson is really in demand these days. She's also doing a little research for me as well," Francine laughed. She waited patiently as the elevator ascended, suddenly aware of how close she and Leatherneck were standing. She could smell his cologne, the deep musky scent that had become uniquely Leatherneck.
The doors slid open and Leatherneck held his hand out, "Ladies first. Hello, Mrs. Marston."
"Leatherneck, Ms. Desmond. Mrs. Stetson asked me to leave a message for you both. I'm not her personal secretary but under the circumstances, I don't mind," Mrs. Martson began.
"Circumstances? What circumstances?" Francine stammered. "Is Amanda okay?"
Mrs. Marston nodded, "Mrs. Stetson is just fine. She was feeling a little tired. Scarecrow brought her home, however, she did ask me to tell you both your files are on her desk, labeled."
Francine exhaled the breath she was holding. "Oh, good. Thank you, Mrs. Marston."
Mrs. Marston reached into the top drawer of her desk, "One more thing. You're going to need this." She held up the small keyring Amanda had given her.
"Right," Leatherneck drew out as he took the key from the other woman. "Thank you very much. Did Mrs. Stetson say anything else?"
"Just return the key to me when you're finished, please," Mrs. Martston stated. She folded her hands and settled them on the desk before her.
Leatherneck tossed the key in his hand and assured her, "Will do. We shouldn't be too long anyway. Right, Francine?"
Francine shook her head in agreement, "No more than a few minutes I would think. Thanks again." She headed up the stairs, her heels clicking loudly on the wood risers, Leatherneck only a few steps behind her.
Once inside the Q Bureau, Francine lifted the file folders on the left marked, Francine before she handed Leatherneck his stack, also carefully labeled. She began skimming the first sheet of research and hummed, "Hmmmm."
"What?" Leatherneck replied automatically.
"Oh, sorry. Nothing. It just amazes me how thorough that woman is," Francine commented.
Leatherneck furrowed his brow, "Mrs. Marston? Sure she's thorough but she can't hit a target for beans, even with an automatic weapon."
"No, Amanda. She has everything in here…company name, parent corporation, owner, headquarter's addresses. Heck, she even has annual contributions and income, as well as, how many employees each company maintains," Francine remarked as she flipped the pages and scanned the information. "Boy, I don't think I would ever want to get on Amanda's bad side. She'd find all the dirt on me in a heartbeat."
"But the difference between Mrs. Stetson and the rest of us is she wouldn't actually use that information," Leatherneck stated.
Francine shook her head, "I wouldn't be so sure about that. If I remember, a few years ago she convinced me to give her a picture and the negative of Lee wearing a basket on his head, popping a champagne bottle from that celebration we had. From what Lee told me, she got dinner at Spencer's and he had to type his own reports for a week. I think there is a little bit of a devious side to Amanda. She just manages to hide it better than the rest of us."
Leatherneck snapped his fingers, "Wait, was that the party where Roxanne got on the table…"
"That's the one! Roxanne can't go into Nedlingers without half the bar shouting out her name," Francine laughed.
"Well, I bet that's not the only reason they're shouting her name. From what I hear, she has quite a reputation," Leatherneck surmised as he arranged the stack of files in his arm. "And I'm sure if Amanda did a bang-up job on your research, she's knocked mine out of the park." He checked his watch, "I should get back downstairs. I have two of the newbies coming in to range-qualify."
Francine followed him back into the hallway and locked the door. They returned to the lobby and handed Mrs. Marston the keys. Francine continued to follow Leatherneck into the elevator. "So, what is on your agenda for this evening?" Francine asked.
Leatherneck shook his head slowly, "Not a single thing. I figured I would head home, pop a cold beer and order some pizza for dinner."
"Sounds heavenly," Francine sighed.
"So why don't you join me? I can't eat the whole thing myself and I know you like the pizza joint right down the street from my place. I can be finished in the next ninety minutes and meet you in the bullpen if you're interested," Leatherneck offered.
Francine smiled and nodded, "You know what, I think I will. I don't have any plans for tonight either so…"
"It sounds like a date to me. I'll see you in the bullpen in a little bit," Leatherneck announced just as the elevator doors opened.
"In a little bit, yeah," Francine smiled again and watched Leatherneck head down the hall.