FBI Headquarters
19 hours missing
Martin, Sam and Jack were all sitting at the conference table when Vivian and Danny walked in. Vivian was wearing a frown and Danny was carrying a couple of heavy looking boxes, Danny set them down beside his chair and then they all waited for Vivian to begin.
"Reports," Vivian ordered distractedly, her thoughts clearly elsewhere.
"I interviewed all Alec's colleagues, they didn't know anything," Martin reported, thinking what a waste of time that had been but then dead ends always were.
"I looked at Demon Disasters and Tom Douglas's financial records, the numbers don't add up, it's embezzlement for sure. Douglas is no genius, I got all I need here for a warrant," Danny told them patting the boxes next to him. "I think we should bring him in, he's the one with the most to lose here." Sam nodded, standing up and moving over to the whiteboard.
"According to his mistress he left at three in the morning to get some clothes from home." Sam pointed to that time on the timeline.
"I had a quick look, there didn't appear to be anything missing," Vivian added, thinking once more of the little girl who might be an orphan. "Mrs Parker would have known of course. Perhaps he came home and she hadn't taken her sleeping tablets, they fought again and she killed him. Later killing herself out of remorse."
"Anything's possible. It's an hours drive from Long Island to Brentwood at that time of night, we find out what happened to him during that hour, we'll know what happened to him," Jack stated, the team all nodded seriously in agreement.
"I'll recheck the morgues and hospitals," Martin volunteered standing up to leave. Danny looked at Vivian waiting for her to give him the order he wanted.
"Danny you can bring in Tom Douglas," Vivian sighed, Danny smiled and followed Martin out of the unit.
"I'd like to bring in Brooke Oakes, I don't think she's telling us everything." Sam picked up her jacket, looking at Vivian expectantly.
"Ok fine bring her in." Sam nodded in acknowledgement and headed out of the unit. Jack stayed where he was looking at Vivian, after a long moment Jack asked,
"Are you ok?" Vivian sighed tiredly,
"No I'm not ok Jack, that poor little girl. The coroner said that Mrs Parker had been dead for sometime, she'd popped the pills soon after I left. That little girl had been on her own, in the house, with her mother dead in the living room for hours. If we don't find her father, who by all accounts is the only one who ever really took care of her, then she'll be all alone in the world. She's six Jack, I remember when Reggie was that age." Jack sighed feeling the burden too, knowing there was nothing he could say that would make it better, it was just the job, sometimes it got to you.
"I know, Kate's just turned ten but it seems like yesterday she was just a baby. I know it's hard but we need to interview Alice again, she might be able to tell us something." Vivian nodded knowing Jack was right.
"Ok, she's staying with a neighbour. A Mrs Portman and her family. Tag along will you?" Vivian requested, it was clear she needed the support.
"Of course," Jack agreed.
FBI Headquarters
20 hours missing
Through the one-way window Vivian watched as Jack and Sam brought Brooke Oakes into the interrogation room. 'She looked nervous' Vivian noted, 'although that could be because she was in an interrogation room at FBI Headquarters, that fact made even innocent people nervous.'
"Where did Alec go after he left your apartment yesterday?" Sam asked, walking behind Brooke, she was playing the bad cop again. Jack was sitting down opposite Brooke nursing a cup of coffee in his hands.
"I already told you. He said he was going home," Brooke replied looking around the tiny room, her eyes fixed on the fake mirror as if she knew it was fake. Hollywood had done well publicising that particular interrogation technique.
"Did he say at any point that he was going elsewhere, as well as going home?" Sam continued, Brooke shook her head.
"No." Vivian leaned into the microphone that allowed her to talk to Jack and Sam via small earpieces, it was new technology, the FBI hadn't had it long but it was already proving it's expense.
"She's lying Jack," Vivian told him. Jack considered that for a moment before asking the next question.
"What car was Alec driving?" Sam frowned wondering why Jack was asking that, they'd put out an APB for Alec's car, so far no bites.
"I don't know, his car I presume. He's got a Nissan." Brooke answered, Jack frowned this time, though Sam could tell it was just for effect.
"That's odd, you see the police checked a ten block radius around Alec's house, no car. No car matching that description was involved in an accident that night, in New York, New Jersey, Maryland or Vermont. That car has to be somewhere and it must be somewhere we haven't looked. Now listen I don't care if Alec was doing something illegal ok, I just want to find him because that's my job. Now where was he going?" Brooke sighed and covered her face with her hands.
"He was going to the office. His wife hadn't found out about us, he told her. We'd been planning this for ages, Alec had got a buyer lined up for Demon Disasters. There was only one problem, for some reason Tom Douglas didn't want to sell. Alec went to the office that night to finish selling the company anyway." Brooke confessed.
"Why didn't you tell us this before?" Sam snapped, glaring at Brooke.
"Because selling an entire company that isn't yours to sell, is illegal in the eyes of the law. Though Alec didn't see it as wrong, he'd been looking at the books. His partner Tom Douglas had been embezzling for years, he'd had his share of the company already. Besides we weren't exactly going to stay to duke it out in the custody courts either." Jack stood up and looked towards Vivian before turning back to Sam.
"Interview suspended. Please wait here Miss Oakes." Jack and Sam then left the interview room, asking Brooke to wait there had been a formality, the door was locked. "Viv, has Danny gone over to Demon Disasters?"
"Yeah to pick up Tom Douglas," Vivian replied.
"Good, ask him to look for Alec's car while he's there, say a ten block radius again. I'll bet you anything it'll be there." Just then Vivian's cell phone went off.
"Hello," Vivian answered.
"Hey," Danny greeted, walking back into the parking lot of Demon Disasters. "Tom Douglas has done a runner, he left soon after our meeting this morning, hasn't been seen since. I got the local PD checking out his home but he won't be there. Can I put out an APB?"
"Yeah sure," Vivian replied, "Listen, can you look for Alec's car, Jack thinks it'll be within a ten block radius."
"Yeah, I'll get the locals on it," Danny suggested scanning the parking lot himself, right in the back corner there was a black Nissan. "Hang on a minute Viv." Danny jogged from where he was too the car, he checked the number plate before peering inside, what he saw wiped the smile off his face. "I've found it, there's blood all over the backseat."
"Thanks Danny, I'll send a CSI team." Vivian ended the call, "Tom Douglas is nowhere to be found but Danny found Alec's car. There's blood all over the backseat."
A/N: I apoligise for the lack of updates, I've been stricken by the afflication called writers block. I still haven't shaken it off but thankfully I'm nearly done. I have another post ready after this, possibly two. The it's just the final couple of chapters that I need to do. Enjoy!