Chapter 5

Acting on Larry's advice, Charlie refined his search by focusing on exactly what pieces of information had been leaked to the media. Unfortunately, that once again left him with someone at the FBI as his primary suspect. The fact that the victim's tongue had been cut out postmortem was discovered during the examination at the coroner's office. That eliminated as the leak anyone who'd only had access to the body before that information was known, such as the police officers who'd first arrived on the scene.

Similarly, the media reported that the killer carved words and symbols into the woman's body with a kitchen knife he found in her apartment. That eliminated anyone in the coroner's office, because the bloody instrument was found in her trash and identified as part of a set long after the body had been sent to the morgue. The coroner could have identified what type of knife was used, but not the weapon's owner.

David and Colby had tried pressuring the television reporter who'd received the information into giving up his source, but he'd insisted he was protected by the first amendment. They'd threatened to jail him for obstructing justice and he'd seemed almost gleeful at the potential national exposure. His producers had been less excited about the possibility of a lengthy and costly court battle, but they were prepared to defend him if necessary. Aside from the ethical issues of jailing the reporter, it would have cast a very bright spotlight on an internal leak the FBI would prefer not to acknowledge. Charlie had to admit he was less than comfortable with the idea anyway.

Meanwhile, the reporter continued to release new information to the public and do an impressive hatchet job on the FBI's investigation. Alan, who'd been happily recording a report that focused on Don, stopped the tape after the reporter implied that an agent who'd gone from running his own office in Albuquerque to a lower position here in the LA office must have been transferred and demoted due to his own incompetence.

Don dropped by the house the same night of that report, while Alan sat working on a crossword puzzle and Charlie was grading exams.

"Hello?" Don called out as he walked through the door.

"Hey, Don," Charlie immediately called back. "We're in here."

Don paused to deposit a couple items on the table in the entryway before walking over and joining them. "So? Did you watch it? How'd I look?" When he didn't get much of a response from the room, he asked his dad with a teasing grin, "You did tape it, right?"

Alan, who'd been in a sour mood all evening, replied without looking up from his crossword puzzle, "No, I didn't tape it."

"No?" Turning to Charlie, he mouthed, "That bad?" and Charlie nodded.

Don grimaced in response. "Oh. Well…"

Alan pulled off his reading glasses irritably as he looked up. "You should sue those people, Don."

Don rolled his eyes as he headed off toward the kitchen. "You can't sue them if it's true, Dad."

"Donnie, they said you were demoted when you moved back here from Albuquerque!" Alan exclaimed.

Returning to the living room with a beer, he shrugged as he settled onto the couch beside Charlie. "So?"

"So?" Alan repeated incredulously. "So, that's not true!"

Don held up his hand. "It is true. Look, the agency fit me in where they could. They didn't have to approve the transfer at all. And if that had been the case, I would have had to quit my job altogether."

Charlie was startled by Don's casual admission of how much he'd been willing to give up for his family, but Don didn't seem to notice as he continued, "Was it a perfect solution? No. Do I hear occasional whispers that I couldn't cut it in Albuquerque? Yeah." The fiery tone with which he'd begun petered out after that admission, and he continued in a quieter tone, "I did what I did to be where I needed to be. I've got no complaints." The last statement was aimed directly to his father, and they held each other's gaze for a moment before Alan looked away.

Charlie, who'd been wondering about something else since they'd watched the news report, quietly noted, "They said you were suspended for excessive use of force during your time in fugitive recovery."

Don sank back into his seat on the couch with a sigh. "Yeah. Well, you know all about it. I mean, you read my file, right?"

Charlie shifted eagerly in his seat, turning to look more directly at Don. "Actually, no. I decided not to since I've already eliminated you as a suspect, obviously." Charlie waited to be congratulated for his newfound sense of self-control. It had taken all his will power to resist opening that file, but he wanted to show Don he could be trusted with secrets.

Instead, Don kept his eyes on the label he was absently peeling off his beer bottle and asked quietly, "You didn't read it?"

Confused by his brother's reaction, but still proud of his self-restraint, Charlie declared, "Nope. It wasn't relevant. So, I decided not to read it!" His smile faltered as he took in Don's hurt expression. "Don?"

Don stood up quickly and began pacing. "What is with you guys tonight, huh?" Turning to his father he asked, "They do a whole feature about me and you don't tape it? You tape everything!" Pointing to Charlie, he continued, "You complain you don't know anything about my life in Albuquerque, but I give you my whole file and you can't be bothered to read it?"

Stunned by Don's reaction, Charlie sputtered, "What? Don, I…"

Don cut him off with a wave of his hand and turned back to his father. "You know, most families have a ton of baby pictures of the first kid and only a few of the younger ones. This has to be the only family…"

Alan stood up. "Don…"

Whatever he'd been about to say was interrupted by the ringing of Don's phone. He swiftly pulled it off his belt, answering, "Eppes."

Charlie and Alan remained still, watching him listen to the person on the other end.

Glancing at his watch, Don said, "Ok. I can be there in twenty minutes. Yep. Yep. Ok."

Don looked over at Charlie and explained, "There's been a second murder. Not a government employee this time, but a woman killed in the same highly ritualized style as the first." Reaching out and placing a hand on his dad's arm, he said in a softer tone, "Look, I… I gotta go. I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

With that, he turned and headed over to the entryway table to scoop up the things he'd dropped there earlier. Charlie stood up and drifted closer to the door, wanting to offer his help with the case and knowing he'd be rebuffed. Helplessly, he watched his brother put up his hand in a vague wave before rushing out the door.