The next day, Colby and David combed through the papers they had brought in from the victim's home. It was slow, detailed work, to classify the papers and note the contents. Don had already mentioned to them that the task force for the insurance fraud investigation was going to use the FBI office as their headquarters, and were in the middle of moving everything and everyone involved to the FBI. Colby thought Don had been looking a little strained lately and wondered how he was going to take working with Robin Brooks at such close quarters.
Colby's thoughts turned to Hannah, as they often had since he met her. He smiled a little, thinking about how good it felt to wake up with Hannah in his arms. He loved the feel of her in his arms, as he woke out of slumber. He loved the soft fragrance of her, as he burrowed his face into her hair and neck. He loved the silkiness of her skin against his, as he smoothed his hands over her body, pressed close against his. She never seemed to stir much or to feel him cradle her close in the mornings, before he left for the day. She was the soundest sleeper he'd ever known.
"Do you have the financial profile on the victim?" David's question cut into Colby's reverie. Colby shook himself mentally, and focused on looking for the financial profile.
"No, the profile isn't back yet, but here's something interesting we should probably look into," Colby responded. "There are monthly deductions on his bank statement for a safe deposit box. I'll go back to the house and see if I can find a safe deposit box key. Maybe there'll be something in that box."
David nodded, then turned his attention to Don as he walked in with Robin Brooks.
"You both remember ADA Brooks?" Don asked, then continued when both agents nodded their greetings. "The task force is setting up the conference room as a command center, just like before. We've also brought in an outside consultant with experience in the health insurance industry, to help go over the data. Grab your stuff, we'll be working out of the command center for a while."
The command center was a hive of controlled chaos as Don's team walked in. There were stacks of files on every surface. More were being rolled in, boxes and boxes of them, on two wheelers. Through the activity, Colby saw a woman, probably in her mid-forties, booting up her laptop, in the farthest corner of the room. He barely controlled a laugh, as she sharply smacked the hands of an unfortunate helper who tried to put some files on the table she was working at. He saw David grinning as well. Robin Brooks smiled, "Come on, I'll introduce you to her. Rilla Davison, these are Special Agents David Sinclair and Colby Granger. They're part of Agent Eppes' team and will be working closely with you."
Rilla looked up and found herself wondering if she'd walked into the GQ section of the FBI office. She'd found Don Eppes undeniably attractive when she'd met him earlier, and here were two more of his team, just as devastatingly attractive. Maybe more, she amended to herself, as she started to succumb to Colby's roguish grin. "You're not going to spout some nonsense about assaulting federal officers and felonies, are you?" Rilla said tartly, more to shake herself loose from the agent's charms than anything else.
Colby's grin widened, "Lucky for you, he wasn't a federal officer. Or you'd have to work this case from behind bars."
She snorted at that, but returned his grin. "What's the plan?" Rilla directed her question at Robin.
"We'll wait till everyone gets settled, then we'll have a meeting to catch the FBI up on the case. They have a new case that we'll need to fit into ours."
Rilla nodded, "I'll get some things together for you, Robin. Say in a few hours?"
"Maybe more, if you don't mind," David cut in. "Colby and I have a couple of things we'd like to check out, that may take more than those few hours. The victim has a safe deposit box we'd like to run down, if we could."
"Go ahead. A few more hours won't hurt, and the more we know about the victim, the better," Don told him. "In any case, Megan's running something down and won't be back any time soon. I definitely don't want to start without her."
-----
A closer look through the keys in the victim's home yielded a safe deposit key neither agent had noticed the night before. They headed to the bank to see if they could get into the box.
Jenn Pleiman looked up from her station as the two men walked into the bank. She saw the badge at the belt of the black man as his jacket swung open. She assumed the other man was his partner. Jenn picked up the phone and called the branch manager in her office to warn her, as she watched the two men stop at the customer service desk.
"The lady at the front desk tells us you're the woman with the answers." Colby said, approaching Jenn's desk.
Jenn looked up and caught her breath at the green eyes that looked at her. "Ah. What can I do for you gentlemen?"
"We need to get into a safe deposit box." David told her.
"Well, anyone can help you get into your safe deposit box, Mr...?"
"Special Agent David Sinclair, FBI, Ms. Pleiman, and this is Agt. Colby Granger. It's the safe deposit box of the victim in the case we're working on."
"You'll have to talk to the branch manager, Agt. Sinclair. If you'll have a seat, I'll let her know you need to see her."
Katelyn Queenan grimaced as she watched the scene unfold. She had hoped while Jenn talked to them that they were simply here to get into their own safe deposit boxes. But she could tell from Jenn's body language that wasn't the case. She and Jenn had known each other for a long time, they had started at the bank together.
"Not good, huh?" she said as Jenn arrived at her door.
"No, they have a key, but it's a case they're working. I don't think they have a warrant, but I didn't ask. Sorry, Katie," when Katelyn raised an eyebrow. "That Agent Granger's really cute, and I got distracted when I looked in his eyes. Agent Sinclair's no slouch either." Jenn looked a little abashed at this unprofessional slip.
Katelyn laughed. "Okay. I can certainly understand that. Don't look in his eyes, huh?" Jenn laughed with her at that. "Bring them in, Jenn, and stay in here with me. I think it'll be better if we talked in here, if this is official business."
"Agents David Sinclair and Colby Granger, this is Katelyn Queenan, the branch manager," Jenn introduced the agents as they walked into Katie's office.
"What can I do for the FBI?" Katie asked, as she watched them settle into her visitor chairs. Jenn perched at the edge of the credenza.
"We need to get into Ellery Hague's safe deposit box, Ms. Queenan," Colby said. "We have the key here, and his bank statements indicated that he paid rent for it."
"I can't let you into the box without a warrant, Agent Granger," Katie said, holding up a hand when Colby started to interject. "I'm very sorry, but it's bank policy, and it's to protect all parties, not just the bank. It doesn't matter that you have the key, we can't let you in if you're not the signatory for the box."
Colby flashed a smile at her. "Ms. Queenan, we're working on a homicide. Mr. Hague's a victim of a homicide, and there may be evidence in that box to help us find his killer. Surely you can see that it wouldn't be difficult to get a warrant to get into the box? It'll just save us some time if you'd just let us into the box."
Katelyn couldn't help returning his grin, even though the situation was a somber one. Jenn was right, he was certainly a good looking man, and he was definitely turning on the charm. "I'm so very sorry, Agent Granger. You should have just gone ahead and got the warrant before you came here, if it's really as easy as you're making it out to be. I couldn't let you into the box without it, not even if you offered to protect me during the next few morning sweeps." She shook her head when both agents looked at her in askance. She could tell Jenn was trying her hardest not to laugh. "Morning sweep, that's when the branch manager checks the bank in case intruders got in during the night. Other employees wait till the sweep is completed before they enter the bank. That way only one person becomes a hostage if someone really did get in during the night."
Colby looked incredulously at her. "You do this without security? Every morning?" as Katie nodded in response. "What time will you do this tomorrow?"
Katie looked surprised. "8:30am before the bank opens."
"We'll be here tomorrow morning at 8:30. With the warrant."
Katie was silent for a moment. "That's very sweet, gentlemen, but it isn't necessary. However, I'll save you a little time and aggravation. If you'll fax the warrant to me when you get it, I'll fax it on to our security department for their review and approval. Also, be prepared to spend a lot of time here, as we'll need to inventory every single item in that box. And I mean every single item. If there's currency in that box, we'll have to note the serial number on every single bill. And I'll also be sure to have a drill ready, just in case the key doesn't work for some reason." She saw them sigh in resignation and felt for them.
"Well, I guess we'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning. We'll bring coffee and donuts." David said, disappointed. "Here are our cards, and yes, we'll fax the warrant as soon as we get it." He and Colby handed Katelyn and Jenn their cards, and took Katelyn's as they left.