Flu

Chapter 9

Bert's father rarely texts him in the afternoon. Almost never, actually. But Bert's doing security for an A-lister who's been receiving death threats. He can't afford to lose his focus, even for the minute or two it would take to answer. As soon as his relief shows up, he'll take care of it.

Jerry can see that his message was delivered, but he'd expect Bert to be on assignment. If he is, he'll be handling it as seriously as Jerry would. They have that in common. Jerry had never understood Bert's major in criminalistics paired with a minor in drama. But as it turned out, the young man is exquisitely prepared for his job. Hopefully, he'll be able to help Jerry identify the suspect.

Kate finishes going through the files Rick brought, for the second time. Obviously, the bomber is smart and skilled, so skilled that she wonders if he might have gotten away with more than blowing up restaurant kitchens. "Babe, do you think this guy ever killed anyone?"

Rick looks up from checking his emails. "I wasn't even looking for that, just matches to the current crime in question. What do you think?"

"I think that someone this exacting could have gotten away with murder with no one the wiser. And if he's been working for the Scarpellas for at least eight years, maybe he was doing more than clearing a path for their business interests. That family has commissioned its share of hits, even if we've never been able to pin any on the higher-ups."

"If I go back to the precinct, I can get into digital homicide records now."

"We could get into them from here if we use my password on your computer," Kate suggests.

Rick closes his emails and passes her the laptop. "Go for it."

"Whatever you want to work on will have to wait, Ms. Beckett," a nurse striding into the room announces. "You're scheduled for a scan."

Kate makes a quick entry before handing the laptop back to Rick. "I put the password in. Look for homicides first judged to be accidental, probably involving fire. Hopefully, the results will mean that Arain will let me out of here."

"More like she won't be risking your life to let you go," Rick responds. "Be a good girl and cooperate with the nice doctors. Maybe they'll give you a lollipop."

Kate's lips vibrate in a raspberry at Rick, as the nurse wheels her away.

Bert exhales his relief as the week's fan-favorite is safely ensconced in a VIP hotel room. He can hand over the baton – and get to the men's room. Once he's finished taking care of his urgent needs, the tiled retreat is as good a place as any to answer his father.

Bert's not about to forget Leo DeNuncio. He wasn't a bad roommate. He never asked Bert to clear out so he could bring in a girl, and he was clean. Scratch that. Leo was a clean freak. Sometimes Bert would wake up in the middle of the night to see Leo at his desk. Under the glow of the reading lamp, Leo was carefully examining his fingernails for any signs of dirt. The guy was a little off, something it might help Bert's dad to know. He sends Jerry what he can remember about Leo before going in search of someplace that has a lot cheaper food than a five-star hotel.

Jerry smiles at the message from his son. Leo DeNuncio, right. It shouldn't be much of a strain to run a search for anything on him, especially with the other facts Bert sent. That his son found Leo weird is no surprise to Jerry. Guys like Leo often have their quirks. Sometimes that makes them easier to catch.

"He's parking," Molly announces, as Leo pulls into the lot of a small industrial park.

Leo positions his car exactly midway between the white lines that mark his space, and heads for the nearest building.

Jerry gestures toward the structure. "That place has multiple tenants. The suspect could be headed for any of them. Keep your eyes on that scanner, Levels."

"Yes, Sir," Cary responds, his gaze unwavering from the screen. "He's headed up, Sir. From the height of where he stopped, it looks like he's on the top floor." Cary holds up the scanner for Jerry to double-check.

Jerry nods. "Good work, cadet. I also make it the top floor. We'll follow him splitting up between the elevator and the stairs, so we don't miss him if he comes down again. If we can, we'll wait until money changes hands, before arresting him. That way, we'll have both buyer and seller. Cadet Levels, you're with me, on the stairs. Cadet Roker, lead the rest of the team. Let's move."

Jerry quickly regards the listings on the directory in the lobby. He notes three suites on the top floor, but the names of the companies reveal nothing about the nature of their businesses. "We'll have to follow the money," he tells Cary, whose fingers are still tightly curled around the scanner. Jerry leads the way to the stairwell. Footsteps echo off the hard surfaces, but Jerry and Cary climb as quietly as they can. Jerry pushes open the heavy door to the top floor to see the rest of the cadets exiting the elevator at the other end of a long hall. Silently locking eyes with Cary, he points to the scanner and the entrance to the first suite.

Cary moves slowly, checking for the blip that would indicate the presence of the money. He shakes his head. Jerry points down the hall to the second door, labeled "Specialty Products." Eyes lighting with excitement, Cary points to the screen of the scanner.

Jerry holds up his hand, starting a slow, silent countdown to allow a transaction to take place. Cary signals that the blip isn't moving, but Jerry can hear footsteps approaching from inside the suite. He holds his weapon at ready as Leo emerges, and the cadets are in a position to block Leo's exit. "Leo DeNuncio, you are under arrest on suspicion of receiving and making use of illegally obtained funds. Kneel on the ground, hands behind your head. Smiling at the cadets, he cuffs their quarry.

"Find anything?" Kate asks Rick as an aide returns her to her room.

"You, first," he demands. "Was your scan clean?"

"I don't know. A tech did it and told me the doctor would talk to me after a radiologist went over the images. Dr. Arain didn't give me the results of my bloodwork either, so I guess she'll tell me about everything at once."

"Around here, it's always hurry up and wait," Rick grumbles. "But I think I might have found something while you were gone. The lab detected traces of a cleaning agent at the sites of all the fires. The reports didn't flag it as important because it couldn't be used as an accelerant. But I found a homicide and fire where traces of the same cleaning agent were discovered. It's an open case, Kate. No statute of limitations."

"Can we trace the cleaning agent?" Kate asks.

"It's not a standard product. Only one place in New York City distributes it; an outfit called Specialty Products."

Kate grins. "Then we'll have to find out who buys it."

Rick wiggles his eyebrows. "Like a murderous firebug who likes things clean?"

"You've got it, Babe."