Lee carried the chair carefully as they entered the back garage loading dock at the Agency. "I'm going to run this down to Evidence Processing to see what they can do with it. Francine, why don't you come with me. Amanda, head over and find Marcus in Fingerprinting. I know he was working on the print we got off the syringe, so maybe he'll have better luck with those."

"You got it." Amanda nodded before she quickly hurried up the concrete stairs and out of sight.

"I don't know about you, Francine, but I'm not liking this. First, Jonathan is found dead–" Lee began.

"Murdered," Francine corrected.

Lee stopped and exhaled. "Maybe murdered. We still don't have proof. And before you say we do, we don't have the tox screen back from the medical examiner's office yet. But as I was saying, first there was Jonathan, then your apartment was trashed, and now we find this chair with what looks like someone could have been strapped down on it. We don't have the slightest idea who's behind any of it."

"I've been thinking about who might be involved and I may have narrowed it down to a few suspects," Francine admitted.

Lee placed the chair down before glaring at her. "Are you going to share your theory with the rest of the class or just leave us all guessing?"

"This is going to sound crazy, but hear me out." Francine glanced around the empty loading dock. "Now, I know he's locked up in federal prison, but I really think Brody might be behind all this."

"Brody? As in the Death Broker? Francine, you know he's been locked up since the… wait…" Lee's eyes widened as his mind began spinning. "...since the last time Jonathan showed up."

"I know. He's the only one I can come up with who knew about my ties to Jonathan. And I've been thinking about the letter he wrote. What if the cat he's talking about, Bodhi, is really Brody? He was trying to tell us to go talk to him." Francine shifted her purse on her shoulder and looked around once more. "Jonathan may not have been the smartest guy I ever dated but what if that whole letter… what if he was trying to give us clues to who's involved."

Lee studied her face carefully. "I think you and Amanda have been spending too much time together." Lee laughed before adding, "But I also think you might be onto something." Lee picked up the chair and took several steps forward before he asked, "Are you coming?"

Francine hurried to catch up to him. "What's going on in that mind of yours, Scarecrow?"

"You got me thinking, that's all. Let's get this chair down to Evidence Processing and then we can take a ride." Lee continued into the hallway toward the service elevator, Francine right behind him.

"Where are we riding to, may I ask?" A perfectly sculpted eyebrow raised.

"We're going to pay the Death Broker a little visit." Lee stepped inside and punched the numbers on the elevator.

Francine stood, rooted to the same spot in the hallway. "So you believe me?"

Lee's hand shot out to stop the elevator door from closing. "I'm not disagreeing with you. I think you might be right about Jonathan's letter but we need more proof. And what better way than to get it straight from the horse's mouth."

"You really think Brody is going to admit to anything?" Francine disputed.

"I think Brody might have his hand in this but until we talk to him and listen to his mumbo-jumbo, we're not going to know how deep in the cookie jar he is. You know as well as I do, Brody is only interested in how he can make money, even behind bars." Lee sighed loudly in the small space of the elevator.

Francine stepped in beside him and whispered, "Thanks, Lee." She lifted her chin, squared her shoulders, and in a louder voice, stated, "Evidence Processing, here we come."

"That'a girl," Lee teased with a dimpled grin but his face quickly dropped when Francine glared at him with a side-eye.

While Lee, Francine, and Amanda were busy trying to get information, seventy miles away, Brody sat in a jail cell, playing cards with his cellmate.

"You really think your men can do this?" Halal Al Saleed asked quietly.

"They will do anything I tell them to do. Don't worry about a thing." Brody dropped a card onto the discard pile and lifted another. "They've already taken care of one loose end. Now it's time to get the other one and tighten the knot."

Al Saleed pursed his lips tightly as he played a card. "Time is of the essence here. The summit is in less than a week. I need to know the Ambassador is not going to be alive long enough to give his speech."

Brody glanced around at the guards pacing the cell block. He spotted one, made eye contact, and lifted his chin slightly. The guard returned the gesture by scratching under his ear before turning away and pacing the next row of cells. "We should have confirmation in a day or two. Relax." He lifted another card from the deck, arranged it in his hand, and announced, "Gin."

"This stupid card game!" Al Saleed threw his cards onto the bunk and grunted. He stretched his neck to one side. "Since there's nothing else to do, I guess we play another round?"

Brody laughed loudly. "Life is a game, don't you think? Everything we do is another round of the same game, only sometimes the pot is bigger and worth the risk." In a lower voice he added, "Once your Ambassador has seen the business end of a pistol, I expect payment in full."

Al Saleed growled a laugh. "You will get your money and I will have the greatest revenge."

Brody chuckled louder as he shuffled the deck of cards. "As will I, only this time, no one will stop me. Not even Stetson. He and I have an old score to settle. And if I'm right, we should be seeing each other very soon."