Paradox (FBI Thriller 22)

Perhaps Sala wouldn’t have done it if he hadn’t been so close to death only days before, but he came down on his haunches in front of Lulie, took her shaking hands in his, and warmed them. Strong, capable hands, Lulie thought. Hands that could also roll dough and decorate strawberry shortcakes. Lulie shook her head. She was losing it. She felt Danny’s big hand, warm and comforting on her shoulder. Danny’s hands were too big and rough to deal with delicate pastry dough. She laughed, swallowed.

Sala said, “We’re here to help, Ms. Saks. Did Chief Masters tell you about the call from the FBI agent manning the hotline?”

She nodded. “Please, thank the agent at the hotline for calling Danny—Chief Masters—right away.”

Sala said, “We will. Our agent was very concerned, contacted Chief Christie and me right after he called Chief Masters. Ms. Saks, this is very important. Please tell us why Gunny told the hotline agent she didn’t know what to do about recognizing the Star of David belt buckle. Do you know what she meant?”

Lulie looked into the young man’s ve

ry kind eyes. It was a solid question. She could do this. “At dinner last night, Gunny told me she was worried, but it took me a while to get out of her what she was worried about. Gunny does things in her own time. Please understand, she’s not quite like other people. She’s slower, you have to be patient while she gets her thoughts together. She asked me if I’d seen the press conference, but I hadn’t. I had been told by a customer about the murder of that federal prosecutor in Willicott and about all those bones found at the bottom of Lake Massey, but Gunny wasn’t worried about the murder or the bones. She was worried about Mr. Henry’s belt buckle. She said it was a secret, whatever that meant, and she didn’t know who to talk to about it. That was it. I couldn’t get anything else out of her. Well, I did tell her not to bother her supervisor, Mrs. Chamberlain, at the post office.” Lulie paused. “You know, now I remember Gunny never said she wouldn’t speak to Mrs. Chamberlain, so I can’t be sure she didn’t. Gunny said Mr. Henry might have showed the belt buckle to Mrs. Chamberlain, too, since she was his special friend.”

Ty said, “The belt buckle belonged to a Mr. Henry? Special friend? And Mrs. Chamberlain was his special friend? As in they were lovers?”

Lulie nodded up at the young woman. Imagine, so young and she was a police chief. “Yes, forever, well, until he died five years ago.”

“Maybe,” Ty said slowly, “someone overheard her speaking to Mrs. Chamberlain, someone who works at the post office or was there to conduct business? And that someone followed Gunny when she took her break, to keep whatever Gunny knew from reaching the FBI?”

“And this someone tried to kill her to protect himself? But from what?” Lulie shook her head. “It’s a stupid belt buckle. Who cares?”

“Someone obviously did,” Sala said. “A lot.”

Chief Masters said, “I haven’t spoken to Mrs. Chamberlain, and I need to do that.”

Ty said, “Would you mind if we spoke to her, Chief?”

“That’s fine with me. This is all part of your case over in Willicott. I can use the help.”

Lulie’s voice shook. “Danny said whoever hit her left her behind a dumpster in the alley between Kim’s Dry Cleaners and Lucky Hammer.”

Sala moved to sit beside Ms. Saks as she continued, her voice liquid with tears. “I can’t believe Mrs. Chamberlain would have anything to do with the attack on Gunny, so maybe Chief Christie is right, maybe someone did overhear. But who? A lot of people go in and out of the post office. It’s sort of a social spot, a place where people talk, drink their coffee, and exchange gossip. Any one of them could have noticed Gunny speaking to Mrs. Chamberlain, overheard what she said.”

Masters said, “Or one of the postal employees could have overheard, Lulie. We’ll get hold of the video that covers the lobby. We’ll find out who was there. If Mrs. Chamberlain knows anything herself, I’m sure she’ll tell Chief Christie and Agent Porto. Of course, Gunny could have mentioned it to someone else, too, the wrong someone.”

“It’s all my fault.”

Sala heard the horrible guilt bubbling out through the pain, and he understood, too well. He tried to keep his voice calm, matter-of-fact. “How do you figure that, Ms. Saks?”

38

* * *

Lulie hit her fist against her knee, sending confectioners’ sugar raining down from her hair. “If only I’d kept after her to tell me what worried her about telling a secret! A secret Mr. Henry asked her to keep? Why, for heaven’s sake? The man’s been dead for five years. He sure doesn’t care. She only told me a little of it. Why not everything? I’m her mother. I’m supposed to give her good advice.” She gulped, closed her eyes tightly. “I know it’s difficult for her, and I’ll admit it, even though I try to be patient, to wait her out, to gently push and prod, last night I had so much work to do—bookkeeping for the bakery, tax forms to fill out before I went to bed. If only I’d pushed her, made her talk to me, made her tell me why she was worried about Mr. Henry’s belt buckle, but I didn’t. I didn’t. I shut her down. Now my daughter might die!”

Ty took her hand. “Listen to me, Gunny will not die. Chief Masters got her here in a hurry. Agent Porto and I will make you a promise: we will find out who did this, and Chief Masters will keep Gunny safe until we do, right, Chief?”

Masters stared at her, shook his head at himself. “I hadn’t thought that far ahead. Yes, of course I’ll keep her safe, Lulie. And the chief’s right, there’s every reason to hope Gunny will pull through this.”

Lulie rose. “I’ve got to make a call. There’s someone who needs to know about this.”

They watched her pull her cell phone out of her jeans pocket and walk out of the room, shoulders straight, head up. They heard her speaking low into her cell.

“Chief, do you know who she’s calling?”

Masters said to Ty, his voice clipped and hard, “Probably her daughter’s father. Gunny’s illegitimate, but Lulie has never told anyone who the father is, not even me. Believe me, my wife and I have wondered, everyone has wondered, but Lulie hasn’t said. And I can’t remember who was around her thirty-one years ago. But what does it matter?” He laughed, shook his head. “I know lots of people in town think I’m Gunny’s dad, but I’m not.”

Sala said, “But you’ve looked after her, looked out for her.”

Lulie walked back into the waiting room as quickly as she’d left. She looked stronger, more in control. She accepted a cup of Nespresso from Ty. “Would you like cream? Sugar?”