Part 9 (1/2)
”Yeah. We have history-my dad killed the Chang family head in prison. Self-defense, but that didn't stop them from trying to take him out over the years-and one of their sons came after me too.”
”Your life is kind of a crime soap opera, you know.”
”I know, right?” She smiled at Ken. ”Even though we scooped up a lot of organized crime connections in that big case on Maui, the Changs managed to wiggle out of any prosecution. I've been dreading a case that brings that old history out to bite my a.s.s, like this Kwon thing is threatening to.”
”Nothing could be further from organized crime thugs specializing in gambling and drugs than an online suicide club. This case is a lot of things, but it's not dangerous to anyone but the already dying.”
”I know. I'm just so freaked out about it all, with Kamuela breathing down my neck. Feels like those skeletons want to come out of the closet and dance. Wreck my career, wreck my life.” Lei pinched her leg through her pants.
”I'll help you. We'll keep it on the down low. For all you know, it's a coincidence that your grandmother had the number in her belongings. That's all you know right now.”
”You're right.” Lei sighed. ”I'm paranoid. I'm getting ahead of myself.”
”I'm glad you told me. Imagine how much worse it would be if you had to keep sneaking around, lying to me while you tried to deal with it yourself.”
”Stevens knows, but he can't help me over here.” She reached over, touched his arm. ”I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner.”
”I'm just glad you did. Big thing to carry and get through alone.”
Lei felt affection suffuse her, an unfamiliar feeling that made her eyes p.r.i.c.kle with tears. She had people who loved her-and better yet, people she'd let herself love back. Ken had just joined that select group.
Back at the Bureau, Lei contacted Ang and the three of them converged on Waxman's office to brief him on the activities of the day. Lei looked out the window, where late-afternoon sun sparkled on the ocean and poufs of c.u.mulous cloud scudded across the bowl of sky. All of it was tinted gray by bulletproof gla.s.s. She couldn't stop her mind from wandering to the call she needed to make to Kamuela, how it could make her a suspect and stress her friends.h.i.+p with Marcella.
What a mess.
”Agent Texeira!” Waxman's voice snapped her head around. She'd tuned out Ang and Ken's summary of their findings so far. ”What are your thoughts here?”
”The situations of the DyingFriends members we visited are terrible,” Lei said, thinking fast. ”The site seems to be providing some much-needed support and interaction for them. So far, no hint of any wrongdoing.”
Ang cleared her throat. ”Actually, while you guys were canva.s.sing, I was burrowing around in the site and planting suicidal threads under my ident.i.ty. I got a ping on it just before I came here. An e-mail from a masked location.” She'd printed the e-mail and looked down to read it. ”'Dear ShastaM, you have been invited to a deeper level of commitment and sharing on DyingFriends. If you accept this invitation, you commit to keep all interactions and communications confidential.'” Ang looked up. ”I accepted. I'm waiting for a confirmation link that will take me into this deeper level. This could be the door we're looking for.”
Lei didn't envy Ang her role impersonating a dying person, making virtual conversation and trying to lure the administrator out of the shadows-doing techie things on a computer all day. Once again she was glad of the diversity of roles within the FBI.
”Good.” Waxman steepled his fingers, pale blue eyes tracking them. ”So to summarize: We are looking for a group or individual practicing a.s.sisted suicide. The people who are partic.i.p.ating are so far already dying. Have you come across any garden-variety depressed people so far? Not dying?”
”No, sir. The ones we've visited so far were definitely dying,” Lei said, remembering each face with a tiny internal shudder.
”I have come across people in the chat rooms who call themselves *existentially dying,'” Ang said. ”The parameters of the site are such that actually having a life-endangering disease or condition is part of joining. But these people found a way around that. They have their own subgroups.”
”Okay. So when I account to my district director, I know what he's going to ask me. Is this case the best use of the FBI's time and resources? Is there a crime worth pursuing, that we can prosecute, being committed by an individual or individuals we can bring to trial?” Waxman narrowed his eyes.
The three of them looked at one another. Ken finally answered. ”This is going to be one of those shades-of-gray cases, sir. It's criminal to a.s.sist in another person's suicide as the law stands. In the case of Corby Hale, his death was at worst a murder and at least an unnecessary suicide. The boy had AIDS but could have lived a normal life span with proper care and medication, which his family would have provided. Alfred s.h.i.+maoka still had up to six months to live-granted, painful and unpleasant, but still life he was ent.i.tled to.” Ken steepled his fingers, unconsciously imitating Waxman. ”I don't think we have enough information yet to say if it's a good use of the FBI's time and resources. I do know that this is a case that crosses state lines, may have a ripple effect and cause other sites to spring up, and at least once has resulted in a premature or unnecessary death: Corby Alexander Hale the third, a senator's son.”
Waxman smiled, sat back. ”Good. I wanted to hear our rationale articulated. I think we need to get to the heart of this site, who's behind it-and that person or persons are whom we will bring to trial. Dismissed.”
Out in the hall, Lei glanced at Ken, relieved the meeting was over but apprehensive about where she was going next-to meet Marcus Kamuela. ”I'm going to take off a little early. Got some personal business.”
”It's Friday, so I won't see you until Monday. Want me to come with you?” His eyes told her he knew what that business was.
”No, but thanks for asking. I'll call you.”
Lei walked away and heard Ang. ”What was that about?”
She didn't hear Ken answer, but she knew he'd keep her secret. That's what friends and partners did-and maybe someday she could add Sophie Ang to that handful of friends.
Chapter 14.
Lei had arranged to meet Kamuela at the dog park. Keiki was feeling frisky, at least as frisky as a middle-aged Rottweiler ever got. The sight of the big black dog lumbering and snorting with the tiny matching Chihuahua bouncing beside her as they played gave Lei a much-needed lift-that and looking out across the yellow arc of beach at the radiant sunset beginning, piercing the clouds over the ocean with golden arrow rays.
She closed her eyes, tipped her head back, did a couple of relaxation breaths, letting the freshness of a tiny breeze off the water ruffle the curls on her forehead, wicking the sweat from the run down off the mesh athletic s.h.i.+rt she wore. She longed for Stevens with a sudden hungry fierceness, wis.h.i.+ng for his solid, calm strength beside her, his arms around her.
”Hey, Lei.” Marcus Kamuela's deep voice. Her eyes snapped open. She sat upright as Marcella's boyfriend, with his intimidating physical presence, sat beside her on the bench. ”You were a million miles away.”
”Yeah, just thinking about our latest case,” she lied, feeling her cheeks heat up with that awful blush she'd struggled with all her life. ”Long day.”
”Yeah, well, imagine being me at the scene of a homicide, picking up the vic's phone, calling the last number, and having it be you.”
”Freaky it was a homicide.” Lei's heart had jumped to trip-hammer speed. Stay calm, she reminded herself. You don't know anything yet. ”I kind of freaked out talking to you today. I was in the middle of a witness interview when I took your call, and the personal business was throwing me off. I apologize for hanging up on you. I knew I needed to talk in person to explain.”
Kamuela had a handsome Hawaiian face with cla.s.sic features: broad brow, wide nose, full chiseled lips. Those lips were set in a line, and there was another one between his angled black brows. He hunched big shoulders. ”I'm meeting you here and not at the station because you're an FBI agent and a former cop and my girlfriend's best friend. I really don't want this to be something I have to bring you in for, but you hanging up on me didn't help.”
”I know. So here's the deal.” She sat forward, leaning her elbows on her knees, giving him a lot of eye contact. ”My grandfather gave me a box of my grandmother's things last night. That number was written on the back of a fortune cookie slip. On impulse, I called it. I've been trying to find out more about her because she's dead and I never got to meet her.”
”Fortune cookie,” Marcus repeated, incredulity in his tone.
”Yeah.” She'd brought the slip of paper, already in a small paper evidence bag. She handed it to him. ”The number's in her handwriting. I included samples for a.n.a.lysis if you want that. Didn't seal the bag because I knew you'd want to look.”
Marcus nodded. His big brown hands were gentle and deft as he slid the slip of paper out without touching it, held it by its sides, and read it. ”Shape your destiny.”
”I know, right? So it would really help me to know a little more about this strange man whose number my grandmother had.”
He ignored this, setting the slip on the bench and easing the letters she'd included in the bag out as well, giving them a quick once-over. Lei had included letters with characters, English phrases, and even some numbers. ”Looks the same. She j.a.panese?”
”Yes. Full blood. She's gone now, like I said.”
”How did she die?”
”Heart attack, a year ago.”
A long pause as he put the items back into the bag, still not touching them except by the edges, and folded down the top of the bag in a neat, ruler-straight line.
”I'll take these in,” he said. They both looked at the sunset that had decided to go glorious, a Technicolor display of light and color against the purpling sky. Keiki and Angel belatedly realized their mistress had been approached by a stranger and bounded back, sniffing Kamuela thoroughly. As usual, Angel was the most suspicious, yapping. She looked like she was considering latching on to his ankle until Lei scooped her up and scolded her.