Page 35 of Manner of Death
Felix stared at him, but then his eyes flicked toward the binder that was now in Bashir’s possession, and his righteous fury came back. “You can’t just confiscate my property! That’s a Fourth Amendment violation, and—”
“No, it isn’t.” The officer sounded about as done with this whole thing as Bashir was. “You handed it over voluntarily, and it’s considered stolen property.” He paused. “Dr. Ramin might not be able to confiscate it from you, but I absolutely can.”
“The hell you can! Not everything in there is—it’s not stolen! It’s a copy of a report that’s on file, so you’re—”
“It’s not a report you’re legally entitled to view or possess,” Bashir snapped. “And maybe instead of making this about your rights, you should consider the rights of the victims and their families, not to mention those of any victims that might die while we’re wasting time instead of apprehending the suspect.” He slammed the notebook down on the autopsy table, making both men jump. “You can obtain the information with a Freedom of Information Act request after the case has been adjudicated, and not before. Period.”
“That’s bullshit! You can’t just withhold—”
“Is everything all right in here?” Sawyer’s voice jerked Bashir’s attention to the doorway, and for the first time today, there was some actual relief.
Oh, thank God you’re here.
Felix coughed a caustic laugh. “And look at that. More cops. Anything to suppress free speech and make sure the truth doesn’t come out. What the fuck are you assholes hiding about these deaths, anyway? Why are you so determined to—”
“How do you know I’m a cop?” Sawyer’s tone was smooth, almost casual, but the question was still pointed.
Felix blinked stupidly. Then he laughed again, still full of sarcasm and derision. “So now we’re playing ‘good cop’…” He gestured at the officer. “Bad cop.” He gestured Bashir. “And not a cop? Is that the latest game?”
“No, it isn’t.” Sawyer stepped deeper into the room, eyes never leaving Felix, expression not even twitching with the slightest hint of annoyance. “It’s a genuine question.” He looked down at himself, then back at Felix, and shrugged. “How do you know I’m a cop?”
Felix’s mouth opened and closed like a fish’s.
“Mmhmm.” Sawyer slid his hands into the pockets of his overcoat, and only then did he narrow his eyes and let the subtlest—and maybe sexiest—little smirk come to life. “See, you could’ve just said the fact that I let myself in through the front door, which clearly meant I had credentials allowing me to get this far into the police department, as well as into the morgue. As opposed to, you know, someone coming to collect or drop off a body, who’d pull up to back and ask to be buzzed in.”
Felix blinked.
Bashir had to fight a laugh at the kid’s flustered expression, and he was admittedly impressed by—just impressed, not at all turned on by or attracted to—Sawyer playing verbal chess with this checkers novice.
“So, with that out of the way…” Sawyer’s smirk vanished and his serious cop mask was firmly back in place. “How did you know I’m a cop?”
As amusing as the interplay was, Bashir couldn’t quite understand why Sawyer was harping on this so hard. Yes, he was in plainclothes, but what did it matter if the podcaster knew he was a cop?
Felix shuffled his feet and cleared his throat. “I, um… I saw you. Last night. At the scene behind the grocery store.”
The officer and Bashir both tensed, but Sawyer didn’t even flinch.
“Uh-huh. And what exactly were you doing there?”
The podcaster half-shrugged, some color blooming in his previously pale face. “I… I have a police scanner. It said there was…” He shifted a little more. “Said there was a body behind the store.”
“Mmhmm. So you just strolled on up to an active crime scene, and now you’re in here haranguing the medical examiner?” He gestured at the binder beside Bashir. “While in possession of evidence you shouldn’t have? Tell me—did you get your hands on all of that before or after you got in touch with Jessica Villeray-Blanc to produce a potential television series starring her daughter?”
Felix’s jaw went slack. Truthfully, so did Bashir’s. A television series? And… Villeray-Blanc So, a relative of Sawyer’s? What in the actual fuck was happening here? He had to literally bite his tongue to keep from asking that question out loud, and he only did that because he didn’t want to interrupt Sawyer’s momentum.
While Felix was on his heels and still trying to rally, Sawyer started ticking off points on his fingers. “You’ve got information you shouldn’t have about active investigations. You’re using that information to interrogate the M.E., likely to obtain more information that absolutely should not be made public any time soon. You were at the crime scene last night. And you’re in talks with a producer about a potentially lucrative TV deal with a headline actress.” Sliding his hands in his pockets again, he fixed a glare on Felix that probably could’ve made a serial killer wet his pants. “Mr. Daughtry, you’ve got five seconds to give me one good reason why I shouldn’t name you my prime suspect in all three murders.”
The kid was back to being so white, even Bashir could’ve mistaken him for a corpse if not for the way his mouth was soundlessly moving. And Bashir might’ve been making a gobsmacked face himself. Actress? TV deal? Was that… Was that the new development Sawyer had wanted to tell him about?
A renewed chill worked its way down his spine. Coincidences were rarely actual coincidences, especially when dealing with a psychopath who liked to play games. Had the killer involved Sawyer’s sister as a way to toy with him? Maybe as a way to fuck with his mind by showing him how close he could get to Sawyer’s family? Because that wasn’t creepy at all.
Finally, Felix managed to croak, “I’m not a murderer!”
“But all those other facts I stated are still true.” Sawyer was unmoved. “So now would be a damn good time to start talking.” With a subtle sneer, he added, “I’m pretty sure that’s something you’re skilled at doing, yes?”
Felix glanced at Bashir. Then at the other cop. Then back at Sawyer. He was wound tight now, like a terrified animal.
Shit. It hadn’t even occurred to Bashir that Felix might be a suspect, or that he might have ties to the suspect.