19

Piper sat at her desk in the Dungeon, occasionally hearing someone come down there, only to realize it was the wrong floor and go back up.

Lazarus paced and had the phone glued to his ear. She heard him say, “There’s no one else that would have access to somethin’ like that?”

Riley was silently typing away at his computer. Piper knew he was currently splitting his time between the grant and the Gang Task Force. Today, she noticed bruising on his knuckles and wondered who would have been dumb enough to challenge a giant.

The elevator dinged and opened. Heels echoed in the hallway, and then Judge Hope Dawson stood at the door in a blue suit and black stockings.

Lazarus said, “Lemme know as soon as you know,” and hung up. He looked at Judge Dawson and said, “Careful. You’re classin’ the place up.”

“Not sure it needs it. It’s quite charming for an underground chamber.”

Lazarus leaned against his desk and watched her quietly. Piper gave her a smile and kept the surprise out of her face, or at least tried to. Riley glanced at her, uninterested, and went back to his work.

“Detective,” Judge Dawson said as she noticed him in the corner.

“Judge,” he said in his deep voice without looking away from his computer screen.

“Talkative as always.”

Riley grinned.

The judge walked around the space. “Just thought I’d come by and see how everything’s going. How’s Sophie?” she asked Piper.

“She’s doing better. Talking more. She didn’t interact with the kids at first, but Carol told me her best friend comes by now and they take walks together sometimes.”

“Have you been visiting with her?”

“Yes. Nothing dramatic, but she’s opening up more.”

The judge nodded, directing her attention to the board. It displayed photos secured with small magnets, adorned with blue marker drawings alongside names, dates, and a table of tasks. The judge approached, calmly absorbing the information. “How are you doing, Detective Holloway?”

“You asking ’bout me or the case?”

She turned and gave him a small grin. “Both.”

“Well,” Lazarus said with an exhale, “the main thing is the alarm system. It never went off, and the cameras didn’t catch anyone in or out. But there’s a device that disrupts the alarm system and turns it off without the company being informed it’s off. So I’m tryin’ to narrow down who could get their hands on somethin’ like that.”

The judge turned back to the board. “What about before? A houseguest that was missed perhaps?”

“I looked. Their last visitor was a neighbor three days before they were killed, and the neighbor left after half an hour. Whoever killed them got past that alarm somehow. We find out how, we find him.”

Judge Dawson stared at Sophie’s picture. “I think I know someone that can help.”

Green Meadows was a planned community marketed to people near retirement. It was set on thirty acres of desert with a man-made pond. Its prominent feature was the small casino, reminding everyone that they were still in Vegas.

The judge had gotten them in touch with a security systems expert, Erik Toby, who used to be with the Las Vegas Metro Intelligence Section. He was retired, and the judge said he was interesting , and Piper didn’t know what that meant.

Seeking a brief escape from the office, Riley slid into the car’s back seat, causing the entire vehicle to dip down from his weight. He had to settle into the middle seat, the only spot that could somewhat accommodate his frame. Even then, he was forced to slump down, his head bowed to dodge the car’s low roof.

“You ever worked with the Intelligence Section before?” Lazarus asked Piper as he drove.

“I didn’t even know there was one.”

“They’re more like support. Analyzing evidence and threat assessments, making sure we don’t get our asses blown off running into an escort agency that turns out to be a meth lab.”

“Did you know this man?” Piper asked.

“No, he was before my time. You know him, big daddy?”

Riley grunted and shook his head.

Lazarus said, “One thing I know, they’re the smartest guys in the room.”

They parked in front of a tan home with a pointed roof nestled next to the pond. A trail surrounded the water, offering a path for people walking their dogs or jogging. The neighborhood looked like someone had gone through and polished it with a toothbrush. No grime or dirt, no real life. Piper didn’t like it.

The front door was large and had a placard that said “COVERT OPERATIONS UNIT.”

“At least he’s got a sense of humor,” Piper said.

They knocked and waited. Erik Toby answered in boxers with a robe hanging off his shoulders and flip-flops on his feet.

“Who the hell are you?” he said.

“Detectives Holloway and Riley, and this is Ms. Danes.”

Piper said, “Judge Dawson should have called.”

“Good Lord, you brought a giant with you.”

“He’s harmless,” Lazarus said coolly.

“Well, if you’re with the judge, come in.”

He had been holding a silenced pistol and placed it on a decorative table near the door. Lazarus glanced at the gun. “Silencers are illegal.”

“You ever read the criminal code? Everything’s illegal. To hell with it. Choose your sin, I say. You guys want some pot?”

Piper said, “Um, no, Mr. Toby, we were just hoping—”

“ Dr. Toby. I didn’t get a PhD to be called ‘mister.’”

“ Dr. Toby, we were hoping to get some information on—”

“Wait.” He halted abruptly, hand raised. The room fell silent as he cocked his head toward the ceiling, while Piper briefly observed Lazarus staring at a small sculpture on a pedestal. Riley looked around the home.

“My damn ferret gets in the air vents,” Toby said, lowering his hand. “Ex-wife takes the BMW and leaves me her ferret. I think she trained it to cause me stress to kill me. What were we talking about again?”

“Judge Dawson’s request to help us?”

“Oh, right, yeah. She said you’d have some security data for me to review.”

Lazarus held up a thumb drive. “This is what the alarm company gave us.” He tossed it to him, and Toby caught it and turned it over in his hand.

“You sure you guys don’t want some pot? I’ve been smoking since I retired for my arthritis and I’m telling you, there’s nothing that helps more.”

“Really?” Piper said.

“Yeah, and I tried everything. I even went to some revivalist tent to get a blessing from some preacher who said he could heal the sick. Only thing I got was a heat rash on my butt cheek. Forget it. Give me the drugs and leave me be, I say. What were we talking about again? Oh right, the data. I’ll look at it and get back to you. Give me some time.”

“How much time?” Lazarus said.

“I don’t know. Time. It’ll be done when it’s done. And don’t give me lip, son. I was wearing a badge while your daddy was in diapers. Just kidding, you’re beautiful. Don’t tell your giant to hurt me. Now get the hell out of my house.”

He wandered off down a hallway, mumbling something about giants and disappearing into the bowels of the home.

“I guess we’re done,” Lazarus said.

“You sure you want to hand all that data over to him just like that?”

He lightly touched the statuette on the pedestal. “I think he’s crazy enough to actually know what he’s doing.”