The Object of His Protection - Brenda Jackson [55]
She looked around to see where the voice was coming from and whom it belonged to. She spotted him and recognized him immediately as a politician whose picture she’d seen numerous times in the newspapers.
Something made her move in that direction and she got close enough to see he was still giving the store clerk a hard time about a purchase he was trying to exchange. His voice continued to get louder.
She glanced down at his hand. He was holding his key ring, probably the one to his car. But what caught her attention was one of the keys on the ring. It was that key. The same one that had been on the autopsy table next to Joe Dennis’s body. No wonder neither she nor Drey had been able to find it that night they had gotten into the coroner’s office.
Realizing the smart thing to do was to leave before he got a chance to see her, she started to back up. At the same moment the man looked up and caught her staring. Her breath got logged in her throat, but she tried to appear normal. How could he possibly know who she was since their paths had never crossed? However, deciding she would not give him the chance to react one way or the other, she placed the shirt back on the stack and quickly walked out of the store. By the time she got to the parking lot she had begun running to her car.
She needed to contact Drey immediately.
Drey and his former partner, Lavender Sessions, who was now a detective with the Houston Police Department, met in private at Lavender’s home.
“You know if I find out anything I’ll let you know, Drey. And just so you’ll know, I wasn’t on vacation for the past couple of weeks like everyone assumes. I was in D.C.,” Lavender was saying. “There is reason to believe some of the guys are on the take and the entire police corruption is centered on one man. We’re working with the FBI to exposed his identity. It has spread into more areas than the police department and we want to stop it before it spreads any further.”
Drey nodded. He then studied his friend, concerned for his safety. “Are you sure that you’re safe and they don’t suspect you of anything?”
Lavender smiled. “It’s too soon for them to suspect anything. Just before I left for two weeks, I was approached to consider making extra money on the side. I knew then I was being asked to be a part of the bad guys. I’m supposed to give them my answer this week. I’ll be the mole the FBI needs to bring things to an end.”
Lavender continued. “And you’re probably correct in thinking Congressman Braddock was murdered. He had contacted the FBI indicating he had some items to turn over. He never made it back to Washington.”
Before Drey could respond, his cell phone rang. “Excuse me.” He pulled it out of his jacket pocket and quickly flipped it open once he saw it was Charlene. “Yes, sweetheart?”
“I saw him, Drey,” she said in a panicked tone. “I saw the man who was arguing with Nate that day. I recognized his voice. And he has the key. I saw the key that was taken out of Joe Dennis’s stomach on his key ring.”
Drey was out of his seat immediately. “Where are you?”
“The mall.”
“The mall! But I thought we agreed that—”
“I know. I know,” she said, cutting him off. “You can spank me later.”
Any other time he would have found her statement amusing, but not now. Drey glanced over at Lavender. He knew his friend had been following most of the conversation. Drey turned on the speaker to his cell phone and then placed it on the table between them. He wanted Lavender to hear everything. “Listen, Charlene. Can you tell if you’re being followed?”
She paused and he figured she was looking out of her rearview mirror. “No. I ran out of the store and left immediately. I doubt he had time to follow me.”
Drey nodded, relieved. “And you recognized the man?”
“Yes, Drey, you won’t believe who he is.”
Drey glanced over