A Taste of Tragedy Read Online Free Page B

Retrieving her cell phone from her bag, she dialed her cousin’s number, hoping a conversation with her best friend and closest relative would push the unsettling messages from her mind .

CHAPTER SIX
     
    Devyn read through all the new data which had been uploaded onto the Risky Research database throughout the weekend. She wasn’t surprised to learn all but one of her fellow FBI agents had gotten the local investigator to crack and confess to submitting bogus accident reports. Unfortunately, none of the officers had any information that could help them identify the source of the bribes.
    All incidents followed the same scenario—a large initial payment with instructions on filling out the report was left in a bus station locker with the key hidden at the officer’s personal residence. Each officer received an untraceable call at home telling them where the key was and offering additional money if the report held up. All instructions were wrapped in a thinly veiled threat against the officer’s family if they chose not to cooperate.
    “Anything new?” Nick asked as he sat down at his desk facing Devyn’s.
    “Nothing too helpful. All but one agent got the local investigator to confess to submitting a false accident report, but none provided any clue as to who’s behind the bribes and threats. At least that should dissolve any lingering doubts about these incidents being accidents. I’ll give you one guess as to which agent was unsuccessful.”
    Nick chuckled. “By the tone of your voice, I have to assume it was Sacramento .”
    “Surprise, surprise. You find anything?”
    “I located where Janice Green lived for the brief time she was in the area. As I’m sure you can imagine, she left nothing behind that can help us track her down or figure out her true identity. I found a street bum who had plenty to say about her, but nothing useful or that I care to repeat in front of a lady. Or you.”
    Nick ducked to the right, dodging the stress ball aimed at his head, and snagged it out of the air. He didn’t acknowledge the attack as he squeezed the ball and smiled at Devyn, enjoying the frustrated look in her eyes. “What about the surveillance case?”
    “Tech’s on it.”
    “Anything new out of Wyoming ?”
    “How would I know?”
    “Come on, Devyn, you can’t seriously tell me you haven’t talked to Sheriff Gage Harris today.”
    Devyn shot a look at Nick that would have made weaker men flinch. “The two guys who survived the siege in Wyoming are out of the hospital and are due in court. They’re being charged with arson, auto theft, murder, and conspiracy to commit murder, to name a few, so they’ll likely go to prison for the rest of their lives. They still claim all dealings were with the assassin we only know as Frank, who was hired by Coterie to silence the UVN researchers in Utah and Wyoming , so no leads there either.”
    “Didn’t expect any. What next?”
    “I’m compiling a list of all pharmaceutical research, development, manufacturing, and testing companies in the U.S. When I’m done, we can split them up and start making calls. We’ll ask if they have any new hires that meet Janice’s description, if there have been any unusual accidents or incidents, and if they are working on any new products that would have a significant impact on the diet product industry. Basically, we’ll put them on notice so they’ll be extra diligent and call us directly if anything out of the ordinary happens.”
    Nick leaned forward and set the stress ball on Devyn’s desk. “Let me know when you have the list. In the meantime, the security footage from the airport, bus stations, and car rental agencies we requested for the timeframe when Janice probably left town still needs to be analyzed. My original request for Tech to run it through all our databases using facial recognition software got pushed back due to more pressing cases, and then a crashed server stalled the project even further, but looks