Shadows of Deceit by Mell Corcoran (grave mercy .TXT) 📕

mouth, trying not to laugh out loud. He gave Vinny space and walked to the driveway of their perplexing crime scene. It struck him all of the sudden that he had been there for less than two hours and other than taking more notes then he had taken since he left West Point, the morning had been more enjoyable than he had ever expected. He admired Vinny’s loyalty and work ethic. Caroline was far sassier than he was prepared for. Rochelle was going to be a problem for him if she got in his face. He was a gentleman always, the highest respect for women. However, if she got in his face, he had no problem getting in hers. He had now met Lou’s partner, her best friend and her mother’s best friend. It was not difficult to like them all very much and enjoy the rapport they all had with each other. Dillon expected that Lou would fall in with all those personalities but he really had no clue what to expect when and if he finally met her. He had read her file a dozen times preparing for this gig, just as he had read Vinny and Caroline’s. It was all just words on paper when you came down to it. What really mattered was how they got along and how they worked together as a team. Dillon reminded himself that he wasn’t interviewing to be Vinny or Caroline’s partner, they were essentially the gatekeepers. Lou was the target.

“OK, so you won the first round.” Vinny suddenly appeared beside Dillon. “We still got time before the second. So tell me what you think we got here.”

“Alright.” Dillon didn’t take out his notebook to review, he knew everything by heart already. “None of the three victims are going to turn out to be Arcano. We will need to dig into his business but I am willing to bet that those three were a message. Not sure if that message is for Arcano or for someone else connected to him. They were most definitely killed where the killer or killers left them but there was one serious clean-up and I really am not sure why they went to such an extreme. I think it’s safe to assume that Arcano, his dog and all his stuff was removed from here before those boys in there showed up. Maybe they were part of the crew that cleared the place out? Loose ends that were tied up on the spot?” He paused to organize his thoughts a moment.

“Jane says she saw Arcano in his doorway Friday morning when she walked her dogs. He waved, she saw a giant floral arrangement behind him on a table approximately where our John Does were laid out.” Vinny tossed some of the info they gleaned from Jane at him. “That means that house was being lived in like normal, with furniture and dog up until at least then.”

“Right. I’m guessing the table was centered under the chandelier so that was taken out before the bodies were left. The blood pool is pristine. No voids or any smearing that I could see.” Dillon and Vinny were on the same page so far. “About the furniture being cleared out though...” Dillon was a little hesitant to give Vinny his theory but he figured he may as well start tossing it out in pieces. “How long of a helicopter flight would you say it is from here to the nearest military base?”

“Helicopter flight?” Vinny hadn’t expected to hear that.

“I know it’s out of left field, but humor me here.” Dillon requested. “Alright...” Vinny looked around to gauge his location. “Well, it would take about thirty to forty minutes to drive to Point Magu Naval Air Station, Port Hueneme. A Black Hawk has a cruising speed of what? 130 miles per hour? So that’s what a ten minutes trip? Fifteen tops?” Vinny wasn’t sure where Dillon was going with this.

“I hope you don’t mind but I took the liberty of asking forensics to take samples of the lawn out back, and some of the plants too.” Dillon paused a moment. “I also asked for number of full spectrum camera shots to be taken of the back yard from the master suite balcony.”

“What are you thinking here?” Vinny thought he was catching on but it seemed implausible.

“Sir, I know this will sound far fetched but I am thinking a very well oiled, well funded machine flew in here and cleaned the place out. Did you notice the patio furniture on the main patio in the back was in disarray?” “Well I wouldn’t say disarray.” Vinny disagreed with Dillon’s description. “It looked more like someone had moved it, maybe to wash

the patio or something.”

“Perhaps, but I know for a fact that a helo can easily land on that pad.” Although it wasn’t in his public record and Vinny wouldn’t know, Dillon was former Army, intelligence no less. He knew a little bit about this subject.

“A helicopter? Are you kidding me?” Vinny raked his fingers through his glossy black hair. “No way. They are way too loud to come in and out of here undetected. Even at night.”

“Not a specific type of helicopter, sir.” Dillon waited for Vinny’s reaction. “You read about the MH-X, the Stealth Eagle or Silent Eagle? The specialized Black Hawk they used to get in and cap Bin Laden?”

“You telling me those are real?” It was amazing how Vinny could whisper and yell at the same time.

“While I am not at liberty to give specifics, I can tell you that I personally have flown such aircraft and they are so silent that one could land behind you right now and the only tip off would be the wind picking up.” Dillon got in real close to Vinny. “The payload is the issue. They would have to make a few trips, even with the exterior cargo hook. But with a big enough team and a couple hours, it could be done. I have contacts, I could make some calls.”

It was extremely far fetched. Vinny’s first thought was to the old saying about when you hear hoofbeats, you think horse, not zebra. Dillon’s theory was definitely in the zebra category and the implication of such an operation made Vinny’s mind whirl with all sorts of conspiracy theories. He wasn’t sure he was ready to make such a leap. They needed to dig into this Casius Arcano and his family business first. They also needed to find out who the hell those bodies were.

“Alright, you got your own car so meet me over at Lost Hills and you can start making your calls. I’ll see you there in ten.” Vinny turned without another word and got into his car.

Dillon knew how it must have sounded but if he was right, forensics was going to find jet fuel residue on the plants out back and those full spectrum photographs were going to pull a signature from where that helo had landed. If neither of those things showed up, he knew it was going to be goodbye candidate number eight.

 

Imprint

Publication Date: 04-30-2014

All Rights Reserved

Dedication:
Crime, Mystery, Fiction, Suspense, Thriller, Paranormal, eBook, Mell Corcoran, Series of Shadows