Dead Presidents (An Aria Raymond Thriller Book 3) by Thomas Ransom (that summer book txt) 📕

guard nodded and continued, “Well, anyway… so, I was parking the car and I noticed someone in a car… I thought it was one of the employees sneaking in a nap. I ignored it. But then, after like 30 minutes, I was parking another car and the guy was still in the car. So, this time, I decided to give him a warning… but, as I walked towards the car… it was obvious that it wasn’t one of our workers.”

“Why is that?”

“From the appearance. Even though, the glass is slightly tinted, I could tell the guy inside was well dressed. I was surprised. See, no one is allowed in the parking garage. The drivers are just supposed to give us the keys and our workers… they give one token to the driver and they park the car, at what time, and note down where it is parked on the second token and bring it to the office. When the driver returns, they come to the office, pay the amount for hours parked, and our workers bring their car and off they go. So, only the workers can be in the structure,” the guard took a deep breath before continuing, “When I reached the car, the guy seemed to be sleeping. I tapped on the window to tell the guy that he can’t be here and that he needs to leave. But he didn’t move at all. I tapped on the window a bit louder to get his attention but … nothing. That’s when I realized that something was wrong. How was he not moving? I checked the license plate to check it in our system, and the car had been parked in the structure for two days! This usually never happens.”

“Did you notice anything off? How did you realize that there was something wrong? I mean was there any other indication besides the guy not waking up after you knocked on the window?”

“He seemed awfully still… I … I don’t know why… I thought maybe the guy wasn’t well or something… I tried to open the door… it wasn’t locked… I…” the guard stammered.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to continue. You did really well,” Jake smiled encouragingly.

“He just … he just fell out… there… there was blood everywhere… I didn’t know… I couldn’t save him…” the guard’s eyes were watering.

“You did everything right. He was long gone,” the police officer patted the guard on his back.

Jake nodded to the officer and left his card with the guard in case he remembered anything else or wanted to talk. He and Sanjay went up to the seventh floor using the elevator from the office. They instantly saw the car. A few police officers were talking in hushed tones. They could make out the body half on the seat and half on the floor. It didn’t look good.

Getting closer, they realized this body was in a worse state then the body they had just witnessed at the apartment. This guy, just like the guard said, was well-dressed and appeared to be coming or going to a meeting. He was wearing a designer navy-blue suit and a white dress shirt that was apparently white before the blood stains had covered most of it. While he wasn’t beaten up, the murderer certainly took his time with him. There were multiple stab wounds and gashes in and around his abdomen. His shirt and suit were torn from chest down, and his clothes were soaking in blood. The blood was beginning to dry though, which meant the murder happened a while ago.

The forensic team was already busy at work silently.

“Have you figured out the cause of death? Was it the stab wounds?”

“We can’t be sure for now. But it does seem he bled to death or he could have suffocated too. All the windows were shut, so the lack of air could have taken his life. That is if he already wasn’t dead before someone placed him in the car.”

“You mean the murder didn’t happen in the car?”

“Doesn’t seem like it. We are still checking though. The amount of stab wounds the body has… there would have been blood everywhere and there might have been some scratches or marks on the seat. However, the interior of the car seems completely fine, aside from the blood on the seat and underneath. We will know more after running some tests.”

Sanjay sighed, “Do we know the identity?”

The police officer nearby handed Sanjay a wallet and an ID card in a clear, sealed bag. Sanjay read the ID and looked at Jake.

“Don’t tell me…”

Sanjay nodded, “The ID says he is the president of the company.”

“A finance company?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, now there is no doubt that these murders are not a coincidence.”

Diaz took a deep breath and forced herself to look at the man sitting before her. It was odd. She never pictured him sitting in her small apartment. There was always an aura of power and prestige around him, ever since they were juniors at law school. It was what attracted her toward him. That authority. It intrigued her. The minute she saw him on campus on her first day, she wanted to know him. She was thrilled to see him walk into the classroom and realize that he was in the same class. How exciting! He had made his way up to find a seat and had glanced straight into her eyes. She instantly felt a strong pull towards him. They held the gaze for a few seconds too long before he sat down on the seat right in front of her.

In the middle of the lecture, he turned to Diaz to hand her the attendance sheet with a half-smile, making her heart skip a beat. She looked at the last name on the list - Mark Sullivan. She smiled.

“That’s the smile I missed so much,” Mark’s