Hidden in the Blood: A Novel of the Terribly Acronymed Detective Club (Book 5)

Chapter Sixty: Joanie, Saturday

Joanie smiled and decided to send a text to Lauren. Great job! It's already taking off.

Immediately her phone rang. To her surprise, it was Lauren. She answered, "Hey, how's it going? Are you at home?"

"On my way home; I had to cover for a sick colleague on surveillance, but the target arrived home and turned in for the evening. How about you?"

"Yeah, just got home, I'm at the house in Queensborough."

"Oh! I'm not that far from you, actually, just on the other side of the bridge. Why are you staying there and not the townhouse?"

"It's kind of lonely without Agnes and the kids there."

"Aw, are you getting used to having people around?"

Joanie chose not to answer that. Instead, she said, "I wonder how they're doing in Kelowna."

There was a silence, and at first Joanie thought the line had gone dead. "Lauren?" she asked.

"Huh," Lauren said.

"What?"

"It's funny you should ask, because I just got a text from Rachel."

"Oh, yeah? Having fun drinking wine?"

"Actually, she just told me that the patriarch of the Mercer family is in the same room with them."

"What?!" Joanie squawked.

"This is something we should have made a contingency for," Lauren said, sounding worried. "He's the biggest name in wine in the region. Al's cousin grows grapes for them, he said. There was every possibility the Mercers would get an invite to this event."

"I should call my superiors," Joanie said. "They need to know in case Agnes is there without protection."

"Unless you count Al."

Joanie barked a laugh. "Sorry, I shouldn't laugh, but come on. I'd say Rachel's the better bet. She at least put herself between Logan and a bullet."

"Does that mean you're thawing toward Rachel?"

Joanie cleared her throat. "I wouldn't say that."

"Do you think they'd try something in the middle of an event attended by a whole lot of people?" Lauren asked frantically.

"Honestly, I don't know. It depends on how many people he might have brought with him, and whether he could isolate Agnes from the rest of them."

"I'm sure Al and Rachel will be clinging to her like barnacles, but I better let you go so you can tell your superiors."

"Thanks, Lauren. I'll call you back in a minute."

Lauren hung up. She called Superintendent Baker's cell phone, which he'd given her when the hashtag exploded. "Baker," he answered.

"Sir, it's Sergeant Mara," she said.

"Are you all right?" he asked, and she liked him even better for asking that question first, not what she wanted or why she was calling his personal phone.

"Yes, sir, but I just got a message from a friend that Agnes Marinville is at an event in Kelowna, and the Mercers are at the same event." She didn't need to clarify any of the names, since they'd discussed all of this when she'd asked to be on the team tasked with arresting Patrick's killers. "Could we confirm with the Kelowna detachment that she has protection at the event?"

"Goddammit, I hope so," Baker said. "Let me make some calls. I'll get back to you."

"Thank you, sir."