The sheriff’s department bristled with nervous energy. Nick could feel it as soon as he and O’Dell walked in the door. Here he was, worried about a frenzy taking over the community, and he had one in his own department.

Phones rang incessantly. Machines beeped. Keyboards clicked. Faxes hummed. Radios squawked. Voices yelled out to each other from room to room. Bodies dashed and scurried, amazingly not bumping into one another.

Again, there were police officers he didn’t recognize and equipment he couldn’t identify. He was depending on people he barely knew to handle things he hardly understood. It made him as uncomfortable as hell.

Lucy looked relieved to see him. She smiled and waved from across the room. There was a quick glance of contempt in O’Dell’s direction. O’Dell didn’t seem to notice.

“Nick, we’ve checked every inch of this city,” Lloyd Benjamin’s voice rasped with exhaustion. He removed his glasses and wiped his eyes. The deep worry lines in his forehead were pronounced, like permanent indents. The oldest member of Nick’s team, Lloyd was also the most reliable next to Hal. “Richfield’s men are still checking the river where we found the Alverez kid. I’ve got Staton’s men on the north side of town. They’re going to check that gravel pit and Northton Lake.”

“Good. That’s good, Lloyd.” Nick patted him on the back. There was something else. Lloyd rubbed his jaw, glanced at O’Dell.

“Some of us were talking,” Lloyd continued in a low voice, almost a whisper. “Stan Lubrick thought he remembered Jeffreys having a partner…you know…sort of a…well, a lover, at the time he was arrested. I do kind of remember us bringing a guy in for questioning, but I don’t think he ever testified. A Mark Rydell,” he said, scanning a notepad with illegible scratches. “We were wondering if we should try and check the guy out. See if he’s anywhere around.”

They both looked at O’Dell, who was distracted by the chaos. Nick wasn’t even sure she had heard Lloyd. Her hands were shoved deep into her jacket pockets. Her eyes darted back and forth, watching the commotion. Then suddenly, she seemed flustered when she realized they were waiting for her to answer.

“I didn’t realize Jeffreys was gay. How do know this guy was his lover?” Again, her tone was matter-of-fact. No hint of condescension, though Nick knew she was capable of turning stubborn speculation into ridiculous trivia.

Lloyd loosened his tie and collar. The subject obviously made him uncomfortable.

“Well, they were living together at the time.”

“Wouldn’t that make them roommates?”

O’Dell was as tough and unflinching as she was beautiful. Nick found himself relieved that this time he wasn’t on the other side of her questions. Lloyd looked to him for help. Nick only shrugged.

“Is it possible to check if Rydell kept in touch with Jeffreys after he was sentenced?” O’Dell asked Lloyd, instead of dismissing his hunch.

“They may have some information at the penitentiary.”

“You might check out what other visitors Jeffreys had or who else he may have kept in touch with. See if there were any prisoners or even guards he befriended. On death row they don’t have much contact with other prisoners, but there may have been someone.”

Nick liked the way her mind processed information quickly, refusing to disregard even the slightest details. A lead that Nick had believed far-fetched materialized into something substantial. Even Lloyd, who proudly came from a generation of keeping women in their place, seemed satisfied. He had added more scratches to his notes while O’Dell had been talking. Now he nodded at both of them and wandered off to find a phone.

Nick was impressed once again. O’Dell caught him watching her, and he simply smiled.

“Hey, Nick. That woman called again,” Eddie Gillick called out from behind his desk, a phone cradled under his chin.

“Agent O’Dell, here’s a fax from Quantico for you.” Adam Preston handed her a roll of paper.

“What woman?” Nick asked Eddie.

“Sophie Krichek. Remember, she was the one who said she saw an old blue pickup in the area when the Alverez kid was snatched.”

“Let me guess. She saw the pickup again. This time with another little boy who happens to look like Matthew Tanner.”

“Wait a minute,” O’Dell interrupted, looking up from the trail of fax paper that stretched to the floor. “What makes you think she’s not serious?”

“She calls all the time,” Nick explained.

“Nick, here’s your messages.” Lucy handed over a stack of pink “while you were out” slips and waited in front of him. She was dressed in the usual tight sweater and tight skirt. It would be so much easier to stop her if she didn’t have such a voluptuous figure.

“Let me get this straight. You’re not going to check out this lead because this woman has surpassed her quota of phone calls?” O’Dell had that look in her eyes that told Nick she thought he was bordering on incompetent. He wondered whether it had anything to do with his slight distraction over Lucy’s stretched blue-and-green-knit stripes.

“Three weeks ago she called to tell us she saw Jesus in her backyard pushing a little girl on a swing set. She doesn’t even have a backyard. She lives in an apartment complex with a concrete parking lot. Lucy, are the transcripts from Jeffreys’ confession and trial here yet?”

“Max said she’d bring them over herself as soon as possible.” Lucy swayed on the spike heels, and he knew it was strictly for his benefit. “They need to make copies of everything. Max won’t let the originals out of the clerk’s office. Oh, Agent O’Dell, a Gregory Stewart called for you like three or four times. He said it was important and that you have his number.”

“Your boss checking up on you?” Nick smiled at O’Dell, who suddenly looked distraught.

“No, my husband. Is there a phone I can use?”

Nick’s smile disappeared. He glanced at her hand. No wedding ring. Yes, he was sure he had checked before, simply out of habit. She was waiting for an answer.

“You can use my office,” he said, trying to sound disinterested and shuffling through the stack of messages. “Down the hall, last door on the right.”

“Thanks.”

As soon as she disappeared around the corner, Eddie Gillick stopped beside Nick on his way to the fax machine. “Why do you look so surprised, Nick? She’s quite a catch. Why wouldn’t she be married?”

It was ridiculous. This morning at Michelle Tanner’s he had been ready to strangle her. But now he suddenly felt as if someone had punched him in the stomach.