Diana Racine 02 - Goddess of the Moon

he didn’t have one. In light of the investigation’s direction, neither mentioned the ominous note Diana received with the picture of the star and the crescent moon. W hoever was behind this had targeted Diana. Was he trying to draw her in or scare her off? If the latter, he didn’t know who he was dealing with.
    “Do you feel the babies were harmed?” he asked.
    She wrapped her arms around herself and shivered. “If they were, it wasn’t in this room.”
    “The CSU is here, Lieutenant,” Halloran interrupted.
    Lucier wiped a smudge of mascara near Diana’s eye. “Come on, let’s grab a bite to eat while the unit does its job. Then I’m taking you home.”
    “Time is important.”
    “I know. A team ’s check ing out the neighborhood , and we’re running a check on who owns the house. Whoever it is chose this location because it’s set off from the others on the street. Hopefully, someone saw Deems and others too , because m ore than one person is involved. ”
    * * * * *
    T he next day in Lucier’s office , Cash said, “The house is owned by a corporation doing business out of the Caymans. Agent Stallings said he’d look into it. ”
    “Caymans, huh? Why am I not surprised? The feds have better resources to untangle corporate shenanigans. He running the prints too?”
    “Yup,” Cash said.
    A few hours later, Special Agent Ralph Stallings popped his head into Lucier’s office. “I was in the neighborhood, Lieutenant. Hope you don’t mind my dropping in.”
    “Not at all. Wanted to talk to you anyway. Have a seat.”
    “ I wanted to let you know that Deems’ s prints were all over th e house , along with eight other sets.” He sat down and took his time before unload ing the bombshell. “The most interesting is Silas Compton.”
    The name took Lucier by surprise. “The industrialist?”
    “The same. His prints are on file because he’s worked on government projects. My guess is that Compton owns it, but proving it quickly won’t be easy unless he fesses up. He’s been on our watch list for years. He’s anti-government but doesn’t have a problem taking government contracts.”
    “ A lot of people have no problem criticizing on one hand while grabbing all they can with the other.”
    “Well, Compton ’ s taken his share. He complies with what he has to, but he owns a battery of lawyers to keep his private life private and his money hidden . If an employee breaks his confidentiality agreement , he’s fired, and Compton pays so well that rarely happens. He controls his empire from a building he owns in the business district. Next to him, Howard Hughes looked like a publicity hound.”
    “Any indication of religious deviation?”
    “You mean the s atanic symbols on the walls?”
    “Yeah.”
    “No, but he sure as hell wouldn’t make it public if he did.”
    “What about other prints?” Lucier asked.
    “We’re still checking.”
    “Agent Stallings, now that y our tech people are finished, do you have any objection if Diana Racine goes back into the house?”
    Stallings shook his head. “None. With her track record, I’ll be interested to see what she comes up with. We couldn’t legally act on her impressions, of course, but we could…check them out.”
    Lucier extended his hand. “I’ll keep you informed. Oh, and I’m glad you’re running the case. A bout time we put our heads together without a turf war.”
    “Whatever it takes when the lives of children are at stake. Just as long as we both keep each other in the loop.”
    * * * * *
    D iana stood in front of the pink house, acclimating herself to its aura. “Do you mind if I go in alone, Ernie?”
    “ Y ou sure you’ll be all right ? ”
    “I know what to expect. I’ll be fine.”
    Lucier pointed down the street. “When Halloran checked that house, the people who live there weren’t h ome. There’s a car in the driveway now. Maybe I’ll have better luck.”
    “Hope so.”
    She waved him on and walked tentatively through the gate. When she got to the top of the stairs and put the key in the lock, she turned around. Lucier stood watching. She smiled, opened the door, and went inside.
    As soon as she entered, a chill hit her like a gust of arctic air. Strange, because the air conditioner was off and the house was closed. She rubbed her arms to warm up. The crime scene unit left everything as they’d found it, but their presence might contaminate her perceptions in the same way carelessness contaminates