Rarities Unlimited 04 - The Color of Death

our ass.”
    “If it was only one circumstance or two or three, sure,” Sam said. “But no one else had the information that Sizemore did. Not us, not—”
    “What about Mandel Inc.?” Doug asked. “They had it.”
    Sam’s fingers pressed against Kate’s wrist, warning her to be quiet.
    “Doesn’t fly,” Sam said.
    “Why not?” Kennedy demanded. “They sure as hell knew their son was carrying the goods their daughter cut.”
    “You’re out of your bureaucratic mind!” Kate said, ignoring Sam’s silent warning. “Dad wouldn’t kill his own son!”
    “Nobody’s saying he meant to,” Kennedy said calmly. “Ninety-nine percent of courier heists don’t even result in a hangnail to the courier, much less death. Something just went wrong.”
    “Like what?” she asked sarcastically. “Lee tripped and broke his neck and a flock of vultures carried him off to the mangrove swamp for a snack?”
    “Look, Ms. Chandler,” Kennedy said. “I know how hard this is on you.”
    “You don’t have the faintest idea. Last night someone tried to kill us and I ended up with blood and bone and— stuff —all over the—” She took a sawing breath. “Never mind. That’s not important. The point is that my father wouldn’t kill my brother.”
    “Admirable sentiment, and quite expected,” Kennedy said. “But I could think of several scenarios in which your brother’s death would be required. Regrettable, I’m sure, but still necessary.”
    “Name them,” she said through pale, tight lips.
    Kennedy looked at Doug.
    Doug looked right back at him.
    “If the heist was supposed to be clean and quiet,” Sam said evenly, not wanting Doug to get in any more trouble than he already was, “and Lee happened onto the scene and recognized his father or some other Mandel employee, then Lee had to die, right? But since it’s basically a family business, the father is the most likely suspect.”
    Kate wanted to object. The pressure of Sam’s fingers around her wrist made her think better of it. That and the clear sense that he was a breath away from losing his temper and going right over the desk after Kennedy.
    “Very good,” Kennedy said sardonically. “I guess you haven’t lost your perspective after all.”
    Sam ignored him. “Or Lee could have been in on it from the start, and his father found out, they argued, and Lee ended up dead.”
    Kennedy nodded.
    “Or Lee could have been innocent and his father wasn’t,” Sam continued. “Argument, same result.”
    Again, Kennedy nodded. He reached for another cigarette, lit it, and began to look relaxed for the first time.
    Doug didn’t. He just kept looking at Sam as though he expected the other man to pull his weapon and start shooting.
    “The only problem with those scenarios,” Sam continued in his dangerously neutral tone, “is that they assume a single death unrelated to any other courier heist, which we know isn’t the case.”
    Kennedy threw the lighter on his desk. “What are you talking about? Of course the heists are connected. Even if the MOs are mixed—hell, I’ll give you your goddamn Teflon gang—there’s not one single reason to assume the Florida hit was a one-off.”
    “I agree,” Sam said. “Which leads us to the second problem.”
    Doug braced himself.
    Kennedy picked up a letter opener and tested its edge. Not sharp enough. Not nearly as sharp as Sam Fucking Groves. “I’m listening,” Kennedy said, putting down the tool.
    “The outstanding features of the courier heists I’ve concentrated on were technical skill, inside information, and the kind of training usually associated with special law-enforcement and/or military teams. That’s what makes them Teflon. They’re smarter and a lot better trained than your average mutt. Or their boss is. Kirby was smart, but I don’t think he was the boss. He didn’t have a way to get the inside information unless someone gave it to him. Someone who was already inside.”
    Kennedy grunted.
    “Mandel Inc. certainly has the technical skill to make remote keys,” Sam continued, “and in some but not all cases, the inside information, but not one Mandel employee has ever had law-enforcement or military special-ops training. I can guarantee that the intruder last night did. Which brings up the question, How did Mandel get into the ex–special ops community? Those boys are as clannish as they come.”
    Kennedy took a long pull on his cigarette and didn’t argue. There was no