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Chapter 27

"What would Frankie Mingle want with Richard Sobel?" Maxwell asked. He stood at the front of an auditorium. On a screen behind him floated giant images of both men.

"We're sure that was his vehicle?" Benson asked. He sat in a red plastic chair along with a handful of others. All were members of a Task Force charged with finding Richard Sobel.

"Hundred percent," said Maxwell. The images of the men changed to satellite footage. The subject was a large black vehicle - parked across from the door to the Trench Transfer Office before it had been destroyed. "That's a Marauder. For those unfamiliar, it's a luxury armoured car made by the Jans Corporation. Frankie Mingle owns one. The ID tag matches his. We were lucky one of the guards got a pic."

Maxwell pointed at the bottom left corner of the image. "You can see by the date stamp that it was outside the Trench just before the missile hit." The image changed again. This one also contained the truck but was zoomed in. There was a bright white blur at the rear. "The heat signature is clear a moment later."

A murmur rose from the crowd.

"Before you all start pecking like hens and coming up with theories I'll stress one thing. Frankie Mingle is no villain of the week. He's always been careful and flown under the radar. Never creates waves so Security doesn't bother him. Which means Sobel must have something he really wants."

"Can we track the Marauder with Sat imagery?" asked an athletic Asian man in the front row.

"We tried and got nothing. If it's the full military model, and we believe it is, then it has Vid blocking."

"Any imagery of Sobel being carried out of the building?"

"The blast destroyed the cameras in that area."

"What's your thought on how this ties into the main investigation, sir?" asked a small woman with a blonde bob seated beside Lapearle.

Maxwell looked at her and pursed his lips. His eyebrows rose and he exhaled. "You're asking for answers I just don't have Miss Garvin."

"Could Mingle have been getting Nickle's body back for his family?" asked Benson. "He's related somehow and you know how intent they were on having it."

"It's a possibility."

"What if a rival group had Nickle killed?" asked Garvin.

"That was considered. From what we can tell, anyone who has a problem with Mingle is in the Trench."

"How about someone new flexing their muscles? Might help explain why they would..."

Lapearle grabbed her knee. She stopped and looked at him. "Autopsy said Sobel's body was inconclusive, right?"

"We need to stay focused Mr. Lapearle. Pretty rude to interrupt. Garvin might be on to something."

"Humour me, Chief."

"Why bother? It's a waste of time. This is all in the debriefing file."

Lapearle said nothing – his expression held barely contained excitement. This kept Maxwell from brushing him off.

He sighed. "There was a gunshot wound but it wasn't near any vital organs. Dr. Mead said that shouldn't have killed him."

"Did anyone check his Hotwire?" asked Lapearle.

"No," said Maxwell. A look of understanding lit his face.