The black hoodie. It seemed like a random detail, but given that the man who’d killed Jason Garcia had been wearing a black hoodie, it probably wasn’t acoincidence.
A killer might have gotten close to Mia tonight. What sucked is that Joaquin hadn’t been able to tell her that. He had promised Darcangelo not to say a word about the old woman and her video. Thank God Mia had calledhim.
The men waited for her to goon.
She folded her hands together in her lap, her fingers laced so tightly that her knuckles were white. “There was something familiar about him. I can’t say what. I got the feeling that if I had seen his face, I would have recognizedhim.”
“It makes sense to me,” Hunter said. “If these two cases areconnected—”
“If?” Joaquinblurted.
Hunter shot Joaquin a stony glance. “If these two cases are connected—and it seems to me that they are—whoever is behind this has to be someone who knew both victims and who knows you. You are the thread that brings it together, which is why the department has been so interested inyou.”
“Who would want to hurt you, Mia?” Darcangelo leaned in close, but Joaquin could see that he was careful not to touchher.
Mia looked away, squeezed her eyes shut, her composure crumbling, the fear she was trying to hide naked on her face for just a moment. She had something she wanted to tell them, something she was afraid tosay.
“You can trust them, Mia. Tell them what you toldme.”
She shut her emotions down, looked over at him, nodded. “I’m afraid that the killer isn’t finished. I’m afraid he’s got other people in his crosshairs … and that I’ll be one ofthem.”
Darcangelo and Hunter seemed to consider what she’dsaid.
“There’s a missing piece here,” Hunter said. “Why,Mia?”
“Any information that sheds light on this might help us save lives, including yours,” Darcangelosaid.
Mia glanced up at Joaquin, an almost pleading look in her eyes. “If I tell you, I could go toprison.”
Okay, that isnotwhat Joaquin had expected her tosay.
Prison?¡Mierda!Fuck.
When Darcangelo spoke again, his voice was soft, soothing. “If you have information that helps catch a killer, the DA would bear that in mind when considering chargesagainst—”
“It’s not like that.” Mia’s lips curved in a fleeting smile as if Darcangelo had just said something funny. “I haven’t done anything wrong—yet. Telling you might constitute breaking thelaw.”
“Huh.” Understanding dawned on Hunter’s face. “Classifiedinformation?”
Mia nodded. “Confidential.”
If Joaquin remembered correctly, “Confidential” was the lowest level of classified information. Still, operatives who had leaked classified info had gone to prison, even when that information wasn’t TopSecret.
No wonder she was afraid to tellthem.
He crossed the room, sat on the coffee table across from her. “I know you’re scared. It must feel like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders right now. But we have laws that protect whistleblowers, including militarypersonnel.”
“Ramirez is right,” Hunter said. “I served with Special Forcesand—”
“Trash detail.” Darcangelowinked.
Hunter ignored him. “They can’t penalize you for exposing those who break the law, as long as you disclose that information to your chain of command, the courts, or lawenforcement.”
Mia nodded. “I read the statute today, but I’m no longer active-duty military. I couldn’t find anything that protectsformermilitarypersonnel.”
Joaquin saw her dilemma. “You’re in a grayarea.”
“If I tell you, you’ll have the power to destroy my life. You have to promise me that we’re off the record. If this ended up in the newspaper, I would be outside the protection of any law. You can’t tell anyone, especially not thatreporter.”