“I’ll have you in the FBI equivalent of Siberia by dawn. You have no proof of anything.”
“Actually, I’m basing my arrest on your own words.” While everyone watched, McKenna knelt under the desk kneehole, probed for a moment and pulled out a listening device. “Your statements came through loud and clear in the surveillance van parked outside.” He looked at Fiske. “Knight was the one who told Rayfield to kill your brother.”
Jordan was furious. “That is completely illegal. There’s not a judge in this city who would have given you a warrant for that. I’m not going to prison, you are.”
“We didn’t need a warrant. We had consent.”
“Bullshit!” Jordan roared. He looked like he was about to attack the agent. “I demand you give me those tapes immediately. You’re an imbecile if you think anyone will believe that I gave such consent.”
“You didn’t, Jordan. I did.”
The blood drained from Jordan’s face as his wife stepped into the room. She didn’t even look at Perkins’s body. Her gaze remained fixed on her husband.
“You?”
“I live here too, Jordan. I gave that consent.”
“In God’s name, why?”
Elizabeth held his gaze for a moment, then touched the sleeve of Rufus Harms. “This man is why, Jordan. This man is the only reason strong enough to make me do what I did.”
“For him? He’s a child killer.”
“It’s no good, Jordan. I know the truth. And damn you for what you’ve done.”
“What I’ve done? All I’ve ever done is serve my country.” He stabbed a finger at Rufus. “This man never did shit for anything or anybody. The bastard deserved to die.”
Moving faster than his bulk would seem to have allowed, Rufus reached Jordan, his big hands encircling the senator’s neck as he slammed him up against the wall.
“Damn you!” Rufus screamed. His grip tightened and Jordan started turning red.
McKenna and Chandler trained their guns, but couldn’t bring themselves to shoot. They looked helpless. They grabbed Rufus, but it was like pulling on a mountain.
“Jordan,” Elizabeth screamed.
“Rufus, stop,” Sara yelled.
Jordan was nearly unconscious.
Fiske stepped forward. “Rufus, Rufus?” Fiske took a quick breath and then just said it. “Josh didn’t make it.” Rufus instantly loosened his grip on Jordan’s throat and stared at Fiske. “He’s dead, Rufus. We both lost our brothers.” Fiske was visibly trembling and Sara put a hand on his shoulder. “If you kill him, you’ll go back to prison and Josh will have died for nothing.” Rufus relaxed his grip even more as tears wound down his face. “You can’t do it, Rufus.” Fiske took another unsteady step forward. “You just can’t.”
As the two bereaved men looked at one another, Rufus simply let go, and a gasping Jordan Knight slumped to the carpet.
* * *
Jordan did not look at his wife as he was led away in handcuffs by McKenna. An hour later the forensics team had completed its work and Perkins’s body was removed. Chandler, Rufus, Sara and Fiske remained behind. Elizabeth Knight was in her bedroom.
“So how much did you know about the truth, Buford?” Fiske asked.
“Some of it. McKenna and I had talks. At first I think he really believed you were involved, or at least he genuinely didn’t like you.” Chandler smiled. “But after he learned Rufus was somehow connected, his opinion changed. I didn’t like the idea of him setting you up for the fall, though. And he pushed the buttons on Sara getting fired.”
“Why?” Sara asked.
“You two were getting close to the truth. That meant you both were in danger. McKenna knew the people involved were capable of a lot. But he didn’t have any proof. He had to make them think you two were the primary suspects. And every time we were around Perkins and Dellasandro, McKenna made it clear he thought Rufus’s appeal was bogus and John was the killer. He took your gun and made sure Perkins and Dellasandro knew it was missing. He hoped that meant they would feel safe and might slip up. Also it was meant to keep you two safe.”
“I don’t think it accomplished the last part,” Sara said with a shiver.