Crown's Vengeance, The by Andrew Clawson

of their capabilities?”
    “Both appear to be highly intelligent and physically fit. Mr. Chase belongs to a martial arts school and is listed as a brown belt. I would consider him to be more than capable of defending himself. They are each registered owners of several firearms, though Ms. Carr’s was only purchased within the past few months.”
    They may be able to take care of themselves, but they sure as hell weren’t trained operatives. Becker was making them out to be a professional hit team.
    “I appreciate your input, Mr. Becker. Now, in your opinion, are they in any way involved with an attempt to defraud Aldrich Securities?” Here Becker hesitated, the first hint of uncertainty Drake had seen. “Cat got your tongue, Mr. Becker?”
    “In any professional manner, the answer is no. However, last night a call was placed from Mr. Chase’s cell phone to the private phone of an Aldrich employee, one Benjamin Flood.”
    Drake bolted upright in his chair. “What was it about?”
    “I wasn’t able to ascertain the details, though I did learn that both Mr. Chase and Mr. Flood incurred charges at the same restaurant last evening. I also learned that along with Ms. Carr, they all graduated from the same college together.”
    “That is interesting.”
    The more he heard, the more this sounded like a coincidence. They were old college friends, and it wasn’t unrealistic to assume Chase and Flood would stay in touch.
    “Hopefully I’m overreacting, but just to make sure, I’d like you to tap Mr. Flood’s phone and office. Let’s listen to what he has to say for a few weeks.”
    Becker nodded once before marching from the room.
    If they didn’t learn anything from the taps soon, Drake would put this to bed. A soft chuckle escaped his lips. By that time, it really wouldn’t matter what Chase did.
    In a few weeks, the world would be a different place.
     

Chapter 18
    Boston, Massachusetts
     
    The day was warm, and late afternoon sunlight streamed through the air. Brilliant green leaves rustled in a breeze blowing off Boston Harbor. Tourists and natives filled the sidewalks as their feet tapped along to the ever-present sound of engines and car horns.
    Parker was oblivious to it all in the back of a taxi with Erika that was headed to Faneuil Hall.
    “They just confirmed that Gordon Daniels is dead.”
    “Any idea how it happened?” Erika asked, unconcerned. “He was probably old. Maybe his heart just stopped beating.”
    “He was barely fifty and in great shape. People like that don’t have heart attacks for no reason.”
    She turned to look out the window, her eyes on the water.
    “Well, I don’t see what the big deal is. It’s terrible, I understand, but why are you so worried? Is this going to affect your business somehow?”
    Parker stopped scanning the news article on his phone and stared at her.
    “You’re telling me you don’t find it the least bit suspicious that the financial leaders of the United States and England both died in the same week?”
    “I know the English guy was shot. That’s different than our treasurer.”
    For the first time since Ben had called, she finally appeared to pay attention.
    “Look, you don’t have any idea what happened to Gordon Daniels. You have to admit that the most likely explanation is he died of natural causes. Maybe he had an enlarged heart or an irregular heartbeat. No one knows. One thing you can be sure of is that some news network will scream bloody murder at the first whiff of a scandal. Even if there isn’t one, they’ll make something up to sell papers.”
    She had a point.
    “I guess you could be right,” Parker said. “It’s just a little too coincidental, don’t you agree?”
    Her hand lay softly on his arm.
    “We’ll see. In the meantime, we have our own conspiracy to worry about.”
    Outside, he spotted their destination. Beautifully framed between rows of manicured hedges, Faneuil Hall Marketplace was the square’s centerpiece,