Deadly Sins by Kylie Brant

Author:Kylie Brant
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Berkley
Published: 2011-06-21T22:00:00+00:00

Only a handful of miles separated the Columbia Heights neighborhood inhabited by Maria Sanchez from the cardinal’s, but they were otherwise light-years apart. The houses wedged between large ramshackle apartment buildings were small, the yards all but nonexistent. Groups of youths huddled on street corners, talking and laughing loudly. Children who looked much too young to be out without adult supervision played in the streets, dodging cars with an ease that spoke of experience.

Sanchez’s house was a small white clapboard without a garage. Unlike most of its neighbors, it had a fresh coat of paint and a roof in a good state of repair. The grass that managed to grow in a halfhearted fashion was neatly cut. Someone maintained the place well. Jaid wondered if it was Sanchez herself or another family member.

Shepherd found a place to park behind a decrepit Chevy truck that looked one step away from the salvage yard. They got out of the car and approached the house. “Any background on her family?” Adam’s words seemed to echo Jaid’s thoughts as they walked up the cracked sidewalk to the small cement stoop.

“The neighbor I spoke to at the cardinal’s earlier knows her slightly, because they attend the same church. She only said that Sanchez was a widow.”

“Guess we’ll find out.” Shepherd walked up the two steps and knocked on the door. The porch was too narrow for Jaid and Adam to join him, so they remained below. Moments later the door was opened by a short dark-haired woman. She peered past Shepherd to Jaid and Adam, and her expression became guarded.

“Good morning. Mrs. Maria Sanchez?” At her slow nod Shepherd showed her his ID. “Special Agent Shepherd, FBI. My colleagues, Special Agent Marlowe and Mr. Raiker, special consultant with the bureau. May we come in?”

After a brief hesitation she unlocked the outer door, and they all filed inside.

“I do not understand.” Her hands were clasped tightly; her face held a worried expression. “What do you want with me?”

“I’m afraid we have some shocking news, Mrs. Sanchez,” Jaid put in. “Cardinal Cote was found dead this morning.”

She staggered a bit, like she’d taken a punch. “The cardinal. Madre de Dios, what happened? Just yesterday he was fine. Was it his heart?”

“Did he have a history of a heart condition?” If so, this was the first Jaid had heard about it. But she hadn’t had an opportunity to gather much information before heading over here.

“Not recently. But seven or eight years ago. He had those . . . I do not know the name. They widen the plugged arteries to the heart.”

“He had stents put in?”

She nodded and ducked her head, reaction setting in. “Why don’t you sit down, Mrs. Sanchez,” Adam suggested quietly. He handed her a handkerchief, which she accepted gratefully as she sank onto the sagging couch. Each of them found a seat. “I’m afraid it’s more serious than that. The cardinal was murdered.”

“No!” Her cry was a mix of anguish and shock. She shook her head helplessly as the tears ran freely down her face.

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