Sole Survivor by Glenn Trust

Author:Glenn Trust [Trust, Glenn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lightning Publishing
Published: 2019-04-28T22:00:00+00:00

32.

They Had a Plan

It was thin. Seen from one way, it seemed clear there was something there. From another, it was just behavioral nuance, not much at all.

That Sillman and Bettis were nervous was an understatement. They had responded to questioning like long-tailed cats in a room full of rocking chairs.

But a case of nerves proved nothing. Any defense attorney would point out to a jury that their client’s nervous behavior was understandable. Lots of people were nervous talking to the cops. That wasn’t a crime.

What they had was a glaring lack of evidence of any crime. There was not one shred of probable cause that would allow them to go to a judge and obtain a search warrant to find more corroborating evidence. Even if they convinced a judge to sign a warrant affidavit, they had no idea where to search or what to search for.

This wasn’t television. Warrants aren’t magic wands. They don’t mysteriously produce evidence, and they do not give the police carte blanche to go on fishing expeditions in pursuit of criminals.

They focus on evidence relevant to a particular crime. There must be sufficient probable cause—evidence—that reasonably points to a particular person or location being associated with criminal activity.

Reasonable was a moving target with some judges, but Sole and Travis had no illusions. They were a long way from meeting the minimum probable cause standards for any judge, reasonable or not, to issue a warrant, especially one to be served on a sitting senator.

“What do you think,” Travis asked, turning the Ford at a random corner. They were in the city car, alone, the place they retreated to away from distraction when they needed to hash things out in private.

Sole looked up and noticed they were on West Paces Ferry Road, passing the governor’s mansion. He flipped through the notes he made during his interview with Sillman. Beyond the undeniable nervousness, he had said nothing that could incriminate him in any crime.

“Honestly,” He sighed. “Part of me says this is just a big nothing burger.”

“Yeah, Travis agreed. “Hard to believe a senator … wealthy one at that … is doing business, legitimate or otherwise with an organized crime boss … even a suspected one. So where do we start?”

Sole looked out the window. The stately homes of Atlanta’s rich and famous lined the road. There was old wealth here, family fortunes passed on through generations. Sole wondered how far back the Sillman family could trace its roots and wealth.

“Let’s start with what you said.” Sole looked at Travis. “Is he really wealthy?”

“Sillman Shrimp Company has been around a long time,” Travis mused, thinking things through. “Still, it’s worth a shot. I’ll do some research on his financials. Could be the good senator is not as well off as his penthouse lifestyle makes us think. Might give us a motive for … something.” He shrugged. “Still not evidence of any crime though.”

“No,” Sole agreed. “Not evidence. Just another piece of the puzzle.”

“Right. Any other ideas?”

“One.” Sole nodded. “There’s a third party here that we haven’t talked to.

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