Chapter 1178: Penthouse

"Hiring escorts is illegal, and it's also damaging to one's reputation. Of course, that approach won't work. These wealthy men won't willingly talk to the FBI," Jack said, though his face still bore that familiar confident smile.

"…But?" Aubrey, who had seen firsthand how Jack handled that lawyer early this morning—technically still last night—had already started to guess where he was going with this.

"But we can summon the legal teams representing these rich men under the pretext of issuing personal safety advisories. They've been trying hard to cover up the killer's existence. Maybe they know more than they're letting on.

Since these men are so generous in some areas, their payments may not have been limited to large sums of cash. Gifts of luxury cosmetics, designer handbags, clothes, jewelry, cars… or even footing the bill for plastic surgery.

Such unusual expenses would stand out to their attorneys. There's no way they wouldn't notice." Jack sounded completely assured.

"But why would they tell us anything?" Clay asked, unconvinced. "Even if we show them goodwill, they'll still have serious concerns. After all, they're tied at the hip with those same rich clients."

Jubal, who had already figured out Jack's angle, slapped his spinning pencil flat against the table. "But we can break up that symbiosis.

After sleeping with the killer, those men probably confided more than just complaints. Dirty secrets those lawyers have gone out of their way to hide—she may know all of them.

To the big law firms, that's an enormous liability. They should want the killer caught as quickly as possible."

Sure enough, when JJ sent out invitations for the meeting, not only did Larry Barret arrive with a swarm of attorneys, but even Allen Daniels—the "cleaner" Aubrey had once contacted—showed up as well.

A horde of well-dressed legal professionals packed the large conference room, but as the Most Wanted team had anticipated, the moment JJ laid out their intentions, the room erupted with skepticism.

Still, their concerns all centered around one thing. Larry Barret, tugging at his suffocating necktie, spoke bluntly.

"You make valid points. But our clients will still question why we should cooperate with an FBI investigation. There's just too much at stake."

Jack gave him a disarming smile. "You're free to assess the risks on your own. But Mr. Barret, you should be aware—this investigation is not officially led by the FBI. It's under the direction of the state's Attorney General, Patrick Jackson. We're just assisting."

He didn't know exactly how much pull Barret's firm had, but since Jackson had previously thrown Jack under the bus, Jack had no qualms about now using him as a shield in front of all these lawyers.

"What you're all really worried about is what happens after we catch the killer—namely, whether the list of men she slept with but didn't harm might get leaked. Damage to reputations, possible lawsuits…

The FBI doesn't care about any of that. But your bosses can talk directly to Attorney General Jackson. I'm sure he'll give them the assurances they need."

As expected, when the legal eagles exchanged glances in silence, JJ stepped in with perfect timing. "Why don't we all take a 20-minute break?"

And indeed, after that "break," their attitudes had changed considerably. They began offering up some very useful information.

One of the most critical leads came from a junior associate working under Barret. She mentioned helping Joseph Fielding process the purchase of a downtown penthouse apartment more than a year ago.

According to her, Fielding had said the place was a gift for "a friend."
———
"Clear!"

"No one inside!"

Clay holstered his pistol and looked around the penthouse. "She was careful. Not even a single personal photo."

Hannah, wearing gloves, lifted the bedspread and plucked a few strands of pale golden hair from the pillow. "This should be our girl."

JJ stepped into the walk-in closet and whistled as she pulled on a clothes rack. "She's got ten times the wardrobe I do… and judging by the sizes, her figure's amazing."

Hannah picked up a leather catsuit and teasingly held it up against JJ. "All she needs now is a whip. I wonder if someone here's into this kind of thing…"

"Could be something for a client to wear," JJ shot back coldly. Hannah quickly dropped the outfit like it was on fire—clearly not the only one who had peeked at some of those disturbing photos.

Aubrey was rifling through the vanity, checking the jewelry. When he opened a ring box, his brows furrowed. "Would someone really give a call girl a ring?"

Jubal took the ring, slipped it onto the tip of his pinky finger, and held it up to the light. "Interesting. Don't you think this ring is way too small for an adult? I think I know what this is."

"It's a purity ring," Hannah said with a scoff. "They were all the rage in Catholic families when I was a kid. Wearing one means you've pledged to God you'll stay pure until marriage."

Aubrey sighed as he put the ring back. "That feels a bit… ironic."

"Or maybe it overturns some of our earlier assumptions," Jack said, holding up an old book.

"What do you mean?" Clay flipped through it but didn't notice anything odd.

Jack pointed at a small bookshelf nearby. "All of these are old books, clearly read many times. Now, what kind of person reads a French-language copy of Voltaire's Candide?"

"Someone with really highbrow tastes?" Aubrey guessed.

"Or someone very well educated," Clay added. And suddenly, everyone understood where Jack was going with this.

"As one madam put it, the highest-end escorts are trained to pose as high-society women. But now it seems our killer might actually be from an upper-class background."

JJ's voice was a little rushed, and her expression showed she wasn't entirely confident.

"That's highly likely. Given she's targeting wealthy men who abandon their wives and children… maybe that's something she personally experienced," Jack replied, meeting her gaze with a nod of affirmation.

And just then, the landline phone in the room began to ring.

Jubal batted away Aubrey's eager hand and looked toward the two women. "Let JJ or Hannah answer. If it's a client, try to get as much out of them as possible."