Deadly Shadow

by Kim Cresswell

  Sweat ran down Derrick’s face and dripped off his chin. He grunted against the man’s physical strength until Shane’s hands were firmly wrapped around his own neck. Derrick focused.

  The man’s fingers clawed at his skin then both hands squeezed. His green eyes bulged. He gulped for air as he fought to stop from strangling himself. The skin on his face turned white, then gray, then a deathly shade of bluish gray. His legs buckled. He dropped to the floor and rolled onto his back.

  Derrick worked his energy harder, his body trembling uncontrollably.

  Minutes later, Shane was dead.

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  The last remnants of daylight distinguished below the horizon as evening settled over the city. It was snowing again. At five-thirty, Victory stood in front of her living room window and watched people on the street below, going about their lives.

  Jade was her world, all she had left from twenty years of marriage. Victory had spent the last two hours searching neighborhoods that intersected with Elder’s house and many of his victims, handing out missing flyers about Jade, speaking with business owners, anyone who would listen to her. Then common sense kicked in. She knew the chances of finding her daughter by scouring the streets without a lead was nothing more than a wild goose chase. Her stomach knotted into a tight ball as she grappled with the anger and anguish. All she could do was wait, each ticking minute feeling like ten lifetimes.

  Another piece of her died when she’d learned The Wrapper had taken Jade. She wished Josh was here, to comfort, reassure her that everything was going to be okay. She took a gulp of her beer then picked up the remote from the coffee table and turned on the TV to help with the drone of silence since she’d arrived home. After finding her usual twenty-four-hour news station, she turned the volume on low and tossed the remote on the couch.

  Afterward, she wandered into the kitchen and opened the fridge door, glanced at the contents, then closed it. She couldn’t eat. Her appetite had evaporated hours ago.

  Ryan was at the office, working with Curtis and three other agents, hoping to get a lead on Jade’s whereabouts. Sean was meeting with his informants every hour and checking in with the CPD officers pounding the streets. Everyone was doing what they could to find Jade. Victory had to figure out where Elder had taken her daughter. For the second time in almost a year, helplessness washed over her. She had no clue where he’d take her daughter.

  Victory pulled out a chair and sat. Her eyes moved to the accordion folder at the end of the table containing The Shadow case, the last thing she was worried about. She rested her elbows on the table. Then her thoughts turned briefly to Derrick.

  She didn’t usually share information about her personal life with anyone, only occasionally with Ryan. She wasn’t sure why she’d let Derrick into her life on somewhat of a personal level. It was out of character. It was the circumstances, she told herself, the truth harder to accept. She liked him. She was drawn to him, the mystery, the intensity, and was interested in knowing what he was hiding.

  Her phone rang. She grabbed it off the table. “Have you got anything?”

  “Maybe.” Ryan said. “Curtis and I went back and looked at The Wrapper’s first three kills. I know we’ve gone through them a hundred times, but we noticed a notation from forensics. It might not mean anything. Or it might mean something.”

  “What is it?”

  “Trace amounts of a low-foam detergent floor cleaner used for cleaning car parts like gaskets and seals. It was found on Justine Walker’s left palm.”

  A tinge of hope flowed through her body. At least it was a possible clue. “Justine was his second Cincinnati victim.”

  “We’re heading out in a few minutes to search abandoned warehouses, ones that once housed or manufactured car parts. We’ve got it narrowed down to nine within the vicinity of his home, and the pharmacy that coincides with the parks where he dumped his victims.”

  Her breathing quickened, and her chest felt heavy. “He could have taken her to Cleveland.” She paused, taking what she could get at this point. “It’s worth a try. Pick me up. I’m coming with you.”

  Piercing silence filled the other end of the line.

  “Sorry, Vic. Curtis wants you to stand down. So, does Joe Mains. A direct order from the top. You’re too close to the case.”

  “Are you kidding me? Damn right I’m too close.” Her voiced tuned louder, angrier. “That’s my kid out there, not theirs.”

  “I know. Don’t shoot the messenger. Hang in there. Do what they want for now, okay? I’ll call you in a bit.”

  She slammed the phone down on the table without saying goodbye and heard a knock at the door over the electrical hum coming from the fridge.

  Victory went to the door and peered through the peephole. Derrick? For a second, she’d thought about not answering the door, then changed her mind. She unlocked and opened the door.

  Derrick flashed her a million-dollar smile. “I think I can find your daughter.”

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  Derrick spotted suspicion in Victory’s eyes. She wasn’t buying it. After a few minutes, she let him in and headed to the kitchen. He followed her, nervous and concerned. He was about to put everything on the line. The Elara Project, his father, the president, to help locate her daughter. His eyes shifted to her holster, to her gun.

  She opened the fridge and pulled out a beer and handed it to him. How can you find Jade when no one else can?”

  Derrick took the bottle of beer, unsure where to start. He set the drink on the kitchen island. He’d need something stronger after this conversation.

  “I can find her but it’s going to cost.”

  She shook her head and laughed. “You want me to pay you to find my daughter? What kind of scam are you running?”

  “It isn’t a scam. I meant something different. Not money. I want, I need, something in return.”

  She stared at him. Confusion crossed her face.

  “I don’t have time for games.” She walked past him, brushing against his shoulder. “I think you should leave.”

  He grabbed her arm and stopped her in mid-step. “I’m not playing games.” His tone turned stern. “Do you want to find Jade?”

  “Of course, I do. How dare you even ask.”

  “I can find her.” Derrick released her arm, convinced he finally had her full attention. Victory went to the other side of the table. Her eyes met his.

  He inhaled a silent deep breath and let it out. “I need a couple of assurances. One. What I am about to tell you will never be revealed to anyone. Ever.”

  She nodded slowly in agreement, not knowing what she was agreeing to.

  “Secondly, protection for my own sins.”

  “O—kay. I don’t know what you’re talking about but if you can really find Jade, then I couldn’t care less what sins you’re talking about or have committed. I need to find my daughter. If you can help, then help, please, before it’s too late. Elder will kill her.”

  His heart pounded. Anxiety sped through his veins, making his muscles feel tight and hard. He looked at the floor then up at Victory, trying to find all the right words. “I have special paranormal skills. I’ve had them all my life, as long as I can remember.”

  Her eyes widened and lit up. “Like ESP or something?”

  “No.” He hesitated. “Etheric travel. Meaning I’m able to move in real time, observing people while my body is asleep. I can connect with the killer, find out where he is.”

  Victory didn’t say anything, clearly absorbing what he had said.

  “I also can move objects with my mind. It’s called psychokinesis.”

  She remained silent for a long time, adding things up, connecting the dots. Derrick could see it, feel it. She knew who he was.

  The blood drained from her face.

  With lightning speed Victory yanked the gun out of her holster. She aimed the barrel at his forehead. “You’re—The Shadow. You killed Eddie Bullington, Steven Rothwell, the —”

>   “I’m a government assassin.”

  “An assassin? You’re a cold-blooded killer.”

  He walked toward her slowly, cautiously, keeping his eyes on the weapon. He noticed her fingers tightened around the handle of the gun.

  “Don’t move.”

  Derrick stopped, worried she might shoot him. “Put the gun away, Victory. You don’t need it. What I’ve told you is all true. I am a government assassin. It’s my job. What I’ve done doesn’t matter. Think of Jade. Think about getting your daughter back.”

  She jabbed the weapon at him. “I said don’t move. It matters to me. Extortion is a criminal offense. I’m taking you in. It’s my job.”

  Derrick narrowed his eyes and looked at the gun, focusing all his energy at her hand. Her fingers twitched, and raised, starting to loosen around the gun. Victory’s face went slack, her mouth open, as she stared wide-eyed in shock, fighting against his energy with all her strength. He kept directing all his energy until her grip slackened completely.

  The gun slingshotted across the table into his hand.

  He two-handed the weapon and turned the gun on Victory. “I know you want to save Jade. Accept my terms. Time is running out. You know that. I want to help. I really do.”

  She took a step back, shaking her head. Then a look of recognition on her face.

  “You killed Melissa.” Her gaze darted to the phone on the table, an arm’s length away.

  “Yes.” His eyes wandered to the phone. Derrick trained his energy at the cell phone. It slid to his end of the table, out of Victory’s reach.

  “You bastard.”

  Derrick understood her anger. He’d been able to dodge her, and the FBI, for two decades. The realization that he was The Shadow, the killer she’d been seeking for so long, was a hard one for Victory to swallow.

  “We can stay like this for as long as you want. Or you can agree to the terms, then we can discuss finding Jade. It’s your choice, Victory.”

  He hated the way he’d been forced to deal with her, so tough, a bully, sounding so uncaring. He liked her. That much was true. He could see the hurt in her eyes. He’d betrayed her. He had to, to save her daughter. Victory would understand one day. At least Derrick hoped she would.

  Ten minutes passed, and Derrick wondered how much longer the woman was going to hold out and stand her ground. Finally, Victory pulled out a chair and sat.

  “You’ve given me no choice. I accept your terms.”

  Derrick searched Victory’s face to ensure she was telling the truth. When he was confident she was, he lowered the weapon and released the magazine onto the table. He set the Glock beside him, convinced she probably had more ammunition hidden somewhere in the apartment.

  “I didn’t want to do it like this way. I want you to know that. I didn’t have much of a choice. I’m in a difficult position. There are others involved. I’m putting them at risk, putting everything at risk. You have no idea.”

  “You’re a killer.”

  The truth was hard for him to hear, to accept, the way she said it with such disdain. He eliminated targets to protect his country, something Victory may never understand.

  “I was twenty-on when I was recruited into the Elara Project, a covert government program utilizing people with special paranormal abilities to help defend the security of the United States. The project dates back to the shortly after the end of World War II.”

  “There are more like you?”

  “A few. Each of the recruits have different paranormal skills.”

  “Like what?”

  Derrick didn’t want to get into too many details. He was sure the truth was already tough enough for her to believe. “Mind readers, remote viewers.”

  “President Burke sanctioned the project, knowing he was signing death warrants?”

  He noted nervousness in Victory’s voice as she spoke. She was scared of him. That wasn’t the way Derrick wanted things to be.

  He nodded. “Yes, the project was sanctioned by the president and many before him. You have to understand—”

  “I don’t have to understand anything. Who else is involved?”

  Derrick paused for a moment before speaking. “My father.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Victory couldn’t believe what she had just witnessed. She downed half of her beer in one swallow. She felt as if she’d been sucked into watching a special effects show. The gun. Derrick had removed it from her hand with ease using only his mind. How was that possible? Yet she’d seen it with her own eyes. Then the weapon was in his hand, pointed at her.

  Victory never believed in anything paranormal, and especially not people having strange, inexplicable abilities. Now she was fully aware of the secret Derrick had been hiding. He was an assassin on the government’s payroll. She honestly didn’t know who she could trust. Could she even trust Derrick to find Jade? She downed the rest of her beer, desperately needing another, but had to keep her mind clear to find her daughter.

  Victory was floored by the revelation the Secretary of Defense and President Burke were involved. She was an FBI agent. She’d taken an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

  She didn’t know how she was going to live with herself, knowing Derrick had killed so many people. The victim’s families deserved closure. Victory doubted Eddie Bullington and Melissa Mann were killed to protect the country. There was more to the story.

  “Why did you kill Bullington and Melissa?”

  “Melissa had uncovered the truth about the Elara Project from a past recruit. She and Bullington were going to go public about the project. If they had, lives would be danger.”

  “You murdered them to shut them up.”

  “I don’t see it that way. The fallout would have been costly if the public knew what was going on.”

  “Costly? Like you and your father being arrested? And the president?”

  Derrick’s mouth twisted. “What we’ve accomplished through the Elara Project outweighs what I’ve had to do over the years. We’ve been able to stop dozens of foreign and domestic terrorist attacks, taking out some very bad guys, saving lives. It’s an important project. The country needs it.”

  She frowned at his so-called logic. “Keep telling yourself that. The people you killed had kids. You’ve destroyed families. How can you live with that? Now you’re forcing me to keep your dirty secret, and if I don’t, after you find Jade?”

  He took a drink of the whiskey she had poured for him, then set the glass down. “You don’t want to cross me, Victory. I have the ability to kill you at any time to ensure my secret remains buried. You’ve seen what I can do.”

  His eyes gleamed. He was dead serious.

  A shiver rocketed through her as another realization slammed her. “It was you—in Bullington’s house. And you were in my bedroom when I thought I was dreaming.”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  Her phone rang.

  Derrick glanced at the phone, and then to her. Their gazes locked. “Remember what you agreed to.” He shoved the phone down the table to her.

  She picked up the phone and answered it. “Please tell me you have something, Ryan?”

  “We’ve searched four warehouses, so far nothing. How are you holding up?”

  “I’m not.” Her own words flashed through her mind.

  “The anniversary is important to him, means everything to him. He has to kill even if it means he’ll get caught or killed.”

  “Have faith, Vic. It’s all we’ve got right now. Sean and a couple of local cops are heading to some of the other warehouses on the list to make the searches go quicker. I know we’re on the clock.”

  Victory glanced at Derrick. Sweat lined his upper lip. “I’m checking into a lead on my end. I’ll let you know if it pans out.”

  “Curtis will be pissed if he finds out you’re working behind the scenes.”

  “He’s been angry all his life. Just don’t te
ll him. I’ll deal with him when I have to. Call me if you find anything.” She placed the phone down.

  Fear pulsed through her. She wanted her daughter home. Victory wasn’t completely convinced Derrick could find her. She wanted more than anything to believe he could.

  Victory leaned back in the chair and crossed her arms over her chest. She glared at Derrick. “Now what?”

  “Tell me everything you know about Jeremy Elder.”

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  Inside the warehouse, Jeremy sat in his car and went through the woman’s purse. He dumped the contents on his lap and opened her wallet. He found her driver’s license tucked into one of the compartments along with fifty dollars. He threw the money on the dash and examined the ID. His eyes drifted to the cage where Jade was asleep on the bare mattress completely out of it from the Rohypnol he’d spiked her drink with.

  She was pretty, but certainly not his type. Jade didn’t look anything like Lily. He hoped she would come to soon. He needed her alert to experience his wrath.

  The FBI agent should have minded her own business. If he was going down, then Agent McClane deserved to lose something dear to her the way he’d lost Lily. He still couldn’t figure out where he had screwed up. He’d been so careful not to leave a trace of evidence on any of the women.

  Something happened. Something he’d missed.

  He tossed Jade’s purse on the passenger seat and climbed out of the vehicle. It wouldn’t be much longer before the woman was awake. He couldn’t wait.

  ✽ ✽ ✽

  After Victory finished telling Derrick everything she knew about Jeremy Elder, she paced in front of the dining room table, clutching her cell phone. It was ten-fifteen and she knew Elder usually killed his victims between midnight and three in the morning.

  Time wasn’t on their side.

  As painful as it was, she had succumbed to the realization that he may have already killed Jade. The thought bit at her soul. She had to hang onto every ounce of hope she had, and even that was fading by the minute.

  Derrick was in the bedroom asleep in her bed. He continued to claim he could do the impossible: connect with the killer. At this point, she didn’t have a choice but to believe him.