by Karen Rose
“And then?”
Alex turned her head to look at Mary, her face pale and haunted. “Nothing.”
“Oh my God.” Next to him, Meredith was sobbing quietly, her fist pressed to her mouth. “All this time . . . She’s carried that all this time and we never helped her.”
Daniel pulled her to his side. “You didn’t know. How could you know?” But his voice was hoarse, and when he touched his face, his cheeks were wet.
Meredith turned her face into his shoulder and wept. At the console Ed swallowed audibly and kept taping. Serene and outwardly composed, Mary led Alex back to the chair and began the process of bringing her back. But when Mary looked up into the camera, her eyes were stark and horrified.
His arm still around Meredith’s shaking shoulders, Daniel pulled out his cell phone and dialed Koenig’s number. “It’s Vartanian,” he said, his voice cold, his rage barely leashed. “Have you found Crighton yet?”
“No,” Koenig said softly. “Hatton’s sitting with a group of bums now. One of them says they saw him two hours ago. Why? What’s wrong?”
Daniel swallowed. “When you find him, arrest him.”
“Yeah,” Koenig said slowly. “For beating that nun.” He paused. “What else, Danny?”
Daniel had nearly forgotten about Sister Anne. “For the murder of Kathy Tremaine.”
“Ah hell. You’re kidding. Dammit.” Koenig sighed. “Will do. I’ll call you when Hatton has a fix on his location.”
“Get backup before you go in.”
“You bet. Daniel, tell Alex I’m sorry about her mom.”
“I will.” He slipped his cell back into his pocket, then nudged Meredith into motion. “Come on. Mary’s almost done. We’ll be there when Alex comes out of the house.”
Chapter Eighteen
Dutton, Wednesday, January 31, 10:00 p.m.
It was, Alex thought, surreal. Now that it was over, now that she knew . . .
But perhaps on some level she’d always known.
She looked over at Daniel, who drove from Bailey’s house toward Main Street with both hands clutching the wheel in a white-knuckled grip. He’d been stealing what he probably thought were surreptitious glances at her since he’d put her in the car and buckled her in with such gentleness she wanted to weep.
He had been. Weeping. She could see it in his eyes the moment she’d walked out of the house with Mary McCrady straight into his arms. He’d held her so tight . . . and she’d clung, needing him. Meredith had still been crying as she waited to wrap Alex in her arms. She’d begged forgiveness, when there was nothing to forgive.
It just was. And had always been. She just hadn’t wanted to remember.
Now she remembered, every last second of it, up until Crighton grabbed her by the collar and the world had gone black. The next thing she knew she’d been in the hospital, her stomach pumped of the tranquilizers the police told her she’d taken.
But she didn’t remember doing that. Before, she hadn’t questioned. Now . . .
How could I not?
She might never know. All she knew was that her mother had not taken her own life. At the same time, she’d had in her hands a weapon that could have saved her life.
That was the image that haunted Alex the most.
“She just stood there,” she murmured. “She had the gun in her hand and she just stood there until it was too late. If she’d fired, she might be alive right now.”
Daniel’s throat worked as he swallowed hard. “Sometimes people freeze. It’s hard to know what you’ll do in that situation. But it’s hard not to blame them after the fact.”
“I feel a little . . . detached, you know?”
“Mary said you would.”
She studied his profile. He was tired and worn. “Are you all right?”
He huffed a chuckle. “You’re asking me?”
“I’m asking you.”
“I . . . I don’t know, Alex. I’m angry and I’m . . . sad. I feel so helpless. I want to make this all go away for you, but I can’t.”
She laid her hand on his arm. “No, you can’t. But it’s awfully nice of you to want to.”
“Nice.” He drew a breath. “I’m not feeling very nice right now.”
She tugged his hand from the wheel, then brought it to her cheek. It felt good there. Solid and warm and safe. “At the beginning I panicked. I couldn’t think of a safe place to go and I thought, ‘What if we went to all this trouble and Mary can’t hypnotize me?’ ”
“I know. I wondered where you’d finally gone. I hoped it was someplace nice.”
She rubbed her cheek against his hand. “There was a moment this morning, after we’d . . . you know . . . finished. I looked up at you looking down at me and thought it might have been the most wonderful moment of my life. That’s where I went.”
His fingers tightened around hers. “Thank you.”
She kissed the back of his hand. “You’re welcome.”
They arrived at her bungalow, passing the unmarked GBI vehicle parked on the street. Meredith had left Bailey’s house with the two agents who would take her and Hope to the safe house after she’d gathered their things. One of the agents sat in the backseat, guarding Hope as she slept.
Daniel came around to open her door, then pulled her to her feet and into an embrace so tight, so huge, that Alex wished she could just stand there with him forever. She slipped her arms under his coat, around his waist, and held on. His heart was thundering beneath her ear and she understood she’d affected him on a level that was entirely new. Unfamiliar ground, he said . . . Could it have been only two days before?
Alex felt like she’d lived a lifetime in those two days.
Daniel pushed her hair away from her face, his lips grazing her cheek, making her shiver. Then he whispered in her ear, husky and hot. “This morning, Alex, what we did was not you know. We made love. And I’m not even close to being finished.” He tipped up her chin and pressed a hard fast kiss to her mouth. “If that’s okay with you.”
This was the bright light at the end of the tunnel. They had a chance to make something good out of so much darkness. “It is.”
“Then let’s go in.” He pulled away with a grimace. “I forgot all about Riley today. I’ve never left him alone so long before. He may have had an accident in your house.”
She smiled up at him. “It’s okay. I have renter’s insurance.”
His arm wrapped possessively around her, they walked to the front porch. Then as one, their steps slowed. Meredith stood in the middle of the living room, her arms crossed over her chest, scanning the room with weary futility. Everything had been ripped apart—drawers dumped, crayons littered the floor, and the sofa where they’d made love had been slashed, the stuffing everywhere.
“I don’t think my renter’s insurance will cover this,” Alex murmured.
Meredith looked up, her eyes narrowed. “Somebody was looking for something.”
Daniel stiffened. “Where’s Riley? Riley!” He ran into Hope’s room, Alex on his heels. The other agent was in there surveying a similar state of disaster. “Where’s my—?”
The agent pointed down where only a tail could be seen sticking out from under the bed, wagging like a metronome in slow motion. Daniel heaved a sigh of relief as he gently pulled Riley out. Riley gazed up with his sad basset eyes and Daniel cupped the dog’s head in both hands, scratching behind his ears. “What happened to you, boy?”
“I found a bowl on the floor in the bathroom, under the window,” the agent said. “The window was open and the bowl still had a little canned dog food in it.”
“I left a bowl of dry food in the kitchen. Riley can’t have canned food. It’s bad for his stomach.” Daniel’s jaw clenched. “Whoever did this drugged him.”
Alex checked Riley’s eyes. “He looks dazed. Would he have barked at an intruder?”
“Loud enough to wake the dead,” Daniel answered. “We need to get the food in that bowl tested.”
“Well, there’s quite a mess in the bathroom,” the agent said. “Doesn’t look like too much of the canned food stayed in him.”
Alex met Daniel’s eyes. “Could have saved his life.”
Daniel frowned. “What could they have been looking for?”
Alex stood and looked around the trashed bedroom with a sigh. “I have no idea.”
“They did the same thing in my room,” Meredith said. “Thank goodness I had my laptop with me. Where’s yours?”
“It was in the closet. Daniel, can you open it?”
He’d already pulled a pair of gloves from his pocket and slid the closet door open with one hand. It was completely empty. “What was on your computer, Alex?”
“Nothing, really. Maybe old tax returns, so they have my social and my address.”
“We can report it to the credit agencies tomorrow,” Daniel said.
Meredith cleared her throat. “Alex, where’s your thing?”
Alex looked at Daniel. “Is my gun still locked in your trunk?”
He nodded grimly. “Yeah. Although I’m sure they brought their own, just in case.”
Alex’s shocked gaze flew to Meredith’s. “If we’d been here . . .”
Meredith nodded unsteadily. “But we weren’t. And Hope’s safe. She may have to wear the same clothes for a few days, but she’s safe.”
“We can pick up what you need on the way to the safe house,” the agent said. “Everything here’s going to need to stay the way it is until we can process the scene. You want to call CSU, Vartanian, or should I?”
Daniel rubbed his head and Alex could see the headache lurking in his eyes. “If you would, I’d appreciate it, Shannon. I need to get Riley to the vet. There’s an all-night emergency clinic near my house.”
“I’ll make the call,” Shannon said. “You need help getting the pooch to your car?”
“No.” Daniel scooped Riley into his arms, settling the dog’s head on his shoulder like a baby’s. “He’s a lead butt, but I got him. Call when you get to the safe house, Meredith.”
“I will.” Meredith pulled Alex to her in a fierce hug. “When will I see you again?”
“Tomorrow morning. You’re bringing Hope in to do her hypnosis, right?”
Meredith’s nod was shaky. “I hope I can make it through another one.”
“You will. Thank you for being there with me tonight.”
Meredith faltered. “Alex . . .”
“Sshh. Hush now. You couldn’t have known. So let it go.”
“You call me when you get to Vartanian’s. I assume that’s where you’ll be tonight.”
“Yes. That’s where I’ll be.”
Athens, Georgia, Wednesday, January 31, 11:35 p.m.
Mack flinched, the buzzing of his cell phone startling him. Careful not to reveal his hiding place, he checked his phone and frowned. It was a text message from Woolf. He wondered if Woolf had followed him here. But he’d been careful. No one had followed him. And Woolf should be busy right now.
He opened the text message. Thanks for tip. Here at scene. Who is he? 2 much blood 2 see face. Need ID before 12 for a.m. edition.
He hesitated, then shrugged. Up until now the Woolfs had been able to reason that he might just be an anonymous tipper and not necessarily a murderer. It was his experience that people could tell themselves all kinds of things to make themselves feel better, and the Woolfs were no exception. Romney, Sean, he texted back and hung up.
The Woolfs might not leap to his command anymore. But he was almost finished with them anyway. He heard footsteps. A male voice. Female laughter.
“You should let me drive you home,” the man said.
“I’m fine. I’ll see you in class, okay?”
There were sounds of kissing, then a male groan. “I want you. It’s been three days.”
She laughed lightly. “I have a paper due tomorrow, so not tonight, big boy.”
Mack hadn’t anticipated she’d have companionship. Stupid move on his part. He fingered the safety on his Colt, prepared to do what he needed to do to get away. But the man just groaned and after another kiss, left.
Lisa got in her car, humming. She checked her rearview and pulled her car away from the curb. He let her drive a few blocks before coming up behind her like a thief in the night. He stuffed the handkerchief in her mouth and pressed his knife to her throat. I’m getting good at this. “Drive,” he said. Now this was going to be fun.
Atlanta, Wednesday, January 31, 11:55 p.m.
“Why are we here?” Alex asked. “I thought we were going back to your house.”
“Here” was Leo Papadopoulos’s firing range. “Luke’s brother runs this place. He gives a discount to all Luke’s friends from the bureau.”
“That’s very nice,” she said. “So why are we here?”
“Because . . . Dammit, Alex, Sheila Cunningham was holding a gun when she died.” And he couldn’t get the picture out of his mind. “She never fired.”
“Like my mother,” she murmured. “Is it a woman thing?”
“No, men do it, too. It’s a training thing. When you get scared you freeze up. You have to have all those behaviors, those habits, ingrained. You do the same thing in the ER. When a crisis hits, you go into autopilot mode on some things, don’t you?”
“Some things, yes. So are you going to train me, Daniel?”
“Not in one day. But we’ll come back every day until either you’ve built up some reflexes or this is over and you don’t need it anymore.”
“Is this place always open at night?”
“No. Leo opened it up for us. He owed Luke a favor. I called Luke to ask if we could come by while I was waiting for the vet to see Riley.” That the vet believed his dog was suffering from being poisoned simply added to the fury churning in Daniel’s gut. He’d benefit from a little target practice himself. “Come on, let’s go.” He came around and helped her from the car, then took her satchel from the trunk. “You still can’t carry this around town, you know.”
She nodded. “I know.”
“But you didn’t say you’d obey.”
She smiled, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “I know.”
He shook his head and held the front door open. “Just go inside.”
Inside, Leo Papadopoulos stood behind the counter. “Danny! And who is this?”
Leo was a few years younger than Luke and just as popular with the ladies. “This is Alex. Hands off, Leo.” He meant it as a friendly jab, but instead it sounded ominous.
Leo just grinned. “Hell, I already knew that. Mama told me all about Miss Alex.”
Alex looked up at him. “And how does Mama know? She’s never met me.”
“Oh, she will, don’t worry.” Leo flashed a dazzling smile. “She will. You can go on back. Luke’s back there already.” Leo’s smile faded. “I think he had a really bad day.”
“Yeah, well, that’s goin’ around,” Daniel muttered. “Thanks, Leo. I’ll owe you one.”
Back in the range, Luke stood in one of the stations, his ears covered and his face creased in a feral snarl. Alex frowned. “What’s wrong with him?”
“Luke works Internet sex crimes. Lately he’s been on a child protection task force. He’s been deep into a case the last two months. It’s not looking good.”
“Oh.” She sighed. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s the job,” Daniel said with a shrug. “Yours, mine. We have to flow with it, and Luke will, too. Here, put these on.” He handed her goggles and earmuffs, then opened her satchel and examined her gun. It was an H&K nine-mil, small enough to fit her hand comfortably. “This is a good gun. You know how to load it?” When she nodded, he added, “You know how to load it fast?”
Her chin lifted. “Not yet.”
“We can work on that later. For now, shoot.” He handed her the gun and stepped back and watched. In the station next to Luke, she took aim and fired methodically—and missed the target each time. He found himself justifiably concerned .
. . and undeniably aroused. It was a hell of a thing to watch a beautiful woman with a good gun. Especially one who’d told you that making love with you was her happiest memory. Especially when you’d thought the same thing. He frowned, concern overriding his arousal. Especially when she couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn.
Luke stopped to watch. “Don’t close your eyes,” he said.
She lowered the gun and blinked. “Was I? Well, that’s scary.” She blew out a breath and set herself up to try again.
Luke came over, his eyes full of questions. “How is she?” he asked, low so Alex couldn’t hear. The question made Daniel angry—not at Luke, but angry just the same.
“Given that in the last few days she found out her sister was gang-raped and that her mother was murdered, not too bad.” Luke’s eyes widened and Daniel filled him in.
“Shit. Well, how’s Riley?”
“The vet said he’ll be okay.” He studied Luke’s eyes. “So, what happened?”
Luke’s expression smoothed to one of careful blankness. “It all went down today. We got a fix on three of the kids we’d been tracking through that kiddie-porn site.” He fixed his eyes on Alex, who’d managed to hit the target twice. “We didn’t get there in time.”
“I’m sorry, Luke.”
Luke nodded again. “Two girls and a boy,” he said, his voice steady, but without any emotion. “Sisters and a brother. Fifteen, thirteen, and ten. Shot in the head, all of them.”
Daniel swallowed, able to picture it only too well. “God.”
“We’d missed the perps by at least a day. We shut down the site, but they’ll just reopen somewhere else.” He was staring into space now and Daniel didn’t want to think about what he was seeing. “I need a break. Chase said you had a shitload of names to go through to get a profile on this posse.”
“We can definitely use you.” He clasped Luke’s shoulder. “Do you need anything?”
Luke’s lips twisted. “A key to hell. There’s no other place bad enough for those guys.” A muscle in his clenched jaw spasmed. “I see too many faces in my dreams.”
The fury that roiled inside him bubbled higher. “I know.”
Luke turned, his eyes bright with tears. “I have to go. Leo says you can stay as long as you want. When’s the morning meeting for your case?”