“What the hell do you think you are doing?” he shouted as he charged back to the truck.
“Why? Do you think it’s crazy?” I taunted.
“I think it’s fucking insane! We're in the middle of a God damn bridge over the largest river in the country. There is wall-to-wall traffic, and let’s not mention the raging crime problem in this area. But sure, let’s go for a fucking walk!” he ranted on the way back to the truck.
“I wasn’t certain you were able to see sane from crazy, since you were busy taking on all the guilt from what Freddie Pratt has put us through,” I snapped.
“Oh, that's rich coming from you. I never judged you while you were blaming yourself for your past, and from what Pratt and John have done the last few months. I didn’t hold it against you when you isolated yourself, even when not being with you was destroying me. Forgive me for my freak out when I learn that sick fuck has been following me for years,” he said and dumped me in the passenger side.
He ran around the truck and jumped in. “Don’t even think about jumping out again, or I’ll tie you up and not in the fun way.” He glared at me and hit the automatic door locks.
I wasn’t going to jump out of the truck. I was trying to fight the smile that was pulling at the corners of my mouth. Reed was still pissed at me for my stunt, but he wasn’t cursing himself and hitting the steering wheel anymore. I didn’t know what I was after when I got out of the truck, but I think I was trying to shock him out of his funk. That and I needed air. I won’t say fresh air, because the smoke stacks looming in the distance suggested the air had more pollutants in it than oxygen.
Twenty minutes later, when we finally made it off the bridge, Reed spoke again for the first time.
“You ran again,” he accused.
“Only to make you chase me,” I replied softly.
His eyebrows scrunched together when he looked over at me.
I shrugged. “I called your name over and over, but you kept berating yourself. I needed air and I needed you to stop. Getting out of the truck made sense at the time.”
“I’m sorry. I was a cop for almost six years and I missed the fact that I was being stalked. Worse yet, my ignorance put everyone in danger,” he complained.
“Stop,” I ordered. “I understand how you felt now when I was blaming myself for what John did to my brother, or anything that has happened in the years since. I didn’t get it until today. I heard you and Cameron say many times that it wasn’t my fault, but it took seeing it from the other side to believe it.”
“Let’s take the long way home,” I suggested.
“What about classes?” he asked.
“I was given special permission to withdraw due to everything that has been going on,” I answered.
“What about your dreams of being a doctor? I don’t want to be the thing holding you back,” he said concerned.
“I’ve got different dreams now. Being a doctor was something that I wanted because my dad was a doctor. It was a fine dream when I thought I would spend my life alone. Not to say that women can’t have it all, but it takes a stronger woman than me to juggle those hours and a family,” I answered.
“We could make that work though. Please don’t give up something you’ve worked hard for because you think it’s what I want,” he urged.
I smiled at him. “I’m not. I think I want to become a counselor, and work with abused women. The hours would still be long, but not like being a physician. I don’t know. It’s just a thought.”
Reed looked at me curiously. “Is that what you really want?”
“It is. Why do you have that look on your face?” I prodded.
“Because, I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something. What would you think about me going back to school?” he asked.
I cocked my head to the side, studying him. “I’d support anything that would make you happy. You know that right?”
“Even if I wanted to study psychology too? I want to treat patients with PTSD, other vets in particular,” he said nervously.
“We can take classes together!” I exclaimed.
“I’ll take that to mean you like the idea?” he said chuckling.
I leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “I love that idea. We can study together too. You might get sick of me.”
“Can we study naked?” he asked waggling his eyebrows.
I laughed. “Not if we actually plan to learn anything. That gives me an idea. Are there any parks along this long way home?”
Reed merged across three lanes of traffic.
I braced my hands against the dashboard. “What are you doing?” I demanded.
He winked at me. “I’m not sure about parks, but I saw a sign for a hotel at this exit.”
“Just make sure living doesn’t get us killed,” I cautioned.
Chapter 45
Reed
Our plan to take the long way home lasted until the next morning. My phone began buzzing a little after eight o’clock in the morning. The caller ID said “Blocked”, in my experience that usually meant it was a cop.
“Reed Martin,” I greeted.
“Hello, Mr. Martin. This is Officer Ramirez with the Washington State Patrol. I tried to reach you over at the Ryan’s, but Mr. Ryan said you and Ms. Kennedy were out of town.”
“Mrs. Martin,” I corrected. It probably wasn’t an important detail, but I really freaking loved telling people she was my wife.
“Congratulations. I actually need to speak to the both of you if that would be possible,” he answered.
I pushed the option for speakerphone. “You’ve got both of us,” I informed him.
“When the autopsy report came in that the body wasn’t Fredrick Pratt we decided to take a closer look at your home. We tried to reach you at first, but you must have been out of range. One thing turned up during our search. There was an object broken off in the deadbolt of the back door,” Officer Ramirez explained.
“Any idea what it is?” Kate asked.
“It appears to be a busted key. It wasn’t to your lock, so we aren’t sure where it came from, unless it is the key you discovered missing from your key ring,” he suggested.
“We have no idea where Mr. Pratt is now. He could be hiding out somewhere in the mountains, or he could have followed the two of you on your road trip. Either way it would make everyone here feel better to have you back at the Ryan’s compound,” he continued.
“We’re in Kansas right now. We’ll check out of the hotel and be on the road in under thirty minutes,” I assured.
Kate was already up and packing while I wrapped up the conversation with Officer Ramirez.
“That was him in the lab with me,” she said quietly, talking to herself.
I swallowed hard as my imagination played through the many horrible things that could have happened to her while she was alone in the lab. It was clear from what we saw of John’s videos that Pratt wanted me to suffer. He’d followed Kate and I long enough to know the way to destroy me was to hurt her.
“Neither of us are going to dwell on what could have happened when you were alone in the lab. We’ll only drive ourselves crazy doing that, and the fact is you’re still safe and here with me,” I reminded both of us.
Kate nodded, and wrapped her arms around her middle. “Let’s get home. I suddenly feel very exposed away from Aiden’s crazy security system.”
“Except it doesn’t seem so crazy anymore, does it?” I commented.
“And that’s the sad part,” she replied.
The rest of the road trip was a blur of cornfields, bad gas station coffee, and long stretches of nothing but country music stations. It was late when we passed the guard station and pulled through Aiden and Becca’s security gate. We trudged our way through the dark house and fell into bed in what we were coming to see as our room.
The next morning, we went downstairs to find Daniels and Officer Ramirez sitting in the living room drinking coffee with Aiden. Their postures straightened
when they saw us, and my stomach dropped.
“What now?” I asked irritated.
“Freddie’s fingerprints were found on your back door. Security footage from the science building shows someone about his build enter the corridor Kate’s lab was located in. They appear to be trying to evade the cameras, but like usual, he’s a total dipshit. There are two seconds where he looked up and checked out the cameras. If he had just kept his head down and moved about like he was supposed to be there the security guard may not have noticed him in the first place,” Daniels explained.
“You both might have a low opinion of him, but he has managed to evade the search party out looking for him. The cabin owned by his uncle shows evidence of arson. It also appears that someone was recently squatting there. We’ve combed the surrounding mountainside, but have yet to find him,” Ramirez retorted.
Daniels leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Reed, we need to watch the videos. I spoke to Aiden, and I know you have them on a thumb drive. You don’t have to watch if it’s too hard, but we need to see them.”
“I’ll go get it,” I answered simply.
I retrieved the thumb drive and my laptop. I wished I didn’t have to turn it over to them, because I wouldn’t be able to keep them from seeing the video Kate desperately didn’t want anyone to see. They would have to watch and catalogue every file on the video.
I looked at her as I entered the room. She nodded slightly. She already knew they’d have to watch them. I reached out and squeezed her hand.
“We’ll do this together,” I whispered in her ear. She replied by squeezing my hand in return.
“Right now we need to see the footage shot around the time that John was murdered. Maybe there is a clue there that will let us know where Pratt is hiding out,” Daniels explained while he cued up the video we hadn’t watched.
It opened on two men standing behind a car. As soon as the images appeared Ramirez paused the playback.
“That’s Ripley aka R.I.P. DeSalvo.” Ramirez pointed to the larger guy.
“How was this filmed? I can’t believe Rip would let himself be taped,” Daniels commented.
“John used to rig his backpack, furniture, anything to hide a camera. Now with cell phones, he could have hidden it anywhere,” Kate said. Her eyes were unfocused and staring in the distance, like she was trying to push back a memory that wouldn’t stay buried.
“DeSalvo was the one found in Pratt’s house?” I asked, pulling their attention away from Kate.
“The same. I probably shouldn’t say this, but I’m not sorry he was the vic. He was a small time drug dealer and occasional contract killer. A real waste of oxygen.” Ramirez looked closer at the computer. “Is the date stamp on this right?”
“Those are the same dates listed on the computer,” I replied, a little confused by his question.
“This is the date that John was murdered according to the coroner,” Ramirez clarified.
“So you think this might be…that this is a recording of…Oh God, I’m going to be sick!” Kate held her hand over her mouth and ran from the room.
“Give me a minute?” I asked the guys, as I went to follow Kate.
Becca poked her head in the room. “Stay. I’ve got her. Check out what’s on that video. She hated him, but he was still her husband once, and she doesn’t need to watch his murder.”
I sat back down next to Aiden and signaled for Ramirez to restart the video. I wasn’t prepared for what I saw on it.
“I heard you needed a job done,” DeSalvo said.
John nodded, and handed him a picture. “This prick is hanging around my ex-wife. I need him gone so I can get her back home where she belongs.”
“How do you want it done?” DeSalvo demanded.
“I don’t give a shit. Just make it stick. That fucker has already been shot twice and lived according to my source,” John explained.
John reached past the camera and shuffled around, jostling the recording, before finally pulling out a thick manila envelope. He handed the bundle to DeSalvo.
The hit man started to thumb through the contents of the envelope. Suddenly he stumbled backward a step and dropped the envelope to the ground. Before he fell out of the view of the camera, he clutched his abdomen showing a spreading dark stain.
Pratt stepped into the frame holding a gun. “I know we’ve talked about this,” he ranted waving the gun. “Martin is to be left unharmed. I want him to beg for death and not get the mercy. I want him to suffer. He can’t suffer if you kill him.”
“That’s a problem,” John retorted, unconcerned with Pratt’s gun. “Ana needs to learn that other men aren’t allowed to touch her. He has to die and it’s all her fault. If she wasn’t such a whore I wouldn’t have to hurt him.”
Pratt paced restlessly back and forth. “You are so fucking stupid,” he raged. “All you had to do was come and take her. I didn’t say send her sick fucking dolls, follow her around and beat up her friends. I should have killed her after she ignored me at the hospital.”
Pratt pressed the side of the gun against his temple. “She’s a snobby bitch. Everyone chooses the golden boy. He doesn’t deserve this life. My friend died because of Martin’s incompetence, but no one sees it. He gets the promotion, the girl, but most of all he gets to fucking live.”
“If you hadn’t shot Rip he could have taken care of that, and I’m the one that’s stupid?” John snapped disdainfully.
Without warning Pratt reached out of the view of the camera and swung out with a wide piece of wood. The broad side of the board hit John in the side of the head. John crumpled down and was at the very least unconscious after the first swing.
Pratt continued to swing the board with a maniacal fervor. John’s body was out of the view of the camera, but each thwack and crunch of the board against skin and bone was picked up on the recording.
After at least a dozen strikes Pratt tossed the board away. He bent down and appeared to be searching for something. Pratt stood up holding John’s wallet. Grabbing his feet he dragged him to the side of the road and dumped his body in the ditch. He picked up the object containing the camera and threw it into the backseat of the car.
The video continued filming ambient noises. Sounds of the trunk closing, the car starting, and the radio playing in the background until either the memory was full, or the phone died. Thanks to the phone’s backup on the cloud, the video clip automatically downloaded onto John’s laptop.
“Kate cannot see this video,” I said staring Daniels and Ramirez in the face.
“I’d like to unsee that video,” Aiden commented.
“You know we have to watch the rest of the videos. Even the ones that are obviously too old to be pertinent to this case,” he warned.
“I know, but I’m done. I don’t need to see anymore. I’ve got enough ghosts in my head. I’m not going to add this sickness to it.” I stood to leave the room, but paused before exiting.
I put my hand on the frame and addressed the officers without turning around. “I’m pretty sure there’s a video on there of John beating Cameron and Kate. I don’t want to hear anything about it. She doesn’t want me to see it and I can at least leave her with that much dignity. That fucker took everything else from her.”
Aiden followed after me. “I don’t need to see any more of that shit. I don’t think Kate would want me to see her like that either.”
My lungs burned. Air, what I needed was air. I stumbled out the backdoor and bent at the waist breathing deeply. After sucking in a few deep breaths, I straighten and find Kate sitting on the porch swing, still locked in old memories.
My arms went around her the moment I sat down. She collapsed onto my chest, and grasped my shirt. “Was it what I thought?” she asked quietly.
“Yes,” I replied.
“Is it wrong that I’m not sad? I don’t pity him. I’m sure it was awful, and please don’t tell me, but I’m not sorry. Why can’t I feel anything? I should. I was married to
him. I was pregnant with his child, but I still feel nothing,” she confessed.
I winced. I wanted to ignore it, or forget she did have a life with him once. It was brief and nightmarish, but they were connected to each other once upon a time. Kate had the biggest heart of anyone I’d ever known. Hating someone, even if they deserved it, would feel unnatural to her.
“He killed that baby before it ever had a chance, and he killed any feeling you ever had for him. None of what you are or aren’t feeling right now is your fault,” I told her.
“I’m sorry,” she muttered. “You don’t want to hear this. I shouldn’t say anything.”
I exhaled forcefully. “You’re my wife. If something is bothering you, then I want you to tell me about it. Is it easy to hear you talk about your life with him? No, but only a small part of me is bothered by the fact that you were married to another man. What bothers me is that the life you had with him was hell. I’m upset because you’re upset, and I don’t know how to make it better.”
“You’re here, that makes it better. Reed, what do we do now?”
“Now we find that sick fuck and let the cops take him away,” I seethed.
“How?” she demanded.
“There is one place in the mountains I can think of. It might be a long shot, but it’s worth a try,” I thought aloud.
Her forehead scrunched in confusion, and she started at me waiting for an explanation.
“I rented the cabin in the mountains that Aiden and Becca were first hidden in. The address and my involvement would be in the police records,” I explained.
“Yeah, but Vanessa blew it up. You guys had all barely left there when it blew,” Kate reminded me.
“I’m sure he sees it as just another lucky escape in my charmed life. It seems like a poetic place to hide out and plot my downfall,” I theorized.
“That’s a little melodramatic don’t you think?” she criticized.
“I think it’s fucking nuts,” Aiden interrupted, making his presence known.
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