Pain gripped his shoulders as he stared at the nearly blank whiteboard. Its emptiness mocked him. If only the police had taken Terri’s disappearance more serious. Hunter kneaded the tightness of his nape, trying to loosen the taut claws digging into his muscles.
“I thought you might want a cup of coffee.”
Deep in thought, Hunter hadn’t heard Sarah’s approach. He whirled around and faced her across the room. “How long have you been there?”
“Long enough to tell you to either drink a pot of coffee or go home and get some sleep.” She approached him and held out a mug.
“I can’t leave or sleep.” He took the coffee and sipped it. “I should know more about Terri’s disappearance after ten days, but the police didn’t get involved until later, so there’s not much evidence.”
“Were you working on her case before today?”
“Not much. Just assisting when Mark asked. He assigned it to me when her body was found this morning. She wasn’t reported missing until after a few days. We’re not even sure exactly when she was taken.”
“The time between the abductions could be shorter?”
“Yes, seven or eight days.” He half sat and half leaned against the pool table in the middle of the rec room.
Sarah moved to stand near him as he stared at the whiteboard. “Then we’ll be living on coffee for the next week.”
Hunter slid a look at her. We. It hadn’t been that in years. When he’d talked with her earlier in the evening, he hadn’t thought he could be hurt by Sarah anymore. He discovered she hadn’t trusted him enough to tell him about her rape, and instead, ran away. “Why were you against having the command center here?”
“I didn’t want Rebecca to be constantly exposed to all the information during the day. If it had been in the dining room as Mark said, there would be no way for her to avoid seeing what we find.”
“Then why not your dad’s suggestion about using his house?”
“That’s for my peace of mind. I couldn’t work knowing he’d be there critiquing everything I do, so I came up with this idea. Rebecca can move about her house without seeing any of this. People can come and go by the back door on this level, but it’s nearby so that Mark can drop in anytime.”
“Do you and your dad talk much?”
She shook her head.
“Why not?”
“Our relationship has only worsened over the years.”
“Maybe he feels like I do. You didn’t give him a chance fifteen years ago with the truth.”
Sarah sucked in a deep breath. “You’re still very straightforward. That hasn’t changed.”
“I’m still the man you fell in love with. I haven’t changed much.”
“But I have.” She shifted toward him until they were looking at each other head-on. “Can we make this partnership work?”
“There’s no choice here. I’ll do everything I can to bring Alicia home safely.”
“I agree. I can’t lose her like I did my son.”
That should have been his son. He’d wanted several children, and when Sarah had left him, that dream slowly dissipated over time. Now he would find a way to work with her and keep himself emotionally removed from her. With Your help, Lord.
Chapter Six
The next morning, Hunter returned from going through Terri’s apartment with her mother and her best friend. They came up with a list of clothes and items missing, although Hunter realized there might be other objects gone that Nora Bennett and Anna Johnson didn’t know about. Sarah was working with her sister on Alicia’s room. It appeared the killer was the one who packed the bag. What was behind the choices he took with him? Were there similar things from each woman?
He heard the door next to the rec room—Alicia’s bedroom—open and close. Rebecca headed toward the stairs while Sarah entered, her expression weary, her lips thinned into a hard line. He and Sarah had stayed up late, making a plan on what to do today. When Sarah had gone up to the ground floor, he’d stretched out on the couch and managed to get a few hours of rest but not nearly enough.
“How’s Rebecca?”
Sarah passed her list to Hunter. “Not good. I’m glad Nana is staying here now. When I’m working, someone needs to be with Rebecca and Mark, especially the times when my brother-in-law is on the phone. Is he working the case?”
“Yes. When I went upstairs to get coffee this morning, he was in the kitchen. I don’t think he slept at all last night. I know Rebecca wants him here, but he needs to do something to find his daughter.”
“I agree. I’m surprised he isn’t down here running the investigation.”
“He’s afraid in his state, he might overlook something vital. He needed a more objective mind running the case.”
“What do you have him doing?”
Hunter stared at the mostly blank whiteboard. “Digging into Terri’s life. We need to know everything about her.”
“How about Alicia’s?”
“You and I are going to work her case. He’s too close to research his own daughter, but we’ll definitely talk to him and Rebecca about her.” He flipped the whiteboard over.
“I’m close to Alicia.”
“I know, but this is your expertise, and I’m counting on you to make objective judgments. I want to list what we have so far.” He picked up the black marker and wrote the word clues on the board. “We have a note with ‘she’s not the one’ written on it in blood. The lab is checking to see if it matches Terri’s. We have a piece of gum that may be the kidnapper’s and also a footprint. It appears that Terri’s killer used a boat to bring her body to the dumpsite.”
“Are officers looking at boats on the lake?”
“Yes, but some of the homes on the lake are only used for vacations and long weekends.” He listed the clues on the board as he talked. “Lastly, we think the kidnapper walks more on the inside of his right shoe. He wears a size 12.”
“That narrows down our pool of suspects slightly.”
“It’s a start.” He turned away from the whiteboard. “Let’s compare the items taken from Terri’s and Alicia’s bedrooms. Any pattern here?” Hunter placed the sheets of paper on the pool table. After a few minutes, he slanted a look at Sarah, her eyebrows crunched together, her mouth pinched in a frown. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “A lot of lingerie from both women. He doesn’t want just one time with them.”
“Then why did Terri turn up dead?”
Sarah twisted away from the pool table. “There comes a time when he wants someone different and like trash, he throws out what he doesn’t want anymore. The note he left implied that.” Little emotion accompanied her words, but her disgusted look spoke volumes. “We’ve got to find this guy. I’m working with the FBI to see if there are incidents similar to this one in other parts of the U.S. that haven’t been flagged yet. If this man is the one who attacked me, I don’t see him being quiet for fifteen years and all of a sudden starting again and escalating. He would need an outlet.”
“What if he was in prison for that time or something similar?”
“That needs to be considered.” Sarah scanned the room. “Do we have the classes that Terri and Alicia were taking at the college?”
Hunter picked up a piece of paper. “That’s our next stop. I have an appointment with the president of the college.”
“Let me grab something to eat and another large coffee. Rebecca was going upstairs to make sandwiches.”
“Sounds good.”
Hunter ascended the stairs behind Sarah. She hadn’t been back to her hometown in years and to come for a joyous celebration that turned into a nightmare had to be devastating. He used to be able to cheer her up when she was hurting. He wanted to give her hope. “The town is praying for Alicia’s safe return.”
She paused at the top of the steps and faced him. “I’m sure they were praying for Terri, and that didn’t help her.”
Surprised by her rep
ly, he took her hand and stopped her from turning away. “You’re the one who brought me to Christ. What’s happened?”
“Too much death. Too many innocent people dying.”
He climbed the last stair and clasped her upper arms. “But we’re here to give those people a voice. We weren’t promised a wonderful, perfect life here on Earth, but the Lord did promise us He would be with us through the worst and the best. We aren’t alone. Ever.”
“That’s not how I feel.” She shrugged. “When David was diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease, I prayed every day for God to heal him. Instead He took him. In dealing with the victims’ families, I’ve seen the same scenarios over and over. It’s broken my heart every time. Now I have to watch my family go through it.”
“And you. Did Alicia believe in Christ?”
“Yes.”
“Then she’s in the Lord’s hands. She couldn’t be in a better place. Prayers never hurt; they only help.”
“That’s easy for you to say. You haven’t lost anyone important to you yet.”
Memories of standing at the altar waiting for Sarah to come down the aisle and become his wife ripped his heart in two once again. All their dreams had gone up in fire. He released his grip on her and pivoted away. “You have no idea what I’ve gone through.” He strode toward the kitchen, needing to put space between them.
How was he going to make it through the investigation with his heart intact?
* * *
Sarah shook President Ed Duncan’s hand and took the chair he indicated in front of his desk in his office at Cimarron City College. He’d been the president when she’d been a freshman and attended this school. A lot had happened since that time, but she couldn’t go back and change it. When Hunter had asked about her faith now, she’d been surprised. Yes, he’d gone to church with her that last year they were together and engaged, but his faith hadn’t been very deep. What changed for him? Her leaving him on their wedding day? If she had it to do over again, what would she have done differently when dealing with a situation she’d never imagined happening to her?
“I have a list of Terri’s and Alicia’s schedule of classes and any groups or organization they were part of.” Dr. Duncan passed the paper to Sarah, who went through it then gave it to Hunter. “As you can see, there were no classes they had in common. Terri was a year ahead of Alicia.”
“Who are their advisors?” Sarah asked.
The college president shifted toward his computer. “I’ll have to look it up.”
“Also, I’d like to know who else took each of their classes.”
Dr. Duncan frowned. “How does that help?”
Hunter folded the paper and put it in his suit coat pocket. “We’re looking at students who have a class with both of them. We’re investigating any commonality between Terri and Alicia. How did the perpetrator target them? Why did he target them? Those are questions we need answered. If the killer follows the pattern he’s set with Terri, then he’ll kill Alicia within the week. We’re trying to stop that murder and the kidnapping of his next victim.”
The college president rose. “Give me time. I’ll have that information for you later this afternoon.” His gaze swung to Sarah. “Dr. Carey Allen took the place of Dr. Smithers who was Terri’s advisor. Dr. Allen took over his advisees, but I don’t know who became Alicia’s advisor.”
“That’s great.” Sarah stood. “Thanks for your help.” She shook the man’s hand again. “We’ll be back at five to pick up the class lists and the name of Alicia’s advisor.”
As they left the administration building, Hunter said, “We have a meeting with the head of the campus police. Didn’t we meet Dr. Allen yesterday with Emily?”
“Yes. He was a graduate student when I was here. Emily had a crush on him. I knew a couple of others who did, too. Obviously, it worked out for her in the end.”
“I know Emily was the one who wanted to go to the party at the lake. Do you blame her for what happened?” At his SUV, he opened the front passenger’s door.
“She left without me. She knew I didn’t want to go in the first place, so my car being there when she left should have raised a red flag. But she just went home and slept—while my life horribly changed.”
When she started to climb into the car, Hunter stopped her. “But she isn’t to blame. You aren’t to blame either.”
“Part of me believes that, but my life totally changed because of that one night. The rapist took so much from me. Nothing has happened to him as far as I know.”
“Can you forgive him?”
“No! Nor forget him, especially if he’s back to ruin the life of someone I love. I know the Lord wants us to forgive the people who cross us. I just can’t.”
“Is that why you’re angry at God?”
She yanked her arm away from his touch and quickly scrambled into the passenger’s seat, keeping her face trained forward. She didn’t breathe until Hunter shut the door and walked around the hood of the car. Then the air swooshed from her lungs. Her hands shook, and she grasped them together in her lap.
She’d thought she’d come to terms with the rapist, although she’d never really forgiven him. But the depth of her hatred had surprised her when she’d talked with Hunter. It consumed every part of her, as if it controlled her, and she didn’t like that. Was this what happened when you let anger fester instead of forgiveness? The rage took control of everything.
Silence reigned in the short time it took to drive to the office of the campus police.
The head of the campus law enforcement, Travis Scott, greeted Sarah and Hunter and escorted them into his office.
“Do you have any rapes or attempted ones in the past month or two?” Hunter asked, seated in the chair beside Sarah.
“After your call, I went through our cases for anything that might be similar to what happened recently to the two women.”
Sarah needed to keep her focus on the conversation between Hunter and the chief of the campus police, but her thoughts wandered back to her discussion with Hunter. How long was she going to let what happened to her fifteen years ago rule her life? When was she going to move on? Could she go forward if she couldn’t forgive the man who attacked her?
“Each one was an attempt that was foiled. One was given a roofie. The other wasn’t.”
Sarah blocked her past and squared her shoulders. “Any suspects in these cases?”
“In the one who wasn’t given a drug, she screamed and several students chased the guy down and held him for us. He’s still in jail. The judge set a high bail he couldn’t pay.” Chief Scott glanced down at the folder in front of him. “His name is Zed Booth.”
Hunter wrote the information on his pad. “He wouldn’t be the person we’re looking for since he’s in jail. How about the other case involving the drugging of the victim?”
“Not a lot to go on. She felt dizzy and woozy after finishing a drink. She’d been studying at the library and decided to leave. When she left, she walked toward her car parked in the lot. Earlier, a streetlight had been on above her Chevy, but it was dark as she headed to it. She thought she saw a man by a tree not far from where she was parked, but she wasn’t sure because she stumbled and went down. Two guys coming out of the building saw her go down and ran to help her.”
Sarah sat forward, something about the story jiggling a memory of her own. “Did they see anyone by the tree?”
“One of the men who was coming out of the library did, but it was too dark to identify the loiterer. When one of the rescuers glanced in that direction as he helped the woman, no one was there.”
“Why did she report this to the campus police?” Hunter slid a look at Sarah.
“It happened a couple of days after the other incident.”
“We need to talk to the victim. Who is she?” Sarah pushed to her feet, clutching her purse tightly against her, trying to contain her anger at the lurker and her hope this was a break on their case. She’d followed many potential leads that l
ed nowhere.
“Donna Conroy.” Chief Scott scribbled something on a piece of paper and passed it to Sarah. “That’s her phone number and address.”
“We’ll call her to let her know we’re coming.” She’d been afraid to answer a knock at her door years after she’d been raped and didn’t open it even today unless she knew who it was or was expecting someone.
“Let me call her,” Chief Scott said. “She might not answer your call, but we’ve talked several times on the phone.”
“Thanks, Chief Scott. We should be at her place in ten minutes.” Hunter followed Sarah from the office. Outside the campus police headquarters, he slowed to a stop. “Are you okay? Maybe you shouldn’t be on this case.”
She hiked up her chin. “I’m going to investigate with or without you. And, honestly, I think you should drop me off at the house to get my rental. It would be better if I talked with Donna alone. With Terri’s death, she must be scared the guy in the parking lot will come after her. Seeing a woman alone isn’t as threatening.”
“I’m not letting you go it alone. You can talk to her, but I’ll be parked right out front, waiting for you.”
“You don’t have to be my babysitter.” She opened her purse and lifted her gun out of the bag. “I was a very good shot even before I became an FBI agent. Also, I know how to defend myself, and I’m not taking a drink that I didn’t pour myself.”
“You aren’t the only one who wants to get this guy. I’ll take you to Donna’s and wait.”
The firm line of Hunter’s jaw told her she wouldn’t change his mind, and so long as she talked with Donna alone, she was all right with having him wait outside. “Okay.”
As Hunter drove to Donna’s small house, Sarah remembered when she told Nana about what happened to her. Her grandmother wanted her to talk to her father about it. Sarah refused. She couldn’t face her dad, and she’d made Nana promise not to tell him. The very thought today churned her stomach. She knew in her heart she didn’t do anything wrong, but for years, she couldn’t stop feeling like she had. Working with other victims was the one way she’d begun to deal with her own feelings and finally believed she was the wronged person.
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