Callie waited for him to continue.
“When I reached his side, he was face down. I touched his neck to see if there was a pulse, but he was dead.”
Quinn pointed to the red staining on his Marine shorts. “Is that how you got blood on you?”
“Yes, sir. I must have wiped my hand on them.”
Nate pushed on. “What happened next?”
“As soon as I realized he was deceased, I climbed back up and made some calls. It got crazy here as people began flooding the area, and I led them to what I found.”
The ME picked up for him, “Then they called me in. We got here and my team photographed the scene and finally pulled him up.”
Well, at least they did that right.
“The private puked over in the shrubs, so be careful where you walk. The status of our victim was just too much for him to handle.”
“I’ve never seen combat, ma’am. I’m not really good with blood in normal circumstances, but that was… way too much.”
Callie understood.
“That’s when I began my exam. I checked liver temp after we found out he was a Marine because I figured your ME would want to have an accurate timeline,” Doctor Lavelle stated.
“When did he die?” Callie asked.
The man stared down at his clipboard. “Not that long ago. With the outside temp and his internal one, I’m saying between three and six hours.”
Quinn wanted to know one thing as he turned toward the sergeant. “I know how you ended up here, since Private Lewis called you, but I don’t get WHY you’re here. What did you think you could do to help?” he asked Joe Hartford. “You were obviously off duty,” Quinn added, pointing toward the man’s civilian clothes.
“This man is a fallen Marine. It didn't matter if I was busy or off duty. I’m here to stand for our fallen soldier.”
They stared at him.
“After Private Lewis called me, and the ME was alerted, I contacted the colonel and decided to show up in case you needed any help.” What he wasn’t saying was that he wanted to make sure there were no screw ups. He didn't trust anyone to stand for the dead man. They didn't understand, since they weren’t part of the Marines. “I showed up to make sure he got the dignity he deserved.”
Well, that made sense.
Quinn almost wished the man would state he was the killer so they could wrap this up. Unfortunately, life seldom played out like that.
Callie continued with her questioning, “What else did you find, Doctor?”
The man pointed at the victim’s face. “It appears that cause of death is going to be blunt force trauma, but I’m sure your ME will want to do a full autopsy to make sure.”
Yeah, Chris Leonard would. In fact, the man would never even give out a COD at the crime scene. That spoke volumes to the differences between the ME’s.
“Assuming that’s what did him in, I’m willing to go out on a limb here and say that whoever did this used that tree branch over there,” he stated, pointing past them. “I noticed it while I was waiting for my team to pull him up. There are pieces of hair and skin all over it, not to mention the copious amounts of blood.”
They could buy that the man was attacked with it. When in the woods, why not use what was handy? A man walking around with a baseball bat would draw suspicion, but with a tree branch? No one would bat an eye.
“Thank you, Doctor,” Callie stated. “I appreciate your input on this.”
“Well, I do have one more thing that may or may not be related,” he offered.
“What’s that, Doctor?” Nate asked.
Lifting the man’s shirt, he showed them what else he had found. “I was searching for any other wounds and came across this.”
On the victim’s chest was a crudely scribbled sentence.
I’M A SINNER
Well, that said a lot. Callie glanced up at her brother and husband. “I think we may have a direction to take this now.”
Yeah, they now had definite confirmation.
This had nothing to do with Oracle, and everything to do with someone being out of their freaking mind.
The scrawled message meant one thing.
The killer was giving them a big clue as it began escalating. This could work to their advantage.
Now there was no doubt. This was going to be an inside job. The irony was that while it gave them a direction, it also gave them one hell of an obstacle.
They now had roughly eight hundred Marines as suspects.
Their night just got that much longer.
* * * C a r t e r C h r o n i c l e s * * *
When Luke volunteered to handle dinner, Maura didn't know what he had planned. Since he headed in the opposite direction of the lake, carrying the compound bow, she suspected he was going to hunt for some meat.
That thrilled her for a few reasons. There was something innately sexy that the man she was madly in love with was going to find them food. The idea that he was sulking around the forest, trying to forage, heated her blood. The other reason was that she was sick of fish. You could only cook fresh catfish so many ways before it became tedious.
Sitting outside the cabin, Luke had left her armed. Before leaving, he had given Maura instructions to shoot anyone who came near her. It amused her that he seemed to forget what she did for a living.
When Maura tried to explain that she couldn’t just shoot someone wandering up, he wouldn’t hear it. Luke was worked up, and she wasn’t quite sure why.
When there was a rustling from the trees off to her side, she picked up the Glock and placed it in her lap. Before long, she heard her name being called before he came into view.
Immediately, she relaxed.
Luke was back.
As he exited the thick brush, she could see that he was indeed carrying a sack, and it appeared to have something bloody inside.
“I found us dinner,” he stated, resting the bow against the side of the cabin.
“What is it?” she asked, curiously.
“Well, Thumper isn't making it home, and neither is his other fluffy friend.”
She was excited. “I love rabbit.”
“I’m glad because the only other thing I saw was a poisonous snake.”
She grinned. “I have an idea. How about we cook them outside? Nothing tastes better than fresh rabbit roasted over flames.”
He tossed her the sac. “I’m going to go clean up. I got a little messy cleaning them.”
Maura glanced at the remnants of blood and guts on his hands. “I’ll take care of the dinner then.”
Dropping a fast kiss to her lips, Luke headed down toward the lake. He didn't like leaving Maura alone, but if he wanted to cuddle with his babe while dinner cooked, he didn't want to leave bloody fingerprints and fur all over her.
As he cleaned up, there was that sense of masculine pride welling deep within him. Luke had never felt like this with any other woman, nor had he ever had to hunt for food for a babe either. It was hard not to enjoy the feeling.
He’d brought them dinner.
Maybe after, he could drag her inside the cabin and really show her how he felt.
After washing up, Luke hustled back to her side. When he arrived, she had already gotten the fire going in the little makeshift pit outside the cabin. Maura was kneeling beside their dinner, getting them ready to cook.
“What’s that?” he asked, pointing at the other items she had beside the rabbits.
“I found some wild radishes earlier. If you roast them, they taste like red skinned potatoes.”
He stared at her. “You’re really handy to have around. Here I always thought a civilian was a good thing. Now I see that if you’re going to be trapped in the middle of nowhere, bring a Marine.”
That made her laugh. “I have my moments.”
“I know I’m not supposed to ask, but when you go out on missions, is it to places like this?”
Maura knew she wasn’t supposed to talk about her job, but this was Luke.
> She trusted him.
“We don’t really spend a lot of time on duty in the woods, but training is a different story. There were times we were dropped in the middle of a forest and had to survive a week before pick up.”
“That sounds horrible,” he teased.
“It builds character. If you’re hungry enough, you’ll fight to survive. When my team goes in, we never know what’s going to happen.”
Luke watched her as she constructed a few sticks to hold the rabbits over the fire. She skewered them, and when Maura stuffed the rabbits full of radishes, he was impressed.
“Why are you smiling?” she asked, sitting beside him to watch their dinner cook.
“I was thinking about something.”
She didn't let up. “Want to share?”
Luke shrugged. “I don’t know if I should. It’s chauvinistic. I’ll tell you only if you promise not to get mad and take it the wrong way,” he offered.
“I won’t. I have a fairly thick skin when it comes to certain things. You know, Marines and a house full of brothers helped.”
“I feel like some primitive caveman. I headed out and brought home dinner and my cave woman is cooking it for me.”
Maura snorted. “That was very chauvinistic, but I can see why you thought it. Want me to go fashion a skimpy dress out of leaves and you can swing through the trees, Tarzan?” she asked.
He grinned wickedly. “Jane better not pick poison ivy,” he muttered, leaving kisses on her neck, as she leaned against him. “In fact, Tarzan likes Jane naked best.”
Luke always made her laugh. No matter how worried she was about her team, he found a way to help her forget.
“If Tarzan is good, maybe later I’ll let him carry me back to his tree house.”
“Yippee!” he practically shouted, right before turning her head toward him to lay a kiss on her lips. When she didn't fight him, and instead fell into it, Luke’s heart began pounding in his chest.
Just as he was going to suggest fooling around while they waited, his phone began ringing.
“Damn! I knew I should have left it off,” he stated. The only reason he turned it on was Nate and Quinn liked to call later at night to check in.
Regretfully, he pulled it from his pocket.
“Hello?”
“Are you hanging in there?” Nate asked.
Luke put it on speaker phone. “We’re doing okay. We’re cooking dinner and getting ready to settle in for the night.” He was finding it difficult to think as Maura’s hand was fairly high up on his thigh.
Luke was praying she’d move it even more.
“Is my sister okay?” Quinn asked.
Maura answered for herself, “I’m more than okay, Quinton. Luke is taking very good care of me.”
He snickered when she blew him a kiss.
“I don’t want to know,” Quinn stated. “In fact, I want to plead ignorant bliss when it comes to whatever you two are doing right now.”
“We’re cooking rabbits.”
There was a pause.
“Oh, then never mind. That’s not what I thought you were going to say.”
“Then we’re going to go inside and behave like them,” Luke stated, busting his ass.
There was a disgruntled sound from the other end and some laughter from Callie and Nate.
“Let’s talk about something else,” Quinn stated.
“What’s going on there in civilization?” asked Maura. “Are Jayson and Redmond okay?” All day, she was nervous for her team.
Callie decided to give her the news. “Well, your team is still intact, but we did have another death. It was a little surprising, and we’re not sure what to do with it.”
That was a curious statement.
“Who died?” Maura asked. “I thought this was only about Bravo Ghost.”
“We now no longer believe it has anything to do with Oracle or your other missions. We really believe it has everything to do with your team,” Callie offered.
“I don’t get it. Who died? If it’s not my team, what’s going on?”
She broke the news. “Our latest victim is Sergeant Leroy Walker.”
Maura gasped. “Really?”
“Yes,” Callie stated.
“I don’t get it. He wasn’t on my team anymore. Why is the killer targeting him?” Maura couldn’t help but feel bad, despite how miserable he’d made her job. True, he wasn’t one of them any longer, but he was still a Marine. That meant something to her.
They were a brotherhood in arms.
“What happened?” she asked, needing to know the entire story.
Luke could see and hear the emotion coming from Maura. Pulling her into his body, he held her close. In that moment, he would have given anything to take away the anguish filling her eyes.
Quinn shared all they knew about the killing. They had waited at the scene until the FBI arrived, and now the victim was on his way to FBI West to be handled by the Feds.
Then, they told her about the sentence scribbled across the man’s chest.
“I don’t understand,” she offered. “This is all about sins?”
Callie picked up for the men. “We think that this killer is picking off your team because of less than perfect lives. Bravo Ghost is important to the military. Right now, we believe someone else knows about what you do. That person is also aware that the ‘perfect’ team isn't so idyllic. That person is taking justice into their own hands.”
Maura couldn’t believe it. “That’s crazy! The men on my team are, and were, the good guys. They didn't do horrible things, and they served this country well.”
Callie knew this was her area. “If we’re dealing with someone a little less than sane, you can’t rationalize what they’re doing. If this person is having a break from reality, what’s true and false won’t matter. It’s all in their mind. We can’t stop his thinking, but we can stop the killing.”
“This is all so scary,” she admitted.
Yeah, Callie completely agreed.
“What sins did my men commit?” she asked, holding onto Luke to remain calm. In that moment, Maura wanted to weep and rage around simultaneously.
“We haven’t worked over each man yet, but we will. Once we do, I can give you more. I need to mull it over and dig into their pasts a little more,” Callie stated.
While she had some suspicions, she wanted to talk to both men and get their impression. They were a team, and Callie knew they’d be very helpful.
“I’m worried about my other men,” she stated.
Quinn spoke up, “We discussed this, Maura. You need to text them both and tell them to get out. They need to both go into hiding. We want you to give them my cell number so they can text us their location. If someone suspicious approaches them, they can call us directly or we can find them.”
She let out a deep breath. “I’ll send it immediately. Please keep them safe, Quinn. I trust you with my other family.”
“You know we will, Maura. Go send them the text. We’ll handle the rest.”
Maura got up and headed inside.
When she was gone, Luke finally broke his silence, “How bad is the situation?” he asked. “I know you pulled punches on telling her. I’ve worked with you too long, Nate.”
“Bad,” he replied. “We have a couple of suspects, but nothing that’s pointing at one person. You need to watch her like a hawk.”
“I am. So far, it’s quiet up here. We’ve already scouted out locations to get out if it goes bad. It’s going to be easier since Maura is trained to disappear. Worst case scenario, she can get away and I’ll do what I need to do.”
Callie didn't like that at all. “Lucas Mars, don’t you do anything stupid. You’re just as important to us as Maura is.”
How did he explain that the Marine inside was more valuable to him than anything in the world? Without Maura, he couldn’t go on. Deep down, he was well aware that she was far stronger than him. If something were to happen, she could push past the so
rrow.
Luke couldn’t.
His heart was already gone.
“Is there something between you and my sister, Luke?” Quinn asked calmly. “I don’t mean sex. I mean something bigger than that.”
He checked to make sure that Maura was still inside. “Remember that night after Callie was attacked and Nate belted you one in the hospital?”
“Hell yeah! I still owe him one too. Thanks for reminding me,” he stated, glancing over at the man.
“Do you recall the conversation we had?”
Quinn thought back to that moment. After he’d failed Callie, he was filled with such hopelessness. He had been ready to set her free to save her from himself. Luke had offered him an olive branch by telling him the truth. The FBI agent had admitted that he had been madly in love with Callie.
How he lost his chance.
How she had been the one.
“Yeah, I recall.”
“I was wrong. Your sister made me see that. All these years, I was just waiting for the right person to come along, and now she has. I’ll die to keep her safe.”
Quinn heard the emotion in his voice and immediately softened. “You’re going to have one hell of an uphill battle on this one. My sister is stubborn, strong willed, and tough to handle.”
“Welcome to my world,” Callie stated, earning herself a kiss.
“I’m willing to do whatever it takes. I’m going to marry her. Before this is all done, I’m going to save the girl and make her my wife.”
Callie’s eyes filled with tears. “I hope you do, Luke. I’m so happy for you.” She knew how hard the last few years had been for her friend. Many times, she’d caught him watching her, almost the way Quinn did.
There was no doubt in her mind. He had feelings for her. Now, she could relax. Luke had moved on and was happy.
It’s all she ever wanted for him.
Before he could add anything, Maura exited the cabin, catching the tail end of the conversation.
“Luke!”
Quinn started laughing. “We’re going to let you go. You’re about to get your ass kicked. We don’t plan on being witnesses to this free-for-all.”
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