The enlarged photograph of the smiling young woman appeared on the large screen in the conference room. A small gasp escaped Bowles’ slightly parted lips. Her reaction was exactly what the others in the room had been expecting from her. Director Nilsson and Dr. Bailey exchanged furtive glances with Dr. Joan Walsh, the FBI profiler who was sitting in on the morning briefing with them.
“Is something the matter, Agent Bowles?” Dr. Bailey wasted no time asking her the obvious.
Bowles had a hard time finding the right words to reply. “Sh’ee…Shee…She was very beautiful.” Her surprised eyes went up to the photograph again.
“Indeed she was!” Dr. Bailey agreed.
“Do you notice anything peculiar about her?” Director Nilsson prompted.
The color rushed to Bowles’ flustered face again. The change of something like this happening was rare—one in a million. The lighting and the angle in which the picture was taken could have a lot to do with too. Pictures were known to tell a thousand words, but sometimes the images could be altered to tell a different story. And she was certain that if she was to have met Katherine Grey in person, she would be looking at a completely different person. She was convinced that the woman features had been altered. Maybe Raybourne had something to do with it.
“Agent Bowles,” Director Nilsson prodded. He seemed impatient.
“No, not really,” she replied to his earlier question. “I see why Raybourne fell in love with her.” She hoped that would be enough to satisfy him.
“We have asked Dr. Walsh to sit in on this briefing with us.” He continued. She already knew that. “As you know, Dr. Walsh is one of the profilers who are working with us to profile Raybourne. Dr. Walsh.”
She had suspected there must be a reason why the Doctor was here.
“As you know,” Dr. Walsh began, looking directly at her. “It is our belief that Mr. Raybourne is still in the city. We think that there is someone keeping him here.”
She was curious. “Has there been any new information?”
“Not exactly, Agent Bowles,” Dr. Bailey offered. “Dr. Walsh and the other profilers think Mr. Raybourne is hanging around because of you.”
Wow! Bowles gave him a startled look. He couldn’t have been blunter!
She took a deep breath, and looked at the three pairs of eyes that were monitoring her response.
“This woman he was in love with has a startling resemblance to you, Agent
Bowles,” Dr. Walsh clarified. “You must have noticed it. We saw the way you reacted to the photograph. We think Mr. Raybourne has plans of recreating the life he had
with her with you. He sees you as her immediate replacement. He wants to continue the life he had planned with Ms. Grey.”
This was extremely difficult for her to digest. “That is a very unusual observation,
and one that I’m finding very hard to believe. No offence to you, Dr. Walsh, but this all seem so far-fetched and weird. It sounds like something from a horror novel.”
Dr. Walsh gave her a warm smile. “None taken, Agent Bowles. I understand your apprehension. This is a lot for you to take in.”
“If that was his plan all along, why didn’t he act on it months ago?” She was trying to make sense of what she had just heard.
“I think he tried.” Dr. Bailey pointed out to her. “Remember those attempts to kidnap you? They were orders from him. He meant to take you then.”
“I think you should have a look at these.” Director Nilsson produced a stack of photographs for her to see. “Those were taken from a room on his farm in Herkimer. It’s a shrine. He had rooms in the house ready for you, Agent Bowles. He replicated every room in the house to look like yours. He had dozens of photographs of you plastered on the wall.”
She went through all of the photographs, and shook her head. “None of this makes
any sense to me. Raybourne knows how I feel about him. He knows I would never
agree to live with him willingly.”
“That’s why he hired the man you were with.” Dr. Walsh interjected. “He was
acting as some sort of surrogate until the time was right for Mr. Raybourne to step in and take over. Raybourne was studying your life. He wanted to make sure he got everything right. Eventually he was going to get rid of Mr. Dalloway and fill in for him.”
“This is beginning to sound more and more like an episode of Criminal Minds, or an excerpt from a Stephen King novel.”
Bowles smoothed her fingers across her forehead.
“This may sound like fiction to you, Agent Bowles, but it’s not. I fully understand your fear and your willingness not to believe any of it.” Dr. Walsh got up and came to sit next to her. “But we must warn you. We think there’s a huge possibility Mr. Raybourne is ready to put his plans in motion. Now that Mr. Dalloway is not in the picture anymore, he’s moving ahead. He may have had a timetable before, but I don’t think he has any plans of sticking to it now.”
“In other words, he’s coming after you, Agent Bowles.” Director Nilsson leaned forward and gave her a daring look. “We have to be prepare.”
“Then let him.”
“You don’t understand, Agent Bowles, this man is very dangerous. He will kill you if he has too.” Director Nilsson told her in a firm voice.
“I’m still very committed to catching Raybourne, sir. I’m not backing off.”
“I’m afraid you would have to. We aren’t going to compromise your safety.”
“If all of this is true, sir, then I can get him out of hiding.”
“Not a chance, Agent Bowles! We aren’t using you as bait. We will get him some other way.”
“Forgive me for saying so, Director, but we haven’t had much luck finding him so far. If this is the only way we can lure him out of hiding, then I want to do it.”
“I admire your willingness to put yourself out there to help solve this case, help, Agent Bowles, but there’s no way I’m going to allow you to go out there and offer yourself to that monster.”
Dr. Walsh looked at her. “I agree with Director Nilsson, Agent Bowles. Mr. Raybourne is a narcissist. He sees you as part of his property. He has been waiting for the chance to claim you. There is no chance he is ever going to let you go if he gets his hands on you. I have handled cases like this one. Raybourne will do anything to keep you with him, and to him. He would even consider lobotomy if it would get you to submit to his wishes. It’s a chance you shouldn’t take, Agent Bowles. Raybourne is desperate, and extremely dangerous. He has the personality of a crazed serial killer. And we have already determined that he is a psychopath.”
“I think we should get you a security detail until we have Raybourne in custody.” Director Nilsson suggested.
“I will need some time to think about it, sir. Is that all?”
She looked around at their faces.
“Yes, Agent Bowles. You may go.”
There was an unsettled look on Director Nilsson face. Maybe there was more to this—maybe there was something he wasn’t telling her. She wasn’t going to stick around to find out. This one was on her, and her alone. And now that she knew how Raybourne felt about her, she realized that it was up to her to put an end to it. And she intended to.
She made her way to her desk, and signed out for the day. She turned back just before she got into the elevator and when back to her desk. She deposited her gun, and her work issued phone in the desk drawer and locked it. She made the call on her personal cell phone on her way down to the garage. It lasted less than sixty seconds.
She removed the battery from her phone and left it in the glove compartment of her car. She ditched her car the moment she arrived at the house she had been renting. She had moved out of the one she had sharing with Kirk the same night Earnes had killed him. She went around back, and pulled the heavy covering off the second hand Honda she kept there. She had purchased the car more than two week ago from a private seller on Craig’s List. She didn’t intend to keep the car after toda
y. She would donate it to a nonprofit.
She got in the driver’s seat and reached under the seat for the bag. She pulled the
bag out and opened it, checking to see if everything was still there, including the two guns. She took one of the glocks and shoved it into her waist. Then she tossed the bag on the floor next to her.
She was on the George Washington Bridge heading west, by the time Director Nilsson showed up at her desk with the two FBI agents he had personally chosen as security details for her.
Chapter 15
“Agent Bowles, you are finally awake! How lovely to see you! I thought you were going to sleep the entire evening away. That would have been extremely sad, because I’m very much looking forward to your company.”
Bowles lifted her head slowly. She squinted and tried to adjust her eyes to the bright florescent light. She tried to move, but she couldn’t. She was in restraints. Her hands were tied to the handles of the chair she was sitting on.
“Sorry about the restraints. They are for your own safety. I have to make sure you don’t slip away in the dark. It’s very dangerous out there.” He chuckled. “Or do something reckless, like shoot me!” He looked at her and chuckled.
“You are right about that. I will shoot you. I wouldn’t think twice about doing it, either.”
He laughed loudly. “Oh, Agent Bowles, I think it’s time you stop threatening to kill me! You should know by now that it’s a promise you can not keep. And it’s becoming extremely redundant! Besides, I don’t think that you want to shoot me—you could have done it already if you really wanted to. You had your chance that day on the street. I was mere yards away watching you.”
She was enraged. “You aren’t going to get away with this.”
“Oh, but I have. Who’s going to stop me—you?” He lowered his face to hers and grinned widely at her.
Bowles glowered at him. It was the first time she’d seen him up close in person. She wished she had her gun in her hand! She’d had recurring images of him going down in a hail of bullets from her gun.
“They will be looking for me. This place will be swarm with agents in no time. You won’t get out of here. You should just give yourself up, Raybourne. Untie me and give yourself up.”
“Oh, Agent Bowles, you should know that nothing is ever that easy! And let them come. The only thing; they won’t be leaving with either of us, and certainly not with you.” She saw the mad look in his eyes. “Besides, we would be long gone by then.” He walked around the chair a few times, looking down obsessively at her each time.
“You have beautiful hair.” He took a handful of her thick hair in his hand and allowed it to slip though his long manicured fingers. She had noticed how well groomed his hands were, especially his fingers. “I bet you have heard it many times before from other men. And your skin.” He bent and caressed the side of her cheek with his fingers. “It’s so luminous and flawless.” She shook her head to the side to avoid his touch. He looked at her and laughed. “You know, Agent Bowles. Oops! I think it’s time I start calling you by your first name. How about Gabriella? Or can I
call you Gabby, like Agent Earnes does?”
“You should continue with Agent Bowles. We haven’t reached to that point. Gabby is for my friends and family, and you are neither.”
A huge grinned appeared on his face. “Very well! Although, I must remind you that I do consider myself a friend, but if you feel more comfortable with the formalities, then I will be more than happy to oblige. We have a lot of time to get to know each other. I can’t wait for us to get fully acquainted.”
He leaned in and pressed his lips against hers, trying to kiss her, and she pulled her head back.
He withdrew and stood close. “You are a very beautiful woman, Agent Bowles, very beautiful. I couldn’t get over how gorgeous you are the first time I saw you. You are doing yourself a disservice by being in this job. It’s for hardened and unattractive women—well, from the ones I’ve dealt with in the past. But you, Agent Bowles, are quite the opposite. Everything about you is so delectable, and sensuous. You should have become a model, or chosen a more appealing profession.” He tried to stroke her hair.
“I happen to love my job. I find it very rewarding, especially when it brings down scumbags like you.”
“Oh, Agent Bowles! Beautiful and feisty—I like that!” He giggled loudly.
“I know Kate was beautiful. I’ve seen pictures of her. What I don’t get is why she
was with someone like you.”
She had been waiting for this moment. He froze. He literally stopped in his tracks. “Do I remind you of her?” Bowles taunted him.
He turned and gave her a blank look. He seemed shocked that she had found out about Kate. “Yes,” he finally told her in a low, distant voice. “In fact you do. You are two beautiful women—you and my Kate. It broke my heart when I lost her.”
“Is that why you murdered the man who you thought was responsible for her death?” she prompted.
“He had to pay for his crime.”
“And what about Kate?” she asked him in a reserved tone. “Shouldn’t she have paid for her crime too?”
He whipped his shoulders around to look at her. He gave her an obscured look.
“What are you talking about? My Kate was an innocent victim in all this. She was a sweet, gentle soul who was taken from me too soon.”
“Yeah, I bet she was!” Bowles told him in a sarcastic voice. “And what about the man and his family? Kate drove into the car. She was suicidal. She tried to kill herself three months before. You probably didn’t hear about it because you were out of the country. You obviously didn’t bother to read the police report or do your research like we have.”
“He killed her,” he said in a toneless voice.
“She killed him!” Bowles barked at him. “She was a murderer just like you! You wanted revenge for her, so you stalked and killed an innocent man. So don’t you stand there and try to tell me that I’m like here. I’m nothing like her. I’m strong. Your precious Kate was nothing but a weak bitch who took the easy way out. Now untie me!”
She saw the sides of his mouth twitched. “I don’t like where you are going with this Agent Bowles. Nothing you say can erase what I felt for Kate, or what I’m feeling for you.”
“You are a sick bastard!” she tried to rile him up. “No wonder Kate wanted to get away from you. Suicide was a much better alternative than living with you. I guessed you made her skin crawl every time you touched her. She probably couldn’t stand the sight of you too! Didn’t you ever think how convenient the timing was for her? You were due to come back into the country the next day. She chose death over you.”
He seemed angry, but he didn’t react the way she thought he would. She wanted him to confront her—get angry with her. She wanted him close, but he took a couple steps back instead.
“I know what you are doing, Agent Bowles.” He nodded his head and shook his finger at her. “But it’s not going to work. I have slowly accepted the fact that Kate is gone, and now you are here to replace her. You are going to be everything she
wasn’t. She was weak, but you are not. It’s one of the things I fell in love with. You
are perfect for me! I have never believed that there was such a thing as the perfect woman until I met you!”
She should have been scared, but surprisingly she wasn’t. She had no time for fear. She needed all of her emotions intact to deal with him. She had to get out of here. He bent and trailed his finger over her full lips.
“Your lips are ravishing. I have never seen such a perfect outline and color on any other woman.”
He reached in to kiss her again, and she brought back her head and spat in his face.
He straightened up and chuckled. She had expected him to smack her across the
face for doing it. She wasn’t getting any of the reactions she had expected from him.
“I expected that.” He wiped the spit off his cheek.
&nb
sp; “How long do you plan on keeping me here?”
“Not long—not long at all,” he told her in a noncommittal tone. “I have some last minute business to take care of, and then we will be off.”
“Off to where?” It was finally dawning on her that he was going to take her out of the country. She would be damned if she allow it.
“You will like it there. I know you love Gardenias, tulips and red roses. I have a huge garden of them planted especially for you. They are already in bloom. There are horses. I have taken it to replace the one you had as a child. I think his name was Heathrow. I know it broke your heart when you had to give him up when your family moved to Germany because of your father’s job.”
She gave him a stunned look. She had forgotten about that horse. He must have
gone through the old photographs and mementoes she had in storage in the attic. Bastards! She took a deep breath. He wasn’t going to get in her head. She wasn’t going to let him.
She had tracked him down here more than five hours ago, going on the information she had found on Kirk’s laptop and from going through his things. She had also downloaded the data from Kirk’s GPS, and had found the directions to this sprawling property in Indian Lake. She had thought it odd that Kirk had never mentioned any of the frequent trips he had made there since they had been together. And she had ever brought his story that he didn’t know where Raybourne was hiding out. He’d been laundering money for Raybourne. Raybourne would need to keep in constant contact with him to get the money to finance whatever illegal projects he had in the works.
She had become even more suspicious when she’d discovered that Kirk had made four trips up here in the last month. She had jumped in the car and retraced his steps, and it had led her right here. Two of Raybourne’s men had appeared out of nowhere as soon as she approached the property, and they had run her off the road. It had been a surprise ambush.
She didn’t have time to reach for her gun. They were on her by the time she regained control of the wheel. They had their guns to her head. They had ordered her out of the car and onto the ground. They must have drugged her with something soon after, because she couldn’t remember anything else. She had wakened up in this room
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