by D. K. Hood
“I figure you can take Parker Rain off the list, as well.” Emily sipped her coffee and sighed. “I’m fit and I work out every day, but I couldn’t hold up the chainsaws they have here for more than a few minutes. They’re boy’s toys and so heavy, plus they run on gas and trying to start them is a nightmare. I tried many times and failed. Add the cold and the difficulty of sawing up a body. Rain is my size. There’s just no way she could’ve used one of the chainsaws. They’re too darn heavy.”
Listening with interest, Jenna nodded. “I agree. This cuts our suspects down to three possible.”
“Why can’t you lock them up?” Emily pushed her empty plate away. “If you’d locked them up at the get-go, we’d have had three fewer murders.”
Pushing both hands through her hair, Jenna sighed. “I wish we had that power, but we need probable cause to detain someone, and we have no physical evidence. All of them have cooperated. In fact, we could have this all wrong and it’s a member of the staff.” She pressed her palms flat on the table. “We don’t have anywhere to detain people, no surveillance gear, trackers, or anything else. If we locked them up until the road is cleared, we’d be charged with deprivation of liberty. These people have no access to a lawyer to protect their legal rights. The problems go on and on.”
“Oh, yes, I see.” Emily shook out her long hair from its ponytail, gathered it back up, and secured it. “Isn’t there anything we can do?”
A plan had already been forming in Jenna’s head. “Yeah, it will cause problems, but it’s the only option I can find.” She sighed. “We’ll ask guests to move rooms, so we have the three suspects in rooms under the surveillance of the CCTV camera at the elevator. I’ll explain things to Brightway and insist he places them all in adjoining rooms.” She smiled. “Then we take shifts watching them.”
“I figure as there’s only three of us armed and we have to sleep sometime, we should use the conference’s people to assist us during the day.” Kane eyed her over the rim of his cup. “If one or two of the suspects are in a session, we show the people on the door a photograph of them and ask them to call us if they leave the hall.”
Jenna nodded. “Do you think they’d do that for us? I mean, one of these could be a serial killer.”
“They won’t need to be involved with them at all.” Kane put down his cup and twirled it in his fingers. “Just a simple phone call is all. I figure they’ll find it thrilling, and probably believe it’s all part of an elaborate game… just like everyone else here.”
“Okay.” Jenna nodded. “Rio, print the images of the suspects and get that set up now.”
“I’m on it.” Rio turned to his laptop and moments later the printer whirred into action.
Jenna’s phone buzzed. It was Mr. Brightway. She listened and then explained her plan. The man wasn’t happy but complied and the changeover would happen after dinner. She disconnected before turning to Kane. “Okay, I’ve organized the suspects’ rooms and Brightway has the possible location of the missing chainsaw. Would you believe it should be inside the maintenance shed where you stored the freezer?”
“You have to be joking?” Emily stood wearily and grabbed her coat. “After you catch this lunatic, I’m sleeping for a week.”
Fifty-One
It had been an amazing day, so good that Julie contemplated ditching the idea of becoming a pediatrician and trying her hand at becoming an author. The intriguing masterclasses on the different techniques used to tell a story had been compelling. During the three sessions, she’d kept her friends around her due to Jenna’s team being involved in an emergency. Meals from the main restaurant had been suspended and an announcement made of a gas leak, but Jenna had secretly informed her it was another murder. The other eateries had been inundated with people lining up for ages, and a shortage of bread had made things worse. Lunch had been staggered as usual and three choices of hot food were available. She’d heard from Uncle Dave that the kitchen was being cleaned, and dinner looked like a possibility. As her friends drifted toward the elevators, she overheard someone speaking close behind her.
“I’m sick of lining up today. I’m taking the stairs.” It was a man’s voice.
“Yeah, good idea. It’s only one flight.” A woman pushed past her and her red coat vanished in the crowd.
“I’m taking the stairs too. Wait for me.” Another woman hurried away.
Julie looked over at her two friends in deep conversation with a couple of boys and pulled out her phone. “Uncle Dave, do you still have the CCTV app on your phone? Can you see me in the foyer?”
“Hold on.” Kane covered the mouthpiece and she heard a mumbling and then he sighed. “Why didn’t you tell us you’d finished the session?”
Annoyed, Julie moved a few steps closer to the elevators, but she still had a long wait. “Because I know you’re all busy and I’m with friends. They’re going to ride up in the elevator with me. There are at least a hundred people waiting down here. I’m perfectly safe.”
“There’s no such thing right now.” Kane cleared his throat. “Jenna headed upstairs just before and I’ll call her to meet you at the elevator. In the meantime, wave so I can see you.”
Feeling stupid, Julie waved pretending she’d seen someone she knew. “Can you see me?”
“Yeah. Zac is going to watch you. I’m helping Em bag the victim.”
Shuddering, Julie nodded. “Okay, see you later.” She disconnected and looked around.
Her friends had moved forward in the line and she couldn’t make them out. Up on her toes, she searched the crowd and then glanced at the man beside her. He wasn’t wearing a hoodie and looked harmless enough, and a woman wearing strong perfume stood on her other side. Zac was watching her, she’d be safe.
A voice came from behind her. “Julie, your friends headed for the fire stairs. They just went through the door. If you hurry, you’ll catch them.”
Julie half turned but there was a sea of faces behind her. It could have been any one of them speaking to her. “Thanks.” She pushed her way through the people waiting for the elevator and headed toward the fire stairs.
As the heavy door clanged shut behind her and cool damp air surrounded her, Julie stared up the stairs, listening intently for footsteps but heard nothing but a slow drip of water. She stepped around a puddle on the floor and started up the stairs. Her friends couldn’t have got far and, after hoisting on her backpack, she took the steps two at a time to catch up. The door clanked shut below her and the sound reverberated in the confined space, followed by footsteps and then an unusual metallic whine. She looked up the stairwell but saw no one above her. Panic gripped her. Had the information about her friends been a lie? She tried to increase her pace, but under the weight of the heavy backpack, it was like climbing a mountain. Heart pounding, Julie made out the red lights above the first-floor exit beaming like a lifebuoy and hurried toward them.
Without warning, darkness surrounded her in a cloud of black. She stumbled, falling to her knees. Was the lodge suffering another blackout? As she searched for her phone, footsteps came from behind her, moving up the stairs in slow deliberation. Unhurried and steady, and getting closer by the second. Grasping the handrail, she peered over the edge and looked down. Most people would use their phone light to guide them in a power cut. Why hadn’t this person? Because he doesn’t want to be seen. Terror hit her in a wave of nausea, and she pushed her phone back inside her pocket. She could hide in the dark as well. She grasped the handrail and climbed the stairs. Ahead had to be the first-floor exit and safety. Breathing heavily as she reached the landing, she ran her hands along the door searching for the long metal release. She pressed down and pushed. Nothing happened. The door refused to open. Pushing down on the bar and franticly shouldering the door, she glanced behind her. A wall of unforgiving darkness surrounded her. From the gloom, the sound of heavy breathing had joined the footsteps and then came a low chuckle. Julie’s bottom lip trembled. He was coming for her.
Fift
y-Two
After searching the maintenance shed, Kane found the chainsaw in a closet with shovels and brooms. It didn’t take too much time to find the evidence to prove it was the murder weapon. Although the killer had tried hard to remove the gore, Emily had found numerous pieces of flesh and blood spatter. When she looked up at him and nodded, Kane slid the chainsaw into the freezer to preserve the evidence. He helped Emily collect the evidence bags. After storing them inside the freezer, he closed and locked the shed door. “Okay, it’s been a long day. Let’s get cleaned up.”
“The camera in the lobby is down.” Rio stared at him through the staff entrance door to the kitchens. “I rewound the feed. There was a flash and then nothing.”
On full alert, Kane pulled off his gloves and grabbed his phone from Rio. He rewound the footage and swore under his breath. “Laser pointer. The camera has been disabled. Something is going down.” He looked at Rio. “Call Jenna and see if Julie is upstairs. If she’s not, head for the lobby. I’ll be right behind you.” He grabbed Emily’s arm and they hurried inside the lodge. “I’ll find a safe place for you.”
“I want to come with you.” Emily pulled back.
“It’s not safe.” Kane pushed into the kitchen, startling the staff, and located the chef. “This woman’s life is in danger. Don’t let her out of your sight until I come back and get her. Understand?”
“Yes, of course.” The chef ushered Emily to a corner of the kitchen and produced a chair for her. He waved to a young man. “Peter, get the young lady a cup of coffee and some of the cake.” He turned back to Kane. “I won’t let her out of my sight.”
Just as Kane stepped out of the kitchen, a buzzer went off on his phone. His stomach tightened when he stared at the screen. Julie had triggered her personal alarm. The tracker rings were used only in an extreme emergency, as in being attacked or kidnapped. He pressed the phone to his ear, listening intently. Like Jenna, Wolfe’s girls and Sandy had a one-way tracker in their rings. They transmitted an emergency call to the team’s phones. The idea being that if the wearers were in danger, the rings could give an undetectable commentary of where they were and who was involved. Kane moved swiftly out of the kitchen and ran toward the lobby. “Come on, Julie, tell me where you are.”
As if she’d heard him, a breathless voice came through the earpiece and Kane pushed a finger in his other ear to hear her.
“I’m in the stairwell leading from the lobby. I’m just going past the first floor. Someone is following me. I can’t see who it is. The lights went out and it’s pitch black in here. I’ll keep moving up the stairs, but I’m not using my phone light. I’m hiding in the dark. Hurry. The first-floor exit is locked. I’m stuck in here.”
Kane ran as he hit Jenna’s number. “Did you get Julie’s message?”
“Yeah, I’m heading for the stairs now.” Jenna’s footsteps thundered through the earpiece. “Tell Rio to get the lights back on. Someone must have turned them off.”
“Copy.” Kane pushed people out of his way and saw Rio heading toward the stairs. “I see Rio. Jenna, I’ll come in silent from below and we’ll trap him between us.”
“Copy. I’m at the fire door. Dammit, it’s locked.”
Kane rushed to Rio’s side. “Jenna, I’m at the stairs now.”
“I got the call from Julie as well.” Rio rushed toward the fire door and yanked on it. “It’s locked.”
Recalling what the maintenance staff had told him about the doors, Kane pulled out his passkey and swiped it through the reader beside the door. It clicked open and Rio yanked the door wide. “Jenna, use your passkey in the reader beside the door.”
“Copy.” Jenna disconnected.
Pushing his phone into his pocket and pulling out his weapon, Kane peered into the darkness and lowered his voice to just above a whisper. He thrust the passkey into Rio’s hands. “There’s a panel here somewhere. You’ll need the passkey to open it. Try and get the lights back on. Jenna is heading down from above. Follow me in silence, I want to get the jump on him.”
Moving in the dark was second nature to Kane and he headed up the stairs in absolute silence, taking them three at a time. He heard scuffling from above and increased his speed, biting back the need to call out and tell Julie help was on the way. He dropped into combat mode, pushing away the anger he had for someone daring to hurt one of his family. Overreacting never helped in a situation. He needed stealth and cunning. His only objective was to save Julie, take down this killer alive, and dissect his twisted mind.
Fifty-Three
Gasping for breath, Julie rounded the top of the next flight of stairs. One hand gripped the stun gun, but in the dark she had no idea if she could safely turn it on. Her fingers moved frantically along the grip. A switch on one side of the handle turned it on and the other side had a safety switch that also worked the flashlight. But if she turned on the flashlight, she’d give away her position. She kept on moving, her heavy breathing almost blocking the sound of the relentless footsteps behind her. It was as if he had all day. She let out a little sob. How had he locked all the doors? She’d seen people heading for the stairs and yet there was nobody trapped in the dark like her. What was happening?
She paused to catch her breath and listen. The footsteps echoed in the stairwell and now the man was humming. Trembling with terror, Julie pushed on, feeling her way in the pitch black. Uncle Dave would be coming soon, she just had to keep moving.
“Why don’t you take a rest, Julie?” It was a man’s voice and he was close by. “No one can get in here. It’s just you and me. No one knows where you are. I was right behind you when you told the sheriff or maybe her deputy that you’d be taking the elevator. Won’t they be surprised when you go missing and they find you in here?”
Chest tightening with fear, Julie struggled to the next landing. As she moved across the smooth floor, she tried the door. Locked. She followed the handrail and continued upward but behind her the footsteps quickened. The next moment, a door opened high above her and a beam of light flooded the stairwell. Julie stared at the stun gun in her hand and hit the switch. The flashlight lit up the face of a man, dressed in black and wearing a hoodie. She screamed as he lunged at her, her fingers desperately trying to find the correct switch on the stun gun. She gasped as his gloved hands slid around her neck and squeezed.
“Sheriff’s department, step away from the girl now.” It was Jenna’s voice coming from above her.
As Julie went for the man’s eyes, fighting for her life, she made out a bobbing flashlight. Jenna was coming down the stairs. The man’s hands slackened a little. Frantic to get away, Julie smashed the man in the face with the stun gun and scratched at his eyes, but it was useless. His hands closed around her throat again and squeezed. As red spots danced across her vision, over his shoulder Julie could see Jenna rounding the top of the landing and, without breaking stride, she flung herself from the top of the stairs. Her scream echoing through the stairwell like a war cry.
“Let her go.”
The impact as Jenna collided with the man hit Julie like a ton of bricks. The stun gun slipped from her fingers as they all tumbled like ninepins across the landing. All the air had left Julie’s lungs, but the man was staggering to his knees.
“Run, Julie, run.” Jenna pointed her flashlight toward the stairs.
Julie rolled onto her back and kicked out at the man, aiming for his face. The man grabbed her foot and twisted. She kicked with the other foot and then jumped to her feet and sprinted up the stairs. She heard Jenna grunt and the flashlight beam faltered. Darkness closed in around her. She stumbled but kept on going, as heavy footsteps and raspy breathing closed in behind her. Gasping for air, she hit the landing and burst through the door, looking for a place to hide or someone to help her, but the hallway was empty. The door opened behind her and the man’s hands reached out to grab her, but she ducked and weaved out of his grasp. Lungs bursting, she hurtled along the passageway. She had to get away. The lights at the end
of the hallway shone red over the other fire door with an invitation of escape. With no time to wait for an elevator, Julie ran for the exit. She pulled open the heavy door and headed down the stairs, jumping the last six or so, rounding the corner and barreling down the stairs again.
Behind her, the relentless pursuer’s rasping breath and heavy steps rung out in the confined space. Terror pushed her on and she burst through the door at the bottom of the next flight of stairs. The freezing chill hit her like a wall of ice as she ran up to her knees in snow. She looked frantically around. The locked pull-down doors to the delivery area were the only break in the back wall of the building. She turned and, leaping over bushes to hide her tracks, headed into the forest. Using the dark shadows to conceal her, she crouched down behind a snow-laden bush as the door to the stairs slowly opened.
Fifty-Four
The lights came on as Kane rounded the top of the steps. His attention snapped to Jenna. He’d seen her leap down the stairs, giving a warrior’s cry so fierce she’d startled Julie’s attacker into dropping her, and they’d all crashed into the wall. Jenna had rolled on impact and the fall had stunned her, but she’d managed to send Julie running for her life.