Malevolent

by Cassia Brightmore

  “Sugar, if you keep that up, I’ll be having you for dinner and dessert.” Whatever her reply was going to be, it was swallowed by Brady’s radio chirping from the other room, followed by his cell phone ringing.

  Brady hurried into the other room and turned the volume on the radio down, answering his phone.

  “James.” Listening intently, his face paled. “Repeat that. Now,” he ordered into the receiver. After a few seconds, he slammed the phone down on the coffee table. He stood staring at her, his eyes vacant. Alarmed, Gwyn approached him with caution.

  “Brady?” her eyes were full of questions. After a long moment, he looked at her, swallowing hard before answering.

  “Hailey’s missing.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Racing into the station, with Gwyn on his heels, Brady skidded to a halt when he spotted Sam with Agent Harris. Sam’s eyes were wild, his shirt untucked as he paced back and forth.

  Striding over, Brady laid a hand on his shoulder. “What happened?” Sam took off his glasses and ran a hand through his hair.

  “Brady, I don’t know. I guess she never arrived at the school today. They called in a substitute and didn’t think twice about her absence knowing everything we were dealing with yesterday. I had no idea she was missing until about an hour ago.” Guilt was written all over his face as he filled them in on the details.

  “She’s been missing for hours. Hours, Brady.” Unashamedly, tears gathered in Sam’s eyes. He didn’t have to say anymore for Brady to know what he was thinking, for him to know the hell he was imagining in his mind.

  “Listen to me. We are going to get her back. We don’t know for sure that this asshole has her,” Brady told him, even though he knew in his gut that she had been taken. “We need to keep our heads screwed on straight.” Brady kept his voice steady, but inside he was reeling. If Hailey had been abducted by this lunatic, and he hoped to God she hadn’t, but if she had, this was the first advantage they’d had in the case. The first time they knew about a potential victim before the body turned up.

  Agent Harris stepped forward. “I’ve got Walker and two other deputies out canvassing Hailey’s route from home to the school. I’m told she leaves the house at 7:10 approximately every morning—you’re sure about that time, Deputy Ridley?” Gage used his full name, reminding Sam that he was still a cop.

  “Yes. Yes, that’s right,” Sam replied, looking dazed.

  Gwyn stepped forward and addressed the men. “Um, I don’t know if this is useful information or not, but Hailey—she liked coffee in the morning. She would stop in at The Bean Bar or sometimes the diner to pick up a cup to go.”

  Agent Harris eyed her, running his gaze up and down the length of her. Smiling appreciatively at what he saw, he stepped closer.

  “I’m Special Agent Gage Harris, ma’am,” His eyes were dark and penetrating, as though he could see straight into her soul. “That’s a good tip you’ve just given us. Why don’t we move into one of these interview rooms and you can further elaborate on what you know about Mrs. Ridley’s habits.” He grasped her elbow and began to steer her towards the back offices.

  Unsure, she searched for Brady to see if he thought it was a good idea, only to find him occupied barking orders out to the remaining deputies, Sam by his side.

  Deciding that the right thing to do was to tell the Agent everything she knew about Hailey, she allowed him to lead her away from the others.

  There were two interview rooms in the Durham Heights police station, both were small adjourning rooms with large windows. Entering the first room, Agent Harris motioned for her to take a seat at the long aluminum table.

  “I don’t know how much I can tell you, Agent Harris. Everything I know, I just said out there.” Gwyn grew uneasy when he closed the door and instead of taking the seat across from her, perched on the edge of the table, filling up her personal space.

  “Please, you can call me Gage,” he smiled. “Anything you can remember will be valuable. Sometimes even the smallest details can have the biggest impact. Why don’t we start by you telling me your name.” Gwyn shifted in her chair, uncomfortable. His words held a double meaning that had her wondering if he was interested in more than her accounting of Hailey’s day to day activities.

  “Oh. Right. Um, my name is Gwyn Woods. And well, as I said, she likes coffee in the mornings. I have run into her in The Bean Bar, and have served her at the diner on some mornings.”

  “And what time would you say you ran into her in the coffee shop? Is there any other details you can remember?” Gage kept his voice conversational, a skilled interviewer.

  “Um, it was probably about 7:15, 7:20?” Her answer came out as a question. Gage placed a hand on her knee, reassuring.

  “Take your time, we want to make sure we get these details as accurate as possible.” His hand was starting to put pressure her knee. Or was she imagining that?

  The door opened and Brady stepped inside. Seeing Agent Harris’s hands on Gwyn, he glared, his eyes flashing between the two.

  “What’s going on in here?” he demanded.

  Gage turned his head, smiling. “Just getting some more concrete details from Ms. Woods here. She’s been very cooperative.” His words had a minimal feeling of shame sliding through Gwyn, as though she was doing something devious by being in the room with him. Glancing up at Brady, she could see he wasn’t pleased at the Agent’s explanation either.

  “I’ll take it from here.” Brady’s tone left no room for argument.

  Looking from Brady to Gwyn and then back to Brady, he nodded, understanding dawning in his eyes. “Ah. Yes, of course, Sheriff. I’ll see if anyone has an update from Walker out in the field.” He walked to the door, pausing to cast one last glance at Gwyn before leaving.

  A nervous sense of anticipation slid down Gwyn’s spine. “Brady, I didn’t…”she began, but he cut her off. “Don’t. I trust you Gwyn, you need to remember that.” Relief flooded through her as she smiled. He walked over to her and cupped her face, stealing her lips in one hard kiss.

  “He does have a point though. You may know something important without realizing it.” Brady motioned for her to come back out into the pen. “I need to make sure the search stays on target, we can talk out here.” As she passed him, he snagged her wrist. “I didn’t like his hands on you, sugar. Wish I could drag you off for a few minutes and remind us both that you’re mine.” His voice was low, dangerously sexy. She blushed at his words, waving her hands to get him to be quiet.

  Raised voices had both of their heads spinning around. “She did not take off! Hailey would never do that. We’re happy, you asshole!” Sam yelled. He pulled his fist back, ready to take a swing at Agent Harris.

  Brady rushed over, grabbing his arm before he could follow through. “Hey. Let’s everybody calm down. We are all worried about Hailey, but fighting isn’t going to help us bring her home safely,” he cast a pointed look at Gage.

  “We need to explore every possibility, Sheriff,” Gage argued. “They were trying to have a baby and failing, women have taken off from a marriage due to far less stressful things than that.” Sam’s neck reddened in anger at the FBI Agent’s words, and he surged forward, out for blood.

  “Failing? We weren’t failing, we were trying. I told you that so you could use it to help us, not throw it in my face, you prick.” Brady grabbed his shoulders, holding him back.

  “Okay, everybody out for a minute. Now!” Brady ordered, waiting while the deputies rounded up the other citizens that were there to offer support. “You too, Agent Harris,” he said, when the man remained. Gage opened his mouth to protest, but seeing the hard glint in Brady’s eye, he reconsidered.

  “Fine. I needed a coffee anyway.” Gage stomped out of the station, swinging the door shut behind him.

  “Sam, listen to me. We know Hailey didn’t run off, we all know that okay? But that doesn’t mean that we don’t have to ask the hard questions. We have to work the case, you know that better tha
n anyone. Now while I agree that these FBI agents are complete dicks, we’re stuck with them and to be honest, I’ll take every available hand I can get to help us bring Hailey home,” Brady tried to reason with him.

  Letting out a frustrated sigh, Sam paced away. “You’re right. I know you’re right. I’ll get my shit together, boss.”

  With a grim smile, Brady nodded. “Why don’t you go home? Try to think of something, anything that might help us.”

  Sam shook his head vigorously. “No. I can’t do that; I can’t go sit in that house without her, wondering where she is. Worrying. Please, I need to be here,” Sam pleaded. His emotions were splashed across his face, the agony he was in was glaringly evident. Gwyn’s heart broke for him, while her mounting worry for Hailey threatened to crush her.

  Stepping forward, she placed her hand in his. “Sam, Hailey is the strongest woman I have ever met. She will fight and she will find a way home. I know it.” He looked down at her and forced a smile.

  “Why don’t you get a map of the town set up? That will help when the boys come back from canvassing. Gwyn, would you mind helping him, darlin'?” Brady gave them both tasks, hoping to distract them from the worry.

  “Of course. Sam, do you have one of those big boards we can use?” Brady was so damn proud of her in that moment, she was a true kind soul. She put her caring of others first and it showed in every one of her actions.

  Sighing, he watched them for a moment before calling the deputies back in and demanding a status report. It was time to bring Hailey home.

  Hailey had been plotting and planning a way out of the nightmare that she was caught in for hours. Groggy and disoriented, she didn’t let that stop her. As the wife of a cop, she knew better than anyone that she had to keep her wits about her if she had any hope of getting out of this alive.

  Gritting her teeth against the pain, she managed to wiggle her bound hands enough to slip her wedding ring off her finger. Watching as it dropped to the floor, she sighed in relief as it rolled over to a corner in the dark, dank basement she was being held in. Now, if she could just somehow bite one of her fingernails, or pull out some of her hair. Placing evidence at the scene would go leaps and bounds to getting a conviction once she got the fuck out of there.

  Twisting, she was trying to bend her hand down close enough to her mouth, when she heard the telltale sound of a door creaking open. Heavy footsteps followed and she knew she was about to come face to face with her abductor.

  Looking into his eyes, she was terrified by what she saw there. There was no soul in him, he was a man with no morals, no compassion. His grin was filled with malice. There was no mistaking his intentions. Why the hell had she been so stupid to let her guard down? Fuck Hailey, you’re a cop’s wife. You know better than this. Strung up on a hook like a motherfucking piece of meat—it was unbelievable.

  “Darlin', just look at you. Quite the perfect picture you make. Why, you look like a feast. My feast.” At his words, Hailey froze, halting in her attempts to swing herself off the hook her bounds hands were attached to.

  “Feast? I’m not your fucking feast, you asshole! Let me down from here,” her protests fell on deaf ears. Ignoring her pleas, he slowly approached.

  Leaning in close, he brought his nose within an inch of hers. Close enough to touch, however he just breathed in her scent, staring into her eyes menacingly. “Get away from me, you prick. If you touch me, I swear, I’ll reach down your throat grab your balls and yank them up through your nose. Do. Not. Touch. Me!” Jerking away, she glared at him with fire in her eyes. He looked amused by her outburst, not the least bit frightened or intimidated.

  “Sugar, there’s an expression...maybe you’ve heard it. Makes your blood run cold. You know, I’ve been on a mission, trying to find cold blood that runs out from a warm body.”

  Frowning, he turned the knife over in his hands, studying the blade. “Unfortunately, I haven’t had much luck. But you,” he pointed at her with the knife. “You might be the one I’ve been looking for. Let’s find out shall we?”

  Her mouth opened in a silent scream as he advanced on her with the knife.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  The next two weeks that passed were a living hell on earth. The search for Hailey occupied every minute of the day for Brady and his department. Flyers were splashed all throughout the town, news bulletins pleading for any and all information to be called into the tip line played every half hour. The citizens of Durham Heights were torn between terror and outrage that another girl had gone missing.

  Brady spent countless hours personally following up on every lead, analyzing every tip that came in. With each day that passed and there was still no sign of Hailey, the hope that she would be found alive began to fade.

  Sam was a shell of his former self. He’d lost weight, his cheeks were sunken in, his eyes hollow. The guilt he felt for not protecting Hailey and keeping her safe was eating at him, driving him to the brink of insanity. He tortured himself with images of the other victims, convinced that the clue to finding her was somewhere within the other crimes.

  Brady and Gwyn had insisted that he stay with them for the time being, not wanting him to be alone. Being in the home he shared with Hailey was too much for him, and he eventually gave in to their badgering. None of them mentioned it, but late at night he could be heard crying softly to himself in his room. It ripped Gwyn’s heart out every time she heard it.

  Frustrations were starting to reach a boiling point, for the Sheriff’s department and the two FBI Agents assigned to help them. Brady was sick and tired of them breathing down his neck and not offering any results. What the fuck was the use in having the two of them around if they weren’t coming up with any leads?

  Slamming into his office after following up on yet another dead end tip, Brady cursed under his breath. They were getting nowhere. Every time he thought they made headway, this fucker danced just out of their grasp. He was constantly one step ahead of them, no doubt laughing at their incompetence. Dropping into his chair he opened yet another file to review.

  “Sheriff James?”

  “What?” he barked out in reply, not bothering to look up.

  A voice cleared, feet shuffled. Agitated, Brady glanced up from his paperwork prepared to blast whomever was interrupting him. Nothing could have surprised him more than to find Sarah and Mr. Marshall, Ava’s father standing in the doorway to his office.

  Sarah looked good, she had come back to work last week, saying that she owed it to Percy to help in the investigation to bring Hailey home. If he could have been there, he would have been in the thick of it, she wanted to offer what she could to help.

  “Mr. Marshall wanted a moment of your time, boss,” she explained. Contrite, Brady apologized. “I’m sorry, yes, of course. Please come in, Mr. Marshall.” Sarah nodded at them and left, closing the door behind her.

  “I’m sorry to just barge in here like this, but I needed to speak with you.” Benjamin Marshall was a kind man; very well respected in the town. The death of his daughter had devastated him, no one had seen much of him since her funeral.

  “What can I do for you, Ben?” The two had established a first name basis during the search for Ava.

  “Losing a child, it’s unbearable. The pain is indescribable. I know I haven’t been around much since I lost Ava, but with what’s happened to Hailey—I wanted to do something, I need to. If there’s anything I can do to help in the search for her, please just ask. So many people stepped forward and offered support to me, I’ve been selfish in not doing the same now. I let my grief get ahold of me. If there’s something I can do, you let me know.” Ben’s voice was sincere.

  Ben Marshall was a successful lawyer, he had a brilliant mind and a keen eye. Brady knew just what task to give him to help him feel useful and perhaps give the case the boost it needed in the right direction.

  “Actually, Ben, I could use your expertise going over these witness reports. I just have this nagging feeling that I’m miss
ing something. That there’s some key piece of this case that I just can’t put my finger on. Would you mind taking a look?” He handed Ben a stack of files.

  “I’d be happy to. Let’s see what we’ve got here.” Setting the files down, he removed his suit jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his white and blue pin striped shirt.

  “Great, I appreciate it.” He patted his shoulder as he walked out into the pen to check on his deputy’s progress. The pen was basically deserted, only a few men were around. Everyone had been staying on task lately, none of the usual shirking duties and slacking off that came with the territory in a small town.

  “Brady!” He stopped at the sound of Gwyn’s voice. She had been coming into the station with him every morning, manning one of the tip line phones. She worked just as long hours as he did, refusing to stop. He knew Hailey being missing was eating her up inside, as it was everyone. Still, he couldn’t help but admire her diligence, her dedication to the investigation.

  “What is it, darlin'?” he asked, concerned.

  “A call just came in. A tip. A suspicious character was spotted out near the swamp where they found…um, where they found…” she was uncomfortable saying the words out loud with Mr. Marshall in earshot. The swamp where Ava Marshall’s body had been discovered. He gave her a nod, indicating he understood what she was trying to say.

  “Okay, got it. Thanks.” He spun on his heel and headed for the door without another word. He’d barely made it two steps before Gwyn was standing in front of him.

  “Where are you going?” she demanded. Puzzled, he spoke slow, enunciating each word.

  “To follow-up on the tip you just told me about.” It should have been obvious.

  “You’re planning on going alone,” she accused, poking him in the chest. Had the situation been different, he would have found her spunky attitude adorable. This wasn’t one of those times.