Fear

by Adrianne Lemke

  ***

  The boy was starting to get close. It was time for a warning. This would be something he could not ignore. Soon, Ryan would realize the futility of fighting his plans. Nothing would keep the boy from becoming his.

  THIRTEEN

  The captain had agreed to bring Frederick Matthews in for questioning as a possible suspect. He had instructed them to keep it as quiet as possible since they had no proof that he had anything to do with the murder.

  Ryan and Traci pulled up to a two-story house the morning after receiving permission to interview the man. “Nice place,” Ryan observed as they walked up the sidewalk, which was edged with flower gardens. The house itself looked like it had recently been resided with vinyl siding.

  Traci took the lead and knocked on the door. She heard footsteps approaching and waited patiently for it to be opened.

  “Mr. Matthews?” she questioned as a man opened the door.

  “Yes. What can I do for you officers this morning?” he asked. He looked closer at Ryan and said, “Ryan? Ryan Parker?”

  Ryan flinched, almost taking a step back. “Yes. Mr. Matthews, we need to ask you some questions about the day my parents were killed,” he said, trying to keep the conversation on track.

  “You have your father’s eyes. He was a good friend, you know. When I heard over the scanner that he and your mother had been killed, I had to go.”

  “You listened to the scanner on your day off?” Traci asked doubtfully.

  The man shrugged. “I’m in love with the job. If I heard a case come through that I thought I could help on, I would go. I still listen to the scanner now, even though I’m not in the field anymore.”

  “Mr. Matthews, I was told that you had been in love with my mother, and that you had been in the running for the job that my father ended up getting.”

  Matthews laughed. “Ryan, I loved your mother. She was a wonderful woman, but I was seeing someone when I knew your parents. I got married not too long after they were killed. As for the job, I wasn’t ready for it, despite applying. I merely wanted to keep my options open. I never had hard feelings towards your father for being promoted over me. He was a great man.”

  Ryan felt that it was unlikely that this man had killed his parents. However he couldn’t be sure without proof showing either way. “Did you used to drive an SUV?” he asked, alluding to the vehicle seen near the house on the night in question.

  “I had a Cavalier. You should be able to check that on the computers at the station. I have never owned an SUV.”

  “Mr. Matthews, do you have any idea who would have wanted to kill Ryan’s parents? Were there others in the running for the promotion?”

  Matthews thought for a moment, scratching his head and crinkling his eyebrows.

  “I think there were a couple others in the running for the promotion. I couldn’t tell you who they were. I don’t really remember. It was a long time ago. What brought all this up anyway? Has your parents’ case been reopened?” He addressed his last question to Ryan who had begun looking thoughtful as Matthews spoke.

  “Yes. Our captain seems to think there’s enough cause to reopen the case,” Ryan answered.

  “You know, Ryan, I always felt bad that I couldn’t do anything for you after your parents were killed. You were so young to be left alone, but your uncle didn’t have a very high opinion of me, so I tended to keep away from the bar. I know some of the guys at the station took it hard when they found out that you were an orphan. There was even one guy who thought he would do a better job raising you than Frank could. He felt that being raised above a bar wasn’t good for you.”

  Traci and Ryan looked at each other in excitement. “Could you tell us the name of that man? He might have some answers for us,” Traci said.

  Ryan’s hopes fell when the older man shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t know the guy well. I didn’t work with him; I just remember overhearing him talking to some other officers.”

  “But he was a cop, right?” Ryan asked. Matthews looked at Ryan appraisingly. The kid seemed to almost dread the answer to his question, while having unmistakable hope present in his voice.

  “Yes, he was a cop. I’m sorry I couldn’t help you more, but I’m due at the office any minute,” he informed them as he glanced at his watch. “I wish you luck finding any information about your parents, Ryan. Let me know if there’s anything I can do for you, would you? Oh, and say hello to your Uncle Frank. I know he didn’t like me, but I admire him for raising you.”

  Ryan and Traci thanked him for his time and started back down the walkway as Matthews closed the door after them. “What do you think?” Ryan asked Traci.

  “He seemed sincere enough, but we need to figure out who the cop is that he was talking about. We should also check out who else was up for that promotion. It’s an old motive, but still a legitimate one.”

  Ryan yawned as he climbed into the squad car. “Yeah, we’ll do that tonight. I think it’s time to go home and get some sleep.”

  “We should type up our report on the interview tonight to give to the captain. Then we can leave to get some sleep. It won’t take long,” she added as Ryan groaned at the thought of more paperwork.

  “Fine. We’ll do things your way then, but if I fall asleep at my desk I’m blaming you.”

  ***

  About an hour later, both Ryan and Traci finished their reports and had put them in the captain’s box outside the office since he had gone home for the day. “See you tonight, Traci.”

  “Sleep well, Ryan,” she said as a goodbye as she walked to her car. She thought about what Matthews had told them that morning. He had seemed to sincerely want to help them, and had kept eye contact as he spoke. That in itself did not prove that he was telling the truth, but it seemed to make a strong point for it. I don’t think Matthews had anything to do with the murder. But he might be able to remember the cop who was too interested in Ryan if we can show him some pictures.

  Ryan had similar thoughts running through his mind as he drove home. Matthews had seemed genuinely sorry that his parents were dead, and he was happily married. At least that’s what he said. I’m going to check out his life a little closer before I decide he wasn’t involved. It’s still strange that he would have gone out on a call without being on duty. Ryan reached the apartment, changed into his sweats, and fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

  ***

  His alarm went off all too soon. He felt like he had just gotten to sleep, and found it hard to shake the grogginess that encompassed him as he started to get ready for his night. He called Kerry to make sure she was doing okay on her farm. It was a relief to hear that nothing unusual had been happening. She also told him she was finally able to get the two horses, and they were now living in her barn. He agreed to come out and see them soon, and had to end the call to get ready for work.

  As Ryan pulled on his uniform and sat down on his couch to put on his shoes, he noticed an envelope under the door. His heart sank immediately, knowing it was from the stalker.

  He opened the envelope with a sense of dread. There were three pictures: one of Frank, one of Kerry, and one of Ryan. He glanced at the pictures worriedly before reading the note on the small piece of paper: BACK OFF was the message this time. We must be getting close to something, Ryan thought even though he was worried about the warning. It was a clear threat that if he didn’t back off either he or someone he cared about would suffer. Can’t do it. My parents deserve justice, and I deserve to live my life.

  He sighed as he placed the pictures and the note into the bedside table with all the other notes. Checking his watch, Ryan realized it was time for him to get to work. He grabbed his keys before rushing out of the apartment, making sure to lock the deadbolt behind him.

  As he drove to work, Ryan thought about the warning he had received. How would the stalker know what I’ve learned so far? Traci and I have been careful to not let anyone hear what we were working on and the captain is t
he only other one who knows.

  Ryan felt a flash of doubt about trusting the captain, but then figured that the stalker had been able to follow him around for so long without being noticed that it wasn’t much of a stretch to believe the guy could figure out what he was working on.

  ***

  “Did you sleep well?” Traci asked as he walked into the bullpen.

  He shrugged. “I slept okay, but I got another note today. It said back off, and there were pictures of Frank, Kerry, and me. I think he’s starting to feel threatened, and I don’t know what he’ll do if we back him into a corner.”

  Ryan looked worried, and a little bit afraid. Traci was surprised to see the emotions on his face. He had been hiding behind a poker face and those unreadable blue eyes almost constantly since they had met. Seeing the emotions made Traci realize more than ever how mentally exhausted her partner must be. After all, they were digging into the most painful part of his life, and getting threats constantly would be draining for anyone.

  “We’ll find this guy, Ryan. You know we will. It’s only a matter of time before he either slips or we find the clue we need to find out who he is. We already found out that he’s a cop. Now all we have to do is figure out if it had something to do with the promotion.”

  Ryan looked at her skeptically. “That’s all, huh? And what happens if it had nothing to do with the promotion. What if the motive is something we haven’t even considered or would never think about?” He slapped his desk in frustration. “This guy is threatening the people I care about. We need to find him, Traci!”

  Several people had looked up at Ryan’s outburst and Traci rose to stand by her partner’s desk. “Ryan, you need to calm down. We’re keeping this quiet, remember?” she whispered to him.

  It took a few moments, but soon the bullpen was humming with the normal noise level. Traci looked down at her partner who was absently playing with a pen on his desk.

  “I’m sorry, Traci. I’m just so tired. I need this to be over. It’s hard constantly worrying that something might happen to the people I care about. I know we’ll catch the guy. Let’s start checking for others who were up for the promotion.”

  Traci nodded, accepting Ryan’s apology. “Listen, Ryan. We need to take this one step at a time. If the motive is not the promotion, then we’ll figure out what it was. We still have the cop who felt Frank wasn’t fit to raise you. We need to get some pictures of the cops in the precinct when your father was here, and show them to Matthews. He might recognize the guy.” She went back to her desk and looked up the applicants for the promotion.

  Ryan sat unmoving at his desk for a few minutes, trying to calm himself before turning to his computer. He knew Traci was looking up the applicants, so he focused on trying to find pictures or lists of names of people working in the precinct during the year his parents had been killed.

  There were several call outs during the night that interrupted the search for possible suspects, but before leaving, Ryan was careful to log out of his computer so it wouldn’t be so easy to figure out what he was working on. He was pretty sure that Traci was doing the same, and didn’t want to insult her by asking, so he glanced at the computer at her desk and was relieved to see that the screen was blank.

  After the shift was over, Ryan and Traci decided not to stay late to search more, since both of them were tired after the long night. Ryan drove to his apartment and almost as soon as he got there, he fell asleep. He had plans with Kerry that afternoon, so he made sure to set his alarm so he wouldn’t sleep through their meeting time at three thirty. He was going to her house to see her new horses and to help her with some repairs in the barn and on the fence line so the horses would be able to spend time outside in the pasture.

  ***

  Ryan jerked awake after about two hours of sleep because he had a nightmare about what the stalker might do if he got mad. “Kerry,” he whispered to himself in fear. The dream had been vivid, and the blood on Kerry’s face stood out starkly from her pasty white skin. He’d known as soon as he saw her that she was dead. He had tears running down his face as he woke, and it took him several minutes to calm down. “It was just a dream, it wasn’t real. Kerry is fine.” Ryan took several deep breaths to calm himself and lay back on his pillow. He knew he had to try to sleep more; there was no way he would function all day and night on two hours of sleep.

  He turned over in bed, trying to find a comfortable position so he could at the very least rest his body and eyes, even if he couldn’t fall asleep. I need to find this guy before I lose my mind. I can’t go forever without sleeping.

  Ryan thought it would take him a long time to fall asleep again, and was surprised when he was woken by his alarm clock shortly before three o’clock. Sending up a silent prayer of thanks for the sleep, Ryan dressed in jeans and a T-shirt for working at Kerry’s, grabbed his keys, and left.

  ***

  Kerry was standing by the barn when he arrived. He hadn’t realized until he saw her that there had been a weight on his shoulders because of the dream he’d had earlier that day. He greeted her and gave her a hug, hoping she wouldn’t see the lingering fear in his gaze as he assured himself that she was okay. “What would you like me to start with?”

  “The fence,” she answered. “I would like for the horses to get outside today. It’s kind of stuffy in the barn right now.”

  Kerry walked him to the area of the fence that was broken. “I don’t think it will take that long to fix, I just didn’t feel up to the challenge of doing it myself.”

  Ryan peered at the gap in the fence and said, “No problem. Do you have supplies? I need a hammer, nails, and some two-by-fours.”

  “The boards are in the barn. And the hammer and nails are in the house. I’ll get those while you grab the boards.”

  Kerry walked to the house and let Ebony out. The dog hadn’t been interested in leaving the house when Kerry first went out, so she’d left her inside. Now that Ryan was here, however, the dog couldn’t wait to get outside. She heard Ryan greeting the dog as she closed the door and grabbed the hammer and nails out of a drawer in her kitchen.

  Ryan looked tired, and not just a physical tired either. Kerry thought he was letting the stalker situation along with the reopening of his parents’ case get him down. She hoped he’d be able to handle the stress, and she wanted him to open up to her. Since he’d been working, they hadn’t talked as much about the stalker. She knew about the most recent note he had gotten, but he had sounded almost mechanical over the phone and hadn’t allowed any emotion to come through as he warned her to be careful.

  Shaking off her worries, Kerry brought the hammer and nails out to Ryan with a smile. “Here.” Ryan accepted the tools with a thank you, and set to work nailing the boards to the fence posts. He was done about twenty minutes later.

  “Do you want to let the horses out now?” he asked, smiling at Kerry.

  “Yeah, they could probably use a good run.” She walked into the barn and grabbed a lead rope, clipping it to the halter of the big black horse in the first stall. Ryan took a nervous step back as she led the animal out of the barn. Kerry noticed his nervousness, and said, “This is Silhouette. He’s a bit spirited, and I probably won’t have you riding him… at least not for a while. You’d be riding Dante. He’s got spirit also, but he’s not as aggressive about it as Sil. If you feel comfortable with it, you can take that lead rope and bring Dante out.” She gestured at the slightly smaller dark brown horse with a light tan mane and tail.

  Ryan hesitated before grabbing the lead and opening the stall door. He jumped when Dante moved toward him, but was able to clip the lead onto the halter. “Walk on the left side as you lead him out,” Kerry instructed. “You’ll be fine.”

  Ryan tried to relax, but found it hard with the large horse shaking his head around so much. Kerry led Silhouette out toward the pasture, and opened the gate. She unclipped the lead and gave the horse a light smack on the hindquarters to make him move far enough into the past
ure for Dante to enter. Noticing Ryan’s nervousness, Kerry took the lead from him and let the other horse run free.

  Dante took to the freedom immediately, bucking and trotting around the pasture. He riled Silhouette up, and soon both horses were chasing around the pasture, getting rid of excess energy from being in stalls for the past few days.

  “Thanks, Ryan,” Kerry said. “I know you’re scared of horses, but I think you’ll get over it. I’ll make sure to get some of their energy worked out of them before your first time riding. I’ll chase them around the pasture for a while before you come.”

  “I’d appreciate that,” Ryan said watching the bucking and running horses with a nervous eye.

  “Are they going to hurt themselves like that?” he asked, showing concern for his friend’s new pets.

  “Nah, they’re just having some fun. They’ve been in the stalls since I got them. I didn’t realize the fence was broken until after I set up the time for them to be brought here.”

  Ryan and Kerry stood at the fence and watched the two horses for a while. Even Ryan had to admit that they were beautiful animals, and they looked like they were in good shape.

  Kerry checked her watch, “We’ve been standing out here for nearly an hour,” she said. “I should probably make dinner so you can eat before you have to go home to get ready for work.”

  “Food sounds good,” Ryan said smiling. “What are we having this evening?”

  “I was thinking brats on the grill, if you would be willing to get the grill started while I put the brats into some beer on the stove.”

  They ate mostly in silence, and only talked for a few minutes after the meal before Ryan left to get ready for his shift.

  “Sorry I’m leaving so early, but I need to get some paperwork done before my shift starts today,” he said as he gave Kerry a hug and climbed into his car.