Sable Quinn Trilogy Boxed Set

by K. J. Dahlen

  Sable stood and began to pace back and forth as she continued. “Then I was introduced to my brothers. Suddenly, all I had gained was gone and I was left all alone again. I had to watch as my brothers took out the only family I had left. The nightmares left me vulnerable. I was looking over my shoulder every single moment. What I expected to find I had no idea but the fear was still there.”

  “Maybe you knew there was someone else out there waiting for his chance to take you out,” Nick offered.

  “Maybe, maybe not. They say the third time is a charm.” She sat down again and glanced down at her hands in her lap then raised her eyes to his. “I have a feeling this time I might not get through this. I need you to make me a promise. If something happens to me, I want you to get the bastard.”

  “Don’t talk that way,” Nick insisted. “If you start thinking that way, you’re not going to be at the top of your form, and I need you at one hundred per cent.”

  “I know. Noah said I had to figure out what he meant, but I’m so tired I don’t know if I can remember my own name right now.”

  Nick came over to the bed and sat down beside her. “Ok, get some sleep. I’ll stay with you if that will make you feel better.”

  “I think it would. I only need a couple of hours rest then I’ll be fine.”

  Sable crawled up to the pillows and closed her eyes. She relaxed and let sleep take her.

  ~ * ~

  Nick lay down next to her and closed his eyes. He allowed himself to relax but didn’t quite fall asleep. About forty minutes later Nick heard a rustling noise. Leaning up on one elbow, he saw Sable tossing and turning on the bed. She moaned softly. He pulled her into his arms and felt her quiet down. He held her while they both slept.

  A few hours later Sable opened her eyes. She felt a steady heartbeat under her head. At first she didn’t realize who she was with. Her heart began beating faster and her body tensed as if her fight or flight response kicked in. Sweat beaded her forehead as her hands clenched into fists. Then she remembered the phone call she’d received in the middle of the night.

  Slowly, so as to not wake Nick, Sable untangled herself. Sitting up, she moved to the side of the bed. She could see the sun starting to lighten the eastern sky. She got up and went to the window. Opening the heavy curtains, she peeked through the glass as the city below her came to life.

  From her vantage point she could see for several city blocks. She saw a steady stream of car headlights coming across the baby blue bridge spanning the Mississippi River between Wisconsin and Minnesota. Street lights were still burning and lights lit some of the surrounding buildings.

  Sable turned and found Nick looking at her. She flushed, “Good morning.”

  Nick’s lips curled into a smile. “Good morning. How long have you been awake?”

  “About twenty minutes. Thanks for staying with me last night.”

  Nick swung his feet over the side of the bed and stood. He stretched and groaned at the same time. “I think I’ll ask the hotel if we can be moved to a suite. We need a conference room to work from. I don’t want anyone on their own.”

  “That sounds good to me. I’m sorry I had to wake you up in the middle of the night,” Sable told him.

  “I’m not, sorry, I mean, I would have been mad if you hadn’t.” He walked to her and placed his hands on her upper arms. “Please don’t hide things from any of us. If Noah contacts you again, we all need to know. We can’t stop him if we’re left in the dark.”

  Sable nodded. “I know. I think we should get the others and let them know what I found out last night.”

  Nick’s hands fell away from her arms. “I’m going back to my room and get a shower. I’ll call the front desk and get us moved into new quarters. I’ll give Mason a call and see if we’re working there or here today.”

  Sable watched as he left the room. She went back to the window and glanced outside. She could see another hotel across the way and the pale blue bridge that spanned the Mississippi to her left. Glancing down at the street she noticed a single man standing across the street. He was leaning against the building and he seemed to be staring at her hotel.

  He was too far away for her to get a good look at his face, but Sable had a feeling the man was looking right at her. Sable pressed her face against the glass as she strained to get a better look at him. She watched as he straightened and pushed himself away from the wall. He raised his hand and waved goodbye then turned and walked toward the blue bridge.

  Sable had a bad feeling the man was Noah. She was disturbed by his actions. If it was Noah, he knew exactly where she was staying. By standing at the window he had noticed which room was hers. She felt fear inside her for a moment before she clamped down her feelings. She knew Nick had been right about one thing. She wasn’t alone in the world. She had a job to do, and she couldn’t do it if she let the fear inside her win. She wasn’t about to let Noah win.

  Chapter Five

  She turned the handle, making sure her door was locked. When it didn’t move, she headed for the shower. Fifteen minutes later, she was dressed again and grabbing her computer, she reached for the door handle. She paused to check the peek hole before she opened the door. Nick’s room was next door to hers and she rapped on the wooden panel as she went past. The door down the hall opened and Brandi came out into the hall. Quentin and Nick joined them and all four went to the elevator.

  “I think Noah was standing outside the hotel about half an hour ago,” Sable announced as they waited for the elevator.

  “I’m sure he was,” Nick said. “That is part of his campaign against you. He wants you to know he knows where you are but you don’t know where he is.”

  “It’s just creepy, knowing he’s out there walking around and we can’t stop him yet. That’s all.”

  “I know, but he won’t be out there too long. We’ll get him,” Nick said confidently. “The hotel has given us new rooms. We’re in a suite on the fourteenth floor. I called Mason Nix and told him we’d work from the hotel today. He’s sending Marie and Joe over to work with us.”

  The elevator opened and, as they stepped inside, Nick hit the button for the fourteenth floor. When the elevator doors opened again, they all stepped out. A maid was waiting for them. She opened the door to the suite and handed Nick the key.

  They came into the room and looked around. The main room was big enough to set up in and there were four doors leading to bedrooms. Nick looked at the maid and tipped his head. “Thank you. We’ll move our things up sometime this morning.”

  The maid acknowledged his comment with a, “Fine sir,” and left the room.

  Quentin set up his computer and printer. “What do you need me to do today?” he asked.

  Nick looked at him, “I want you to track down any aliases Micah or Richard might have had over the years. We need to find what name he used here all those years ago to purchase the property.”

  Nick looked at Brandi. “I need you to see if you can find Noah’s trail. Use what information we’ve learned from Maggie’s death and search for any similar murders over the last five years. He went missing when he was fourteen, but I don’t think he started killing for a few years. He would have had to have time to work out his own way of killing. Serial killers don’t stray too far from their signature when they kill.”

  About twenty minutes into her search she found a disturbing trail. She looked up to bring attention to her find when she saw Sable standing at the window staring outside. Brandi got up and went over to her. “Hey, are you okay?”

  Sable glanced at her then turned her attention to the city below her gaze. “I guess so.”

  “We’re going to catch him, you know."

  “I know. It’s just all the bullshit we have to go through first."

  Brandi sighed. “I know. I think we’re on the right track though. If we can find where he’s staying here, we might be able to piece together more of the puzzle of Noah.”

  Sable nodded. “I’ve been thinking ab
out that. I think we can narrow down the search area by looking near the river.” She looked at Nick. “But first we have to find out what happened to the man that testified against Lyle Jenson. He was the first casualty in Micah’s war.”

  “I think you’re right. We need to go back to the beginning,” Nick said.

  “I think I found the beginning of Noah’s involvement into the mix.” Brandi announced as she walked over to the printer.

  “Really?” Sable joined Brandi. She read the article Brandi found and knew in her heart this was Noah’s work. The article spoke of a gruesome murder in New Orleans. The victim had the word Sinner carved in his forehead. “That sounds like what we found yesterday.”

  “Yeah, this is only one of several in different cities that popped up. Micah effectively turned Noah into a killer,” Brandi commented.

  “No, I think Micah just lowered Noah’s inhabitations. Noah took to the life far too quickly to put all the blame on someone else,” Sable reasoned. “Micah just taught him he could do whatever he wanted and get away with it. Micah showed him how easy it was to murder someone and simply walk away and act as if nothing was wrong.”

  “I’ve come up with several names Micah used over the years,” Quentin said. “When the real estate offices open this morning, we’ll have something to cross check with property owners in the city.”

  “Why would he buy a warehouse instead of a house?” Sable asked.

  “A house would need to be maintained, whereas a warehouse wouldn’t,” Nick said. “You could work on the inside without changing the outside. You could also come and go over the years without alerting too many of your neighbors.”

  “The perfect oasis in the middle of plain sight,” Sable agreed. “It makes sense he would do something like that.”

  There was a knock on the door before it opened to reveal Marie and Joe standing in the hall. Nick waved them in and began filling them in on the events of the night.

  “I’m not surprised by his phone call,” Marie told them as she set up a laptop computer.

  “Why not?” Sable wanted to know.

  “I stayed late last night and read through the files you left regarding Micah and the boys. You had contact with both Micah and the boys before they came after you. Noah is just doing what he saw Micah do.”

  “Well, that’s true.” Sable agreed. “I think part of the ritual is building the fear in my life before they strike. They used the same method with Gabriel and Emma.”

  “I also found something else. It may not mean anything but I think it figures in somehow,” Marie said.

  “What did you find?” Nick asked.

  “I did some research. I wanted to know if either Richard or Micah had been involved in any other crimes. I found something interesting. About thirty years ago, there was a rash of bank robberies in several different states. There were two in New Mexico, one in Texas, three in Oklahoma, and two in Ohio. The net value of the robberies was well over four million dollars. None of the money has been recovered.”

  “How did you put this on Micah and or Richard?” Sable asked.

  “Each robbery was committed by two men with very distinct eye color. The press called them ‘The Blue Eyed Bandits’,” Marie said. “I haven’t received confirmation yet, but I requested the files and surveillance tapes. You have to remember thirty years ago it was a lot easier to rob a bank. We didn’t have the security they have now days.”

  “I wonder what happened to the money,” Sable asked.

  “They probably used it to live,” Marie said.

  Sable shook her head. “Gabriel set up a trust fund for Micah. Every so often he would get money from the fund. As far as I know they lived a simple life.”

  “Then most of the money must still be intact,” Marie said.

  “What ever happened to the evidence from Maggie’s place?” Brandi asked.

  “All the evidence is at the station by this time,” Joe said, “along with the final autopsy report.”

  “Can you get a copy of all the reports faxed over here?” Nick asked.

  “I could go pick the stuff up,” Brandi offered.

  “I’ll go with you,” Joe said. “One of us has to sign for it anyway.”

  Nick agreed. “That’s fine then. Tell your boss if we find anything, we’ll let him know.”

  “As long as you’re going out bring some breakfast back,” Sable teased Brandi. “I’m starving.”

  Brandi glanced at Nick and saw his raised eyebrow. She nodded. It had been a long few days since Sable had asked for something to eat. Brandi looked at Joe, “Ok, let’s go.”

  Joe accompanied Brandi to the elevator. He stared at her then asked. “So what is it with Sable and this nasty bunch of murderers?”

  “She’s connected in the most basic way. Micah was her father, Sam and Shawn, her brothers, and Noah is her cousin. She’s nothing like them, of course, but that doesn’t mean the connection isn’t there,” Brandi said.

  “What about the rest of the family?”

  “The rest of her family consisted of retired Judge Gabriel Reardon, his wife Emma, their son Greg, and his wife Jill,” Brandi told him. “Of course there was her mother Grace Quinn and her stepfather Gene.”

  “What happened to them?”

  The elevator doors opened. “They are all dead,” Brandi told him as she stepped into the elevator.

  Joe stepped inside the small car. “All of them?”

  “All of them,” Brandi echoed as the elevator doors closed behind him.

  Joe glanced at her but didn’t say anything as they made their way through the lobby and out on the street. “So this Noah and Sable are the only members of the family still alive?”

  “And now he’s looking to be the only one left.”

  “Doesn’t that bother you?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Doesn’t it bother you someone you work with is the target of a serial killer, a rather vicious serial killer?”

  “Yes, it does, but Sable isn’t alone. The four of us would lay down our lives for her.”

  “The four of you?”

  “One of us is back home in Chicago. He was injured in the last go round with Sam and Shawn. He took a bullet in the chest a week or so ago. He’s lucky to be alive.”

  “This is a little freaky.” Joe rounded the corner and began walking up the street. He came to the alley, “We can go through here. It will save us some steps.”

  Brandi stepped into the alley and followed Joe. The alley was dirty and had piles of garbage sitting along the dumpsters. “Are you sure this is a short cut?”

  Joe turned his head and smiled. “Oh yeah, it may not smell very good but it’s the easiest way to get to the station.”

  Brandi was about to say something when a man stepped from the shadows. He raised his hand and Brandi could see a short length of pipe in one hand. He struck Joe in the back of the head and watched as he went down. Then he came toward Brandi and raised the pipe again. Brandi screamed then fell as the pipe hit her.

  Noah stepped over Joe’s body to reach down and gather Brandi in his arms. He looked at the wound on her forehead and noticed she was still breathing. It hadn’t been his intention to kill either of them, not yet anyway.

  Glancing around the alley he noticed his attack hadn’t brought any unwanted attention. He threw Brandi over his shoulder and walked toward the car he had parked at the other end. He pushed her inside and drove away. He glanced in the rear-view mirror as he drove down the street but didn’t notice anyone following him. His attack had gone as planned, just like so many other times. Then he looked at his passenger. She would live a little bit longer anyway.

  ~ * ~

  Joe groaned as he opened his eyes. Raising his hand to his aching head, he looked at his fingers. They were bright red and stained with blood. “Son of a bitch” he muttered as he rolled to his knees and stood.

  His head pounded and he began searching the alley. When he found no sign of Brandi anywhere,
he stumbled back the way they had come. Every step he took he could feel blood dripping down his neck.

  When he pushed in the door to the hotel, he was glad the lobby was empty. While he rode to the fourteenth floor, he wiped the back of his neck. He knocked on the door to the suite and a minute later Nick opened the door. Joe felt dizzy and felt himself falling forward.

  Nick grabbed the man as he fell into the room. It wasn’t until he was helping him over to the sofa Nick noticed the blood on his head. He turned and yelled for a towel.

  Sable brought over a wet towel and watched as Nick applied the towel to the back of his head. “What happened? Where’s Brandi?”

  “I don’t know. We were taking a short cut through the alley and something hit me. Before I lost consciousness, I thought I heard a scream but I can’t be sure.”

  Sable looked at Nick. She had a feeling Noah had Brandi. She glanced at Marie. “You’d better call your boss. I think we have a hostage situation now.”

  Chapter Six

  Ten minutes later Mason Nix joined them. He watched as the paramedic looked Joe over. He glanced at Sable and Nick before he asked, “What the hell happened?”

  “They were attacked on their way to the station,” Sable said. “Joe was going to bring the physical evidence from Maggie’s over here.”

  “That’s not the way this is going to work. You are more than welcome to work through the station, but I can’t allow you to work anywhere else. At least there you have some protection,” Mason told them.

  “That doesn’t make any difference now, does it?” Sable snapped. “Noah took Brandi and we have to find her before he kills her. That isn’t going to happen if we move to the police station.”