Once Stalked (A Riley Paige Mystery—Book 9)

by Blake Pierce

  The man spit at her and said something ugly in Arabic.

  Even so, Lucy kept her cool and her smile and continued asking questions.

  Riley was proud of her protégé. She was always good at working with people. But Riley was also a bit worried about Lucy. She’d seen the young agent’s shakiness after they captured Shaheed.

  Riley said to Bill, “I can tell she’s taking what happened back there kind of hard.”

  Bill said, “You mean not shooting when she should have?”

  Riley nodded.

  Bill said, “Well, it’s probably a good thing if she takes it hard. It was a mistake, after all. She needs to learn from it.”

  “You’re right,” Riley agreed. “Just as long as she’s not too rough on herself.”

  Bill said, “Lots of new agents have the same problem early on.”

  After a pause, he added, “I froze up my first time too.”

  Riley looked at him with surprise.

  “I didn’t know that,” she said.

  “Well, I’m not exactly proud of it. If my partner hadn’t been fast and decisive, I wouldn’t be alive today. But I learned my lesson.”

  Another silence fell.

  Then Bill said, “It’s not easy to kill someone.”

  Riley felt a shiver deep inside. It was true of course—most of the time and for most agents.

  It was usually true even for Riley.

  But sometimes it had been all too easy.

  She could remember taking pleasure in one vicious killer’s death.

  In fact, whenever she remembered it she could feel herself smashing his head with a rock, time and time again. She could feel herself liking what she was doing.

  Of course, it had been personal then. The man was a sadistic psychopath who had held both Riley and April prisoner and tormented them.

  Riley had to wonder—would Lucy ever be seized by that kind of bloodlust?

  For Lucy’s sake, Riley hoped not. Something like that changed you. She still didn’t know all the ways it had changed her. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

  She remembered what Private Pope had asked her on the top of that cliff yesterday.

  “How many people have you killed?”

  Riley shuddered.

  Don’t start counting, she told herself. Don’t even think about it.

  As they watched and listened, Lucy shifted into another line of questioning. Now she was really turning on the empathy.

  “Look, I know I’m just an infidel, but I know a little about how you feel.”

  Shaheed looked somewhat disarmed.

  “You couldn’t possibly know,” he said.

  “It’s a rotten society, isn’t it?” Lucy said. “The West, I mean. In many ways, anyhow. So materialistic. So unjust. No spiritual center. And so intolerant of others. I’m Mexican-American, you know. I’ve seen lots of prejudice. My family has been through hard times.”

  Riley could see Shaheed’s face soften.

  Lucy’s getting to him, she thought.

  The young agent asked in a gentle voice, “What was it about those sergeants in particular? Rolsky, Fraser, and Worthing? I’m sure that you’re planning something much more magnificent than a few isolated killings. Why did you start with them?”

  Shaheed was making direct eye contact with Lucy now.

  “I didn’t kill them,” he said. “I swear to you I didn’t.”

  Riley felt a jolt at his tone of voice.

  Lucy asked, “Then who did?”

  Shaheed smiled slightly. “I don’t know who did. Whoever it was, they aren’t connected with me. I don’t know anything about it.”

  It sounded as if he were telling the truth.

  Riley could tell by Lucy’s expression that she felt that too.

  Lucy asked, “But you were planning to kill someone. Are you going to deny that was your mission?”

  “No,” Shaheed said. “I don’t deny my mission. But not them. I didn’t even know them. I had nothing against them. Those men would only be killed by me if they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  Lucy paused for a moment. She seemed to be studying Shaheed’s face.

  Then she said, “We know you have accomplices. You couldn’t have put together that arsenal on your own. You couldn’t use all that firepower on your own. You’re going to have to tell us who they are. The sooner you do, the better.”

  Riley stepped away from the window and said softly to Bill, “Something’s wrong here. This doesn’t feel right to me. He doesn’t seem like our sniper. Does he to you?”

  “No,” Bill muttered. “I think he was planning an attack, and we just stumbled across him before he could carry it out. His bad luck.”

  “And good luck for our side. But we haven’t found the man we’ve been looking for. So what do we do next?” Riley wondered aloud.

  They were interrupted by Sergeant Matthews, the head of the CID investigating team. He walked up to Riley and Bill and announced, “Col. Larson wants to see you in her office.”

  Riley’s heart sank.

  She had a feeling that she wasn’t prepared for this meeting.

  CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

  When Riley and Bill followed the sergeant into the colonel’s office, Larson was sitting behind her desk. She was visibly uncomfortable as she gestured to them to sit down.

  Riley and Bill seated themselves and waited for the CID head to tell them what was on her mind. Riley’s sense of dread was mounting.

  “Congratulations are in order,” Larson began. Then she frowned slightly and added, “I can’t say I much like your methods, Agent Paige—or the way you went over my head. But you got results. You got our man.”

  Larson drummed her fingers on her desk for a moment.

  “I’m not going to announce that the case is closed,” she said. “We’re not even letting the press know that we’ve made an arrest.”

  “Of course,” Riley replied. “You don’t want to alert any other cell members or sympathizers. You hope to pick them up before the news gets out.”

  Larson nodded. “I don’t want to say I told you so,” she continued. “But you were wrong about the killer. This man is definitely an Islamic extremist.”

  Riley had to bite her tongue. She didn’t want to get into an argument—at least not yet. But she was sure that some kind of intense disagreement was in the works.

  Larson changed the subject slightly. “How is Agent Vargas doing with her interrogation?”

  “Very well,” Riley said. “She’s developing into one of the very best at that.”

  “Do you think Shaheed is going to give up his accomplices?”

  “I’m all but sure of it,” Riley said. “He doesn’t strike me as especially strong-willed. Maybe the people he’s working with are tougher. But he’s a weak link, and he’ll definitely crack. You should be able to round up the whole cell before long. Just keep Agent Vargas working on him.”

  Larson looked at Riley for a moment.

  Then she said, “That won’t be necessary. Your work here is done, all of you. And I really mean that this time. I expect you to fly back to Quantico at the next opportunity.”

  Riley felt a flash of alarm.

  She said, “With all due respect, Colonel, I don’t think that’s wise.”

  “Why not? We do have our own interrogators who can do the job.”

  Riley hesitated.

  “I’m sure you do,” she said. “But it would be a mistake for us to leave because Shaheed is not the killer we’re looking for.”

  Larson’s eyes widened. Riley could tell from the slight flare of her nostrils that the colonel was struggling to hold her impatience in check.

  “That just doesn’t make sense, Agent Paige. He’d turned his house into an ammunition dump. He’s obviously planning some much larger violent attack.”

  “That’s right,” Riley said. “He’s planning it. And he’s surely got accomplices for what he’s got in mind. But he didn’t kill our th
ree sniper victims. I’m all but sure of it.”

  Larson just stared at her with disbelief.

  Riley continued, “He’s a fanatic, and he’s full of radical ideas, and he’s full of hate and rage. He’s a killer—or at least he hopes to be. But he’s not a stalker. Not in the sense of a hunter stalking specific prey. That’s a completely different profile.”

  Larson shook her head.

  “This is just a lot of psychobabble,” she said.

  Riley felt stymied. She couldn’t think of any way to convince Larson.

  Then Bill said, “Colonel, I’ve got a feeling Agent Paige is right. If you’ll just give us more time on the base—”

  “No,” Larson said, interrupting. “The case is closed.”

  Riley’s mind raced, trying to think of what to say.

  She asked, “Have you checked out Shaheed’s alibi? He claims to have been working on the construction sites at the times of the killings.”

  “We’re looking into it,” Larson said. “But his alibi is anything but airtight. His job was to drive a truck back and forth between two building sites delivering materials. I doubt that anyone will be able to account for his precise whereabouts during the times of the shootings.”

  Riley thought some more.

  She said, “What about ballistics? Have you matched the bullets to any of the weapons in his possession?”

  “He had three M110 sniper rifles in his stash.”

  “That doesn’t answer my question,” Riley said.

  “We’ll run a check in due time,” Larson said.

  In due time? Riley thought.

  She tried to swallow down her frustration.

  Larson’s voice was starting to shake from anger.

  “Agent Paige, I’m starting to feel like there’s something personal about all this. Have you got something against me?”

  Riley was shocked.

  “Personal? No. I’m just trying to do my job.”

  Larson rose from her chair.

  “Well, you’ve done your job. And I’ve commended you for it. And now, if you don’t mind, you’d better get ready to leave. You’ve been a great help, and we appreciate it. But my people and I can take it from here. Tell Agent Vargas that she can leave the rest of the interrogation to us.”

  Riley looked at Bill. His expression told her that there was nothing more to do or say. She knew he was right.

  They left Colonel Larson’s office and headed back to the interrogation room to get Lucy.

  *

  An hour later, Riley and her colleagues were back at their beach cottage packing up to leave. Lucy was ready to go and on the patio taking one last look across the sand to the ocean. Bill was loading his gear in the car.

  Just as Riley finished putting her things together and closed her bag, she got a phone call from Brent Meredith.

  “Col. Larson says you’re finished there,” Meredith said. “Congratulations. But I get the feeling she’s going to be happy to see you gone. Did you have some kind of problems with her?”

  Riley sighed.

  “Agent Meredith, I think Col. Larson is making a terrible mistake. My gut tells me that Omar Shaheed isn’t our killer. He’s an aspiring terrorist, and he surely has accomplices. But he’s no sniper.”

  A silence fell.

  Riley continued, “I know Col. Larson is under a lot of pressure. The base is swarming with reporters, and the publicity is getting really ugly. She wants to be able to tell them that the case is closed. But I’ve got serious doubts.”

  There was another silence.

  Finally Meredith said, “Agent Paige, you know I have a world of respect for your instincts. If it were my call, I might tell you to stay. But it’s not my call. Col. Larson asked for BAU help, and you’re there at her pleasure. She’s got the final word.”

  Riley stifled a groan.

  “I understand, sir,” she said.

  “I want to see you and your team in my office first thing tomorrow,” Meredith said.

  “We’ll be there, sir,” Riley said.

  She ended the call and drew a sigh of resignation. She would return to Quantico as ordered. But she still didn’t believe that this case was over. She believed that an unknown man was still out there, a skilled marksman who would soon be stalking another soldier.

  CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

  The next morning, Riley got up early to go to the debriefing at Quantico. It was Saturday, and the girls were still sleeping in, but they had both been cheerful when she arrived at home last night. In fact, home had seemed remarkably peaceful after her arguments with authorities at Fort Mowat.

  When she arrived at BAU, the only worry nagging at Riley was the sniper she was afraid would strike again in California. But as she walked toward Meredith’s office, she ran into Agent Jennifer Roston in the hall.

  The younger agent said, “Agent Paige, could I have a word with you for a moment?”

  “I’m due for a meeting with Chief Meredith,” Riley said, looking at her watch.

  “I understand. This will only take a minute.”

  “OK,” Riley said.

  As the two women stood talking together in the hallway, Riley again noticed that, although the new agent wasn’t large, her very posture signaled competence. Right now her expression was extremely inquisitive.

  Roston said, “You know I’m working full time now on tracking down Shane Hatcher.”

  Riley nodded uncomfortably. She had a sinking feeling about whatever Roston was going to ask her.

  Roston said, “You gave me access to all computer files pertaining to Hatcher, and I really appreciate that.”

  She paused for a moment, then added, “But one file seems to be missing. It was listed in the summary, but I couldn’t find it anywhere. It was titled just ‘THOUGHTS.’”

  Riley tried to hide her alarm.

  I should have expected this, she thought.

  A bright young agent like Roston was sure to notice that a file had been deleted. She was bound to be curious about it.

  “Oh, that one,” Riley said. “It was just rough notes that I jotted down from time to time as I worked.”

  Roston squinted at Riley with curiosity.

  “But why did you delete it?” she asked.

  Riley’s mind raced as she tried to think of an explanation.

  “Because it was all just redundant stuff,” she said. “All the information in it was duplicated in the other files that you’ve got. And it was so rough, nobody but me could have made any sense of it.”

  Roston looked almost skeptical now.

  “Do you have a backup of it?” Roston asked.

  “No,” Riley said, clenching up inside at yet another lie. She’d kept a copy of that file on a thumb drive at home.

  Riley knew that a technician might still be able to retrieve the deleted file if it hadn’t been overwritten. She didn’t want to stir up any suspicions that might drive Roston to get someone’s help on that.

  “OK,” Roston said. “I just wish there was more information, especially about Hatcher’s financial connections. How he manages to stay at large amazes me. He must have considerable resources and dedicated accomplices. But I’ll connect the dots sooner or later.”

  Riley couldn’t help but wince at those words—“dedicated accomplices.”

  Was that what she’d become—Hatcher’s dedicated accomplice?

  She hoped Roston didn’t notice her reaction.

  Roston smiled and said, “Anyway, I won’t keep you. Great work on that Fort Mowat case, by the way. Congratulations.”

  “Thanks,” Riley said. She didn’t feel as though congratulations were in order. But she certainly didn’t want to get into her misgivings about the case with Roston right now.

  Riley added, “And let me know if I can help you out in any way.”

  “I’ll do that,” Roston said.

  Roston continued on her way, and Riley headed on toward Meredith’s office.

  When she got there, she fo
und that Bill and Lucy had already arrived. She sat down with them in front of Meredith’s desk. She sensed that Meredith had been waiting for her to arrive to start their discussion. She was relieved to see that they all looked relaxed. There had already been enough tension this morning as far as she was concerned.

  Meredith sat silently looking among their faces for a few moments.

  Finally he said to Bill and Lucy, “I know that Agent Paige has got misgivings about how you’ve wrapped up the Fort Mowat case. How do the two of you feel about it?”

  Bill and Lucy glanced at each other.

  Then Lucy said, “I interrogated Shaheed for a while. He’s an aspiring terrorist all right—full of resentment and rage and violent ideology. But …”

  Lucy’s voice trailed off.

  “But what?” Meredith asked.

  “But I just don’t think he’s our sniper.”

  Meredith cradled his fingers together and thought for a moment.

  “What about you, Agent Jeffreys?” he asked.

  Bill shook his head.

  “I don’t think he’s our killer either. Shaheed was definitely planning some big attack, and we’re sure he had accomplices. Our killer is a loner. He picks off his prey one at a time. And he’s got personal reasons for it.”

  Meredith leaned forward toward them.

  He said, “I talked to Col. Larson a little while ago. She said that during the night Shaheed cracked under questioning. He gave away his accomplices. The CID picked them all up last night. It might be a while before Larson and her team can learn exactly what sort of attack they were planning. But whatever it was, it’s not going to happen. Thanks to the three of you, many lives have been saved.”

  Riley spoke up quickly.

  “Actually, Agent Vargas deserves a lot of the credit. If it weren’t for her speed and skill, Shaheed would have gotten away. We might still be trying to track him down.”

  Bill added, “And the rest of the cell would surely have slipped away.”

  Meredith nodded.

  “Good work, Vargas,” he said.