by JANIE CROUGH
* * *
ADRIENNE WAS EXHAUSTED. Riding in the backseat of the car with Conner and Seth on the way to the crime scene, she could admit the exhaustion to herself, even if she didn’t want to admit it to anyone else.
She knew the guys weren’t exactly happy she was with them, but what else could they do? Either Conner had to stay at the field office with her—and there was no way in hell that was happening—or she had to come with him. Adrienne didn’t really want to see the crime scene. After what had happened this morning, she just wanted to get far away from all of humanity, go to bed, pull the covers over her head and sleep for a week.
This morning had scared her. The only time she’d ever had a reaction that strong was when the perpetrator had been in close proximity and had turned his malice toward her. It was like Simon had known she was there. But Adrienne knew that couldn’t be right, because she would’ve felt him long before touching the letter.
There was something not normal about this serial killer. Adrienne just didn’t know what it was yet. A not-normal serial killer. Go figure. Adrienne barely refrained from scoffing at herself out loud.
They pulled up outside the motel where the body had been found. This was definitely the place she had seen in her vision.
“Do you want us to clear the scene so you can go in first?” Conner asked.
She knew how hard that question was for him. Clearing the scene would include clearing him also. She couldn’t imagine that option sat well with him.
“No. If it’s okay with you guys, I just want to sit here for a while. The other people being in there won’t make any difference for me.” She saw relief flutter across Conner’s face before he hurried out of the car.
She watched all the activity for a long while—a crime scene was a busy place. Technicians, photographers, local law enforcement buzzed around everywhere. It wouldn’t be long before the press was here, and the bystanders. Local officers were already roping off a good area of the scene so it wouldn’t be disturbed. Adrienne watched it all with interest. It was actually the first crime scene she had been at where she could just observe like a normal person. Until Conner left, Adrienne’s abilities wouldn’t work. Blessed silence.
The entire place would be photographed then fingerprinted. The room and body would be scoured for forensic evidence. Adrienne doubted they would find any. Simon had proved to be quite fastidious so far about not leaving any evidence behind.
Eventually, a tall, lanky man, camera clutched in his hand, came up to the car. He tapped on Adrienne’s window and smiled. Adrienne opened her door.
“Hi, Ms. Jeffries. I’m Victor Faraday, FBI photographer. It’s nice to meet you.” The man spoke rapidly, in a much higher pitch than Adrienne would expect from someone his size. “Can I get you anything? Are you okay?”
The photographer—she’d already forgotten his name—was definitely odd, but seemed sincere in wanting to assist Adrienne. She smiled distractedly at him. “I’m fine. Thanks. Just waiting.”
“Okay. Agent Perigo sent me to tell you that you can come in. We’re done with photography, and I believe the forensics team is finished also.”
Adrienne thanked the man and got out of the car. She walked slowly up to the hotel room door. Looking at the photos over the past few days had been bad enough; she was not looking forward to seeing the crime scene live.
Conner saw her and came over.
“Already in here? I thought you were going to wait for me to get you. You okay?”
Adrienne ignored his comment about not waiting for him. She had waited until he’d sent Victor out, right? She hugged her arms around herself. “Not really. I have to be honest. I’m not looking forward to this.”
Conner reached over and rubbed her upper arms and hands. Adrienne couldn’t help but lean a little toward his strength. “Give me about five minutes, and I’ll get out of here.”
Adrienne nodded. Might as well get it over with. She glanced around the room, purposely avoiding looking at the body on the bed, and waited. It wasn’t long before Conner returned.
“Seth and I have worked out a plan. I’m going to go a couple blocks away in the car, so I can get back here immediately if needed. I’ll be on the phone the entire time with Seth, so as soon as I’m far enough for you to start getting clear feelings, let him know.”
Adrienne was touched that they had taken time to figure out how to best balance the needs of the case with her well-being. She smiled at Conner then stood on tiptoe quickly and kissed his cheek.
“Thank you.”
Conner winked at her and strode out the door. A few moments later she heard the car starting and pulling away.
It didn’t take long for Conner to be far enough away for Adrienne’s abilities to work.
“Tell him to go just a little farther, Seth, then stop. I’m getting stuff now.”
Seth relayed the message to Conner on his phone then turned back to Adrienne. “Are you okay? My heart cannot stand another repeat of this morning.”
Adrienne took deep calming breaths to focus herself. “I think I’m okay. I’m just going to take it slow.”
For the first time Adrienne looked over at the dead woman lying on the bed. She walked over to her. Obviously, like the other victims, this woman had been stabbed to death. Adrienne touched her ankle featherlight.
Boring. This one was not nearly as fun as the others. She just cried quietly. Killing the last one had brought such a high because she had been so bossy and bad. Killing her had been fun. But this one was pathetic.
As soon as Adrienne removed her hand from the woman’s leg, the killer’s thoughts stopped. She looked over at Seth, who was furiously writing in his notebook.
“Anything else?” he asked.
“Was I saying that out loud?”
“Yeah. About him being bored and stuff. I’m just trying to get it all down.” He pointed to the phone, now on speaker-mode, on the table next to him. “Conner is listening, also.”
Adrienne touched the dead woman’s ankle lightly again. She didn’t want to go anywhere near the stab wounds at the top of the woman’s body.
She couldn’t breathe right, so of course she couldn’t scream. The screaming was what made it fun.
Adrienne let go of the woman’s ankle. She knew what happened next. He killed her. Adrienne didn’t want to see that.
She looked over at Seth. “She had asthma or something. She couldn’t scream, so it wasn’t as fulfilling for him.”
Seth nodded. “Anything else?”
Adrienne walked around the room but couldn’t seem to get any reading. She decided to experiment. “Tell Conner to drive away a little farther. I can’t hear anything right now except from the body. Maybe if he’s not so close, I’ll be able to get something else.”
Seth relayed the message to Conner, and Adrienne walked around the room some more. But still nothing. “He’s very careful, methodical, when he’s placing the bodies. Not angry. It’s difficult for me to get any information.”
The general buzzing got louder, and Adrienne’s head began pounding, and her stomach rolled, so she knew Conner was far enough away not to affect her. She touched different pieces of furniture in the room, hoping to pick up something from them, but had no luck. She was giving up and about to leave when the image came to her.
“Seth! He was standing right over here in this corner.” Adrienne rushed over there and placed herself where she saw the killer. “Watching. Almost like he was watching while you were in here processing the scene. He knew or envisioned or something what it would be like when you all got here and found the body.”
Adrienne followed the actions of the killer in her mind. “He laughed to think of you here, unable to figure anything out. Then he turned and walked out the door.”
Adrienne followed the same path outsid
e, knowing Seth was right behind her. “He turned and walked down this block to where his car was parked. He knew not to park it in front of the hotel. He had to hurry. There was something he wanted to see, to make sure he didn’t miss.”
“Miss what?” Seth asked.
“I don’t know. He keeps thinking of it as ‘the show.’”
Adrienne stopped and looked down. “He dropped his keys here, and he was mad. He was going to miss the show if he didn’t hurry.”
Adrienne stopped and looked around, confused.
“What happened then?” Seth asked.
“I don’t know. He just disappeared.”
“You mean he got into his car?”
“No. He reached down to get his keys. And then I couldn’t see him anymore.” Adrienne rubbed her forehead. Why had she lost him like that? There were no other people around, nothing to confuse her. She shouldn’t have lost him like that.
“He was just gone,” Adrienne explained to Seth. “I don’t know why. It doesn’t happen like that.”
She looked around but didn’t pick up any other images from the killer. “Conner didn’t come back, did he?” But she knew he hadn’t, because her head still hurt and she could hear all the buzzing. So what was the problem?
Seth was about to double check with Conner when Adrienne interrupted him. “Never mind. You can tell him to come back. I can’t see anything else here.”
Adrienne walked back to the crime scene, frustrated. She was frustrated with herself, with what had happened, with why she couldn’t get a clear, full glimpse into the killer’s mind. Was it her that was the problem? Was it Conner?
It brought her back to her thought from earlier today: she was dealing with something not normal. Well, she better figure out what that not normal was before another woman died.
Conner returned a few minutes later and walked directly over to Adrienne. “You okay?”
“Yes. Just tired. This is all so strange, so different from other cases I’ve worked. I’m frustrated.”
“I know you are. Let Seth and I finish up here, and I’ll take you back to the hotel.”
Adrienne nodded and got back into Conner’s car to wait for them to process the scene. A lot of work, a lot of people to manage and, as the agents in charge, everyone kept coming to Conner and Seth for answers and instructions. Adrienne didn’t mind waiting in the relatively peaceful cocoon of the car. At some point one of the local police officers even brought her a sandwich, which she ate gratefully.
Eventually everything wrapped up, and Conner and Seth were ready to leave the scene. She saw them chat for a moment before Conner came to the car and Seth headed in the other direction.
“Seth is going to get a ride back to the office so I can take you straight to the hotel. I know you’re exhausted. Sorry it took so long.” Conner started the car and pulled out into the street.
“That’s all right. It was interesting watching everyone work.”
“Yeah, the locals have been pretty great about working with us in this case. That doesn’t always happen. Cops can get pretty territorial about their cases. I think we all just want to catch this son of a bitch.”
“Me, too.” Adrienne sighed.
Conner reached over and took her hand. “You’re doing your best, Adrienne. Seth told me about today. You can’t let that upset you. Everything you’ve done has helped, and we’re all grateful.”
“But it hasn’t been enough!” Adrienne’s frustration burst from her.
“It will be. We’ll get ahead of him.”
Exhaustion poured over Adrienne. She was tired of killers and dead bodies and voices and visions of evil in her head. She just wanted one night of good solid sleep with no buzzing or static to keep waking her.
They pulled up to her hotel. Conner parked the car and came around to open her door. “You’re dead on your feet.” He trailed a finger down her cheek. Adrienne could feel the warmth it left behind. “These days are rough on you, I know.”
“The nights aren’t great, either.”
Conner grimaced. “No wonder you’re tired all the time. Trouble sleeping?”
“Every night. Seems to be getting worse.”
Conner put a hand at the small of her back and led her inside the hotel. “I’ll stay here tonight. In the lobby. That should give you a peaceful night’s sleep.”
Adrienne wasn’t sure how to respond. She was so grateful for his offer. The thought of having a night of uninterrupted rest made her feel like a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
But she didn’t want him in the lobby. She wanted him in her bed.
Adrienne smiled up at Conner shyly and reached for his hand. “There’s no need for you to stay down here.”
He pressed the button for the elevator then stepped close enough to Adrienne that his lips were just inches away from hers.
“I think we both know if I stay up there, a peaceful night’s sleep is not what’s going to happen.”
The elevator door opened, but Conner didn’t move. Finally Adrienne put a finger on his chest and pushed him into the elevator and didn’t stop until Conner’s back was against the elevator’s wall. The doors closed behind them.
“Sleeping is overrated.” Adrienne reached up and threaded her hands through his hair, bringing his lips down to hers.
She pulled Conner’s lips to hers in a fierce kiss. She could feel a moment’s hesitation before he gave himself fully over to the passion between them. Adrienne gasped as Conner spun her around so her back was against the wall. He wrapped his arms around her hips and lifted her so they were eye to eye.
Heat pooled in her belly as he pressed up against her. She hooked one elbow around the back of his neck to pull him closer, deepening the kiss. He groaned, rocking against her, setting off sparks of electricity up and down her spine.
Adrienne vaguely heard the elevator door bing and open—she couldn’t remember either of them even pushing her floor’s button. Conner groaned and slid her slowly down his body and onto her feet. Then trailed his hands up from her hips past her waist to her shoulders, then cupped her cheeks.
He grabbed her hand and led her from the elevator to her room. Adrienne found the card key in her purse and handed it to Conner, who unlocked the door. He jerked her to him as he opened the door, and Adrienne giggled. Her giggling stopped when his mouth captured hers again, closing the door behind him with his foot.
After a moment, Adrienne eased away from Conner and turned to put her purse on the table, flipping on the light. Her breath came in a shocked gasp as she turned and looked around her.
Her hotel room was in shambles. Someone had destroyed nearly everything in it.
Chapter Eleven
When Conner heard Adrienne’s shocked gasp he immediately threw her behind his body and drew his weapon. The room was completely destroyed. He checked under the bed, in the closet and bathroom, cursing himself for not securing the room when he had first walked in, but found nothing.
Conner saw Adrienne still looking around with huge eyes, trying to take it all in. An envelope on the pillow—the one area of the room not destroyed—caught her attention. Before he could stop her, she walked over to the bed to read the note.
When she saw what it said, her hands began to shake.
“Conner?” Her voice came out as a hoarse whisper. He was immediately at her side and took the note from her.
Simon says, don’t worry, it’s almost your turn.
Conner lowered Adrienne’s shaking form to the bed. He immediately called Seth.
“Seth. I’m at the hotel with Adrienne. Simon Says has been here. He ransacked the room, left a note on her bed.” Conner glanced over at Adrienne, glad she couldn’t hear the expletives that came out of Seth’s mouth when he understood the full ramifications of the si
tuation. “I need you to get the full team up here right away.”
Conner turned back to where Adrienne still sat on the bed. She didn’t seem to have moved from where he had placed her. The letter was still gripped in her shaking hands, but she wasn’t looking at it. Her eyes were unfocused, staring at some faraway place only she could see.
“Hey, sweetheart,” Conner said gently, kneeling in front of her perch on the bed. “Adrienne?”
She finally focused in on him. His heart broke as big tears filled her eyes then spilled onto her cheeks.
“He was here, Conner. In my room.”
Conner caught her tears with his fingers. “I know, baby.”
“How long ago? How did he get in here? How did he know where to find me? And what could he be looking for?” She stood up as her panic built. Conner stood with her. She grabbed the front of his shirt. “Do you think he’s still around here?”
Conner was reminded that Adrienne wasn’t a trained FBI agent. Just a young woman who had seen way too much violence in her lifetime. Now the psychopath had turned his madness toward her. She was rightfully panicked.
He covered the hand that gripped his shirt and rubbed it gently. “Adrienne, no, he’s not here. I already checked the room and the hallway. There’s nobody around.”
She nodded up at him weakly.
“Seth and the team are on their way. We should try not to touch anything until they process the scene.”
Adrienne released his shirt and stood. She looked around the room like she’d never seen it before, then turned back to him. “Maybe you should leave and I’ll...see what I can see.”
Conner immediately closed the space between them. He gripped her upper arms. “There is no way in hell I’m leaving you here alone. You got that? Don’t even say it.” He would not leave her now.
“But...”
Conner put his hands on both sides of her face and stroked her cheeks with this thumbs. “Baby, no. I’m not leaving you.”
Intense relief flashed through Adrienne’s eyes. She had been willing to try, Conner realized—and appreciated—but she would’ve paid a high price for it.