by Robin Mahle
20
THE CONFIRMATION THAT Shaun Hudson had been Aguilar’s source was enough for them to arrest him. He’d withheld information pertinent to an investigation. They placed him in the back of Marshall’s car and headed to the station. Neither had believed Hudson’s assertion that he hadn’t known Shalot killed Lindsay Brown. It would be priority to question Hudson further so that he might implicate Branson or others in the Highway Hunter killings and Marshall and Jameson were confident the kid had that information.
Upon their arrival, the two hadn’t yet known that the others were in Branson’s home, trying to free a woman he’d held captive.
Katie waited for Marshall outside the interrogation room where they had just left Hudson. “They found a woman in Branson’s home. She was in bad shape, Marshall.”
“Scarborough called you?”
“Gibbons did,” she replied. “This woman they found had a lot of information to share about Lewis Branson. He went on to tell me that Branson had wanted Edward Shalot out of the way. According to what this woman said, Shalot had become too volatile and couldn’t be counted on any longer. That his obsession with me had gotten out of control and he risked exposing Branson.”
Marshall gently took Katie by the arm and led her out of the hallway. “Let’s go to my office. Jameson can handle this.”
Marshall closed the door to his office as Katie took a seat.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were already going after Hudson this morning? I would’ve liked to have been there with you.” She began.
“Because I needed to be sure you weren’t around if things went south. We had originally gone to see him based on what you and I had discovered last night, but when you called about the phone records, it was enough to arrest him. Look, Kate, you’re not a trained officer. There are some things that I have to handle on my own. I’m sure that’s not what you want to hear, but it’s the reality of the situation. I can’t always be worried about your safety.”
“Then stop worrying about it.” She quickly lowered her tone, realizing her frustration had taken over. “I’m sorry. It’s just that this directly impacts me and you know it. You’re right. I don’t carry a gun, but damn it, since when are we not a team?”
Marshall fell into his chair. “We are a team, Kate. But there are still people out there who, given your very public story, have a morbid interest in you. Shalot is one of those people. He and Hudson are involved in some bizarre shit that honestly scares the hell out of me.” He paused for a moment to regain control of the conversation. “So what do we know about this woman they found?”
“She was handcuffed to a sump pump pipe in his basement. You remember that photograph posted online with Branson speaking at a gathering?”
Marshall nodded.
“The basement was covered in those same symbols. And, the V. Lots of them. From what that woman stated, she was trying to leave him, but he wouldn’t let her. She’d heard that Branson had encouraged a few of the members to show the world that chaos would reign. That it was necessary to restore order. My guess is that Shalot was one of them.”
“For God’s sake.” Marshall shook his head. “But Gibbons also mentioned that Branson wanted Shalot out of the way?”
“According to the woman, Branson was grooming him. He wanted him to be ‘second in command,’ so to speak.”
“Okay, Shalot’s in custody and people are still dying. So, there are others out there ‘restoring order’?” Marshall asked.
“It got back to Branson that Shalot thought he could go it alone. That he was building his own following. Only Shalot had taken it a step further than Branson intended, insisting that his followers leave their mark and make themselves known as the ‘Brotherhood of the Five.’ These were only rumblings she had come across, but all of it scared her enough that she wanted to leave.
“I don’t blame her.” Marshall leaned in, his face masked in anger. “Are they after you?”
“No,” Katie said. “Not that Gibbons mentioned.”
Marshall leaned back in his chair and turned towards the window, peering out in silence. “That doesn’t explain why Shalot’s been insisting to you that he’s innocent. We’ve got his damn DNA on the victim. What did he hope to gain by this?”
“I don’t know yet. But, I think Branson wanted to put a stop to him. He seemed to know that Shalot had gone way off the rails and risked exposing all of them. We’ll know more when they get back from Oceanside, but I think that was why he used Shaun Hudson to feed information to Marc. The authorities discovering that woman locked up in his basement probably wasn’t part of the plan, though.”
“Did she believe Lewis Branson would kill her?” Marshall asked. “Son of a bitch sounds just as crazy as Shalot.”
“Gibbons said she was pretty shaken up. Branson did a number on her.” Katie witnessed the shift in Marshall’s demeanor. It wasn’t fear and it wasn’t anger. It was rage she saw behind his eyes.
***
Agent Jameson was standing outside the interrogation room when Marshall approached. “Have you spoken to Hudson? Is his attorney here yet?”
“I think they’re bringing him down now. He just arrived. Did you hear what they found in Oceanside?”
“I did. We’re getting close now, we have to be.” Marshall leaned against the wall, folding his arms. “I’m sure they’re already on their way to arrest Branson.”
Katie caught up to them in the hall and soon spotted a young man wearing a suit rounding the corner. “That must be him.”
Marshall now stood at attention, waiting for the suit to introduce himself.
The young attorney, Katie believed, couldn’t have been more than twenty-four, maybe twenty-five, although he looked about fifteen. She would be turning thirty in just a few months, but felt much older.
“I’m Jackson Parrish. I’ll be representing Mr. Hudson. I understand you would like to interview him?” the lawyer said.
Marshall shook his hand. “Yes. I’m Detective Avery. I’m working with FBI Agent Jameson on this investigation. This is Katie Reid. She will be accompanying us in the interview.”
“Nice to meet you all. Shall we go in?” Parrish asked.
Jameson held the door open. Inside, Shaun Hudson, even with his husky build, looked small and frail, like a frightened boy.
“Mr. Hudson, I’m Jackson Parrish, your court-appointed attorney. I’ll be representing you. This is Detective Avery, Agent Jameson and Katie Reid. They’d like to ask you a few questions.”
“I know who they are.” Hudson’s intonation suggested he might be reluctant to cooperate.
“I see. Well, shall we get started?” Parrish retrieved the digital recorder from his briefcase and placed it on the table.
“This is all being recorded anyway, Mr. Parrish.” Marshall pointed to the cameras mounted on the walls.
“Of course. I just prefer to have my own records.” Parrish gestured to Marshall. “Please, begin.”
Katie kept quiet for the moment, letting Jameson and Marshall take the lead. Marshall began to speak.
“Shaun, you and I met earlier today. Is that correct?”
He nodded.
“Mr. Hudson,” Parrish began, “you’ll need to speak so we can have it for the record.”
“Yes. I met Detective Avery earlier today, outside of my class.”
“Thank you.” Marshall continued. “The FBI will be taking Lewis Branson into custody in a short while. He apparently kidnapped and was holding a woman against her will. Do you know Mr. Branson?” Marshall needed verbal confirmation although he already knew the answer.
This appeared to be news to Hudson as his voice trembled in response. “Who—who is she?”
“That doesn’t matter right now,” Jameson started. “Do you know Lewis Branson?”
Hudson looked to his attorney, ensuring it was okay to answer. “Yes. I know him.”
“And you know Edward Shalot?”
“Yes. You know that already,” Hud
son replied.
“Shaun, who instructed you to create false transcripts for Edward Shalot so that he might attend UCSD?” Agent Jameson continued.
“I’m sorry.” Parrish held up his hand and turned to his client. “You don’t have to answer that, Shaun.”
“I suggest you advise your client to help in any way that he can. He’s in a great deal of trouble and the FBI might find their way to working out a deal if he answers our questions,” Jameson said.
Hudson didn’t wait for his lawyer, opting instead to heed the advice of the agent. “Lewis Branson offered me a substantial amount of money to create Edward Shalot’s false records. Look, I told you before; I wasn’t into this thing like these guys. I just needed the money. I fucked up, okay? But that doesn’t make me a killer.”
“You’re not here because you’re suspected of killing anyone, Shaun.” Marshall looked on with an artificial concern. “Do you know why Branson wanted Shalot here? Why he asked that you forge those records?”
“No.”
Marshall paused for a moment and caught sight of Katie. She appeared aloof and disconnected.
He turned back to Hudson. “Did you know Lindsay Brown?”
Shaun looked again to the lawyer, who didn’t object to the question. “Yes.”
“How did you two meet?”
“Through her roommate. She’s a part of the community.”
This wasn’t the answer Marshall had expected. His pulse began to quicken. “The roommate? Lindsay Brown’s roommate?”
Katie seemed to perk up at this revelation. No one had talked to the roommate since Lindsay was found dead. There had been no evidence that suggested she was anything more than a roommate who happened to be out of town that night. At least, that was what she told the authorities.
“Was the roommate the one who introduced Edward to Lindsay as well?” Katie asked.
“Her name is Laura Kempt.” Shaun began rubbing his palms together. His knee hit the bottom of the table in a nervous twitch.
Marshall picked up on the shift. He watched as Shaun’s chest began to rise and fall quickly. “Shaun, did Laura know Shalot before he met Lindsay Brown?”
“Yes, I—I think so, yes. He did.”
Marshall slammed the table. “Dammit!” He pushed himself up from the chair and began pacing the room. “So, Laura made the introduction to Lindsay, why? In hopes Shalot might recruit her as well? But, when she wasn’t interested, Shalot lost his temper, as he was known for, and threatened her.” He began to rub his fingers through his hair again.
Katie knew he was trying to put the pieces together, but she thought she might have already done it. “Shaun, we know that Branson felt Shalot was getting out of control and that he feared Shalot would turn his own followers against him. Do you know who’s in the Brotherhood of the Five?”
Marshall stopped pacing and focused his attention on Katie.
“I didn’t kill Lindsay. Edward didn’t kill Lindsay.” Hudson paused, seeming to realize he had no choice but to reveal the truth. “Laura did. She loved Edward, but he didn’t feel the same. Edward Shalot loved you and she couldn’t stand that. Branson used that to his advantage.”
Parrish dropped his head into his hands, sighing heavily. He looked to Marshall. “You have any more questions?”
“If you knew this, Shaun, why the hell didn’t you come forward?” Jameson appeared on the verge of losing control. If they’d known, they might have been able to prevent the death of the woman in Phoenix; possibly, but now it would remain an unrealized opportunity.
“I don’t know. I was afraid. Lewis twisted Laura around, making her believe Edward would never love her, and she would have to resort to desperate measures to change that. Then he called me just days before she died. It was as if he knew what would happen, what Laura would do. That’s when he offered me more money to start leaving tips about Edward. I needed the cash.” Shaun Hudson appeared to crumble under the weight of his cowardice.
“If Laura Kempt killed Lindsay, she would’ve had to have known about the Highway Hunter killings; the carving, the dandelions. Who told her, Shaun? And what do you know about these murders?” Katie asked.
“I don’t know anything. I promise you. I don’t know who’s behind those horrible murders that have been all over the news. I guess I thought it could be Edward; I—I’d heard rumors from other members. Look, I only did what I was paid to do. I’m sorry. I don’t know anything more than that.” Shaun lowered his head.
They all seemed to pick up on the fact that this kid was in way over his head, but they needed more from him.
“I can only assume that Laura slept with Shalot at least once, which was enough to obtain and plant DNA on Lindsay’s body. And since she had just filed a restraining order, at Laura’s behest, Shalot was the obvious suspect. DNA would confirm that,” Marshall said. “But that doesn’t answer the question as to how she knew of the other killings. She had to be one of Edward’s followers, considering she was in love with him.”
“I think Branson probably wanted Edward dead, but Laura couldn’t do it, so she did the next best thing—she framed him,” Jameson began. “Shaun, do you know who Edward’s followers are? This Brotherhood of the Five? If you do, you have to tell us. We believe there’s going to be another murder. Shaun, we need you to do the right thing here.”
Katie looked to the lawyer. “Mr. Parrish. We need those names. There is another life at stake.” Perhaps pleading to the lawyer would help. Maybe he could convince Shaun that it would only help him to cooperate.
“I’d like to speak with my client alone for a moment.”
“Of course.” Katie rose from her chair.
Jameson held the door, closing it behind him when they’d filed out. “It’s as if he was playing double agent or something. Doing what Shalot wanted while working to help Branson too.”
“When is Scarborough due back? Have you heard from him?” Marshall asked.
“Don’t know, but I’ll find out. He may get the answers we need from Branson himself. I’m tired of screwing around with this guy. The problem is, the fifth murder could happen today, tomorrow, three days from now. We just don’t know, but we need to put a stop to it.”
Agent Scarborough, along with Detective Gibbons and Agent Myers, appeared at the end of the hall.
“We just booked Branson into federal custody. We’ve got him on kidnapping for now. What did you find out with Hudson?” Scarborough said.
They moved to the conference room and Agent Jameson filled the team in on what they had discovered about Hudson, Shalot, and the roommate, Laura Kempt.
That was enough for Scarborough. “Son of a bitch. Branson won’t talk without a lawyer. I won’t get any names from him, assuming he knows who the Five are. It’s gotta be this kid and it’s gotta be now.”
They returned to the interrogation room, where Hudson was ready to talk.
“My client wishes to make a deal prior to speaking on the matter any further.” Parrish pushed a sheet of paper towards Agent Scarborough.
Nick read the document, handing it to Marshall and Detective Gibbons to confirm. Although, ultimately, this was a federal investigation and any deals would have to be agreed upon by the feds. Nick was simply giving the San Diego police a chance to review it.
“Agreed,” Nick replied. “Now, you need to tell me who is in Shalot’s group and where we can find them. There is at least one life at stake.”
“I don’t know where they live; I’m not even sure they’re responsible for any of those Highway Hunter murders, I mean, I would’ve come forward if I thought…”
“The names, Shaun.” Jameson appeared to have grown impatient with the kid’s back peddling.
Hudson looked to his lawyer and nodded his head. Parrish tore a piece of paper from his notebook and handed it to Agent Scarborough.
“We need to run a search on these names.” Scarborough looked to his team. “We know where Laura Kempt is staying. We’ll pick her up first. As
soon as we have a location on the others, call it in. Get units out there as quickly as possible.”
“Gibbons and I can track down Kempt,” Marshall said. “Give Jameson a chance to find the others.”
“Good.” Nick turned to leave without another word.
***
The agents mobilized quickly. Scarborough called in to the local departments where the suspects were thought to live. All were near where the victims had been found. It seemed their little network was bigger than they thought. Shalot recruited far and wide.
Jameson and Myers had returned to the conference room and Katie decided to join them, feeling a little obsolete at this point.
It was as if the entire department was just set on fire. Captain Hearn was on the phone with the ASAC in the FBI field office, coordinating efforts and working to effectively shut down any and all websites where the followers made contact with one another. Junior detectives working under Gibbons were taking Hudson’s statement and working on the terms of the deal the FBI had struck with him.
Katie wasn’t about to sit idly by. This involved her whether Marshall wanted to believe it or not. Shalot was the mastermind behind all of it and he ultimately wanted her.
“What can I do to help?” she asked Agent Myers.
“We’re entering the names into NGI now. We’re hoping to get hits on them. If these are our suspects in connection with the other four murders, setting aside what we already know of Lindsay Brown, then any DNA, hair samples, or any identifying factors that would have been entered by local authorities would give us a hit in CODIS. We’ll cross-reference the two and hopefully come up with a match.”
Katie leaned over Jameson just enough so that she could get a glimpse of the program. “I’m familiar with CODIS. That’s the DNA database, right?”
Myers nodded.
“I’m not familiar with NGI, though.”
“It’s the Next Generation Identification program; the replacement for the fingerprint system we used to use called IAFIS.”