Incisions

by Barbara Winkes

  “You want to hypnotize me?” Ellie asked, still skeptical.

  “It’s not like in the movies. You say you didn’t notice anything, anyone new approaching you, but don’t forget you were already under a lot of stress. A colleague of yours died, you were worried about Jordan…”

  It might be a bait…or not. Either way, Ellie didn’t want to go there.

  “So what?”

  “Maybe I could help you remember. You know that you can’t be hypnotized against your will, right? I can assure you, even if I could do that, I’m not interested in details of your relationship with my ex-girlfriend. Promise.”

  “I wasn’t thinking that,” Ellie mumbled.

  “Good. I went over your notes again. We can do this. We can go across the street to my hotel—it’s quieter than the police station, and you’ll be less distracted.”

  “What if I never met him, and I don’t have any helpful memories?”

  “You might remember more details about him, your captivity. I swear I’m not going to make you waste your time, or the Bureau’s. I have helped many witnesses like that.”

  She called her a witness, not a victim. Ellie had to give her that, even though she still thought of going to a hotel room with Bethany as beyond strange.

  “Okay. Let’s do this.” The moment she said it, she could feel her heart beating faster. She had to trust in Bethany’s experience, that this wouldn’t be anything out of a Hitchcock movie. Bethany wasn’t interested in her childhood—nothing bad to find there—or the time she’d grieved for her parents. Together, they would focus on the time she’d spent locked up and cuffed to the wall in a dark room.

  What could go wrong?

  Ellie wasn’t afraid, or at least that’s what she told herself. She had no reason to be. She had made it out of that small stuffy room with little more than a few scratches on her, most of which she got when falling down those damn stairs. She had given an extensive statement, backed by her even more extensive notes, and she was back at work. Not long from now, she and Jordan would go on their much deserved vacation, for real this time.

  She knew what lingered in the darkness, the ‘what if.’ Terrible things could have happened, if she didn’t have that small substitute for a weapon, or the other man hadn’t returned when he did.

  What if? was a terrible way to live your life. Jordan didn’t do it, Ellie wouldn’t either. There was nothing left to worry about. Bethany didn’t care about intimate details, or maybe she did, but she wouldn’t let that color her approach. Whatever it took to solve the case—this was where they understood each other.

  Something nagged at the back of her mind though as they were standing in the suite of a rather comfortable size.

  “You’re not staying at the apartment?” This was probably none of her business and an awkward attempt at making small talk, delay the inevitable.

  Bethany remained unfazed by her question.

  “I don’t know if Jordan told you this, but the landlord wants to convert the apartments into condos,” she said. “I have no reason anymore for a permanent address around here, if you must know.”

  “Oh. I see.”

  “Now that we got this covered, I’d like you to sit down, get comfortable. We’ll go over the past few weeks—the time we know Ward rented the apartment where you were held—and slowly get to the main event. I want you to know we can stop this at any time if it gets too much.”

  “We’re not trying to solve the case at any cost?” Ellie inquired. In hindsight, a few seconds later, she wasn’t quite sure where these words had come from. It seemed that whenever she felt like getting somewhere with Bethany, she remembered her conduct in Darby’s case.

  Bethany sat in a chair across from her.

  “No, we’re not,” she said firmly. “I know what you’re talking about, but believe me, I learned my lesson. I had some stern conversations with the lieutenant, Bristol, my own supervisor. In the end, I was cleared. I swear I didn’t know he was going after Jordan so soon, and this will haunt me for the rest of my life. Is there anything else you want to know before we start?”

  “No. I’m fine.”

  “Okay then, let’s get started. I’d like to tape this if it’s okay with you?”

  “Of course. Whatever I can do to help.”

  Ellie knew she would regret this at some point, soon, but she also knew how much depended on her. Bethany was right to assume the man who had kidnapped her didn’t come out of nowhere. She wished she’d seen him coming earlier, when there had still been a chance to turn it all around.

  This was everyone’s attempt at damage control, before something even worse happened.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Oh God, this is just going to get worse, right?” Michael Mercer shook his head after the detectives laid out the situation to him. “I tried my best to keep my distance from Josh. After he realized that there was no turning back with his parents, he used every opportunity to make money, drugs, guns, girls, whatever he could get involved in. Tucker, he got himself out, I hear, but for Josh, that was never an option. He wanted to make it big. I guess that’s why he’s dead now.” He hunched his shoulders. “That was a long time ago though.”

  “It wasn’t a long time ago when Tucker asked you for the car,” Jordan reminded him.

  “Yeah, but even he didn’t know what Josh was going to use it for, right? He had gone off the deep end, getting involved with people who blow things up? I don’t know anything about it, and frankly, I never wanted to. I didn’t ask questions.”

  “Yet you gave him the car. He didn’t give you any indication what he needed it for. Somehow I find that hard to believe.”

  “Well, I didn’t think he would pull his usual bullshit with his new friend, the cop, around. Guess I was wrong.”

  Jordan cast a quick look at Derek, realizing this was as much of a surprise for him.

  “A cop? Why didn’t you tell us the first time? Or when our colleagues followed up with you?”

  He shrugged. “I forgot. It just came to me, the other guy was wearing a sweatshirt with the PD’s logo. Jesus, how was I supposed to know what Josh was up to? I have a life. I can’t think of every little detail. You can buy this kind of gear. Or maybe the guy stole the shirt from someone. Come to think of it, now that makes sense.”

  Or it actually belonged to someone working with them every day, watching Ellie up close. The thought made Jordan sick to her stomach.

  “Did you ever hear the name Troy Haynes mentioned?”

  “I don’t think so, no.”

  “Okay then. We’ll be in touch, Mr. Mercer.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I was afraid of. I got your card already.”

  As they walked to the car, Derek said, “Seems like Dr. Roberts could be right. Someone hanging out with cops…or a cop.”

  “I’d prefer the former. What a mess,” Jordan summed up the situation. “We have to go over Ward’s past, every arrest record, see who worked those cases.”

  “You really think that one of us was involved in Ellie’s abduction? That’s still a big stretch.”

  “I agree, but I hate to say Bethany’s instincts are usually right on the money.”

  “Like they were with Darby.”

  “Well, okay, not something I’d like to think about now. Let’s go do some research now and find Bethany and her colleague after—and let’s see where Maria is at.” She noticed the minute hesitation on Derek’s part and sighed. “All right. I’ll see what she’s at. At some point you’ll have to talk to each other again.”

  “It’s complicated.”

  Jordan had no doubt. If there was anything she could relate to, it was complicated. Maybe later, over a beer at the Code 7, she’d ask him his opinion on Kate and Ellie moving in together. For now, they’d both feel better if they could rule out any colleague’s involvement in Ellie’s abduction.

  An image of Jonathan Darby flashed in her mind. There was something strangely comforting about being able to di
stinguish without a doubt good and evil. It wasn’t always that easy.

  * * * *

  “Relax. You’re safe here. Nothing can happen to you. Tell me what you see.”

  Ellie took what they were doing very seriously. She knew that there was no way in hell Bethany would even be spending time with her if this wasn’t important, and yet she couldn’t help thinking of this situation as absurd. She also had this unpleasant feeling in the pit of her stomach, like something was going to happen. She wasn’t too far off, as Bethany had asked her to go to a time before the kidnapping. Ellie had been on high alert for a while, after the attack, what Darby had done to Jordan, the shooting that left Kate’s fiancé and a friend of hers dead. No wonder she’d been on edge for so long, always waiting for the next, worse thing to happen.

  “If someone has been watching you, it’s likely that they’ve done so for a while.” Bethany’s voice was soft, alluring. “Tell me about the time after Officer Baker was killed. You all pulled together.” Against all odds, Ellie didn’t find it hard to follow that voice, regardless of the chilling memories Bethany was invoking. It was safe to look at them from a distance.

  “It’s a depressing atmosphere,” she said. “Everyone’s still shocked. We go to the Code 7 after work, but hardly to wind down. It’s tough to be alone and think that this could have been any of us. And we all miss him.”

  “I understand. Try to think of one night at the Code 7. Take a look around. See who’s there, who you’re talking to.”

  “Kate. Libby and…Jordan, of course. Wes. Roth, the owner, gives out some drinks on the house. He still does that from time to time. You know he used to be a cop. What do you think this is going to achieve?” Ellie asked, feeling irrationally angry all of a sudden. “He’s not there, and if he is, I have no idea who he is.”

  “We don’t know that,” Bethany said softly. “Now let’s go to the night before you were supposed to go on vacation. At this point, he has everything in place, and he knows where you’re going, your schedule. You went to the Code 7 that night?”

  “He must have known.” The thought sprang to mind, and it made her stomach clench. “The two of them, Ward and the other guy, I don’t know how they are connected, but he must have known about the attack. Maybe he was even watching.”

  “But you didn’t walk home the night before you were taken?”

  “No. Jordan drove me, and she was going to pick me up a few hours later to go to the airport. I still had some things to pack—and I thought I could get a few hours of sleep.” That night, Ellie had felt light and happy in expectation of the days to come, sun, beach, sex between the cool sheets of a pricey hotel room.

  It never happened.

  “Take your time,” Bethany instructed. “You’re home, packing, getting ready to get a few hours of sleep. What happened next?”

  “I don’t know!”

  “There’s a part of you that knows. Every little detail can help.”

  “I don’t know anything. He drugged me while I was asleep.”

  “You were never conscious, not even for a moment?”

  The flash, a split-second, came unexpected. Ellie’s right hand went to the fingers of the left, where she had cut herself…when? The world was tilting upside down, her fingers hurt, and she was feeling sick.

  “Breathe. He’s not here now. It’s just you and me. Did you see his face?”

  “He was wearing a mask the whole time. He didn’t want me to see his face—or hear his voice. He tried not to speak to me at all, but he couldn’t go through with it. Then he tried to alter his voice, but didn’t stick to it either.”

  “Do you remember his voice? Did you hear it, at the Code 7, at the station, at any time before you woke up in the apartment?”

  “I don’t know!”

  “I know you’re frustrated. I understand. Be patient. It will come to you.”

  “It hasn’t come to me in all this time, what makes you think it will change?” Ellie opened her eyes and jumped to her feet, surprised at the wave of vertigo. “This was a big waste of time. There’s nothing more.”

  “Allow me to disagree—but first sit down for a moment.” Bethany opened the curtains before she picked up a glass of water from a side table. “Here, take a few minutes before we go back to the department. Jordan just texted me. It seems that she and Henderson have found something too.”

  “What?” Ellie accepted the water and sat, but she had no idea why Bethany was this excited. She’d been aware the whole time. There was nothing new. “I didn’t remember anything else.”

  “The sweatshirt? That wasn’t in your notes or your earlier statement. It’s certainly possible to come by, but much easier for real cops.”

  “Wait, what are you talking about?”

  “You said he was wearing a shirt with the PD’s logo at one time. Ellie, do you understand what that could mean? This is why I didn’t want anyone outside of the meeting to know about the avenues we were pursuing. It’s significant.”

  “I said that?”

  “Don’t worry about it.” Bethany laid a hand on her shoulder and let it rest there for a moment. Ellie was too baffled to even have a reaction to the gesture. “It’s normal. People are responsive to these techniques in varying degrees. We will listen to the recording later. Other little details might come back to you over time. It’s not sorcery, I promise, just a way to sort it all out.”

  Ellie took another sip of the water before she got up. “Thanks, I guess. We have a lot of work to do now.”

  “No kidding. The sweatshirt wasn’t found at the apartment. Its owner made sure that only Ward’s name was on the lease, and with Haynes’ people. He’s hiding somewhere in plain sight. Let’s go see what the detectives have, and share the results of our afternoon.”

  “Yeah.” Ellie wondered what Jordan would be thinking of those results, and how they had been obtained. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

  “I was scared,” she said. Where had that come from?

  “Of course. Only a fool wouldn’t have been.” For what it was worth, Bethany understood. One day, Ellie would like to hear about the first cases she and Jordan worked on together, all those years ago.

  * * * *

  “Jordan, a word?”

  Jordan wasn’t sure what to make of the fact that Bethany and Ellie had come in together, both looking serious. She nodded and got up to follow them into the break room.

  “Now what? We’re the most secretive of an already secretive group?”

  “This is no joke,” Bethany chastised her. “Harding came up with something important this afternoon. She remembered the kidnapper was wearing a sweatshirt with the PD’s logo.”

  “Yes, we found out about this, plus Ward was arrested twice only this year by members of this precinct, on drug charges and assault. His record goes way back, even Roth arrested him before.”

  “That’s the owner of the Code 7, isn’t it?” Bethany asked.

  “Yes, but we’ve been focusing on recent events, back to the time Ellie was attacked the first time. We already talked to Detective Waters. The other arrest was made by Officer Wes Martin.”

  “He was in my class,” Ellie said. “Come on, I would have recognized his voice! He volunteers in soup kitchens and is helping his sister through college. It’s not that hard to get one of those sweatshirts.”

  “Yes, we’re aware. Still, there are some irregularities we are currently looking into. Don’t worry, we’re keeping a low profile.”

  “Yeah, you better.” Bethany miraculously agreed with her, though Jordan hadn’t missed the stormy look on Ellie’s face.

  “You’re going to investigate one of my friends?”

  “We’re going to ask some questions. I think it will be best if you do your job as usual, see if you notice anything unusual. If the guy kept close all this time, chances are he still does, trying to stay low key. We’re not accusing anyone.”

  Yet.

  A sweatshirt was definitely not eno
ugh to get the young officer into trouble, but some details she and Derek had discovered this afternoon, might.

  “All right. Do you need me for anything else?” Ellie asked.

  “Actually yes. We are looking at Haynes’ people who have done business in town and crossed paths with Ward in the past few years. Doss will give you some details.”

  Jordan could have done that, but she had to head back to where Derek was having a casual conversation with Officer Martin, and besides, she wanted to know what Bethany had done with Ellie all afternoon. She told herself this wasn’t at all informed by any feelings of unease, or, God forbid, jealousy.

  When Ellie had closed the door behind her, she asked, “What was this all about?”

  Bethany shrugged. “Work. What do you think? It’s not unusual that victims of a crime remember details later. Memory doesn’t always work in a linear way, and that detail obviously means something. This guy, wearing a police sweatshirt…it doesn’t mean that he is a cop, but oddly, for a criminal, he seems to like being associated with the police.”

  “Or mock us.”

  “Yes, that’s a possibility,” Bethany agreed. “In any case, it’s no coincidence. Other than that, if you want to ask, do it already so we can all go back to work.”

  “Ask you what?”

  “We didn’t talk about anything personal. Frankly, there’s no time. I want this guy off the streets before he blows up anything else, and if Ellie’s kidnapper can help us with that, two birds with one stone.”

  “Can’t you turn off the shrink for just a moment? I didn’t expect you to discuss anything personal.”

  Bethany wasn’t at all offended. “She’s coping in a very different way, so I hope you’re prepared. When you don’t want to deal with something, you shut down, close yourself off from everyone. Clearly, that’s not her thing. She seems okay, but there’s a lot going on under the surface.”