“Yes, but this case… Oh, it’s a long story. And it might not be him,” she added, coming to a decision. She swung her arms and gave him a tight smile.
“I’ll tell you later. When we know for sure. Let’s go.”
CHAPTER FIVE
AN EXUBERANT MAX greeted Diana when she got home. He ran over to her, jumping up her leg, barking his welcome. Then, like an over-stimulated child who couldn’t stand all the excitement, he ran away down the hallway to calm himself before hurling himself back again and repeating his performance. Diana knelt down and gave him a scratch between the ears. “Who’s mommy’s good boy?” she murmured. He yipped happily, rolled on his back, and whined. She scratched his tummy and laughed. He looked hilarious lying on his back with his tongue hanging out and his legs at odd angles.
She sobered quickly. No matter how much joy Max brought her, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something very bad was going to happen. She had no way of knowing for sure if this latest killing was the work of Surgeon, but it had all of his hallmarks. She stood up with a sigh and grabbed Max’s leash.
Outside, as Max trotted along, stopping every few seconds to sniff, she thought back to her own encounter with the killer. Peter was right. Assassins didn’t usually take time liquidating their targets. Typically, they simply murdered their victims as quickly and as cleanly as possible before disappearing into the shadows.
But for Surgeon, killing was something else, an art, something to be savored and perfected. Not for him the sudden, bloody, violence that usually accompanied even a clinically efficient professional hit. Surgeon’s preferred method was to administer a blocking agent and watch his victim quietly slip away. A small prick most people wouldn’t even feel was all it took to deliver the drug. It took ten minutes at most for the subject to die of suffocation under these circumstances, all without causing a fuss. Or a mess.
As killing methods went, it was surprisingly graceful and effective. Leaving a mask on the body was one of his hallmarks, as was removing the victim’s fingerprints. Surgeon liked to play with law enforcement and make their job difficult. That’s how he saw killing. Play.
Max whined, bringing her back to the present. “Sorry, boy,” she murmured. She walked toward her building.
She felt a prickling sensation on the back of her neck. Someone was watching her. She turned to scan the area but couldn’t see anything. Still, she knew someone was there. She was certain of it. Affecting a casualness she was nowhere close to feeling, she shrugged and walked into her building.
She took a deep breath and gave herself a mental shake. Though her gut instinct rarely steered her wrong, she reminded herself that they didn’t have any evidence yet that it was Surgeon behind this latest killing. Maybe it was just her imagination playing tricks on her. She was nervous. Surgeon was the only one who had ever gotten close to ending her life, and her experience had led her down a path she hadn’t anticipated. He was also the only one who’d got away.
“What’s wrong with you, boy? Are you deaf?” Donaldson snapped.
“No, sir,” Peter gritted his teeth. “But I don’t understand what CSIS wants with this case.”
“Hell if I know, either,” Donaldson grumbled. “I just got a call twenty minutes ago from the Deputy Commissioner telling me CSIS would be coming in to assist.”
“Assist?” It wasn’t the first time CSIS had poked their noses into one of Peter’s cases, but it was the first time they had offered to “assist.”
“Yeah, I know. I found that strange, too. Guess it might have something to do with Diana,” Donaldson said. “Maybe they want her help. Or something.”
“How did they find out about the case so quickly?” Peter asked. He hadn’t had a chance to run a search for their victim or the M.O. or anything, so how had CSIS found out?
Donaldson raised an eyebrow. “You do realize this is CSIS we’re talking about – an intelligence agency. Knowing things is their business.”
Peter grunted. He didn’t buy it. They weren’t all-knowing. They had to have found out somehow. From someone. Diana…?
“When will they be here?” Peter asked his boss.
“About half an hour or so,” Donaldson said.
Peter turned to leave Donaldson’s office. “Hopkinson,” his super barked, stopping him in his tracks, “I know this is annoying as hell, but I need you to play nice. If CSIS has gotten involved, there must be much more going on than we know about. Remember, this is about finding the killer and making sure no one else gets hurt, so forget about your ego. Just play nice, you hear?”
Peter nodded with a grunt.
He walked out of Donaldson’s office and ran right into Diana. “Whoa!” He grabbed her by the shoulders so she didn’t lose her balance.
“Are you trying to kill me?” she snapped.
“Diana, we need to talk.”
“What is it?” There was fear in her eyes. Diana could be cold, sharp, brittle, but she rarely looked vulnerable. It unsettled him.
“CSIS—“
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t the smart ass rookie with a bleeding heart,” a male voice tinged with a heavy dose of sarcasm interrupted him. Peter looked over Diana’s shoulder to see two men walking up the corridor. One looked in his late thirties, tall, an aquiline nose dominating his features, his hair sharply cut and gelled. The other was younger, clearly the junior of the two judging by his more submissive gait. They both wore dark suits, ties, and had sunglasses in their top pockets. Standard plain clothes investigative uniform.
Diana stiffened. She backed away from Peter a step and turned around. “Why, if it isn’t the jerk who doesn’t know when to shut up.” Diana and the older man glared at each other. Peter tensed.
Suddenly, the guy who’d spoken softened and a wide grin spread across his face. “Di, it’s so good to see you!” he exclaimed, holding out his arms. Arms into which Diana ran without a moment’s hesitation.
“Kieran, I’m so happy they sent you,” she said, her voice muffled by the fact that her face was buried in the man’s suit jacket.
“Who else would they send?” he said as he held her out at arm’s length. “As soon as the boss found out you were working on this and who was involved, she told me to get moving.” He paused for a moment. “Are you okay?” He looked genuinely worried for her.
Peter took a deep breath and exhaled. He crossed his arms, waiting.
“I’m fine,” she said. She hesitated for a moment. “Are you sure it’s him?”
Kieran nodded. “No doubt about it. I’m sorry, baby girl. We’ve been waiting for him to show himself. We got some intel that he was in the country, but we had no idea where. Or why.”
Baby girl? Who the hell was this guy? It had never even crossed Peter’s mind to call Diana anything other than, strangely enough, “Diana.” Peter cleared his throat. He felt like a guy in the friend zone at a lover’s reunion.
Diana turned, a sheepish smile on her face. “Sorry,” she said quickly. “Kieran, this is Detective Peter Hopkinson. He’s the lead on this case. Peter, this is Kieran Black. He used to be my partner at CSIS.”
Partner? Great. “Hi,” he replied gruffly, shaking the other man’s hand. Kieran’s handshake was strong. They were about the same size, but Kieran was a few years older, and he was much too attractive for Peter’s liking. Peter squeezed the other guy’s hand a little harder.
Kieran’s eyes crinkled as he smiled. “You’ll do,” he said.
“Sorry?” Peter demanded.
“To look after my baby girl here,” Kieran replied, inclining his head toward Diana.
“Oh, really?”
“Yup, only the best for my girl. I checked you out. I hear good things, Hopkinson.”
Peter bristled.
“Okay, that’s enough. We need to brief the Superintendent. We have a killer to catch,” Diana intervened.
“Ms. Hunter,” another voice interjected. It was the poor sucker who’d accompanied Black and whom they’d completel
y ignored. “My name’s Steven Jones. I’m Kieran’s partner. I’ve heard so much about you. It’s a pleasure.”
Diana smiled and shook his hand. “Good to meet you too, Mr. Jones.”
“Please, call me Steve. And don’t worry, he won’t get away this time,” the young man said. Peter swiveled his head to look at him hard. This time?
“Damn right, he won’t,” Diana replied, her face hardening before switching again, the smile back in full force. “Peter, why don’t you go with Kieran and Steve to the conference room? I’ll get the superintendent. I need a moment.” She had a pleading look in her eyes.
“Sure thing. Follow me, gentlemen,” Peter said, starting to walk, his confusion imperceptible to the men around him.
CHAPTER SIX
DIANA WALKED INTO Donaldson’s office. “CSIS are here,” she said.
The super looked up. “Will they work with us or will they make our lives harder?”
“They’ll cooperate. They want to catch this guy as badly as we do.”
Donaldson studied her for a moment. “This is personal for you, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
“And that’s all you’re going to say?”
Diana shrugged. “For now. Until it becomes relevant to the case. If it becomes relevant to the case.”
Donaldson slapped his hands on his desk and pushed himself out of his chair. “Fine. Let’s get this show on the road.”
When they walked into the conference room, the air crackled with tension. Diana sighed. The last thing she needed was to be stuck between two alpha males. Kieran and Peter had even sat themselves on opposite sides of the table. This was going to get really old, really fast.
Diana made the introductions and when Donaldson took his place at the end of the table, she sat next to him, making her position clear. She wasn’t choosing sides in Peter and Kieran’s stupid little war. “So, what do we have?” Donaldson asked.
Diana listened as Peter explained what they had found at the crime scene. For Donaldson’s benefit, she explained about Surgeon, his predilection for removing fingerprints and using a neuromuscular agent to disable his victims. “But until we get confirmation from Doc, there’s no way of knowing whether it’s him,” she said, giving Kieran a pointed look.
“That’s not entirely accurate. We’re pretty certain it’s him,” he said.
“Why?” Diana demanded.
“Because of who his victim is.”
“And how do you know that?” Peter said.
“Because we’ve been surveilling him,” Steve jumped in.
“I thought surveilling Canadians was illegal,” Donaldson said, giving him a dirty look.
“It is, unless there is a credible threat to national security. But in any case, our victim wasn’t Canadian.”
“Well, don’t keep us on the edge of our seats. Who was he?” Donaldson snapped.
“He’s had many aliases. No one knows his real name, but we knew him as Lucenzo Garibaldi,” Kieran said, looking right at Diana.
“You have got to be kidding me,” Diana breathed out.
“Hang on, hang on. Who is this Garibaldi guy and what’s his connection with Surgeon? And,” Peter emphasized without pausing, “if you were following Garibaldi so closely, how exactly did he get himself killed?”
Kieran grimaced, “We heard that he was in the country to carry out a hit. We lost him a couple of days ago.” He turned to Donaldson, “Lucenzo Garibaldi is – was – also an assassin. Word is that Garibaldi trained Surgeon in some of his techniques, although the execution method of paralysis and suffocation appears to be unique to Surgeon, hence the name. Speculation was that something went wrong between the two. They went from being partners to rivals in short order. “
Diana turned to Kieran. “How sure are you it was Garibaldi?”
“As certain as you are that someone’s been watching you,” Kieran said.
Diana’s eyes widened, then narrowed at Kieran. “What?” Peter exclaimed. “Why didn’t you tell me anything?”
She turned to Peter, “Because I thought it was just my imagination, that’s why. I should have known better.” She looked back at Kieran. “Since when have you been watching me?”
Kieran went red. “Just a few days,” he mumbled.
“Why?”
“We heard chatter about Surgeon coming to Canada… I wanted to keep an eye on you… you know, make sure…” he trailed off and gave her a helpless look.
“Really, Kieran.” She drummed her fingers on the table.
“Beside the fact that I should lock you up for stalking,” Peter snapped, “what exactly does Surgeon have to do with you following Diana around?”
“You haven’t told them?” Kieran asked, his tone heavy with censure.
Diana shook her head.
“Told us what?” Peter demanded.
She glared at Kieran. “I see you’re still very talented at putting your foot in your mouth.”
“Don’t,” Kieran warned her. “You can’t expect them to do their jobs properly if you hold information back.”
“Okay, stop. What are you talking about?” Peter’s voice was strong and commanding, but Diana ignored him. “I’m not a rookie anymore, Kieran. I can handle myself.”
“I know you can, but no one can be objective after what he put you through. If you want this to work,” he said, waving his hand around to encompass the group, “you need to tell them the truth. All of it.”
“So, they suddenly have clearance?” she snapped.
“For this, yes,” Kieran said. He placed both of his palms flat on the table in front of him.
“Fine!” Diana turned to look at Peter. “Surgeon kidnapped me. He let me go. The end.”
“Stop being childish. Tell them the whole story,” Kieran insisted.
They faced off across the table.
Kieran had been impossible to work with for a while after her abduction. She had been a new recruit and he’d been charged with seasoning her. He’d come close to losing a brand new CSIS agent, and he’d taken it personally.
After that, he’d been wildly overprotective and micromanaging to the point that she had taken to avoiding him. When that didn’t work, she had gone to his boss to complain. Now though, while Diana didn’t appreciate what he was saying to her, she knew he was right. She had to tell the others what had really gone on. She stared defiantly at Kieran then glanced at each of the faces that stared back at her passively, waiting for her to explain. She wasn’t getting out of this.
CHAPTER SEVEN
“IT WAS MY first major mission,” Diana said. “A prominent Saudi imam was scheduled to visit Canada, and we obtained reliable intel that an attempt would be made on his life. The death of the imam on Canadian soil would have made us a target for every terrorist group out there, not to mention the strain it would have put on our relations with Saudi Arabia. It was a big deal.”
“Come on, Di, get to the point,” Kieran admonished. She gave him a dirty look. So what if she was delaying the inevitable? They weren’t pleasant memories.
“We learned that Surgeon was the assassin. Kieran managed to locate him. As his rookie, I went along for the ride. We were able to get the imam out and neutralize Surgeon’s attempt. He fled. The failure of his mission made him angry. Very angry. It was his first and only miss. He became fixated on me. He was convinced I’d ruined his plans and humiliated him—“
“Well, you were the one who figured out what he was up to, so you pretty much were the reason he failed,” Kieran pointed out.
“We didn’t capture him, though. We thought, hoped, that he’d left the country, but we were wrong. One night, he grabbed me. He held me for three days.”
Kieran shook his head. “Longest three days of my life,” he muttered. “Everyone was convinced she was dead, but I knew if anyone could survive, it was Diana. We kept searching.”
“He didn’t do much to hurt me physically. It seems he enjoys playing with his victims when he’s no
t on the clock. He drugged me so that I was completely paralyzed and spent three days telling me, in gruesome detail, what exactly he was going to do to me. It was three days of non-stop, extreme, psychological torture. Then he let me go.”
“Just like that?” Donaldson asked, his deep voice resonating in the silent room.
“Just like that,” Diana agreed.
“Why?” Peter asked. “Why not kill you?”
“We’ve never been sure. Perhaps to taunt us. The threat of him grabbing Diana again has always been present,” Kieran replied.
“He’s been slipping through the fingers of the world’s intelligence agencies ever since. Once we were sure he was off Canadian soil, our superiors at CSIS reprioritized, and he’s been at large ever since.”
Peter watched Diana. Her tone was even as she relayed the story, but clearly it still affected her. She was pale, and her pupils were dilated. He looked over to Kieran. Guilt was stamped across his face.
“So you know what he looks like?” Donaldson asked.
Diana shook her head. “No. His eyes but no more. He wore a mask. Never took it off.”
Kieran sighed. “That’s not the end of the story.”
“Every year, on the anniversary of my abduction, he sends flowers and a card to me via CSIS,” Diana continued.
Peter’s eyebrows rose into his hairline. “Creepy. He’s obsessed with you,” he muttered.
“Obsessed is putting it mildly,” Kieran snorted.
“Do you think he’s here for Diana?” Donaldson asked.
Kieran shook his head. “No. Diana’s identity was kept secret, so there’s no way he knows who she really is.”
“How can you be sure?” Peter demanded.
“Because he hasn’t tried to grab her again,” Kieran said.
“When’s the next anniversary?”
Kieran looked at everyone in turn. “Two days’ time,” he said gravely.
Peter turned to him. “Well, he might change his mind this time. He could find out who she is, it wouldn’t be that difficult. If he’s in the country, we should be fully alert to that possibility,” he said. “And he definitely can’t find out she’s involved in this case.”
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