"Grace, what else did this person tell you? How can you be sure they're trustworthy?” Max asked.
"They wouldn't benefit from lying. My source truly believes the Master is responsible for the missing women, as well as for Jessy's murder. Frank, Felix and I have further investigated the other missing women. All of them so far have attended the two community colleges in the area. The young women come from prominent families and either took classes together or attended the same charity events. Those three factors could be a pattern linking the murders and kidnappings."
"It makes sense. We just received the lab results from another case we reopened, which we feel is connected to these current ones. The young woman was a live-in nanny. A maid, not college educated, and she was found two days later, not weeks or months,” Tommy stated.
"She was a maid?” Grace asked.
Tommy nodded yes.
"Perhaps working for one of the prominent families in the area? Maybe our killer comes from money? This maid who was murdered, was it a while ago? I mean a good length of time between her murder and that of the first victim in this case?"
"Over a year,” Tommy replied.
"From an investigative perspective, when a person commits murder, it's usually close to their home where they feel safe and if they get away with it, they usually wait a while, build up their confidence as well as the desire to kill again. Maybe she was our guy's first kill?” Grace stated.
"She very well could be. We'll have to consider this,” Gus added.
"Would he go after you, Grace, for the simple fact that you saw him, even though he had a mask on, and you're investigating Celina's disappearance?” Gus asked.
"She fits the profile,” Max stated before Grace could answer.
Everyone looked at Max who stared deep into Grace's eyes.
Before anyone could ask how, he spoke. “Grace has the look, class, sophistication, perfect figure."
Nicholas cleared his throat and Max continued, “She attended university, as the others have, obtained a law degree, passed the bar and is related to a wealthy and well-known family, the Randalls. Her aunt and uncle. You have attended these parties, probably walked in the same room as our killer,” Max added.
Grace suddenly realized how thoroughly he had investigated her. She interrupted as her uncle and Gus appeared shocked and concerned.
"Which brings me to the plan I have. If I attend the party tomorrow, I might be able to figure out who this guy is and lure him in."
"There's no way you're going to any party. If this guy is after you now, we're not taking that chance,” Max stated rather loudly.
Tommy changed the subject. “We were meeting now to discuss the operation and raiding these clubs. Maybe we'll catch this Master there and make his identity known. We have enough to legally question him."
"You can't do that. If he escapes or gets wind of the raids, there'll be no way to identify him,” Grace added.
"I'm not putting your life and safety on the line, Grace. How can you be sure he'll even be at this party?” Max asked, and for a second, it was as if they were the only two people in the room.
"I'm not sure he will be, Lieutenant, but it's your best chance of identifying him and linking him to the murders and disappearances. I think there's a good chance that he will be there. It's his pattern, his way of choosing his next victim or next sex slave for a client. He's running this side business, remember? It has to be lucrative for him. I can handle this. I have done this before.” Grace hoped by calling him lieutenant and challenging him that the others wouldn't pick up on their connection. She had the feeling Max would investigate her since she had done a background check and investigation on him. It was instinct and her lack of trust.
"I don't like this, Gracy. Just a week ago, you were attacked and walked in on a murder. Another young woman has gone missing and it looks like this Master is responsible. What if this guy has chosen you? What if he comes after you and we can't stop him? Can you handle going through something like that again?” Nicholas added, then seemed to realize what he just said.
Grace knew today was the anniversary of his best friend's death and her kidnapping. He obviously thought about everything, all the memories fresh in his mind.
"Again? What are you talking about?” Max asked and the others in the room appeared to have picked up on it, as well.
"Forget it. You have no right to make me stay away from that party. It will take you more than twenty-four hours to arrange a raid this huge. You have to organize it with a task force, meet with the SWAT teams, vice, and be certain of the exact locations of the clubs and hit them precisely at the same time. Let me attend this party and see if he shows up. If he doesn't, then we do it your way,” Grace told them.
"She's right that it will take some time, but by tomorrow night, those clubs will be shut down. We ran everything by the DA this morning. We already organized a task force and the SWAT team commander is standing by. We're waiting on one last location,” Gus added as he eyed Grace. He apparently wasn't the only one concerned.
Nicholas starting giving out orders and the detectives left the room.
Before Max left, he stopped in front of Grace. “We'll talk later."
She nodded yes, then he left.
Nicholas closed the door and Gus stood beside Grace. Neither man spoke for a moment. They knew she was stubborn and independent. She wouldn't drop her investigation. She would go to the party and she would fight the idea of personal protection. They would try to talk her out of this, but she wasn't budging.
"You both know that I'm more than capable of taking care of myself. This is my job. Finding Celina Marquette is my job and putting Mary and Jessy's murderer behind bars is now part of my job."
"This is beyond detective work, Gracy. You've done enough, now let Max and the others handle the rest.” Nicholas tried to sound insistent.
"We're not going to use you as bait. Look at what this monster did to those women. We don't even know if the others are alive,” Gus added.
"I'm not sure about the others, but I think Celina is still alive, as well as Jasmine, at least for now."
"You're just guessing, Grace."
"It's more than that. I think the Master not only provides certain clients with their own sex slaves, but he keeps some for himself. He's sly and cunning. He enjoys the chase more than the kill. The power and authority over each event feeds his ego. He's more complicated than your average killer. It's like he's on a mission."
"You're guessing, Gracy. It's all possible, but you're still just guessing. Even with the belief that the Master hasn't killed Celina and Jasmine,” Gus replied.
"There's a good possibility. He was responsible for Jessy's murder. It's one thing to pay for a sex slave and keep someone against their will, but it's another thing to take it to the higher level and kill the said slaves by torturing them and killing them slowly. Jessy belonged to the Master. All these women do. I believe the Master killed Jessy himself because of business reasons.
"By eliminating the evidence, he protects his assets, his business, his clubs, his professional life and the cover that hides his true identity. He's a control freak. People looking for sex slaves and who have paid big bucks for them would not want to or be able to kill so easily. Maybe these people paid extra for the Master to eliminate the sex slave in order to make room for a new one."
"That's sick and what about Mary? Why kill her?” Gus asked.
"Mary was about to give me more information. The Master is feared. He had to keep that fear alive, especially knowing we're onto his business. At first, I thought the Master attacked me at The Cave, but then I realized it wasn't him."
"How can you be sure, Gracy? You were under severe stress at the time, fighting for your life,” Nicholas asked her.
"If it were the Master, I wouldn't be standing here right now. Besides, he's way too arrogant to kidnap these women himself. He has someone doing it for him,” Grace turned toward the window.
The sky
was gray and snowflakes were falling, covering the streets outside. She held her arms, immediately feeling the chill. The fact she understood the criminal mind so well was frightening. She may not have concrete evidence to back up her theories, but deep down inside, she knew she was right. This Master would be difficult to find and capture.
"This is a bad time for this to be happening, Gracy.” Uncle Nicholas broke the silence.
"This is about finding Celina and stopping a killer."
"You can't put away every bad guy, Gracy. You're not a super cop. This guy is callous, smart, and we have no idea who he can possibly be,” he warned.
"I'm a cop's daughter though and wasn't Blade Perkins ruthless? I would have died there in that box if you hadn't continued to search, not given up on me. How can I walk away from these women? How can you ask me to?” she whispered as the tears filled her eyes.
Immediately, Uncle Nicholas appeared to understand her motivation and determination to stay involved in the case.
The two men exchanged glances, then looked back at her again.
They would let her attend the party.
* * * *
"What do you want me to do now, Lieutenant?” Tommy asked Max as Max sat on the edge of Tommy's desk.
Max was looking through the glass of the conference room. He could see Grace was upset. He glanced around to make sure no one was listening.
"I want you to find out everything about the Randalls and dig deep."
"Grace's aunt and uncle?"
Max nodded yes.
"Also find out everything you can about the maid. There's more there, I can feel it."
"You think Grace may be right? Maybe the maid was our killer's first victim?” Tommy asked.
"It seems to me that Detective Martin has somewhat of a natural instinct about this case. She had a lot of strong points and now you have some work ahead of you,” Max replied and Tommy smiled.
* * * *
Celina was shaking as she lay on the concrete floor fully naked. Her body ached, her head, fuzzy, and she was starving. The door to the room opened and her captor stood there a moment watching her.
She couldn't move an inch, so she wouldn't be able to put up any kind of a fight against him. He placed a tray of food on the floor beside her. Her stomach churned despite her hunger.
"At first I thought you had caused me too much trouble, Celina. But the source of that trouble and her need to find you has turned out to be one of the best things that could have happened to me. I will personally deal with her. She's the only reason you will stay alive.
"Now eat your dinner and later when I return, we'll play some more."
He closed the door and Celina lay still on the cold floor. A tear escaped her eye, dropping on the gray concrete as she prayed for freedom. Did he just give me false hope? Is it just another mind game? She closed her eyes and cried.
* * * *
The Master left the basement and headed back to his home office.
The games had begun.
Very shortly, the lovely Grace would be receiving her surprise. Soon, she would know just how special she was. This time, she would not escape becoming his prisoner. He would keep her the longest.
* * * *
Max was getting ready to head out of the precinct and over to Grace's house. He didn't like her being alone no matter how well trained she was. Grace's information about the club invitation turned out to be useful. Jasmine's friend had seen the invitation and wanted to tag along, but the invite was for Jasmine only. The club location turned out to be the last one they were looking for. Now Max had the task force running surveillance on the last club to ascertain the right time for the raids.
"Hey, Mathews."
Max turned to see Nicholas O'Connor standing in the doorway of his office.
"Yeah, Nick."
"We need to talk,” Nicholas stated as Max entered the office and Nicholas closed the door behind him.
Max remained standing as he watched his facial expression. Something major was on the other man's mind. He was different today, quiet, and Max had the feeling it had something to do with Grace.
Nicholas leaned against his desk and looked at Max. “I'm worried about Gracy. Tell me if I'm wrong, but I think you're just as worried."
"You're not wrong, Nicholas. I am worried. I care about your niece."
"She's more than that. She's more like my daughter than my niece."
"That's understandable. She said you raised her since she was nine and that her parents were killed."
Her uncle looked surprised Gracy had shared that much with Max.
"She wants to see this guy put behind bars. She's willing to risk her safety to do it."
"I can understand that, not that I like it one bit, but I understand it. If her parents were murdered, then she wouldn't want other families to suffer or go through what you all did."
"There's a bit more to it than that, Max. Gracy didn't tell you everything. I hope she won't be mad at me for telling you what happened, but I feel you need to know.
"She's stubborn and used to going solo. To Gracy, this case is more than just some psychopath running an illegal slave business. Gracy thinks he's responsible for Jessy's murder and that he's still holding Celina against her will."
"How could she know that? Celina could be dead. We don't know anything about this guy, not a profile or a hint of how big this investigation is."
"Gracy has a bit of a talent for it. I need to tell you this in order for you to understand Gracy and to help her. You may be the only one who can get through to her."
When Nicholas told Max about the killer's profile as described earlier by Grace, Max was impressed. Then Nicholas told Max about Grace's past.
Nicholas told Max about that fateful December night two weeks before Christmas and a very brave nine-year-old little girl.
* * * *
The doorbell rang and Grace panicked, then stopped herself from acting so foolishly. The Master wouldn't just come knocking at her front door.
Christmas was a mere two weeks away and Grace had to do most of her shopping online. It was probably another delivery.
She looked through the peephole and saw a messenger with a large yellow envelope.
After she grabbed a few dollars from her purse, she opened the door.
"Grace Martin?” the young blonde asked as he held his winter coat tight around him.
"Yes."
"Sign here, please."
Once Grace signed, she gave the kid a tip, then looked at the envelope. There was no return address.
"Hey, who is this from?” she asked.
"They don't tell me. The person probably left it at dispatch. Thanks for the tip, lady."
Grace smiled and quickly closed the door, trying to block out the chill. Then she relocked the door and headed to the kitchen.
She was about to open the envelope when the doorbell rang again, so she went back to the door, peeked through the peephole and saw Max.
Her heart leaped.
She opened the door to greet him but his face looked somber. He entered, then closed and locked the door behind him.
"Who was that?"
"A messenger. He delivered an envelope. I was just about to open it. Are you okay? You look upset. Did something happen?” Grace asked, immediately afraid one of the women turned up dead.
"I needed to see you. To hold you,” he whispered, pulling her into an embrace.
Grace needed him just as badly.
Understanding his torment, she replied, “It's okay, Max. Don't feel bad about investigating me. I have to confess ... I did the same with you. It's no big deal."
Max smiled. She stepped back and Max removed his coat.
"So what's in the envelope?” he asked.
Grace picked it up off the counter to open it. She undid the seal and pulled out a card first. There was another smaller yellow envelope inside.
On the front of the card, the words Happy Anniversary stood out in bold letters
. Grace's heart sank. She was suddenly filled with fear. The tears came from nowhere and ran down her cheeks.
"What is it, Grace?” Max put his arms around her to look at the card.
"Who would send this to me? Who would be so cruel?” Her voice cracked.
Max pulled the card from her hands. Inside was a copy of a newspaper article that stated, “Local cop and wife murdered, nine year old daughter only witness, kidnapped."
Grace removed the smaller yellow envelope next.
Inside was a picture, an actual photograph of her parents and Grace as a child.
She grabbed the counter before she fell. Max took the picture as she sobbed.
"That son of a bitch.” Max then pulled Grace into his arms.
Grace cried while Max held her.
Finally, he assisted her to the sofa in the living room where he caressed her hair and tried to comfort her. He called it in to the department and sent Tommy to the messenger dispatch location. Even though they knew the envelope more than likely wouldn't contain any prints, a patrol officer stopped by fifteen minutes later to deliver the evidence to the lab.
Grace kept her eyes closed as she sat on the sofa. Max was talking on the phone.
The doorbell rang and he answered it. Immediately, Uncle Nicholas made his way to the living room.
Grace rose from the couch as Uncle Nicholas pulled her into his arms.
"My God, Gracy, I saw what he sent you.” Her uncle continued to hold her tight.
Grace sat back down on the couch while Nicholas and Max discussed the situation.
"You're not staying here. Pack some things,” Uncle Nicholas demanded.
"He's not forcing me from my home. I won't leave.” Grace stood up from the couch.
"You can't be serious, Gracy. Staying here alone is out of the question."
Max moved toward Grace and took her hands into his. He pulled one palm to his lips and kissed it soft. They stared into one another's eyes.
"I'll stay here with her. I'll pick up some more stuff tomorrow. I've got a change of clothes and some other things out in the truck."
After Max kissed Grace on the cheek, he walked out of the room before she could argue.
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