“At first, she wrote that he came to her in her dreams, and she wanted to know if that’s how he first came to me.”
“Was it?”
He shook his head. “For me, at first he was just a voice. Like a low hum my ears could never clear.”
“And then?”
“Darkness. A shadow passing in my field of vision.”
“When did he start to talk about killing us?” Keelyn asked, folding her arms over her chest to cover the chill that rose on her flesh.
“Until that day, Lucent was never commanding. It was subtle. A suggestion for how free I could be to do the work I needed to do.”
“What was that work? You’ve never been forthright with law enforcement about what you were doing with that lab on the property,” Lee said.
“The lab was always about redemption. About fixing a mistake from my past. I wouldn’t have hurt anyone.”
Keelyn leaned forward and held his eyes like she’d cup a child’s chin for reprimand. “You must see how empty that sounds after what you actually did.” Tears pooled in John’s eyes, and he blinked them away, once again studying the table between them.
“Did you and Raven ever talk about Gavin Donnely?” Lee asked.
“Even a demon has a master.”
Tiny ghost fingers caused Keelyn’s flesh to crawl. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Lucent wasn’t a problem for Raven until Dr. Donnely began to care for her.”
“You knew he was treating her?” Keelyn asked.
“Yes. I was the one who asked Gavin to take her under his wing. But now I see that was a mistake.”
“What kind? John, speaking in these riddles is not helping Raven.”
He threaded his fingers together and cracked his knuckles. “I’m still Raven’s legal guardian. My parental rights were never severed.”
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“You need to look at Raven’s psychiatric records. I’ll sign the release so you can get them.”
Lee dug his fingernails into the wood. “That’s a little sticky, John. Raven’s not a minor anymore. She’d have to give her consent, and she’s missing.”
“There must be something you can do, Captain Watson, to take a look at them.”
“We’re probably going to have to get a warrant. I’ll check into it. I may need you to provide a written statement to persuade the judge those records are going to be valuable in finding her.”
“John, this is your offer? To sign a medical release for a woman you no longer have any control over?” Keelyn asked. “This big trip was for you to tell us to go get her psych notes?”
John placed his folded hands against his lips. Was it a prayer?
“It’s the one thing I can do to save Raven’s life. You see, if Lucent has found her, you’ll need to know how he came to life in her mind. That record will reveal his creator.”
Chapter 15
Friday
LEE PULLED HIS WATCH CLOSE, and his breath misted the glass. After he checked for the umpteenth time in a few short minutes, he pulled the cuff of his fur-lined leather glove over the silver-edged face. He huddled deeper into his ski jacket as he edged into the corner of the building. Crumbles of brick fell into the puddle next to his shoe. He tried to ignore the other trash in the alley, like cellophane bags empty of their homemade pharmaceuticals.
Technically, he was off duty . . . if there ever was such a thing in law enforcement. His phone vibrated in his pocket nearly as often as he checked the time.
He was ignoring a page from the chief of police. Never a smart career move. He couldn’t fathom what was so urgent to require his immediate attention. The police radio had been quiet so he concluded it wasn’t SWAT related.
Which worried him more.
A man approached from the end of the ally and walked purposefully toward him. Lee shoved off the building and stepped a few feet into view. Closely, he watched for any mannerism that would lead him to believe the man had any intentions other than holding a simple meeting.
Using another officer’s confidential informant was frowned upon. Those relationships took years to cultivate at risk to both the officer and the whistle blower, community watchman, righter of evil deeds . . . or whatever politically correct term chosen to call someone who ratted out his friends.
Even if those friends were criminals.
However, this man wasn’t. He’d been wrongly convicted of his brother’s crimes and offered a job but decided he was better suited to do undercover, off-the-books, paid work on his own schedule without a boss looking over his shoulder.
He’d done time and now sought to clear other innocents.
That’s why Lee needed him.
The man held out his tattooed hand. A child’s tear-stained face memorialized on the thick, tan skin.
“Thanks for meeting me, Drew. Someone you know?” Shaking Drew’s hand was like brushing up against coarse sandpaper.
Drew released his grip. “We could have discussed my tattoos over a beer at the bar.”
“Right.” Lee pulled the zipper of his coat down and pulled a photo from an inner pocket.
“I need you to find this man.” Lee handed the snapshot to Drew.
He studied the image. “Who is he?”
“My brother. Conner Watson.”
Drew’s thumb traced over Conner’s face as if scanning the image into his memory. “What kind of trouble is he in?”
“That’s what I want to find out.”
“When’s the last time you saw him?”
Lee sighed. “It’s been awhile. Conner has a drug problem. I finally did the tough-love thing and kicked him out about three years ago. I haven’t seen him since. I hear things every now and then about him living on the streets in downtown Denver.”
“Why the push to find him now?”
“Do you know anything about Nathan’s current case?” Lee asked.
“He mentioned something about chasing ghosts from a hostage situation gone bad when he was with the FBI.”
“One of those hostages is now my fiancée.”
“Okay.”
“Someone approached her at a diner where we meet. He threatened her life.”
“And what does this have to do with your long-lost, drug-infected sibling?”
“The police sketch based on her description of this man looks just like Conner.”
Drew studied the picture. “Nathan know about this?”
Lee shook his head.
“Why not?”
“The good detective and I are not on the best terms. I was with Nathan on that day. We disagreed about the timing of the response. People died.”
“Yet you’re working together now?”
“Even adversaries can have a common goal,” Lee said. “We’re operating under a cease-fire.” Was that what he considered Nathan? An enemy?
“Where do you think Conner might be?”
“I have one address from a place downtown. I’d probably start there and work my way out.”
“Are you sure he’s still alive?”
“I check hospitals and the morgue at least once a week.” The emotional relief and sorrow at not finding Conner tugged at Lee’s soul. He sighed. “No one matching his description has been admitted.”
“You sure you don’t want to do this yourself?”
Lee shook his head. “If I suddenly start taking hours upon hours to find Conner, people will wonder why. Especially Nathan. I don’t want to draw any suspicion. If you locate him, you call me so I can talk to him first.”
“To get him to turn himself in, right?”
Lee shifted his foot through the trash. “Something like that.”
Drew tucked the picture in the back pocket of his jeans. “I’ll see what I can find.”
Chapter 16
KEELYN BROWSED THE pharmacy aisles with the list of recommended medications in one hand. Sophia held onto the fingers of the other hand, her attention held by all the colo
rful packaging.
The pediatrician’s appointment had been interesting. Keelyn spent most of the short visit peeling a panicky, screaming Sophia off furniture long enough for the doctor to look at the child. Keelyn had no idea whether Sophia was up-to-date on immunizations, and all the other details the doctor supplied had given Keelyn a migraine. She’d hoped Lee would come to offer another set of hands. But he was MIA, even though it was his day off. It wasn’t unheard of for him to spend time with other friends, but he’d never avoided her before.
Keelyn continued to suspect Lee of hiding something from her, and in the absence of information, her mind began to fill the void with possible reasons for his obscurity.
None of them were fun to think about.
The pharmacist had told her it would be twenty minutes to get the prescription filled for Sophia’s rash. Another five minutes to spare. Letting go of Sophia momentarily, Keelyn pulled the red plastic basket toward herself to double-check the list.
Tylenol.
Motrin.
Benadryl.
A cascade of Strawberry Shortcake Band-Aid boxes dropped on her feet. Looking down, Sophia pointed to the area where the bandage on her leg was covered by her pants, a wound from her injection site.
“More?” the toddler asked.
The pediatrician mentioned Band-Aids could cure a lot in this age group. Keelyn placed two boxes in her basket. “How did you know those were on my list?”
She gathered the remaining boxes and stood to restock them on the shelf. From her peripheral vision, she saw a woman hovering a few feet away. The same woman who seemed to be in several other aisles Keelyn had shopped in.
Her suspicion overtook her wariness. “Can I help you?” Keelyn asked.
“Is your name Keelyn?”
Keelyn bent over and picked Sophia up. Searching the woman’s face, she tried to recall if they’d ever crossed paths before. But then again, an acquaintance would know Keelyn’s name and not have to ask it.
“Yes.”
The woman took a few tentative steps in her direction. Keelyn huddled Sophia closer.
“A man leaving the store said you dropped this.”
She held out the brown-paper, lunch-size sack. The bottom hung heavy. Keelyn’s name was printed on the front with thick, heavy black marker. A smiley face folded into the top.
Keelyn reached forward. “What did he look like?”
“Older. Brown hair. Brown eyes.”
Keelyn peered around her to the front of the store. “How long ago?”
“Maybe five minutes.”
Keelyn pulled the staples free and looked inside. A small white tub with green lettering sat at the bottom. Reaching into the bag, she hoped it didn’t cover up something else. Was she grabbing for something that would blow her hand up or poke her finger with a contaminated needle full of HIV? She pulled the item out.
Diaper cream.
“He said you’d definitely need it for the baby’s rash. That you’d dropped it out of the diaper bag.”
“How would he know what it was if it fell out of my bag and was stapled closed?”
“All I can say is he seemed to be in a hurry. Like he didn’t have time to try and find you in the store.”
Keelyn stepped toward the woman. “Are you sure you don’t know this man? Was it Raven who sent you?”
The woman began to back away. “Now that you have it, I’ll be on my way.”
“Are you sure you don’t know him?”
The woman turned.
“Wait. Please.” Keelyn reached into her purse to dig out Lucent’s picture when her phone signaled. She grabbed it. A text that her prescription was ready. When she looked back up the woman was already out the front doors of the pharmacy.
She blew the stray hairs from her eyes.
Why was Raven taunting her like this? Why didn’t she just talk?
After checking out, Keelyn secured Sophia in her car seat, then consulted her list for her next stop. Just a few blocks from the drugstore. In the seat next to her were several printed flyers of the man who’d approached her in the diner.
She called Lee again. No answer.
Seemed like a lot of his responses were silence these days. Heaviness grappled with her spirit.
The drive to the church was short. Keelyn stood in front of the building, balancing Sophia on her hip, diaper bag dangling from the other shoulder. After triple-checking the address, she shoved it in the diaper bag, beside one of the Bibles from Raven’s garage, and made her way through the front door.
She’d hoped Lee would accompany her on these errands. When they touched base before Sophia’s scheduled pediatrician’s appointment, he’d claimed other plans but didn’t volunteer what they were.
Why couldn’t he tell her what he was doing? Or was Lee just avoiding becoming part of Sophia’s life?
Yet here she was, trading secret for secret. Was a lie of omission still a lie? She knew Lee and Nathan had planned to stop and talk to the minister. But Lee was off, and she knew Nathan wouldn’t let her tag along. Perhaps the minister would be more forthcoming with information to a concerned sister over a snooping detective, anyway.
She entered the door. The hall carpet was red and threadbare. A thick, musty odor hung heavy. Sophia squirmed to get down.
“Just a few minutes, sweetheart.” Keelyn rummaged through the diaper bag and eased a pacifier into the child’s mouth.
She entered an office on her left. The receptionist’s desk sat empty. As she leaned over to grab a pen and notepad, a deep voice from behind startled her, and she nearly dropped Sophia. Her loosened grasp caused the toddler to slide a few inches down her side. She clenched her arm tighter around the child, squeezing a few inches into the puffed coat before she felt she wouldn’t drop her. She turned around with Sophia dangling. A tall, muscular black man stood a few steps away, his hands up in silent surrender.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Don’t get many people passing through on a Friday since the office is generally closed.”
He was dressed casually in jeans and a sweater. His eyes so dark she couldn’t differentiate between iris and pupil. Small craters pocked his cheeks. The scars gave him a rough edge even though his voice was low and smooth.
Keelyn hoisted Sophia back up. “I should have set up an appointment.” She extended her hand. “Keelyn Blake.”
He gripped it tightly. “Russell Atkins.”
“The minister?”
“You could call me that. Most just call me Russ.”
“Do you happen to know a woman by the name of Raven Samuals?”
Darkness passed over his face as his curious expression changed to one of reserved expectation. “What’s your relation?”
“I’m her sister.”
His eyes cinched with the finest hint of suspicion. “She said her family was dead.”
Keelyn’s strength seeped from her knees. Sophia pushed hard against Keelyn’s chest and swung her feet wildly. She bent to put her on the floor but kept hold of her hand. “Is there someplace we could talk?”
If Sophia had not been with her, Keelyn doubted she would have gotten much further with this man. His forehead creased; his eyebrows drew closer in thought. “Let’s go to one of the Sunday school classrooms. It will give the child something to do.”
After settling Sophia with a few puzzles, they sat at a nearby table on pint-sized seats. Keelyn reached into the diaper bag and pulled out the Bible from Raven’s garage. She opened the front cover.
“This is how I found you.”
Russ picked at a corner of the sticker with his nail. “What can I do for you?”
“Raven is missing. I’m trying to locate her.”
“What makes you think I can help?”
“I thought you might have had some sort of relationship with her, since I found several boxes of Bibles in her garage with these stickers in them. Possibly you had a reason for them being there?”
He thumped his fingers agains
t the chipped Formica tabletop. “How can I be sure you’re related?”
Keelyn closed the Bible and pulled it toward her.
Why did this man act so guarded?
“You can’t. You can only take my word. Who else would come looking for her?”
The man ran his thumb over the engorged veins in his hand, shoving out the blood and watching them fill. Slowly . . . methodically.
An odd pacifying behavior Keelyn hadn’t seen before.
He stopped and rested his hand loosely over his upper arm. “I met Raven about two years ago. She came to me, asking to do some outreach ministry. We have several groups serving the homeless in downtown Denver.”
Sophia toddled over and laid a wooden puzzle piece in Keelyn’s hand. “Bunny!”
She handed the piece back. “Find me an ostrich?”
“I don’t think there is one of those,” Russ said.
“That’s the point.”
Now he rested his arm on the table and fidgeted in the toddler chair, unable to find a comfortable position physically or mentally. Was what he knew about Raven that unsettling? “I asked her why she was interested. She said she felt alone and thought by serving others, she could ease this isolation she felt. Is it true that your father killed your family?”
A tremor shook Keelyn’s legs and matched the butterflies flinging themselves against her stomach. She leaned her elbows onto her thighs. “Yes, half of them died. My mother and two siblings.”
“Were you there when this happened?”
Another wooden puzzle piece set on the table. “Birdie?”
Keelyn slid the piece back to the young girl. “Yes, you’re right. Find a bigger one.” Keelyn tickled at Sophia’s belly and sent her scurrying off, her laughter light in the dark room. Through the blinds, Keelyn could see it start to snow.
“It’s just you have the same look in your eyes as she did. A weariness. Like you’re always being tracked by something.”
“Something evil?” Keelyn asked.
The minister tilted his head to his left shoulder—a thoughtful consideration of her question. “She was so young. Considering her story, I told her to start coming to church and sit in with the women’s Bible study. Usually, a request like that will wash out people who aren’t very serious about serving. It’s hard to train up people, then have them walk out in a week. Working with the homeless isn’t an easy task.”
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