by M. J. Eason
“Davis, I don’t think we can wait for Jessica. He’s got his next victim.”
“Are you sure?” he asked slowly but knew the answer already.
“Yes. It was her I saw tonight. She’s terrified. I couldn’t make out where he’s holding her. She’s still alive, Davis. But not for long. I think Frankie’s keeping her alive for us. He’s waiting for us to return to DC before killing her.” Kara went to the living room and found the file of the fourth victim of the Angel.
“What are you looking for?” Davis followed her, looking over her shoulder.
“Jan Yates was killed on September twenty-third. That’s two days from now! We have two days to find this girl. During that time, she was tortured repeatedly. She could bleed out. Die from exposure. God only knows. There isn’t much time. We need to leave now.”
“I hope you’re wrong about this, Kara. Because you know our chances of finding this girl before he kills her are next to impossible. It took weeks to discover Jan Yates’s body. He killed her in an abandoned barn, remember.”
“I remember.” Kara could feel him reaching out to her, laughing at her weakness. So confident. Even more than before.
“Are you okay?” She shook her head trying to dispel the image.
“Yes.” But his victim was not. She shivered in the cold damp place where he held her and time was quickly running out.
“Why don’t you go pack, and I’ll keep trying to reach Jessica until we leave for the airport.”
It took Kara less than ten minutes. When she returned, Davis had all the folders tucked away in his briefcase.
“Still no answer,” he told her.
“Buster!” In all the rush, Kara had forgotten all about her faithful companion. “I can’t leave him here alone. I’ll call Paul and have him stop by to keep an eye on him.”
Kara had known for a while that Paul wanted more than just friendship from her. She’d been close to considering it until Davis’s return. But that wasn’t an option anymore. Her heart belonged to Davis whether she went back to him or not.
“Who’s Paul?” Davis asked as they drove along the deserted county road. The tension she felt inside him now had nothing to do with the case. He didn’t want to hear her answer.
“Paul Juarez. He’s a friend. He works at the bank in town. He helped me get the boutique financed.”
Davis’s hands tightened on the wheel. He didn’t say anything but he concentrated on the road ahead a little too intently. He wanted to ask more. He didn’t have that right.
The airport appeared deserted except for a smattering of business travelers. They dropped the rental car off and booked their flights to Dulles without any problem. The five a.m. flight was empty. Bored attendants couldn’t wait for it to get underway.
Kara sat by the window next to Davis, silently going over the Yates case in her mind.
“Jan’s body was found at an abandoned barn twenty miles outside DC, correct?”
“You want to talk about this now?” he asked with a hint of amusement. “You don’t want to try and get some sleep?”
“No. Sleep is the last thing I want.”
“He still reaches out to you through your dreams, doesn’t he? That’s how he’s kept you involved in this thing through the years. And kept track of you.”
“Yes.” In the past, she’d had visions of both the victims as well as the killer through the victims’ possessions. Clothing. Pictures. Personal items that contained pieces of them. She’d learned to shut out the visions until recently when they’d become far too strong to resist. For six years the Angel had been promising this moment. A few weeks earlier his presence became stronger as he tried reaching her beyond the dreams.
“Davis, I haven’t been completely honest. There’s something I need to tell you.”
For a moment he didn’t speak. She could feel the tension increase in him. “Okay,” he managed at last. She had his full attention. Something wasn’t right. It occurred to her that Davis had his own secrets.
“I kept the scarf.” It took a few seconds for him to realize what she meant. And then he closed his eyes in disbelief.
“You did what? Okay, never mind the fact that you took evidence from a case, Kara, but why would you want to keep a reminder from such a terrible part of the past?”
“I don’t know. I can’t explain it, Davis, and I know it sounds macabre but I just felt I needed to have it to with me to remember. So that I never forgot what happened.” With a single glance, she knew he didn’t understand. “I’m not explaining it very well, I know.”
“You’re not. I don’t understand why you’d want to have that thing anywhere near you. Does Ava know you have it?”
“Of course not!” He hadn’t liked that she’d kept the scarf. In Davis’s eyes, it probably seemed morbid. Maybe it was. “Can we forget about the scarf for now? Let’s concentrate on our latest victim. We still have time to save her life if we try.”
“All right,” he said at last, letting go of his anger with difficulty. “Jan Yates’s body was found in a barn in a remote area by accident when a hiker stumbled upon it. Which means his latest victim could be anywhere. Where do we even start?”
“I don’t know. I couldn’t make out anything about her surroundings.”
“I’ve called Ryan. He’ll have all the local authorities start searching a twenty-mile radius around DC for every vacant barn or shed around,” he told her quietly. “Who knows, maybe we’ll get lucky this time. Maybe he’ll slip up.”
As much as Kara wanted to believe him, she didn’t. Deep down inside, the fear that started weeks earlier had begun to spiral out of control once more. Even now, she could hear his laughter in her head. Familiar. The same as before.
She didn’t understand how but somehow she knew they were running out of time. Two days and his latest victim would be gone. Then Kara believed he would try to come after Ava. It all fit.
But something told her, he wouldn’t be satisfied with any other victim but her.
****
By the time their flight landed at Dulles, the morning commuter traffic had hit bumper-to-bumper going into the city.
Kara called to check on Ava while the taxi made its way along the congested roadways.
“What’s wrong?” Davis knew right away from the uneasiness in Kara’s voice that their daughter had seen another vision.
“Nothing. She’s just upset.”
He leaned closer to Kara and heard Ava’s tearful reply, “Mommie, he’s going to hurt you.”
Davis took the phone from Kara’s hand.
“Ava, it’s me.” He couldn’t bring himself to say the word “father” just yet. “Honey, your mom is fine. She’s here with me and I’m going to protect her.”
“No, Davis—leave her out of this.”
Davis dodged Kara’s attempts at taking the phone away easily enough.
“It’s okay, Ava. I’m not going to let anything happen to your mom.” Ava said something that Davis didn’t quite catch but it almost sounded like “Thank you, Daddy”. Emotions that he’d never expected to feel before overwhelmed him. Without even knowing his daughter, he knew he loved her.
“Thank you for trusting me, Ava. I promise I won’t let her out of my sight for a minute. And when this is over you and I have some catching up to do.”
The taxi slowed to a stop in front of VCIRCD headquarters. Ryan Anderson met them on the steps.
“I asked Ryan to start re-interviewing all the people connected to the first Angel case. The victims’ friends and family. Anyone connected to the crime. You never know—someone might remember something new after all this time,” Davis explained as they got out of the taxi.
“I expected the two of you some time ago.” Ryan’s glance slid Kara’s way. His resentment of Kara went deeper than the usual scoffing at her talent. He’d been the one to pick up the pieces of what was left of Davis after she left DC that final time.
“Just like old times, isn’t it?” Ryan made
an attempt at a peace offering by extending her his hand.
Reluctantly, Kara accepted it. “It is. I never thought we’d be doing this again.”
“Me neither,” Ryan told her with a smile.
“Anything new on the search for Frankie?” Davis hoped Ryan had better luck at unearthing clues than he and Kara so far. When he saw Kara’s surprise he added, “Ryan and I are both in agreement with you. Frankie Stephens has to be alive. It’s likely he’s been waiting for this moment to resurface. What we need to know is what brought him out now. Something had to trigger the new killings, because I can’t believe this was just part of his game.”
“So far nothing new has turned up I’m going back through every single piece of information we collected the first time. Something will turn up. We just need more time.”
“Time is the one thing we don’t have. Have you talked to Frankie’s friends and family?”
“Well, that’s the thing. He really didn’t have any friends other than Victoria Blake and both she and his uncle refused to speak with me flat-out. I’m hoping you can talk to them. They seemed to have a connection with you.”
The minute they stepped off the elevator something foreboding hit him. He tried to dismiss the feeling but it continued to grow stronger as they neared his office.
“Where’s Jessica?” Davis asked the secretary sharing Jessica’s cubicle. She didn’t appear thrilled to be handling Jessica’s workload as well as her own. The young woman handed Davis a stack of messages and added, “I don’t know Agent Martin. She didn’t come in today and she never bothered to call and let me know she wouldn’t be in.”
“Call her at home and find out what’s going on. She wasn’t feeling well before I left. Maybe she’s still sick.”
The assistant looked even less pleased with her new orders. “Agent Martin, the director asked to speak with you the second you arrived.”
Davis looked to Ryan who confirmed the truth. “I had to tell him. You were gone and this case was heating up. I stalled as long as I could.”
“I know you did your best, Ryan. Can it wait?” Davis asked but the woman merely shook her head.
He turned to Kara. “I won’t be too long. My office is right in there. Ryan can get you set up.”
****
Davis walked away, leaving Kara alone with Ryan and the disgruntled assistant who turned aside before someone asked her to do anything further.
Kara followed Ryan inside Davis’s office.
“I’ll be fine here, Ryan. You don’t have to baby-sit. I know you’re busy.”
He stood in the doorway debating the right thing to do. Ryan was really trying to make amends.
“Are you sure?”
She smiled at the sincerity in his expression. “Yes, I’m sure. Go. Do your thing. I’ll be fine.”
“Okay. Maybe I’ll just go check to see if Jessica’s turned up yet,” he said at last. “It’s not like her to be AWOL but Davis is the only one who seems to have talked to her recently.”
After waiting for more than an hour for Davis to return, Kara went in search of coffee just as he stormed down the corridor. When he spotted her, he stopped and tried to regain his composure.
“What’s wrong? What did he say to you?”
“Nothing. It’s nothing,” He let out a heavy sigh that spoke volumes. “What are you doing?”
“I’m going for coffee. Do you want some?”
He glanced at Jessica’s empty desk, then at the other assistant who ignored him entirely before nodding.
“Sure. Jessica has me spoiled. She normally keeps the coffee coming when I’m in the office. I’ll show you where it’s kept.”
As they walked past his assistant’s cubicle, Kara spotted a picture sitting on the desk of a young woman holding a puppy. She had long, dark hair and smiling green eyes.
Jessica. Jessica. Kara’s full attention went to the picture. The young woman appeared beautiful and so full of life. She picked up the photo and instantly another, far darker impression of Jessica filled her senses. Kara could feel her pain. All alone, Jessica couldn’t move more than a few inches. Her captor had her hands tied. Her legs were broken. Her body mutilated.
“Oh God.” The picture slipped from her fingers. Kara wasn’t aware of saying anything but the instant Davis turned and spotted her expression he knew something terrible was wrong.
He saw the picture of Jessica lying at her feet. “Oh no—no, not Jessica.”
Without realizing it, Kara searched Jessica’s desk. She found what she was looking for right away. A gold nameplate with black lettering announced Jessica’s full name. Jessica Youngtree. JY. Jan Yates. Justine Yamez. Jessica Youngtree.
“No,” She barely recognized Davis’s voice. “She’s just sick. Jessica thought she might be coming down with a bug or something,” he said in little more than a whisper, while Kara shook her head no.
“I’m sorry, Davis.” He started for the elevator, forcing her to scramble to catch up with him.
“She’s not there, Davis.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Agent Martin, the director is holding for you,” the assistant announced. She sounded annoyed.
Davis didn’t bother answering her. He hit the elevator button a couple of times and waited only a moment before heading for the stairwell with Kara following close behind.
When they’d reached the ground level, he turned to her. “Go back inside. I don’t want you part of this.”
She ignored his attempts at protecting her. “I am part of it, Davis and you know it. I’ve been part of it from the beginning. I’m coming with you.”
He hesitated a second longer and then unlocked the passenger door to his car. “Here, take my backup weapon, okay?” Davis reached under the driver’s seat and pulled out a Glock, never questioning her skills. He knew she was an expert shooter. He’d taught her himself.
As they worked their way through the congested federal traffic, Davis continually tried reaching Jessica by phone. Then he called Ryan and told him to step up the search for the latest victim.
“We think Frankie’s taken Jessica. Get the word out as quickly as possible but make sure her parents don’t hear about this just yet.”
“Do you know Jessica’s parents?” Kara asked once they left the busy Capitol area, and headed toward a residential neighborhood.
“Yes, they’re friends of mine. Jessica’s father was an assistant district attorney at the time of the original Angel murders. He would have handled the case had it gone to trial.”
Once Davis parked the car in front of a small house on a quiet street, Kara began to see a pattern emerge that was frightening. First Rachel, now Jessica. Possibly Ava. Herself. Davis knew most of the victims. Had he known the first two as well?
“This is it,” he said while looking at her curiously. “What is it?”
“Nothing.” Now was not the time. They needed to find Jessica first before it was too late.
She waited while Davis retrieved the key from the fake hanging plant on the porch and unlocked the door. As Kara stepped inside the house, one thing became immediately clear. Jessica knew her assailant. Nothing appeared out of place. She’d let this person into her life.
“Did she have a boyfriend? Anyone special in her life.”
“No. She dated someone pretty steady for a while but they broke up…Wait, before I left for El Paso, she mentioned someone she’d been seeing for a few weeks. Someone she said she met in one of her Criminal Justice classes at UV. I got the impression he wasn’t a student, maybe her professor. She called him Alec. But then…”
“Then what?” Davis suddenly looked uncomfortable. Kara wondered about his relationship with the girl.
“Jessica told me she wasn’t ready for anything too serious. She just wanted to have a little fun.”
Kara nodded, then began to walk through each room of the tiny house. Nothing appeared out of place.
“What are you thinking, Kara?”
&
nbsp; “Isn’t it obvious? She knew her attacker. This wasn’t random like the others. Jessica knew who took her.”
He looked uncomfortable. “What is it, Davis? What aren’t you telling me?”
He followed her into the tidy kitchen. “It is like the others,” he insisted quietly. The look in his eyes frightened her.
Kara forced the question out. “What do you mean?”
“There’s evidence that Rachel may have known her assailant as well.” After a moment, he added, “There’s more. You remember in El Paso you asked me about the connection between the victims. You thought that maybe they knew the same people. Well, you were right. They did. They all knew me. I’m the connection between the victims.”
“Oh my God,” Kara whispered into the shocked silence that followed his confession. She saw Davis’s mouth twist into a bitter grin.
“Yeah, I thought that would be your reaction. I went to university with one and I dated the other. I was married to Rachel and then you know I stopped in at your shop and talked to Justine, so I guess in a way I knew her as well. So, there’s your connection. Are you satisfied?”
“Davis, why didn’t you tell me this before?”
“Why? Why do you think? It would have changed your mind about the case and about me, that’s why.”
“Probably—I don’t know.” Kara turned away. It took everything inside her to let the obvious questions go for the moment. She was here for Ava and the other victims. Nothing more.
“But the first Angel killings were all picked at random, except for Amy. This is clearly different.”
Davis looked relieved that she wasn’t walking away just yet.
“Or maybe it’s not. Maybe he’s just perfecting his MO.”
Davis retrieved his cell phone and called Ryan. “The place is clean. She’s gone. It appears she knew her attacker. What?”
Something in Davis’s voice drew Kara’s attention back to him. He sounded frustrated. Once he hung up the phone and turned to her, his expression scaring her.
“What is it?”
“Nothing. Let’s get out of here, okay. I can’t think straight in here.” He held the door open and waited for her before relocking it and placing the key back inside the plant.