Dead Ringer

by Mary Burton

  On the second floor he heard Nicole’s moans. They were deep, labored. Good. It was all coming together. Soon the Family would be complete.

  He laid Kendall by the door, propping her back against the wall. He reached into his pocket, pulled out his mask, and put it on. He wasn’t ready to reveal himself. Not yet. The moment wasn’t perfect. He unlocked the door, pulled Kendall’s limp body up and pushed the door open. Nicole lay on the bed, curled on her left side. She’d drawn her legs up close into a fetal position. Sweat covered her body.

  She raised her head and pushed herself into a sitting position. It took her a moment to focus and to absorb the scene. ‘Kendall?’

  ‘I brought her to you. She’s going to deliver our baby.’

  Sweat had plastered her hair against her head. ‘Our baby?’

  He smiled. She’d understand soon. ‘Yes. Ours. Did you find the water and crackers in the little refrigerator? There are ice chips too. That’s supposed to be good for women in labor.’

  Nicole ignored him. ‘Is Kendall all right?’

  ‘She’s fine.’ He laid Kendall on the floor in front of the bed, all the while keeping his gaze on Nicole. He didn’t fully trust that she really was in labor.

  Both women would fight the journey home, just as the others did. So he had to be careful. ‘I’ll be back soon. There’s still one more sister I need to bring to the fold.’

  Nicole’s stomach contracted painfully as she tried to stand. ‘Don’t leave us here.’

  He backed away from her. ‘I’ll be back.’

  Nicole climbed off the bed and walked doubled over to Kendall. She dropped to her knees and pressed her fingertips to her throat searching for a pulse. ‘She’s barely breathing.’

  ‘I might have given her a bit too much, but she’ll be fine.’

  Disapproval burned in Nicole’s blue eyes. He took a step back, remembering that his mother had always looked at him that way. No matter what he’d done, she’d hated him for it. She’d resented his presence every minute of every day.

  Anger surged in him. ‘Stop it.’

  She cupped her hand to her belly. ‘Stop what?’

  ‘Looking at me like that. I’m doing what is right.’

  Nicole held her gaze, seemingly taking pleasure in his discomfort. ‘You’re a monster. And what you’re doing is evil.’

  For an instant, his heart froze. He remembered when others had called him a monster and a freak. He remembered scorn. He clenched and unclenched his fingers. ‘If not for the baby, I would kill you right now.’

  She didn’t flinch. Instead, she boldly stared at him. ‘You come near me and I’ll fight you until one of us dies.’

  His heart raced. ‘The kitten has grown claws.’

  With trembling hands, he backed out of the room and slammed the door. He had to get the last sister. He needed Sarah to complete the Family.

  It took almost an hour for Jacob to get a search warrant for the house where Cole Markham was staying. When he and Zack arrived at the house it was six in the evening. They’d brought Vega and Ayden and two detectives from the city as backup.

  Before Jacob rang the front bell, Zack drew his gun and ducked down the alley behind the house. He returned and reported Cole’s car was in the driveway. Jacob rang the bell. Seconds passed and they heard nothing. Jacob rang the bell again. Finally, footsteps sounded in the house. The door opened.

  The man standing before them was tall, lean and possessed an intensity in his eyes that caught Jacob by surprise. This guy was no insurance agent.

  ‘Cole Markham?’ Jacob asked.

  Markham’s eyes narrowed. ‘Yeah. Can I help you?’

  Jacob pulled out his badge. ‘We’re with the police. We have a warrant to search this house.’

  Markham stiffened. ‘On what grounds?’

  ‘We have reason to believe you might have knowledge about a recent murder.’

  Markham didn’t blink. He wasn’t intimidated or surprised. ‘That’s ridiculous.’

  ‘We don’t think so.’ In fact, he was more certain than ever that this guy was into something up to his neck.

  Blue eyes narrowed. ‘Let me see your warrant.’

  Jacob handed it to him, carefully watching him as he surveyed the document. ‘It’s all very legitimate.’

  Markham shoved out a breath. ‘I want my attorney to look at this first.’

  Lawyering up so quickly. ‘Feel free to call him. In the meantime we’re going to be searching the house.’ Jacob raised his hand signaling Ayden, Vega, Zack, and the city detectives to advance toward the front steps. ‘We’re coming in now.’

  ‘This is my house!’ Markham shouted. ‘I want you the hell out of here!’

  ‘Save it,’ Jacob said. He pushed past Markham. Zack moved in right behind him and blocked Markham so he couldn’t stop Jacob.

  Jacob’s gaze roamed the room. It was furnished with only a lawn chair and a TV set up on crates. Tinfoil dangled from the set’s rabbit ears. His footsteps echoed as he moved through the main room and looked in the vacant sitting and dining rooms. The kitchen had a refrigerator, but it was empty save for a couple of beers.

  ‘This is bullshit!’ Markham’s voice echoed through the house.

  Jacob had hit a nerve with the guy. Good. He started to climb the stairs to the second floor. He glanced back and saw that Markham looked visibly upset now.

  ‘I’m going to sue your ass for everything you’re worth!’ Markham shouted.

  Jacob winked at him. ‘Go for it, sport.’

  He moved down the center hallway. To the master bedroom. He pushed the door open and stopped dead in his tracks.

  The room was papered with pictures of ten women. All dark haired. All young. He didn’t recognize the faces of all the women, but he did recognize newspaper pictures of Jackie and Vicky. There were also several pictures of Kendall.

  Anger roiled inside Jacob as he stared at the pictures.

  ‘Zack! Get up here!’

  Kendall woke in phases to the sound of Nicole’s frantic voice. She struggled to clear her mind and to shake off the fog that seemed to surround her. Her limbs felt so heavy and her side ached. She wanted to roll over and let the sleep take her.

  ‘Kendall!’ Nicole’s voice was so sharp and angry. What was her problem? Nicole was such an easygoing person.

  She felt the sharp sting of a slap on her face. The pain made her angry. ‘Stop.’

  ‘Wake up!’ Nicole shook her shoulders.

  Kendall’s eyes fluttered open. The image above her was a blur. She blinked a second time and shook her head. ‘Nicole? What’s going on?’

  ‘Wake up! You’ve been drugged.’ Nicole pulled Kendall into a sitting position.

  Her head spun. She felt nauseous. As her vision cleared a fraction she looked around the room. Pink. It was filled with the color pink. ‘Where the hell are we?’

  Nicole shoved out a sigh. ‘I don’t know. He brought me here in the middle of last night.’

  Kendall shoved long fingers through her hair. She couldn’t concentrate. Couldn’t remember how she got here. ‘Who is he?’

  ‘I don’t know. His face was covered and he keeps talking about us joining some family.’

  God, think. Her brain felt as if it were wrapped in cotton. ‘Family?’

  Nicole rose gingerly, cupping her hand to her belly. She picked up a photo album from the nightstand and handed it to Kendall. ‘He killed those three women. And others, I think.’

  She glanced down at the pictures secured in the album’s clear plastic pockets. They were of the women who’d been killed. Only the pictures had been taken when they were alive. Snapshots taken while they walked down the street, talked to their grocery store clerk, came out of a shoe store.

  Someone had been following them and taking pictures. ‘My God.’

  Nicole flipped through several pages. ‘Look at the last page.’

  Kendall saw a picture of herself and Nicole. They were having lunch. She remembere
d that lunch. It had been taken just before Christmas. ‘He’s been following us.’

  ‘He considers us family.’

  Kendall clawed through the fog in her brain until she remembered the face of the man who’d taken her. ‘I know who he is.’

  Zack, with four uniformed officers behind him, brought Markham upstairs to the room dedicated to the dead women and Kendall. Markham wasn’t cuffed but was surrounded by tense cops waiting for an excuse.

  Jacob turned from the wall of photos and stared at him. ‘Mind explaining this?’

  Markham folded his arms. ‘It’s not a crime to collect pictures.’

  Jacob flexed the fingers of his right hand. ‘No. But it’s mighty suspicious when those women show up dead. Where’s Kendall?’

  Markham frowned. ‘I don’t know. Is she missing?’

  Jacob’s eyes narrowed. Rage pumped in his veins. ‘Like you don’t know.’

  Markham met his gaze. ‘I don’t know. I’ve been gone most of the day.’

  ‘That’s crap. You know where she is. It’s clear you’ve been watching her for days, weeks even.’

  ‘Yeah, I’ve been watching her for about a week. But I don’t know where she is. Like I said, I’ve been out most of the day.’

  ‘Where the hell were you?’

  Markham set his jaw as if mentally digging in his heels. Clearly, he didn’t like cops. ‘Across the river.’

  ‘Killing another woman?’

  Markham shook his head. ‘So like the cops to take the easy way out.’

  ‘Believe me, pal,’ Jacob said, ‘none of this is going to be easy.’ He shifted tactics. ‘Who are these women on the wall?’

  ‘I want my lawyer.’

  Jacob moved so that his face was within inches of Markham’s. ‘I’ve got two missing women. I swear to God if anything happens to them because you didn’t talk …’ He let the sentence trail.

  Markham’s brow knitted and he let out a sigh. ‘They’re women who’ve been murdered. Most were strangled. A couple were beaten to death. It’s easy enough for you to check. I’ve got all their names.’

  Jacob cursed. ‘Checking takes time, but you’ve already figured that part out. And I think you know Kendall doesn’t have much time.’

  ‘If he has her, she has time,’ Markham said. There was no joy in his statement.

  ‘If he’s got Nicole,’ Ayden ground out, ‘she doesn’t have time. She’s about to give birth.’

  ‘Who the hell is he?’ Jacob demanded.

  ‘I don’t know his real name,’ Markham answered.

  Jacob shook his head. ‘Where would he be holding them?’

  ‘That’s what I was trying to figure out today.’ Markham fisted his hands. ‘I don’t think he’ll hurt either of them right away.’

  ‘How the hell can you be so sure?!’ Jacob shouted.

  ‘Because he likes to hold his victims,’ Markham said. ‘He held some for months.’

  ‘His last three victims weren’t held for months,’ Jacob countered. ‘He killed them within forty-eight hours.’

  Ayden checked his watch. ‘Nicole has been missing for almost twenty-four hours. And I spoke to her doctor. The baby could come any day now.’

  Markham shook his head. ‘I don’t know why he’d want Nicole. She doesn’t fit the profile.’

  ‘Well, she’s missing,’ Ayden said.

  Jacob folded his arms over his chest. He was afraid he’d pummel the smug bastard if he wasn’t careful. ‘Start talking, Markham. Fast.’

  Markham’s jaw tightened and released. His distaste and defiance were clear. ‘I’m from Denver. I owned a computer software business that was doing real well until eighteen months ago when my girlfriend, Diane, vanished. The police thought I had something to do with the disappearance. They hounded me for months. They took all my computer equipment. When they found out I had a record, they called clients and told them I was under investigation. Within weeks, my life was destroyed. Then Diane’s sister, Courtney, vanished. The cops really started to squeeze me then. My income stopped and I lost my house.’

  Jacob shook his head. ‘Save the sad story.’

  Markham glared at him. ‘January of last year, Diane and Courtney’s bodies were found. Diane had been strangled just days before. Her sister had been beaten to death the same day.’ He seemed to struggle with the memories. ‘I had an alibi for the time of their deaths.’

  ‘Really?’ Jacob said.

  ‘Yeah. I had been arrested – broken taillight. The cops were always looking for an excuse to hold me. Anyway, I was in jail when Diane and her sister were murdered. All that time the cops had been hounding me and some sicko had them. They were alive and could have been saved.’

  Jacob stared at him. He was either one hell of a liar or one talented actor. ‘Keep talking.’

  ‘When the cops realized I hadn’t killed the women, they quickly lost interest in me and the case. Since early October the case has languished. I needed to find out who had killed Diane and her sister.’ Contempt dripped from his words.

  ‘So how the hell do you land on the East Coast two thousand miles away from home squatting in a vacant house?’ Jacob itched to grab this guy by the collar and rattle the truth out of him.

  ‘Like I said, I owned a computer company. I can hack into any system and I don’t need a warrant to collect data. I checked ViCap. There was an old killing in Alaska.’

  Jacob narrowed his eyes. ‘Keep talking.’

  ‘I started watching ViCap. Nothing for months. And then you filed a report on the thirteenth. It was the first lead I’d had in months. So I drove to Richmond from Denver.’

  ‘That’s bullshit.’

  Markham sighed. ‘Have you talked to the trooper in Alaska?’

  The guy’s knowledge of the Alaska killings added credibility to his story.

  ‘When I saw Kendall on the news shortly after I arrived, I noticed the similarity to Diane immediately,’ Markham said. ‘I decided to keep an eye on her.’

  ‘Why not come to us?’ Ayden challenged.

  Markham glared at Ayden. ‘I don’t trust cops. The cops out West made my life hell. And let’s face it – I show up after two women are killed. It would be easy to assume that after what happened in Denver I was behind these killings.’

  ‘If you know so much, then who the hell is behind this?’ Jacob asked.

  ‘I spoke with all of Diane’s friends and family many times. It wasn’t until the fourth interview with her neighbor that the woman remembered a man. This guy had done a little carpentry work for Diane a few days before she vanished. The neighbor only saw him the one time so she’d forgotten all about him.’

  Jacob thought about Kendall’s newly renovated kitchen.

  ‘By the time I figured out who Kendall’s carpenter was and where he lived, the third victim had been found. The carpenter didn’t show up for work yesterday. I’ve been watching his house but he hasn’t been home either.’

  ‘What’s the guy’s name?’

  Markham shoved out a breath. ‘Todd Franklin.’

  ‘You got an address?’

  Markham gave him the address of a motel on the south side of town. ‘He hasn’t been at his motel room since yesterday.’ He folded his arms over his chest.

  Jacob stared at Markham and flipped open his phone. He quickly verified Franklin’s address. ‘Ayden, hold this guy while Zack and I check out his story.’

  ‘Be glad to.’

  An hour later, Jacob and Zack arrived at the address Markham had given them. Todd was living in a seedy motel on Route 60. A search warrant in hand, they got a key from the manager and with guns drawn opened the door.

  It was dimly lit and smelled of mold. The bed was made neatly and everything on the cheap bureau was laid out in precise lines. ‘This guy has a thing for organization and detail.’

  There was no evidence that linked the guy to any of the killings. ‘The killer we’re looking for is very organized and neat.’

  ‘Lik
e this guy.’

  ‘Yeah.’

  Jacob moved around the room trying to disturb as little as possible. ‘So where did he take them?’

  ‘Let’s talk to the detective who investigated the Turner murders.’

  ‘Yeah.’

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Tuesday, January 22, 8:00 P.M.

  A contraction hit Nicole and she winced as she leaned forward on the bed to ride it out. Kendall laid her hand on Nicole’s shoulder. Kendall’s own worry doubled. She knew nothing about babies, let alone bringing one into the world. ‘I think you’re supposed to breathe deeply.’

  Nicole glanced up at her. ‘Your guess is as good as mine. I skipped the birthing classes.’

  Kendall shoved her hair out of her eyes, annoyed she didn’t have a rubber band to tie it back. ‘Didn’t your doctor tell you what to do?’

  ‘She did. But I didn’t pay attention.’

  Her panic rose. ‘For God’s sake, why not?’

  Wincing again, Nicole blew out a breath as the contraction passed. ‘If you haven’t noticed, I’ve been in denial about the baby.’

  ‘I know the adoption has been an issue but I thought you were handling all the medical stuff okay.’

  ‘I made checkups, but frankly, once I got the thumbs-up from the doc each month, I tuned the rest out. I have no idea what I’m doing.’

  Kendall glanced at the locked door. Her head had cleared and she was coherent enough to think and plan. ‘Why would he come after us? It makes no sense.’

  The dream Kendall had had over and over again flashed in her mind. The child in the closet. The screams. The soft, soothing voice beckoning her to come out. It was all connected to this place. ‘I’ve got to get you out of here.’

  ‘How? He’s locked every door.’

  ‘Todd has got to come back sometime. When he does, he’ll be expecting to find me unconscious and you in labor. We’re not as helpless as we might seem.’ As Kendall rose from the bed to look around the room, a wave of nausea passed over her. She stomped it down, straightened, and concentrated on the room. It was so familiar.