Where Secrets Lie

by R E Gauthier

  “Kyle you cannot keep doing this, I will call the police,” Deb said in a quivering voice.

  Kelsey smiled, Deb’s words and voice played right into Washburg’s sense of domination and control. If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought they were hearing the frightened Ashley Foster speaking and not FBI Agent Deborah Norman.

  “You’re not going to call the police because you don’t want to embarrass your father. Don’t you remember what happened the last time?”

  Deb’s voice broke, and they all heard a sob. “I didn’t tell you about that, how do you know about it?”

  Good girl. Now, keep him talking and make him believe you’re scared. Kelsey was impressed with Deb’s performance so far. The young agent had remembered the information precisely as Ashley described. Washburg knew about Ashley Foster’s previous rape but not Kyle Nolan. There was a long, drawn-out silence.

  “What are you doing?” Deb’s voice questioned an unseen action.

  “I’m going to make everything better. You don’t have to suffer anymore. You won’t have to live with the guilt of disappointing your father any longer.”

  Nikki stood up. “We have to go; he’s going to give her the drugs.”

  Kelsey put a steadying hand on Nikki’s shoulder. “We have to wait for him to say he’s going to help her kill herself. We don’t want him to get away. Besides Lambert and Gillis have the Narcan if he does manage to get the needle into her. You said yourself that Deb’s self-defense skills are better than yours; nothing bad is going to happen.”

  “Can we at least get out of here so we can be closer to the building when Deb gives us the signal?” Nikki asked, fidgeting under Kelsey’s hand.

  “Then how are we to tell Deb that we’re on our way. We don’t have earbuds as well. We need the microphone to speak to her. Stay calm; Deb can handle this; you said it yourself.”

  “Then you and Torres go and be there with Lambert and Gillis. I’ll stay here and be the voice in Deb’s ear. I’ll feel better if you can move in as quickly as possible when she needs us.”

  Kelsey nodded. “Do you have earpieces for Torres and I to listen in on what is going on?”

  Nikki turned and handed them the earpieces. “Remember you won’t be able to speak to Deb but if you have something to tell her, text me.”

  Deb’s voice broke through their conversation. “What are those? I told you before I take drugs but nothing more serious than some weed or sleeping pills.”

  “You’re going to like these drugs. They’ll take away all the pain and all your shame.”

  “I’m not taking that; I won’t take it, and you cannot make me.” Deb’s voice quivered.

  Torres and Kelsey turned and exited the van through the backdoors.

  Kelsey ran towards the building with Torres beside running stride for stride. Seeing Lambert and Gillis standing in the shadows of the building to the left of the front door, Kelsey slowed her pace and held up her hand to signal they were friends and not foes.

  “Are we sure Agent Norman can handle him?” Lambert asked with her gun drawn.

  Still holstered, Kelsey’s brass Glock burned into her side. “I trust Deb, and Nikki’s instincts are second to none; we can wait for her signal.”

  Kelsey held up her hands to hold off any more discussion on the matter.

  Deb’s voice clearly said, “Kyle, you must think I am some simpering fool to go along with this plan of yours. Tell me why you’re doing this.”

  “I told you, I’m going to help you end it all tonight. I’m not going to let your father make you suffer any longer; soon it will be him that will suffer.”

  “No, I don’t think you understand; I’m not suffering.”

  “Of course, you are, remember how you said you wanted to end it all? You didn’t want to be a burden to your family any longer.” The man’s voice sounded wooden and flat, devoid of emotions.

  Kelsey shook her head. Something wasn’t right.

  They heard a physical struggle through the earbud. Deb still hadn’t said her safe phrase.

  Kelsey’s phone beeped with an alarm, jumping she grabbed it and looked at it. The words GO IN were written across the black screen. Not yet, Nikki. Drawing out her gun and flicking off the safety, Kelsey braced herself for the words Deb needed to say to move in. Lambert had her hand on the door with the key at ready. Torres had her gun drawn. Tension built as the four women readied themselves to move as soon as they heard Deb say the prearranged words.

  After several expletives, Deb said, “I’m not an idiot, and this is where you’re going down; you, sick bastard.”

  More struggling and cursing ensued.

  Kelsey almost ran over Lambert and Gillis as they went through the apartment building door. She saw red as she tried to strain to hear anything from Deb to assure them of her safety.

  Deb’s voice rose to a louder decibel as she said, “What the…it’s not him.”

  Kelsey’s heart sunk as they ran into the room lit with a sizeable battery-operated lantern and saw a strange man in zip ties lying on his back with Deborah Norman sitting on his chest. “No, no…this cannot be happening…FUCK!”

  Chapter Thirty

  Ashley Foster’s Apartment, Morning, March 16, 2012

  How the Hell did this happen? Kelsey stood in Ashley Foster’s bedroom surrounded by FBI agents. Nikki and Deb spoke, quietly, in the corner. Torres stood talking to Lambert and Gillis. The man in zip ties sat quietly smirking in a chair. When they searched him, Nikki found a bodycam like the police wore. He had the Kyle Nolan mask on before Deb had torn it off in their struggle. It lay on the floor next to the bag the man brought in with him. How did Washburg do it?

  Kelsey strode over and grabbed the man by the front of his jacket and picked him off the chair. “Where the fuck is, he?”

  The smirk turned into a wide smile. “Who? Where is who?”

  “You know who I’m talking about; where is Paul Washburg?” Kelsey shoved the man back onto the chair. “He’s the one who put you up to this; tell me how to find him, and this will go easy for you.”

  Shaking his head, the man shrugged. “I don’t know who you are talking about. No one put me up to this. I’ve been stalking Ashley Foster; I raped her, then I came here to give her the out she’s been looking for. But that isn’t Ashley Foster, who is that?” The man pointed to Deb. “I think she broke my nose; I’m going to sue her.”

  Feeling the rage build inside her, Kelsey motioned Nikki to her side. “Were you able to find out where the connection to the bodycam is going?

  “Not yet, Mack. I’m running the tracking equipment, but it takes time.” Nikki put a hand on Kelsey’s arm. “I don’t know how he did, but we’ll find out.”

  Selecting her words carefully as not to sound as pissed as she was, Kelsey hissed, “I know but we had him, and he got away, again. Any luck finding out who this clown is?”

  “I’m still waiting for a hit on the facial recognition program, and I’m running his prints. If he’s in a system, we’ll have our answers…” Nikki’s laptop chimed twice. “I think I have at least two of your answers.”

  Walking with Nikki to the laptop set-up on the desk, Kelsey shoved her hands into her jean’s back pockets. “What do we have?”

  Nikki’s fingers flew across the keyboard, and a new window popped up.

  Across the screen, a police rap sheet filed the view.

  “His name is Anthony Churchill. He’s been in and out of jail for fraud, identity theft, petty crime, and break-ins as far back as when he was a juvenile. Looks like when he’s not in prison, he moonlights as an actor and model.

  “Yeah, and I make a mint with this face, so that pretty little blonde over there is going to pay for messing up my nose.” Anthony sneered.

  “Shut the hell up. Be glad it was her and not me that hit you. You won’t be suing anyone, but if you tell us who put you up to this and where to find him, we can hook you up with the best plastic surgeon to fix that busted nose
of yours.”

  Anthony put his zip-tied hand to his nose. “Is it that bad? Will I need surgery? Oh, she’s going to pay. Do you hear me, bitch? I’m going to sue you for this.”

  Nikki chuckled. “We have something else, and you’re going to like this. I got a hit on his prints for an open investigation. You want to guess what case?”

  Scowling, Kelsey put her hand on her hips. “Washburg got away again. We need to be able to find him.”

  Nikki smiled stiffly. “Sorry, I was trying to…never mind. The police identified Anthony Churchill’s prints at all three scenes of drug thefts at the medical clinics. Get this; his face also pinged for a match to the man who worked at the Rape Crisis Center.”

  Shaking her head, Kelsey couldn’t believe it was happening again; Washburg had found another person to frame and take the fall for him. What angle had he used to gain Anthony Churchill’s trust? They needed to find a way to make Anthony talk and give up Washburg. “He’s doing it again.”

  A cellphone rang then it rang again. People checked their phones, but the phone rang a third time, and no one answered.

  “Deb do you have another phone here?” Nikki asked.

  Deb shook her head. “No, mine is on the night table, and it’s turned off.”

  Kelsey followed the muffled ringing, and it was coming from the bag on the floor. The bag that Anthony Churchill brought with him. “Is this your phone?” Kelsey asked as she pulled, the now silent phone, out of the bag. In the commotion and confusion, no one had examined the bag’s contents.

  Anthony Churchill shook his head. “That isn’t mine; I don’t know where it came from.”

  Kelsey looked at the phone, which appeared to be a simple flip cell phone that someone would purchase for a burner phone. “Nikki can you…” The phone rang again, and Kelsey punched the okay button to answer the call.

  “Senior Special Agent MacGregor, you’ve been a naughty girl. I would have thought you would have learned your lesson by now,” a man’s gravelly voice said.

  Kelsey’s mind raced to decipher the voice’s origin. Could it be?

  “What’s wrong? You were full of yourself only moments ago, no snappy comeback?”

  Looking around to find where he could be watching her from, Kelsey’s gaze fell on the bodycam on the desk next to Nikki. Paul Washburg is watching us.

  “Maybe you’d respond better to your new title…what is it? Senior Agent in Charge or is it Unit Chief? I wanted to congratulate you on your promotion, but I’ve been busy lately. Your family must be so proud of you; it’s what you’ve been working toward all your life.”

  “You, sick son of a bitch. Where are you? So typical of you to point the finger at someone else for your crimes.”

  “I don’t know what you’re trying to imply. I have committed no crimes. Don’t you remember? I was exonerated. My sister was sick and confused.”

  Kelsey signaled Nikki to trace the call. Nikki gave her the thumbs-up sign, and another to keep him talking. “We’re going to put you away for a very long time for the thirteen murders in D. C. Then we're going to pin the fires at the storage unit and the Wilker’s Retirement home on you. Then there is Kyle Nolan’s murder. You’ll be going away for the rest of your life, and this time no one will help you escape.”

  “Tsk, Tsk. Agent MacGregor, you have me all wrong. As I recall, Robert Smith killed all those men and women and then killed himself and the poor woman who helped him, what was her name?”

  Blood pounded in her ears. “You might think you’ve got away with it, but believe me, when I say, we’ve only begun to come after you. You killed a lot of innocent people, and if I could have it my way, you’d get the death penalty.”

  “Oh no, that’s not very lady-like. I wouldn’t have taken you as an eye for an eye type. Besides you’re to blame for all those old men and woman at the retirement home. They would all be alive if you hadn’t kept bothering my mother and me.”

  Kelsey knew Washburg’s narcissistic personality couldn’t stand it to not brag in his way about something he did. “Are you implying you started that fire?”

  “On the contrary. I took my mother out of that facility because it had old wiring and faulty sprinklers. I’m saying that your actions led to those poor people losing their lives that night. They would all be alive if you and your friend Cassidy Torres stayed away from my mother.”

  Kelsey heard the rage build in Washburg’s voice. “We have your mother, and you’ll never be able to see her again unless you turn yourself in and go to prison. We’ll let her come visit you; it’s the least we can do for a man facing multiple life sentences or the death penalty.”

  “Now, that’s where you are so wrong. You see, you may have my mother, but that’s where I have the upper hand; you won’t have her for long.”

  “Not this time. You may have used legal means to get your mother back with you last time, but this time it’s me and the FBI who are building a case against you. I’m not going to stop until we have enough to put you away forever.”

  “How sad you are; you’re always several steps behind me, and I almost pity you if it were not for your ability to find me when no one else can. I still don’t know how you do it, but today it will stop. You’re going to tell everyone to stop this witch-hunt for me and let my mother go.”

  Kelsey’s laughter caught in her throat as an unease settled on her body. Paul Washburg’s voice was calm like the day he walked into their FBI office in D. C. disguised as Robert Smith. With the same smugness, he had played the cards he knew that would point away from his guilt. Today he sounded the same way. “You’re crazy if you think I’ll ever stop coming after you.”

  “Oh, come now; you’re wasting your time, and while you are, the people responsible for the deaths of your cousin, aunt, and uncle continue to go unpunished.”

  “How dare you even mention them to me.” Kelsey tried to imagine how he even knew about her private vendetta.

  “Well, you did promise to bring them justice, did you not? Must have been hard to be so young and no one believed you. You told some fanciful stories; I’m sure they loved you, but I believe they call that a pathological liar.”

  “I don’t know what kind of sick trick you’re trying to pull here, but it won’t work. When I get off this phone, I’m going to find you, and when I do; you won’t get away.”

  “Open the attachment I just sent you, and everything will be abundantly clear.”

  Kelsey punched the okay button when the prompt came up to open the file attachment sent to the phone. A photo of Miranda and Nanna popped up. The two women stood laughing in her grandmother’s garden. From the lack of snow and some late blooms, Kelsey recognized the approximate timeframe the photo was taken. Her mind raced to determine what this meant. Washburg knew where she lived; knew where Miranda and Nanna were. “You, sick bastard, you’re threatening me?”

  “Now is that any way to talk to someone who has your best interest in mind? Why do you have to throw my questionable paternity in my face? I would never threaten a federal agent such as yourself. I’m merely showing you the possible consequences of your actions. If you don’t stop coming after me and my mother, the subsequent deaths will get your attention. Your grandmother has had a good long life, but that lovely fiancée of yours deserves to see her wedding day, don’t you think?”

  “I’m going to kill you with my bare hands. If you even go near them.”

  “Why, Agent MacGregor I have gone near them already and right under your nose too. Be careful what you promise. You’re not that good at keeping promises, are you? The day after they died, Nanna and Dad told me that there had been a horrible accident. I know they are lying, and I promise I will find out the truth. Goodbye Agent MacGregor, you have twenty-four hours.”

  The call ended, and Kelsey held the phone in her hands. The last words Washburg said tumbled over and over in her mind. Washburg had her journal to quote those words. The book she stored in her desk in their Pittsburgh office was in the han
ds of a madman. “Nikki, tell me you were able to trace that call.”

  “Was it him? Was that Washburg?” Torres asked.

  Kelsey nodded. “Tell me we can find him, Nikki.”

  Nikki smiled, “we can, but you’re not going to like it. He’s not in Michigan anymore. He’s—”

  “He’s in Pittsburgh. How soon can we get a charter flight out of here?” Kelsey could feel the hairs on her neck stand up. She took her phone out of her jacket pocket and scrolled for Miranda’s contact icon. Finding it, Kelsey punched the image.

  Nikki put a hand on Kelsey. “How did you know? We may not be able to track him; I’m sure he’s toying with us again, and by the time we get there he’ll be gone.”

  Kelsey’s phonecall connected, and she heard a sleepy Miranda answer her phone.

  “Mo Chridhe, I need you to listen to me and not ask questions. I want you to call Mitch and have him come and pick you and Nanna up. Then I need you to wake Nanna and pack bags for the two of you. Go to Kenny’s place and stay there until I call you, do you understand?”

  Miranda’s quiet voice responded. “Yes, I understand, but—”

  “Please. I don’t have the time to tell you everything. Do you trust me?”

  “Yes, but Kelsey, you’re scaring me. What do I tell Kenny and Nanna?”

  “Come up with a story; I’m trusting you will get you and Nanna out of the house and safe with Kenny and Muriel.”

  “I will. Kelsey…”

  “I love you with all my heart, and I’ll tell you more when I can. I have to go, and I’ll call you at Kenny’s place. Leave yours and Nanna’s cellphones at the house. We cannot be too careful.” Ending the call with Miranda, Kelsey looked up to meet several pairs of eyes.

  “What the hell is going on Mack? Why do you want Miranda and Nanna to get out of the house?” Nikki asked as she searched Kelsey’s face.

  Handing Nikki, the cell phone from the bag, Kelsey instructed her to look for an attachment sent to the phone.