“Whatever.” He climbed into his pickup and left.
“We need to find
Evelyn
. I’ll send a couple of units to her house, but
I’m betting she won’t be there,”
said Manny.
“Good bet,”
agreed
Josh.
“So we know there were at least two members of the club. But the way Stella talked, there were more,” said Josh.
“The question is how many
. . .
and who?”
asked
Sophie.
“This
killing
club thing is usually no more than three,
in rare cases,
four. The psychology
of group dynamics
says it’s safer, more intimate with a low number.
Three to four falls in the arena of a group profile
,” said Manny, running his hand through his hair.
“If you’re right, then we have at least two
other not
-
well bitches
?” asked Sophie.
The ringing of Agent Corner’s phone interrupted the conversation. He looked at the screen
.
“
I
t
’
s Chloe
calling from the CSU research lab.
”
“Yes?”
Manny watched as the agent’s face evolved into a “you
gotta
be
kidding
me” look. He shook his head and hung up without saying goodbye.
“What?”
“You’re
right;
your town i
s
going damn crazy.” Josh blew out a breath. “There’s been another shooting
. . .
it’s one of yours.”
Manny’s heart hit the ground. “Who?”
“Wymer found
Kathy
Ross’s body in an alley
. . .
shot four times.”
Chapter-57
The jail-cell door slammed shut. A
brilliant
vibration
rang
throug
hout the tiny basement facility, right
through the very roots of his teeth. The guards walked away, laughing at the
ir
juvenile attempt at humor.
J
uvenile to Fredrick Argyle. But he knew from his days as a practicing psychiatrist that boys would be boys
,
and he was accepting of their behavior
—
for now. But soon he’d be laughing
,
and they’d be quaking in their black shoes.
Argyle
rubbed his jaw where the too-tight mask had resided
.
They thought they had things under control, him under control. The mask, the cold iron shackles that still restricted his movement, and, of course
,
the sedative they’d
administered
,
were all supposed to calm the
savage
beast
, s
lay the dragon
,
and send him to La-La
L
and.
Wrong. So VERY wrong.
They’d emptied the cell block to make room for him
, akin to
a dangerous animal prepped for a new zoo exhibit.
No
one wanted
distractions when they brought him food or when his lawyers came to call. His counselors would invariably
recommend that he
plea
-
bargain for a life in
a s
uper
s
ecurity
p
rison instead of an extradition
to another state
that
c
ould cost him his life via lethal injection
or by someone’s version of Old Sparky.
The lawyers didn’t understand either
.
They were all
products of the same convention that governed mortals. But he didn’t fit that convention. Gods
c
ouldn’t
.
Fools.
They all frolicked in a
fantasy
world that didn’t exist
for him
. But their awakening was coming.
They’d see the light just before they died.
He stood up and shuffled to his cell door, manacles clanging in soft rhythms. The
first red rays of the
early morning
sun
streaked
through the window in the
adjacent
ce
ll like probing
fingers
,
allowing the jagged Lansing skyline to silhouette against the night.
He remembered an old saying
.
Red at night, sailor
’
s delight
.
R
ed in the morn, sailors be warned
. How appropriate.
“It’s always good to be home among
my people
. Always. And I’m so looking forward to the reunion
,
” he whispered.
He
threw back his head
, laughing.
.
Chapter-58
“What the hell
are you doing
?” Evelyn Kroll said in a low tone. “You killed Stella
,
then you
shot
Ross
, not to mention you killed a rookie cop, all in about three hours. You trying to get us fried?”
The
two women
sat in the back corner booth of Kewpee’s all-night restaurant
, a
way from prying eyes and ears.
Penny
savored
another bite of cherry pie, put down her fork
,
and looked
back at
Evelyn with a puzzling gaze.
She liked Evelyn. The girl had a story, and it had struck home with her
, e
nough to have her throw away more than a few lifetime perceptions and embrace the type of justice Evelyn preached. But she sensed the girl was getting weak. Weak wasn’t tolerated.
Looking at Evelyn and her fear,
Penny
realized just how strong she
ha
d become. How willing
Penny
was to take care of whatever she deemed necessary to keep her life, her other life, safe
—
and at any price
.
“
Stella and Ross
were putting the whole
C
lub in a bad place. Stella was reckless and dangerous. Ross was thinking about doing us both. I could tell by the way she
talked
to you on the phone,” Penny answered. “Because of them, I almost got caught by Ross’s partner.
It’s a g
ood thing
Wymer
weighs more like a rhino than a gazelle. And frankly, dying or going to jail
isn
’t on my list of things to do today.”
She stared into Evelyn’s face. “How about yours?”
Evelyn looked away without answering.
“That’s what I thought
.
”
Evelyn sat up a little straighter. “I started this thing
,
and I still believe those perverted bastards should pay. I just didn’t think any of us would die. Maybe worse, get soft. You’re right. We need to keep on track. I think we’re safe for now. But I need to get my car and then not go back to work at the White Kitty, ever.”
“That’s probably a good idea. Someone could’ve seen you
,
or maybe one of the other employees doesn’t like your work habits.”
Evelyn stretched out her hands on the table. “What’s next? Do we lay low?”
Penny looked at Evelyn’s hands
. T
he cosmetic fingernail was missing from the index finger of her left hand.
“For now, I think that’s best. Maybe get you into a motel or a flophouse for a few days. But there are a couple of real sick pricks being released tomorrow, so
. . .
”
“You’re probably right,” sighed Evelyn.
Penny
shoved her empty plate forward. “Lost a nail, huh?”
“Yeah. Not sure where. But I was in such a hurry to get to work. I probably didn’t get it on before I left home.”
Penny nodded.
Or you
lost
it where someone could find it and ID your stupid ass.
“Let me give you a ride back to your car. We’ll talk some more later today, after we both get some sleep.”
After Penny left
a twenty on the table
,
they
exited
Kewpee’s, putting on leather gloves before they climbed into the stolen Mustang liberated from
an all-night parking garage
.
They rode the first ten minutes in silence. Then Evelyn started to cry.
Penny rolled her eyes. More wood to fan the fire. “What’s your problem?”
“I was just thinking of what my sister would think of me if she knew
.
”
They
twisted
down a side street, drove a block, and parked under a large
,
silver maple tree. Turning to Evelyn, she smiled. “She probably wouldn’t clap her hands with joy, but if she’s any kind of sister
, s
he loves you no matter what.”
“Do you think so?”
“Yes, I do.”
Evelyn let out a breath. “You’re right. Listen, the
White Kitty is
only a few blocks away
.
I’m going to walk and clear my head. I’ll talk to you later.”
Evelyn got out of the car and started walking along the pothole-lined street.
Penny’s hands gripped the wheel so hard she felt the leather imprint in her fingers.
What would my sister think? The bimbo
is
going to cave. That
won’t
do.
She started the engine and swung the Mustang around, lights shining bright on Evelyn’s tall frame.
Evelyn
turned to wave and then kept walking.
She slammed the car in gear and stomped on the accelerator.
That
won’t
do at all
.
***
The
r
ed Mustang smashed into Evelyn, sending her over the hood and off the left side of the windshield. She felt her leg
shatter
and something
go
terribly wrong with her hip. Her head throbbed, but she held onto some semblance of consciousness.
Somehow, she found a way to raise her eyes as her world became as bright as any noonday. The lights were
mesmerizing
, but not as paralyzing as the stark realization
that accompanied
the light.
She really had no time to be afraid. Evelyn grasped the gold cross around her neck and held tight.
The last thing she saw was the wide, black tire
inches from her face
.
Chapter
-59
Manny stood outside the yellow tape
,
arms cross
ing
his chest
, staring at the flashing blues and reds emanating from the squad cars, wondering how things could get worse. Two cops in one night
: o
ne with a bright future, the other living her dream of being a detective. Each one snuffed at the whim of a heartless killer riding an agenda every cop dreaded: vigilantes-r-us.
He’d sent Wymer home with a couple of blues and ordered them to watch him until the department shrink could get there. The man was such a mess
that
he hadn’t eaten in an hour.
Frank had sat on the curb in front of the alley mumbling and apologizing over and over. “Manny
,
I’m sorry. We broke protocol. It’s my fault. It’s my fault. She’s dead and it’s my fault
. . .
those rats
. . .
those
damned
rats.”
He’d heard
very few people
as distraught as the rotund detective. His despair was the kind that ran just the other side of spooky. Detectives had quit the force for less, much less.
Max and Alex were in the process of taking apart Evelyn Kroll’s car while Sophie, Chloe
,
and Josh
were
headed to Evelyn’s
apartment
to
see what they could find
that would add more light to
the
twisted
past
three days. They were all to meet him back at the forensics lab where
Buzzy
Dancer had been called in to decode Ross’s cell phone’s memory card. Maybe the call that the woman was on before Frank interrupted her would lead to something, someone. Too many pieces to the puzzle, leading to everywhere and nowhere. And how did
Ross’s
murder fit into all of this?