When the young couple went to pull Axe away, they discovered the hand and called the police. Mallory’s contact had called her, and she’d called Agent Hectoria.
“Okay, I’m here. But I don’t see why this is important to Miss Simpson’s case.” Agent Hectoria stood, her hand resting on her gun, and watched the excavation.
Mallory’s eyes didn’t leave the increasingly exposed body. “I got a tip from Finn’s neighborhood. I followed it up and ran the partial plate they saw. The car was reported stolen from an apartment complex near here. That’s too much of a coincidence for me.”
“That’s a pretty big leap, Miss Westin.”
“Maybe, but I have a gut feeling about this.”
“I guess we’ll find out.”
Mallory and Agent Hectoria stepped forward as the dirt was brushed away from the head. The body hadn’t been buried too deeply, and the forensic team was ready to open the plastic.
“I’m hoping the body will be in good enough shape for an identification. It’s been pretty cold at night. That’ll slow decomp,” the forensic lead told them as he reached for a knife.
He cut the duct tape holding the plastic closed and put it in an evidence bag. Their lab techs would have a field day getting fibers and samples from it. They pulled back the plastic and Mallory stepped forward.
“Shit,” Mallory cursed.
“But . . . that’s Harry Daniels,” Agent Hectoria gasped as she held up a picture of him next to the decomposing body. “Then who has been stalking Allegra Simpson?”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
“Oh, honey, you look beautiful!” Shirley dabbed at the tears in her eyes as Allegra did a twirl. The two women had been ensconced in Allegra’s bathroom for the last thirty minutes getting dressed for her surprise wedding.
“Thank you. I’m so glad you’re here with me, Shirley.” Allegra smiled at the woman who was as close to her as a grandmother could be. It was sweet of Finn to send her. She was sure her mother was running around like a madwoman decorating and organizing while Reid, Drake, and Logan were probably toasting Finn in their tuxedos.
The women stepped out of the large bathroom and hurried to grab their purses. Allegra opened the door, and Shirley wheeled her way out into the hall. Nervous energy raced through her as she pressed the elevator button. She couldn’t seem to stop talking. Maybe if she had, she would have noticed her bodyguard missing.
Mallory pulled out her phone and dialed the guard on duty. She paced back and forth as her heart pounded. The phone rang and finally went to voicemail. Mallory cursed again and dialed Allegra. The phone went straight to voicemail.
“Miss Westin!” Agent Hectoria called out from where Harry Daniels lay uncovered now.
“I can’t get a hold of my man watching Allegra. Allegra’s not answering her phone either,” Mallory told her as she hurried over. She cringed when she saw what Agent Hectoria surely wanted.
“We have the cause of death,” Agent Hectoria said grimly.
Mallory felt the blood drain from her face. Harry Daniel’s throat had been slit. “I have to get to Simpson Global.”
“I’m calling all of the agencies now. I’ll have people sent to her home and Mr. Williams’s home.”
Mallory didn’t bother to thank Agent Hectoria; she was already running for her car. Her gut had been right about Harry Daniels’s disappearance, but now she had wished it hadn’t been.
* * *
Finn grinned to himself as he rode the elevator up to Allegra’s office. He had a dinner reservation at Allegra’s favorite restaurant, a vase bursting with purple dendrobium orchids, and all the love he wanted to shower her with.
The elevator doors opened, and he frowned. The lights on the floor were off, and her office door was closed. It was hard to make out the furniture except for the glowing light from an Exit sign at the far end of the room. He stepped forward and set the flowers down on her bodyguard’s chair. Reaching for his phone, he dialed her number.
Hi, you’ve reached Allegra Simpson . . .
The elevator dinged, and Finn tensed. Something was very wrong. His instincts kicked in, and he ducked down behind her secretary’s desk. There were no further sounds, which Finn thought was strange. He held his breath as he listened, but he didn’t hear footsteps or even breathing. It was like no one was there.
Finn was about to stand up when a dirty boot came into view. He counted to three in his mind. Every muscle was tense, waiting to explode at his command. He lunged. His arms wrapped around the intruder in all black, propelling them down to the floor. They fought for control in the dark hallway as they rolled on the floor. Punches were thrown and kicks connected as he fought blindly with the person with a baseball cap pulled down over his head. The intruder landed a punch on his chin that caused him to see stars, but he countered by landing an elbow to the side of his head before the intruder’s red painted nails reached for his throat. His eyes widened, and something clicked in his mind. The person straddling him had red nails.
“Mallory?” he choked out as he grabbed at the hand tightening around his throat.
“Finn?” The fingers instantly released, and she used her other hand to rip off her baseball cap. Her blond hair tumbled out. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to pick up Allegra, but she’s not here. What are you doing here dressed like that?”
“I was dressed for recon. My hair tends to be noticeable so I had to cover it. Finn, I found Harry Daniels.”
“Thank goodness. Is he in jail?” Finn’s body relaxed as he looked up at Mallory still sitting on him.
“Finn, he’s dead. His throat was slit about two weeks ago.”
“What? That doesn’t make sense.”
Mallory stood up and held out her hand for him. “It’s not Harry who is stalking Allegra. I’m here because I can’t find her. I was hoping she was with you, but her phone goes to voicemail, and I can’t get in touch with my man watching her. The guard who went off duty an hour ago said his replacement relieved him, and he left as scheduled.”
“Then who is stalking her?” Finn’s head spun as he tried to understand what Mallory was saying.
“We don’t know. We don’t even have a lead. And now we can’t find Allegra. He has her, Finn. I can feel it.”
“No. There has to be something. What did your guard say?” Finn tried to control the anger and fear rushing through his body. He pushed aside the voice that told him this was his fault. If he’d only been here . . .
“That she was working all day. Her sisters all visited her, along with Shirley. She didn’t seem upset. In fact, he said she couldn’t stop smiling all day. Especially after she got the gift you sent her.”
Finn froze. “I didn’t send her a gift.”
They both looked toward the dark office. Finn strode forward and went to open the door, but it was locked. He shot his arm out and moved Mallory aside. Lifting his leg he slammed his foot next to the lock. The doorframe shattered and the door was flung open.
They hurried inside and stopped to stare at the white box on the table. “See, just like all your other gifts,” Mallory said as she pointed to the empty box.
“Mallory, I’ve never sent Allegra a gift.”
Mallory met his eyes, and they both knew in that instant the danger Allegra was in. “Okay, let me think. Allegra said you sent white silk lingerie, a white blouse, pearls—“
Finn just shook his head. “No. I’ve never done that. Dammit!” Finn slammed his hand on the desk. “She asked me about them. She showed them off to me, and I had no idea.”
“Wait,” Mallory held up her hand, and Finn watched as she closed her eyes, trying to remember something. “The blouse. I saw it. I just have to remember the label. It was expensive . . .”
Mallory whipped out her cell phone. “Agent. Allegra has been receiving gifts from the stalker. She thought they were from Finn, but I’m with Finn and it wasn’t him. But I have an idea. Put me through to the person at her house.”
“What is it?” Finn asked.
“The blouse. If I know who made it, I can track where it’s sold. Maybe we can get surveillance on who bought it.”
Hope surged, but Finn didn’t want to get too excited.
“A white blouse. Silk, V-neck,” Mallory was saying in the phone. “Silk, you know, a soft, sexy material.” Mallory huffed. “Yes, buttons up the front. Okay, thank you.”
“They found it?”
“Yes, and I know exactly where he got it. It’s local. There’s a small shop that sells that brand. Let me find the owners . . .” Mallory sat in front of Allegra’s computer and booted it up.
Finn pulled out his phone and dialed the only people he knew who might have an idea of who owned that store. “David, it’s Finn. Allegra has been taken. It wasn’t Harry. He’s dead. Our one clue is a silk blouse from Scarlett’s.” Finn told him the brand and waited as David and Josh talked.
“The owners are Julie and Taggart Milhouse. Their daughter, Phoebe, works there as a sales clerk. I’ll call them now and have them meet you at the store.”
Finn didn’t even have a chance to thank them before the phone disconnected. “David and Josh came through. He’s getting the owners to meet us there.”
Mallory let out a breath. “Let’s go,” she said.
Finn and Mallory hurried out the door, but something caught Finn’s eye. “Wait.” Finn looked down the dark corridor and wondered what it was that seemed off.
“What is it?”
“The bathrooms. The light to the women’s room is on. See, you can see the thin line of light under the door. But the men’s room is completely dark.”
They inched forward and stopped at the men’s door. Mallory stood to one side and Finn on the other. With a nod of her head, Finn slammed the door open and flipped the light on as Mallory knelt on one knee with her gun at the ready aimed into the bathroom.
“No!” Mallory screamed as she crawled forward.
Finn swallowed hard as he looked at the bodyguard with his throat cut. Blood was pooled all around his limp body. “Mallory,” Finn whispered as he put his hand on her shoulder, trying to stop her.
Mallory shrugged him off as she sat in the blood and held her man’s head in her lap. “He had a wife and three children,” Mallory said so softly he almost didn’t hear it. Tears fell from her large blue eyes and her arms wrapped around his body. Mallory sniffled and then froze. She leaned closer to his head and sniffed again.
“What is it?”
“Chloroform. Check the trash can.”
Finn ripped the metal top from the trashcan. Right on top was a cloth. He didn’t pick it up, but leaned forward and sniffed it. “Smells slightly sweet.”
“Don’t touch it.” Mallory leaned forward and whispered something to her fallen man. She slid his head slowly from her lap and back onto the ground. She stood then, blood soaking her legs as she walked forward and grabbed a handful of paper towels.
Her features were set as she washed her hands and wiped them on the towels. She used the extra towels to run over her legs and shoes. She took a deep breath and then sent a series of texts as she walked out the bathroom door and headed to the elevator. “My men will be here shortly to watch over him. I’ll notify his wife as soon as I find Allegra. I'll also see if Agent Hectoria can get Allegra’s car company to search her GPS and see if we can find her that way, too. We’ll find her.”
If she’s still alive
was left unsaid.
Allegra could barely contain her excitement as she drove into the old industrial part of Atlanta. Her GPS took her to Lexington Centre, and Shirley did a great acting job as they looked to find the right address.
“Are you sure about this, dear?” Shirley asked as she looked out the window.
“Look! There it is. Oh, how pretty.” The building was decorated with white paper lanterns in the parking lot, and more lined the sidewalk of the old brick building.
“It’s lovely,” Shirley murmured as she looked around.
“Are you all right?” Allegra asked. Shirley seemed off. Was she afraid of blowing the surprise?
“I’m fine, I’m just surprised. This doesn’t seem like something Finn would do.”
“What do you think Finn would do?”
“He’s so close to your family; I just thought he’d do something with them.”
Allegra shot her a wink. “Maybe he has.”
“Well, let’s find out.” Shirley opened the door, and Allegra went to help her out. She opened the trunk and pulled out her walker.
Allegra looked up at the building and tried not to run inside to see Finn. No, they would enter, and she’d pretend to be surprised when all her family was standing there. Allegra walked slowly beside Shirley. The sound of music floated outside the wooden doors. She smiled and took it all in. She pictured Finn on the other side of the doors with the glow of candles to light the ceremony. It was so romantic she had to remind herself not to rush inside and leave Shirley behind.
Finally, they approached the partially open door. She grabbed the large handle and pulled the heavy door all the way open. Allegra stepped inside and gasped. White roses lined an aisle mixed with paper lanterns. White satin bows and roses covered an arch on a raised platform wrapped in white satin. Large candelabras filled with glowing candles stood on both ends, highlighting where she and Finn would say their vows.
She stepped forward, unaware that Shirley was walking in behind her. Where was her family? The door shut behind them with a loud slam. She looked behind her; Shirley stood with a frown on her face. A shiver of anxiety ran through Allegra. This was wrong, so wrong. She didn’t know why, but her mind yelled at her to leave.
“Let’s go outside and call Finn,” Allegra whispered to Shirley. Shirley gave a quick nod and reached for the door.
“It’s not opening,” Shirley said with a hint of panic to her voice.
“Ah, the bride has arrived! Stunning, simply stunning, my love.”
Allegra’s eyes widened at the sound of the deep voice coming from the altar. Slowly she turned around and looked at the man standing in an impeccably tailored tuxedo.
“You?” she gasped.