Authors: Marion Faith Carol J.; Laird Lenora; Post Worth
Tags: #Fluffer Nutter, #dpgroup.org
She flashed him an appreciative smile. “Thanks for your help today.”
“No problem. I want this guy caught as badly as you do.”
She sat in silence for a long moment. Then her mouth turned upward in a weak smile. “I don't know about you, but that fast-food burger I had two hours ago really didn't do the trick.”
He returned her smile. “Yeah, same here.”
“I've got some nachos and killer bean dip if you'd like to come in for a snack.”
“Killer bean dip, huh?”
Lexi flinched. “Bad choice of words.”
He followed her to the door, where a rocking chair and a potted plant waited on the small front porch. Lexi lived in one of the older Auburndale neighborhoods, with moderate houses, well-kept yards and an obvious lack of bicycles and toys at a good number of them. It was likely one of those neighborhoods where people had put down deep roots, raising their kids then remaining in their empty nests. It held a sense of calm security. Under normal circumstances, he would find that comforting.
But a killer on the loose targeting young women wasn't normal circumstances.
The moment Lexi put the key into the lock, yowling commenced inside. She grinned up at him. “That would be Suki. She's not happy that dinner's late, and she's letting me know.”
She twisted the key and opened the door. Just inside sat the source of all the racketâa sleek, slender, blue-eyed cat, mouth open in that low, eerie cry that only Siamese make. Lexi bent to pick her up, and the yowls turned to purrs.
She headed through an open doorway into the kitchen. “I know I promised you nachos and bean dip, but Suki gets fed first. Otherwise she'll drive us crazy.”
As soon as she put Suki down, a black cat appeared in the doorway, sized Alan up with big gold eyes, then apparently decided he was okay.
“You have two?”
Lexi gave him a sheepish smile before bending to pick up porcelain dishes with painted paw prints in the bottoms. “Actually, three. After Suki showed up, I decided she needed company, so I adopted Midnight from the Humane Society. Then, two weeks later, Itsy appeared on my doorstep.”
As if on cue, a third cat waddled into the kitchen. Alan eyed Lexi doubtfully. “This is Itsy?”
Lexi grinned. “Well, she
used
to be tiny. She's sort of gotten fat.”
Alan laughed. Lexi had always had a soft spot for animals. With the toughness she had developed over the past six years, he was glad that soft spot was still there.
He settled into a chair at the small kitchen table while Lexi pulled a Pyrex dish from the fridge. On the other side of the room, all three cats sat in a row, smacking happily.
He eyed the dish in the center of the table. “That looks good.”
“It's a seven-layer dip. Although I think this one's actually eight.” She put down two plates, dumped a bag of tortilla chips into a bowl and slid into the chair opposite him.
Sitting across the table from her in the warm, cozy kitchen, a sudden sense of intimacy wrapped around him. This was the way it was supposed to have turned out, a lifetime of sharing meals and dreaming dreams. Why had she thrown it all away? Maybe someday he would ask her. Just not tonight.
But whatever her reasons, he'd given up too quickly, then turned to Lauren on the rebound. Of course, she'd made it easy. The instant she found out Lexi had dumped him, Lauren was in hot pursuit. Several years earlier, long before Lexi, it would have been a dream come true. He'd had a crush on her all through high school, a crush he'd kept secret. Prom queens didn't date science nerds.
But for Lauren, things had changed. He was no longer the nerdy geek and she'd found herself in troubleâpregnant and recently dumped herself. Their relationship had been doomed from the start. Lauren had just been using him, and he'd still loved Lexi.
His eyes met hers across the table. “I'm sorry for the way things turned out. Iâ”
Lexi held up a hand to stop him. “It's in the past. Let's just leave it there.”
He nodded and scooped a glob of dip onto a chip. He had wanted to be involved in trying to find Kayla's killer. But maybe working with Lexi wasn't such a good idea.
He cleared his throat. “So where do we go next?”
“Except for a small handful of people we haven't shown Jeffries's photo to, we're done. I'd even be willing to be bait. But we have no idea what draws this creep.”
A sense of protectiveness surged through him at her words and he tried to tamp it down. She was a trained law-enforcement officer. She was cautious and smart and armed.
And she was alone with her three cats. He'd feel better if Suki was a Rottweiler.
Before he had a chance to tell her so, her cell phone rang. She rose to retrieve it from where she had left her purse on the counter, then cast a glance back at him. “It's Tomlinson again.”
Within moments her eyes widened. “We'll be right there.”
She disconnected the call and dropped the phone into her purse.
“We just got our big break.”
Her eyes shone with excitement and she shifted her weight from foot to foot, unable to stand still.
“Victim number six got away.”
FIVE
L
exi lifted the curtain aside and stepped into the sectioned-off area, trying to ignore the ever-present scent of disinfectant. It was her second trip to the emergency room in less than a week, this time Heart of Florida. And she didn't even like hospitals.
The occupant of the bed lay with her head turned, facing the opposite wall where a male figure waited in a chair. Matted brown curls flowed over the pillow, still holding a trapped dead leaf. The shape beneath the thin sheet looked tiny and frail.
Alan followed Lexi into the room, pulling back the curtain in its metal track. The patient slowly pivoted her head. Her lips were broken and misshapen, and one eye was swollen almost shut. A pinkish ring circled her neck, the beginnings of ligature marks. She was lucky. She was alive, and the obvious damage would heal in a short time. Unfortunately, the invisible scars would stay with her the rest of her life.
The moment her gaze fell on Alan, she let out a startled shriek and scooted away, sheet pulled up to her chin.
The visitor stood and circled the bed, his stance protective. “Get him out of here.”
Lexi glanced from the man to Alan, confusion rendering her speechless. But Alan didn't have to be told twice. He was already ducking from the room before she could gather her thoughts.
“I'm sorry.” The man moved back to the other side of the bed so he could take the girl's hand. “It was a cop who did this to her.”
Lexi's confusion morphed to shock as her stomach did a sudden free fall. Their killer was a cop? “What?”
“At least, he was in an officer's uniform.”
So he was a cop or someone impersonating a cop. One small piece of the puzzle fell into place. He didn't know the victims. They opened their doors because they trusted the uniform.
She approached the bed, her mind still reeling. “You're her father, I assume?” At his nod, she continued, “I need to ask her some questions.”
She bent to touch the girl lightly on the shoulder. According to the report Tomlinson had, she was twenty-one, but her small form and the fear in her gaze made her appear much younger. “I need you to tell me what happened. Can you do that?”
The girl's eyes filled with tears and she shook her head. Lexi understood. But she had information that could help them solve the case. She was the only one to fall into the clutches of the killer and live to tell about it.
“Honey, I know it's hard.” She squatted next to the bed, putting her at eye level with the terrified girl. Her tone was low and soothing. “Right now you just want to forget about everything you went through tonight. But the killer is still out there, and he's going to strike again. We need you to help us stop him. Will you do that?”
After a prolonged silence, she nodded.
Lexi took a notepad and pen from her pocket. “Let's start with your name and where you live.”
“Denise Andrews.” She gave a Haines City address, her voice paper-thin.
“And you were at home?”
“No.”
Lexi's brows shot up. Their meticulous, methodical killer had deviated? “Where were you?”
“Coming home from a friend's house in Kissimmee.”
“So what happened?”
“My car broke down and I was on that stretch of 17-92 where there's no cell service. I locked my doors and waited, because I knew if I wasn't home in an hour, my dad would come looking for me.”
Mr. Andrews nodded. “She always calls me when she's heading home. She's a good girl. She didn't deserve this.”
“No, sir.” None of them did. “What happened next?”
“After I had waited about ten minutes, a car drove past really slow, coming toward me. I looked in my rearview mirror and saw him turn around, come back and park behind me.”
“Was it a police car?”
“No. I couldn't tell at the time, because it was dark. But no, it wasn't a police car.”
So it probably wasn't a cop. Unless it was an undercover one. “Then what happened?”
“A guy got out of the car and came to my window. He was in uniform. When I saw it was a cop, I opened my door to talk to him. I asked if he could call my dad and let him know I had broken down. He told me not to bother my dad, that he would take me home. He even offered to call someone to have my car towed.”
“So what did you do?”
“I got out and went back to his car.”
“Can you describe it?”
“It was a light color, like silver or white. I couldn't tell for sure, because it was really dark outside.”
“Any idea what kind?”
“I'm not good with cars. It was a four-door. It didn't look new, but it wasn't an old clunker, either.”
“You didn't happen to notice any part of the tag number, did you?”
“No, I never went to the back of the car.”
“That's all right. So tell me what happened next.”
“I got into the front passenger's seat. There was one of those rounded gumball light things sitting on the dashboard.”
Lexi nodded. Yep, definitely an impersonator. They had done away with those gumball lights years ago. All the vehicles now had the lights built in. “Did he get in the car then?”
“No, he said he had to get something out of the trunk.”
“Then what happened?”
“I was just sitting there waiting. All of a sudden he opened the passenger door and held something over my face.”
“What?”
“A cloth. It smelled sweet, and it made me light-headed and sick to my stomach. I fought to get away, but he was too strong.”
While Lexi listened, misty images played across her imagination. But the face she kept seeing was Kayla's.
“What's the next thing you remember?”
“I woke up in the woods. My hands were tied behind my back and he had taped my mouth.” A shudder shook her body and she closed her eyes.
Lexi squeezed her arm. “You're doing great, sweetie. What else can you tell me?”
“He hit me and took my picture.”
“Did he say anything while he was doing this?”
“He kept calling me Jeanie. He said after ten long years, justice was finally being done.”
Lexi scribbled some notes in her pad. The killings were retribution for some perceived wrong. Someone else's wrong. “Did he say anything else?”
“Just that it wasn't supposed to be my time yet, but how could he resist when I had fallen right in his path.”
“What happened then?”
“He hit me again and took two more pictures. Then he put like a rubber strap or something around my neck and started to squeeze.” She raised shaking fingers to her throat. “That's when the dog came.”
“The dog?”
“I think it was a German shepherd. It came running through the woods, and when the cop guy heard it coming, he hid.”
“What happened then?”
“The dog came up to me and started barking. I could hear his owner yelling at him to get back home, but the dog wouldn't listen. Finally the owner found us. He had a flashlight. He untied me and walked me back to his house and called 9-1-1.”
Saved by a German shepherd. Denise was one lucky girl.
“Can you describe himâthe cop guy?”
“Not really. It was dark.”
“Anything at all?”
She closed her eyes, trying to call up a memory she would probably rather forget. “When he went to the trunk, he left the driver's side door open, so the dome light was on. He opened my door, and when he leaned inside, I could see his face. His hair was real short, like a buzz cut, maybe brown, and he didn't have a beard or mustache. His arms were muscular, but I don't know how tall he was, because I never stood close to him.”
“Age?”
“Maybe thirties? I don't know.”
“Anything else you can tell me that might help us catch this guy? What about the uniform?”
“It was dark, like dark blue or dark green. He had a badge on his pocket and some kind of patch on his sleeve. It looked so real.” Her brows pulled together in concentration. “But he wasn't wearing it in the woods.”
“What?”
“He had changed. I think he had on jeans and a T-shirt.”
Lexi nodded. He probably hadn't wanted to dirty his needed prop. “Anything else?”
Denise shook her head, and Lexi straightened and pulled a business card from her pocket.
“If you remember anything else, give me a call, even if it seems unimportant. A lot of times it's the seemingly insignificant details that help us solve the crimes.”
When Lexi stepped around the curtain, she almost bumped into Alan. She dropped her voice to a whisper. “Eavesdropping, are we?”
Alan grinned. “Nope, taking notes. And saving you from having to repeat all that in there.”
She walked with him toward the emergency-area entrance. “Now we know why Kayla and the other girls opened their doors.”
“And we know this is all about something that happened ten years ago.”
The automatic doors slid open and they stepped out into the balmy night air. At almost midnight, only a dozen cars dotted the emergency area parking lot, two of them hers and Alan's. She stopped next to the driver's door of her cruiser.
“The killer is evidently following a particular order in choosing his victims. He's been so methodical and planned everything out so well that he hasn't left behind a shred of evidence. Tonight he deviated. I'm hoping he's going to live to regret it.”
She leaned back against the car and crossed her arms. “Tomlinson's getting Crime Scene out there first thing in the morning. But he sent deputies tonight to secure everything so the killer can't go back and cover up any evidence. Of course, there's the span of time between when the neighbor found her and got her back to his house to call 9-1-1.”
“Well, I'm praying he overlooked something. Since this one was spur-of-the-moment and not well thought out, there's always that chance.”
She nodded absently, her mind stuck on his choice of words.
Praying?
What was it with him and Tomlinson? But she would take whatever help she could get. Because as much as they had learned tonight, they still didn't know what the killer looked like, what he drove or anything about him. Unless there was something really incriminating left behind in the woods, they may as well be looking for a needle in a haystack.
“Do you want me to follow you home?”
She looked up at him with a quirky grin. “Davenport to Harmony Grove, by way of Auburndale? That's a little out of the way, don't you think?”
He grinned back at her. “Maybe a little. But I don't mind. I'm worried about you.”
His smile faded and warmth filled his eyes. In the dim glow of the parking lot lights, they had deepened to an almost midnight-blue. He moved closer to rest a hand against her car. If he lifted the other one, he would have her hemmed in. And suddenly that didn't seem like such a bad place to be.
How different their lives would have been if he had waited for her. Would they still be together? What would their chances be if they gave it another shot? She dismissed the thought as soon as it entered her mind. Alan wasn't the “settling down” type. And neither was she.
She stepped aside while she still could and opened the driver's door. “We both need to go home and get some sleep. I'll be fine. I've got my weapon.”
She slid into the seat and watched him walk away, a hollow emptiness filling her chest. She tamped it down and took in a cleansing breath. They had a killer to catch. She had no business thinking about captivating blue eyes.
Or second chances.
* * *
Alan cruised slowly down Park Avenue, window down and strains of Third Day streaming through the radio speakers. At eleven o'clock on a Thursday morning, there wasn't a whole lot of police work to do. But after more than a week of making himself scarce, it was time to take up some slack. Chief Dalton had pretty well given him free rein to work on Kayla's case but Tommy, the other Harmony Grove officer, needed some time off.
So here he was, driving through quiet streets, past the sleepy neighborhoods of Harmony Grove, his greatest accomplishment of the morning helping old Mrs. English bring in her groceries. But that was all right. He loved Harmony Grove, and he loved his job.
He put his arm out the window to wave at Delores Griffin, who was halfway through Molly the schnauzer's late-morning walk. The dog had stopped to sniff the base of some shrub that was covered in little blue flowers. Alan took in a breath himself, savoring the scents of spring. It was his favorite time of year. A time of new beginnings and a welcome reprieve before the onslaught of summer's brutal heat and humidity.
As he drove past Pleasant Drive, his gaze traveled down the street. Patty Simmons still lived there, fifth house on the right. The same ranch-style home where Lexi had grown up. Even though six years had passed since he'd made regular trips down Pleasant Drive, it still caught his gaze every time he passed. If he wasn't careful, his thoughts followed. That was never a good thing. It only led to what-ifs. And mental kicks in the rear.
But keeping the memories at bay was difficult when he was spending almost every day with Lexi. Last night had been the hardest. Maybe it was fatigue. Maybe he was just mentally drained. It had been a long day and heading into the next by the time he'd walked her to her car in the emergency area parking lot.
But seeing her standing there in the glow of the parking lot lights, and thinking about her driving back to Auburndale to her empty house, made him want to wrap her in a protective hug and never let her go.
Fortunately, he hadn't acted on his impulses. Because whatever he was feeling, it likely wasn't returned. Actually, he had no idea if it was or wasn't. But it didn't matter. He didn't measure up. And Lexi wasn't one to repeat her mother's mistakes. Patty Simmons had grown up privileged, her wealthy parents giving her anything she desired. She'd married beneath her, then never got over the fact that her blue-collar husband couldn't keep her in the style she felt she deserved.