by Lisa Jackson
“I’m not the dog’s ‘aunt,’ okay? When you have kids, then sure, I’ll be Auntie Zoe, but not for the dog.”
“Whatever. I’ll see you later. Build a fire, and have another glass of wine,” Abby suggested. “If I don’t show up in three hours, send the cavalry.”
“I’ll call Montoya.”
“Even better,” she said, thinking about calling him herself. But if she told him what she was doing, he would have a fit. Like Zoey, he wouldn’t understand. Only he would be much more adamant that she stay home. Besides, he was busy—a detective trying to solve several murder cases, for crying out loud. His own aunt was missing.
Abby climbed into the Honda and backed out of the garage. What was the old saying?
Today is the first day of the rest of your life.
For her, it was the other way around. Today was the last day of her previous thirty-five years.
Tomorrow would be the first day of her new life.
“…that’s right. Double-check Lawrence DuLoc’s alibis and find out what you can on a Simon Thaddeus Heller. I’ve got his social,” Montoya said, rattling off Simon Heller’s social security number while driving one-handed and bringing Zaroster up to speed. “He was involved with Faith Chastain when she was a patient at Our Lady of Virtues. Let go, because of it. Then moved West, supposedly. Check with the FBI, they might have faster access to his records.”
“Will do,” she said before hanging up.
He cracked open the window and stared through his bug-spattered windshield. Had Heller returned? Was he wreaking his own personal hell on victims who had been close to Faith Chastain?…If so, how were Asa Pomeroy and Luke Gierman involved…or was it just a loose connection in their cases? Asa had a son who had been in the hospital, and Luke Gierman had married Faith Chastain’s daughter, who’d just happened to be in the room when Faith died. Mary LaBelle was the daughter of people who had worked at the hospital. Gina Jefferson had been a social worker there.
When Heller had practiced at Our Lady of Virtues.
When DuLoc had been a patient.
He was closing in on the truth, he knew it, but it was still tantalizingly just out of reach.
He was nearly to the city when the phone blasted. He picked it up while negotiating a final turn before the country road became a highway. “Montoya.”
“Zaroster.”
“That was quick.”
“It’s not about Heller or DuLoc. I don’t have an answer on either of them yet.” She hesitated as Montoya watched the lanes separate into a split highway. “Look, I know you’re off the case, but I thought you should know. Asa Pomeroy’s car has been located, parked in the swamp south of the city.”
Montoya braced himself; he knew what was coming.
“The car was spotted by a guy giving helicopter rides to tourists over that section of swamp land. He saw the car, knew it was out of place, then remembered the police reports and called it in. The first officers to arrive were from the local Sheriff’s Department. Two dead bodies on the scene. Male and female, tentatively identified as Billy Ray Furlough and Sister Maria Montoya.”
“Damn it,” he growled, his stomach wrenching. Though he’d expected the news, it was still a blow, a kick in the gut.
“I’m sorry.”
“That goddamned bastard.” Rage tore through him. Tears burned the back of his eyes. Memories of his aunt, pictures frozen in time, slid behind his eyes. He recalled her as a young woman, full of hope and happiness, working with children, laughing at her nieces’ and nephews’ antics. There had been an underlying sadness to her, he’d thought, but she still had enjoyed her cloistered life.
“We’ll get him,” Zaroster was saying.
Montoya had no doubt. He would spend the rest of his life tracking down this psycho if he had to. Nothing would stop him. The monster would go down.
“Give me that address.” He floored his car, turned on the lights, and drove as if Lucifer himself were breathing down his neck.
A flat?
Her tire was flat now?
“Great,” Abby said, staring at the front passenger wheel of her little Honda. She glanced to the heavens and saw that it would soon be dusk. Great. Nothing to do but change the tire. Hopefully she’d get to the hospital and still have some daylight to work with. She could either change the tire herself—which would take a minimum of half an hour and God knew if the spare was any good—or she could call roadside assistance. That would probably take longer. Or she could take off cross-country. Though she was five miles from the hospital by road, she was probably less than a mile if she walked a straight line across farmers’ fields and ignored the NO TRESPASSING signs. But then she’d have to stow her gear in her backpack, which wouldn’t hold all the tools she wanted to take.
“Looks like Door Number One,” she told herself as she found the jack and the instruction pamphlet about how to use it.
Maybe you should call the tow company and go back home—take this as one of Zoey’s signs that you’re not supposed to break into the hospital.
“Nope,” she said aloud. Turning back now was not an option. She had to know the truth and she damned well had to know it tonight.
She should have gone with Abby.
Working on her third glass of wine and watching a sci-fi flick that she’d seen several times already, Zoey realized she’d made a big mistake. What had she been thinking, letting Abby return to that god-awful sanitarium by herself? She should have insisted that she ride along.
But she hadn’t wanted to. The place was just creepy. She’d never liked it. Never wanted to go back there.
The dog, lying by the fireplace, raised her head and let out a soft little “woof.”
Zoey looked up expectantly. Her heart lifted. Maybe Abby had thought better of her plan and had returned.
Hershey was on her feet. A low growl emanated from her throat.
No…not Abby. Something else. Zoey felt a shiver chase down her spine. “What is it?” she asked, turning down the television’s volume. The dog, hackles raised, walked from window to window, looking outside. “Cut it out,” Zoey commanded. What had Abby said, that Hershey was edgy…or was that the cat? Both of the animals seemed a little neurotic to her. “You’re fine,” she muttered and drained her glass of Riesling. “Give me a break.” She pushed the volume button upward, flipped through the channels, and found an all-news station that was reporting on the serial killer terrorizing the citizens of New Orleans.
Who the hell was that guy and what was his deal? She thought of Abby and felt a jab of guilt. No one, especially a woman, should be out alone, especially after dark. She glanced to the windows and frowned. It was still daylight, but the sun was sinking fast.
“Crap,” she muttered as the news switched to trouble in the Middle East.
The dog was still whining and growling.
“Fine. Go outside! Knock yourself out.” Zoey pushed herself to her feet and felt a little tipsy, not drunk by any means, but she definitely had a serious buzz going. Driving was out. So was another glass of wine. The truth of the matter was that she was still tired, and the wine had only exacerbated the jet lag that had been with her ever since her red-eye flight.
By now the damned dog was going ape-shit at the back door. “Enough already,” Zoey muttered. “Believe me, no squirrel is worth it.” She unlocked the door, opened it, and the dog, barking and growling, bounded outside. Ansel, hiding on one of the bar stools near the counter, hissed in agitation, nearly giving Zoey a heart attack. She hadn’t seen the cat. “Jesus. Give it a rest.” Her heart was beating like a drum and from the hallway area she heard a clunk.
She was instantly wary. Was it the TV? She didn’t think so.
The noise hadn’t seemed to come from the living room.
Ansel hissed again and shot toward the dining area.
It’s a damned zoo in here, she thought, unnerved. She listened hard, every nerve ending instantly stretched tight. But she heard nothing but the dog’s an
gry barks and noise from the television.
She inhaled a calming breath.
The animals’ neuroses were infecting her and she wished she could just climb into her car and take off after Abby.
She touched her numb nose. Nope, she didn’t dare drive. Instead she’d call Abby, see that she was okay. Insist that she phone Montoya; that would work. She thought of the detective with his black hair, dark eyes, and bad-boy smile. He was way too sexy for his own good. Or Abby’s. Maybe Zoey should phone him and tell him what her sister was up to. Surely Abby had to have his number somewhere around here…
Don’t do it.
Don’t call him.
Remember what happened with Luke?
You nearly lost your sister over him. Don’t get involved.
The dog was still barking its fool head off. Zoey peered out the window cut into the door and saw Hershey barking and pacing around the edge of the house, near the laundry room. Whatever creature the Lab was stalking had probably darted under the house.
Great. What if it was a skunk?
She walked to the living room and found her purse. Scrounging through her bag, she glanced at the television. The Pope was on the screen, standing on some balcony and waving to a crowd of people filling a city square and spilling into the side streets.
She found her phone.
Creak!
What the hell was that? A door opening?
Zoey speed-dialed Abby’s cell. She would not freak out. Would not!
She heard the connection and a second later a musical ring tone within the house. Had Abby forgotten her phone? Oh, no…Still holding the cell to her ear, she walked into the hallway. The music was coming from the laundry room.
“Oh, Abby,” she muttered as she walked through the open door and spied the ringing cell on the sill of the open window…
Open?
Just outside that same window Hershey was growling and barking and…oh, God.
Every hair on the back of Zoey’s neck rose. She clicked off her phone and turned.
Fear shot through her.
She nearly fainted.
A big man dressed in black filled the doorway!
She started to scream and saw the weird gun.
This is it! He’s going to kill you.
Reacting on sheer instinct, she flung herself over the top of the washer and through the open window. She fell to the mud outside. Quickly, not daring to look back, she scrambled to her feet and began to run.
Where? Oh, God, where could she go? The rental car! She’d left the keys under the seat. She was sprinting by now, heading to the front of the house, realizing she still held her cell phone.
With trembling fingers, she disconnected the call and hit the middle button for 9-1-1. She heard a door open behind her.
Run, run, run!
She rounded a corner, the dog racing beside her.
The rental was parked to the side of the driveway. She heard the phone ringing on the other end.
Answer! she thought wildly, her bare feet sliding on the gravel. Oh, God, where was he? She glanced over her shoulder and saw him, not ten yards away.
Panic pounded through her.
“Nine-one-one Dispatch. What is the nature of—”
“He’s here! The killer’s here! In Cambrai. I’m at Abby Chastain’s—”
She was at the car, saw the weapon rise again.
“Hurry!” Her fingers pulled on the handle of the car door.
And then he fired.
Montoya parked his car at the end of the lane where a police barricade was already being manned by two deputies he didn’t recognize. He flashed his badge, wending his way through the other parked cars, avoiding the first news crew to arrive as he headed along the side of a narrow dirt and gravel road. This area of swampland was so deep in the forest that it was already as gloomy and dark as midnight, though there was still an hour before sunset.
The crime scene was orderly chaos. Officers were stringing tape around the perimeter and setting up lights; others were collecting evidence or taking pictures of the grounds surrounding an abandoned, single-wide trailer. A rusted-out car of indecipherable lineage lay in ruins beside the gleaming finish of Asa Pomeroy’s Jaguar.
He knew he’d get some flack about being here, but he walked into the area as if he belonged. If someone challenged him, he’d deal with it. All he wanted was a look. Nothing more.
It wasn’t that he didn’t believe his aunt was a victim; he just had to see for himself what the psycho had done.
Near the Jag, Brinkman was talking with a couple of sheriff’s deputies while Bentz and another guy from the Sheriff’s Department were examining a path leading to a rickety dock. It looked as if the FBI hadn’t arrived yet, but that was just a matter of minutes.
Right now, everyone was distracted.
It was now or never.
He walked up the steps leading to the yawning open door and stepped into the bowels of hell.
The interior of the old trailer was lit by the weird blue glow of klieg lamps and on the filthy floor were two bodies, entwined as previously: his aunt, in her nun’s habit, draped over the naked body of her son, Billy Ray Furlough. If there was blood present, it was well hidden under the splatter of red and black paint thrown over the victims. On one wall, in violent red was painted:
THE WAGES OF SIN IS DEATH.
Bonita Washington, gloved and examining the bodies, looked over her shoulder. “You’d better sign…Montoya?” Her eyes rounded. “What the hell are you doing here?”
He didn’t answer, just turned and walked out. He was halfway down the lane when Bentz caught up with him.
“Hold up!” he ordered and there was an edge to his voice Montoya didn’t like.
He stopped. Turned. Glared at the older man. “What?”
“You know what,” Bentz said tautly. “What the fuck are you thinking?” Montoya didn’t answer and Bentz’s eyes narrowed in the coming dusk. “Damn it. I’ll have to report this.”
“So do it. Do your job.”
“Crap, Montoya, don’t do this! We want this one by the book so we can nail this son of a bitch’s hide to the wall. I thought we were clear on that.”
“Crystal.”
“Then get the hell out of here and don’t come back.” A muscle worked in his jaw as Montoya held his gaze. “Hey. I know this is hard, but let it go. We’ll get him.”
Not if I get him first, Montoya thought, his mind’s eye sharp with the memory of his aunt’s waxen lifeless face, the paint poured all over her body.
Montoya strode back to his car, anger pulsing through him. He thought about the message scrawled on the inside of the trailer: THE WAGES OF SIN IS DEATH.
That’s right, you sick bastard, he silently agreed. And you’re one helluva sinner.
Get ready.
CHAPTER 27
“God help me.” Abby stared up at the old hospital and felt a chill as cold as the arctic sea settle into her bones. Twilight was beginning to steal over the land, dark shadows fingering from the surrounding woods, mosquitos buzzing loudly, crickets softly chirping and as she stood near the fountain with its crying angels and cracked basin. She felt a presence, an evil malevolence, as if the building itself were glaring down at her.
It’s just your imagination.
The dilapidated old building that appeared so menacing was just brick and mortar, shingles and glass. It wasn’t haunted with the souls of those who had lived inside. It wasn’t glowering down upon her, silently warning her that she was making the single worst mistake of her life. Nonetheless her pulse drummed in her ears.
“You’re an idiot,” she told herself as she summoned up all her courage. She couldn’t back down now. Not when she was so close. Yet her heart was thudding, her nerves stretched to the breaking point.
This is where it all happened, she thought, eyeing the spot on the weed-choked concrete where her mother’s life had ended.
Go. Now. Don’t put it off any longer.
She’d thought them odd then, those kids, and yet her father had always told her to pity them. “There but for the grace of God go I,” he’d reminded her…but she’d still thought they were weird. She glanced to the corner of the verandah where they’d always gathered and even now, when the flagstones were empty, she sidestepped the area and headed toward the back door.
But the ghosts followed her, if not the teenagers, then a little blond girl who never spoke and drew odd shapes in chalk over the rough flag stones; the boy who watched her every move and was forever pulling out tufts of his hair; the old lady who listed in her wheelchair, one arm dragging, her mouth often agape, her eyes wide and wondering behind thick glasses. She’d been a former beauty queen, Abby had been told, reduced by age and dementia to a hollow shell. Then there had been the boy on the threshold of manhood who had eyed both her and her mother in a way that had made her want to wash herself. How often had he with his dark hair and brooding eyes been in the hallway, near her mother’s door squeezing on of those stress relieving balls so slowly and methodically as he’d looked into Abby’s eyes that she’d felt dirty? The sexual message had been clear; he’d been kneading a malleable ball, but he’d wanted to do so much more with his big hands.
She shuddered as she thought of all the tortured souls who had resided here, cared for by doctors, nurses, social workers and staff yet left adrift. Her mother was supposed to have been safe here; this hospital was to have been a place of healing, of comfort. Not pain. Not horror. Not molestation.
