The Knowing (Partners In Crime Book 1)

by Hanna Noble

  He jerked at the sound of the door opening, turning as Owen and Leah entered the room.

  “Cole?” Owen’s voice sounded worried. “What’s going on?”

  Cole felt at a loss, didn’t know how to tell his friends what he suspected, what he had seen. He felt so tired; he wanted to sleep for a hundred years and not wake up.

  “Now we know something’s wrong.” Leah said frowning, as she crossed her arms, leaning against the closed door. “You’re never this quiet.”

  “What do you mean?” Cole sidestepped the question, thrown off balance again by Leah’s presence, scrambling to find a plausible excuse for his crazy behavior. “Nothing’s wrong.”

  “That’s exactly what we mean,” Owen said, pointing a finger at him and glaring. “You’re acting all weird. Something’s up.”

  He must have looked startled because Owen seemed exasperated. “I’ve worked with you long enough to know when something’s wrong, dumbass.” He gestured to Leah. “She knew something was up, too.”

  Cole took a seat on the bed, leaning forward, his elbows on his knees. He put his head in his hands.

  “Cole.” A hand on his shoulder, Owen’s strength and presence reminding him that he wasn’t alone in this. “Whatever it is, you can tell us.”

  He grabbed his phone from his pocket, scrolling through until he found the picture he was looking for.

  “Do you remember the necklace that Lily was wearing in her missing person photo?”

  Owen nodded. “Yes, I remember. What about it?”

  Cole passed his phone over to his partner. “Look at her necklace in that picture,” he prompted. “Then look at Leah’s bracelet.”

  Owen glanced at the screen, and then turned to Leah, who offered her wrist, confused.

  He waited, feeling each tense second pass like it was an eternity.

  “Shit,” Owen breathed, looking at him in shock. “It’s identical.”

  “Are you serious?” Leah protested. “There have to be hundreds of charms that look like this one. That doesn’t mean anything.”

  “Yours is tied on a blue thread.” Cole looked at Owen. “It’s an elephant with a blue rope, exactly like Naomi’s vision.”

  “What does this mean?” Leah looked shaken, unsure, her face pale. “What are you saying?”

  “Eli,” Owen said slowly, looking at Cole in understanding. “You think he’s involved somehow.”

  “Eli wouldn’t...” Leah’s voice trailed off, as though she couldn’t complete the sentence without losing a piece of her heart. “It’s a stretch,” she continued, composing herself. “You’re seeing interpretations of that vision everywhere. This time it’s an elephant instead of a red baseball cap.” She didn’t like this theory, and Cole knew she’d fight tooth and nail to disprove it. “This case is messing with your head, Cole. You can’t seriously think my brother is involved.”

  “I don’t know what to think,” he said, forcing himself to stay calm, levelheaded. “All I know is that Leah’s bracelet matches something Naomi saw. Eli’s a member of the Yacht Club, was in the Winner’s Circle and has attended the Mayor’s Regatta for the past three years.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I felt like I was crazy, so I came in here to think. I want to go back home to go over the evidence to find something that would…”

  “Confirm his innocence,” Owen murmured, his eyes full of compassion. “To prove yourself wrong.”

  Cole nodded, grateful for his understanding. He looked at Leah. “I’m sorry.”

  “This is crazy,” she said, looking at Owen for help. “Tell him this is crazy.”

  “Let’s take a look at the evidence,” Owen said, breaking the tension and looking at Leah. “If he’s innocent, it’ll make it easier for us to disprove this quickly, and then we can forget the whole thing ever happened.”

  Owen’s quiet support steadied Cole, took the edge off the panic that had been lurking in his mind, helped him to see the facts in front of him.

  “We have the data from the Yacht Club, but we never cross-referenced it with Eli’s movements.” Cole forced himself to put away his personal ties and think about this situation like a cop. He looked at Owen. “Did you make any progress with the valet’s books?”

  “Oh yeah, I didn’t get a chance to tell you earlier. There were two code names that came up: The Rook and The Atom.”

  “Call James McFadden.” Cole tensed, knowing this would be a big piece of evidence. “Get those names.”

  Owen stood and pulled his phone out of his pocket, wandering toward a corner of the room to make a call.

  “Leah, if I’m right about this, we have to go find Eli. Are you with me on this?”

  She nodded, stony-faced but determined. He hated the pleading vulnerability in her eyes, as if she were begging him to back away from this line of thought, to admit this was all a mistake—but he couldn’t do that. Wouldn’t do that until he was sure.

  Cole moved towards the door, urgency thrumming through his veins as he headed back to the sounds of the party, Leah at his heels. Scanning the apartment, his sense of unease grew, when he couldn’t spot Eli.

  “Where’s Owen?” Michelle walked up to them, a glance of wine in hand. “I haven’t been able to find him anywhere. He better not have ditched me — he’s my ride home.”

  “Have you seen Eli?” Leah asked, her tone sharp enough to gain Michelle’s startled attention.

  “He said we were running low on ice and alcohol, and went to go get some more supplies.” She checked her watch. “He left about fifteen minutes ago. Why? What’s wrong?”

  “Call Eli.” Cole kept his voice calm and steady, despite the emotional chaos he was feeling. “Leah, call Eli now and find out where he is.”

  The tension was heavy as Leah dialed her brother’s mobile phone. They waited. “No answer. I’m trying again.” She tried four more times without success. “Maybe we’ve made a mistake about this and he’s —"

  “McFadden just confirmed,” Owen interrupted, joining them, his expression bleak. “The Atom is Eli’s codename.”

  “No,” Leah whispered, horrified. “No.”

  Cole dialed Naomi’s phone, then the house phone without any luck. “She’s not picking up.” She must have turned off her ringer when she went to lie down.

  “Oh my god,” Leah’s face had gone sheet-white. “You’re right. After our argument at your place. I told him about the investigation. About working together again.” She met Cole’s stunned gaze with her own. “Eli knows about Naomi. He knows where she is.”

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  He moved through the hallway on silent feet, his head cocked for any hint of noise. She was in here somewhere, and he was filled with an intoxicating mixture of anger and anticipation.

  He couldn’t believe his luck, what a perfect opportunity. Meddling bitch, interfering with his games, giving the police advantages when their shoddy investigative skills had failed.

  He would fix this situation soon and remove this threat once and for all. He’d tried scouting for an opportunity but she was never alone. The house was quiet, he passed through the kitchen, stopping long enough to pull a large blade from the wooden block on the counter.

  Cole liked to cook, would probably keep the blades sharp. While he would have liked to bring his own toys, he knew he didn’t have the time. He had to do this quickly. But he had to admit, he was curious about her so-called abilities. How did she know the things she did? He heard a soft rustling sound and froze. It was coming from the living room. Moving towards the source of the noise he approached the couch and saw that she was sleeping. Perfect. Naomi. We meet at last.

  Naomi jerked awake by the terror of seeing her own face through a killer’s eyes, and felt a hand around her throat, squeezing with enough force that she knew for certain she wasn’t caught in a vision anymore. This was real life. She knew the Phantom’s identity.

  Opening her eyes, her gaze collided with the masked man towering over her. She shuddered, as t
he Knowing passed through her, the dread so intense that she felt suffocated by the weight of its oppressive pressure. She could feel the simmering rage that lurked underneath the surface, the icy pleasure in anticipating the events to come.

  “You’re awake,” the voice was calm, almost amused. “You must not be that great of a psychic if you couldn’t see this coming.” She felt the prick of a blade against her throat, the flash of pain letting her know he’d broken skin.

  No. Focus.

  “So, you’re the one interfering with my little game.” He leaned closer, as if inspecting a specimen on a glass slide.

  “Eli.” Naomi forced herself to meet his gaze, keeping her voice steady. “I know you’re Eli.”

  His eyes narrowed. Keeping the blade at her throat, he pulled the ski-mask off with his other hand.

  “And you’re Naomi Tenner. Psychic.” His lips curved in a smile. “I am intrigued. I’m the only one allowed to give them clues. I told them about the data tracking at the club, didn’t I? It’s not fair for you to help them, though I’m not exactly sure how you did it. As a scientist, I don’t believe in all that paranormal mumbo-jumbo.”

  Naomi was taken aback by how handsome he was. How could someone hide so much ugliness behind such polished charm? She had to keep him talking. Cole would be back soon and—

  “I saw Cole and Owen at Leah’s party,” he said conversationally. “Based on their reactions, I guessed you hadn’t told them yet who I am.”

  She’d only just it realized herself. She had to keep him talking until Cole returned. She glanced around, looking for a weapon, an avenue of escape, but there was none. She was lying on the couch, her position making her even more vulnerable.

  “You know,” he continued. “They went to great length to introduce me to Owen’s sister. She’s a friend of yours too, isn’t she?”

  At the mention of Michelle, Naomi’s heart kicked. “Stay away from her.”

  Eli jerked the knife away from her throat, raising it above his head and swinging downwards. Naomi tensed and shut her eyes, instinctively bracing for the feeling of steel cutting through flesh.

  He laughed, and she opened her eyes and saw he’d stabbed the couch cushion half an inch from her face. Her heart was pounding so loudly she almost missed his next words.

  “You don’t get to tell me what to do.”

  The slap caught her unawares, sending fiery pain down the right side of her face. She cried out, tasting blood in her mouth, knew she’d cut her lip.

  “Stop fighting, or I’ll have to hurt you.” It chilled Naomi to have such a threat uttered in a pleasant tone. He raised his hand preparing to strike her again, and she stilled, not wanting to give him the opportunity to do something he would clearly enjoy.

  “That’s better.”

  “I know you killed Lily Martin. I know you’re the Phantom.”

  Eli smiled, and pulled the knife out of the cushions, gesturing for her to sit up. She felt immense relief at no longer being on her back.

  “The Phantom is sitting in jail,” Eli retorted, smug. “No thanks to you by the way. I wonder what the public would think if they knew you’d come back to interfere in another investigation. I probably shouldn’t have leaked the information to the press last time, but it’s your own fault for interfering with my fun.”

  She had always wondered how newspapers had gotten wind of her involvement; now she knew.

  “You left a trail,” she said instead, wanting to shake his confidence. “You weren’t as thorough as you thought you were.”

  The smile faded instantly, replaced by the pulsing fury Naomi had sensed lurking just below the surface. This time she saw the blow coming and tensed, bracing for the pain. The hit sent her flying off the couch and onto the ground. Her vision blurry, one eye already swelling shut, she couldn’t help the whimper that escaped when he roughly turned her on her back.

  Not sure she could withstand another blow, she stayed where she was, trying to regain her bearings. Touching the dampness she felt on her face, her fingers came away red, smeared with blood.

  “I didn’t leave a trail, you lying bitch.”

  A sound behind them had Eli jerking Naomi to her feet in front of him. He pressed the knife against her neck hard enough for her to know that it wouldn’t take much to slit her throat. Glancing up, she squinted through her swollen eye, nearly collapsing to her knees in relief.

  Cole.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  A bead of sweat trickled down the back of Cole’s neck, his arms were raised, his gun pointed. Everything had happened at once. They’d found Eli in the living room, towering over Naomi, her face swollen and battered. It had been Leah’s involuntary cry that had alerted Eli, who’d jerked Naomi in front of him, pressing the blade of a knife against her neck.

  “Let her go, Eli.” Cole tried to keep his voice calm, his hands steady. “Put the knife down and let her go.”

  He couldn’t believe he was saying those words. Eli was the Phantom.

  Cole was barely restraining his temper, his rage straining his control as he saw the blood on Naomi’s face. He’d been in tough situations in the past, but never one that was this personal. Everyone in the room, both killer and cops, threatened to snap at any moment.

  Owen had his gun out beside him, his face a mix of rage and incredulity. Cole knew he considered Naomi an honorary sister, and it wouldn’t take much to push his partner over the edge.

  “Let her go,” Cole repeated, taking a small measured step closer. “It doesn’t have to be this way.”

  “I would stay back if I were you,” Eli replied, tightening his grip on Naomi. “You’re making me nervous and my hand is bound to slip.”

  “Eli.” Leah stepped forward, her gun lowered, her face pleading. “Eli, what are you doing?”

  Cole knew she was reeling from the betrayal, the implosion of a reality she’d believed her entire life. Whatever happened next, Leah had lost her brother tonight.

  “What does it look like I’m doing?” Eli responded, his face impassive.

  “Why?” she asked in desperation. As if she would give anything to hear Eli deny what he’d done, what he was doing. As though her brother would have some rational explanation for the horrific scene unfolding before them.

  “Why?” Eli looked puzzled at the question. “No reason. Because I like it. Having access to your files made it more fun though.”

  Naomi reached out a hand and touched his arm. Cole tensed, not knowing what she was doing, worried she would push Eli over the edge. Terrified for her, he focused his entire being on finding an opening to take a shot.

  “I can see them.” Naomi’s voice was confident, calm. “I can see all of them. Diana Rominov.”

  “What did you say?” Cole watched Eli’s face pale. Good, keep him talking, he thought. Keep him off-balance so he lessens his hold and gives one of us the chance to take the damn shot.

  “She was your first, wasn’t she? In middle school, in the deserted section near the football field. You told her you’d kill her dog if she told anyone. You took her earrings, the ones shaped like tiny fish, and you gave them to Leah for Christmas. Tracy Campbell at Summer Camp. Gina Martinelli in high school. So many women. So many names. I can see them all.”

  “Shut up,” Eli snarled, his face twisted in fury. “You don’t understand anything.”

  “Oh, but I do,” Naomi countered in that same easy tone. “I understand you like trophies. You broke into your victims’ homes before you assaulted them, as a test. You always took something. A bracelet from Rachel Li, a small figurine from Pranati Singh. Lily’s elephant necklace. And you would give them to Leah afterwards, because you liked seeing her wear your gifts in public, where you could admire them.” She paused, her gaze unfocused. “The second drawer of your desk in your study has other belongings from the women you assaulted while you were traveling. It’s all there in your head. I can see it.”

  With a cry of rage, Eli shoved Naomi away from him, brea
king the contact. She stumbled and fell to the ground. He raised his arm, knife outstretched, his face a mask of fury that could no longer be contained.

  The sound of a shot being fired echoed in the suddenly quiet room as Eli fell back, a bloom of red on his chest. Cole hadn’t fired his gun, spared a quick look at Owen who shook his head. He turned to Leah, and knew he would never forget the bleak devastation in her eyes. She’d shot her brother to save Naomi’s life.

  Cole was already moving toward Naomi, helping her up and pulling her into his arms. He watched as Owen approached Eli with caution, kicking the knife away, and checking the man’s injury.

  It didn’t look good.

  When Eli coughed up blood, Cole knew the shot had punctured a lung. He heard Leah on her phone calling for an ambulance. Within a few minutes the house would be swarming with cops and paramedics. It would be too late.

  Leah made a sound, something between a sob and a gasp as she fell by her brother’s side. Holding his hand, begging him to keep his eyes open. Despite her pleas, they could only watch as he took one slow ragged breath after another, until at last, his chest stilled, his eyes open but unseeing.

  “He’s gone,” Owen said, his eyes moving to Leah, who was begging Eli to say something. “I’m so sorry.”

  Cole moved his gaze to Naomi. “We have to get you out of here. No one can know that you’re in Boston.” He hated the thought of letting her go. He’d almost lost her tonight.

  “What’s our story?” Owen asked, interrupting his thoughts. They didn’t have a lot of time. “How do we explain all this?”

  Cole had to think quickly. “We stick to as close to the truth as possible,” he decided. “We left the party early because we wanted to review some information about the Lily Martin case, which made us believe Eli was a person of interest. We found him here, he attacked me and we were forced to take action.” He glanced at Leah and then Owen. “Good?”

  Leah nodded, though her eyes were still glazed with shock.