RAINEY DAYS

by Bradshaw, R. E.

  The third story was merely an attic storage space. An artificial Christmas tree stood at one end surrounded by boxes of ornaments and decorations. Several boxes, labeled baby things, were stacked inside a crib at the other end. A teddy bear slept in a stroller nearby. Rainey’s heart broke for the woman, who had packed her dreams away in those boxes, with hopes of needing them again. Rainey had never wanted children, never had the time really, but she could certainly understand the pain of loss.

  In the basement, she found the washing machine and dryer, a treadmill and weights and not much else. A wooden door, with paned windows, was the only exit to outside. She checked the bolt was securely in place and went back upstairs. She found Katie alone, loading the dishwasher. She saw a list on the counter with a stack of twenty-dollar bills.

  “What’s this?” Rainey asked, pointing at the paper and money.

  “One of the boys volunteered to do some shopping for me. They were all so nice. I hope JW is paying you enough to take care of them, too.”

  “Oh, yeah,” Rainey answered, “He’s paying enough.”

  “There isn’t enough money to pay you for what you are doing. Thank you again for all of this,” Katie said.

  Rainey refilled her coffee, turning back to Katie, “We’re in this together. I want this guy caught so we can all go on with our lives.”

  “Amen to that sister,” Katie said, wrapping her arms around Rainey, pulling her in for an embrace.

  Katie was a hugger. Rainey was not used to being hugged by a woman other than Ernie. Rainey’s heart thumped against her chest. She returned the hug and was met by a tighter squeeze. They both jumped when they heard the French doors open. They released each other and turned to see Junior poking his head in the door.

  “Rainey, the FBI is here.”

  “Thanks, Junior,” she said, and then looked at Katie. “Well, the cavalry has arrived.”

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  The suspect had made one mistake, as far as Rainey could tell. He had attacked an FBI Agent, making this a federal case. The BAU did not have to be invited to participate. Their jurisdiction superseded that of local law enforcement. The killer had brought the full force of federal law enforcement and all the tools at their disposal, down on his head. Three big black SUVs pulled into the driveway and a small army of agents descended on the house.

  “Let the games begin,” Rainey whispered under her breath.

  She opened the French doors, stepping out on the patio. She waved at Danny when he exited the first vehicle. Danny McNally looked just like his name made him sound. He was tall and broad, with red wavy hair and freckles to match. His childlike face and cherub cheeks made him look younger than his forty-two years. He looked out of place, in the blue suit he was wearing. He preferred jeans and tennis shoes, although he could be persuaded to wear a tie and jacket with them. The suit had come with a promotion. He was now a lead investigator and he was heading the team on this investigation. Danny saw Rainey and walked quickly to her.

  “You look great Rainey,” he said, squeezing her into a bear hug. “It’s good to see you. I wish I were here under different circumstances.”

  “Me too, Danny, me too,” Rainey said.

  “I’ve got a call in to that detective we worked with last year. He’s going to liaison for us with all the local jurisdictions,” Danny said, looking back over his shoulder. “Do you think we could work here until they clear a space for us downtown?”

  Katie, who had been standing in the doorway answered, before Rainey had a chance, “Yes, of course. Make yourselves at home. There is coffee in the kitchen and I can make you something to eat.”

  “Special Agent Danny McNally, this is Katie Wilson,” Rainey introduced them.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Wilson,” Danny said, shaking Katie’s outstretched hand.

  “Please, call me Katie,” she said. “Come on in, you can put your things on the kitchen table.”

  Katie turned, going back through the open doorway. She had charmed him, like the pied piper, with Danny and his fellow mice streaming into the house, right behind her. Rainey smiled, watching Katie through the panes of glass in the doors. Katie flitted here and there making room for laptops and pouring coffee. Rainey shook hands with the other agents. She knew most of them, but had only worked personally with James the tech guru and Roger the strong and quiet one, standing guard behind the last SUV. They waved and smiled at each other, and then Rainey followed the last agent in and closed the door behind her.

  The agents went about setting up, while Katie bustled about making muffins in the kitchen. Danny called Rainey to the side. He wanted to talk somewhere more private, so Rainey took him out to the living room, at the front of the house. They sat down in matching wing back chairs, across from each other.

  Danny spoke first, “Where is Mr. Wilson, may I ask?”

  “He went to his office. Mackie is with him.” Rainey replied.

  “When will he be back?” Danny asked.

  “He said he only needed a few hours. I can call Mackie and see how much longer they’ll be.”

  “That’s okay. We can interview him when he gets back.” Danny looked around the room. “These people are loaded,” he said, followed by a whistle. He looked at Rainey for a second, then added, “How are you, Rainey?”

  “I’m alright, considering,” Rainey said.

  “Are you sleeping? What about the dreams?” He knew her too well.

  “They have been better, since I moved down here,” she lied.

  Danny had slept near her for two months, after the attack. He slept on the floor, by her bed, in her hospital room, until a nurse saw him and brought a cot. He slept on her couch when she went home to her apartment. He was the calming voice she awoke to, when the terror filled her dreams. He was always there, holding her, soothing her until she could regain control.

  “Don’t lie to me, Rainey. You are an important witness in this investigation. I need to know where your head is,” Danny said, locking her eyes with his.

  Rainey sat back against the Laura Ashley, pink and blue, floral patterned cushion, “A witness, I hadn’t thought of myself in those terms.”

  Danny leaned in closer to her. “You are a vital witness. You are the only one of his victims to have survived.”

  “Wow, witness and victim,” Rainey said.

  Danny cleared his throat, “I know it’s hard for you to think of yourself as a victim, but you know as well as I do, that you are the most important piece of evidence we have on this guy.”

  Rainey responded sharply, “I am fully aware of that, Danny. I know where this is going. You can’t shut me out of the investigation. I’m not in the Bureau anymore.”

  “Technically, you are on medical leave and besides, you know you can’t be objective,” Danny countered.

  Rainey stood up and paced the room. She knew he was right, but she wanted to be out there, hunting this guy like a cop, not a tool for the cops to use. Danny could not make her follow orders. She would just quit the Bureau completely. She had to believe in Danny, though. Rainey had worked side by side with him for seven years. She knew he was a good investigator and he had good instincts. Rainey had to relinquish control and follow his lead. It really was the best thing to do. She stopped pacing and leaned on the back of the armchair, she recently vacated.

  “I’ll do what you need me to, Danny. I trust you.”

  “That’s all I want, Rainey, is for you to trust me. We’ll get this guy.”

  “Okay, how can I help?” Rainey asked. She sat back down.

  “One of the other agents is going to take your statement. She’ll want to go over your stalker investigation with you in detail. I’ll need the note you received last night, from JW, and the one addressed to you.” Danny said, and pulled a pad from his pocket. He thumbed through a few pages, before he found what he was looking for. “You said the originals are in a safe, in your office?”

  Rainey answered, “Yes, I can get them for you
, but they’ve already been run for prints. Only JW’s prints showed up.”

  “I’d still like to have a look at them. We’ll send someone with you to get them later.” Danny looked at the pad again, asking, “Do you think he targeted your friend’s wife to get to you?”

  “No,” Rainey answered quickly, because she had thought about that already. “I think it was just a fluke. How could he have known, I knew JW?”

  “Okay, I thought it was worth asking.” Danny went on, “Anyway, I’m going to need you to give the video of the guy you saw the other night to James. Maybe he can enhance it.”

  “Sure, anything else?” Rainey stood up.

  Danny rose from his seat and moved in close to her, “You never answered my question, how are you?”

  “Tired, angry, frustrated and yes, scared,” Rainey answered him.

  “And the dreams?” Danny persisted.

  “They did go away soon after I moved, but I started having them again around my birthday.”

  “Maybe you’ve experienced something recently, something you are unaware of, that triggered the return,” Danny suggested.

  “It’s possible, I guess,” Rainey said, thinking of the prospect that she may have subconsciously picked up on something she had seen or heard.

  “Okay, then, after the agent has talked to you, we’ll see about getting those notes and pictures from your office,” Danny said, putting an arm around her shoulder.

  Rainey leaned into him and put an arm around his waist. They stood there for a moment then went back to the kitchen. Some of the agents were eating fruit and nibbling on toast while they went over investigative reports. Rainey recognized the names on the folders, the killer’s victims. She saw her own name and felt her stomach turn over. In that folder were the details of what she had endured the night she was attacked. Pictures of her brutalized body were clipped to the inside. She had not seen the pictures. She was not even aware they had been taken, but she knew they were there. There were always pictures of the victim.

  Katie was leaning on the kitchen island, pen in hand, writing on a pad that said, “Teach from the Heart” across the top.

  Rainey moved over to the island. She leaned down on her elbows next to Katie.

  “Making another list I see,” Rainey said.

  “I need more supplies, even with the ones Junior brought in a little while ago,” Katie said, tapping her head with the end of the pen.

  “You really don’t have to feed everybody.”

  Katie turned her face to Rainey, they were inches apart. “It keeps me busy. I couldn’t just sit around. I’d rather not have the time to think about a crazed man out there hunting us.”

  Katie’s eyes were even more dazzling up close. The starburst patterned colors of her iris, ranged from a deep midnight blue to sky blue, with golden highlights.

  “Rainey, I asked if you have any requests.” Katie was looking at Rainey, who had been lost in the other woman’s eyes. She had not heard Katie speaking to her.

  “No, I’m fine, but thanks for asking,” Rainey managed to say, though she was beginning to panic.

  What was happening to her? Rainey was developing a major crush on this woman. Not now, she thought, not while I need to be focused on keeping us both safe. Rainey knew what falling for someone felt like. She had done it with Bobby and a few others along the way, but never with a woman. Unless she counted the schoolgirl crushes she had experienced, but they never felt like this. She felt an electrical charge between them, a physical heat that kept rising. Rainey had to get away, but she wanted to stay right here beside Katie. She was so conflicted it must have shown on her face.

  “What’s wrong?” Katie asked.

  Rainey stood up. “Nothing’s wrong. I was just thinking.”

  “It must have been something important. You looked so worried,” Katie said, studying Rainey’s face.

  Rainey thought quickly, “Danny called me a victim. I have a hard time thinking that way.”

  “It must be hard, going from the hunter to the hunted,” Katie said. Her look of empathy was genuine.

  “Yes, it is. I’m not looking forward to going over it all again,” Rainey said, moving away from Katie.

  Katie remained focused on Rainey, forgetting her list. “I’m a good listener, if you need to talk, not about what happened, just if you need a shoulder to lean on.”

  Rainey smiled, “I appreciate that.”

  Katie went back to her list and Rainey wandered over to the agents at the table. A tall, athletically built, black woman with close-cropped hair asked if she could take Rainey’s statement now. Rainey remembered her name was Paula, but she only knew her in passing. She was a new member of the BAU and Rainey had not had time to get to know her, before she left. Rainey showed Paula to the living room where they talked for an hour. Rainey went over every detail she could remember about the stalker investigation. Paula did not ask any questions about her attack, to Rainey’s relief.

  She went out to the Charger and retrieved the notes, passing them off to an agent wearing latex gloves. She gave her laptop to James so he could copy the video file and the pictures she had taken, while on the stakeout. Rainey asked if there was anything else she could do for them, and they said no.

  Rainey decided to call Ernie and give her the details of what was happening. She told her to stay home and keep the doors locked. Rainey was not sure how far this lunatic would go to terrorize her. She did not want to think about Ernie being in danger, but she told her to load her gun anyway. Ernie, though petite and very feminine could shoot the eyes out of a gnat. Rainey’s father had a gun for the office, because their clientele were, after all, criminals. Ernie had insisted he teach her how to use it. She was a crack shot from the beginning, having grown up on a farm surrounded by guns; she was very capable and willing to use one.

  “Now, don’t you go trying to be a hero. Let those other agents do their jobs,” Ernie scolded.

  “I won’t do anything crazy, I promise,” Rainey said. “You be careful, too.”

  “Don’t worry about me. My boys will take care of me and I will shoot the little bastard, if he tries to come in my house, I guarantee you that.”

  Rainey believed her. Not only would Ernie shoot someone, that person would have to get past her four sons, who were all over six feet tall and loved their momma. She thought about Freddie.

  “Could you get the boys to take you to the cottage to feed Freddie for me? I might be gone for a couple of days. You don’t have to go today. I’m going to get the notes and pictures out of the safe and I’ll feed him.”

  “He can feed himself from all the stuff he drags up, but I’ll go out there anyway,” Ernie said.

  Rainey laughed. “He doesn’t eat them, they’re gifts.”

  “Gifts, my behind,” Ernie said. “That cat’s a killer, no question about it. I think he’s part bobcat.”

  “I’ve thought that myself, from time to time,” Rainey said. “You take care now and I’ll see you, as soon as this is over with.”

  “Rainey, you know I love you, don’t you?” Ernie said softly.

  “I love you too, Ernie. I’ll be careful,” Rainey said, almost tearing up. “I gotta go,” she added, so she would not have to say anything else.

  “Be safe, honey. See you soon,” Ernie said, and then hung up.

  Rainey found Danny chatting with Katie, in the den. He had just finished interrogating her, but she really had little to offer in the way of successfully identifying her stalker. She had been completely unaware of his existence until last night. They were talking about her teaching career when Rainey came in. Katie was going on about how she loved her job and the challenge of molding young minds. Rainey listened as the animated Katie told amusing stories about what messes six year olds can get into. Most involved scissors and glue.

  When Katie finished, Rainey said, “Danny, do you think I can go home now, take a shower and grab some clothes. I would really love to brush my teeth. I can grab the st
uff out of the safe while I’m there.”

  Katie brightened, “Do you think I can come along, so we can go to the grocery store?”

  Rainey and Danny responded simultaneously, “No.”

  “Please, I don’t think he’s going to try anything, in the grocery store,” Katie argued.

  Danny thought, and then said, “Okay, we have to go meet Detective Griffin. He’s got a room set up at the police department. We’re moving most of the agents down there.”

  Rainey asked, “How many are you leaving here, with us?”

  “I’m assigning Roger and three others to watch you. Their only job is to keep you covered at all times.”

  Rainey looked at Katie, “Roger is a good agent. He’ll keep us safe.”

  Danny continued, “I think four agents ought to be able to take a lady shopping, if she needs to.”

  Danny had fallen under Katie’s spell. Against his better judgment, he was doing what would make her happy. Rainey probably would have given in, too. They loaded up, Katie and Rainey in the Charger and four agents trailing in an SUV. It took twenty minutes to get to the cottage. Rainey listened as Katie talked about growing up just outside of Durham, with her parents and sisters, and where she had gone to high school. She never once mentioned JW. She questioned Rainey about her childhood and Rainey told her the story of discovering her real father at age ten. They arrived at the cottage just as Rainey was finishing up the story.