A good plan. “Can I help with that?”
“My team can handle it.”
Sam wanted to take both Lily and Kait away from here. Away from Rhodes. At the very least, he wanted to be part of Lily’s detail, but he’d settle for having one of his guys on the team. A man he could trust, count on. “I’ll sleep better at night if you let me assign one of our men to the house, too.”
“Sure, why not? One more person will help keep Fenton from getting his hands on her.”
“I’ll arrange it then,” he said, his earlier comment returning to his mind. “You said when the time was right, he’d take her. What do you think needs to happen before he does that?”
Her eyes flashed up to his. “Good question.”
Sam really needn’t have asked. His years as a homicide detective told him the answer. He just had to be willing to admit it.
Kait had to suffer. First, Rhodes wanted her to feel guilty for not being able to keep him away from Lily and not stopping him from killing others. Then, he’d take Lily. Step back and watch Kait writhe in anguish over her loss.
And when he was done toying with her? Then . . . then he would revel in ending her life.
THE ACHE IN Fenton’s gut propelled him forward, the pain in his leg forgotten. He should be thrilled with watching the chaos he’d created, and salivating over Kait’s anguish. But she’d failed him again. Not falling apart at the discovery of his gift. Looking strong and in control as she’d marched into the house. This wasn’t how he’d planned it, and her reaction did nothing to stem the pressure threatening to burst his skull.
He pounded his hands on his temples. Stop. Please. Please, stop. It had to end. Soon. He thought it would have by now—that each little step would provide the patience to wait for the grand finale. But he needed more.
Now!
Something to take the edge off. Just to tide him over until he had Lily in his care and Kait in shackles. Since Kait refused to show the agony he’d caused her, he’d keep inflicting more until she had to release it.
He looked around the area, searching, seeking anything to dull the throbbing ache. He spotted a reporter frantically looking for a story to build her career. She was mingling in the crowd. Far from the police officers at the barricade. He could smell her desperation twenty feet away. She’d do. Yes, she’d do. For now.
It’d be risky, but he’d take a gamble. Law enforcement hadn’t distributed his picture to the media yet, so the reporter wouldn’t recognize him. Plus, he’d quit shaving and wore a cap pulled low over his face. He’d be fine.
He slipped through the onlookers milling around the news crew. He set his sights on the Barbie doll reporter, nearly foaming at the mouth for her next story, but he wouldn’t make it easy for her. He’d make her work for it, too. Yes! A bonus. Doubling his pleasure.
He just needed a patsy to help him out. He stepped up to a stubby little man. “Wow. Can you believe this happened in our neighborhood? I mean a bomb threat at the same woman’s house who’s accused of killing that man and cutting out his heart?” he asked, though in fact, he was the only who accused her of killing Congdon in his delicious blue screen of death virus. This guy didn’t need to know that. “Too surreal.”
“She killed someone and cut out his heart?” The man’s voice spiraled above the crowd.
Perfect.
The reporter latched her opportunistic eyes on them and rushed over. “Cut out a heart?”
Fenton flashed an irritated look at her. “I don’t believe I was talking to you.”
“I’m sorry. With such close quarters, I couldn’t help but overhear you.” She planted a hand on a curvy hip and jutted it toward him.
Ah, yes. Sex appeal. Her go-to move. But after Abby, he was immune to other women.
She laid blood-red nails on his arm. “I’m Eva Waters. I’d love to get your story for a breaking news feature.”
“I don’t know,” he said, playing his part convincingly enough to garner an Oscar.
“Please,” she whined unbecomingly. “Everyone deserves to know if this woman is dangerous.”
“Yeah, man,” the stubby guy said. “Tell us.”
“I suppose you’re right.” Fenton took a step closer as if reserving his comments just for her. “What do you want to know?”
“Let’s start with your name and telling me how you’re associated with Ms. Knight,” she purred.
Name? Fenton thought for minute. A brilliant plan unfolded. “I’m Brian Youngblood. I was one of the victims of the computer crash yesterday.”
“Crash?”
Fenton tsked. “Just like the feds to keep this quiet.” He recounted the situation, embellishing the genius behind his virus. “I can’t believe they didn’t arrest her. But it is the government, after all. Guess they’re trying to quash any negative publicity and protect one of their own.”
With each word, Eva’s eyes grew rounder. “Perfect. I need to check a few facts, and then we’ll film the interview.”
“Facts? I don’t have time for any fact-checking.” Fenton glanced at his watch, the diamond-encrusted one Abby had given him on their first wedding anniversary. “I need to get going.”
“Won’t take me long.” She charged over to her cameraman, and the two of them powwowed for a few minutes before she raced back. “I don’t want to hold you up, Brian. I’ll do the interview now.”
“Great,” Fenton said. “Where do you want me?”
“Over by the van.”
Fenton followed her, the ache still swirling through his head with hurricane force. He fought the urge to clap his hands over his ears and shoved his hands in his pockets.
Don’t worry. It’ll go away after the interview.
If it didn’t, he’d have to consider escalating his plan for the ultimate payback.
SAM ACHED TO help Kait, but she wouldn’t let him. He’d had to pry her out of Lily’s room so Dane could comb the space, but despite Sam’s attempts to get her involved in processing the scene, she sat listless and lost in her thoughts. She’d provided the phone number from Rhodes’s phone call, but otherwise, she’d said very little in the last two hours. She’d simply settled at the kitchen island, her hands cupped around an ice-cold mug of coffee, her eyes staring into space as if she were alone.
Sam started to cross the room to her, but Dane came down the hallway, stepping in his path. He shouldered his case. “We’re done with the bedroom. We’ll take the box and note to the lab to work them for prints. We lifted a few prints throughout the room, but after the way our suspect left Congdon’s house so clean, I have to think we’ll discover they belong to family and friends.”
“I’d have to agree.”
“I’ve also printed all the entrances, and we’ll get the heart to Marcie. She’ll grab a DNA sample to confirm it belongs to Congdon.” Dane rooted around in his case and came up holding a plastic evidence bag with a mini wireless camera in it. “Found this in the blinds in the child’s bedroom. I thought maybe it was a nanny cam, but Agent Knight says she didn’t put it there.”
Sam stifled a curse. “So Rhodes has been watching her.”
Dane nodded. “We’ll try to track the camera’s serial number to see where he purchased it, but these things are dime a dozen and odds aren’t good.” He stowed the camera in his case. “Anything else you want done before we take off?”
“You get the alarm panel?”
He nodded. “Only found Kait’s prints.”
“Rhodes knew exactly where Kait would be this morning, so we should check the rest of the house for cameras.”
“Already done. Nothing.”
“Okay, then,” Sam said, searching for anything else that could help them locate Rhodes. “If he only had eyes in Lily’s room, he had to have been hanging out somewhere watching Kait. Mind tak
ing a walk with me to see if we can find evidence of his hiding spot?”
“Glad to help,” Dane replied.
Sam’s phone rang. He jerked it from the holder and spotted the number for his office on Caller ID. “I’ve got to take this.”
“No problem,” Dane said. “I’ll grab a few markers from the rig while you take the call, and we’ll be good to go.”
“Murdock,” Sam answered, but kept his eyes on Kait. Hearing about the camera in Lily’s room must have freaked her out even more, and could serve as her breaking point.
“The phone Rhodes used to call Knight this morning is a burner.” Yates’s voice was higher than normal. “And before you ask for any other updates, we struck out on finding Rhodes’s source of roc. We’ve checked all the hospitals and surgery centers, and none of them will admit to losing the drug. They could be covering up, or he could have brought drugs with him.”
Great. Another dead end. Sam wouldn’t let it get to him. “Nina’s SEAL is still following up on the roc. Hopefully, he’ll turn up a military connection. What about MedSoft? Get anything from them?”
“Nothing useful beyond the fact that Congdon worked for them. The fibbie analysts also bombed on finding Congdon’s vehicle on any of the security footage. Now ask me what I do have for you?”
“I’ll bite. What do you have?”
“Got an Officer Diaz on the line. He has Congdon’s vehicle under surveillance.”
Yes, finally! A solid lead. Sam knew Diaz from his patrol days. They couldn’t ask for a better cop to find the car. “Can you patch Diaz through to me?”
“Yeah.” Yates’s enthusiasm died. He couldn’t seriously think Sam would let him take this call, could he?
“So put him on.” Sam waited for the officer to come on the line. “What’s your 10-20, Diaz?”
Diaz announced an address a few miles away. Sam knew Diaz wouldn’t do anything stupid, but after seeing the depravity Rhodes was capable of, Sam had to warn Diaz. “Call for backup.”
“I plan to when we hang up.” Resentment flowed through Diaz’s tone.
Diaz miffed or not, Sam wouldn’t be responsible for another officer losing his life, so he added, “Maintain your distance. Do not under any circumstances approach the vehicle.”
“I haven’t, I—” Silence filled the phone.
“Diaz?” Sam asked, his concern ramping up. “Diaz, are you there?”
No answer. Sam looked at his screen to make sure the call hadn’t dropped and found a strong signal. “Diaz,” Sam said again.
“Hey, you!” Diaz shouted. “Police! Stop!”
“What’s going on, Diaz?”
“Suspect in sight,” he snapped out. “Gotta go.”
Sam wanted Rhodes captured, but Diaz needed to follow protocol. “Call for backup, Diaz, and wait.”
A loud clunk sounded through the phone, then silence. Had Diaz dropped his phone? Maybe to draw his weapon and go after Rhodes? A foolish move after Sam’s warning—a move that could get the man killed.
Chapter Twenty-Two
KAIT DIDN’T KNOW what was going on with Sam, but he looked agitated as he rushed across the family room toward her. His unsettled expression sent her radar clanging.
What’s happened now? Could she possibly handle more bad news?
“I’ve gotta go,” he said as soon as he reached her. “Stay here with the officers. Be back soon.” He turned to leave.
She grabbed his arm. “Where? What’s wrong?”
He looked mad at having to explain. “An officer spotted Congdon’s vehicle a few miles from here. Then a suspect.”
“Fenton?” Her stomach clenched. “Fenton left the car near here?”
Sam nodded. “I was on the phone with Officer Diaz, but lost him. He’s not responding. I requested backup for him, but if it’s Rhodes, I have to go.” Sam took off toward the door.
She wasn’t letting him go without her. She caught up to him. “I’m going with you.”
He shook his head hard. “You’re safer here.”
“I’m going.” She kept up with his pace.
He sighed out a breath of resignation, but didn’t slow. “I can’t waste time arguing. You can ride along, but you’ll wait in the car.”
At the front door, he stopped to give Dane instructions on searching the surrounding area.
Kait listened half-heartedly as she caught sight of the crowd eyeing her with unveiled interest. She’d seen her share of crime scene onlookers in her job, but she’d never been the focus of a group that looked like an angry mob. Were they blaming her for disrupting their lives this morning? Likely. Normally, she wouldn’t care, but she’d have to push through them to get to Sam’s car.
As if reading her mind, he pulled out his shield and stepped in front of her. “I’ll create a path. Stay close behind me.”
He barked out instructions for the onlookers to step aside, and she trailed him up the hill. A few neighbors she recognized called out, begging for an explanation to the chaos. She opted to keep her head down and plow ahead without any explanation.
In the car, Sam fired up his lights and siren.
“If you give me the address,” she said. “I can help you get there faster.”
Sam replied with the location of Congdon’s car.
“Say that again,” Kait whispered as the blood drained from her head.
Sam repeated the address.
No. Oh. No. She grabbed his arm, but words failed her.
He shot her a look. “What? What is it?”
“The address. It’s on my parents’ street. Fenton’s there. At my parents’ house.” She clutched his arm like a lifeline. “Oh, Sam. No. This is it. What we suspected. He’s gone after Lily.”
“STUPID, STUPID, STUPID.” Cursing his mistake, Fenton dragged the cop toward the patrol car parked across the street from his in-laws’ house.
Why had he come here? So what if the interview hadn’t given him the relief he sought? He should never have gone off half-cocked, running to the Knights’ house like this. But the urge to up the stakes after the reporter failed to provide relief sent him to Rosalind. He had to make this more personal by letting Kait know her precious law enforcement couldn’t stop him from getting to her and those she loved.
He’d been in such a hurry to act, he’d forgotten about leaving Elliot’s car here last night for them to find, along with his delectable little surprise inside.
Now he was screwed. So screwed. He had to get the cop in his patrol car. Otherwise, the neighbors would spot the guy sprawled on the ground. They’d call it in. Cops would scream to the area. Maybe arrest Fenton. Not happening.
He shoved the body into the car, the thrill of tying up Rosalind gone, and the pain—that grinding, mind-splitting pain—returned, threatening to explode his head. It was getting to be too much. All of it. This waiting. He’d spent too much time on the sidelines and needed to get into the fray.
You’re in the fray now. Knocking out a cop guarantees that.
But it was worth it, right? Seeing Rosalind’s eyes. The fear. Wondering if he was going to kill her. If he’d take or harm Lily. He wouldn’t hurt her, of course, but Rosalind didn’t know that.
He stepped away from the car. The memory of her eyes when he’d restrained her while Lily slept in the next room brought a smile as he raced for J.J.’s sports car. Fenton had backhanded her. Hard. Her head had whipped to the side, the loose flesh on her neck shaking like Jell-O. The witch deserved his treatment for sure. Her interfering ways. Always demanding. Never asking. Just like Kait. They were a pair. If Abby had lived, he’d have found a way to take her away from her family. She was the only sweet one in the bunch.
Abby. He pounded a fist on his forehead.
Focus. Must focus.
Abby needed
him to take revenge. His mind clearer now, he picked up his pace. He passed the Knight’s house and imagined Kait finding her mother. Then visualized Kait seeing the interview and learning another man had died because of her.
Good. This was better. Much better.
He settled behind the wheel, his mojo quickly resurfacing.
Payback sucks, Kait. But it’s oh so satisfying.
KAIT COULDN’T breathe. Couldn’t think. Lily. Kait’s precious, sweet Lily in danger from Fenton. Again. Kait’s parents in danger, too. She slid to the edge of her seat and searched the road ahead. Her eyes straining, her heart slamming against the wall of her chest.
Sam careened the car around the last corner.
Kait held fast and spotted a patrol car with lights flashing, the driver’s door open. “There.” She jabbed a finger at the cars. “Right behind Congdon’s beater.”
“Diaz is in the car.” Sam slowed, crawling to a stop behind the cruiser.
Diaz wasn’t moving. Was he dead? Another person who’d lost their life because of her? Nausea turned her stomach. She didn’t really want to learn the answer to her question, but she had to know. She drew her weapon and reached for the door handle.
Sam clamped a hand on her forearm. “You’re not going anywhere. This could be a trap to lure you here.”
“You don’t honestly expect me to sit here with an officer down and Fenton in the house with Lily?” She shrugged off his hand and lurched from the car.
Sam met her at the front of the vehicle, his weapon drawn. Together, they approached the patrol car. Diaz was slumped over the wheel, a dried river of blood on his neck.
“Watch my back while I check him out,” Sam said, already leaning into the vehicle.
Despite the palpable urge to charge across the street to check on Lily, Kait couldn’t leave Sam unprotected, so she stood her ground. She tracked her gaze up and down the street. The street she’d played on as a child. Tag. Soccer. Roller-skating. All enjoyed right here. Where birds chirped and a soft breeze whispered through the trees.
Web of Deceit Page 21
