by Ruth Langan
“I wouldn’t count on it. You see, I waited until I was sure your assistant was gone before coming in.” To her surprise he tossed aside the bloody towel. “Red dye. I thought we could have a lot more fun alone.”
Emily’s stomach clenched when she saw the glint of steel, revealing what he’d kept hidden beneath the towel. In his hand was a very shiny, very sharp knife.
Jason glanced at his watch as he waited for the valet to bring his car. He’d been tied up all day, first with the head of security for the hotel, and then with Chief Boyd Thompson. It had taken all Jason’s powers of persuasion to get Boyd to abandon his paperwork to swing by the Harbor House and view the security tape. Even after seeing it, the chief had been reluctant to believe Albert Sneed’s presence in the hotel elevator could signal any sort of danger.
“He’s assisted in maintenance here for years. The manager said it isn’t at all unusual for him to check out the elevator at odd hours, when he’s through with his work at the Y, or over at the schoolhouse. That old guy’s been around Devil’s Cove since the Stone Age. What right do you have coming back here and throwing your celebrity around to make him out to be some kind of evil villain?”
“This wasn’t my choice, Boyd. I didn’t invite him up for fun and games. Ever since I got here he’s been stalking me.”
“So you say.”
“And stalking Emily. Her clinic was broken into.”
At that Boyd’s head came up sharply. “Why didn’t she file a report?”
“Nothing was taken. And then the other morning her things were disturbed in the gym locker, but again nothing was taken, so she didn’t report that, either.”
“How convenient.”
Jason ignored the note of sarcasm. “All I know is that Albert was working at the gym that morning. He had the opportunity and the time. Now all you need to determine is his motive. At least interview him in an official capacity and ask why he’s doing this, though I think I know why.”
“You think? Yeah, that’s the trouble with fiction writers. They think too much. First you think you can link a couple of murders that are ancient history in this town. Then you come back and try to twist your fiction into fact. Well, I don’t need you to tell me how to do my job.” Boyd flushed when he realized the head of the hotel security was watching and listening. He turned away abruptly. “I’ll go see Albert right now and get to the bottom of this.” As he started away he paused. “Just remember that all of this started when you returned to Devil’s Cove. If you’re doing this for publicity, I’ll see you prosecuted to the limit.”
When the valet held the door of his car Jason slid behind the wheel and paused to dial the number to Emily’s clinic.
His tension eased when he heard Mel’s voice on the machine. After the beep he said, “I see you’ve finished with your patients right on schedule, Dr. Brennan. Think you could spare me a few minutes of your time? I should be there soon. I’m leaving the Harbor House now.”
His smile remained as he put the car in gear. If he hurried there was still time to set off a few fireworks of their own before the evening’s festivities.
At the sound of Jason’s voice on the message machine, Emily felt her heart soar. But one look at Albert’s face had the panic returning. It was obvious that he wasn’t about to be frightened off by Jason’s arrival.
“I couldn’t have planned this any better.” He waved the knife and saw the way she stared at it with a sort of horrified fascination. He loved the sense of power this gave him. He stood a little taller. His voice rang with authority as he savored the moment. “Sit down on that stool in the corner.”
When Emily didn’t move quickly enough he gave her a shove, slamming her against the wall. “I said sit.”
Dazed, she did as he ordered.
He gave a nod of approval. “Good. Now there’s nothing to do but wait.”
“For what?”
“For your lover boy to show up and the fun to begin.”
“What fun, Albert?”
“Oh, I think you know, Doc.”
Emily’s throat was so dry, she could barely swallow. She thought of her grandparents, just a few rooms away. More than anything, she wanted them safe. Maybe, when Jason arrived, she could shout a warning, and he could at least see that they were taken to safety.
As if reading her mind Albert threw back his head and laughed. “I can see the wheels turning in that pretty little head, Doc. Sorry to spoil your plans.”
He dragged her into his arms, holding the knife to her throat.
When Emily heard the crunch of footsteps outside the clinic door, her heart began pounding so wildly, she wondered that it didn’t just rip clear through her chest.
“Emily?” Jason’s voice was muffled through the closed door.
“She’s in here.” Albert yanked open the door to the examination room.
Jason paused on the threshold. The sight of Emily being held in Albert’s arms, the blade of a knife to her throat, filled him with a blaze of white-hot fury.
“You don’t want to hurt her, Albert.”
“That’s where you’re wrong. I’m going to enjoy hurting her, just like I did those others. And this time, when I’m through with her, the whole town is going to call me a hero for catching the guy who killed all those poor innocent girls in the past.”
Jason’s eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”
“You may be a big rich writer now, but you’re still the son of the town drunk. What are people going to think when there hasn’t been a killing in Devil’s Cove since you left town, and now, just a week after you’re back, it’s started again?” Albert gave a high, shrill laugh. “Add to that the message you left on the good doctor’s machine, and the fact that your fingerprints are going to be all over this knife, and what we have here is exactly what you predicted in that book of yours. What did you call it? Oh yeah. Secrets in a Small Town. Well, after today, there won’t be any more secrets. At long last, everyone will know the name of the infamous Devil’s Cove serial killer.”
Chapter 15
It tore at Jason’s heart to see the fear in Emily’s eyes. To see the blade of Albert’s knife pressed to her throat. Whatever wild and confused feelings had slammed into him when he’d first caught sight of her being held at knifepoint, now there was only one. He was filled with an all-consuming need to keep her safe, no matter what the cost to himself.
For now, his best chance was to bide his time and keep this madman talking, rather than acting.
“You don’t want to hurt Emily, Albert. She isn’t like the others you killed.”
The hand at her throat tightened perceptibly. “How would you know?”
“I researched the murders. I got to know the victims. I learned a lot about you, too.”
“You never knew it was me. You were only guessing.”
“That’s right. I was. But it was an educated guess. I knew the murders were linked, even though there were years between them. I decided they were linked not only by the weapon of choice…” He flicked a glance at the knife, then back at Albert’s face. “…but also by the killer’s ability to get the girls to agree to be alone with him. What did you use, Albert? Physical force?”
A sly smile touched the old man’s mouth. “Even better. A note from their teacher.”
Emily’s stomach gave a sickening lurch at the thought of a trusted teacher’s name, perhaps even her own grandmother’s, being used to lure three helpless girls to their deaths.
“As for the weapon, a gun makes too much noise. But a knife…” He caressed it with a quick slide of his finger. “…smooth as butter. And when it’s handled by a pro, every bit as effective as a bullet.”
“But why? Why did you have to kill those girls?” The question escaped Emily’s lips before she could stop herself.
“Why?” Again that high, shrill laugh that scraped over her nerves as his fingers dug into her shoulder. “Because they weren’t nice. They needed to show a little respect. To them I
was nothing more than a machine that fixed a leaky faucet or a plugged toilet. Did they think I didn’t overhear their nasty little comments when they saw me on my hands and knees in the filth of the bathroom or furnace room? Did they think I had no feelings when they treated me like dirt?”
Jason needed to draw Albert’s attention away from Emily. His hand was too tense. The knife’s blade too close to her throat. “Is that what Cindy did?”
Albert blinked. “Was that her name? Huh.” He gave a grunt of confusion. “Yeah. That’s right. Cindy. Half undressed with some boy in the girl’s bathroom when I walked in. She didn’t even have the decency to act ashamed. She just laughed and said, ‘You don’t have to worry. It’s only old Albert.’” His eyes narrowed. “Old Albert. I guess I showed her.”
“What about the migrant worker who was found guilty in that crime?”
“He was so drunk I nearly stumbled over him. Lucky for me.” He gave another laugh. “Unlucky for him.”
“And the second girl? Mary Lou?”
“She caught me with some girlie pictures in the furnace room and threatened to turn me in to the school board. I had to work fast, so I slipped a note into her locker and signed the drama coach’s name, asking her to stay after school and try out for a lead in the school play.” He cackled at his own joke. “She got the lead, all right. I made her a star. She was in all the headlines the next day.”
Jason gauged the distance between Albert and himself, wondering how many seconds it would take to yank Emily free. Enough to keep that knife from ripping through her flesh? He couldn’t afford any wrong turns now. One misstep and he could be the cause of even more pain in the process.
“What did you do with the note?”
He gave a sly grin. “I made sure it disappeared.”
“And Annette? The third girl?” Jason touched a hand to the examining table that stood between them. Too heavy to toss aside. Too high to leap over. He’d have to risk going around it, even though it would mean a few extra seconds.
“That little slut.” Albert’s grin faded. “She was older than the other two. Old enough to know what she was doing.”
“What was she doing?” Jason very carefully planted his feet, slightly apart, and tensed.
“Teasing me. She’d stop by my office once a week on one pretense or another. One day she claimed she needed the master key to the lockers, because she’d lost hers. Another time she claimed a teacher had sent her to ask me to turn up the heat in the east wing of the school. She turned up my heat instead. I found out later that it was all a lie, to see how much I’d be willing to do for her. When I overheard her bragging to her friends that she’d found the perfect old fool to buy her booze for a beach party, I decided to have a little party of my own.”
“So you got her drunk, and then drowned her instead of slitting her throat. Clever.” Jason kept his voice soothing. “That explains not only why you wanted them hurt, but why the police couldn’t link the murders. But why do you want to hurt Emily? She never showed you any disrespect, Albert.”
“This isn’t about the doc. It’s about you.”
“Then let her go and deal with me.”
“You think I’m stupid? That’s what they all thought. Stupid Albert. Dirty Albert. Drunk Albert.” His lips peeled back in a feral snarl. “That’s right. I know what they said about my drinking. Your dad was the only one who didn’t think he was too good to drink with me.”
“My father would have joined a nest of rattlers if they’d offered him a drink.”
“You see?” Albert waved the knife about wildly. “You always thought you were better’n him. Better’n me, too. That day you lit out of town, I told your old man if you was my son I’d kill you.”
“He tried to a number of times.” Jason had to fight to keep his tone even. Even now, after all these years, he could barely speak of his father without feeling the pain.
“And still you came back. This is your fault. If you hadn’t written your stupid book, no one would have given those dead girls a thought. It would have all gone along like before, and the doc could have lived. But now she’ll have to pay the price.”
“For sleeping with me?”
“For mattering to you.”
“Is that why you’ve been stalking us?”
“I had to learn your weakness. Everybody has one. Let’s see how big and smart and important you are when I take away the thing that matters most to you.” The sly look was back. “I bet you thought I didn’t even know about your book, or the fact that it was about me.”
“I was describing a fictional killer. One I saw only in my own mind.”
“Then how come you made him look like me? Sound like me? Drink like me?”
“The similarity was only in your mind. In fact, I really ought to thank you, Albert, for exorcising my worst demon. You see, all along, while researching the book, while writing it, I thought the one who’d killed those girls was my father.”
“Liar. You knew it was me.” Albert’s eyes narrowed. “When you showed up for Mrs. B.’s tribute, I figured it was a sign. The old Albert, Evil Albert, needed to come back one more time.”
“Is that what you called yourself while you were killing those girls?”
“That’s right.” He gave a sly wink. “It was Evil Albert. He was the one killed them. He’s the one holding the knife to the doc’s throat right now.”
“All right, Evil Albert. Why the break-ins?”
“To watch you sweat.” Albert gave a short laugh. “That night I was here in the clinic, I could see all this in my mind. Where I would stand. How you’d look when you realized I was going to kill the woman you loved. And how you’d beg for mercy when I started cutting her.” He pressed the blade of the knife against Emily’s throat.
Jason knew the time for talk was over. Unless he moved now, Emily would pay the price.
He hurled himself against Albert, slamming him against the wall, while at the same instant wrenching Emily from his grasp and flinging her aside with such force she fell to her knees.
“Run, Em,” he shouted as he closed both hands around Albert’s wrist, struggling to wrestle the knife from his grasp.
“She’s not going anywhere, and neither are you.” Albert butted his head into Jason’s midsection, driving him to the floor. In the blink of an eye he straddled him, and lifted the knife high, taking aim at Jason’s heart.
Seeing that Emily had flung open the drug cabinet, Albert shouted, “If you try anything stupid, Doc, I’ll kill him.”
When she hesitated Jason said, “He’s going to kill me anyway. Save yourself, Emily.”
But it wasn’t her own life she was concerned with now.
Before Albert could drive his weapon home Jason swung his arm in an arc, feeling the blade bite deep into his hand before clattering to the floor. Ignoring the blood that spurted from Jason’s wound, the two men rolled around and around the floor, scrambling for possession of the knife.
Just as Jason managed to close a hand around the handle, he felt a blow to his head that had him seeing stars. By the time his vision cleared, Albert was once again straddling him. This time the sharp edge of the knife was against his throat.
“It would’ve been more fun for me if you could’ve been around to watch the doc die, but I can’t wait any longer to have my revenge.” Albert leaned forward to finish the deed.
Suddenly he stiffened, and his eyes went vacant. As he slumped forward, Jason scrambled aside and watched as the knife slipped from his nerveless fingers.
He looked up to see Emily holding a syringe. Though her face had lost all its color, and her legs were trembling, she managed to cry, “Oh, Jason, I thought I was going to be too late to save you.”
“You were just in time.” Because he was too exhausted to stand, he caught her hand and drew her down to his arms.
They looked up when Boyd Thompson came rushing into the room, followed by several of his officers. “I’ve been looking everywhere for…” He stoppe
d short and stared at the bloody mess that littered the floor, and the still figure of Albert Sneed. “Is he dead?”
Emily shook her head. “Out cold. I injected him with a full shot of Dilaudin. It’ll take several hours before he’ll be alert enough to answer any of your questions.”
Boyd knelt and touched a finger to Albert’s neck, before turning to Emily and Jason. “I’m really sorry. I got it into my head that your book was an indictment of my father’s work, and I let that color my judgment. By the time I realized that you might have a valid complaint against Albert, I’d wasted a lot of precious time.” While his officers began to photograph the scene, he helped Jason and Emily to their feet and led them to the outer office.
They slumped down on the sofa in the waiting room, clinging together.
Boyd stood facing them. “You have every right to file a formal complaint against me for my behavior.”
Jason kept one arm around Emily, to assure himself that she was really safe. “I don’t want you to lose your badge or your job, Boyd.”
“You don’t? Do you realize that if you file a complaint, the county’s review board would launch a full-scale investigation?”
Jason managed a grim smile. “I’m not interested in county investigations or review boards. From now on I’ll happily settle for fictional criminals who live only in my head.”
Emily breathed a quiet sigh of relief before taking his hand in hers. “This will need stitches.”
He shot her a grin. “Know a good doctor?”
For the first time in what seemed an eternity, she found her smile. “As a matter of fact, I do.”
“Better make it quick.” He wondered why everything looked so normal. The office. The police chief. The woman who was holding his hand. Maybe it would all come crashing down on him later. But for now, for this moment, the woman he loved was safe, and the madman who had spent a lifetime hiding his crimes was now effectively out of commission. “We have a banquet to attend.”
