by C. J. Cross
Dana stood and walked toward him, but he held up his hand. “Actually, I was thinking we could have this discussion somewhere else.” He closed the door behind him, jacket in hand. “I’m starving. Mind making this a lunch meeting?”
Dana fell into step with him. “What we have to discuss won’t take that long.”
Cramer grinned. “I see why Jake thinks you’d make a hell of an agent. You’ve got some fight in ya.”
His words nearly caused her to stumble. “He said that?”
“Sure did. He had quite a few compliments about your actions.”
“Like what?”
Cramer winked. “I’ll tell you all about it over lunch.”
“You haven’t touched your salad,” Cramer commented, wiping the burger grease from his mouth with a cloth napkin.
“I’m not hungry.” It wasn’t true, but everything about the smug agent was rubbing Dana the wrong way, including watching him tear into his undercooked meat.
There was something unnerving about the man. His unwavering attention made her feel vulnerable. The posh DC café on Ninth was a public enough place, and the outdoor patio they dined on was packed with patrons enjoying their meals, but none of it put Dana at ease. She couldn’t shake the unease that surrounded her under Cramer’s scrutiny.
“Suit yourself.” He pulled out a pack of Kents, the cigarette already in his mouth before he mumbled, “You mind?”
She shook her head. She wasn’t a fan of cigarette smoke, but anything to move this meeting along. “What else did Shepard say about me?” she asked impatiently.
“That you’re the key to blowing this case wide open.”
“I disagree, and I already told him I’m no longer interested in working on this investigation.”
“Dana, may I call you Dana?”
She nodded, begrudgingly, certain Cramer was using some kind of FBI intimidation strategy.
“I completely understand where you’re coming from, Dana. What you went through in Vegas and then being attacked in Maryland, it would scare anyone.”
“I’m not scared.”
“Then what’s keeping you from helping us nail this bastard? Jake tells me how close you got at the hotel. And there’s some church he wants to go back to investigate?”
“That’s why we went up to Maryland in the first place.”
Cramer nodded. “I know. That and to see if you could be trusted.”
Pushing her chair back, Dana dropped her napkin onto the table. “I don’t need to justify myself to you. I’ve done nothing wrong, and now I’d like to forget about all of this and get on with my life.”
Cramer stood quickly, blocking her path. “Dana, wait! Please, sit down and let me explain.”
There was a hardness to his voice she didn’t like. She crossed her arms, unwilling to let this man bully her.
Cramer exhaled a puff of smoke before stubbing out his cigarette with his shoe. “Look Dana, I brought you out here because this is something I don’t do often.”
“What’s that?”
“Apologize. I was wrong to accuse you of being involved. After what happened in Maryland, Jake vouched for you, and that’s good enough for me. I trust that man with my life. He’s the closest thing to family I’ve got left.”
“Good for you, but I don’t understand what any of this has to do with me.”
Cramer gestured for her to take a seat. Relenting, she sat, and he joined her. “I don’t ask this favor lightly or for myself, but for Jake. I’d hate for anything to happen to him.”
“What do you mean? Has something happened?”
“Not yet, but that’s why I’m asking you to stick this thing out. I know Jake. He’ll see this through even if it kills him.”
“You think it’ll come to that?”
“I don’t know, but I do think he has a better chance with you by his side. I’m not sure he’ll see this monster coming on his own.”
It wasn’t fair. Cramer was preying on Dana’s heartstrings and he knew it. He had her on the fence, and she hated him for it.
Jake’s blue eyes haunted her memories; his warm arms around her, his kind reassurances, his patience, his strength. Even though they’d only known each other a short while, Jake had been there for Dana countless times when she needed him. Did she owe him this? To stay the course?
No. She may have let herself lean on Agent Shepard, but it had been his choice to hold her up. Dana shook her head, making up her mind. “I’m sorry, Agent Cramer. I’m not changing my mind. This isn’t what I want.”
“What if I could give you something you do want?” That oily feeling slithered over her skin again as Cramer’s grin widened. “I hear you’re looking for your parents’ case file?”
“Yes, I am, but Shepard said there’s been some sort of freeze placed on the records.”
“I can make a call, get that straightened out. Jake could have the files on his desk this afternoon.”
“In exchange for me staying on the case?”
Cramer nodded. “Do we have an understanding?”
“How do I know you can get my parents’ files?”
He laughed. “Who do you think issued the hold?”
Dana’s mouth fell open, her protest drowned out by Cramer’s incessant tsking. “This is DC. Leverage is a priceless commodity here. You’d do well to remember that.”
“And you’d do well to remember that blackmail is a crime.”
“Who said anything about blackmail? I’m simply inclined to do a favor for those who offer one in return.” Cramer stood up. “Well, I’ll let you think about it.”
“I don’t need to think about it.”
“No?”
“Make the call now, and you have a deal.”
Cramer smiled. “I knew I was right about you.”
39
Everything about her meeting with Agent Cramer set Dana on edge.
She’d been determined to get on with her life, and she’d let the man bully her out of that freedom. Bully wasn’t the right word; it was more like extort. She could tell he was a man used to getting what he wanted, and she hated that she’d given in to him.
When Dana woke up, she’d intended on going to the library to get back into her routine, but Cramer had just taken a battering ram to that idea.
She wouldn’t be able to focus on anything until she saw her parents’ files. And there was no way she was doing any work on this case until Cramer made good on his promise. So that left her with only one place to go.
Dana didn’t bother to knock as she barged into Shepard’s office. Stopping dead in her tracks, she instantly regretted that she’d let her anger override manners. Jake seemed just as shocked to be caught with his shirt unbuttoned. “Christ! Don’t you knock?”
“Sorry,” Dana mumbled, her eyes lingering on the bandage he was re-taping over the angry red signature marks the taser had left on his abdomen. A web of purple bruising peeked out from behind the bandage, marring his otherwise perfect muscles. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
Hoping her cheeks weren’t as red as they felt, Dana dragged her eyes away from Shepard as he buttoned up his shirt. She continued into his office, closing the door behind her.
Jake’s brow furrowed. “What’s up?”
“We need to talk.”
“I don’t understand.” Shepard was pacing. “That doesn’t sound like Cramer.”
“I’m not making it up.”
“I didn’t say you were. I just don’t understand why he’d do something like this, especially without telling me?”
Dana shrugged. She was getting impatient. She’d already relayed every detail of her conversation with Cramer for Shepard. She didn’t see the point in spelling it out a second time. “Maybe he thought he was protecting you. He thinks of you as family.”
“That’s just an expression.”
“He made it sound like more than that. His exact words were, ‘He’s the closest thing to family I’ve got left�
�.”
Jake shook his head. “Cramer has a brother, but I get where he’s coming from.” He took a seat at his desk, his eyes landing on a photograph on the wall. “Cramer and I were both Army. It’s brotherhood for life; stronger than family for some.”
“For you?”
“There was a point when I thought so.”
“And now?”
The buzz of Jake’s receptionist interrupted his answer. “There’s a courier here for you. Do you want me to sign for it?”
“Yes, please. And bring it in to me if you don’t mind.”
“Right away, sir.”
Moments later Shepard’s assistant, Margot, bustled in, a discolored white storage box in her hands. It was taped shut and marked classified. Jake took the box and thanked Margot. Dana stared at it, her stomach cramping as the woman left the room. This was it. The moment she’d been waiting for her entire life. The truth of what really happened to her parents was inside the yellowing box. Or at least she hoped it was.
Jake’s voice was quiet when he spoke, as though he sensed the significance of the moment. “Are you ready?”
She shook her head.
“Do you need a moment?”
“I don’t think I can do this here.” She looked up at him. “Can we go to my office?”
Something like surprise flashed in his blue eyes as he caught her use of “we.” “Sure. Wherever you feel comfortable.”
Dana stood, approaching the box like it was a bomb. And rightly so, considering its contents could blow up her world.
Her hands gently traced the edges, leaving trails in the dust. She let her fingers slide into the indented handles, surprised by the lack of weight as she lifted the box. It seemed the lives of two people she cared so much about should’ve amounted to more. The space their loss had carved out in her heart was so vast there wasn’t a box large enough to contain it.
“Dana, you don’t have to do this right now if you don’t want to.”
“I want to. Besides, Cramer held up his end of this twisted bargain, it’s time for me to do the same. Whatever’s inside here might help us with our case.”
“Our case? Does that mean you’ll be needing this back?” Shepard asked, pulling an ID badge from his drawer.
A faint smile curved her lips. “For now.”
40
Shepard stood at Dana’s side, looking ready to swoop in if whatever she found inside the box was too much for her. It wouldn’t be. She’d been preparing herself for this moment for nearly twenty years. Losing her parents at thirteen had hardened her. She’d taught herself not to need anyone back then, so she certainly didn’t need anyone now. But she had to admit, it was nice knowing Jake was there.
Now that they were back in the familiar comfort of her office there was nothing left to do but face the truth. With the box clutched in her hands, Dana looked up at Jake.
“Do you want some privacy?” he asked. “Or should I stay?”
“Stay.” Dana took one more steadying breath before lifting the lid, ready for answers; whatever they may be.
Sifting through all the information in her parents’ case file felt like swimming through quicksand. There was so much information to digest, and each time Dana flipped to a new page in their murder book, she felt as though she was slicing a paper cut into her soul. The box may have been light, but Dana was sure she’d absorbed a thousand pounds of sorrow as she relived her parents’ last moments.
She’d known what to expect but knowing and seeing were two different things. Dana was unprepared for how deeply the crime scene photos would affect her. They weren’t more gruesome than the ones she’d seen since working this case with Shepard, but her connection to the victims made it impossible to look at things objectively, which was necessary if she hoped to find the monster that did this to her parents and get them the justice they deserved.
As difficult as it was to relive her parents’ murder, she felt a strange sense of relief. Perhaps it was just that she’d no longer have to imagine how it ended with the evidence spread out before her. Now if only she could put the pieces together the right way, she could solve this puzzle once and for all.
“I don’t see anything inconsistent with our current case,” Jake said from beside her. “I think this could be our unsub’s first scene.”
Dana shook her head. “I disagree. I’d say it was at least his fifth.”
“Why’s that?”
“The pentagram.” She pointed to a crime scene photo showing the satanic symbol painted on the familiar red and gold carpet. “All five points are filled in. If I’m correct about my theory of these killings correlating to the five sacrificial stages from the Pentanic Verses, my parents were the fifth and final in this series. Based on that theory, the crime scene we visited when we were called back from Vegas was the fourth of the current series because only four points were filled in. That means there’s one more sacrifice still to come in order to complete the ritual.”
“Is there a timeline for this type of thing?”
“Not that I’m aware of. The Pentacle Church isn’t tied to lunar cycles or astrological events.”
Jake scratched his head. “Maybe we need to come at this from a different angle.”
“How so?”
“We need to find out what made the unsub go dormant for nearly twenty years.”
“That’s impossible without knowing who the killer is.”
“That’s why I think we need to go back to the church. It might give us a starting point. We can look at the members and cross reference the ones who’ve been with the church for over twenty years with any life altering events that might’ve triggered a psychotic break that sent them down this path again.”
Dana nodded. “That seems like a good way to narrow down our suspect pool.”
Jake’s brow furrowed. “Our suspect pool? Does this mean you’re officially my partner again?”
“I don’t know, but I’m more convinced than ever that my parents’ death wasn’t a suicide. Ritualistic suicides exist, but not outside concentrated cult practices. In our current investigations, we’ve yet to find anything to connect the victims to each other, let alone a cult.”
Jake grinned, not missing that she’d said our again. “What about the church?”
“My parents weren’t secretly members of the Pentacle Church.”
“How can you be sure?”
“I just am.”
“Is that your scientific opinion?”
She knew he was being sarcastic, so she ignored the comment, but Jake wasn’t deterred.
“I think we should make a trip back up to Maryland and cross reference our vics with the church’s list of parishioners.”
Shepard wasn’t wrong. The church might help them make some connections or at the very least rule some out. But Dana couldn’t shake the feeling that the answers they were looking for lay somewhere in her parents’ file. She kept the thought to herself though, worried Shepard would question her objectiveness.
A shock of black hair poked into Dana’s office. “Am I interrupting?” Claire asked.
Dana shook her head and waved her intern in. Claire had made herself scarce for the past few hours to give Dana some space to go through her parents’ files. It made Dana appreciate the girl’s considerate nature even more. But she was grateful for Claire’s interruption. Dana needed a break. And it seemed Jake did too.
He stood up from the desk, stretching as he greeted Claire. “Hey, Elvira.”
“Hey, Secret Agent Man.”
Warmth spread through Dana watching their interaction. Claire had slowly found a way to thaw Jake’s bristly exterior. Dana had a sneaking suspicion it was the takeout that won him over, but she’d never say so. It was good to see Claire opening up more.
When Claire ambled over, Jake grinned. “Bring us anything to eat?”
“That’s why I’m here. I was just about to place an order. You guys want anything?”
“You are my takeout spirit
animal,” Jake teased.
Claire beamed at the praise. “Then I’ll double my order.” Her attention drifted to Dana. “Dr. Gray, can I get you anything?”
“No thank you. I’m not hungry.”
Claire and Shepard exchanged a worried look.
“You doing okay with all of this?” Claire asked.
Her concern was endearing, but Dana had always played the parental-type figure in their relationship. She didn’t see why the roles should reverse. Just because this case was about Dana’s parents didn’t mean she was suddenly infantile.
“I’m fine,” she said, returning to the photograph she was studying.
In her peripheral, she saw Shepard motion Claire aside. “I’ll make the food run if you stay here with Gray,” he murmured.
“Sure thing.”
Dana sighed. “You both know I can hear you, right?”
Ignoring her, Jake headed for the office door. “And add something to the order for Dr. Gray. She needs to eat.”
Claire took up the chair Shepard had been occupying after calling in their takeout order. “It’s sweet the way he looks after you.”
Dana looked up. “I don’t need looking after.”
“I didn’t say you did. I just said it’s sweet.” Claire rested her elbows on the desk and propped her chin in her hands wistfully. “I wouldn’t tell him he couldn’t put his boots under my bed.”
The comment startled a laugh out of Dana. She wasn’t used to her normally timid assistant being so bold. Jake was bringing her out of her shell. Dana wasn’t sure she liked it. “This is an FBI investigation, Claire, not a place to pick up men.”
“Oh swipe right while you have the chance. Shepard is a snack!”
“A what?”
Claire rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying you should live a little.”
“I live plenty.”
Claire shook her head. “No, you don’t. Neither of us do. Our whole lives have been devoted to books and research. I don’t regret that, but I won’t let it mean I don’t get to have a life. I mean, look at this.” Claire pointed to the crime scene photos spread out across Dana’s desk. “If this doesn’t make you want to go out and live every moment before it’s too late, nothing will.”
