01 A Cold Dark Place

by Toni Anderson

  And so had he.

  Mallory felt winded.

  Alex sneered. “I’ll repair the car and replace the suit but you are still an asshole.”

  Definitely not intimidated by the FBI. She’d noticed that trait the first time she’d met him in Charlotte. And civilians were always intimidated by the FBI.

  “You let an inexperienced field agent take on a serial killer but didn’t even have the skills to arrive on fucking time? Were you hoping he took her? Raise your profile on the media stage?”

  Mallory froze. Was Frazer disappointed the UNSUB hadn’t taken her? The thought gave her goose bumps. If Frazer was helping the vigilante he might have reason to hope someone shut her up. A serial killer would do it without casting any suspicion on himself. She crossed her arms over her chest. She was inexperienced but she wasn’t stupid and things weren’t adding up. “Is it true? Did you use me as bait?”

  Flinty eyes turned on her. “Are you questioning my decisions, Special Agent Rooney? Or just my ability?”

  A wave of uncertainty hit her. “Considering what happened tonight I think we—the FBI that is—could have handled this whole situation a lot better. We should have known he’d turn up tonight. We should have set a trap.”

  Frazer closed his eyes and held tight to the bridge of his nose. “Hindsight is always twenty-twenty, Agent Rooney. Don’t question my authority again.”

  Right now, Mallory wouldn’t trust him as far as she could throw him.

  Alex looked ready to punch him but Mallory touched his wrist, reassured by the strong steady pulse beating beneath her fingers. “Yes, sir.”

  She backed off. Because she’d figured out a way to end her hunt for the vigilante and move on with her Bureau career. She just hoped Alex was there when this was all over.

  ***

  Alex sat in the main hub of the Greenville Sheriff’s Office being interviewed about what happened last night. Inside Sheriff Williams’ glass-walled office, Mallory was making her own statement. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. Except for a bright patch of crimson over each cheekbone, her skin was ice-white. There was a suggestion of fragility to her face that hadn’t been there when he first met her. A hint of vulnerability. Whatever the feelings that had been growing inside him these past few weeks, they had amplified to staggering proportions after the attempt to steal her away last night.

  If he hadn’t insisted on accompanying her yesterday, chances were Mallory would right now be at the mercy of a sexual predator. The idea made him want to put his fist through something solid. Preferably SSA Frazer’s face.

  “What happened then?”

  Alex glanced at the deputy taking his statement. Deputy Sheriff L. Chance according to his nametag. He fit the general size and shape of the attacker. So did the sheriff and half of his deputies.

  “There was a noise in the corridor.”

  The bodyguards that his partner, Haley Cramer, sent had arrived via company helicopter less than thirty minutes ago. They were taking shifts to watch over the best chance they had of catching this bastard. If Kari Regent survived she could give them a sketch of the bad guy and maybe a description of where she’d been held. Then they’d have a place to begin. Alex was more and more convinced the starting point was somewhere near Colby, and tied back to what had happened there eighteen years ago.

  “You were in bed asleep?” Deputy Chance asked him.

  Alex shook his. “I was sitting in a chair, wide awake.”

  “You sat in a chair while Agent Rooney slept?”

  “That’s what I said.” Alex stared at Mallory through the glass. He couldn’t relax since that bastard had made a grab for her. There was no doubt in Alex’s mind it wasn’t the first time he’d tried, and wouldn’t be the last. So far Mallory had been lucky, but she couldn’t be on guard forever. The only way to end this thing was a bullet in that animal’s brain. He drummed his fingers on the desk. The cop was still watching him as if expecting an answer. “We were taking turns keeping watch.”

  “So you were expecting trouble?”

  Alex nodded. Frazer had also been expecting trouble but the sonofabitch had done nothing to prevent it. Why? Alex’s eyes narrowed. Was he part of The Gateway Project? The part that had almost gotten him caught last time?

  Or maybe he genuinely believed Mallory—a trained FBI Special Agent—could take the guy alone. Alex frowned. He wasn’t sexist. He’d figured out one of his fellow assassins was a female and she was one of the best. Women could be operators, damn good operators. But Mallory wasn’t there yet. She needed more training, more physical fitness and more ruthless determination to hurt someone.

  That’s what gave predators and operators the advantage over “normal” people. They worked outside society boundaries and went in fast and hard. No one expected another human being to attack them. It violated all sense of security and made intelligent people freeze and comply when usually they’d fight for their lives.

  “Ms. Rooney has stayed in that house many times over the years. Why did she think last night would be any different?”

  Alex didn’t know what the FBI had shared with the locals about the new evidence turning up. If this guy was supposed to know about the case other law enforcement people could do the honors. He shrugged. “I like to be prepared.”

  The deputy’s eyebrows rose. “Quite the boy scout who carries a SIG P229.”

  Alex gave him a cold smile. “Wouldn’t be alive if I carried a pea shooter.”

  “Agent Rooney never fired a shot?” They both looked toward Mallory.

  “As soon as she heard the injured woman groan she concentrated on saving her.”

  The deputy sniffed as if she hadn’t done her job very well but Alex wasn’t about to tell him he worked better without interference.

  “You been seeing her long?”

  Alex eyed the cop. The FBI already knew the answer to that question.

  He didn’t know if the cops and feds had made the leap that the PR-killer and their double homicide were related to Payton Rooney’s abduction eighteen years ago. He had. He had no doubt whatsoever. Everything was linked. They just needed to figure out how.

  The deputy’s pen hovered. “Okay, so, what happened next?”

  “You have deputies searching those woods?”

  The deputy’s lips tightened. “Search parties have scoured every inch and we haven’t found a damn thing.”

  “He knows those woods. You need to keep searching the local area.”

  The deputy gave him a flat-eyed stare. “We know how to do our job, Mr. Parker.”

  Alex said nothing. This guy would be hard to catch if you followed the rules. Thankfully he didn’t have to. He needed to check that algorithm he’d written to compare cell phone information to the dump zones and kidnap sites. He’d add in the local towers from around here and see what popped. Anxious to get away he hurried over the rest of the story. Mallory was still talking to the sheriff.

  “What made you turn around?”

  Alex blinked at the deputy. Weren’t they done?

  “In the bedroom. You said you were looking out the window and you turned around. Why?” The deputy looked interested.

  Alex shrugged. “I sensed something.”

  “Good instincts.”

  His eyes narrowed. “I got lucky.” He didn’t tell the guy he got lucky a lot.

  “Then you chased him?”

  “Yeah. Are we finished?” Pain shot through Alex’s head. Fucking headaches. He pulled painkillers out of his pocket and helped himself to a drink of water. Shit. Mallory’s mother and father arrived. He rolled his eyes, assuming the three-ring circus was following close behind. They swept through into the sheriff’s glass office and gathered Mallory into a protective embrace.

  A feeling of isolation swept over him. It rooted him to the spot like a nail through his spine. Worse than usual because for a few brief hours he’d experienced how great it felt to be part of something. Now he was back on the outside looking in.r />
  Where he liked it. Where he needed to be.

  What he needed to do was rein in his emotions. But there was no way he could back away from Mallory until this asshole was caught. It didn’t mean he had to fool himself into believing he and Mallory got to live Happily Ever After.

  “Why didn’t you follow him into the woods?”

  “I didn’t want to leave Special Agent Rooney alone for too long, nor the injured woman.” Alex was losing patience.

  Deputy Chance’s lip curled. “And when you went back you were confronted by Supervisory Special Agent Frazer. Why’d you resist arrest?”

  “I was never under arrest.” Alex forced himself not to bite the man’s head off.

  The deputy’s gaze was disbelieving. “According to the feeb he identified himself as a federal agent and told you ‘to drop the weapon.’”

  Alex rubbed his forehead. The guy was killing him. This was why he’d make a terrible cop. Too much monotonous questioning. “For all I knew the attacker had circled around the house and was wanting me to throw down my gun before he shot me.”

  “So why didn’t you shoot him in the head?” the deputy prodded.

  “The fed or the attacker?”

  The deputy grunted out a laugh and threw a glance at where SSA Frazer was holding court with his team. “Both.”

  “Knowing the attacker was wearing body armor I should have shot him in the leg.”

  “Don’t they teach you to shoot to kill where you’re from?” The West Virginia accent was in full twang now.

  Alex didn’t smile. He’d taken the lives of too many people to consider it a joke. “Mallory wants to know what happened to her sister. Otherwise he’d be dead.” And this whole fuckfest would be over. He’d be free to move on. The knowledge left a gaping hole in his chest.

  “You really think it’s the same guy who took Payton Rooney all those years ago?” The deputy scoffed.

  “Yes.” Alex stood as the Rooney family came out of the sheriff’s office. The senator caught his eye and jerked her head imperiously to indicate he join them. Whoopee. “Anything else?” he asked the deputy.

  “Nah, we’re done.” The deputy sprawled back in his chair. “No taking the law into your own hands again, Mr. Parker.”

  Sure. Taking a breath, he walked over to where the Rooneys were talking to the sheriff. He stood behind the group like a shadow, but Mallory reached for his hand and dragged him forward. The casual acceptance in front of her parents stopped his breath.

  “This is Alex Parker.” She introduced him to her father and they shook hands.

  “I want to thank you, son.” The judge’s handshake was firm. “We hear that without you there’s every chance Mallory would have been hurt or kidnapped.” The man’s voice broke. “I know she’s an FBI agent, but I can’t stand the thought of losing another daughter.”

  “Glad I was there, sir.”

  Frazer joined the party and Mallory introduced him to her parents while Alex took a step back. He and Frazer weren’t exactly buddies.

  “What are you doing to ensure my daughter’s safety, SSA Frazer?” This came from the judge.

  “I’m about to send her back to Quantico.”

  Mallory opened her mouth to argue and snapped it closed before any words leaked out. For once, Alex was in full agreement with Frazer, but he’d let the other guy take the heat.

  “You’re too vulnerable and too close to this case to work the evidence.”

  “Kari Regent was abducted from just outside DC.” Mallory’s jaw set at a mutinous angle. “What makes you think I’ll be any safer there?”

  “I wonder if I could have a private word while they battle it out, Mr. Parker?” the senator asked him softly.

  “Use my office.” The sheriff waved them inside, even though he clearly wanted to get on with his job, not be tied up with endless politics.

  Alex followed Senator Tremont inside and closed the door behind them. She paced—just like Mallory had at the hospital. The sensation of being watched pressed against his back.

  “Do you think this killer is the same man who took Payton?”

  Alex nodded.

  She looked down at her expensive leather pumps. “I want to thank you, for personally looking after my daughter.”

  He nodded. “I didn’t do it because of you.”

  Her lips compressed together and her eyes narrowed. “Then why did you do it?”

  There was no way he was confessing his feelings to this woman, even if he understood them himself. He leaned against the desk, shrugged. “We’re involved.”

  Angry red blotches appeared beneath the flawless foundation. She turned to face the outside window where no one could lip-read the words that passed between them. “I don’t care if you two are sleeping together, but if anything happens to her,” her voice dropped to below a whisper, “I’ll see you back in that Moroccan prison faster than you can spit.”

  Anger fused with his marrow. He slipped his arm around her shoulders and drew her into a hug. She was as malleable as stone. Her pulse fluttered uneasily in her neck. Good. He put his mouth beside her ear and spoke slowly. “That wasn’t the agreement, Senator. Mallory has nothing to do with our bargain. I have five-hundred and twenty days left that you bought along with my freedom and then I’m done. Forever.” The older woman became even more rigid in his arms. To any observers it would look like an embrace with an emotionally stunted female. His voice dropped lower. “If you renege on your promise I will take you down. If you hurt Mallory...” He drew back and let his soulless gaze do the work. She shivered.

  He went to break away but her fingers dug into his triceps. Then her eyes filled with a wash of tears as she morphed from powerful senator to powerless parent. “Just don’t let anything happen to my baby.” She swallowed. “Please.”

  A ball of emotion threatened to choke him but he couldn’t let this woman see his weakness. “I’ll give my life to see she’s safe, you have my promise.” He didn’t tell her that he’d sacrifice everything to protect Mallory, including The Gateway Project and the senator herself. “Why did you make that call to the FBI about Meacher?” he asked softly.

  Her eyes flared in alarm and then swept over the people watching them through the glass. “I-I...”

  “To give Mallory the chance to look good?

  “Why shouldn’t she be the one to get credit? The animal operated within her jurisdiction.” Irritation flashed across her features even as she stared fixedly out the window. “I didn’t know Meacher was going to choose that night to take another victim. I didn’t know they were going to launch an immediate assault on his house,” she hissed.

  “Did you make any other calls?” he spoke over her.

  “What? No!” She looked shocked by the suggestion.

  He assessed her coldly. Like most politicians the woman was a damn good liar. “I still don’t trust whoever you have inside the FBI. The warning about the cops going to the Meacher place was so late we almost shook hands in the doorway. Either they’re incompetent or they’re trying to get me caught. Neither is good for you or your fellow players in The Gateway Project.”

  She swallowed nervously. “It must have been a technical error. A glitch.” Her eyes shot to SSA Frazer who watched them through the glass, but Alex didn’t know if he was the inside man or if she was just worried he might overhear something.

  It would make sense for it to be Frazer. If the senator had blackmailed the guy into working for their shadowy organization—and Alex wouldn’t put it past her—then putting the senator’s daughter in jeopardy was an effective way to get revenge.

  “Control your dogs, Senator,” he murmured in her ear. “Before they bite you on the ass.” He turned and opened the door for her then and she swept past him like a queen. Mallory watched him with those soft amber eyes of hers.

  “Sorry. What did she want with you?” she asked when he came up beside her.

  “To hire my firm to protect you.”

  Mallory s
hook her head. “What did you tell her?”

  “It’s already taken care of.” He put his arm on her waist and pressed a kiss to her temple. “I’m not going anywhere while this guy is out there.”

  His skin prickled as they left the building. It was probably being so close to the justice system he flouted every time he was sent on a mission. The justice system that would fry his ass if they ever caught him.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  December had bitten down with the ruthlessness of a gin trap. A couple inches of snow covered the ground and dead leaves shattered under his winter boots. Fury boiled low in his gut and almost choked him. His ribs were sore as fuck. He’d strapped them tight, and had been extra careful not to give himself away even though the pain was excruciating.

  Mallory’s eyes were the exact same shade as Payton’s had been. Her hair one shade off black. Too short but it would soon grow out again. Within a year it would be long and silky against his fingers.

  He followed the other man through the woods. Despite last night’s monumental fuck up, everything was holding together—just. The media was camped out at the town hall; the mayor looked like he was gonna stroke out if the sheriff didn’t solve this thing fast. He liked the sheriff, he was a good man, but he had no intention of easing the guy’s burden.

  For one thing, he needed to take care of that bitch Kari before she did any real damage. Word was she was unconscious and likely to stay that way for some time.

  “Did this area get searched already?” The guy pushed back his beige hat and swiped at his brow. Despite the cold, he was sweating like a hog on a roasting spit.

  “Twice.” He didn’t hide his irritation. Why couldn’t the asshole just let it go?

  Sean Kennedy breathed out heavily and then squared his shoulders. “One more time for luck.”

  “What exactly are we looking for?” He heaved out an impatient sigh. He’d been careful to always be the one searching near the woodpile, but Kennedy was doggedly heading in that direction. Fancied himself quite the detective.