The Mirror Stage (The Imago Trilogy Book 1)

by J. J. Stone

  Brenda eyed Tiny, who had invited himself onto the couch and then promptly took over half of it. He was currently deep in a twitchy dream, his back paws thrashing dangerously close to Brenda’s neat stacks of files. “He’s just so ... big.”

  Ada chuckled. “Yeah. He’s a teddy bear, though. And a total wimp. He’s terrified of anything smaller than him.”

  “What a man,” Brenda teased. She uncapped her highlighter and tagged a line of text on the page she was studying. “So, have you found much of anything?”

  Ada shook her head then rolled her neck around.

  The resulting pops made Brenda wince.

  “I think it’s time for a break. We’ve been at this for,” Ada glanced at her phone and her eyes widened, “five hours. When did it get to be ten o’clock?”

  Brenda shrugged.

  Ada tossed her stack of FBI papers onto the floor. She unfolded her legs and slowly stood, trying to ignore her protesting joints. “I’m so glad it’s Friday night.”

  “And what a happening Friday night it is,” Brenda sneered.

  “I could grab some booze and crank up some loud music if that would make you feel better.”

  Brenda rolled her eyes. “I haven’t had a ‘typical’ Friday night in longer than I want to admit. I’m either too tired, or on a case ... and too tired.”

  “I don’t know how you bureau people do it.” Ada semi-hobbled toward the kitchen, turning on a few lights along the way. “Do you want anything?”

  “A water would be great, thanks.”

  Ada gave her a thumbs up as she disappeared from the room.

  Brenda flipped to the next page of the manila folder on her lap and blinked a few times to clear her vision. At this point, she was running on two hours of sleep in the past thirty-six hours. Not the longest she’d gone, but certainly close to it.

  Brenda slid off the couch and reached her fingertips up toward the ceiling. A few joints popped. She hinged forward and nearly cried out as she stretched out her tight back muscles.

  “I might have a yoga DVD lying around here somewhere,” Ada teased as walked back into the room.

  Brenda straightened and took the glass of water from Ada. She downed half the water in two gulps. “I’ll pass, thanks,” Brenda replied.

  “So, in the past five hours, we’ve gotten exactly nowhere.” The defeat in Ada’s voice was palpable. She slid a hand into her tousled brown hair and rested her elbow against the arm of her chair. “I know there’s something here. I feel like there’s something, we’re just missing it.”

  “We just need to keep digging,” Brenda said.

  Ada laughed cynically. “I don’t know why anyone thought I’d be good at this.” She pulled at a loose thread on her sweatshirt. “James has to be regretting asking for my help.”

  Brenda sat on the edge of the couch and took another sip of water. She pondered her words before she said. “See, you don’t really understand Deacon.” She paused as Ada shot her an incredulous look. “Meaning, you haven’t been around him long enough to read him,” Brenda elaborated.

  “So, he doesn’t think I’m a deadweight to the team?”

  “If he had thought that, he would have said that.”

  Ada let out a sharp laugh. “True.”

  Brenda shrugged. “He didn’t get to where he is by being everyone’s friend. He’s worked incredibly hard. He has and will never jeopardize the integrity of any operation he’s a part of.”

  “I get that.” Ada twirled her hair into a bun at the nape of her neck and wrapped a hair tie around it. “But he’s an odd one, that’s for sure.”

  “Yeah,” Brenda grinned. “I was terrified of him when I first started. I don’t think I talked to him for the first couple of months. And honestly, Dade is the only team member Deacon actually talks to.”

  “Are they related?”

  Brenda laughed. “They do look alike, don’t they?” She shook her head and drained the rest of her water. “No, they’ve just always clicked, despite their personality differences. Their backgrounds are similar, too.” Brenda tucked her feet up underneath her. “Dade has always been the life of the team. He comes from pretty big family, so he’s very at home with the whole group dynamic.”

  “He seems like one of the good ones,” Ada mused.

  “He is,” Brenda replied with a tender smile. “He might seem like a lady-killer, but he’s got a heart of gold.”

  “You said his and James’s pasts are similar?”

  “Yeah, they both went through some rough patches. Dade’s dad was a cop who died during a routine traffic stop. So Dade was the only man in the house from the age of ten. His mother was a teacher, so he and his sisters took care of each other a lot.”

  “What about James? What’s his family like?”

  “Honestly, I’m not sure,” Brenda said. “Dade’s the only one who really knows the whole story. All I’ve picked up over the years is that it’s just Deacon. His mother died not too long after he started with the bureau. I’m not sure what happened to his father. And his sister vanished a few years ago.”

  “Vanished?”

  Brenda glanced down at her hands. “About a year after I joined the BAU, Deacon was in and out of the office a lot over the course of a few months. Everyone just assumed he was sick or something.” Brenda grew visibly uncomfortable talking about her boss’s private life. “Apparently, Deacon’s sister Julia had run off with a guy years earlier, before Deacon was in the Academy. He hadn’t heard from her since. Then one night, she shows up on his doorstep about eight months pregnant with no one else to turn to. So, he let her stay with him until the baby was born.”

  “Are they still with him?”

  A sad smile touched Brenda’s lips. “After the baby was born, we got called to a case in Maine. Julia’s ex found out where she and the baby were living. When Deacon got back, all he had was a note from Julia saying that she and the baby’s father were getting back together and that everything was going to be fine.”

  Ada shook her head and sighed. “They were just gone?”

  Brenda nodded. “Deacon’s looked for them ever since, but it’s like they vanished into thin air.”

  The two women sat in silence for a few moments. A stray thought came to Ada’s mind, and she spoke it before she could stop herself. “Was the baby’s name Olivia?”

  Brenda frowned at her, wary of her sudden curiosity. “I think so. Why?”

  “Remember the night Lana Rames was found? Her friend mentioned that she had a daughter named Olivia. When James heard that, his face just dropped.”

  “I didn’t notice,” Brenda replied quickly. She glanced at the stacks of files, and Ada knew that story time was over.

  “Hand me the file on the first victim,” Ada asked as she lowered herself onto the rug.

  CHAPTER 10

  Melinda Thomas looked at the ceiling of the interview room for the millionth time. She hoped that the tilt of her head would dam up the tears burning behind her bloodshot eyes. She couldn’t believe she still had any tears to cry. The past week had required more tears than she’d cried her entire life.

  She jumped as she felt something touch against her hand. Her head tilted forward automatically and two streams of tears leaked down her cheeks. The FBI agent—John? Maybe Jason?—had nudged the box of tissues toward her. She yanked a couple of the cheap, brittle tissues out of the box and dabbed them under her eyes.

  “We can take a break if you need to,” the agent murmured.

  Melinda shook her head and gave him a quivering smile. “I’d like to just get this over with,” she paused to take a steadying breath. “I have funeral arrangements to finalize.”

  The agent nodded, his lips pressed into a thin, grim line. “I only have a few more questions.” He pulled a photo from his f
older and slid it toward Melinda. “Do you recognize anything missing from your daughter’s purse in this photo?”

  Melinda glossed over the photo, trying not to linger on the smiling sunflower keychain with her daughter’s house key or the bright pink lip gloss that was Tory’s signature color. Melinda wanted to gather everything in the picture and hold tight to these connections to Tory. This desire was followed by a strong urge to just throw every last thing away.

  “It looks like everything is there,” Melinda whispered. “The police already had me look through her things.”

  “I just wanted to see if maybe something popped out at you, now that it’s been a few days.”

  The door of the interview room opened and the other agent, Wylan, walked in with two fresh cups of coffee. Melinda mustered a smile for him. His demeanor was softer than the agent sitting across from her, and he seemed years younger, even though they were probably about the same age. Melinda thought that Tory would have liked Agent Wylan. She always seemed to go out with guys like him.

  “Ma’am?”

  Melinda blinked and realized she was just blankly staring up at Agent Wylan. Embarrassed beyond words, she mumbled something that even she couldn’t make out and graciously took the cup of coffee from him.

  “Everything OK?” Agent Wylan asked, just the right amount of chipper in his tone.

  “I was just thinking that my Tory would have liked you.” She felt her cheeks heat.

  The agent smiled. “I’m sure she was a very nice girl.”

  The other agent leaned forward. “Tory dated guys like Agent Wylan?”

  Melinda nodded. “She went for the tall, dark, and handsome type. Every one of them had brown hair and brown eyes.”

  The two agents exchanged a quick glance that seemed to communicate volumes in a matter of seconds. The agent across from her stood and gathered up his folder. Melinda also stood as Agent Wylan helped pull out her chair for her.

  “That should do it. Thank you, Mrs. Thomas. I appreciate you coming back in.” The agent extended a hand to her.

  She took it and feebly shook. “Thank you for all you’re doing, Agent ...”

  “Deacon. Or James, whichever you prefer.”

  “I’m sorry, I’m usually so much better with names.”

  Agent Deacon released her hand and opened the door for her. “No offense, I promise,” he said kindly as Melinda walked past him.

  Agent Wylan followed her down the short hallway to the double doors. She glanced through the glass at all the other families waiting. “If you think of something, anything, don’t hesitate to call us,” he told her as he held open one of the doors.

  Melinda nodded and gave him a small smile. “I’m very grateful for all you and the FBI are doing to help bring us some closure.”

  The agent smiled warmly at her. “Just doing our jobs.” He held her gaze for a moment. “Have a good day, Mrs. Thomas.”

  Melinda took the hint and continued on her way, trying to shake her sudden thought about how much Tory would have gone on about the agent’s chocolate brown eyes.

  _____

  Dade found James in the small conference room Seattle PD had set aside for the team. He and another agent were pouring over notes from two of the family interviews.

  “Got something?” Dade asked.

  James scratched the top of his head. “I’m debating if it’s worth going back and asking the other two families we’ve talked to today about their daughters’ ex-boyfriends.”

  “See if there’s a pattern in physical appearance?”

  “It would at least give us a physical type to pursue. We could scan local security footage of the last places all the victims were seen.” James knocked back the last of his coffee. “It’s the best lead we’ve had in the past couple of days, unless Ada and Brenda pull something out of thin air.”

  Dade nodded and pulled out one of the cushy office chairs around the boardroom table. He sank down and winced at how sore he was. His body was beginning to protest the crazy hours of this case, more so than usual. Looking at James, though, Dade knew that the lead agent was feeling it more than anyone else on the team.

  “I can take the next batch of interviews,” Dade said to James, “Why don’t you go back to the hotel?”

  “I’m good,” James said, a little too quickly.

  “James. With all due respect, you look like hell.”

  The two other agents in the room froze and looked at Dade with wide eyes. No one talked to the lead agent like that.

  James placed the folders in his hands down on the table and slid them toward Dade. “This is all starting to blur together.” He picked up his empty paper cup and glanced at the coffeemaker across the room. After a second thought, he stood and tossed the cup into a nearby wastebasket. “Call me if something comes up,” he told Dade.

  Dade swept his arms out wide. “Of course. Trust me. I’ll handle things.”

  The weariness in James’s face seemed to triple suddenly. He tossed Dade a sloppy two-fingered salute and left the room. Dade watched him trudge down the hallway to a back exit, and wondered if he should have offered to have someone drive James to the hotel.

  _____

  James welcomed the dark silence of his hotel room. The blackout curtains had remained shut the majority of his stay. The room felt like a chilly cave, and that was exactly how James liked it.

  From across the room, James’s computer chimed. His heart skipped when he realized it was his personal computer. He raced to it and clicked the trackpad furiously to snap the machine out of its slumber.

  The icon for his email program indicated one unopened message. James couldn’t click fast enough. When the email finally opened, he quickly scanned it.

  James,

  Looked into Utah. Couldn’t find anything. Have another possible in Nevada. Will keep you posted.

  Joe

  James’s balled fist slammed into the desk. His eyes stung with the fierce bite of tears. He shook his head and stood, his hands scraping through his hair as he struggled to catch his breath.

  He was so sure Utah was it. He’d heard Julia talk about wanting to have a house there. Even that dick she was with seemed to like the idea of living near the Rockies. The note had even been postmarked from there.

  Fury crawled up James’s throat, and he felt every muscle in his body turn to steel. He knew the quivering would start soon, and then he’d be drinking the mini fridge dry. He had to calm down.

  James focused on slowing his breaths. This wasn’t the end; it couldn’t be. If it was the last thing he did, James would find them. Alive.

  CHAPTER 11

  “If I look at one more word, I’m going to lose it,” Ada moaned as she tossed another file aside.

  Brenda glanced at the time on her phone and scowled. Outside, the night sky was morphing into the dull gray of pre-dawn. “I’m calling it for now,” Brenda grunted as she stiffly stood from the couch.

  “Do you need a ride?” Ada asked as they walked toward the front door.

  “I’ll have someone come get me.” Brenda tapped her wrist. “I’m not the one who has class in two hours.”

  Ada caught sight of the time in the foyer clock and cursed under her breath. She massaged her scalp. “I don’t know how much longer I can do this.”

  Brenda tapped away at her phone. “Hopefully we’ll be out of here in the next few days.”

  Ada nodded as she stared off into space.

  Brenda slipped her phone into her pocket and retrieved her jacket from the coatrack. “My ride should be here in a few minutes. I’ll wait outside.” When Ada didn’t answer, Brenda snapped her fingers and chuckled. “Go to bed before you fall over.”

  Blushing, Ada unlocked the door and gave Brenda an awkward wave. “I’ll see you, I guess.”
r />   “Don’t sound so thrilled,” Brenda teased as she stepped outside.

  Ada gave her one last wave as she shut the door. Tiny moseyed into the foyer and went down into a long stretch. “At least one of us is rested,” Ada sighed as she wandered to her waiting bed.

  _____

  BAM. BAM. BAM.

  James opened one eye and held out hope that it was the maid knocking. Three more knocks ripped that hope away. “Coming,” he called in an even voice as he rose from the warmth of his hotel bed.

  He peered through the peephole to see Brenda shuffling uncomfortably in front of his door. In one fluid motion, James unlocked the door and pulled it open. “Any leads?”

  Brenda half shrugged while shaking her head. “We hit a wall.”

  “Great,” James sighed.

  Awkward silence brewed between them until Brenda cleared her throat. “I’m going to catch a few winks. Just wanted to let you know I’m back.”

  “Thanks. Now go get some rest.” James gave Brenda a small smile and shut his door.

  Frustration welled up as James walked back to bed and sat back against the headboard. He propped his knees up and rested his forearms across them. Times like this made him wish Janice wasn’t in DC. He needed a “meeting” with her.

  His phone vibrated on the nightstand. He picked it up. “Agent Deacon.”

  “You weren’t sleeping, were you?”

  Startled by Ada’s voice, James sat forward, nearly dropping the phone. “No, I was up. Brenda just stopped by to give me an update.”

  “Oh, good,” Ada sighed. A few moments went by before she said, “I just wanted to tell you that I’m going to be unavailable for the next few hours.”

  A snide remark rose to the tip of James’s tongue. He swallowed it back down. “I appreciate you letting me know,” he mumbled instead.

  He hated the surprise he heard in Ada’s voice as she said, “No problem.” Was he really that much of a jerk?