Devil's Rock

by Gerri Hill

  “And where would that have been?”

  “Flagstaff.”

  Cameron’s gaze dropped to Andrea’s lips and she immediately felt her pulse increase. “Why would I have stayed in a hotel with you?”

  “Because you want to.” Cameron took another step until their thighs were brushing. “Just like you want me to kiss you now.”

  Andrea tried to think of a reason why she shouldn’t kiss her. There must be a thousand reasons, but none would come to her.

  “Don’t you?”

  Andrea swallowed hard. “Yes,” she whispered against the mouth that was already claiming hers. God, what was it about this woman that made her lose all control? But that question was for another time. Her thought process shut down as soon as she felt Cameron’s tongue glide across her lips.

  Andrea pulled her close, crushing their bodies together, opening to the unexpected kiss. She gasped when she felt fingers brush against her breast, then moaned outright when that same hand closed over her, squeezing gently, a thumb rubbing lightly against her hard nipple. It had been so very long since she’d felt this way, she wanted to just give in to it, she wanted to let Cameron take what she so obviously wanted.

  She spread her legs as Cameron’s thigh pressed between them. Her head rolled back, eyes shut as Cameron’s mouth trailed along her neck, kissing and nibbling, finding all the spots that drove Andrea mad.

  But voices sounded—Jim and Randy—and Cameron pulled away. They stood staring at each other, both breathing hard, both flushed with arousal.

  “I’m sorry,” Cameron said as she ran her hands through her hair. “That was...that wasn’t what I intended. I would never—”

  “Cameron,” she said, stopping her apology. “Yes, I missed you too.” She took a deep breath, then squeezed Cameron’s arm as she walked past and sat down in one of Jim’s visitors’ chairs. She heard Randy stalling and made a mental note to thank him, even if it meant him knowing what had just taken place. She crossed her legs, immediately feeling the tightness between them and she uncrossed them just as quickly. Now was not the time to contemplate how close she’d been to begging Cameron for release.

  They heard Jim just outside his door and Cameron launched into a detailed description of one of her algorithms, losing Andrea about two sentences into it.

  “So forty-two percent is pretty good,” she said, pausing as Jim opened the door. “It’s just not great. Hey, Jim,” she said. “Hope you don’t mind that we borrowed your office.”

  “Not at all. You got something?”

  “I was just telling Andi about a stakeout I did last night. In Flagstaff.” She moved easily around Andrea and sat down beside her, no evidence of their earlier indiscretion showing on her face. “Collie is apparently AWOL or else not taking my calls, so I went to check it out myself. There’s a little coffee shop near the campus up there.”

  “You think he might target his victims there?”

  “No. I don’t think he has a particular place where he watches them. That’s what makes him so hard to read. But if we focus on college students—realizing, of course, that Cherry was not one—then we can narrow our search to potential hangouts, like the coffee shop.”

  “Any luck?” Andrea asked.

  “Well, it’s a cute little place. Very dark at night. It would be perfect. However, not a huge crowd and those who were there, were usually in groups. I stayed until it closed, and I saw only two single women the whole time.”

  “So your forty-two percent—”

  “Was pretty much a waste of time,” she conceded. “I talked to one of the geeks at Quantico. Because the abductions have occurred in several different cities, he thinks it’s futile to try to pinpoint where the next victim might come from.”

  “So you’re back to trying to determine a dump site.”

  “Yes.”

  “Again, I don’t pretend to understand your fancy equations there,” Jim said. “But there’s a whole lot of empty space out here. Hundreds of trails. Miles of trails.”

  Cameron stood and moved behind her as Andrea felt the light brush of Cameron’s hand on her back. A simple, innocent touch which caused chills to travel across her body. It was hard to believe that just minutes earlier that same hand was touching her breast, making Andrea want something she’d vowed she couldn’t have. She blinked several times, trying to focus, trying to pull in her thoughts.

  “You’re right, Jim. I get that it’s vast out here. But why does he pick the sites he does? I mean, two are on the main trail in Oak Creek Canyon.”

  “Because he wants to ensure that they’re found,” Andrea said. “Hundreds of miles of backcountry trails, but if he dumped them back there, they may go weeks or months without being found.”

  “Exactly.” Cameron sat down again, her voice animated and excited. “He can’t pick an obscure trail or he’ll have the same issue as he had with Maggie O’Brien. No one found her.”

  Jim leaned back in his chair and took the toothpick out of his mouth, flipping it between his fingers. Andrea felt him studying her, studying them, and she felt a blush on her face. Could he tell what had happened just before he walked in? Did he know they’d blurred the line between professional and personal?

  “So, it still looks like we’re looking for a needle in a haystack,” he said. “Unless you can give me a more precise location, that is. I mean, I’ve got six deputies. We can disperse along the trails if need be.”

  “We assume he dumps his victims at night. And if he wanted to be really safe, he may even dump them between two and four a.m.,” Cameron said.

  “The darkest hours,” Andrea murmured.

  “Statistically, the least traveled hours, yes.” Cameron stood again. “Jim, this is a serial killer who has killed many times before. I just need to make sure your guys can handle that, if they encounter him.”

  “I understand what you’re saying. Truth is, my guys have had limited training. I’m not a hundred percent certain that they could handle the situation.” Jim popped his toothpick back in, his mouth working it. “Or worse, some backpacker is coming down the trail at dawn and they mistake him for our guy.”

  “Well, staking out trails might be a last resort anyway. Because not only do we have to pinpoint location, we also have to have a date. And so far, the pattern is simply that there is no pattern.”

  “In other words, we haven’t really made any progress other than we have another body,” Jim said.

  “I wouldn’t say no progress,” Andrea said, feeling the need to defend Cameron. “We know that he dumped Maggie O’Brien with a four-wheeler. We...we,” she stammered, glancing at Cameron.

  “And we’ve speculated a whole lot more,” she finished for her. “Unfortunately, it is what it is. There is no evidence. We have nothing to go on but speculation. Speculation and past history.” Cameron looked at her watch. “Listen, I need to head back to the rig. I’m expecting a call.” She glanced at Andrea. “I’ll...I’ll be in touch.”

  “Okay.”

  Andrea watched her leave, wishing they could have a moment alone to talk. She turned when she felt Jim’s eyes on her.

  “So? Everything okay?” he asked.

  She nodded. “Yes. Why?”

  “Just checking. You and Cameron getting along okay?”

  “There are moments where I still want to strangle her.”

  Jim smiled at her, a smile that indicated he knew exactly what was going on between them. She stood, not wanting to take the conversation any further. For one, she didn’t have a clue as to what was happening between them—other than Cameron Ross seemed to set her on fire. That, however, wasn’t something she cared to share with Jim.

  “I’m going to...get back to work,” she said as she backed out of his office.

  “Yep. Sure,” he said, that same knowing smile on his face.

  She let out a relieved breath as she walked away, only to have Randy waiting for her. He crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows.

  She went
to her desk, unable to look at him.

  “Well?”

  “Well, what?”

  “Do I at least get a thank you?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  He squatted down beside her desk. “You know, if you ask me nicely, I’ll keep it to myself.”

  “If you don’t keep it to yourself, Randy, then I will have to ask Agent Ross to shoot you.” She smiled. “How will that work for you?”

  He stood back up. “So, you want to play dirty, huh?”

  “Yes. Now leave me alone.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Cameron paced across her kitchen, her headset on and ready. Murdock was to call at six sharp. It was now two minutes after. She wanted to be done with business by the time Andrea got there.

  She closed her eyes for a second, acknowledging the gentle wave of affection that hit at just the thought of her. She liked her. She liked her a lot, in fact.

  And I want to sleep with her.

  That was obvious. She hoped Andrea felt the same. But she didn’t want to make the evening about that. She’d stopped in town at Juanita’s Café and brought back a huge order of fajitas and their homemade tortillas for dinner. As an afterthought, she stopped at a liquor store and picked up two bottles of sangria wine which were now chilling in the fridge. They’d have a nice dinner, they’d share wine, they’d talk.

  And if things moved in the direction of the bedroom, so be it. If not, it wouldn’t be the first time someone had turned her down. Truth was, she wasn’t certain Andrea was ready. Oh, her body definitely was. Andrea was like liquid fire in her arms. But there was still Erin, her late lover, who had a hold on her. She doubted these two weeks had changed that.

  Or maybe it had. Andrea no longer got angry when Cameron brought up her past. Perhaps it had done her good to talk about it. Maybe she might finally be able to let go of the guilt that she’d carried for so long.

  And if not, well then she’d made a new friend, nothing more. Besides, she would be leaving as soon as this case was over. If she did some good by getting Andrea over the hump, that would be a plus.

  A soft beeping in her ear indicated Murdock was calling and she hit the remote, letting the call through.

  “Well? Anything?” she asked immediately.

  “Hell, Cameron, I’d almost think you had a soft spot for Collie the way you’ve been hounding me to find him.”

  “Yeah, right.”

  “But, no. I haven’t talked to him.”

  “What the hell, Murdock? It’s not like him to go missing.”

  “Well, there was that time in Mexico,” he reminded her.

  “That was after the case was over and if I recall, that cute señorita he was with would have made me go AWOL.”

  “Yeah, well, I’m concerned. Reynolds said they all had dinner at the hotel, then Collie planned to make a run by the homeless shelter.”

  “You’re kidding? You mean he actually believed the homeless story from Dallas? I thought he said it was crap?”

  Murdock ignored her comment. “My contention with Reynolds is why would Collie go alone? He knows better.”

  “Had he already been there before? Did he have a contact he was meeting?”

  “Reynolds didn’t know.”

  “That’s because Collie just goes off in whatever direction he wants, not following leads, not following the progression of the case, hell, not following protocol.”

  At this, Murdock laughed. “Protocol? What the hell do you know about protocol, Ross?”

  “I’m just saying, it would be like Collie to finally use the homeless angle because it makes sense. He just doesn’t want anyone to know he decided to pursue that angle. That would make him look like he’s taking advice from me, now wouldn’t it?”

  “Why can’t the two of you get along, Cameron? What’s up with that?”

  “He pisses me off. He intentionally does the opposite of what I suggest, just because I’m the one who suggested it.”

  “Right. And why is that?”

  “You’d have to ask him.”

  “I’m asking you.”

  She took a swallow of her water, thinking back to when she’d first met Collie. They were both still military at the time. They were at a little dive of a bar in Greece and the ouzo and mezedes were plentiful. The thing with Greek cafeneons, the locals never met a stranger and the ouzo never stopped flowing. She smiled as she remembered the raven-haired beauty who came by their table, flirting shamelessly with all of them. Collie fell in love on the spot. When the evening ended however, Collie wasn’t the lucky one.

  “There was a woman,” she said.

  “Figured as much.”

  “It was a long time ago, Murdock.”

  “Military days?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You stole his woman or what?”

  “Me? No. We were at a bar in Greece. And when the evening was over, she picked me. I didn’t even know Collie. That was the first time I’d met him. Apparently, he hasn’t forgotten.”

  Murdock laughed again. “I see now why he disappeared in Mexico that time. He was afraid you’d steal the señorita.”

  “Maybe. But back to this. What’s Reynolds doing to find him? How can the team leader on a case go missing?”

  “We’ve got a trace on his phone. There’s been no activity. Reynolds is pulling security tapes from everywhere he can find them—traffic cams, ATMs, businesses around the hotel. They showed his picture around the homeless shelter, but no one remembered seeing him.”

  “He can’t just disappear, Murdock. FBI agents don’t just disappear.”

  “I know that, Agent Ross, I’m not stupid. Until we find him, Reynolds is in charge down there. The team’s first priority is this case. I’ve got another agent on his way down there to see if he can find out what the hell happened to Collie.”

  “Do you want me to go down there?”

  “No. You stay put. I don’t want to take resources away from this investigation. If we don’t catch this guy soon, it’s going to become a media circus and a public relations nightmare.”

  “It’s actually been quiet down here. Sheriff Baker said the paper in Phoenix came out for a story after the second victim was found but not since.”

  “Well, that’s because Collie has been giving them daily briefings. Jesus, Cameron, do you not watch the news? Collie’s pretty face has been a fixture on CNN.”

  “Sorry I’ve missed that. And yes, I have a satellite, I just haven’t turned the TV on since I’ve been here. Kinda busy, you know.”

  “I know. Listen, Reynolds said he filled you in on the semen match.”

  “Yeah. At least we can now be one hundred percent sure it’s Patrick Doe. It didn’t appear that there was sexual trauma, just the semen left on the body, so that also matches the cases in Dallas.”

  “Yes. I talked to Jason at Quantico. He said you talked to him about the algorithms. He said he advised you to focus on the dump sites rather than where he gets his victims.”

  “That’s right.”

  “Do you concur?”

  “Yes. There are too many variables. If he was targeting one city, possible. But not when he’s hopping all over the damn state. At least this is constant, here where he dumps them.”

  “Okay. See if you can narrow it down. I can bring in a team of agents if we need to.”

  “Yeah? All your pretty boys in their suits and ties. You going to have them crawling over these rocks looking for our killer?”

  “I’m sure if I gave them the order to dress down, they could get to your level, Ross.”

  “Doubtful. I’m pretty low on the clothing chain, you know.”

  “I’m well aware. Why do you think I’ve got you stuck in a motor home, away from the public? You think we picked you for your skills?”

  “Careful, Murdock. You don’t want to go too far with your insults. I may decide to leave this glamorous life behind and retire after all.”

  “Oh, Ca
meron, we both know you love this job. Don’t threaten to walk out on me again.”

  She grinned. “Well, it does have its perks,” she said.

  “Okay, I gotta run. I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

  As usual, the call disconnected without a “goodbye.” She neatly folded the headset and put it on her desk. She closed the office door but didn’t lock it, as was her habit. She thought maybe she’d give Andrea a tour of the rig. Not that it would take long, of course.

  Andrea stopped on the side of the road, giving herself a few minutes before she took the little service lane that would lead to Cameron’s rig. She was feeling nervous and maybe even a little scared. When Cameron had called and invited her to dinner, she’d made it plain that it wasn’t a working dinner. It was, well, a date. Which, considering how things had gone in Jim’s office, it wasn’t just a date.

  On one hand, that was a good thing. If she was ever going to let go of the past, let go of her guilt over how things had ended with Erin, then a brief affair with Cameron Ross seemed like the perfect antidote. Lord knows her body was willing. And it was obvious Cameron was willing.

  But was she ready for that? Was she ready to open herself up like that? Maybe she should tell Cameron the real reason for her guilt. She hadn’t ever told anyone, not even her shrink. She was too ashamed. She was afraid it would make her appear selfish—uncaring—and that just wasn’t the case.

  She took several deep breaths then turned the Jeep toward Cameron’s. She wanted to talk. For the first time since it happened, she was ready to talk. She only hoped Cameron was willing to listen.

  She parked next to Cameron’s truck and again she hesitated, not knowing what type of security system Cameron had running. And as before, her voice on the speaker sounded.

  “It’s safe. Come on in.”

  Andrea opened the door, the wonderful smell of fajitas hitting her. Cameron stood near the small table, folding napkins and placing them next to the plates.

  “How do you know when I’m here?” Andrea asked.

  “There are cameras on all sides of the rig. There’s also a silent alarm if I happen to not be watching. And at night, it’s an audible alarm.”