She focused on Ethan. “Can you tell Chris to wrangle the tech rats and keep them occupied at the morgue? Merry has a shit load of evidence to process. I want her to get it done today. I know it’s pushing her limits, but I worry Bonnie Anston isn't going to have long.”
Ethan pulled out his phone. “I’ll handle it.”
“Thanks. I need to go back through all of this,” she said, pointing at the board. “It has to be here.”
Or at least she hoped.
* * *
He was furious.
He overheard their conversation. It was easy to hang out around them, blending in. While they sipped their coffee, pretended to be superior, he watched.
Waited.
Saw everything.
Now he was furious.
He couldn’t believe that he had a brother. His mother never told him that. He’d always asked for someone to have as his family, and his father kept trying.
Only, he kept deteriorating.
Toward the end, he was a failure.
But now, the truth was out. The black haired man was claiming to be his blood. He was also claiming that his mother loved him best.
That was lies!
Horrible, horrible falsehoods meant to break his spirit. He was just jealous. At home, he had a wife. He had a family of his own. This man had nothing but bullshit.
It infuriated him.
They spoke of HIS mother.
It wasn’t right. She belonged to him. The day she gave him life, he was the most important thing. After all, she stayed with him until her death.
She’d left the bastard doctor.
He wasn’t even born to a real family.
He was fake.
A lie.
His life was a fairytale.
Well, now he had to do something about it. There was no way in hell he could let this man maraud as his brother. In the memory of his mother and father, he couldn’t allow it.
He was angry.
Filled with pain.
Awash with hate.
Now he had a new mission in life. He’d found his wife. He’d started building his future, and now he’d destroy anyone who threatened it.
It was time to meet this man and explain.
By explain, he meant kill.
His mother could only have one son, and that would be him. He was her blessing.
Her gift.
Her cherished love.
Now, it was under attack.
The man had to pay for even daring to mention his connection to his mom.
It was time to hurt him.
And he knew how…
He would take his wife…
* * *
Jaxon finished packing her bag.
She was going to grab her papers, get the gear, and schlep it down to Christopher’s table. She didn't know why she couldn’t just head in on her own.
She was an adult.
Then, she thought about Tony’s need to feel secure. It was anthropologically very common in the male of the species. All the way back to caveman times, they would hunt, protect, and be men.
She pictured him in a cave ravishing her.
Damn!
She needed another shower.
At the knock to her door, she was forced to stop thinking about the man she loved and focus on the unexpected visitor.
Peeking out the peep hole, she saw who it was. Opening the door, she was curious what he wanted.
“Is everything okay?” she asked, staring up into his blue eyes.
“Yes.”
Then, he hit her. He slammed his body into hers, taking her down.
Before Jaxon could rationalize what was happening and react, he slammed her head repeatedly off the floor.
The room spun.
Gray settled around her.
“Tony,” she whispered, just as the dark claimed her.
He got off her body and looked around. “I think I’ll leave my lousy brother a little love note from us,” he stated.
Scribbling it out fast, he was satisfied with the threat. Now, it was about picking her up, carrying her out the back way, and getting home.
Soon, company would be coming.
He wanted to tidy the place up. It wasn’t every day your brother came over, and then you killed him.
* * *
They were fascinated with how she worked.
The two agents sat there watching her pace, make notes, and then slip back into some trance. It was like she was processing the details over and over again.
At some point, they believed she would crack under the weight of it all. She was nervously rubbing her baby belly as she mumbled to herself.
Finally, she faced them.
“They’re all students but April Belmont. I’m tripping up over that fact. I think that’s just, and I use this word cautiously, a coincidence.”
Ethan happened to agree.
She needed more. What they had wasn’t nearly enough. There were holes in this, and she needed to plug them. “When you ran Clarence, did anything pop up?”
Johanna took this one. “We only found his connection to Magdalene.”
Ethan objected. “If you think of the probability, then you can connect him to more. Look at where he worked. He was at the Monroe estate all day. We know that Wilfred had Ruth Hildebrant working there.”
He had a point.
“Clarence could have run into her,” Elizabeth stated.
“Yes,” he said, continuing, “He also could have run into Jacey. She and Magdalene were buddies. Certainly, he was aware of who her buddy was.”
He had another point.
“We know that the same is true for Russell Beston. He worked there too. But we can’t connect either of them to April Belmont. While they both could have wandered into the ice cream or pizza place, neither have direct links to our abducted runaway.”
They agreed.
“I don’t feel like it’s either of them,” she stated. “Honestly, this late in the game, I don’t believe they are the killer. I can’t prove it, by my gut is screaming.”
They trusted her.
“Take them off the list,” she finally said.
They all knew how risky that was.
Callen spoke up, “How about Lenny Ellis? What’s your gut saying about him?”
“Can you cue up a part of the disc where he’s mooning away after the girl?” she asked.
The agent went to work.
“I don’t think it’s him either,” she added. “It’s for the same reason that I don’t believe it’s Russell or Clarence. We can’t tie them to April. She’s like the wildcard. The first person we can link to her is going to be the killer.”
“I have it, boss,” Brody stated.
They leaned over the laptop and watched the scene play out. When it was done, she shook her head. “He’s not watching her like she’s prey. He’s in love. You can see that puppy dog look on his face. People get it when they feel that way.”
She stared at her agents.
There was no doubt that if Johanna could run from the room, she would. The jig was up.
“He wants to worship her, but on a throne. Not tied up and abused.”
Ethan tended to agree.
“Shit! What the hell are we missing?”
Callen thought about it. “Maybe we’re being too complex. What if we need to break this down to the obvious?”
He stood and crossed to the whiteboard.
“Go for it,” she offered, tossing him the marker.
“What about Donald Hooper? He’s quiet. He’s a wallflower. He’s lived here all his life. If we break his life apart, he’s a good choice.”
She thought about it. While her gut still said no, she’d give him his chance. “What else?”
He told them about the birth certificate. Callen made a gutsy move. “I think you skipped over him, but I wouldn’t have. I think you’ve made a mistake.”
The two agents stared at him like he was crazy. They waited for the
explosion.
“I may have. If you think he’s the one, you have to prove it to me. Find me more.”
Callen grabbed his tablet and began working.
“Ethan, I need the owners of all those cabins surrounding that dump site for Magdalene, and I need them fast.”
He got to work.
It felt like a race.
One against time.
* * *
To say she had a headache would be an understatement. Jaxon’s head was throbbing like a son of a bitch. To make it worse, she was tied to a chair.
When she heard whispers, she shifted her gaze over to see a familiar face.
There sat Bonnie Anston.
Well, shit!
The killer had her.
This couldn’t be good.
“Where are we?” she whispered.
Before Bonnie could reply, the door flew open, crashing against the wall.
“It’s good to see you’re awake. Is she bothering you, my sweet?” he asked Bonnie.
“No. I was just asking her if she was okay.”
He walked over to the other restrained woman and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “You have a huge heart. That’s why I love you.”
Jaxon didn't know what the hell was going on. Bonnie was looking at her with big scared eyes, but what she was saying didn't fit.
It was odd.
“Why am I here?” she asked.
“I need information about my brother.” He moved closer. “It seems my mother never told me he existed.”
She swallowed.
“Tell me everything and you’ll live.”
Jaxon didn't believe it. She’d seen the pit of bones. She recognized the abuse they suffered.
He wouldn’t let her go.
He’d kill her anyway.
“I’m not betraying him,” she stated.
He slapped her across the face in rage.
She gasped.
“I appreciate a loyal woman, look at my Bonnie, but you will tell me what I need to know, or I’ll have to hurt you.”
Jaxon didn't care. Tony came first.
“Fuck you.”
With his closed fist, he struck her in the face. The chair wobbled, falling back. Jaxon didn't know what hurt more—the punch or the crack of her head on the floor.
All she knew was the darkness was coming again. All she could hope was that she’d see Tony again.
She had to live.
He needed her love.
* * *
Morgue
Arriving at the morgue, he looked around for her. When he couldn’t find Jaxon with the techs, working on a skull, or beside Chris, he got worried.
“Where is she?”
He looked confused. “Who?” Chris asked. “Elizabeth?”
Tony shook his head. “No, Jaxon. I told her to ride in with you and Merry this morning. I got called out to the dig site. The doctor was losing it.”
“She didn't tell me that she was supposed to come with me. I saw you leave the hotel, she got up and followed. Merry and I finished our coffee and headed in.”
Merry agreed. “I went up to my room and didn't see her. Are you sure she’s not waiting there for you?”
Tony had that sick feeling in his stomach, but there was always the chance one of the Blackhawks grabbed her and she got waylaid.
Yeah, that’s what had to have happened.
“I’m going to head there and find the bosses.”
Chris knew his friend. “Call me when you find her!” he shouted after Tony. This all felt weird to him.
Out in the Denali, Tony took a deep breath as he called her phone. When no one answered, he began panicking.
Yeah, this was wrong.
Something had to have happened.
He put the vehicle into drive and hauled ass.
Tony Magnus needed to find her, and fast.
Before he lost his mind.
* * *
When Jaxon woke, she was bound on the floor. Bonnie Anston was sitting on the bed, chained to the headboard.
“Are you okay?” she whispered.
Jaxon wasn’t sure. “My head.”
“Shhhhh. You have to play the game. He’s fucking crazy. He thinks I’m his wife. If you want to survive this, you need to pretend you’re his friend. Lie to him about whoever this brother is. You have to survive.”
Jaxon tried to focus.
All she could hear were his angry shouts and slamming of cabinets.
“He’s told me he killed all those women. He’ll kill you too. I want to escape, but I have to have him trust me. I’m sorry, but it’s you or me. I have to pretend to be his wife.”
She understood.
But, she wasn’t betraying Tony for her own safety. She loved him and would die for him. After all, he took a bullet for her.
“I get it. Good luck,” she said, closing her eyes.
For now, she needed to play possum. Jaxon needed to bide her fiancé time. There was no doubt they’d find her.
She trusted them.
She had to have hope.
* * *
Tony arrived at their hotel room.
Something was off.
The desk chair was knocked over, there was Jaxon’s purse on the floor, and she was nowhere to be seen. Immediately, his first instinct was to run to Elizabeth.
THEN…
He saw it.
On the desk was a note.
Dearest Brother,
I have your wife. She’s not as amazing as mine, but to each their own. I guess we both have something in common. We love our women and our mother.
I heard what you said. Trust me, she didn't love you more. I was her child. She stayed with me until her death. She left you. That’s how much you meant to her.
If you want your wife back, you’ll have to come get her. As a warning, if you tell your friends in the FBI, I’ll make her pay. What happened to that whore Magdalene won’t even compare.
Come alone.
Tony memorized the address scribbled at the bottom of the paper. Then, he weighed his options. If he went to his bosses, they might get Jaxon killed. He only had one choice.
He had to go.
As long as his brother saw Jaxon as his wife, and a pawn, she was in danger.
Grabbing his sidearm, he slipped it out of the holster and into the back of his pants. It was time to save his fiancée. He was going to bring her home.
Tony had to.
He’d die without her.
~ Chapter Twenty-One ~
They worked in silence.
Elizabeth was scrolling through tech reports, Ethan was doing property searches, the two agents were watching video content, and Callen was scanning Bonnie’s email.
That’s when he saw it.
“I think I found something.”
That had all of their attention.
“What?” Elizabeth asked, moving closer to his side.
“I found an interesting email. Bonnie had a job interview a few weeks ago.”
That wasn’t surprising. “Yeah, Clark Phillipe said she was looking for a day job, so she could go to school at night. Where was she applying for the job?”
“Four weeks ago, she interviewed at this hotel to work at the front desk.”
Elizabeth scrolled through the email. It was one of those generic accounts that many people could use. Picking up the room phone, she called down to the front desk. When a woman answered, she was a little surprised.
“I need to speak to the manager.”
There was a hold and then a male voice on the phone. “Jerry Maldow. How can I help you?”
She introduced herself and explained that they were working on the case. “You interviewed a Bonnie Anston for a position with this hotel.”
“Yes, she starts on Monday.”
“Were you the one who hired her?”
He paused. “I did the final interview, but our head desk clerk did the initial screening. As you can imagine, I’m very busy.”
“Name please,” she stated, not really caring how busy he was. They were a tad bit more consumed with saving someone’s life.
“Oh, you’ve met him. Johnny Antonio. He’s such a hard worker.”
“The concierge was the one who interviewed her?”
Everyone began searching for information on him. They were very familiar with the tone of her voice.
“Is there anything else?” he asked.
“What day is the convention coming, so we can be packed up and out of here?”
“I’m sorry, but what are you talking about?”
She lifted a brow. “Never mind.”
Elizabeth hung up the phone. “I want to know everything. He just told us yesterday that he needed to know when we were leaving. He lied. That sends up a million red flags.”
Agent Madden turned her laptop around. “I have him in the pizza place.”
Elizabeth watched the man staring at Bonnie Anston. “See? He’s watching her. Lenny Ellis was pining away with love, this man was watching her like prey.”
The typing continued.
“I need more. We already know that people think that’s the best pizza place in town. He could just be getting dinner.”
She had a point.
Johanna defended her finding. “He was in there every night for a week. Then he stopped for a while. Then he was back again. It coincides with TOD of the other women.”
Callen thought about it. “So, he was trolling when he was looking for a victim?”
It could be.
Ethan spoke up, “I have his father’s info. His name is Lewis Antonio.”
“Is? He’s still alive?” If he was, this shot their mentor theory right out the freaking window.
“Well, here’s the thing. I see no record of his death. Plus, there are no hits on his social security number or credit history. He hasn’t applied for any loans or credit cards in a while.”
Dead Shall Speak (An FBI/Romance Thriller Book 10) Page 54
