Dave seemed obviously relieved, but his eyes tightened slightly as he turned back to the wall of Jay’s plans.
“It looks like you might have stumbled on something. The victims do start to resemble Stella more and more as we get closer to Miranda. But are you certain all these victims are linked?”
Jay smothered a flash of triumph. “That’s what these files are telling me.”
“You think a copycat then? I mean, from these reports,” Dave said gesturing at the newspaper articles, “the killers were all caught.”
Jay nodded. “Might be.”
“Might?”
Jay took a moment to savor the look of mild panic that had entered Dave’s eyes. It was the merest hint, barely able to mar the otherwise flawless look. Jay was no longer able to lie to himself and to ignore all the little things Dave let slip.
They both jumped when the doorbell rang.
“I’ll get it,” muttered Dave even as Jay followed him.
Dave glanced back at him in question as he pulled open the door.
“Look out!” Jay yelled, reacting on instinct and yanking Dave back by his shirt collar.
Dave’s buttons ripped loose and went flying. The slash of the knife scratched barely to leave a thin trail of blood across Dave’s chest. Jay blocked the next attack with his right arm and knocked the attacker hard in the chest. The person grunted and fled.
Jay collapsed back against the side wall of the entry hall. Dave breathed out and began talking at top speed, smatterings of thanks, of how he should have expected an attack.
Jay ignored the drip of blood down his forearm. He would bet everything he had that that knife wielding person, dressed head-to-toe in black, was Dr. Amara Young. Since discovering her identity as bloodangel_53, so many other pieces had fallen into place. She was how the kidnapper could keep tabs on Jay in the prison. She passed out Stella’s letters, plans, and anything else so this man could formulate his plan. Stella had kept the whole business with Miranda fairly quiet before her disappearance, but her letters to Jay had been explicit.
Jay glanced at Dave, who was now fingering his wound, and felt sure of something else. The knife had never been meant to do more than it had managed. She wasn’t trying to hurt Dave or even himself. Instead, Dave was trying to test Jay. He had thought that if Jay suspected him, he wouldn’t risk himself to save him.
Looks like I’ve found one of your blind spots.
She had to have been the shooter at the Mr. Haraby estate too. The bullet that shattered the window had not gone wide because of Dave’s tackle, but because she hadn’t been aiming at them. It was meant to miss.
Jay felt his anger shift from impulsive rage to something far colder and so much more dangerous. Dave had been shot on purpose to be able to gain Jay’s trust through a supposed self-sacrifice. The doctor who had treated him had marveled at the fact that the bullet had hit nothing. Jay had wondered, even then, how someone who had accurately killed four guards had failed to kill Dave. Now he had his answer.
“Looks like they left you something. You going to open it?”
Jay ignored the fearful tone of voice, instead noting the look of expectancy in Dave’s eyes as he nudged a small wooden box. He felt his heart sink. He thought he’d gotten a step ahead, but whatever was in this box said otherwise.
Jay pushed off from the wall and picked up the little box carefully. Dave stood too and came to hover at his elbow as Jay lifted the lid.
Jay just managed not to throw the box away in horror. His stomach was heaving as he hastily threw it on the side table.
The severed finger seemed to have emblazoned itself on Jay’s eyelids. He rushed to the bathroom as his insides heaved again.
He stood there for a long moment while watching his face in the mirror. He was certain, beyond any doubt now, that Dave Tiller was the kidnapper, the mastermind. It is his game, his challenge Jay had stepped into. He tilted his head at the sound of footsteps and the fridge door opening. He picked up the small hand mirror and tilted it until he could see the kitchen through the partially open door. He barely felt the blow as he watched Dave tip a white powder into one of the beer bottles.
Everything now hinged on his actions. If Dave realized he had been discovered before Jay and his handful of allies were ready, Stella would pay the price. And not just her. Jay had witnessed how patient and determined Dave was. If he escaped here, he would hunt them all, and Jay knew his chance of winning that battle.
Jay carefully replaced the mirror and looked at his own reflection until his face held the appropriate emotions. The game was still running. He had to keep playing. But this time, he was no longer in the dark.
He entered the kitchen, and Dave held out the spiked bottle. “To calm your nerves. I know I need one.”
Jay knew he couldn’t refuse. The finger had been a warning, no matter who it belonged to. He took the bottle with a shaky smile. “Looks like I saved you today.”
Dave returned the almost smile. “Back on even ground then.”
Jay kept his feral grin hidden.
You have no idea.
He took a large swallow of the drugged beer.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
“You need more already?” The sapphire blue eyes snapped up from the careful notes to lock on him. “From what I know of Jay, he’ll begin to notice the side effects if you use it too regularly.”
Dave’s gaze shifted only a tiny fraction into the world of his dark self, his true self, but the effect on Amara Young was immediate.
They were sitting in the small room that faced the water tank. He had run down houses like this all over the country with cells deep below ground and a water tank large enough to fully submerge a human. Both had their usual face coverings off. There was no need for them tonight.
“Do you have what I asked for?” he asked after the pause grew long enough for her hands to start to shake.
Dr. Young looked back at her notes. Her eyes flashed back and forth over the precise, neat letters. Dave gave her a moment so she can answer him properly. His thoughts moved back to her earlier statement.
He was confident Jay had noticed nothing. Whatever surprising gains the man had made, they had not breached any boundaries. He felt a surge of heat flash through his body. Watching Jay work was more amazing than he had imagined. He truly was the best, the only one alive who had even the smallest chance of discovering and stopping him. His discovery of the earlier victims was impressive, even if it meant that Jay had come dangerously close to discovering him.
At first, the game had merely been to see if all his years of watching Jay from afar held up in close quarters. The real life Jay had not only held up, but surpassed, his media image. Dave felt another flash of heat and felt his lips tilt in a smile. For a while now, he had been trying to see if Jay was breakable, like he did with Amara Young. It was still a possibility, and one he preferred to simply killing the man.
“Yes, I have everything.”
The small smile faded and was replaced by something darker, hungrier. “Every last scar, freckle, and flaw?”
“Yes.”
“Good. How long will it take you to get everything you need to complete the transformation?”
“About a week. Then at least another to actually do it, especially if you want Bridgette to die of drowning and not heart failure.”
“I do. She needs to match my usual M.O. perfectly,” Dave then frowned, remembering Jay’s words on his mention of a copycat.
He felt equal parts pleasure and annoyance at the fact that his idol and greatest threat had lived up to his pedestal. Being the only one to not buy the idea of a copycat. Dave had never been caught, never even been suspected. Yet unlike every other law-enforcement person across the USA, only Jayden Roe had thought they might all belong to the same killer.
He felt a sudden wave of black fury. He didn’t know how Jay had gotten hold of the information. Was it really down to some greedy idiots with Lloyd? But they would never think of it themselves. Who had
led them? Jay? How could he have done so without being caught out?
He glanced up to find Amara with her eyes down and shaking like a leaf. Dave wiped the murderous look from his face and replaced it with his bright smile, dimpled cheeks and green-blue eyes soft. The transformation only seemed to unsettle Amara further.
“Don’t worry, pet. You are not the one at fault.”
Amara nodded vigorously. “Shall I leave? To begin gathering supplies?”
“Yes. Don’t forget to feed Stella. She was looking a little peaky tonight.”
“I think she’s given up hope,” Amara said, her voice shifting from scared to acidic. “You were right about her. She didn’t deserve to be by Jay’s side.”
Dave heard the way she had said Jay’s name and gave her a sidelong glance as she gathered her things.
He had needed a spy in the prison. It had been easy enough to create an opening, and even easier for Amara to pass their tests and background checks. She had been skeptical at first that anyone could live up to the reputation held by Jayden Roe. Yet, as the years passed, she had changed her mind.
“Amara,” he called as she reached the door, “don’t step off the path.”
A shiver shook her from head to toe, but she glanced back and nodded. “I won’t. Ever.”
Dave watched her leave and smiled. That’s right. She wouldn’t. He had broken her entirely, years and years ago. She was the only of his victims whom he had taken as a child. She was also the only to have left his chains alive, but only because she had exchanged her will for his own.
Dave scooped up his own mask. His next line of work needed to be to track down Jay’s source of information. Whoever was leaking things needed to be silenced before they gave him enough to make the leap. Dave felt a small thrill of fear. He had little doubt that Jay would show no mercy if he discovered Dave’s true part in this game. If he was careful, he could use the man’s emotions to win that confrontation. However, the idea of watching those gray eyes turn to steel, sharp and cold, made him certain that if he took a misstep, he wouldn’t leave with his life.
***
Jay groaned as the pounding headache was even worse than the previous ones. Apparently whatever Dave was slipping him should not be taken often. He lay there a moment longer. The warm sun coming in through a gap in the curtains still felt cold to his mind. This new world was worse than he had been imagining.
He still struggled to mentally put together the dimpled, smiling Dave Tiller with the dark shadow he’d been imagining holding Stella. He was also struggling to understand the man’s motive. He was certain that he had never crossed paths with Dave, yet the man must have become aware of him somehow. It also didn’t seem likely that it was hate driving him. Dave didn’t seem to want to bring him down. This was somehow more personal.
Jay slowly pushed himself up. The pain that spiked across his skull made him wince. He needed to figure out the origin of Dave’s connection with him. If he could do that, then he might be able to get to his goal. Otherwise, he knew he had no chance of saving Stella.
He felt his heart jolt uncomfortably in his chest. He had chosen to give up hope that she was still alive, but now he knew the opposite to be true. He had learned enough of Dave’s character to know that he would keep the most valuable pawn for the end of the game.
Jay breathed in and out slowly. He could afford no mistakes from here on out. Dave had to believe him duped right up until the very moment he could spring his own trap. Which meant Jay couldn’t unravel Dave’s net himself. The only way to do it without error was to lead Dave into dismantling it himself. Yet that line was so fine, Jay was almost certain he’d stumble off it.
But I have help. Secret stage hands in the wings to keep me up.
Jay smiled and stepped out of bed. He needed to message Elliot and thought that his new RPG game might just be the best answer. He needed Natalie to look at the severed finger.
Jay ran a hand through his hair. Before, he wouldn’t have dared, believing that bringing anyone in would heighten their risk. Now he knew better. Dave would kill them regardless.
Jay felt a weight settle in his stomach as he remembered Dave’s threat against Ruby, even the other against Gary. Yes, the man would never let any of them go if he caught Jay. Jay was meant to follow the leads he was given for Dave’s planned ending.
Jay shook out his muscles. It was time to take control of this game.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Jay was sitting at the breakfast table, staring at the unassuming wooden box.
Dave smothered a smile and recomposed his face into the appropriate mask of horror, fear, and a hint of determination.
“Morning,” he greeted with a soft voice.
“Morning. I half expected you to flee in the night.”
Dave pulled his lips into a small smile. “Fortunately for you, I am smart enough to realize that it is far too late to distance myself from you. If I wish to survive, winning the game is the only way now.”
Jay nodded, eyes falling back to the box. “I appreciate it, all the same.”
“Even if it is the same self-interest that had me taking a bullet for you?”
Jay glanced up to meet his eyes then he smiled. “Yes. Even so.”
Dave smiled as he felt a similar rush to the ones he had experienced last night. He knew those flashes were not able to be masked. Jay would certainly not be able to miss them. In all likelihood, he would misinterpret it, but all the same it would add an unnecessary barrier to their game.
When he joined Jay at the table with coffee in hand, he noted the slight tightness to Jay’s eyes. “Headache again?”
Jay half smiled. “Not really surprising.”
Dave felt his heart tighten, but in the next moment, it had relaxed as Jay motioned to the box as an explanation. “What are your plans for it?”
“I need to have it examined. A good forensic will be able to tell whose it is. Obviously a fingerprint scan will give us ID,” Jay sighed heavily, “but my best go-to gal is no more.”
Dave frowned. Jay’s need for outside help had not been unexpected. Initially it was meant to be left alone. The great Jayden Roe and all the contacts he could muster after four years in prison, against Dave Tiller and his shadow, Amara Young.
Then Dave had witnessed Jay in the flesh, watched him catch onto and acknowledge Dave’s worth and ability. He had been surprised by the level of trust, even with all the little embedded tests. Jay had become less of an opponent to be defeated, and more of a master to be surpassed. As such, he needed to be alone. Friendless. Hector and Natalie Piers would have helped him too much.
Jay was only allowed to rely on Dave himself.
“So what is your plan, then?” Dave asked, belatedly realizing that he had probably let the pause drag on too long.
“I have a plan. There is someone else who might be able to get me my answers.”
Dave raised his eyebrows. “Who?”
Jay pursed his lips in thought then rose abruptly. “I got some information on one of the techs the sheriff uses to hide the trail of bodies.”
Dave covered his reaction with difficulty. “Really? How?”
Jay gave him a tiny smile with only a hint of his usual arrogance in it. “I piggybacked in on one of the streams for those files that were dropped. Looks like our inside man who’s buying off Lloyd’s men is one of the sheriff’s. Or maybe the man himself.”
Dave worked to bury his building irritation and look hopeful and admiring instead. The last was easy enough. There was a reason Jayden Roe had become his obsession. It was this keen mind and on-the-fly work that had made him the only opponent worth fighting and the only master worth surpassing. “I’ll look into that if you like.”
“Sure. That’ll leave me free to plan my attack on this forensic tech.”
“Attack?”
“Of course. You don’t actually think they’d do this willingly, do you? They’re helping cover up a serial killer. But before I can use that, I
need to gain enough personal information on them to ensure there are no errors and that the answers they give will be honest.”
Dave chuckled. “You truly are something else, Jay.”
It was not a problem for Jay to pull this forensic tech into service. He had enough eyes and ears in the police station to make sure that all Jay’s requests were monitored. He also needed Jay to learn the truth about the finger. He looked over Jay as the man stood. He hoped to be there for the moment that he realized it was Stella’s finger in the box. His smile broadened and left.
While Jay was obediently following the finger, he would be free. Jay was amazing, but Dave took a huge amount of pleasure in knowing that the man had just handed his hidden enemy the perfect cover to ensure that his network remained pure and that no more unplanned leads surfaced.
He wanted to break Jay into submission, not kill him. Yet he knew that if the man found out before the right time, he would have no choice but to choose the latter.
***
Jay leaned back from his desk and glanced at the clock. It was nearly three. He had skipped lunch to finish his preparations. Of course, he would never have gotten so far without Elliot, Hector, and Gary.
He smothered a laugh as he thought of Dave’s probable reaction to him being ready to confront the tech after less than a day. He had been watching the man’s reactions carefully as they had spoken this morning. His mirth faltered a little as he knew nothing he had caught had given him a solid motive yet. Though he had caught flashes of irritation and pleasure.
Jay fought down a shiver. He had dealt with many types from the world’s underbelly in his years working as a private investigator, but he had never dealt with a serial killer. Psychopaths didn’t usually enter into his sphere of work, either being careful enough to avoid detection entirely or careless enough to result in their easy capture by police. His clients had always been lone people who didn’t trust the local law force to get them what they wanted.
He drew a deep breath and looked at his partial victim wall, covering only some of the nearly one hundred victims that seemed to be Dave’s doing. The fingers of fear trailing his spine turned to grip his stomach, and he fought down a wave of disgusted nausea. Why had a man who killed blonds in their thirties taken exception to him? He glanced at his screen where he had just closed the RPG game. The man had promised to find that moment where their paths had crossed.
Jayden Roe Mystery 02-The Final Lie Page 18
