First Do No Evil: Blood Secrets, Book 1

by Carey Baldwin

  Danny understood from her pleading looks that she wanted him to absolve her of her guilt, but it wasn’t in his power to do that. All he could do was listen.

  “I had too many boys to take care of. But I needed to make ends meet. And then I got my housekeeping job. It was hard work, but I was glad of it. I imagined a better life. Not just for me and Robert, but for all the boys.” Her hand covered her quavering lips. “When I started my new job, Robert was mad. He didn’t get no attention already, and I guess he was sick of not having his own room, or even his own mother. He had to share everything. Garth was the leader. So Robert took it all out on Garth. While I was working, he kept him chained to the fence with the dog.” She shuddered. “They say Robert kicked him and made him eat and drink from the dog bowls. And even when he weren’t chained up, Robert made him wear the dog’s collar.”

  She let out a wail and dropped her head into her hands. “Robert’s had his own trouble. But he’s sorry for what he done. He’s born again, you know. My son’s in the penitentiary now, and all I got left is my indoor herb garden.”

  The charred remnants of a dog collar had been found around Nevaeh’s neck.

  He made him wear the dog’s collar.

  The words rang in Danny’s ears, echoed again and again, drowning out all the other sounds in the room. Tears were welling in his throat, and he could hardly breathe. Mrs. Martin lifted her ravaged face and shot him a pleading look. He ought to offer to call her pastor. He ought to offer to drop her at a friend’s.

  Sucking down a blast of oxygen, he got to his feet.

  He had to get back to Sky.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Winding up the imaginary ball of yarn he’d unrolled for his little game of cat and mouse, Garth snapped his wrist, and poof, Detective Daniel Benson ran out of string.

  Game Over.

  Garth shoved one hand inside the pocket of his overcoat and let his fingertips caress the icicle-sharp points of the dog collar he carried with him. As he stole across Benson’s backyard, the sound of pinecones crunching beneath his feet and the pungent odor of juniper irritated him. He had never understood his sister’s love of nature.

  Natural law, survival of the fittest—those things he understood. Because those things were rational, and he was a rational man. But a love of nature was beyond him. Love itself—putting the well-being of the loved object ahead of self-interest—was inherently illogical, violated the driving instinct for survival. Even worse, love has a tendency to muddle the mind and dilute the will. And he could not allow his mission to be compromised by a weak will.

  Because he loved neither nature nor people, nothing could prevent him from taking the actions necessary to achieve his goals—regardless of how heinous those actions might appear to ordinary men. Ordinary men allowed their emotions to cloud their judgment. But he was not ordinary.

  At least not anymore.

  As a boy, he had been as drawn to the notion of love as any other, and strange as it now seemed, until she’d dumped him into the social services sewer, he had loved his mother. And even while he was passed from one set of neglectful guardians to the next, he’d maintained the hope that someday, he would be part of a real family, that like all the other little boys, he too would be loved. He had prayed for love. And when Isabella rescued him and adopted him into her family, he’d believed his prayers had been answered.

  And perhaps they had been. Because Isabella did love him, and he did love her.

  Then Isabella died, and along with her, his faith in love.

  He pulled on his gloves and dusted his hands together. Logic dictated that he cease engaging in futile emotional attachments, and so he had. Although unfortunately, he had become invested in Sky. Overly invested.

  What he felt for Sky wasn’t love. No. He had evolved to a higher plane and now knew better than to engage in such an indulgence. But he did take pleasure in the way Sky looked up to him and believed in him. In the irrational way, since they were not consanguineous relations, she treated him like her blood.

  He certainly did not love Sky.

  But Sky was the only living person who loved him. And now Benson had defiled her and corrupted the bond between brother and sister. Garth would not allow that transgression to go unpunished. He would exact retribution. Benson was about to pay the highest price a man could pay for sin. An eye for an eye. Or in this case…a child for a sister.

  Ducking behind a recycling can, Garth watched as Katie Benson peeked out the kitchen window and drew the curtains closed. Perhaps his approach had not been as stealthy as he’d thought. Perhaps the damnable pinecones had alerted her that someone was in the backyard. But it was of little consequence. He’d planned his course of action in meticulous detail.

  Earlier that day, he’d hopped a bus to the library and verified that Katie’s aunt was at her post and would remain on duty until nine pm. Then he’d taken another bus to the end of Benson’s street and crept up a back alley. No one had spotted him. He was certain of it. Katie was alone in the house. Whether she’d spied him in the yard or not, there was nothing the poor child could do to save herself.

  Too bad Katie had to pay the price for her father’s sins.

  When Garth had first learned that Benson was traveling to Page, he’d been perturbed. Not worried or fearful, because those were strong emotions, and Garth didn’t feel anymore, not really. He only experienced emotional shadows now—gauzy remnants left over from his childhood. In fact, perturbed might be too strong a word to describe his reaction to the news that Danny was closing in on the truth.

  But whatever label one assigned to his initial reaction, after brief reflection, that emotional shadow had morphed into satisfied anticipation, because Danny’s absence afforded Garth the perfect opportunity for vengeance. If Danny uncovered Garth’s secrets while in Page, it didn’t matter. Like Katie, Danny had no way to save himself. However damning the information the detective gleaned was, it would be too little too late. Benson was not going to live to see another sphincter-frosting Flagstaff sunrise.

  Darting from behind the trashcan, Garth crossed the remaining yards to the Benson back porch.

  Even had he not defiled Sky, Benson knew far too much already. The only sure way to protect Bella was to eliminate the detective. But Benson had defiled Sky, and now a bullet to the brain wasn’t going to be enough to satisfy Garth. A bullet to the brain wasn’t going to be anywhere close to enough. But…when Danny saw his precious daughter lying in a pool of blood, her little neck broken and adorned with a dog collar, he’d beg Garth for a bullet. And Garth would give it to him. But only after Danny looked long and hard at his daughter’s face and understood what he’d stolen from them all. For what he’d done to Garth, Danny had to pay with more than his life.

  He had to pay with his heart.

  It was well past sunset, and now the meager glow from her kitchen lamp did not suffice. Sky got up and switched on the overhead light, and then returned to her excavation of the medical files. She powered up her MacBook, and while she waited for her operating system to boot, she checked Edmond’s notes one more time. Yes, she’d remembered correctly. Livy, Amanda and Henrietta had each made a trip to Phoenix in the week prior to falling ill.

  As a cheerful row of icons bounced into place on her desktop, she gritted her teeth. Fingers working faster than her brain, she typed in: Maricopa County Neuoinvasive Abovirus. Then the screen refreshed, and Google admonished her, “Did you mean Maricopa County Neuroinvasive Arbovirus?”

  Yes. Yes. Stupid fingers. Conceding the point, she clicked the mouse over the corrected phrase, cracked her knuckles, and resolved to slow down. Her haste was costing her precious minutes.

  The page refreshed.

  Scanning down, she selected a link to the Maricopa County Public Health Department’s epidemiology page.

  Outside, a car engine revved, and she glanced up from her computer, hoping it was Garth. He should’ve been home an hour ago. She reached for her cell, but then drew ba
ck her hand. Best be certain she was on the right track before giving him the news.

  After scrolling to the bottom of the epidemiology page and not finding what she sought, she moved the mouse to the search site box and typed in neuroinvasive arbovirus statistics September. A page began to load, so slowly, she wondered if the link was working, but then, just when she was about to give up and hit refresh, a graph appeared: Number of Cases Plotted by Week of Onset.

  Bingo.

  Holding her breath, she traced the blue bars of the graph with her fingertips. The screen started to throb with a life of its own, but she knew it was her racing pulse that caused the tactile illusion. The towering blue bars peaked in the first three weeks of September. Phoenix, Arizona had been in the throes of an epidemic in the weeks the three women fell ill.

  Up in the cool pines of Flagstaff, folks hadn’t concerned themselves much over a disease that was spread by mosquitoes. But in Phoenix, the insect repellant had been flying off the shelves. Sliding one shoe on and off her foot, she dialed the Medical Examiner’s office.

  Straight to voice mail.

  At the beep, she kicked hard and one shoe sailed across the room. “Tom, you saved biological samples on those cases we discussed. I need you to send off brain tissue or…blood…or whatever. You’re the expert, you decide which tests to run, but…” She paused and injected her voice with a calm certainty. She needed the medical examiner to know she wasn’t fooling around or going off on some wild tangent. “I think I know what killed Amanda Cavanaugh, Livy Petersen and Henrietta Trueblood.”

  She knew she was right. Everything fit. And the diagnosis could be proven.

  Adrenaline surged through her body. It was as though her heart had stopped, and she’d been revived with a shot of Epi.

  Her brother’s innocence could be proven.

  The words echoed in her ears as she spoke into the receiver. “Tom, it was West Nile Virus.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Sky arched her neck and glanced in the rearview mirror just as a Jeep pulled onto the road behind her. The steering wheel felt slick beneath her palms, and the hairs on the back of her neck bristled. The Jeep was a ways back, and although the swerve of the headlights indicated it had been pulled off the road in an odd spot, that didn’t mean it had been lying in wait for her. There was a fine line between alert caution and paranoia, and she didn’t intend to let Danny’s wild accusations against her brother coax her into crossing it.

  Someone evil was out there—somewhere. But evil wasn’t everywhere. Whoever this terrible person was, he was mortal like everyone else. He wasn’t omniscient or omnipresent or one whit stronger or smarter than she was. And she wasn’t going to hide behind locked doors, curled up in a shivering ball of fear, waiting for him. Let him come after her. He’d find her out in the open with her fists up.

  Her foot pressed harder on the accelerator as she turned onto Route 66. When the Jeep reappeared in the rear-view mirror, her fingers curled tightly around the steering wheel. With only two ways to turn, the odds of the Jeep following her were fifty-fifty. “Get a hold of yourself,” she muttered. If she let fear take root, she’d be paralyzed, unable to leave her home. Every car on the road would hold a potential assassin. She didn’t want to see the world that way—through Danny’s eyes, where even her own brother was suspect.

  She wished Garth had returned home before she’d had to leave so that she could have given him the good news. But with the burden of suspicion that hung over Bella lifting, she felt relaxed enough to go on with her prior plans.

  She’d promised Katie she’d stop by around eight-thirty, and she didn’t want to keep her waiting or wondering. Katie was home alone while Faith worked at the library, and with Danny out-of-town this might be the only chance Sky had to speak with her, at least for a while. Maybe Danny would be angry with her for meeting with Katie behind his back, but at the moment, she was far more concerned about Katie’s feelings.

  Sky felt a connection to the girl, and she thought Katie felt it too. It wasn’t right to walk out of Katie’s life without an explanation. In fact, Sky had no intention of walking out of Katie’s life at all. Just because she’d come to the end of the road with Danny, that didn’t mean she couldn’t be a friend to his daughter. If Katie didn’t want her around, Sky would respect that, but she had a feeling Katie needed her.

  Lifting her phone, she dialed Danny’s home number. She wanted to let Katie know she was on her way, so she wouldn’t be startled by a knock at the door. Being home alone at thirteen could be scary. For that matter, being home alone at any age could be scary.

  “Hello? Katie, it’s Sky.”

  “You’re not coming, are you?”

  That defensive bravado in Katie’s voice didn’t deter Sky. She had a pretty good idea of what lay beneath—disappointment, insecurity, the expectation of being let down. That one telling question—you’re not coming, are you?—cemented her determination to stick by Katie. Katie did need her. And right then and there, she vowed to herself that come what may, she would not let Katie down.

  “I am coming. Just wanted to give you a heads up that I’m a few miles away. Be on the lookout for me.”

  “Okay.” Katie’s voice reflected relief, even if her words did not. “I’m getting bored with my homework. I’m writing a book report if you want to help.”

  “Sure. You can bounce ideas off me. And I’d be happy to read what you’ve got so far.”

  “Sky…” Katie hesitated.

  “Yes?”

  “Have you talked to my dad?”

  “That’s part of what I wanted to discuss, but…not on the phone. See you soon, sweetheart.” She hung up and braced her shoulders in anticipation. This was going to be a tough conversation.

  After pulling a pair of wire cutters from his coat, Garth located the Bensons’ telephone lines and snipped them. Then he ascended the back-porch steps. If Katie had set the alarm system, a bell would sound when he entered the home, but no signal would be sent to the security company. He’d force Katie to disengage the alarm, and the neighbors would assume it had been false. Of course once the security company noted the telephone lines weren’t working, they’d research it, and eventually send someone out to investigate.

  Garth figured he could count on no more than fifteen minutes tops to get the job done. His lips were cracked from the damned cold weather, and his mouth burned at the corners as a smile broke across his face. He relished the idea of a ticking clock. After all, a man needs some sort of a challenge, and Katie herself presented none. The doorknob slipped easily in his hand, and as he entered the kitchen no alarm sounded. He cursed under his breath. The little fool hadn’t even locked the door. This was going to be disappointingly easy.

  He closed the back door and bolted it behind him. It was too late for Katie, it was too late for Danny, and this last, Garth did regret: It was too late for Sky. His sister was already dead to him. Now it was only a matter of disposing of her corporeal being. But that would come later. First, he needed to make her understand that everything he’d done, he’d done for Bella. He’d explain everything to Sky, and after he did, she’d repent. And it was that repentance, along with her forgiveness that would allow him to send her to heaven. All he needed was Sky’s forgiveness, then he could let her go.

  Isabella would not be angry with him. On the contrary, she would thank him for sending her daughter into her arms. His angel had been waiting far too long already. Isabella would understand that it was Garth who made the sacrifice. Garth who would remain alone and lonely in this world. And bringing Danny to justice—Isabella would understand that too. Danny had taken Sky from Garth. It was right and just that Garth take Katie from Danny. It was, in a word, symmetry.

  When he tapped his gloved fingers together, ice-flakes shimmered through the air like holy water from the hands of a priest. Advancing toward the breakfast table, he spied a book lying atop a pile of handwritten notes. Katie’s homework no doubt. With mild curiosity, he lif
ted the book. To Kill A Mockingbird. Isabella’s favorite novel.

  It was a sign.

  Hearing a soft voice behind him, he jerked his head around. But there was no one.

  The book trembled oddly in his grasp. “Isabella?”

  He felt warm breath in his ear.

  It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.

  His eyes squeezed shut. This was only a trick of his mind. Isabella wasn’t there, and this was no sin. Yes, Katie was an innocent. All children are innocents, but that doesn’t mean they should be spared. He had not been spared. And innocence was no virtue. Innocence was nothing more than inexperience, glorified weakness. Purity of will, single-minded purpose, the courage to act. Those were the only true virtues.

  His eyes opened.

  He laid the book neatly beside the homework papers.

  And from his overcoat, pulled out the collar.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  As her car skidded on the icy road, Sky’s heart careened in her chest. Steering into the skid, she quickly felt her Honda and her pulse come back under control. Amazing. Such a simple maneuver, and yet so effective. After years of driving the wintry roads of Flagstaff, she’d learned to let her brain override her natural instincts. But still, it required no small amount of will to ignore her gut and veer directly into danger. Arms trembling, she straightened the wheel and cruised to a careful stop at the curb. She’d had enough of these roads. She’d walk the extra stretch from here.

  Just ahead, she could see Danny’s place. Beneath a gray fog, heavy with impending snow, the house slumped like a brooding child. The front curtains were drawn, and what appeared to be the yellow halo from a single lamp shone faintly behind the fabric. First thing she’d do once she got inside would be to throw open the curtains and let in the outside world. It must be gloomy as Miss Havisham’s inside. Not a good atmosphere for a sensitive young girl like Katie.