When Shadows Fall

by J. T. Ellison

  Xander helped her stand. She pulled the white cotton away from her neck. “Is it bad?”

  He peered at her, lips in a tight line. “You won’t need stitches. Let’s get you bandaged up. Is your hand okay?”

  She looked down to see her knuckles were abraded. “I’ll be fine. I’ll put some ice on it.”

  Fletcher came back. “My people are on their way. She won’t get far.” He saw her sucking on her knuckles. “You beat the crap out of her?”

  “I wouldn’t say that. She got in the last punch.”

  He gave her a proud smile. “But you clearly connected with a few. What’s this?”

  She glanced where he pointed. The bed was made, and the small stuffed lion was sitting in the middle of the spread. Kaylie had never gone to bed.

  Fletcher picked up the stuffed lion. There was a piece of crumpled paper underneath. It looked to be a page torn from a book; the edges were ragged and the stock was much heavier than a notebook. He handed it to Sam. She read the words, made in a childish scrawl across the page, then handed it to Xander, who read it aloud.

  “Dear Dr. Owens, I’m sorry. Thank you for being kind to me. I know you’re going to be able to find my daughter.”

  Chapter

  44

  XANDER DABBED AT Sam’s wound with some Betadine, then put on a butterfly bandage. He was too gentle. She had to use her fingers to push it down to adhere to her skin, and her stomach turned at the pain.

  “You okay?” Xander asked, his eyes dark with anger.

  “Yeah. I’ll live.”

  Fletcher examined Kaylie’s egress. “The window lock is busted,” he said. “She managed to get it open, then cut her way out through the screen. Dropped right out onto the roof, down the pear tree then over the fence onto the street. I can’t believe we didn’t hear her.”

  “I can’t believe Thor didn’t warn us,” Xander said. “Thor! Komm!”

  Fletcher was still wide-eyed, anger written across his face. He asked Xander, “Where’d she find the knife?”

  “She had it on her, I think. When Baldwin asked to see her birthmark, she freaked out. It’s on the inner part of her thigh. She probably had the knife strapped there the whole time. Jesus, how did I miss it?”

  Sam touched his shoulder. “Because I’m the one who patted her down, and I certainly didn’t put my hands between her thighs.”

  He nodded, a short jerk. He was clearly furious with himself. She gave him a smile. “I’m okay, really.”

  “You’re being awfully calm about this. She could have killed you,” Fletcher said.

  “Apparently Adrian is coming to take care of that for her.” She told them the rest, trying hard to keep the fear out of her voice. When she got to the part about the daughter, the idea hit Sam like a bolt of lightning.

  “Was Rachel Stevens adopted?” she asked.

  Fletcher tossed his hands in the air. “There’s been no mention of it. There are pictures of Claire Stevens holding an infant on the mantel in their house, I know that.”

  “Someone needs to check. The pictures of Rachel I’ve seen bear more than a passing resemblance. The timing is right. Rachel just turned ten. Kaylie said she had her child when she was twelve or thirteen, and she’s twenty-two now. If she’s telling the truth about them selling babies, it’s possible that Rachel is her daughter. And they’re using her to draw Kaylie back to the cult.”

  “More than possible, damn it,” Fletcher said. “I’ll make sure someone investigates whether Rachel is adopted or not. That information would have helped before now.” He flipped the paper over in his hands, looked at the note again.

  “Hold on. Give me that back.” Sam snatched the note from his hand and turned it over. She realized the paper Kaylie had written on was from one of the encyclopedias she had on the bookshelf, a remnant left over from her life in Nashville. When she was pregnant with the twins, she and Simon had purchased a set of Encyclopedia Britannica in the hopes of giving Matthew and Madeline an actual paper snapshot of the world, rather than allowing them to rely solely on the internet.

  Of course, they’d never grown old enough to read, much less study.

  She felt her heart start its familiar anguished tattoo, and sternly told it, Not now. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath through her nose, then opened her eyes and spread the crumpled paper out against her hand.

  Amazing. It worked. Her heartbeat was normal. She was beginning to think she actually had this under control. Either that or she needed to take up boxing.

  She looked closely at the paper. Kaylie had ripped a page from the V volume—specifically, the map of northern Virginia. Sam ran her finger along the page, went over to the bedside lamp to get the most light on it she could. There was something...she held it to the light and saw a pinhole in the paper.

  “I will be damned. She’s left us a way to find Rachel.”

  “How?” Fletcher asked.

  Sam brought it to him, held the paper up to the overhead light so he could see it. “There’s a hole, right here, out near Great Falls. That must be where they are. That must be where Eden is keeping Rachel.”

  “Or she stabbed the pen through the page writing her little love note. Come on, Sam. That’s a reach.”

  “So you’re telling me she just chose this page at random? The book was on the bottom shelf. If she just needed a piece of paper, why didn’t she use the pad next to the bed, or get one from my office down the hall? No, she chose this page purposefully.”

  “Great Falls wasn’t on any of the maps she showed Baldwin,” Xander said.

  Sam looked at him, saw the worry and exhaustion etched across his face. “This means something, Xander. I’m sure of it.”

  He was quiet for a moment, then nodded. “All right. Fletch, can we get a topographical map of this area, and a list of property owners?”

  Fletcher already had his cell phone out and was dialing. “I’m on it. Right after I put out a BOLO on Kaylie. What was she wearing? Describe her to me.”

  Sam conjured a mental image of the girl. “Light green cargo pants, red T-shirt with Munich on it in white letters, brown military-style combat boots. Her hair is shoulder length, strawberry blond, obviously, and she had it in a ponytail. She’s tan, from being outside, but freckled, too. My build, but maybe an inch or two taller than me.”

  Xander said, “I make her at five-eight and one-twenty soaking wet.”

  Sam gave him a smile. Leave it to Xander to have the specifics.

  “She didn’t steal anything, did she?” Fletcher asked.

  “No. Surely not,” Sam said.

  “Better check,” he said. And then into the phone, “Jordan, hey. We need a BOLO on Kaylie Rousch. She just attacked Dr. Owens. Label her armed and dangerous. Last seen in Georgetown, wearing—”

  Sam walked down the hall to her bedroom. She hoped Kaylie hadn’t stolen from them.

  She was wrong.

  Her bedroom was a shambles, the closet open and clothes strewn everywhere.

  She called, “Fletch! Hold up. She might not be wearing the same clothes.”

  God, what an idiot she was thinking this stranger could be trusted. Maybe she wasn’t even Kaylie Rousch; they hadn’t done a DNA test at the door, just took her at her word. How dumb of them. She’d already broken into the house. Why not devolve into stealing from them, as well?

  Thor followed her into the room, his nails clicking gently on the hardwood. “Some guard dog you are,” she said, and she could have sworn he hung his head in shame. “Oh, no, don’t you do that. Komm!” He came to her immediately and she bent to scratch his ears. He licked at the bandage on her throat.

  “Braver Hund! I love you. But your daddy’s going to hit the roof in two seconds. Be prepared.”

  Xander stopped in the doorway, his eyes narro
wed, then entered the room. Fletcher was right on his heels, his cell phone to his ear.

  “What’d she take? What’s missing?”

  “I don’t know yet. Is it okay to start looking?”

  “Jordan, hold on a sec, she trashed Sam’s bedroom, too,” Fletcher said. He took three shots of the room with his phone’s camera, just in case they were needed for evidence. “Okay, Sam, go ahead. See what she took.”

  She started with her jewelry box, carelessly left unlocked on the dresser. She didn’t have a lot of jewelry. As a doctor she always had her hands in gloves, so rarely wore rings. That’s why Xander’s ring was so perfect: tiny and thin, it wouldn’t catch on things and she could always leave it on. She touched it once in thanks.

  And bless all that was holy, she’d put her wedding set in her safe-deposit box after she’d moved to D.C., knowing having them in the house would make her life hell. They’d been safe away from Kaylie’s sticky paws.

  She combed through the box, saw nothing overtly out of place. Her TAG Heuer watch had been lying on the bathroom sink. It was gone, along with the cash from her wallet.

  She waved it at Fletcher. “There was three hundred dollars in here. And she took the watch my father gave me for my high school graduation.”

  “Fast money. She can hock the watch, and clearly the cash was a necessity. Nothing else missing?”

  “I love that watch, Fletch. She better not hock it. There are some clothes gone, too. She snagged some tops and pants. There are hangers empty that I know had stuff on them, but with the pile here in the middle of the floor, it will take me a while to figure out which ones. I hate to admit it, but I’m not the best at keeping my closet in perfect order.”

  Fletcher gave her a half grin. “I am completely and irrefutably disillusioned by that fact, Dr. Owens.” He spoke to Jordan. “Rousch is funded and mobile. Get them on it now!” He hung up and looked around the room. “This is a lot of disorder for such a short time frame. What she took was easily reachable, right?”

  “Yes. Out in the open. My wallet was at the top of my bag and the watch was on the bathroom counter. Grab some clothes to change into on the road, and she’s on the move.”

  Fletcher spun around in a circle. “So why make such a huge mess? Do you think she was looking for something specific?”

  “Like what?”

  “I don’t know, Sam. Something Doug Matcliff might have sent you? Did anything come in that letter he mailed to the office?”

  “No. Just the letter. Benedict gave me the key, but that was to the safe at Matcliff’s cabin, where we found all the pictures of me and the copy of the will.”

  “Well, he’d been stalking you for a while. Maybe she thought he left something else for you.”

  A chill ran down her spine. “Jesus, this gets better and better. What can we do to help, Fletch?”

  He looked at his watch. “God, it’s 2:30 a.m. Honestly, there’s nothing more you can do right now. Get some sleep. We’ll pick this up in the morning.”

  “I can’t sleep knowing she’s out there.”

  “Every cop on overnight patrol will be watching for her. I’ll ask someone to park it here, in case she decides to come back.”

  “That’s not necessary,” Xander said, but Fletcher held up a hand.

  “Yeah, it is,” Fletcher said. “Damn, man, she sliced Sam’s neck and snuck out right under your nose. She’s been off the grid and off the radar for at least ten of the last seventeen years. Matcliff clearly educated her. You have to assume she has every bit of training you have. He was a marine, a cop and an FBI agent.”

  Xander openly bristled. “Oh, bullshit on that. I was a ranger. Our training is highly superior to those powder puffs.” But he smiled, and Fletcher laughed.

  “Good.” He nodded toward Sam. “Make her sleep. Knock her on the head if you have to. I’ll call in a few hours, give you an update.”

  “We’re meant to interview Anne Carter, Matcliff’s old boss, and then go to Lynchburg,” Sam said.

  “Well, with any luck, it won’t be necessary and we’ll have it all wrapped by then. See ya.”

  Xander walked him out. Sam stood staring at the mess in her room, knowing she’d never get to sleep until she cleaned it up.

  No good deed went unpunished, that was for sure.

  She started pulling the clothes from the floor in piles. Xander joined her, and they got everything sorted out quickly.

  “Fletcher’s right, you need to get some rest,” Xander said.

  “I know. I can probably talk myself into popping a quarter tab of Ambien. Do you want one?”

  “No way.”

  His vehemence stung her. “I thought I’d offer.”

  “One of us needs our wits about us.”

  She realized he was mad at her. She crossed her arms on her chest. “What did I do? Why are you upset with me?”

  His dark eyes were troubled. He shook his head and touched her cheek, gently. Unwound her arms. Pulled her into his. “I’m not mad at you. We were both stupid to let her stay here. We should have let Baldwin haul her ass into the FBI. Now not only is she gone, but she’s hurt you, and stolen from you, and trashed our house.”

  Sam merely nodded. “I hurt her, too. What did you do with that key, by the way?”

  “The one to Matcliff’s safe? I have it right here.” He pulled the small silver key out of his pocket. “You think this is what she was after?”

  “Maybe. What if the safe at Matcliff’s place isn’t the only thing it opens? What if there’s another lock that fits that key?”

  He turned it over and over in his hand. “It’s entirely possible.”

  “Maybe Doug Matcliff hasn’t given us the whole story. Not yet.”

  “Maybe not. But we’re going in circles, and you need to get some rest. Come on. I’ll tuck you in.”

  She was foggy and uncertain, and so tired. Her neck was throbbing, as were her knuckles. Her stomach felt raw where Kaylie had landed the final punch. A few hours of sleep might be just the trick. She took two ibuprofen tablets, then broke an Ambien into pieces, popped one in her mouth and let him put her to bed.

  Xander made her get under the covers and kissed her lightly on the forehead. He started to leave and she asked, “Where are you going? You need sleep, too.”

  “Thought I’d mess around on the computer for a while, see if I can relax.”

  In other words, he was going to keep watch. The man was a machine.

  “Xander?”

  He came back and sat on the edge of the bed. She reached up and pushed his hair off his forehead gently.

  “We have to find them,” she said. “We have to find Kaylie and Rachel.”

  “I know. I’m going to do a little snooping, see if I can’t turn up a few leads of our own. Sleep a bit, okay?”

  “Only if you promise you will, too.”

  “Cross my heart.” He kissed her again, then shut off the light, whistled for Thor and pulled the door.

  She tossed and turned for a few minutes, waiting for the edge of sleep to come, to soften her mind, her worry. Five minutes later she was still staring at the ceiling. She got out of bed, went to the window of her bedroom and looked out through the blinds. The night seemed very dark, and she heard a rumble of thunder. She touched the bandage on her neck.

  Kaylie Rousch was out there. So was Rachel Stevens, and a violent, remorseless killer. She felt eyes on her, and pulled the cord on the blinds. Breathed deep, and lay back down.

  It was all going to break tomorrow. She could feel it.

  Chapter

  45

  THERE IS A storm coming. The wind is picking up, the moon blotted out by the thickening clouds. There is the tiniest hint of coolness in the breeze, and the sudden change in temperature makes me shiver.
>
  I stand on an anonymous Georgetown corner, waiting for the cop who pulled up with a screech in front of Dr. Owens’s house twenty minutes ago to drive away. When another patrol car arrives and it is clear this one has settled in for the night, I know there is no return to the succor of her living room and lemon cake, warm arms and motherly embraces. I start up N Street, the heels of her boots clicking on the pavement. I had half hoped she wouldn’t have called the cops, that she would recognize the desperation of a lost little girl.

  Oh, well. The woman can fight. She’d nearly had me; it was pure luck I was able to take her down. She doesn’t stand a chance with Adrian, though.

  I have given her what she needs, her and that brute of a boyfriend. If she’s as smart as Doug said, and he has half a brain, they’ll figure it out.

  The rain begins to fall, a soft spatter, making steam rise off the still-hot streets. I draw the cardigan closer. I like her clothes; they are soft, expensive and smell good. Like money and happiness. I know she has had a hard time over the past few years, but this is a woman who has only used her brain to survive until now, not her body, not her soul. Despite her frenzied rally, she is soft, like her clothes. And comfortable. Too comfortable.

  All I want is a head start. If I can find my daughter, and eliminate the unholy alliance that tore me from her, I will do so. It ends now. No more hiding in the forest, pretending the world is all right.

  I will save Rachel, or die trying.

  Chapter

  46

  Capitol Hill

  Near the Longworth Office Building

  JORDAN BLAKE CALLED Fletcher as he pulled away from Sam’s house. She told him to head home. It was too late to rattle any more cages tonight—the key to the puzzle was off on walkabout, and without further authorization to check out the spot on the map Rousch had left behind, their hands were tied. And they all needed rest. They’d be useless without at least a few hours of sleep.

  He had to cross the Key Bridge to circle down the George Washington Parkway toward his place on the Hill. He was tempted to exit right onto the Parkway, drive out to Great Falls and see what was there. See whether it was simply a pinprick on a map, or something more. But common sense prevailed. Jordan was right. Rest. Recharge. Up and at ’em tomorrow. Maybe a few hours of sleep would help him see things clearly. Because right now this whole case and its various facets made zero sense to him. And the thought of Sam with a knife to her throat made him want to tear Kaylie Rousch limb from limb.