Silenced
Page 32
Genie reached out and grabbed her hand. “Glad to finally meet you,” she said to Ivy.
“I’m sorry,” Ivy mumbled.
“About what? Protecting your family? You got nothing to apologize for, girl. I think that”—she gestured to the security bracelet around her ankle—“is punishment enough.”
“Thank you for everything you did for my friends. Lucy said you’re a great cop, and you cared about them, even when they were dead.”
“Stop,” Genie said, her eyes tearing. “Someone has to speak up for those who can’t speak for themselves. I’m no saint.”
“You are to me,” Lucy said.
* * *
Sean was playing games with Sara on her iPad, while putting together the truth behind Senator Paxton’s lies.
From the beginning he’d been the one playing with Sara’s life. All the tidbits Sean had picked up from Lucy’s investigation and from the senator himself found their proper places.
Sergio had kidnapped Sara and brought her to Ivy. He’d been the one who’d bought the virtual phone number so Ivy could reach him. Yet he’d allowed Paxton to play the game with Crowley, to release the photographs to the media that started this entire chain of events spiraling out of control.
That Sara was away from the bastard who’d raised her, and Ivy would probably get off with probation, were a small silver lining in a sea of blood—the blood of six people who’d been killed to cover up the crimes of Devon Sullivan and her cohorts.
Paxton was a danger not only to Sean but to others. He played the role of master chessman, sacrificing pawns and others in his quest to win whatever endgame he had in mind.
And it incensed Sean that he was getting away with it.
Not forever. He’d threatened Sean, but more egregious, he’d threatened Lucy. Sean didn’t care how long it took, but he would destroy Jonathon Paxton.
The door opened and Noah stepped in. He looked worried. “Kate said Lucy was here with Ivy.”
“They went to visit Detective Reid,” Sean said.
“What’s wrong?” Sara asked. She sat up. “Did something happen?”
“No,” Noah said. “Everything’s fine. You sit tight, I’m going to talk to Sean for a minute outside.”
She didn’t believe him, and neither did Sean. He followed Noah out.
“What?” he demanded.
“We thought Abernathy took a train to New York, but when it arrived at the station, he wasn’t on it. It’s just a precaution, but we should let Lucy know—”
Sean didn’t let him finish. “Reid’s room is across the courtyard,” he said as he bolted for the staircase.
* * *
Lucy and Ivy left Genie a few minutes later and went back across the courtyard to the pediatric wing.
They were just passing the fountain in the middle of the garden when the hair rose on the back of Lucy’s neck and she felt eyes on her.
“Ivy!” she said sharply, pulling her to her side. They were being watched.
A man in a hoodie walked briskly toward them. Lucy saw a flash of metal up his left sleeve.
“Brian,” Lucy said.
He stopped, whether startled because she knew his name or because she’d spotted him.
“Stay behind me,” Lucy told Ivy.
“I just want her,” Brian said. His voice was garbled and he sounded sick.
“No you don’t,” Lucy said. “You don’t want to kill anyone.”
“Get out of the way.”
He stepped toward her.
“Ivy, run,” Lucy said.
She didn’t, but took two steps away. “Stop!” Brian commanded and showed the knife. “I will kill your friend, Poison Ivy.”
“You won’t,” Lucy said. Her mind ran through Psycho 101, as her favorite professor called it. Then she remembered Brian wasn’t a psychopath. He had no remorse, but he got no pleasure from murder. It was a means to an end.
“I just want to leave,” Brian said. “I hate this city. These people. I never wanted to come back. She made me.”
Lucy took a gamble.
“Your mother.”
“To keep Ned out of trouble.” He barked out a laugh. “Ned! Dumb-ass brother of mine. And she thought he walked on water.”
“I’m sorry about your brother.”
“Yeah. Well.” He sniffed. “I loved him, you know? Really. He was so stupid sometimes, but we were buds.”
He was grieving, she realized. And he probably had never felt real grief before.
“My nephew was killed,” Lucy said, working on building a rapport. She didn’t dare look, but she sensed movement in her peripheral vision.
“Nephew?” he said with a sneer.
“We were the same age. My oldest sister and my mom were pregnant at the same time. And it was like losing my brother. Justin and I did everything together.”
“Yeah.” He paused, used the back of his hand to wipe his nose. “I always looked out for Ned.”
“This can all stop, right now. Put the knife down, Brian.”
“I can’t. I have to finish this.”
“Look around you. They’re not going to let you leave.”
He did, and Lucy hoped she was right. That there were cops along with the spectators.
“I just want to go home.”
“Where’s home?”
“Hawaii.”
Lucy gambled. “They’re not going to let you go, and if you throw that knife, you might kill me, but you’ll be dead when a dozen bullets hit you. And Ivy will still be alive because she’s behind me. I’m not moving. You don’t want to kill me because I’m not the problem, am I. It’s your mother who started this game.”
If one of those cops got an itchy finger, they’d lose their only witness to Devon Sullivan’s culpability in Wendy James’s death. Lucy had to talk Brian down.
“Dear God, I hate that woman.”
“I’m not a big fan myself.”
He coughed, then winced.
“Are you hurt?” Lucy asked, showing genuine concern. “I heard you fell on a sprinkler head.”
“It’s bad. Still bleeding a bit. Hurts like hell.”
“We’re at the hospital. There are a hundred doctors here who can take care of that. Give you something for the pain.”
He didn’t say anything.
Lucy sensed movement to her right. She put her hands up and to the side, hoping the security guards knew to stand down. Behind Brian she saw Noah and Sean approaching slowly. Noah was using hand signals to direct Sean, who nodded. They were splitting up, Noah going right, Sean to the left. Both outside of Brian’s peripheral vision.
She briefly caught Sean’s eye. His expression was focused. He gave her a half-smile while his attention was on Brian’s knife.
“Brian, let me help you.”
“Can you just step aside so I can finish this?” he said without heart.
“I can’t. But I can make you an offer I think you’ll like.”
“There’s nothing.”
He was in pain, sick, and depressed. Worse, he’d lost hope. He knew he wouldn’t leave the courtyard alive if he tried to kill Ivy. Suicide cocktail right there.
“Lower the knife.”
He dropped his hand an inch.
“Good. Your mother is going to prison on a multitude of crimes, but she’s telling us she had nothing to do with killing Wendy James and the others. She says that’s all you.”
He grimaced. “Bitch.”
Lucy knew he wasn’t talking about her, he was talking about his mother.
“If you help us prove her wrong, help us prove that she ordered the hit on Wendy, then I will do everything in my power to get you back to Hawaii.”
“You’re not going to let me go free. I’m not stupid. Not after what I’ve done.”
“No, you won’t be free, but there’s a federal penitentiary in Honolulu.”
Brian’s face brightened. His hand dropped another inch. “You can do that?”
“I kn
ow a lot of people high up in the FBI. And I will tell them, I swear to God, I will tell them that you voluntarily dropped that knife, that you showed remorse to me for your crimes. That you will help fill in the blanks in their case against Devon Sullivan.”
He looked at her quizzically. “What about Clark?”
Her heart raced. “Clark Jager?”
“Yeah. Can’t I testify against him? Do you know what he’s done?”
“No, I don’t.”
Brian laughed, and it ended in a cough. “This whole thing was his fucking idea.” He dropped the knife. “I’ll tell you everything, but please, I really need a doctor.” He fell to his knees.
Both Sean and Noah ran to Brian. Sean kicked away the knife while Noah cuffed him. “He needs a doctor, Noah.”
“I’ll get a guard on him and take him to the emergency room.”
Lucy turned to Ivy. “You’re okay, right?”
She said, “He killed them?”
“Yes. We think so.”
“And shot Mina?”
“Are you okay?”
“He’s so … pathetic.”
“Some of us get handed great parents, and life still turns bad. Others get bad parents, and they either overcome it—like you—or they become what they hate. Remember you are better than your father.”
“My mother tried to save us. That’s why she died.”
“Then remember her sacrifice and rise above what’s happened. I know you can do it, Ivy.”
“Can I go to Sara?”
“Of course.”
Lucy watched her leave.
“Lucy.” Sean came up behind her.
Without a word, Lucy wrapped her arms around him and closed her eyes. She didn’t realize until that moment that she was shaking.
Sean ran his hands up and down her back until her adrenaline dropped. “Let’s get Chip and go home. I have a hot tub that’s begging for us to enjoy it.”
Lucy tilted her head up and kissed him. “I need it. Please don’t let me out until I’m shriveled like a prune.”
“That’s an attractive vision.” Sean frowned. He kissed her. “Stop scaring me, Princess.”
“It’s been one of those weeks. I’m sure you’ll have your chance to make me worry.”
“We have two weeks until you go to Quantico. Think I can get you to take a couple days off? Two? Can I hope for three?”
Noah came up to them. “How about four?”
“We’ll take it,” Sean said.
“You’ve earned it, Lucy,” Noah said. “Not just here, but yesterday. Matt Slater told me what he said to you the other day.”
“I wish he hadn’t—”
Noah put up his hand. “I didn’t go out on a limb bringing you in as an analyst. You’re an asset, and I trust your judgment. Matt shouldn’t have put those doubts in your head. He feels shitty about it.”
“He should,” Sean said.
“It’s over and forgotten. I just hope Matt will forgive me. I kind of promised Abernathy that he might be able to serve his sentence in Hawaii.”
“I heard. And if he can put Clark Jager and Devon Sullivan in prison for the rest of their lives, I’ll make certain he serves his time in Honolulu.”
They walked toward the parking lot.
“Why are you here?” Lucy asked Noah.
“Kate called. The chip you pulled out of the cat?”
“She could read it?”
“It has everything we need to put Devon Sullivan away, and she only pulled ten percent of the data off. Audio recordings, some video, JPEGs that appear to be snapshots of financial documents. Kate’s planning on spending all weekend categorizing the information. I told Josh Stein and you’d think he’d won the lottery.”
“A great ending to a really miserable case,” Lucy said.
“I need to check on my prisoner. See you on Monday.”
Sean frowned. “I thought you gave her four days off.”
“The four days before she reports to the Academy. We need all hands next week going through the mountains of evidence and paperwork.”
“I’ll be there,” Lucy said.
Noah went into the hospital, and Sean put his arm around Lucy. “Now can we go get our cat and sit in the hot tub?”
He steered her toward his car and grandly opened the passenger door for her. She slid into the leather seat and closed her eyes.
A week of paperwork followed by four days alone with Sean. She finally admitted to herself that she needed the time away.
Sean got into the driver’s seat and Lucy asked, “Where do you want to go on our vacation?”
“I hesitate to call it that, considering how our last vacation turned out.” He turned the ignition. “How about a cottage up in Cape Cod?”
“Massachusetts? That’s kind of far.”
“Not by plane. I got word this morning that my Cessna is ready. I’m picking her up on Monday. While you’ll be neck deep in paperwork, I’ll be flying over the Adirondacks.”
“You know what? After being shot down in that plane, I’ll take the paperwork instead.”
Stories are created in the author’s head, but many people help with the details. A very special thanks to Tossable Digits, for help in understanding virtual phone numbers; Crime Scene Writers, an amazing group of generous law enforcement professionals who always help me get things right; DC Metro’s PIO who was kind enough to answer some bizarre questions; Steve Dupre with the FBI who has always answered even my most mundane questions; Brian Jones, FBI-SWAT leader who invites me to role play—I have never had so much fun! And the exercises really help with scene staging. Fellow author Dr. D.P. Lyle always helps me get the medical details right. And this time around, my husband Dan with his background working for the state and federal legislature was instrumental in helping me with the campaign and legislative details. Thank you all!
Friends and family keep me sane, especially fellow writer and conference roommate Toni McGee Causey, the gang at Murder She Writes, my mom Claudia, and of course, my kids who keep me on my toes. I also want to send a shout-out to the American Cancer Society and their patron, Cathy Hummel, who won her name in this book. We’ve all lost someone to cancer; they do great work. And Sara Edmonds, who also won her name at a readers convention, Readers & Ritas. Thanks, Cathy and Sara!
And of course, extra special thanks to the people behind the book: my agent Dan Conaway, my editor Kelley Ragland, and the entire team at Writers House and St. Martin’s Press. Thank you for your support, and your faith.
Also by Allison Brennan
If I Should Die
Kiss Me, Kill Me
Love Me to Death
Carnal Sin
Original Sin
Cutting Edge
Fatal Secrets
Sudden Death
Playing Dead
Tempting Evil
Killing Fear
Fear No Evil
See No Evil
Speak No Evil
The Kill
The Hunt
The Prey
Critical Acclaim for Allison Brennan’s
If I Should Die
“Brennan’s Lucy Kincaid/Sean Rogan books are not only excellent procedural thrillers, but also chart the evolution of an intriguing relationship. The peeks into the mind of this heinous killer are all too chilling, making the threat level palpable and the story riveting. Brennan is on a major roll!”
—RT Book Reviews
“[A] spine-tingling chiller that will wrap you up in its mystery and take you on a heart-pounding race to the breathtaking finale!”
—Joyfully Reviewed, Recommended Read
Kiss Me, Kill Me
“[A] riveting new series … Lucy continues to be a fascinating and enticing character, and her ongoing development adds depth to an already rich brew of murder and mystery. Brennan rocks!”
—RT Book Reviews
“Ms. Brennan ratchets up the suspense on page one and keeps it going until the last page.”
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—Fresh Fiction
Love Me to Death
“A world-class nail-biter … Brennan is in the groove with this one.”
—New York Times bestselling author Lee Child
“Grabbing the reader by the throat from almost the first page, this pulse-ratcheting romantic suspense from Brennan delivers intense action, multifaceted characters, and a truly creepy bad guy.… [A] fast-paced, engrossing read.”
—Publishers Weekly
“A fan of Allison’s for many years, you always know what you are getting … a great story with love ’em or hate ’em characters and perfectly placed plot twists in every book.”
— Shannon Raab for Suspense Magazine
Original Sin
“Brennan shows a deft command of all things both normal and otherworldly in crafting one of the best tales of its kind since Dean Koontz and Stephen King were still writing about monsters. There’s no shortage of those here and the result is a new genre classic.”
—Providence Sunday Journal
“Allison Brennan pens a chilling tale in Original Sin, the first in her Seven Deadly Sins series. [It] will keep you up all night—whether it be from the horror or because it’s such a page-turner.”
—Sacramento Book Reviews
Cutting Edge
“Both the nature and nurture sides of the ‘what makes a psychopath’ argument are on display in Brennan’s chiller.… Leave it to Brennan to deliver the creepy and deadly. This is definitely the stuff of nightmares.”
—RT Book Reviews
Fatal Secrets
“In this chilling thriller, Brennan explores the consequenc-es of sliding from fierce commitment into obsession.… A master of suspense, Brennan does another outstanding job uniting horrifying action, procedural drama, and the birth of a romance—a prime example of why she’s tops in the genre.”
—RT Book Reviews (Top Pick!)
Sudden Death
“Fast, fierce fun. Brennan knows how to deliver.”
—New York Times bestselling author Lisa Gardner
Playing Dead
“The mystery is tightly plotted with the final reveal not happening until the very end of the book.… Playing Dead is an adrenaline rush of thrills and chills that is sure to win Brennan several new readers.”
—Fresh Fiction