“I hope so,” he said. Cassidy walked into the kitchen shaking her head. “Morning, Mom.”
“Morning.” Cassidy patted her son’s back.
“Kenz up?” Alex inquired.
Cassidy rolled her eyes.
Dylan laughed. “I’m on my way up anyway,” he said. “I’ll move her along.”
Alex watched Dylan leave. She sipped her coffee slowly, wondering what was traveling through his teenage brain.
“What’s wrong?” Cassidy asked.
“Do you think Speed is okay?”
“I think he’s seventeen.”
Alex sighed. “Something is bothering him.”
Cassidy had a guess as to what was on Dylan’s mind. She had pondered talking to Alex about it. This was an instance that Cassidy felt called for Dylan and Alex to learn to communicate without her intervention. She would intercede if she felt it was necessary, but she intended to give it a little time. Dylan had always considered Alex his hero. What Dylan had yet to realize was that Alex felt the same way. Alex had always marveled at Dylan. Right now, they were standing at an impasse, neither expressing what needed to be said clearly.
“Cass? Did he say something to you?”
“No. If you are really worried, Alex just talk to him,” Cassidy suggested. She made her way to Alex and kissed her on the cheek. “I need to shower and get Kenzie on the move. I’ll see you tonight.”
Alex nodded. “Something is bothering him,” she muttered.
“Talk to him,” Cassidy called back.
***
“Momma!” Connor called out to Alex.
Alex set down her computer bag and squatted to meet her son. “Hey, where are you running to?” she asked.
“Blue Flakes?” he asked.
Alex laughed. “You want Corn Flakes?”
“Blue!” he giggled.
Alex chuckled and lifted Connor onto her hip. “Where is your partner in crime?” she asked him suspiciously as she made her way back toward the kitchen.
“With Gandma.”
“With Grandma?”
Connor nodded.
“I see he caught you,” Rose laughed.
“No. I caught him,” Alex winked and tickled the toddler in her arms. Connor squealed and wriggled in her embrace. Alex put him in a chair beside Abby and kissed Abby on the cheek.
“Mommy went bye, bye,” Abby told Alex.
Alex forced herself not to laugh at the expression of concern in her daughter’s eyes. “Yes, she did,” Alex said. “Mommy is spending the day with Kenzie. You get to hang out all day with Grandma.”
“Can you stay?” Abby asked.
Alex smiled. “No, honey. I have to go to work. But, someone told me that D. is going to be here to play with you later this afternoon.”
Abby brightened. She and Connor had taken to calling Dylan, D. Alex wondered if Dylan might just have to learn to answer to anything. She certainly had. She chuckled at the thought.
“D’s the best!” Connor cried out excitedly.
Rose shook her head while Alex moved to pour cereal into two bowls.
“I can’t believe they won’t let me get them their cereal,” she said. “What is it with you?” Rose questioned Alex.
Alex shrugged.
“Give it up, Alex. You know, sooner or later I will figure out this secret you have.”
“I don’t have any secrets.”
“Yeah? Not one of these kids will eat cereal unless you put it in the bowl. I’m watching you.”
Alex turned and faced her mother-in-law. “You’ve been watching me for how many years? Don’t become a detective,” she advised lightly.
“Mmm.”
“Sorry,” Alex apologized when her phone rang. “I need to…”
“Say no more,” Rose replied. She picked up the two bowls from the counter as Alex made her way into the hallway. Connor and Abby looked up at their grandmother skeptically. “Oh, now don’t you two look at me like that. She made it. I just delivered it.”
“Good morning,” Alex answered her phone.
“Not really,” Dave Siminski replied.
“I don’t like the sound of that.”
“They found a girl matching our description.”
“Where?” Alex asked.
“In the woods.”
“Where she was last seen?” Alex inquired.
Siminski sighed.
“Dave?”
“No. New York State.”
“Shit,” Alex muttered.
“You up for a ride?” Siminski asked.
“Yeah,” Alex said tacitly. Her stomach had dropped in an instant.
“Might not be her,” Siminski offered a glimmer of hope.
“Where do you want to meet?”
“Your front door. I’m about three blocks away.”
“Weren’t going to give me a say, huh?” Alex chuckled.
“Nope.”
“I’m here,” she sighed and promptly disconnected the call.
Alex took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen to say a final goodbye to its occupants. Rose immediately noted the pallid tint of her face.
“Alex?”
Alex’s strained smile told Rose to let her questions lie for the moment. She nodded.
“Well, I am off to the races,” Alex told the twins.
“Racing?” Connor asked excitedly.
“Not that kind of racing,” Alex chuckled. Her children’s ability to shift her mood in an instant always amazed her. “Work,” Alex explained. She turned to Rose. “Would you do me a favor?”
“Sure.”
“Let Dylan know it might be a late night for me,” Alex said. “I’ll let Cass know.”
“Do you need me to cancel tonight?” Rose asked. “Helen and I can stay here with the kids if...”
“No, you and Mom have had these plans for months. You two go and have a good time. Dylan can handle the Wonder Twins here until Cass or I get home.”
“You call if…”
Alex winked at her mother-in-law. “Go get your granny on,” she teased.
Rose threw the dishtowel in her hands at Alex. Alex caught it and tossed it back. “At least, I know where Cass learned that trick,” Alex laughed. “You two have fun with Grandma.”
“Oh, we’ll have fun. YaYa will be here later,” Rose said.
“YaYa!” Abby exclaimed with delight.
Alex snickered and left the room with a wave. If Abby had a second favorite person in the world, it was Alex’s mother. Alex laughed as she made her way to the front door. Those four together spell trouble.
***
Alex stepped out of David Siminski’s car and was met with a pair of familiar eyes.
“Well, I’ll be damned,” FBI Agent Bill Hanson greeted Alex. “That hibernation thing finally got boring, huh?”
“Just helping you old farts out for an afternoon.” Alex pointed to Siminski.
“Yeah,” Hanson replied skeptically. “Tell you what, Toles; this ain’t exactly what they meant by afternoon delight.”
“Not afternoon yet,” Alex deadpanned. “So? What have you got?”
Hanson led Alex and Siminski under a line of yellow tape that had been wound around several trees. Alex let her eyes roam over the space. She scanned up and down, noting the scene that surrounded her. To most, the height of the trees, the placement of bushes and plants might have seemed insignificant. Alex had learned early on in her career that something that might seem mundane at first glance often held the unusual clue that cracked a case wide open. She took a deep breath and readied herself. She’d seen death more times than she cared to count. Seeing death—particularly death brought about by violence was an experience Alex hoped she would never get used to. There was a drastic difference between familiarity with a situation and a feeling of comfort in it. Her eyes drifted to Agent Hanson’s hand as he peeled back a dark blue tarp.
Siminski took a step forward first and hovered over the slumped form beneath it. “Fuck.�
��
Alex closed her eyes for a minute—confirmation. “Are you sure?” Alex asked. Siminski pulled the tarp away and Alex sighed. “You got some gloves around here?” she asked Hanson.
Hanson called to one of the police officers on the scene. Alex crouched down beside the young woman. She scanned the area surrounding the body thoroughly.
“Here,” Hanson handed Alex a pair of gloves. “Playing botanist?” he teased Alex who seemed to be studying a small cluster of leaves that partially covered Kaylee Peters’ arm.
“Or what,” Alex replied dryly. She snapped the gloves into place and carefully moved a strand of bloody hair from Kaylee Peters’ eyes. Alex’s forefinger traced the outline of a bloody cheek and let her eyes travel down Kaylee’s body methodically. She picked up Kaylee’s right hand and groaned inwardly at the abrasions on her wrists. “Fucking SOB,” she muttered. Alex shook her head. Kaylee Peters’ shirt was soaked in blood—not stained—soaked from the slices and stabs in her flesh. She grimaced as she lifted the bottom of the teenager’s shirt. “You found her just like this?” Alex inquired.
“Not exactly. Park ranger tripped over her early this morning. Seems this asshole picked the wrong place at the wrong time to dump a body. She was covered in that clump of brush,” he pointed a short distance away. “Haven’t moved her yet. Sadistic son of a bitch, that’s for sure. We’ve counted ten wounds without moving her. I can’t imagine once the M.E. gets hold of her.”
Alex looked back at Kaylee’s face one last time; committing it to memory. She straightened to her full height and silently paced past her colleagues toward a leafy dirt path.
“Didn’t find much,” Hanson commented. “Not even a shoe print.”
A lack of evidence did not surprise Alex. She made no reply. She let her eyes track left then right, up and back down again. She shook her head. Whoever had deposited Kaylee Peters here had not been overly concerned that she would be found in short order. Alex let her gaze fall ahead down the trail. There were a few things that Alex Toles understood. Every puzzle had pieces. As an investigator, a person hoped to find a few obvious ones—a place to frame the picture, or at least, to start. There was no doubt in her mind that there were clues to be found. She pivoted back toward Hanson and Siminski, her eyes taking in the sight of Kaylee Peters’ lifeless body again.
“M.E. is on his way. We’ll have a clearer picture when he’s through,” Hanson said.
“Dogs?” Alex asked him.
Hanson nodded, following Alex’s train of thought. Whoever had killed Kaylee, it was unlikely this had been his first go-round. “There’s a team out now. So far, nothing that has led us to anything.”
Alex licked her lips and crouched down next to the young girl in the dirt. Instinctively, her eyes tracked back to Kaylee’s wrists. She felt anger boiling in her veins. Steadily, Alex lifted a hand to Kaylee’s eyelids and traced lightly. She groaned. The small red blotches told Alex that Kaylee had endured more than a brutal slashing. What had led to her death would be up to the medical examiner to determine. Regardless of that conclusion, nothing would change the horror that Kaylee Peters had endured. It turned Alex’s stomach.
“Hanson,” the FBI agent answered his phone.
Alex sighed and resumed a silent contemplation of her surroundings.
“Toles? What do you think?” Siminski wondered.
Hanson approached, holding out his phone to Alex. “It’s for you,” he said.
***
Alex groaned softly as she and Siminski made their way down the corridor of the FBI’s New York Office. Alex looked ahead and captured the gaze of Charlie Hawkins as she approached—Assistant Director Hawkins.
“Alex,” Hawk smiled.
“What the hell are you doing in New York?” Alex asked.
“Nice to see you too.”
“Oh, come on; cut the crap. What are you doing here?”
“Dealing with some business,” Hawk replied calmly. “How are you, Detective Siminski? Are you missing your roots too?”
Siminski smiled. “Good to see you, Assistant Director.”
“Drop the formality,” Hawk told him with a wink. “I hear you two have stumbled into a bureau investigation.”
“Nope,” Alex said. Hawk looked at her expectantly. “The bureau wandered into Siminski’s case.” Hawk nodded. “So?” Alex continued. “You want to explain your interest?”
Hawk grinned. “Crosses state lines, Alex. You know the drill.”
“Uh-huh.”
“You doubt me?” Hawk challenged. Alex stared at her blankly. Hawk finally chuckled. She looked at Siminski and smiled. “Dave,” she said. “A moment?”
Siminski understood. “I need to call the family and let them know we will be on our way shortly. I’m assuming you want to make the notification with me?” he looked at Alex. “I can call Brown and have him make the notification if you would rather not.”
“No,” Alex put the thought to rest. “I’ll go with you. Just give me a minute.”
Siminski nodded.
Hawk directed Alex down the hallway to a small conference room and closed the door. “Back in the saddle, I see,” she commented.
“Helping a friend is all,” Alex replied. Hawk nodded. “So? Spare me the line about jurisdiction. What’s your interest in this case?” Alex asked directly.
“What’s yours?”
“I told you already.”
“Oh, come on, Alex.”
Alex bristled. “What do you want me to say, Hawk?”
“I want you to tell me what you are hiding from in that classroom.”
“I’m not hiding from anything.”
“Bullshit,” Hawk replied.
“Excuse me?”
“You know damn well that you might be the best chance of catching this son-of-a-bitch—whoever he is.”
“You have hundreds of qualified agents that can work this case.”
“Qualified? Yes. Exceptional? No. And, you know it.”
Alex shook her head.
“You’re telling me that you are perfectly fine with handing this case over to some agent you know nothing about? You can just walk away and do nothing?”
“Don’t you dare,” Alex’s voice grew menacing.
Hawk’s temper was about to reach a boiling point. She knew Alex Toles better than Alex liked to admit. Unlike most people in Alex’s professional circle, Charlie Hawkins had both a personal and professional past with Alex. She had no intention of backing down with Alex now.
“I’m not an agent anymore,” Alex said. “Hopefully, I can help teach…”
“Oh, save me your sanctimonious bullshit, Alex. Use that on someone who doesn’t know you.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“You, cowering in some fucking classroom, digging up old, unsolved cases or ones you know were taken in the wrong direction so that you can play...”
“So that cops can learn how to look for more than they are taught to see.”
Hawk rolled her eyes. “Come off it—so you can get back in the game in a safe little hideaway.”
“You have no idea what I…”
“I have every idea what you went through,” Hawk reminded Alex. “I saw the fallout; remember? I live the fallout. What are you so afraid of?”
Alex kneaded her temples. “It’s not who I am anymore.”
“You keep telling yourself that and maybe one day you’ll believe it.”
“It’s true.”
“It’s bullshit,” Hawk disagreed. “You are one of the most talented investigators I know. It’s not something you do, Alex; it’s who you are. It’s in your God damned DNA.”
“What do you want from me?” Alex bit back.
“Come back.”
“To the FBI?”
“Take this case. Solve it. If you want to quit and go back to hibernating under that desk of yours afterward, I won’t fight you,” Hawk said.
Alex’s temple twitched. “Why me? Why this
case?”
“Because you are already in the middle of it,” Hawk answered. “And, because you are the best we’ve got.”
“You haven’t got me,” Alex reminded her old friend.
Hawk threw down a photo of Kaylee Peters’ body. “Does she?”
Alex closed her eyes. “That’s not fair.”
“You started this, Alex.”
“I agreed to help a friend.”
“Well, now another friend is asking for your help.”
“Why is this so important to you?” Alex asked.
“Maybe you should ask yourself why you are so determined to walk away instead.”
Alex pinched the bridge of her nose and groaned.
“You go home and think about it tonight. Talk to Cassidy.”
Alex sighed. “Hawk…”
“AD Bower is here in New York. You know Ben. He’s the best. If it matters; I’ll make sure you get whatever you need.”
Alex shook her head. “I have a job.”
“Yeah? That’s what it’s all about now, Alex—paying the bills?”
“Fuck you, Hawk.”
“That didn’t work for us, remember?”
Alex chuckled despite her frustration.
“Don’t walk away again,” Hawk said.
“Again?”
Hawk nodded. “There’s a reason this landed in your lap.”
“That’s what worries me,” Alex said.
“Yeah, I imagine it does. You gonna let your fears rule your life? This psychopath is still out there. You and I both know this is not some simplistic, drug addict who got his rocks off and panicked.”
Alex grimaced. She did know that. “Hawk…”
“You call me in the morning. Sleep on it.”
Alex stared at her friend for a moment. She nodded at Hawk and turned to leave.
“Alex?” Hawk called after her. Alex looked back from the door. “You’re the best. Don’t bother with false modesty around me. We both know it should be you sitting behind my desk.”
“Yeah. Me and desks, Hawk…”
Hawk smiled. She doubted that Alex realized what her statement had given away. She nodded. “I’ll expect your call.”
***
Cassidy opened the front door. Mackenzie dropped her backpack and bolted up the stairs. “Slow down, Kenz!” Cassidy called out. “Good Lord,” she chuckled.
Untold Page 4
