by Robin Mahle
Hudson looked to his attorney, ensuring it was okay to answer. “Yes. I know him.”
“And you know Edward Shalot?”
“Yes. You know that already,” Hudson replied.
“Shaun, who instructed you to create false transcripts for Edward Shalot so that he might attend UCSD?” Agent Jameson continued.
“I’m sorry.” Parrish held up his hand and turned to his client. “You don’t have to answer that, Shaun.”
“I suggest you advise your client to help in any way that he can. He’s in a great deal of trouble and the FBI might find their way to working out a deal if he answers our questions,” Jameson said.
Hudson didn’t wait for his lawyer, opting instead to heed the advice of the agent. “Lewis Branson offered me a substantial amount of money to create Edward Shalot’s false records. Look, I told you before; I wasn’t into this thing like these guys. I just needed the money. I fucked up, okay? But that doesn’t make me a killer.”
“You’re not here because you’re suspected of killing anyone, Shaun.” Marshall looked on with an artificial concern. “Do you know why Branson wanted Shalot here? Why he asked that you forge those records?”
“No.”
Marshall paused for a moment and caught sight of Katie. She appeared aloof and disconnected.
He turned back to Hudson. “Did you know Lindsay Brown?”
Shaun looked again to the lawyer, who didn’t object to the question. “Yes.”
“How did you two meet?”
“Through her roommate. She’s a part of the community.”
This wasn’t the answer Marshall had expected. His pulse began to quicken. “The roommate? Lindsay Brown’s roommate?”
Katie seemed to perk up at this revelation. No one had talked to the roommate since Lindsay was found dead. There had been no evidence that suggested she was anything more than a roommate who happened to be out of town that night. At least, that was what she told the authorities.
“Was the roommate the one who introduced Edward to Lindsay as well?” Katie asked.
“Her name is Laura Kempt.” Shaun began rubbing his palms together. His knee hit the bottom of the table in a nervous twitch.
Marshall picked up on the shift. He watched as Shaun’s chest began to rise and fall quickly. “Shaun, did Laura know Shalot before he met Lindsay Brown?”
“Yes, I—I think so, yes. He did.”
Marshall slammed the table. “Dammit!” He pushed himself up from the chair and began pacing the room. “So, Laura made the introduction to Lindsay, why? In hopes Shalot might recruit her as well? But, when she wasn’t interested, Shalot lost his temper, as he was known for, and threatened her.” He began to rub his fingers through his hair again.
Katie knew he was trying to put the pieces together, but she thought she might have already done it. “Shaun, we know that Branson felt Shalot was getting out of control and that he feared Shalot would turn his own followers against him. Do you know who’s in the Brotherhood of the Five?”
Marshall stopped pacing and focused his attention on Katie.
“I didn’t kill Lindsay. Edward didn’t kill Lindsay.” Hudson paused, seeming to realize he had no choice but to reveal the truth. “Laura did. She loved Edward, but he didn’t feel the same. Edward Shalot loved you and she couldn’t stand that. Branson used that to his advantage.”
Parrish dropped his head into his hands, sighing heavily. He looked to Marshall. “You have any more questions?”
“If you knew this, Shaun, why the hell didn’t you come forward?” Jameson appeared on the verge of losing control. If they’d known, they might have been able to prevent the death of the woman in Phoenix; possibly, but now it would remain an unrealized opportunity.
“I don’t know. I was afraid. Lewis twisted Laura around, making her believe Edward would never love her, and she would have to resort to desperate measures to change that. Then he called me just days before she died. It was as if he knew what would happen, what Laura would do. That’s when he offered me more money to start leaving tips about Edward. I needed the cash.” Shaun Hudson appeared to crumble under the weight of his cowardice.
“If Laura Kempt killed Lindsay, she would’ve had to have known about the Highway Hunter killings; the carving, the dandelions. Who told her, Shaun? And what do you know about these murders?” Katie asked.
“I don’t know anything. I promise you. I don’t know who’s behind those horrible murders that have been all over the news. I guess I thought it could be Edward; I—I’d heard rumors from other members. Look, I only did what I was paid to do. I’m sorry. I don’t know anything more than that.” Shaun lowered his head.
They all seemed to pick up on the fact that this kid was in way over his head, but they needed more from him.
“I can only assume that Laura slept with Shalot at least once, which was enough to obtain and plant DNA on Lindsay’s body. And since she had just filed a restraining order, at Laura’s behest, Shalot was the obvious suspect. DNA would confirm that,” Marshall said. “But that doesn’t answer the question as to how she knew of the other killings. She had to be one of Edward’s followers, considering she was in love with him.”
“I think Branson probably wanted Edward dead, but Laura couldn’t do it, so she did the next best thing—she framed him,” Jameson began. “Shaun, do you know who Edward’s followers are? This Brotherhood of the Five? If you do, you have to tell us. We believe there’s going to be another murder. Shaun, we need you to do the right thing here.”
Katie looked to the lawyer. “Mr. Parrish. We need those names. There is another life at stake.” Perhaps pleading to the lawyer would help. Maybe he could convince Shaun that it would only help him to cooperate.
“I’d like to speak with my client alone for a moment.”
“Of course.” Katie rose from her chair.
Jameson held the door, closing it behind him when they’d filed out. “It’s as if he was playing double agent or something. Doing what Shalot wanted while working to help Branson too.”
“When is Scarborough due back? Have you heard from him?” Marshall asked.
“Don’t know, but I’ll find out. He may get the answers we need from Branson himself. I’m tired of screwing around with this guy. The problem is, the fifth murder could happen today, tomorrow, three days from now. We just don’t know, but we need to put a stop to it.”
Agent Scarborough, along with Detective Gibbons and Agent Myers, appeared at the end of the hall.
“We just booked Branson into federal custody. We’ve got him on kidnapping for now. What did you find out with Hudson?” Scarborough said.
They moved to the conference room and Agent Jameson filled the team in on what they had discovered about Hudson, Shalot, and the roommate, Laura Kempt.
That was enough for Scarborough. “Son of a bitch. Branson won’t talk without a lawyer. I won’t get any names from him, assuming he knows who the Five are. It’s gotta be this kid and it’s gotta be now.”
They returned to the interrogation room, where Hudson was ready to talk.
“My client wishes to make a deal prior to speaking on the matter any further.” Parrish pushed a sheet of paper toward Agent Scarborough.
Nick read the document, handing it to Marshall and Detective Gibbons to confirm. Although, ultimately, this was a federal investigation and any deals would have to be agreed upon by the feds. Nick was simply giving the San Diego police a chance to review it.
“Agreed,” Nick replied. “Now, you need to tell me who is in Shalot’s group and where we can find them. There is at least one life at stake.”
“I don’t know where they live; I’m not even sure they’re responsible for any of those Highway Hunter murders, I mean, I would’ve come forward if I thought…”
“The names, Shaun.” Jameson appeared to have grown impatient with the kid’s back pedaling.
Hudson looked to his lawyer and nodded his head. Parrish tore a piece of paper from his notebook and hande
d it to Agent Scarborough.
“We need to run a search on these names.” Scarborough looked to his team. “We know where Laura Kempt is staying. We’ll pick her up first. As soon as we have a location on the others, call it in. Get units out there as quickly as possible.”
“Gibbons and I can track down Kempt,” Marshall said. “Give Jameson a chance to find the others.”
“Good.” Nick turned to leave without another word.
The agents mobilized quickly. Scarborough called in to the local departments where the suspects were thought to live. All were near where the victims had been found. It seemed their little network was bigger than they thought. Shalot recruited far and wide.
Jameson and Myers had returned to the conference room and Katie decided to join them, feeling a little obsolete at this point.
It was as if the entire department was just set on fire. Captain Hearn was on the phone with the ASAC in the FBI field office, coordinating efforts and working to effectively shut down any and all websites where the followers made contact with one another. Junior detectives working under Gibbons were taking Hudson’s statement and working on the terms of the deal the FBI had struck with him.
Katie wasn’t about to sit idly by. This involved her whether Marshall wanted to believe it or not. Shalot was the mastermind behind all of it and he ultimately wanted her.
“What can I do to help?” she asked Agent Myers.
“We’re entering the names into NGI now. We’re hoping to get hits on them. If these are our suspects in connection with the other four murders, setting aside what we already know of Lindsay Brown, then any DNA, hair samples, or any identifying factors that would have been entered by local authorities would give us a hit in CODIS. We’ll cross-reference the two and hopefully come up with a match.”
Katie leaned over Jameson just enough so that she could get a glimpse of the program. “I’m familiar with CODIS. That’s the DNA database, right?”
Myers nodded.
“I’m not familiar with NGI, though.”
“It’s the Next Generation Identification program; the replacement for the fingerprint system we used to use called IAFIS.”
Katie knew she was in over her head when it came to FBI acronyms, but she was starting to get the gist.
“NGI is an identification program using advanced biometric identifiers. Whereas we used to rely mainly on fingerprints, photos, identifying marks, this system goes a step further. A lot further, actually. Facial recognition, iris data, even palm prints.” Myers couldn’t help but smile. “This is definitely next generation stuff, right here.”
Katie liked Agent Myers. Admired her, even. “So, Agent Jameson inputs the names into the system, searches for any records, arrests, prints. That sort of thing?”
“Exactly.”
“We got a hit!” Jameson turned the screen toward Agent Myers. “Hayden Jennings, twenty-four, currently lives in Roanoke.” He looked up at Myers. “Not far from our first victim.”
“The guy’s got quite a record. Assault, sexual assault, larceny. What else do we know about him?” she asked Jameson.
“I’ll pinpoint an address so we can call out the local authorities and get him into custody. I’m still working on the others. No hits yet, but it can take a while to search.”
Agent Myers stepped back a few feet and Katie followed. “So, I hear you been through a pretty rough ordeal.” Myers said.
Katie raised the corners of her mouth just slightly, hesitant at Myers’ question.
“I’m sorry,” Myers began. “Not my business. It’s just that Agent Scarborough thinks very highly of you. He said you held your own when the shit hit the fan, so to speak.”
“Agent Scarborough was there when I needed him. Stood by me every step of the way, without making me feel like a victim. He’s a good man. Tough, but good.”
“He is.” Myers grinned.
Katie picked up on her tenor. It was one of admiration, certainly, but also one of a woman who seemed to be in love with the person of whom she was speaking. “Are you married, Agent Myers? Got any kids?”
“No husband, no kids. Guess you could say I’m married to the job. You know, that old cliché?”
“Sounds like you might have quite a bit in common with Agent Scarborough.”
Jameson raised a hand. “Got it. I got the address of Hayden Jennings.”
“Let Scarborough know now. I’ll put out an ATL.” Myers rushed to her seat and opened her laptop.
That was a term with which Katie was familiar. Most people called it an APB, or All-Points Bulletin. But in the recent past, she’d heard it called ATL or Attempt to Locate. It would take years to learn and understand the vernacular her own agency used, let alone that of the FBI.
Katie left the conference room in search of Marshall. She wanted to tell him what they had found. But when she arrived at his office, it was empty.
A uniformed officer walked past her.
“Hey, have you seen Detective Avery around?”
“I think he left with Detective Gibbons a few minutes ago. They were in Captain Hearn’s office earlier. I heard them talking, but I think they left after that.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
Katie headed back to the conference room where Agent Scarborough returned and was now in a huddle with Jameson and Myers. Suddenly, she felt even more out of place than before.
“Katie.” Scarborough caught sight of her and waved her over. “I know Avery and Gibbons are tracking down Laura Kempt. I’d like you to come with me to talk to Shalot again.” Nick turned to Myers for confirmation, then began. “We just got word that a woman has gone missing in Sparks, Nevada. It seems Branson is looking for a way out of this jam and let us in on the details. One of Shalot’s followers is responsible, but he insists he doesn’t know who or where, only heard that it was going down. Shalot must know something as to the woman’s location and we need him to talk before we lose someone else.” He paused for a moment. “This won’t be easy, but Shalot will be a hell of a lot more talkative if you’re there. He wants to win you over, impress you.”
Katie squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to believe that someone would kill to impress her.
“I know,” Nick continued. “It’s pretty screwed up, but I think he’ll want to prove to you that he’s the savior of this next victim. That her fate rests in his hands; a God complex. Will you come?”
“Of course.”
“Good. I’ve been in contact with the sheriff in Sparks to let them know what they’re dealing with. They’re doing everything they can on their end. The rest is up to us.” Nick stepped out of the huddle. “Jameson, follow up with Roanoke on that address. Call the field office, let them know too.” He led Katie to the door. “Myers, continue to coordinate with the local authorities where our victims were found. Make sure they’ve entered everything they’ve got into the database. We’re going to need all the help we can get to identify the suspects unless we can get to Shalot fast.”
Katie felt a sense of déjà vu on the ride with Agent Scarborough. It seemed impossible to consider that she was in this situation, although it was nothing like before, when Hendrickson was after her. This time, she’d have to play up to the man who was obsessed with her. She would be in the position of power, not tied up to some chair, waiting to get the crap beat out of her, or worse. Unfortunately, that fate was placed upon another innocent victim. She would have to get Shalot to talk if they stood a chance at all of saving this woman.
“Hudson knew the names of Shalot’s followers, but nothing more. I thought maybe Branson would have more information, but he said Shalot was acting on his own.” Nick said.
“For God’s sake.” Katie turned to the passenger window, watching the buildings of downtown move past, almost in slow motion. Traffic was heavy, as usual, further adding to the sense of urgency they each felt in that moment. “Do you think this will ever end?”
“I’m sorry?” Nick briefly glanced in her direction.
&
nbsp; “Do you think I’ll ever stop being the girl who got away? The girl who brought down a murderer?”
“Eventually.” He seemed to consider his next words carefully. “The world we live in today connects all of us in ways we’ve never experienced before. Fame or notoriety is so easily obtained now. One only need to post a video of anything onto the internet, good or bad, and it can make them famous overnight. The impact of that influences people whose ideas of right and wrong are blurred, or completely distorted. We can’t filter them out either.
“Your case received national attention. That doesn’t fade quickly and neither do the people who want to know you.” Nick took a deep breath. “It will pass eventually, Katie, and you’ll go on to live a normal life. I truly believe that. Not everyone turns out to be an Edward Shalot.”
He pulled into the garage of the FBI field office. “They know we’re coming and should have already prepped Shalot and his attorney.”
“How much longer can you keep him in holding?” Katie asked.
“His next court appearance is scheduled in three days. He’ll then be transferred to a federal processing facility while he waits for trial. We’ve got hard DNA evidence on him, Katie. It won’t take long to get a conviction and no judge in the world would set bail on this case.”
“Even if he didn’t do it? I mean, it’s not like he’s going to admit to instructing any of his followers to commit murder. If we’re lucky we’ll get the name of the one in Sparks, but how are you going to keep him here?”
“We got the word of a kid looking out for himself, telling us it was Laura Kempt who killed Lindsay. Hard to dispute the physical evidence we’ve already got. We’ll have to see what Avery and Gibbons find when they locate her.” Nick opened the car door. “Come on. Let’s get this over with and see if we can save someone’s life.”
21
DETECTIVE GIBBONS ROLLED up to the apartment complex where Laura Kempt was said to be staying until the house she shared with Lindsay Brown was no longer a crime scene.
“Let’s see if this chick’s still here.” He stepped out of his black Chevy.
