Cold Case Reopened

by Caridad Piñeiro

  “Come forward slowly, hands up,” Jackson shouted.

  Selene took another hesitant step toward them onto the front porch. She squinted, as if the sunlight was too much for her, making Rhea wondered if it had been months since she’d been outside the walls of her prison.

  “Walk forward slowly,” Jackson said as another burst of shouting came from within the cabin.

  A bearded face became visible in the window, and the man called out, “You have her. Now leave us alone.”

  More fighting followed that declaration, and with the door open, the words were a little more discernable. One voice, stronger and obviously in command. “Shut the door. Shut the damn door.”

  The second, weaker, almost stumbling. “B-b-b-ut—”

  “Shut it,” boomed the first person, and the door slammed closed.

  Selene jumped, almost as if shot, and it was all Rhea could do not to run to her sister. But Jackson had his arm stuck out, a barrier keeping her back.

  The shouting resumed inside the cabin, and Jackson took advantage of that to stand, exposing himself to gunfire. He held out his hand and motioned to Selene. “Here. Come here, Selene.”

  Her sister’s eyes widened, but then she ran toward them and dropped to her knees, into Rhea’s arms, when she got there.

  Rhea kissed her sister’s face and wrapped her arms around her, unable to believe she was really there. That she was alive.

  “You’ve made this easier for yourselves, but you’ve got to surrender. Come out, hands up,” Jackson commanded.

  More yelling came from the cabin, followed by an assortment of crashes, as if someone was trashing the place. More shouts, and then silence. Finally, surprising all of them, the sound of a single gunshot.

  Jackson sucked in a breath, trying to fathom what that single gunshot might mean. Especially as the door slowly opened again and a hesitant voice called out, “D-d-don’t shoot. Please don’t h-h-urt m-m-e.”

  There was almost a nervous quality to the voice, warning him that it might be the younger brother. A gentle hand on his forearm drew his attention back to where Rhea and Selene huddled, arms around each other. It was Selene’s hand, and as he met her gaze, so much like Rhea’s, he was taken aback for a moment. But only a millisecond in this life and death situation.

  “It’s Wade,” Selene confirmed.

  Jackson nodded. “Come out slowly, Wade. Hands on your head. We won’t hurt you.”

  Finally, someone appeared in the doorway. One of the men in the photos. One of Selene’s kidnappers.

  “Slowly, Wade,” he repeated as the man faltered on the front porch, clearly afraid as his gaze darted all around, seemingly uncomprehending.

  Wade took a few more uncertain steps into the clearing in front of the cabin.

  Over his shoulder, Jackson asked Selene, “What’s his brother’s name?”

  “Earl,” she said harshly, as if it pained her to say his name.

  “On your knees, Wade. Where’s Earl?” Jackson said, rising slightly so Wade could see him, but keeping behind the trunk of the tree for safety.

  “Dead. Kilt himself,” Wade said and whipped his head in the direction of the cabin.

  Jackson radioed his team. “Visuals? Can anyone confirm?”

  Dillon spoke up first. “I can see into the cabin. Looks like a body on the floor.”

  “Are you sure, Dillon?” Jackson pressed, wanting to avoid any additional bloodshed.

  “I’m sure, boss.”

  Jackson commanded the two SWAT officers. “Levine. Anderson. Move in. Dillon, hang back and secure our suspect when possible.”

  “Copy that,” all the officers confirmed.

  Jackson waited, protecting the two women while his counterparts hurried toward the cabin, guns drawn. The SWAT officers paused at the door. Entry areas like that could be a fatal funnel, but as the one officer peered inside, he lowered his weapon slightly.

  “Shot himself in the head. Going in to check on him. Cover my six, Anderson,” Officer Levine said and entered the cabin. He emerged a second later and gave the All-clear motion.

  Jackson stood and helped Rhea bring her sister to her feet. Together, they supported her to walk to a stump, where she sat and gazed up at them, tears streaming down her face.

  “I thought I’d die here...like the others,” she said, and her gaze skittered back to the cabin for a second and then back to them.

  “Others?” Jackson asked, hands on his hips as he focused on Selene’s face, so much like Rhea’s, but so much thinner from her captivity. The remnants of a bruise, going yellowish and purple, lingered along her right cheek. He clenched his jaw with anger at the thought of anyone striking her.

  Selene nodded. “Wade let it slip that they’d taken other women, but I already knew. There were other feminine things in the cabin. Combs. Jewelry. Clothes. I think they killed them.”

  “Anderson. Dillon. Levine. Secure the area. I’m going to call in the Crime Scene Unit, since we may have other victims here,” Jackson instructed and then stepped away to phone his chief and advise him on their status and the possibility they had multiple kidnappings and homicides.

  “I have to say I’m surprised, Jax. That’s just not the kind of thing that happens here,” the chief said.

  “I’m with you, Bill. I’m hoping Selene is wrong, and it was just Wade shoplifting things, like he did in Regina, but if not...” If not they had serial killers on their hands.

  “I’ll get them up there ASAP. How’s the woman? Do you need transport to take her to the hospital?”

  Jackson glanced back toward where Selene sat, Rhea kneeling beside her. “She’s shaky, Chief. We may need transport, but give me a little more time to talk with her and see what she wants.”

  Jackson returned to the two women and was once again struck by how identical they were. Same intelligent crystal-blue eyes and full lips. The dark, almost black hair, although Selene’s was far longer and dull. As he neared, they both looked toward him, the motion of their bodies in unison.

  “CSU will be coming up to search the scene and preserve evidence. I’d like to take you to the hospital—”

  “No, I want to go home,” Selene said, shaking her head furiously.

  Jackson looked toward Rhea, who did a little dip of her head. “I think that would be best.”

  Blowing out a rough breath, Jackson said, “We need to take some photos of you and get a statement. Are you up for doing that?”

  Selene nodded. “I am. Anything you need me to do.”

  “I’m grateful for that, Selene. I can call for a transport chopper—”

  “I can walk. I just want to get out of here,” she said, wrapped her arms around herself and began to rock, like a child trying to comfort itself during a nightmare.

  Rhea hugged her sister and kissed her temple, trying to calm her. “It’s okay, Selene. It’s over. You’ll be home soon.”

  “With you. I want to go with you,” Selene cried and grabbed hold of Rhea’s arm.

  “With me, sis. Don’t worry. You can stay as long as you need to,” Rhea said.

  “Let me just give my men some other instructions and then we’ll head back to Regina,” Jackson said.

  He returned, leaving Dillon to guard Wade in the hopes he would provide more information to the CSU. They read him his Miranda rights, using Dillon’s body cam to preserve it and anything else he said as evidence. He worried that if they didn’t record it, it might not hold up in court, but his top priority, beside getting Selene home, was discovering if Wade and his brother had kidnapped and killed other women.

  Together, Rhea and he supported Selene for the hike back to their vehicle. As they walked, she seemed to grow stronger, her back straightening and her head lifting from its earlier cowed droop. Halfway through the walk, she began her story.

  “Matt and I
had another fight, and he hit me again. I ran, afraid of him. Scared of myself and what I was becoming. I was driving to you, Rhea, but it was late and I got hungry. I stopped for gas and when I asked the clerk about a place to eat, he recommended the pub.” She stopped to draw a shaky breath and then continued, “I ordered a burger and was eating when Earl and Wade came by. They started making comments. Eyeing me. When I left, they followed me out and catcalled me again, but I ignored them, got in my car and drove away.

  “When I got to the lake, it called to me, so I parked and walked toward the shore. Stood there thinking about my life and decided it was time to leave Matt. Time to follow my dreams like you had, Rhea.” She glanced at her sister and offered her a smile.

  Like Rhea, Selene is even more beautiful when she smiles, Jackson thought.

  “Is that when you texted me?” Rhea asked.

  Selene nodded. “It is. I was going to come to you that night, but as I turned, someone grabbed me and covered my mouth. Someone else took hold of my feet to haul me back toward the road. I was kicking and trying to scream, but I couldn’t breathe and passed out.”

  “Earl and Wade took you to the cabin?” Jackson said.

  “They expected me to service them and if I didn’t...” Selene’s voice cracked then, and tears came to her eyes and spilled downward, but she swiped them away furiously. “They’d rape me once or twice a week. Wade really didn’t want to, but Earl would bait him and say that he wasn’t a real man if he didn’t.”

  Walking beside Selene, Rhea was likewise crying, obviously thinking about everything her sister had suffered in the months she’d been held captive. The two sisters held each other, offering support. Offering comfort to each other as they finished the hike and reached the police SUVs.

  Jackson helped the women into the back and got behind the wheel. It was time to return Selene to civilization. Back to her real life.

  Away from Regina, he thought, but reined in his emotions. Selene was alive and free, but there might be other women who had not been so lucky.

  Now it was his job to speak for them and to give their families relief. Everything else would have to wait.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Rhea had sensed his withdrawal with every mile that took them away from the cabin and to Regina. Upon their arrival, he was the consummate professional, arranging for one of the female officers to take photos of Selene and afterward getting her statement on video while he took notes. While she understood he had a job to do, it only reinforced her earlier fears that once this case was over, they’d be over.

  But her pain was dimmed by the joy that Selene was alive. Alive, she thought and hugged her sister hard. Gazing at her, Rhea examined Selene, taking note of how she’d changed in the many months she’d been gone. There was something in her gaze that was older somehow, and there were tiny scars, the remnants of scratches and cuts, in addition to the very-visible remnants of a bruise along her cheek.

  As Rhea continued her perusal, she noted additional bruising along her collarbone and bruises that looked like fingerprints on her upper arms.

  Selene’s gentle touch came to Rhea’s jaw, urging her gaze away from the bruises. Selene was smiling, a sad smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “I knew you wouldn’t give up. I knew you’d come for me.”

  Rhea’s gaze grew hazy with unshed tears and emotion choked her throat. She fought past it and said, “I knew you were alive. I felt it, in here.” She tapped her chest.

  Selene nodded. “Me, too, and I feel your pain now,” she said softly and peered toward Jackson as he stood outside the interrogation room, speaking with his chief. “He’s special to you, isn’t he?”

  Rhea closed her eyes to fight the tears and wagged her head. “He is. Very special.”

  “It will be all right, Rhea. Believe that,” Selene said, but fell silent as Jackson returned to the room.

  He laid the file in his hand on the table. It contained Selene’s statement, his notes and the photos they’d taken of her various injuries. With a heavy sigh, he said, “I think we’re done here, but I hope that if we need more information, you’ll make yourself available.”

  “I will,” Selene said and skipped her gaze between Jackson and her. “Do you two need a moment?”

  “Yes,” Rhea said at the same time that Jackson said, “No.”

  Rhea’s heart plummeted with that, but she refused to show it. “I guess we should go now.”

  Jackson nodded, but didn’t look at her. Instead, he focused on Selene and said, “I think you should go to the hospital.”

  Rhea was looking away, but she caught sight of Selene peering between them as she said, “If you think so, but what about you two—”

  “Rhea wants to make sure you’re safe and sound also,” he replied and grabbed hold of his file. “If you don’t mind, I have to head back to the cabin. The CSU team has found other victims there.”

  He hurried from the room, but before he did so, he gazed at her like a hungry man at a king’s feast, igniting hope that he really did care. That he really wanted more for them despite his behavior.

  And then he was gone to do his job, and she had her own responsibilities to fulfill. She needed to get her sister to the hospital and make sure she was fine. Once they were home, she needed to help Selene rebuild her life and get on with her own.

  THE POLICE STATION still looked picture perfect, the craftsman building nestled harmoniously with the other shops along Main Street. The flowers on either side of the wide steps leading to the door had grown larger in the month since she’d last been there. As a warm breeze swept past, the petals waved at her in welcome as they had a month ago.

  She only hoped she would be as welcome inside, because so much had happened in the last few weeks.

  Jackson and his team had found the bodies of three other women buried a short distance from the cabin. The jewelry and other items had helped to confirm their identities. One of the women had been missing for nearly four years, and based on the date of her disappearance, as well as the others, it seemed as if the brothers had taken a new woman every year. The other victims had been taken from farther away, which was why neither the Regina nor Avalon police departments had noticed a pattern. It had kept them from being criticized in the press. If anything, Jackson and his team, as well as her, had been praised for the police work that had brought closure to the other cases and families.

  Wade had confirmed that it was Earl who had been at the inn, wanting to grab Rhea so they’d have both sisters under their control. When he’d realized Rhea was no pushover, he’d decided to scare her away or kill her if need be.

  Entering the building, the familiar sight of the desk sergeant was a relief. Millie would know who she was, and she suspected the other woman would know who she was there to see. She wasn’t wrong, as the young police officer smiled and buzzed her through the barrier. Rising, Millie said, “It’s good to see you again, Rhea. Or, at least, I hope it’s a good thing.”

  She nodded. “It is, Millie. Wish me luck.”

  Millie smiled and gestured toward the back of the station. “I think you know where his office is.”

  “I do,” she said and, without waiting, headed to see Jackson.

  As she neared the door, she passed Dillon who said, “Better be careful, Rhea. He’s as cross as a bear with a thorn in its paw.”

  Jackson’s door was closed. She knocked and heard his grumbled “I’m busy” through the door.

  She’d come too far to be ignored that easily. She pushed through the door and shut it behind her.

  A look of surprise filled Jackson’s face before he schooled his features and stood.

  He took her breath away, much like he had the first time she’d seen him. His police blues seemed a little looser around his body, and his face was thinner, as well. His shortly cropped brown hair had grown out a little and the gray of his e
yes was muddled, like the sky during a rainstorm. He clenched and unclenched his jaw as he stood there, clearly uneasy.

  She charged on, “It’s good to see you again, Jax.”

  “Nice to see you again, Rhea,” he said, although nothing about his tone and stance said he was happy to see her.

  “I know we left things on a weird note,” she began, and he laughed harshly, rocked back and forth on his heels.

  “That’s an understatement. How is Selene? How is she doing?” he asked and relaxed a little. He invited her to sit, but she was too nervous. And too anxious about what she intended to say to him.

  “She’s doing well. She divorced Matt and has been seeing a therapist and going to a support group. She’s also been singing at some of the local clubs.”

  “Sounds good.” He paused, jammed his hands in his pockets and said, “How about you? You okay?”

  This was the moment she’d been waiting for and she didn’t hesitate to grab it with both hands. “I’m miserable. I miss you. I hated how it ended with us because... I don’t want it to end, Jax. I’m in love with you.”

  He reared back as if he’d been struck, but then he rushed toward her and embraced her in a bear hug. “You can’t imagine how many times I dreamed you’d come back and say that.”

  She laughed, dropped a kiss on his jaw and said, “You dreamed of me?”

  “Every night, Rhea. But when we started you were so vulnerable, and I felt so guilty that I might have taken advantage. That’s why I forced myself to make you leave that day. You needed space. So did I.”

  She playfully elbowed him and then urged him to sit with her in the chairs in front of his desk. “I was so hurt that day, but once I was back in Denver, helping Selene, I realized I needed to find out if what we had was real.”

  He arched a brow and took hold of her hand, lacing his fingers with hers. “And did you?”

  She nodded without hesitation and squeezed his hand. “I did. I want to be with you, Jax. That is if you want to be with me.”