by Mary Stone
They’d gotten a call from Susanna Arkwell, telling them about the nanny cams set up in most every room. She’d given them the passcode, and they were in. Then, within less than a minute, Winter and the team watched in horror as Cameron went from being reasonable to holding the automatic rifle to his young cousins’ heads.
“Zulu,” Max yelled, giving the snipers their code word to fire when ready.
And the snipers fired, using the video feed to locate the otherwise blind target.
Watching the screen, Winter witnessed Cameron take several rounds. Watched him slump to the floor and crawl behind a chair. There was blood, yes, but…
“He’s wearing a vest.”
Beside me, Max nodded, having already come to the same conclusion.
Winter waited for Max to order the team to breach the entrance, but he held them down. Winter understood why. Cameron’s rifle was pointed at the girls and his uncle.
They’d only slowed him down, Winter feared. Made him madder. More desperate.
“Get him talking again,” Max ordered.
Winter called Cameron’s name. Tried to get his attention. Tried to reason with him, telling him that it didn’t have to end like this.
Then Cameron Arkwell said something she never expected to hear from him. “I want my dad.”
Winter finally let out a breath. She had him back, and she also knew that he’d be pissed at himself for having said those words out loud.
“Ignore it,” Autumn said through her earpiece, echoing her own thoughts. “It will only make it worse.”
“Understood,” Winter said.
“I think he’ll try to negotiate next,” Autumn said, her voice a bit breathless but calm. “I know we can’t take the death penalty off the table, but the actual likelihood that he’d be given the death penalty and the likelihood that he wouldn’t be able to appeal the sentence is really slim. The kid comes from money.”
Though Autumn was out of Winter’s field of vision, Winter nodded. “And there’s always the potential for a plea deal. He confesses, and they take the death penalty off the table.”
Max drew his eyebrows together. “Seems like we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves, aren’t we?”
Winter shook her head. “This is the only way. Offering him his life is the only bargaining chip we have.”
The shadows casted by the blue and red lights shifted along Max’s face as he nodded.
Readjusting her rifle, Winter leaned against the cruiser. “You can make a plea deal.” Her throat was sore from shouting, and she regretted not snatching a bottle of water on her way out of the office. “You plead guilty, or no contest, and in exchange, the US Attorney throws out the death penalty in sentencing.”
Autumn’s voice was back in her ear. “Tell him he doesn’t have to die, but he has to be smart about what he’s doing right now. But we know he’s smart, right? It plays to his ego.”
Winter didn’t hesitate. “I know you’re smart, Cameron. We wouldn’t be here right now if you weren’t. And if you keep playing this smart, then you don’t have to die.”
“Right, I can just spend the rest of my life in prison! Because that’s such an upgrade!” His tone bordered on outright hostile. If he was pushed much more, Winter was sure he would snap again. Snap worse. She didn’t especially care about Cameron’s fate, but there were three innocent civilians—including two children—in the house with him.
As Winter raised a hand to press her microphone, Autumn spoke again.
“His alternative is being dead,” she said. “If he’s dead, then people only hear Nathaniel’s side of the story. No one ever hears Cameron’s side. Nathaniel paints him in a light that makes him look like some kind of monster, and no one’s around to question it.”
Winter looked at the video feed, but Cameron hadn’t moved from behind the chair. “If you’re dead, Cameron, then you know who will tell your story, right? You know he’ll be the only one left to tell it. How do you think he’ll make you look? Do you think he’ll take ownership over what he did wrong?”
Another lengthy silence. She could only hope he was truly considering the words.
“If you’re alive,” Winter continued, “then you control the narrative.”
“How do I know one of your trigger-happy friends out there won’t shoot me as soon as I walk outside?” To her relief, the rage had been subdued.
“If you come out here unarmed, no one will shoot you.” Though Winter’s voice was scratchy, her tone was calm and matter-of-fact.
Each second was agony. Whenever she poked her head out to make note of any movement, she expected the crack of gunshots to shatter the eerie quiet as Cameron unloaded the magazine of his rifle on his uncle and his cousins.
Her heart hammered against her chest, and she wouldn’t let herself admit it but her hands were trembling.
Winter’s stomach heaved.
At first, she couldn’t place the reason for the sudden nausea when she thought that the tactical sniper team might shoot and kill Cameron Arkwell. But in the next breath, realization dawned.
What if he was Justin?
To Maddie, even to Nathaniel, Cameron was Justin. Cameron was the sweet little boy in the SpongeBob footie pajamas, but the years had turned him into something unrecognizable.
Cameron’s shout cut through her racing thoughts. “Okay.”
Had she missed something in the moments her mind was swept back in time? She cleared her throat. “Okay, what?”
“I’ll come out. Unarmed. I’m setting the rifle down now.”
She squinted at the window. “What about your uncle and your cousins?”
“They’re fine.” The plain statement was laced with bitterness.
With a quick glance to Max, Winter raised her weapon to rest the barrel along the hood of the squad car. She trained the red dot sight on the window but snapped the rifle to point at the door at the first sign of movement. The afternoon had become so still, she could hear the creak as the door slowly swung inward.
Cameron Arkwell’s pale blue eyes fell on her as he took the first step onto the covered porch. With his blood-covered palms facing them, he raised his hands above his head and took another tentative step.
As soon as Cameron reached the sidewalk, a handful of police officers approached, each pointing a handgun or a rifle in Cameron’s direction.
Winter’s legs ached as she rose to stand. As she lowered her M4, she had to blink repeatedly to reassure herself that the scene unfolding was real. She turned her head to the side at the flicker of auburn hair in her periphery. Autumn had pinned her dark auburn hair back in a low ponytail, and block letters on the front of her Kevlar vest designated her as part of the FBI. With a slight smile, she raised a hand to flash Winter a thumbs-up.
They had gone into the negotiations with the hope that they’d manage to shoot and kill Cameron Arkwell before he turned his weapon on his uncle and cousins.
Instead, he was about to be hauled away in handcuffs.
39
When Autumn strolled into the offices of Shadley and Latham the Monday after Cameron Arkwell’s arrest, she received a standing ovation. Though she hadn’t watched the press conference about Cameron, she was told that the FBI credited her and Winter with the nonviolent arrest. After thanking the group of coworkers in the café of their ritzy building, she bowed a couple times, much to the amusement of Mike Shadley.
As she started toward her office, coffee energy drink in hand, her attention was soon drawn to a familiar voice at her back. A voice she hadn’t wanted to hear today, but the second partner of Shadley and Latham was difficult to ignore.
Forcing a smile, she turned around to face him. “Good morning, Dr. Latham. How are you?”
As he extended a hand, her stomach lurched. With a chuckle, she held out her full hands and shrugged.
He grinned in response and mercifully retracted his hand. Autumn was mostly grateful for her sixth sense, but when the time came to touch Adam Latham, she a
voided the gesture like the bubonic plague. She still didn’t know the details, but she knew that Adam Latham was not a good man.
And every time she had the displeasure of shaking his hand, she became more and more certain that she was his newest infatuation. If she wasn’t yet, she would be soon. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to know what that would entail, and she’d even entertained the idea of searching for a different job.
Maybe I should have taken Aiden’s offer to work at the FBI. At the thought of Aiden Parrish, her stomach dropped even lower. She thought they had become friends, but his demeanor around her the day before insisted otherwise. Her ability became diluted the more time she spent around someone, but she’d still been able to glean that Aiden was ambivalent toward her. She didn’t know why he felt that way, but the sudden change had put a definitive damper on what should have otherwise been a good day.
And then, of course, there was Adam Latham. She would have rather run into Cameron Arkwell in the hallway. At least Cameron didn’t have the authority to fire her if she made the wrong move in his presence. If the kid tried to come at her with a knife, she could break his arm in three places and knock him to the ground before he even knew what had happened.
Adam Latham was a different story. She couldn’t beat him into submission, and she had no recourse for any unwanted advances he thought to make. Adam Latham had one thing Cameron Arkwell didn’t. Adam Latham had power.
Autumn blinked a few times and shook herself out of the contemplation. “Sorry.” She returned her attention to Adam. “I had a hard time sleeping last night, and I’m still a little tired. Hence this.” She raised the coffee drink.
As he chuckled, there was the same unsettling glint in his eyes she’d spotted before. “No worries. I just wanted to catch up with you to congratulate you on a job well done. That was damn fine work, Dr. Trent.”
She grinned, but the expression was entirely feigned. “Thank you, Dr. Latham. I appreciate it.”
He held up an index finger.
Oh, shit. Here it comes. He’s going to ask me out. Touch me. Something completely unwanted.
Her stomach churned as her pulse rushed in her ears.
He lowered his voice. “And I thought I’d come to you with this before anyone else.”
The tentative creep of relief seeped into her tired muscles as she nodded. “Of course. What is it?”
“The FBI needs someone to conduct a clinical forensic evaluation of Cameron Arkwell. I’ve already recommended you for it, so they’ll be reaching out to you sometime today.”
She was so relieved that she didn’t even care that he’d donned the same self-assured smile that made her skin crawl. “That sounds great. Thank you for that. I really appreciate it.”
“No problem at all. I know you’ll do an excellent job.” Waving a hand at the hall from which Autumn had come, he shrugged. “Otherwise, I figured you deserved a day off. Go kick back and relax, and I’ll talk to you soon.”
Her smile was suddenly much easier to fake. “Thank you. Again, I appreciate it.”
That, at least, wasn’t a lie. She was grateful for any opportunity to relieve herself of Adam Latham’s presence.
As soon as Autumn arrived home, she pulled off her five-inch heels and stripped out of her dressy slacks and button-down shirt. Once she was clad in a worn band t-shirt and a pair of capri sweats, she flopped down on the couch to check her phone.
With a chirp, the cat, Peach, leapt onto the cushion by her head and sniffed her hair. Autumn absentmindedly reached up to scratch the cat’s chin as she unlocked her phone and Toad the dog snuggled in closer to her leg. There were a few new emails about her upcoming contract to evaluate Cameron Arkwell, but those weren’t the messages that caught her attention.
She hadn’t seen Dan Nguyen’s name in her text message inbox in…how long had it been? More than six months, at least. She’d bought her new phone six months ago, and she hadn’t hesitated to throw out their text message history along with the old device.
Sighing, she tapped the icon to pull up the new texts.
I saw the FBI press conference about Cameron Arkwell. I’m sure you’ve already heard it seven ways from Sunday, but I just wanted to tell you that you did a great job. Btw, I’m using your Halloween Xmas tree idea in my office. It gets me a lot of weird looks, but they crack me up. Other than eBay, where do you get your decorations? I think I need to spruce it up a little.
She’d started to chuckle by the end of the message. Dan had always been keen on eliciting looks of confusion from other people. Even though he dressed like a stockbroker on most days, he had an impressive collection of ridiculous Hawaiian t-shirts.
As she scanned the second message, her heartrate increased, and her mouth went dry.
Okay, well, I’ll just come right out and ask, then. Would you be interested in meeting up for lunch or coffee or something? Just to catch up. Honestly, I’m really curious what it’s like working at Shadley and Latham, plus all the work you’ve been doing with the FBI. If that’s too weird, I totally understand.
Autumn pursed her lips and reread the message. Part of the reason for their split had been her desire to pursue a career rather than settle down to start a family right out of college. She hadn’t dedicated her life to academia for eight years to earn the Ph.D. behind her name just to hang a plaque on the wall of her apartment.
Though she’d been mad at Dan at first, she had since realized that their age gap was to blame for the differing goals. Autumn had always liked the idea of a family, but she still wasn’t sure if kids were realistic for her future. She couldn’t conceive thanks to endometriosis, a tidbit that neither she nor Dan had known when they were together.
But maybe there was a chance they could still be friends. It would be a relief to have a friend around who she’d known for longer than a few months.
Before she could analyze the decision any further, her fingers flew over the virtual keyboard.
No, that’s not weird. My boss gave me the day off if you’re free. She didn’t give herself time to second-guess the message before she hit send. Oh, and I get the decorations at craft stores.
Part of her was relieved that Dan didn’t hate her, but part of her wasn’t entirely sure of her motive for meeting up with him. But for the time being, she told herself she wanted to open the door for them to establish a friendship.
Plus, it wouldn’t hurt to have an extra ally if Adam Latham proved to be as shifty as she thought.
40
Winter had called Maddie Arkwell the day before to ask if she could stop by to talk to her. Though she had no idea what she planned to say, Winter hadn’t been able to shake the haunting similarities between the situation into which Maddie had been thrust and the situation Winter had faced down after her parents were murdered. Sure, Maddie’s father and brother were still alive, but her brother would never walk the streets as a free man again.
Nathaniel Arkwell’s arraignment was scheduled for later in the afternoon, and that was precisely why Winter had offered to stop by that morning. Though Maddie, Susanna, and David Arkwell might have viewed the bureau as protectors, Winter still wasn’t sure how the judge viewed them anymore. Cameron might have been a sociopath, but to Nathaniel, the FBI were the people who had taken his son from him.
She swallowed against the sudden bout of uncertainty as she climbed the steps to the porch of the same house she’d stared down a couple days ago. The faint scent of blooming chrysanthemums and roses wafted up to greet her as she approached the door. She might not have known what to say to Maddie, but she knew she had to say something to the poor girl.
With a quiet sigh, Winter rapped her knuckles against the wooden door. A couple faint voices followed, and when the door creaked open, Winter offered a smile to Susanna Arkwell.
“Good morning, Agent Black.” Susanna stepped aside as she shoved open the screen door.
Winter smiled. “Just Winter today.” For emphasis, she brushed off the front of her gray
canvas jacket.
Susanna smiled. “Winter, that’s a pretty name. Maddie told us that you were going to stop by. I made some sweet tea, but I’ll leave it up to Maddie to be a hostess.”
From the corner of her eye, Winter spotted the young woman she’d come to visit. Like she had at the FBI office, Maddie had pinned her dark hair back in a ponytail, and a black headband held the wayward strands away from her face. Otherwise, the Nirvana t-shirt, flannel button-down, and skinny jeans reminded Winter of Autumn.
Winter gestured to Maddie’s t-shirt. “You like Nirvana?”
With a slight smile, Maddie nodded. “Yeah. I like ‘90s music. It’s way better than the stuff my classmates listen to.”
Winter’s smile came a little easier. “My…friend loves Nirvana and ‘90s music too.” Friend? Was that still what she was supposed to call Noah?
She brushed aside the thought. She could contemplate Noah’s title later.
Grinning, Winter held up a finger. “I also learned recently that Kurt Cobain and grunge music are what destroyed the popularity of ‘80s hair bands. I can’t stand hair bands.”
From the edge of the foyer, Susanna Arkwell chortled.
Even Maddie returned Winter’s wide smile. “Aunt Susanna hates hair bands too.”
Susanna spread her hands. “It’s true. I was a kid when a lot of those stupid songs came out, and I couldn’t stand them then, either. Maddie, honey, I made some sweet tea for you two. I’m going to go in the living room and read for a while. Let me know if you need anything.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Arkwell.” Winter lifted a hand as the woman disappeared around a corner.
Maddie gestured to a short hallway. “The kitchen’s this way. We can sit outside if you want. It’s really nice out today.”
“Yeah, that sounds good.”
Beneath Maddie’s seemingly good spirit, a shadow lurked. Winter had seen the shadow before. She’d seen it in herself, and she’d seen it in Augusto Lopez.
