by Karen Rose
‘You should be. It’s been a long night.’ She sat in the chair next to the bed. ‘Did Deacon tell you what happened?’
Michael’s eyes were haunted. ‘Those men got hurt because of me. Stone and Decker. They’re in the hospital because of me.’
‘No, honey. They got hurt because a killer wants to get away with murder.’
‘And I can identify him.’
‘Yes. I won’t lie to you. You are a thorn in this killer’s side. But Decker was doing his job. And Stone was . . .’ She shook her head. ‘Well, he should have called for help before he went after the guy on his own. He should have called for help as soon as he realized he was being followed. I’m sure his father, his brother, Delores, and everyone else is telling him that, now that he’s awake.’
‘Joshua still doesn’t know what happened. He thinks there was just a fire, but not the shooter. We tried to make it fun for him. Deacon and Faith were really nice.’
Dani smiled. ‘They are nice. And you must have been successful, because he doesn’t look scared at all. Just hyped up on sugar.’
Michael’s laugh was weak, but there. ‘Yeah, well, I think Faith was running out of ideas to keep him busy after we kept driving around and switching vans. The last switch, she went to the hospital, and we came here.’
‘You all did well. You especially. You’ve held up better than anyone has any right to expect, Michael. I’m proud of you.’
Michael’s gaze dropped, but his cheeks pinked up. Dani rose and cupped his face in her palm, lifting his chin so that she could sign to him. ‘Try to sleep. We have guards outside and no one has ever broken into this place. It’s like a fortress and too tall for anyone to throw Molotov cocktails. You’re safe here. We’ll figure everything out after we wake up and have some eggs and bacon.’
This got her the grin she was hoping for. ‘Bacon makes everything better.’
‘It really does.’ She brushed her hand over his hair. ‘Good night, hon. You’ll find toothbrushes in the bathroom. And if you get hungry, the pantry has food. The milk in the fridge is new and there’s cereal. Eat whatever you like.’
She wanted to say more. She wanted to tell him that he wasn’t temporary, that she’d fight to keep him. But she wasn’t going to make promises she couldn’t keep, so she flicked on the bedside light to its dimmest setting and left him to go to bed, making a mental note to get him a night light ASAP.
She found Deacon sitting at the kitchen table with Adam, both men looking as exhausted as she felt. But she could hear Diesel’s rumbling growl and Joshua’s giggly rendition of the final lines of No, David!, and that made her smile.
Deacon’s mouth curved a little, too, but quickly flattened, putting Dani on instant alert. ‘What’s wrong?’ she demanded.
‘Let’s wait until Diesel is finished with the story. I don’t want to go through it twice.’ He pointed to a duffel bag on the floor beside him. ‘Faith packed a few things. Toys for the kids, some changes of clothes. She packed you some clothes, too, and all your medications.’
‘Thank you,’ Dani said, relieved. ‘I always keep enough for two days in my purse, but I appreciate knowing I don’t have to worry.’
Deacon patted her hand. ‘And Michael packed a Ziploc bag full of kibble for Hawkeye. He wouldn’t leave until he’d done it. The kid loves that dog.’
‘I’d say it’s mutual,’ Adam commented, because Hawkeye had ignored the adults, plastering himself to Michael’s side. He cast a sidelong glance at Dani, letting her see his concern. ‘It’s gonna hurt him when he has to give that dog up.’
‘I know,’ was all she could reply, but inside she was strengthening her resolve to keep these boys as long as was humanly possible.
They sat in silence a few minutes longer until Diesel joined them. He sat beside her, instantly noting the tension at the table. ‘What’s wrong? Is it Stone?’
‘No.’ Deacon motioned them to keep their voices down. ‘Stone’s the same.’
‘Did you catch King?’ Diesel whispered warily.
‘No,’ Deacon murmured again. ‘They’re still doing door-to-door searches and checking every vehicle that leaves the neighborhood. It’s Stella Brewer. She’s dead.’
Dani’s heart missed a beat. ‘What? When?’
‘Sometime last night,’ Adam said.
She huffed out a harsh breath, finding it hard to draw another. Diesel’s big hand was on her back, rubbing circles and helping her get the words out. ‘Am I . . . Are we – Diesel and I – are we suspects?’
‘No,’ Deacon said. ‘You were with cops and federal agents all evening. Diesel, you were likely with Stone. We’ll get him to confirm that later. Someone came into her house, we think with a key, or she let them in. No sign of forced entry. She was found with a bag of heroin, two bullet holes in her head, and another in her heart.’
‘We’re trying to trace the heroin now,’ Adam offered. ‘It’s a very pure grade.’
Diesel rubbed his face with his free hand. ‘Scott King.’ He looked at the two detectives. ‘Michael said the guy returned Brewer’s car to their garage the night Brewer was killed. He must have kept Brewer’s keys.’
Deacon nodded. ‘Makes sense. The two cops who were watching her house found her an hour ago when they tried to get in to use the bathroom. They were supposed to have eyes on the front and the back, but they were sitting in their squad car and doing perimeter checks every half-hour.’
Dani suddenly remembered Quincy Taylor’s visit. ‘One of the CSU techs is also dead. Quincy believed that the tech was responsible for identifying the fisherman that King thought was an eyewitness. Quincy saw King at the crime scene.’
Diesel drew in a sharp breath. ‘King was desperate enough to go to the crime scene to get information? No wonder he’s after Michael. He’s snipping his loose ends. Did you get anything from the riverboat?’
Both Adam and Deacon shook their heads. ‘We’re getting warrants for their employee records,’ Adam said, ‘but their attorney is fighting it. I did hear from Scarlett, though, that you two have a suggestion for where we should start looking. Something about a med student?’
Diesel stiffened beside her and Dani squeezed his hand. ‘Jeremy found her,’ she said. ‘Her name is Laurel Jo Masterson.’
‘LJM Industries,’ Diesel murmured. ‘You should check Brewer’s financials. Specifically the transfer of the title to his house. It was bought by LJM Industries two weeks ago.’
‘Laurel’s got two brothers,’ Dani told him. ‘One is an accountant and one is a Cleveland cop.’ She told them about how Laurel went missing and her brother insisted she hadn’t run away, but that Laurel’s roommate claimed she’d gone off with her older boyfriend.
‘How does this connect to Scott King?’ Deacon asked.
‘We don’t know yet,’ Diesel admitted.
Dani noted that he wasn’t sharing the fact that he’d discovered Scott King’s email password on the casino’s network. Probably because he didn’t yet have anything concrete to share.
‘Do you need us?’ she asked. ‘Because I need to sleep.’ She’d forgotten to take one of her pills in the commotion last night and had finally taken it several hours too late. It shouldn’t make a difference to her antiviral levels, but missing sleep was an excellent way to open herself up to illness.
She couldn’t get sick now. She had two kids that needed her.
‘No,’ Deacon told her. ‘Go to sleep. I’m going back to the hospital to sit with Faith and Jeremy.’
‘And I’m going home,’ Adam announced. ‘Meredith has been texting me every hour wondering if I’m okay. I’m going to sleep for a few hours before I tackle all these crime scenes again. Both CPD and the FBI have ponied up people to stand guard, here and at the hospital, in case King tries again. You’re covered.’
Dani stood up and tugged on Diesel’s hand. ‘Come o
n. I’m about to fall asleep on my feet. And you need to sleep, too,’ she added before he could say that he needed to work some more.
Diesel followed her to the master bedroom, both of them ignoring the pointed looks from her brother and cousin. Dani closed the door. ‘You can search Scott King’s email after you’ve slept.’ He opened his mouth as if to argue, so she added, ‘Besides, I’ll sleep better if you’re with me.’ She sat on the bed and kicked off her shoes. ‘Please?’
‘Okay,’ he said. ‘But just for a few hours. As long as King is out there, none of you are safe.’
Without another word, they found toothbrushes and took care of their nightly routines. Dani opened the bag that Faith had packed for her and reluctantly chose a loose T-shirt and flannel pants to sleep in, because she really wanted to feel Diesel’s bare skin against hers. But as long as there were kids who might need them in the night, they’d need to be more circumspect.
She came out of the bathroom, pausing for a moment to appreciate the sight of Diesel shirtless in the bed. She’d long wondered what he looked like under his tight T-shirts. He’d more than surpassed her imaginings. The man was seriously cut, with a six-pack that would make any breathing woman drool.
He gave her a knowing smirk and lifted the blanket. ‘You wanted to sleep, Doc. So come and sleep.’
‘Just . . . appreciating.’ Dani slid under the covers and sighed happily when he wrapped his muscular arms around her. She rested her head on his solid chest, her good ear pressed to his steadily beating heart.
After a minute, she lifted her head to kiss his chin. ‘I like this,’ she whispered.
Lips curving, he drew a deep, contented breath. ‘So do I.’
But as tired as she was, her brain wouldn’t stop racing. She ran her palm over his skull, his stubble tickling her skin. ‘Why do you shave your head?’
He opened one eye. ‘My hair started to fall out after I got hurt, back in the army. Not all of it, just . . . in patches. So I shaved it. Why?’
‘Just curious.’ She rubbed all over his skull. ‘You have no bald spots now.’
Both of his eyes were open now. ‘You want me to grow it out?’
‘Only if you want.’ She lifted her brows. ‘Bald is a sexy, badass look on you, but I bet your hair is pretty.’
He snorted. ‘No. It’s just brown. Not like yours.’ He tucked her white streak behind her ear. ‘Yours is unique. But I have wondered why Deacon’s went completely white and yours didn’t.’
It was her turn to snort. ‘It did. But you’ll be very discreet and not notice when I go to the hairdresser every few weeks to get the black part . . . re-blacked. My white streaks are the only authentic part of my hair.’
He laughed quietly. ‘Still, I like it. I’ll be very discreet.’ He trailed his fingertips over her lips. ‘What’s really wrong, Dani? I’m thinking that it’s really not our hair that’s keeping you awake.’
She rested her forehead on his chin for a moment before lifting her head to meet his eyes squarely. ‘I never told Michael that his mother was threatening to fight for custody of Joshua. Now I’ll have to tell him she’s dead.’
He threaded his fingers through her hair, pulling her down to kiss him. ‘We’ll tell him together. Now sleep.’
She lay in the dark for a long time, listening to the steady thumping of his heart. Until his breathing evened out and his light snores were a quiet rumble in her ear.
She pressed a kiss to his heart. Now she could sleep.
Twenty-one
Cincinnati, Ohio
Monday, 18 March, 7.45 A.M.
‘I understand that you’re searching everyone,’ Evelyn said, her tone patient, but holding a thread of desperation that Cade figured the cop would attribute to her being late for her first appointment. So far she’d been a pro. ‘But the police searched my house and van already. You can call and ask them.’
‘I understand.’ The cop was condescending. ‘I’m sure your first appointment will also understand. We have a manhunt ongoing. That’s a little more important.’
Yes. Cade was aware. He’d hid in the garage with Junior while the police had searched Evelyn’s home thoroughly. They’d actually searched the boxes that Cade had stacked atop the box in which he and Junior were hiding.
Just when Cade had been certain he’d be found, the cop had left, thanking Evelyn for her cooperation.
Now they were sitting in a long line of vehicles waiting to be searched at the roadblock, going out of Dani Novak’s neighborhood. As getaway vehicles went, the pet grooming van was, in some ways, ideal. The windows in the back were small and close to the ceiling, more for ventilation than viewing, and there was a decent place to hide – for a petite woman. For Cade, not so much.
Nevertheless, he had stuffed himself and Junior into the dog bathing tub. Luckily Evelyn had clients with very large dogs and had bought the largest model. It had an inset base, like a false bottom, that enabled the tub to be used for smaller dogs. Cade was hiding under the base.
Luckily Evelyn kept her equipment clean. There was a strong odor of dog shampoo and disinfectant, but it wasn’t exactly unpleasant. And if it got him out of this dragnet, he’d have sat in dog shit.
But he was glad he hadn’t had to, because his leg was on fire. The Feds’ bullets hadn’t done a lot of damage, but Cade was afraid the wounds were getting infected. He had antibiotics back at the old pedo’s house. He just had to make it until then.
‘Of course,’ Evelyn was saying to the cop. ‘I’ll open the back door for you.’
Well, fuck. Cade tightened his hold on the rifle. If that inset base was lifted, he’d start firing. God help anyone who got in his way.
The back door creaked as Evelyn opened it.
‘This is a pretty nice setup,’ the cop said. ‘Very clean.’
‘Thank you,’ Evelyn said, sounding like she was speaking through clenched teeth.
Heavy footsteps sounded just outside his hiding place and Cade could hear the van’s cabinet doors being opened and closed. He held his breath, freezing when Junior made a disgruntled sound. Not a cry. But he wasn’t being quiet. Just a little longer, Junior.
Everything went silent outside the tub, and then Cade heard the thump of a fist on the inset top. Junior opened his mouth. Cade clamped his fingers over it. Do not cry, Junior. Do. Not. Cry.
‘Okay, ma’am,’ the cop said. ‘Everything seems in order here. We’re sorry for the inconvenience.’
‘That’s okay,’ Evelyn said, her voice trembling. ‘I hope you catch him.’
The doors closed and Cade finally released the breath he’d been holding. They were free. He waited until the van began to move at a decent speed before cautiously pushing the inset base out of the way.
He let out another breath. He was alone in the back. No cops.
Yes.
He opened one of the bigger drawers, finding stacks of towels. He set Junior on the towels, giving his head a pat. He was so glad that the kid hadn’t cried and he hadn’t had to smother him. That would have sucked.
Carefully he slid the small window in the side of the van open, recognizing the area at a glance. He’d told Evelyn to drive to a secluded area near the Mount Airy Forest once they were through the roadblock. She’d drop him off and he’d let her go.
Except that wasn’t exactly the way it was going to happen. He laid out a few of the nylon dog leads and cut up some towels in preparation, then watched the scenery pass by for another thirty minutes until the van slowed and Evelyn pulled over. She’d followed his instructions well.
She opened the back doors and scanned the interior for Junior.
‘He’s right here,’ Cade said. ‘Not a problem. He’s a good kid.’
He waited until she leaped into the back and raced for the baby before grabbing her and shoving one of the cut-up towels in her mouth. Quickly
he tied her hands and feet with the dog leads and lowered her to the floor of the truck. He put Junior beside her.
‘We need to go a little farther and I need for you not to know where I’m getting out,’ he said. ‘Don’t want you to call the cops on me the moment you drive away.’
The flash of impotent fury in Evelyn’s eyes told him that she’d planned to do exactly that. Then he could see nothing of her eyes because he tied one of the towel remnants over them.
‘Sit tight. You’ll be free soon.’ He got out of the van and slammed the doors. ‘And I’m free now.’
He needed to figure out how to stay that way. First, though, he needed to find a safe place to regroup, because his leg was throbbing. He needed to clean it properly, without having to hold a damn baby. Once it healed, he’d be able to make his escape. When he ran, he needed to be able to actually run.
He’d also have to figure out a way to change his appearance, because there was no way he was escaping a conviction if he was caught.
One thing was certain – he was not getting to Michael Rowland. By now, they’d have that kid in a safe house six miles underground.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Monday, 18 March, 8.30 A.M.
Grant Masterson toasted a bagel and made a cup of coffee with Wesley’s space-age machine. The bagel was the only food in the fridge that hadn’t passed its ex-date. He’d eaten takeout the day before. If he stayed any longer, he’d have to buy food.
Munching on the dry bagel, he opened a browser window on his laptop to the local news. He wanted to see what had happened the night before with the casino raid. Whether there was any mention of Richard Fischer or Scott King. Or Wesley’s alter ego, Blake Emerson.
As soon as the news page loaded, he nearly choked on the bagel.
‘Holy shit,’ he panted when he could breathe again. There on the front page was a photo of the Lady of the River with the headline: SEARCH FOR RIVER KILLER COMES UP EMPTY.
‘River killer? What the actual fuck?’ Grant scanned the article and was glad he hadn’t taken another bite, because the suspect was none other than Scott King, the security manager he’d gone to the casino to find.
