Thirty-One

Pete debated whether to call Zoe. What could he tell her? Honey, your brother may not be your brother. Or if he is, your dad got more than one girl knocked up before he married your mom. Either way, Jason doesn’t really work for a bank in Philadelphia. Plus, he seems to have skipped town.

Or had he? All Pete really knew was he’d checked out of a dump hotel.

And tossed his phone in the trash.

Abby called back a few minutes after he’d put her on the number search. “What’d you find out?” he asked.

“Three of the numbers were for local plumbers. Two more were for electricians.”

“Abbott Electric?”

“As a matter of fact, yes. That was one of the last numbers called.”

“What else?”

“The very last number he called was to Econo Drive, the car rental place on Franklin Boulevard in Brunswick.”

The gray Dodge Ram. Pete had assumed Jason had rented it at the airport when he’d flown in from Philly. But if he wasn’t really from the City of Brotherly Love…

“You found out he didn’t work at the bank he claimed to. Did you happen to find out where he is from?”

An exasperated sigh made its way through the cell signal. “He has a huge online presence, but it’s all a front. He must have hacked into all those websites to create fake profiles. And his social media pages are all new too. Jason Cox exists only on the internet. Beyond that, he’s a ghost.”

“Keep digging. I’m headed over to Econo Drive.”

  

Despite the company’s name, Econo Drive boasted some rather nice vehicles on their lot. Including a big gray Dodge Ram parked front and center.

Pete pulled up behind it, blocking any chance of escape. He climbed out of his SUV and strode into the office.

A young blonde behind the counter greeted him with a perky smile. “May I help you, Officer?”

“I’m looking for the man who’s been driving that pickup.” He aimed a thumb toward the window.

Her smile faded. “Is there something wrong? Was it used for illegal activity?”

“I’m not sure. That’s why I’m looking for the driver.”

She blinked. Glanced down at some paperwork in front of her. Jason’s, Pete presumed. “I’m afraid he’s already gone.”

Dammit. “How long ago?”

“Not more than five minutes.”

“Did you see where he went? Did he rent another vehicle? Did someone pick him up?”

“Um.” She looked down at the paperwork. More than a glance this time. “He’d left his own vehicle in our lot out back while he’d rented the Ram.”

“What lot?”

“Behind the building.” She pointed over her shoulder. “You might be able to catch him.”

Pete headed for the door. “What kind of car?”

“Red Chevy Cobalt.”

He broke into a jog across the front of the structure. He should have snatched that paperwork from the woman, but he didn’t want to miss the chance to snatch Cox first. Pete rounded the corner. Saw a high chain-link fence at the rear corner, the gate open. He picked up the pace, his heart pounding. If a red Chevy Cobalt came roaring out of that enclosure, he was set to pull his Glock. Not that he’d fire. Bad enough he was going to have to tell Zoe her brother was a fraud. The last thing he wanted to do was have to explain to her that he’d shot the guy.

Pete reached the gate and stopped to grip the pipe post and catch his breath. Inside, roughly fifty vehicles were parked in four rows. Most looked like rentals, a few appeared worse for wear. But a handful seemed too old or in poor condition. A trio of men engaged in conversation gathered at the far end of the building near a massive garage door. Pete scanned the lot for the Cobalt.

A lone man, oblivious to Pete’s presence, strolled down the farthest row. Pete could only see his head above the cars’ roofs.

His dark-blond head.

Pete’s breath slowed but his pulse continued to throb in his ears. He advanced toward the rear of the lot, keeping his eyes on the man, fearing he’d vanish like that ghost Abby had mentioned.

Jason was younger than Pete. Not weighed down with a heavy, loaded duty belt. And if this man was indeed Jason, he had a hell of head start if he chose to bolt. Pete cut across the next-to-last row and lengthened his stride, paralleling the man he stalked. Half jogged. But didn’t want his pounding footsteps or crunching gravel to give him away.

The man was in no hurry, his gait an easy, rolling stride. As if he had all the time in the world. Pete gained ground. Drew alongside, only one row over. He caught a glimpse of the man’s profile.

Jason Cox.

But Pete had blown his opportunity to get ahead of Cox, who angled toward the red Cobalt. Pete darted between cars and abandoned his attempt at a stealthy approach.

“Jason!” Pete called in his deepest, most authoritarian voice. He saw the man’s back muscles tighten. Saw the slight hiccup in his stride.

But he didn’t turn, didn’t speak, didn’t even speed up. Did he think if he ignored Pete, he’d go away?

“Jason.” Pete closed the distance between them. He had to reach the man before he was able to get into the Cobalt.

Still no reaction. Cox kept walking away. Almost to the car.

Pete broke into a run, closing the gap. “Jason.” He grabbed the man’s arm and forced him around.

In his almost two decades in law enforcement, Pete had looked into the faces of traumatized victims, grief-stricken survivors, conmen, killers, the dead, and the dying. He’d witnessed heartbreak and hatred. Usually, he was able to read the difference in an individual’s eyes. But in that flash of a moment, Cox’s expression vacillated through the entire roster of emotions while struggling to maintain a jovial façade. “Hey, Pete.”

Pete kept a vice-like grip on Cox’s arm. “We need to talk.”

“How about a rain check? I have somewhere I need to go.” He attempted to free his arm with a light tug.

But Pete held on. “The only place you’re going is to jail unless you give me a damned good explanation for why you’re pretending to be Zoe’s brother.”

Cox’s eye twitched. “Let go of me, Pete.”

“Who the hell are you? Really. And what did you hope to gain by posing as Zoe’s brother?”

Cox lowered his gaze. “You need to listen to me.” His voice grew deeper, quieter. “Just let me go. And walk away.”

Walk away? Was he serious? “Not an option. I already know you never worked at that bank in Philadelphia. I know Gary Chambers never had an affair with a Brenda Patterson, which means you aren’t Zoe’s half-brother. What I don’t know is who you really are and what you hoped to gain by ingratiating yourself into Zoe’s life.”

Cox’s eyes came up. Pete had seen that look before. On the roof. As Cox clung to Pete’s wrist, debating the merits of letting go. Back then, he’d held on.

Pete had a feeling he was regretting that decision.

“Please. Let me get in my car and drive away. You’ll never hear from me again.” Cox swallowed. “Neither will Zoe. You have my word.”

Tempting. Just let the guy vanish out of her life. She would always wonder, but Pete wouldn’t be the bad guy in the scenario. Cox’s word, however, meant little at this point. “Sorry. Not good enough. If you don’t want to talk here, you can talk at the station.”

Cox tipped his head closer, his eyes imploring, his voice pleading. “Don’t do this.”

Pete took pride in his ability to read people. Despite the anguish in Jason’s eyes and voice, Pete sensed something darker, bordering on sinister buried under the surface. “You don’t get a say in the matter.”

Jason lowered his gaze and sighed. “That’s where you’re wrong.”

Something steel-hard pressed into Pete’s gut just below his Kevlar vest. He knew without looking—but did anyway—at the revolver clutched in Cox’s hand.

“Get in the car.”

  

As Wayne parked the unmarked sedan in front of the Sleep EZ Motel, Zoe’s queasiness hit a new high. She’d been inside one of these rooms once before and she’d had to take a long shower afterwards. What was Jason doing here?

“Stay in the car,” Wayne ordered and climbed out.

Why had Jason lied about staying out by the airport? Was he ashamed of having to take a cheap room at a dump like this? Hell, even with no heat or electricity, her house would have been a huge improvement. Maybe that’s why he was working so hard to fix it up.

She shook her head. Where he stayed wasn’t the issue. Her brother was a killer. As impossible as it seemed, she needed to accept it.

Wayne wasted little time speaking with the desk clerk. When he climbed back behind the wheel, he said, “Well, Pete’s onto him too.”

“Oh, no.”

“Yep. He beat us here.”

“Pete arrested Jason?”

“Nope.” Wayne explained that Pete had been looking for her brother, but he’d checked out already and tossed his phone in the trash. “The clerk gave it to Pete. I need to update HQ. You call Pete, find out where he is and tell him we’re on our way. Tell him do not attempt to apprehend Cox alone.”

At least Wayne didn’t tack on “because he’s armed and dangerous.” This couldn’t be happening. And yet, it was.

While the detective placed his call, Zoe keyed up Pete’s number and listened to the ringback tones. Part of her didn’t want to hear Pete point out that he’d told her so. But a bigger part wondered about Wayne’s earlier theory. Had Jason been following Pete instead of her? And if so, why?

The call connected. “This is Vance Township Police Chief Pete Adams. If this is an emergency, call 911. Otherwise leave your name, number, and reason for calling and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.”

Why wasn’t he answering his phone? A flood of horrible scenarios played across her imagination. Pete with his gun drawn and aimed at her brother. Pete lying crumpled and dead on the floor. Or Jason bleeding out at Pete’s feet.

At the beep, she forced her voice to stay level. “It’s me. Call me as soon as you get this. It’s important.” She’d almost said it was a matter of life or death. She prayed it wasn’t.

Wayne was still talking to County HQ, so Zoe keyed in the number for the Vance Township PD. A female voice answered and identified herself as Officer Abby Baronick. Zoe shot a quick glance at Wayne. “This is Zoe Chambers. I’m trying to reach Chief Adams.”

A pause. “He’s not responding?”

“His phone rang and went to voicemail.”

Another pause. “Hold on a minute.” There was a scuffling sound and then Zoe heard Abby’s distant voice saying, “Unit Thirty, this is Vance Base. Unit Thirty, this is Vance Base, please respond.” Silence. Followed by Abby repeating the transmission.

“What’s going on?” Wayne had finished his call.

Zoe held up a silencing finger as Abby came back to the phone.

“I’m getting no radio response either,” she said.

“Do you know his last location?” Zoe asked.

After a moment’s hesitation, Abby replied, “Econo Drive Car Rentals, Franklin Boulevard.” Another brief pause. “He was following Jason Cox.”

Zoe looked at Wayne. “Econo Drive Rentals.”

Wayne nodded.

“Your brother and I are on our way,” Zoe said and ended the call.