Lakefront Trail, Bessemer, 8:30 p.m.

Jess followed her sister back and forth in the kitchen as she cleaned up. Jess had offered to do it for her, especially since she’d gotten fed as soon as she arrived, but Lily insisted on doing it herself.

Lily had always been the most bullheaded, no matter what anyone thought.

“I keep forgetting to stop by Wanda’s and pick up that medical history she supposedly compiled.” Jess didn’t trust their so-called aunt as far as she could throw her. She hadn’t cared about them when they were orphaned kids—why would she now?

Oh yeah. She’d gotten religion. Ha!

“I could have Blake go by and pick it up if you’d rather not,” Lil said, pausing with a plate in her hand. “Or I could.”

Jess made a face. “I will not have you or Blake going to that neighborhood. You remember where she lives.” Where they had lived for one miserable year. Putting up with their aunt’s men friends and her drug habits.

Lil stuck the plate in the dishwasher and took Jess by the arms. “The Bible teaches us to forgive, Jess. Maybe she has changed her life. We can’t be judging her.”

Jess made a rude sound. “Maybe you can’t but I sure can.”

“Anyway.” Lil smiled. “You’ve had a busy week. Don’t beat yourself up for not getting around to that or for not calling me every day or whatever. I’m just so glad to have you back home that the idea of seeing you a couple of times a week is a dream come true.”

More guilt heaped on Jess’s shoulders. She’d stayed gone over two decades. Getting home once a year had been the goal and that hadn’t always happened.

“I know. I’ve missed so much.” She gestured toward the photos of Alice and Blake Junior adorning the fridge. “Your kids are all grown up and they hardly know me.”

Lil scoffed. “That’s not true. I told them stories about you their whole lives. Every case you helped solve. Everything. You’re a hero to those kids.” Lil pulled her into a hug. “You’re a hero to me.”

Jess didn’t feel like a hero. She felt like a woman who’d run from the past and all the broken relationships—their parents, their aunt, Dan, Wesley. Maybe she was still running. She couldn’t get trapped and end up heartbroken if she kept running, at least in the emotional sense.

How was that for a self-analysis? That’s what happened when she allowed her thoughts to wander too far from a case.

When her sister finally stopped squeezing her, she asked, “How’re you feeling?”

Jess listened through a lengthy monologue of how her sister hated being sick. Hated even worse that everyone treated her as if she were dying. Even her minister was coming by every day or two. She’d had to force both her kids to go off to college on schedule. Alice had been waiting all year for her freedom. Now she was terrified of being away from her mother. Even Blake Junior hadn’t wanted to go back to school. At twenty most guys couldn’t wait to get back to school and out of their parents’ home after summer vacation.

Jess laughed. “The buzzards are circling, Lil,” she teased. “Next thing you know, the kids’ll be sneaking home and dividing up your jewelry.”

They both laughed for a minute… but the laughter faded and silence took its place.

“How are you, really?” Jess said softly, her throat aching with the struggle of restraining her emotions. Lil didn’t need anyone else treating her like she was dying.

“It sucks to be me right now,” she admitted. “I don’t mind all the tests and the feeling like crap. It’s the not knowing if or when it’ll end—whatever it is—that’s driving me crazy. The test results don’t come back fast enough.”

Jess understood completely. “Dr. Collins will figure this out. Give the old goat time.” He would figure it out or he’d send her to someone who could. He and Jess had already had that discussion. She doubted he wanted to hear from her again anytime in the near future.

“Hope so.” Lil reached for another plate.

“Is Blake handling everything okay?” He’d been his usual self through dinner. Laughing and talking about work. Always considerate, he’d disappeared into the den to watch TV so Jess and Lil could have sister time.

“You ask that every time we talk,” Lily complained. “Yes, he’s fine. Keeping his chin up and mine too.”

“I guess I’m getting senile,” Jess lamented.

They laughed and hugged some more and Jess headed home. She was tired and she needed to let the details of this case she’d learned today permeate.

And then she needed to sleep. She couldn’t remember when she’d been so tired. Maybe last night, she mused.

9911 Conroy Road, 10:15 p.m.

Showered and with her comfiest nightclothes on, Jess curled up on her new-old sofa and cradled her glass of wine and stash of M&M’s. She was so glad this day was basically over. There was a long ways to go in solving this case but the pieces were slowly but surely coming together.

If she and her team could find the right answers before anyone else died, she would be a happy camper.

Lil looked good despite the ongoing tests and frustrating symptoms. That was another mystery Jess couldn’t wait to see solved.

Speaking of unsolved mysteries, her unsuspecting landlord had suffered through a search of his property today. At least it was done. Maybe things would get back to normal here at least.

She almost choked on a sip of wine. When had her life ever been normal?

Now there was a mystery she didn’t even want to try and figure out.

First thing tomorrow she had a meeting with the remainder of the Five—Juliette Coleman, Aaron Taylor, and Kevin O’Reilly—at least she hoped O’Reilly would be there. They hadn’t been able to locate him. But he had a voice mail waiting for him on his home, office, and cell phones. Not being able to reach the man under the circumstances had her more than a little concerned. But he had spoken to his secretary twice today—this morning and then later in the afternoon—which alleviated some of Jess’s worry and was the primary reason she didn’t have an APB out on the man.

What she didn’t need was another victim.

Why the hell hadn’t Corlew told her about this Lenny Porter business the first time they talked? If he had, maybe, just maybe, Elliott Carson would be alive.

Between the discovery of a second victim, the ill-fated interview with Todd Penney’s mother, and the come-to-Jesus session with Corlew, there hadn’t been a bright spot all day. On top of all that, she’d gotten back to the office at quarter to seven to find a Post-it note from Lieutenant Prescott saying she had requested a transfer to the gang task force and Burnett had given her the go-ahead.

Apparently he hadn’t considered it necessary to ask Jess. She was only the deputy chief of SPU for heaven’s sake.

Jess unclenched her jaw and popped some more M&M’s into her mouth. Rather than march straight to his office, assuming he’d still been there, and demanding an explanation, she’d opted to take the night to cool off. She’d needed to check on Lily and relax. Better to approach that particular confrontation in a calm, professional manner.

“Horse shit,” she muttered.

It wasn’t that losing Prescott was such a hardship—far from it. It was the principle of the thing. When was he going to stop lording over her as if he had to protect her from the most mundane decisions?

Have another sip of wine, Jess. Then another wad of chocolate. Since she hadn’t worked out in weeks, she might as well work out her mouth. Dumb. If she kept ignoring her body’s needs, she’d end up going up a size or two and then Dan’s mother would call her fat the way she had Lily.

How Katherine Burnett managed to invade her thoughts at a time like this was beyond explanation. She had never liked Jess. Thought a girl from the wrong side of town wasn’t good enough for her one and only son.

Corlew’s words echoed right alongside those frustrating thoughts. And you are still not one of them, kid.

She wasn’t one of them. Not really. She didn’t have the Mountain Brook address or the hefty bank account or the family history and prominence possessed by women like Gina Coleman and Sylvia Baron. Jess could name a dozen more of those in Dan’s social circle, male or female. She wasn’t one of them, and no matter what she did, she never would be, not in their eyes. That kind of status in Birmingham was bigger than what was in your wallet. It went all the way to the bone, to the very DNA. And those who had it were accepted on a level those who didn’t never would be under any circumstances.

Jess had a theory when it came to social acceptance and she’d pretty much lived by that principle since she was a kid. You could spend your life wishing you were one of them or you could decide you wouldn’t want to be one even if you could.

Worked really well unless you stupidly let yourself fall in love with one of them.

“That’s it,” she scolded herself. “Time to get out of here.”

A leisurely stroll around the yard would do her good. She dragged her sneakers from under the sofa and tugged them on, then marched to the fridge to stow her wine. She’d come back to that. She set the stemmed glass on the shelf and with a bump of her hip knocked the fridge door closed.

She stopped, turned slowly back to the door, and opened it again. She stared at the object on the top shelf right in front of the yogurt she probably needed to eat pretty soon. “What in the world?”

Feeling like she’d suddenly lapsed into slow motion, she watched as her hand reached inside and picked up what looked like a Chinese takeout box. She hadn’t picked up Chinese in… days. The box was white. No markings. Same little wire handle like the ones from her favorite takeout joint down the road.

By the time she reached the counter, a mere two steps away, her hands were shaking. A note was written on top of the box. Are you going to fish or cut bait?

“Shit.” Her heart battered against her sternum.

Backing up, she hit the table, almost knocked over a chair. She needed gloves. Her bag was on the floor by the sofa. She dug out a pair of gloves and her glasses. She shoved the glasses onto her face and tugged on the gloves. Ordering herself to calm down, she walked the few feet back over to the counter.

Very carefully she opened the top of the box.

“Oh… God.”

Jess took a breath and looked again, just to be sure.

Red wiggler fishing worms… bait.

Two quick raps at her door had her practically jumping out of her skin. She pressed a hand to her chest and blew out a breath. She stuck the box back in the fridge, ripped off the gloves, and tossed them onto the counter.

“Pull it together, Jess.”

She swiped her sweaty palms on her lounge pants and walked back to the sofa and her bag. She reached for her Glock. Her pulse seemed to slow as her fingers wrapped confidently around the weapon.

Another knock echoed in the room.

Just as she reached the door, Burnett called out, “Jess?”

Relief weakened her knees. She tucked her gun back in her bag and drew in a deep breath. “Coming!”

She squared her shoulders and opened the door. “Hey.”

His gaze swept over her as if he needed to see for himself that she was okay. “Hey.”

“What’s up?” Now was not a good time. She needed to figure out the worms in her fridge business… without telling him. God, that sounded like a totally dumb excuse even to her. But he was already hovering. The whole department was watching. Not only was he making her look bad, but he was also making himself look bad. Somehow she had to get it through his head that she was as capable as Black or any of the others. He had to treat her the same or there would be trouble among the ranks.

The idea of those wiggly worms in her fridge had her shuddering inside instead of focusing on the man at her door.

Couldn’t be Spears. But she wanted it to be… didn’t she?

Whoever it was… he had been in her apartment. Touched whatever he wanted. The bottom dropped out of her stomach. Oh God.

“Jess, are you listening to me?”

She forced herself to pay attention. “Sorry. What did you say?”

“You going to keep me standing out here all night?”

“Oh… come in. Sorry.”

He stepped inside and she closed the door. She tried to decide what to do with her hands. Someone had been in her apartment. Again. And she’d had the locks changed after the incident last week. She had to do something to protect herself and her stuff.

“I see you have your homework board already prepared.”

Jess jerked back to attention. She turned to the board she’d mounted on the only wall space in her apartment where there weren’t any windows or doors. Say something for Pete’s sake!

“Yeah.” She shrugged, gestured to the board. “I do some of my best work in the middle of the night.”

He just sort of stood there looking at her then.

Uh-oh. Something was up. She searched his face for a clue as to what he was thinking. “What’re you doing here?”

“I need to discuss a couple of issues with you.”

If there was one thing that could get her attention in most any given situation, having him show up at her door at this hour with an ax to grind was it. “Now that you mention it, I have an issue to discuss with you too.” She turned and walked to the sofa and sat down. “Why don’t you have a seat?” She gestured to the chair on the other side of the sofa table.

“O-kay.”

Sitting side by side was personal. Sitting across from each other was for business. This was business as well it should be. It was Wednesday after all. Hump day. The middle of the business week.

“Lieutenant Prescott came to my office today.”

“I heard. She left me a Post-it note.” Jess faked a smile. “That was professional of her. It was even more professional of you to approve her transfer request without discussing it with me first.”

“I assumed you would appreciate losing the negativity in your unit.”

“You assumed, Burnett. That’s the problem. There’s a chain of command. You preach to me all the time about ignoring it. You need to practice what you preach.”

Let him argue that. He was wrong and he knew it. And she was spitting mad. She needed her glass of wine, except that wasn’t possible because someone had invaded her space… had left her a message challenging her to do more than just cut bait. Another of those shudders quaked through her.

What the hell had she done?

“You’re right.” Dan turned his hands up. “I should have spoken to you first. I apologize for jumping the gun with Prescott. If you or a member of your team knows of a suitable replacement, consider it done.”

Keep talking until you figure this out. “Prescott preferred GTF over me, huh?”

“She mentioned that she’d enjoyed her time there.”

“Was this move a promotion?” If he’d given Prescott a promotion, that would add insult to injury after the unprofessional way she’d behaved.

“It was not.”

Surprised, Jess said, “But she has a good record in the department.”

“Had a good record,” he corrected. “Her disloyalty to you amounted to insubordination. She needs a little more time in grade to reach her full potential, in my opinion.”

Inside, where he couldn’t see, Jess went utterly still and it had nothing to do with the worms in her fridge. “So you punished her for giving me a hard time.”

Recognition flared in his eyes. “No. I did my job. It’s my responsibility to ensure cohesiveness in the department. Proper respect for her superiors is something Prescott purposely chose to disregard.”

Jess wished she could appreciate his intent but he just didn’t see what a hornet’s nest he was stirring. “Prescott and the rest of the department won’t see it that way, Dan. You punished her because of me. You can’t let them think you’re playing favorites.”

She stood, too wired up to be still, and started to pace the room—the room some stranger had invaded. His actions were exactly the reason she kept the Spears stuff from him. The more he knew, the more he hindered her ability to do her job and the more negative attention he drew to himself. Why didn’t he get that?

“What’s done is done,” he said flatly. “I admit that I should have discussed the move with you but the other was my decision to make.”

“Have it your way, then.” She hated this part. Why couldn’t he see her as just another one of the guys at work?

“Maybe,” he offered, his voice suddenly tight, “I wasn’t thinking clearly since right before Prescott showed up I’d just heard from Special Agent Duvall that you’ve been contacted by Spears.”

Oh hell. She should have anticipated this was coming sooner rather than later. “I haven’t spoken to Wesley since the day after he left Birmingham.” She shrugged. That was the God’s truth. No matter, judging by Dan’s expression, he wasn’t buying it. “I don’t know where he got his information.”

“I do.” Burnett flashed her one of those fake smiles. “From Gant. You told Gant and Gant told Duvall. Problem is, no one told me.”

Oops. “You didn’t tell me about Prescott, so I guess we’re even, then.” She could hope but she would never in a million years get off that easily. Regret and dread and a couple other emotions had her stomach twisting in knots.

Fury darkened his face. “We are not even, Jess. Not by any stretch of the imagination. It’s not bad enough you failed to inform me that you were contacted by the same killer who stuck a knife in my gut and who kidnapped and tortured one of my detectives, but you also showed up on the five o’clock news colluding with Buddy Corlew.”

A laugh burst out of her. “Colluding? I wasn’t colluding with anyone. He came to my crime scene with useful information about the case. What was I supposed to do? Send him packing in front of all those reporters? I assumed the best route was to stay calm and pretend all was well.” Was this Chief Burnett talking to her or Dan Burnett, the guy who still appeared to get jealous at the idea she was talking to his old high school nemesis?

“Is that what you were doing?” Dan shot to his feet, hands on hips, jaw tight with fury.

“When it comes to the case,” she snapped right back at him, “I’m not taking chances or playing games.” That might not be entirely accurate. She occasionally did both even if she rarely admitted as much even to herself. She did what she had to do to solve the case. “Corlew is involved. He’s been involved with this case since Lenny Porter took a dive off the old Birmingham News building.” When Dan would have hurled an argument, she stopped him with upheld hand. “Personal feelings aside, I need whatever he’s got on this case. I wasn’t here twelve years ago and he was.”

“I was here twelve years ago.” Dan pounded his chest. “I can tell you what he’s got. Nothing!”

“You were here but you weren’t investigating homicides,” she argued, the fight going out of her fast at the disappointment and hurt in his eyes. “Black and Corlew were.”

“You know he’s going to slant whatever he tells you to make the department look bad.” He visibly struggled to calm down. “That’s how he operates, Jess. Harold Black did the job right. You can take my word on that.”

“I’m sure I can take your word, just as I’m sure Corlew will twist things around.” Dammit. She didn’t want to hurt him and clearly she was. “But if he’s got anything at all that might help this investigation, I need to hear him out. Two people are dead. This is about finding a killer, not about egos.”

Burnett held up his hands. “This is getting us nowhere.”

“Amen.” She stiffened her spine against the war of emotions twisting inside her and said the rest of what she needed to say. “You can’t have it both ways, Burnett. You can’t insist I follow the rules if you’re not going to follow them yourself.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“You want me to keep you fully informed, then you have to do the same. You tell me what Corlew did to turn most every cop in the department against him and I’ll tell you about Spears. We have to set aside personal feelings and process what we learn. This isn’t about us.” She gave her chest a thump this time. “This is about what we do. The job.”

That muscle in his jaw that flexed when he was seriously angry was going at it now. “As your chief, you have an obligation to keep me informed, Jess.”

“Oh ho,” she scoffed. “Do as I say, not as I do—is that it? You going to teach me a lesson the way you did Prescott?”

The standoff that followed lasted long enough to make her sweat. Then he broke.

“I only want to protect you, Jess.”

There it was—the elephant in the room. She’d heard the words before but it was the fear in his eyes that forced her to see the part she’d been missing. An integral element to their relationship, personal and professional. Daniel Burnett was terrified of losing her. To danger, like the kind Spears represented, of course, but also he was afraid she would leave again. He needed to protect her from danger and those who would disrespect her like Prescott.

Her heart ached with the need to make him see that she was here to stay this time. “I understand.” And for the first time, she did. They still had to find a happy medium, but she got it now. “I need you to understand that I’m tougher than you think. I can and will deal with the Prescotts and the Corlews and whoever else gets in my way. I’m not going anywhere this time.”

“I plan on holding you to that.”

She laughed. “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t.”

That smile of his that made her heart go pitter-patter appeared and she wanted to hug him. This had been one hell of a day and it wasn’t over yet, but they were good where it counted.

“For the first eight or ten years of his career, Corlew was a good cop.” Dan shrugged. “He came back from the Marines seemingly matured and with a healthy respect for the rules.”

Jess sank back down onto the sofa.

“When he was accepted into the police academy, I worked in the mayor’s office.” Dan settled in the chair a few feet away again. “Over the next few years we rarely ran into each other. He rose up the ranks and gained a decent reputation.”

“But it didn’t last,” Jess suggested.

“Six years after he started in the department, I came over as the liaison. Everything changed after that. Whether it had anything to do with my presence or not, I can’t say. His work got sloppier and he got cockier. There were incidents involving missing reports and misplaced evidence, including money. Mostly, I think to cover up bad police work. By the time I was named chief of police, there were rumblings of evidence tampering and he was drinking. A lot. I ended it. It was the right thing to do.”

“I had no idea it got that ugly.” Old habits were hard to break, and even when you did, sometimes the reprieve was short-lived. Sounded like Corlew had drifted back into his old habits.

Dan nodded. “There were rumors of him sleeping with the wives of other cops. It was always something. The drinking was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

That was too bad. She’d wanted to believe Corlew had changed. No wonder he’d made so many enemies. “Thank you for telling me. Still, he’s a person of interest in this case because of his personal involvement twelve years ago. He may know details that aren’t in the official case files. I’ll need to work with him to some degree just to be sure I don’t miss anything.”

“I can live with that.” Dan leaned forward, bracing his forearms on his knees. “But I can’t live with you leaving me out on the other. Spears is a monster. A heinous killer. You can’t play this game with him alone, Jess.”

“Is that what you and Wesley decided?” Maybe she shouldn’t have thrown that barb at him but she couldn’t help herself. Letting go of a single millimeter of her independence was more difficult than she’d anticipated.

“What Duvall thinks is irrelevant to me. But I have to tell you that it hurt hearing it from him instead of you.”

That was one cold, hard fact she couldn’t deny. She should never have told Gant without telling Dan first. Not only was the decision disrespectful on a professional level, it was hurtful on a personal one. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to give you more reason to hover over me.”

He straightened, drawing away from her. “Hover?”

“You know what I mean!” She wanted to scream. No matter how many times they went over this, he just wouldn’t see her perspective. “I don’t want you treating me differently than you do the others. I am a deputy chief. I deserve the same respect and trust from you as Black and Hogan and all the rest.”

“You think I don’t trust you?”

He wasn’t listening! “You don’t trust my ability to take care of myself. Every little thing you learn like this diminishes the hope you’ll ever see me as capable on all professional levels.”

He got up and came to sit down beside her. “Jess, you are the most capable investigator I have ever known. We’re all in awe of you. Some don’t show it. Hell, maybe I don’t. But the one thing I can guarantee you is that no one thinks you are less than capable on any level, professional or personal.”

Maybe it was the exhaustion or the realization that he meant exactly what he said, maybe a little of both, but she surrendered.

“Gant can’t find any record of Spears coming back into the country. But I get a text message every now and then and he seems to know what I’m doing.” As much as she wanted to be with him this close, she resisted falling into Dan’s strong arms. She had to get this said. “Like that night at your house my first week back in Birmingham when he seemed to know I was in bed. But he could’ve been guessing based on the time.”

“Have the other contacts been like that?”

She shrugged. “Pretty much. I’m leaning toward the possibility that maybe he has someone watching me. He’s too smart to be here himself. He’d send someone, the way he did Matthew Reed.”

Reed had murdered an agent. He’d kidnapped Lori Wells and tortured her for days. Still, just because it likely wasn’t Spears himself didn’t mean there wasn’t reason for concern.

“No more holding out on me,” Dan said, his tone leaving no room for debate. “I want to know immediately when you hear from Spears or whoever the hell is acting on his behalf.”

“I will let you know. I swear.” As much as she despised admitting it, he was right. This battle might just be too big for her to wage alone.

Holy hell. Dread swelled, swallowing up the relief she felt at having reached this understanding. If she was going to keep him informed… he should know the rest. Just get it all on the table now.

“I should also tell you that when I hear from Spears, I respond.” There. She’d said it.

His posture stiffened. “You respond how?”

“I try to think of something witty,” Jess admitted. She’d gone out on that ledge—no point turning back now. “To bait him, like rubbing it in that I’m the one who got away.”

“You bait him?” Outrage or something on that ordered flashed in his eyes. “Are you trying to end up a victim of this son of a bitch?”

He was going to love this. “I figure that’s the only way to lure him close enough to take him out.”

Burnett shot to his feet again, palms up in exasperation. “You can’t be serious. Spears has endless resources, Jess. He’s disgustingly rich and damned brilliant. You can’t possibly hope to think of all the bases he might hit. Baiting him is a bad idea. One that could get you killed just so he can prove a point.”

Okay, Jess, finish it. “I suppose while we’re on the subject, I should tell you that he may have sent me a gift. I can’t be sure, of course, but—”

“What gift?” Dan glanced around the room. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“He left me some fishing worms. You know, bait. With a note.” The relief at getting it all out was immeasurable. She hadn’t enjoyed keeping secrets from him.

Burnett visibly struggled for patience. “Where?”

“In the fridge.”

He looked from her to the fridge and back; then he stamped over and checked it out.

Without a word to her, he dragged out his cell and made a call. “This is Chief Burnett. I need an evidence tech at 9911 Conroy Road ASAP.”

He turned back to her then. “Pack a bag. You’re staying at my place until we figure this out.”

It felt a little strange not calling him on his high-handedness, but he was right.

Another liberating admission. She was on a roll.

Needing a moment to herself after coming so clean, she ducked into the bathroom and closed the door. She’d pretended for too long that she could handle this alone. She stared at her reflection in the mirror and cursed herself.

“Fool,” she muttered.

She couldn’t get Spears by herself.

Her cell vibrated in her pocket. She dragged it out and glared at the screen.

I’m getting bored, Jess. I might just go fishing.