13

Emily locked the door behind him and leaned her forehead against it as fatigue battered her. But she couldn’t sleep. As long as she didn’t know who was after her, her family was in danger. And Heather. Heather was as much a sister to her as Sophia. More so. And she w.as so very afraid she was never going to see her again. Tears gathered, prayers formed. Oh please, God, please . . .

“You’re not going to help yourself if you let your body wear down,” Ruthie said from behind her.

Emily turned. “Mentally, I know you’re right. However, my heart is pushing me to keep going, keep thinking, and keep working until I get it all figured out.”

“Hmm. Sounds like you fit in just fine with the St. John crew.”

A laugh huffed from Emily and she followed Ruthie to the couch. Ruthie took one end, Emily took the other. She closed her eyes. “I can’t think straight.”

“It’s called ‘you need sleep.’”

“Yes, probably.”

“They’ll call if they find something or hear something.”

“Not if they think it will wake us up.”

Ruthie’s brow lifted. “That’s probably true. And impressive.”

“What’s impressive?”

“How long have you known them?”

“Just met them last night.”

“And you’ve already got a good read on them.” Ruthie nodded. “Like I said, impressive.”

“They’re good guys,” Emily said. “Rare ones.”

“Indeed. And one of them thought to get your overnight bag and bring it here. Oh, and they bought you a phone and filled your prescription. Just in case.” She handed Emily the phone.

“Thank you. They did all that, huh?”

“They did.”

“I was right,” she said. “They’re good guys. Special.”

Ruthie gave a short laugh. “Yeah, well, let’s keep that between us. As special as they are, they still have the ability to be insufferable if their heads get too big.”

Emily laughed and stood, doing her best to ignore all the aches and pains. It was going to be hard to sleep tonight. Not just because someone wanted her dead and she was massively worried about Heather, but because of the throbbing in her arm. “I think I’m going to have to eat my words,” she told Ruthie. “What do you have that will knock the edge off the pain but isn’t addicting?”

Her new friend smiled. “The stuff I prescribed at the hospital.”

“Right. I think I’ll take one.”

“I think that’s a really good idea.”

“I’ve decided it’s stupid not to take advantage of your expertise. I’m going to need to rest if I’m going to be any help in this case.” She paused. “Whatever this case winds up being.”

“I agree.”

“Where are the pills?”

“In the room you’ll stay in.” Ruthie stood. “Sit tight, I’ll get them for you.”

“Thank you.”

Ruthie left, pulling her phone from her pocket, and Emily spotted her laptop sitting on the kitchen counter. Brady must have set it there so she’d see it easily. She walked over and opened it. Then shut it. Would someone be able to trace her if she logged in?

The possibility had her backing away. But what about her phone? If she logged in to her email through her phone, which she’d done earlier in a different location, would someone be able to track her here?

And she’d like to check her text messages, but again, she hesitated. She’d have to transfer all of her information onto the new phone in order to access everything.

Which, again, might allow someone to track her.

But she could call Heather’s parents and give them yet another new number to reach her. She dialed Mrs. Gilstrap’s number.

“Hello? Heather?” the frantic voice cried.

“No, Mrs. Gilstrap, it’s—”

The distinct click of the line disconnecting stopped her. She checked the screen and frowned. “Great.” When she called again, it went straight to voice mail. “What?” Maybe the battery had died. She left a message, begging for a return call, then set the phone on the counter and went back to the couch to close her eyes.

Moments later, the sound of footsteps opened them. Ruthie stood in front of her with a glass of water and a pill. “Here you go. Nonaddictive, I promise.”

Emily downed it. “Thanks.”

“Why don’t I show you to your bed and you can rest awhile?”

“I think that sounds like a lovely idea.”

Now she needed her brain to shut off. Just for a few moments. Please. Then she’d call Heather’s mother.

Brady led the way into the police station. Although it wasn’t his home turf, it was still the same atmosphere. The familiar smells and ongoing activity washed over him, offering him a strange comfort that the peaceful little cabin at the lake—before it was blown up—hadn’t been able to compete with.

“Brady?”

Detective Andy Kirkpatrick strode toward him and Brady smiled. “Hey, good to see you.” Brady shook his hand. “This is my brother, Linc St. John. He’s an FBI agent. Not sure if you two have met.”

“Nope, but welcome. Good to meet you.”

“Likewise,” Linc said. “Thanks for letting me sit in on this.”

“Absolutely. I never turn down help. Come on back to the interrogation room. Your guy, Mr. Parker, is not a very nice fellow.”

“Surprise, surprise,” Brady muttered. “Has he said anything?”

“Nothing worth noting. He lawyered up.”

“Who’s representing him?”

“A court-appointed attorney. Ms. Sarah Downs?”

Linc raised a brow. “Now that actually does kind of surprise me. In his line of work, I’m sure he’s got money to afford private representation.” Hired killers didn’t come cheap.

Andy shrugged. “Said he wasn’t going to be inside long enough to worry about it.”

Brady frowned and pulled his phone from his pocket. He’d taken a snapshot of the photo from Emily’s refrigerator. The original had been entered into evidence. “When’s Ms. Downs due to arrive?”

“She got here about twenty minutes ago. They’ve been talking ever since.”

“All right. Lead me to him. I want to see if we can get a name out of him. I want to know who hired him.”

“Let’s get your weapons locked up and you can have at him.” After securing their weapons, Andy motioned for them to follow. Brady’s phone rang. “Just a second, let me take this if you don’t mind.”

“Of course.”

The two men talked while Brady turned his back and pressed the phone against his ear. “Hey, David, what’s up?”

“I found out who the building belongs to.”

“Who’s that?”

“A guy by the name of Nicholas Raimes. He bought it about three years ago. Probably because it looked like that area was going to make a comeback, but then deals fizzled because the crime rate soared.”

“Gangs protecting their turf?”

“Yeah.”

Brady frowned. “What does Mr. Raimes do for a living?”

“Flips houses and some commercial properties. That office building cost him a pretty penny, and he doesn’t appear to have made any efforts to do anything with it. Although someone did something with it. Looks deserted on the outside and high-tech on the inside.”

“So, how did these guys gain access?”

“Still working on that one,” David said. “I’ve got a call in to Mr. Raimes to be in contact with you.”

“Perfect. Thanks for going above and beyond.” Brady hoped David knew how appreciated he was.

“Anytime. Also, I’ve some information on your Paul Bailey, Heather Gilstrap’s neighbor.”

“Anything to be concerned about?”

“Not really. No run-ins with the law. The only thing that’s kind of a red flag for me is that he was sued by Ralph Jenkins, the CEO of Jenkins Corporation, about a year ago.”

“What for?”

“Looks like Bailey renovated an office building, then turned around and sold the property to Jenkins and part of the building collapsed, injuring several employees. Including Jenkins’s wife, who’s now in a wheelchair. Jenkins sued, accusing Bailey of using substandard materials in the renovation. Bailey fought it and won. A week later, Jenkins was hauled out of Lake Murray sans his head.”

“Whoa.”

“Of course, Bailey was questioned, but he had an airtight alibi and no other connection to Jenkins. And besides, he argued that he won the lawsuit, what reason would he have to kill Jenkins?”

“Out of pure revenge for Jenkins dragging him through months of proceedings?”

“Well, yeah, I guess there is that, and while he was questioned in detail, there wasn’t any evidence to connect him to the killing. Other than that, his nose is squeaky clean.”

“Okay, thanks, David. Appreciate it.” He paused. He had to admit he thought it interesting Raimes and Bailey were in the same business—or at least similar. Probably a coincidence, but . . . “One more thing?”

“Name it.”

Brady’s phone beeped. He glanced at the screen. “I’ve got another call, but can you see if there’s a connection between Bailey and Raimes? There’s probably not, but . . .”

“Sure.”

Brady hung up and switched to the other line. “Brady St. John.”

“This is hospital security. You’d requested photos of everyone on the hall of the lady who was threatened and eventually left the ER room?”

“Yes.”

“I included hospital employees as well as anyone who looked like they were on their phone shortly before and a few minutes after the time your friend left the room.”

“Perfect.”

“I’m sending those by email now. I was only able to pull four or five good ones. There’s one guy with a baseball cap who keeps his head down for the most part. He looks rather suspicious to me. However, if he’s the one you’re looking for, there’s no way to know his identity. I think he also followed her out of the hospital.”

“Great. Thank you. Include them all. We’ll go through them. I appreciate your help.”

“Of course. Have a good day.” He turned to find Linc and Andy waiting. “Sorry.” He filled Linc in on what David told him about Raimes.

“Sounds like we need to have a chat with Mr. Raimes,” Linc said.

“Sounds like. Possibly right after our chat with our buddy in there,” Brady said with a nod at the door. His phone chimed and he gave them a tight smile. “And now we’ve got more pictures to show.”

“Our buddy? He’s your buddy. You were the one he was hugging.”

Brady gave his brother a shove. “He tackled me, dude.” He looked at Andy and frowned. “Trust me, there was no hugging involved.”

Andy held up a hand and did a pretty good job of keeping his grin under control. “Come on, you jokers.” At the interrogation room, he knocked and opened the door. “Excuse me, I have someone here who’d like a word with you two.”

Brady slipped inside, his aching knee causing his fingers to fist. Linc followed.

Parker looked up and scowled. His lawyer wore a similar expression. Brady nodded to the lawyer. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I have a few questions and some pictures for your client to look at, if you don’t mind.”

“And if I do?”

“Then I guess I’m out of luck.”

“I’ll look,” Parker said. “Sit down.”

“Only if Ms. Downs says it’s okay,” Brady said without taking his eyes from the woman.

She never blinked. “What’s the connection between the photos and Mr. Parker?”

“They’re of some people we’d like identified. I’d like to know if Mr. Parker recognizes them.”

“I said I’d look,” Parker said.

“Mr. Parker, please refrain from speaking unless I direct you to do so,” Ms. Downs said, her mild tone laced with a hint of steel.

Parker’s scowl deepened, but he snapped his lips shut. Brady took a seat opposite the man. Linc settled in the chair beside him. “We know you were hired to kill Emily Chastain. She’s identified you as the man who put her on the boat, held a gun on her, and was going to shoot her, then dump her in the lake.”

“Yeah? So?”

“Mr. Parker—”

The prisoner slapped the table and Ms. Downs blinked but didn’t move. Brady stepped closer just in case he needed to intervene—although he had the distinct impression she could take care of herself.

“Shut up, lady,” Parker said. “I’ll answer the questions if I see no reason not to.”

Sarah Downs’s furious gaze lasered her client and Brady thought she might simply get up and walk out. But she sat back, crossed her arms, and stayed put. Probably wanted to see how this played out.

Since Parker seemed inclined to disregard his lawyer’s advice anyway, Brady continued. “Who did the boat belong to?”

“Dunno. I was told it would be waiting at the dock. My instructions were that once I had her, I was to take her out to the middle of the cove, shoot her, and dump her.”

The casual, cold, matter-of-fact recounting of how he was supposed to end Emily’s life turned Brady’s stomach.

“Really,” Ms. Downs said, “I have to insist that you not say anything else until—”

“And I said shut up. It’s well established that I was in the apartment and the boat. You’re not going to get me off on either of those.”

“But it’s possible you could get a reduced sentence if you’d listen to me.”

“Or, you could keep talking. Cooperate,” Brady said, “and I’ll make sure the judge knows you did so.”

This time Parker’s gaze slid to his lawyer. “He can do that?”

“Oh, now you want my advice?” she said. Parker scowled and she sighed. “Yes, sure, he can note that you cooperated. Might make a difference, might not.”

Parker nodded. “There you go then.”

“So you were supposed to kill her, but I came along and ruined that.”

“Yes.”

“Who was the other guy with you?”

Parker froze. “What do you mean?”

“There were two of you there. I heard you talking while we were hiding in the woods.”

“Naw, man, it was just me.”

“Now you’re lying. I was there, remember?”

Parker didn’t deny it but wasn’t going to admit anyone was there with him, either. “Fine,” Brady said. “Let’s move on to another topic for a second.” He turned his phone around to show the picture to the man. “This is one of the men who was watching Emily at the hospital. She was ordered to follow instructions or her mother and sister would die.”

“Whoa, I didn’t have anything to do with that.”

“Not saying you did. Just giving you some background.”

The man shrugged. “Okay. Go on.”

Brady looked at Ms. Downs. She still had a pinched look around her mouth and her narrowed eyes would probably wind up with permanent wrinkles, but she was paying attention. Brady almost felt sorry for her. What was she supposed to do when her client wouldn’t listen to her? As long as it helped him figure out where the picture came from, he didn’t care. He looked at Parker. “She went to the place where her mother and sister were being held. Fortunately, we managed to rescue her. Unfortunately, one of the five involved in her second kidnapping escaped. This one, however, we’ve got in custody along with one of his cohorts. Do you know him?” Brady held his phone out.

Parker examined the photo. “No, I don’t know the guy.”

“Come on, Parker. Bald guy, snake tattoo.”

Parker snickered. “I said I didn’t know him. I didn’t say I’ve never seen him before.” He pointed at the tat. “Just never done business with him or that gang he’s with.”

Linc frowned, and Brady scowled. “How do we know you’re telling the truth?”

With an exaggerated eye roll, Parker nodded. “I’ve got no reason not to. I don’t know the guy.”

“Like you don’t know the guy you were with the night you tried to kill Emily?”

Parker’s jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed. “I told you I was working alone.”

“Right. I’ve got pictures of three other guys I need to know about. Here’s the first one. You know him?” He turned his phone and showed the man the first picture of one of the dead men from the office building.

“Nope.”

Brady swiped to the next one. “Him?”

“Nope.”

“The third.”

“Huh-uh. I don’t know who they are, sorry.”

“You’re lying.”

Parker spread his hands. “Like I said, I’ve got no reason to lie. Never seen ’em before.”

Brady met Linc’s gaze and his brother shrugged. Brady sighed. “All right. Anything else you want to say?”

“Yeah. Watch your back. I’m not the only one on the payroll.”