THIRTY-SIX
Darkness had crept into Black Rock Falls by the time Jenna and Kane had left Dr. Graves’ house. As a homicide, Wolfe had taken extra care to collect any shred of evidence available. Once he finished, they all went through the house with a fine-toothed comb. It hadn’t surprised her to discover more disgusting literature that this man had stored in plastic bins in his basement. They hauled everything out of the house and packed it into one of the vans owned by the forensic department from Helena. Their interest had been in the takedown at the BW Ranch, but after arriving with three vans to collect the evidence, they had one spare. They had all staggered back to the office and, after writing up their reports, Jenna had insisted Jo and Kalo return to the ranch. She wanted to give Jo as much time as possible to spend with her daughter Jaime. The young girl enjoyed staying with Tauri and Jackson. When Jo had kindly offered to prepare a meal for the children, and Beth said she’d help as she wanted an early night, Jenna had agreed. Rio and Rowley had indicated they were needed at home, but Carter, Styles, and Raven wanted to head to Antlers for a steak dinner. After seeing the hungry look in Kane’s eyes, she made plans to meet them there.They’d dashed home to spend some time with their boys. She’d gone through the usual bedtime routine with Jackson, and he’d fallen asleep almost at once. After agreeing that Tauri could spend a little more time with Jaime decorating the house, she had slipped out with Kane to join the others.
The meal had been incredible, as usual. The twenty-ounce rib-eye steaks the men had ordered filled a sizzling plate of their own and another held all the sides. It didn’t surprise her to see Raven arrive with Emily on his arm. The pair had been spending more time together lately. They were chatting over coffee when Jenna’s phone chimed. She’d volunteered to take the 911 emergency calls this evening. A strangled voice came through her earbud. She held up a hand to the others to be quiet, muted her phone, and passed the other earpiece to Kane.
“Why are you kidnapping me?”A female voice filled with dread choked on her words.
“Shut up and drive or I’ll strangle you.”A man’s raspy voice sent shivers down Jenna’s back.“I can take you to the brink of death and then let you survive.”
“Where are we heading? This road leads to the lake.”The woman coughed.
“Go to the old boathouse.”
Jenna stood. “There’s a kidnapping in progress. They’re heading toward the old boathouse by the lake.”
“Go.” Kane waved Raven away. “Take Em home.”
“No way.” Emily frowned at him. “You might need a doctor and you have two right here. We’re going.”
“And I have Ben.” Raven shrugged into his coat. “Trained in taking down perps.”
“Okay, get a move on.” Kane dropped a wad of bills on the table and indicated to the others to head for the door.
With Carter and Styles riding in the back seat, Jenna gripped tight to the grab handle above the door as Kane backed out of the parking space, swung the Beast around, and acceleratedalong Main. Jenna gave a running commentary of what she could hear through her earpiece. The cold even tone of the kidnapper raised goosebumps on her flesh.
“Why are you doing this to me?”The woman forced out words as if she had something tight around her neck.
“I don’t need an excuse.”
“How long have you been stalking me? Did you leave that message on my window and in my locker?”
“Maybe I did and maybe I didn’t. Did it scare you, Isla?”He chuckled.“Did it make your heart race knowing that I could just pluck you off the sidewalk without anyone seeing?”
Jenna glanced at Kane, who weaved around ice patches. His mouth set in a determined line as he listened to the same conversation through her other earbud.
“When we get to our destination”—Kane glanced in the mirror at Carter and Styles—“there is a pile of Kevlar vests in the back. The large ones are on the right. Grab one before we chase down this guy. We don’t know if he’s armed or not. There are flashlights in a wooden box, along with anything else you’ll need.” He looked at Jenna. “You’ll need to convince Emily to remain inside the truck.”
Jenna nodded as terrified screams and sobs came through her earpiece. It seems the poor woman had closed in on their destination. She stared at the map on the GPS. They were approximately five minutes away from the turning that led to the boathouse near the lake. Five minutes was four minutes too long to prevent murder. She wanted to tell the woman on the other end of the phone that they were close behind her but breaking the radio silence would mean her instant death. She looked at Kane. “We’re going to be too late.”
“She’ll be dead the moment he sees us coming.” Kane glanced in the rearview mirror. “Carter, contact Raven and tell him to kill his lights before we turn onto the driveway to the boathouse. It’s a full moon and we’ll be able to see where we’regoing, especially with everything covered in snow. Let’s just hope this woman has the sense to slow down and give us time to get to her.”
Listening intently to the conversation on the other end of the line, Jenna kept her attention on the way ahead. “If you recall, the forest surrounds the lake. We should be able to park in the trees and make our way on foot toward the boathouse without being seen. The driveway to the boathouse curves in and out of the trees.”
“What are you hearing?” Styles leaned forward in his chair and looked at Jenna.
“He’s making threats to her and she’s terrified, but she had the presence of mind to dial 911 and leave her phone on. I figure she is pretty levelheaded.”
“She doesn’t seem to be mentioning a weapon.” Carter waved his toothpick in the air. “I figure he has the garrote around her neck already, so he’s likely sitting in the seat behind the driver. He could have been inside the vehicle waiting for her. Have you heard any names?”
Nodding, Jenna glanced over one shoulder at him. “He called her Isla. So, he knows her.”
“If he’s been following the same MO as the other murders, it’s likely he’s been stalking her for a while.” Carter slid the toothpick between his lips. “If he’s been leaving notes behind, why hasn’t this woman contacted us before?”
Jenna swallowed hard as the woman’s voice quivered through her earpiece.
“Why are you doing this to me? I don’t kill people. I help people.Her voice cut off abruptly and she gasped for air.“Stop doing that. Look, this is the turn to the boathouse. If you keep strangling me, I won’t be able to drive.”
“Nurses—you’re all the same. You don’t help people; you just stand around and let them suffer until they die. So, I’m here to even things out. Now it’s your turn. I figured the boathouseis a nice, isolated spot where I could make my point and no one would be able to hear you scream.”
