“Or none of them,” Claire said quietly. “He could have used a remote device and sent the message without being physically present.”
Garrett wanted to put his fist through a wall. Wanted to get in his truck and drive to Blackridge and tear the town apart until he found the bastard.
But that’s what the killer wanted. To make him sloppy. Emotional. Reactive.
Garrett Cross didn’t get emotional. He planned, stalked, just like his call sign. The serial killer was about to come up against a fellow predator.
“We need to reply,” Garrett said.
Claire’s gaze snapped to his. “What?”
“This is our chance.” Garrett moved to the conference table and pulled up a map of the area. “He wants to play games. We play better. Time to set the trap.”
“What do you want to say?” Lynx asked.
Garrett studied the map. Abandoned warehouses. Industrial areas. Places outside town where they could control the terrain. Where the stalker would feel like he had the advantage, but Shadow Point would own every angle. He even considered his own shabby cabin. Talk about poetic justice if he could lure this bastard to that and bring Lily the justice she deserved.
“Claire tells him she’s tired of running. Wants to end this. Face to face. On the anniversary.”
Claire nodded. “But you’re going to be waiting.”
Garrett pointed to a location on the map. “This old mining facility is ten miles outside Blackridge. It’s been abandoned for twenty years.”
Grizzly nodded. “I know the place. It has multiple entry points, good sight lines, and it’s isolated. Perfect for an ambush.”
“His ambush or ours?” Lynx asked.
“Ours.” Garrett looked at his team. “He thinks he’s hunting Claire. But we’ll be hunting him.”
“He’s too smart for that,” Claire said. “He won’t just walk into an obvious trap.”
“He will if we make it believable.” Garrett turned to her. “You’re exhausted. Broken. Desperate. The message needs to sound like you’re at the end of your rope. Like you’d rather face him on your terms than spend another day waiting for him to strike.”
“He won’t believe I’d agree to meet him alone.”
“You’re going to tell him to bring one person—someone to witness. Make it sound like you want an audience. Like this is your grand finale.” Garrett’s voice was cold, calculated. “Predators like him want recognition. Want their genius acknowledged. We give him that.”
Vivi frowned. “It’s risky. If he suspects for even a moment?—”
“Then we adjust. Right now, we have one advantage: he doesn’t know we know he’s in Blackridge. He thinks he’s still hidden. Anonymous.” Garrett looked at each of them. “We use that.”
“What do I say?” Claire asked quietly.
Garrett met her eyes. Saw the fear there. The exhaustion. The determination underneath.
He gestured at Lynx, who handed him the phone. He brought up the message and began Claire’s reply. “You’re clearly intelligent and have outwitted all of us. I’m tired of this game and want to meet face-to-face. Let’s do it on the anniversary of Lily’s death.”
“You really think he’ll just... agree to that?” Claire asked.
“No. He’ll counter and negotiate. But it opens the door. Gets him talking.”
“Gives me a chance to trace more communications,” Lynx said.
Garrett’s jaw tightened. “And it tells him that you’re breaking. That he’s winning.”
“He’ll insist I come alone,” Claire said.
“And it will appear that you are. You’ll tell him you’re going to ditch your security guards and do this your way.”
