“I’m in the middle of a case, Rachel,” he said. “Sorry, it’s not the optics you wanted.” Perhaps he should have worn his uniform. He glanced back at his jacket hanging over the chair. “I can put on the Fish and Wildlife jacket, if that would help?”
Her gaze narrowed. “Why are you being so agreeable?”
“Because we need your assistance,” he said smoothly.
She preened. “Oh, I like that.” He’d figured she would, which was why he’d said it. “Yeah, put on the jacket.”
“All right.” He reached for his jacket and pulled it on, zipping up. The black rainproof coat had a Washington State Fish and Wildlife Police patch on his left arm and a clear embroidered badge with a star over his left breast.
“Perfect,” she said.
The tech guy moved in again and tugged the microphone off Huck’s shirt to secure on the collar of the coat. “Let me at least do his hair.”
Huck looked up. “You touch my hair, and I’ll break your hand.”
At least six feet tall with blond hair and impressive biceps, the guy grinned. “All right. I could have made you famous—or at least gotten you a date for the night.” He sauntered away toward the control room.
Rachel stared at Huck. “Speaking of which, do you have a date tonight?”
He glanced at his watch. “We need to get going on this, or I’ll call another podcast or channel or whatever.”
“Fine.” She nodded at the control room. They counted down, and then the red light above the door flickered to life. “Good evening. This is Rachel Raprenzi fromThe Killing Hour,” she said. “Today we have Washington State Fish and Wildlife Captain Huck Rivers in our studio with us. Thank you for meeting with me,” she said, a natural in front of the camera.
“You bet,” Huck answered, urgency rushing through him. Time was way too short on this one. “We actually need the public’s help.”
Rachel smiled. “Yes. It’s my understanding that the Witch Creek serial killer, Jason Abbott, escaped from police custody last night.”
“Yes,” Huck said. “Apparently, Mr. Abbott faked a suicide attempt and ended up in the hospital where he was able to effectuate an escape. We need the public’s help in tracking him down before he hurts anybody.” A picture of Jason Abbott came up on the wide screen between the two of them.
“How did he escape?” Rachel asked.
“Apparently, he overcame a Genesis Valley police officer, knocked him out, and put him in the hospital bed.”
Rachel’s gaze sharpened. “You’re telling me that Jason Abbott just walked out of the hospital while in police custody?”
“Affirmative,” Huck said, a lump of coal settling in his gut.
She looked away and then back as if uncomfortable. “My sources tell me that FBI agent Laurel Snow was also present. How did a serial killer overcome a trained FBI agent?”
Huck lowered his chin. “Jason Abbott is a killer who took two trained public servants by surprise.”
“Whose fault was that?”
“We’re not concerned with fault,” Huck said. They needed to get a killer back behind bars. Now. “We’re focused on finding this prisoner and getting him off the streets before anybody else is hurt. To which end, we’re hoping the public will report anything they see. There’s a number at the bottom of the screen you can call. We have a 24-hour hotline.”
Rachel shook her head. “This is the man who was arrested for murder by strangulation and cutting off his victims’ hands, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Yet there was only one police officer guarding him? Was this the state police, Captain Rivers?”
Oh, he didn’t like this direction. He needed the local police force to work with him, but confirming the facts would be easy for Rachel to do, so he had to give her the truth. “No. It was the Genesis Valley Police.”
Rachel tsked her tongue. “Why in the world would the local police be guarding such a dangerous individual? Shouldn’t the FBI have had him in federal custody?”
Awareness clicked down Huck’s spine. So that was going to be her angle. “Mr. Abbott was held in the local jail awaiting trial. It’s a common procedure in Washington State.”
“Yet, is it?” Rachel flicked her hand toward the photo of Jason Abbott on the screen. “Was this incredibly dangerous person kept local just so FBI agent Laurel Snow could gain access to him? I have visitor logs to show that both she and you have visited Abbott in jail several times.”
