Vida went to help him. “I’ll get sodas out of the fridge. I think we have paper plates as well.”
“That’s good.” Huck looked around. “I take it we’re staying here tonight?”
* * *
Laurel took all day Sunday off with Huck after seeing Kate and the girls off at the airport. They watched old movies, played gin rummy, and hung out with Aeneas. She missed her cat but wasn’t comfortable bringing him over to Huck’s yet. Plus, Deidre loved spending time with Fred. The downtime was good for Laurel’s mental health to allow her subconscious to work on the myriad of problems in her cases.
Plus, Fish and Wildlife officers were keeping watch over Deidre all weekend, which relaxed Laurel even more.
However, Monday morning her frontal lobe was back to being fully engaged. She worked the morning away, making phone calls, arranging her schedule, and seeking a connection between Delta Rivers and Teri Bearing. When she failed utterly at that, she turned to the Jason Abbott case and reviewed his files again, trying to find any sort of clue as to where he might be. She also finally tracked down Uma Carrington, Zeke Caine’s alibi for Teri Bearing’s murder, and arranged to speak to the woman in person the following afternoon.
Agent Norrs had assigned his executive assistant to cover for Kate at the front reception desk. Her name was Sherry Layton, and Laurel had met her during a previous case. The white-haired woman seemed both professional and efficient.
Laurel missed Kate already. The office even felt colder somehow. Laurel’s cell phone buzzed, and she pressed the speaker. “Agent Snow.”
“Agent Snow, you absolutely must leave my girlfriend alone,” Zeke Caine said, his voice rough.
Laurel’s stomach dropped, and she sat back in her chair, looking at the phone on the desk. “Uma Carrington is your alibi for the killing of a woman right outside your church. I have no choice but to speak with her.”
Zeke sighed heavily through the phone. “I’d think you would trust me. I am your father.”
“You raped my mother,” Laurel retorted instantly and then took a deep breath to calm herself. Emotions would just get in the way of dealing with this narcissistic jackass.
“I am sorry to snap at you,” Zeke said. “I’ve been trying to get ahold of your mother, but she won’t return my calls. I think we need to have a family meeting.”
Laurel stiffened to the point that her neck popped. “You will, under no circumstances, try to contact my mother again. Do you understand me?” Why hadn’t Deidre told Laurel of these attempts? If her mother had some outlandish notion that Laurel needed to be protected because she was pregnant, Laurel needed to disabuse her of that idea right now. Clearly, Laurel needed to find a way to get Deidre out of Genesis Valley for a short time.
“Come on, Laurel, you’re back in town. I’m back in town. It’s time we cleared the air. Your mom needs to tell the truth.”
“You will not contact her again. I will obtain a restraining order if necessary, and I have no doubt that would greatly hinder your attempts to preach to the world via television. Do you understand me?”
Silence ticked over the line for several moments. “I’m not somebody you want to threaten, daughter,” he said.
A chill slicked through her. “That declaration did not constitute a threat. That was an unequivocal assurance. My mother shall remain entirely beyond your reach.”
“Ah, Laurel,” he said. “This is not the route you want to take with me.”
She crossed her arms and forced herself to remain calm. “I have no idea where you’ve been on your little walkabout, but I will trace your path. I know that you left victims in your wake, and Zeke, I’m going to find them.”
Now a hiss came over the line. “I am always two steps ahead of everybody, daughter. So you go ahead and ignore my warnings. But when your world starts crumbling, remember that you had a choice. Remember this moment.”
“Are you threatening an FBI agent?” she asked calmly.
His chuckle was dark. “Absolutely not. I’m just talking to the daughter I didn’t know existed for most of her life. If this had gone differently, I would’ve protected you from Abigail. Now you are on your own, and believe me, you have no idea what lies in the heart of the woman who shares your DNA.”
Laurel looked out her window at the chilly day. “I can read Abigail just fine. In fact, I believe the two of you, at your cores, are the same.”
He laughed this time, somehow making even that sound threatening. “Not even close, Laurel. Oh, Abigail’s dangerous, but she’s a puppy playing in a dog’s world.”
“I take it you’re the dog?” Laurel asked instantly.
“We’ll see when I have my teeth around your neck.” He chuckled again. “Figuratively, of course. I would never hurt anybody in this world, but daughter, you should have chosen the path of being my ally. Now you’ll learn more about me than you ever wanted to know.” He clicked off.
Laurel sat back and looked at her phone before turning and vomiting violently into her waste basket.
Chapter 18
Early afternoon, Laurel sat in her conference room next to Fish and Wildlife Captain Monty Buckley, whose face had turned nearly as pale as his white hair. He’d been thrilled to tell her that they’d located Pastor John, who was being brought in for an interview. Right now.
