Until I noticed someone standing watching the house. Wait a minute. Was I seeing things?
With a single blink, I leaned in trying to focus.
And saw absolutely nothing but a tree limb swaying in the breeze.
But he was there.
Watching me.
Waiting for me.
Hunting me.
I was positive of it.
CHAPTER 9
Maverick
“Are you fucking sure about this, cause if you aren’t, we won’t have a job this time tomorrow.” Jason was agitated, likely worried about losing his damn job. At this point, I just didn’t give a fuck.
I was finished with playing bullshit games.
“Come on, Max,” I said as I rubbed the scruff behind my K-9’s ears after letting him loose from the back of the SUV. Before answering Jason, I scanned the area. I’d spend the last forty-eight hours going over every scrap of evidence for the hundredth time, comparing notes from months before. I’d also used new software developed by a buddy of mine to compare shadows and lighting in certain sections of the Everglades as well as a comparison to soil and other compounds I’d collected as evidence.
In my mind I’d finally gotten a break or what could also be called ‘a hit.’ The first real connection made to the horrific crimes plaguing Miami and the most destitute areas of theEverglades. The only inhabitants of this part of Florida were alligators, panthers, and pythons.
Hence the name of the piece of shit who’d captured, tortured, and killed twelve young women. The Python Killer had eluded police and the FBI for months. It was time to drag his ass to prison, although I’d prefer to use some Southern justice on the son of a bitch. Sadly, that would be frowned upon.
“You and Randy can head back to the office if you’d prefer.” I’d worked with Randy and Jason for years, back when I’d had a female partner instead of Max, the best canine I’d ever met. The Malinois had ceased being my partner almost from day one, now my best buddy. I trusted his senses implicitly.
This was a longshot, something my boss wouldn’t like, but I was at the point where nothing had led to anything substantial. With the mayor breathing down the FBI director’s neck, I was about to get pulled off the case. That couldn’t happen. I could feel the bastard. He’d crawled under my skin months before, now festering like a maggot-infested wound. The bastard had even taunted me.
There was a chance one victim was still alive. At this point, I’d burn down the entire Everglades if it meant saving even one life.
“Hell, no,” Randy huffed. “And miss all the fun? I haven’t seen what Max can do.”
Max was already pulling at the chain, which meant he remembered the various scents from before. I’d had him out in three different locations in the Glades to no avail. But I’d caught a break. Or so I hoped. A piece of material ripped off an item of clothing.
“Nah, I’m in too,” Jason added.
“We let him do the work,” I told them as I pulled an evidence bag from my jeans pocket. If I was wrong, there was a chance I’d lose my job, but at this point, there really was nothing else to go on. I was betting my entire career that the piece of a shirt I’d found belonged to one of the girls. A picture of her had been taken the day she’d disappeared. It was the same.
“You took that from the evidence room?” Jason asked.
“Don’t give him crap,” Randy admonished. “No one else has anything substantial. That fucker can’t keep getting away with this shit.”
“Alright, Max,” I said as I knelt next to him. We’d worked together long enough I knew exactly what to expect. My K-9 had a killer instinct. “I need you to find her. Okay? I know she’s out here. I can feel it.” And I did. I’d become so damn in tune to the bastard I could almost read his mind. Worse, I could feel the jolt of current every time he’d kidnapped a young girl.
The sheer joy. The repulsive desire. Hunger unlike anything I’d ever witnessed.
Some agents couldn’t handle the horrific details of the case. Finding the dead girls would forever affect anyone involved, especially after what the pythons had done to them.
And the wild animals.
As soon as I shifted the evidence under his nose, he responded, ready to bolt.
“Okay, boy. Go find her.” The moment I let go of the leash, he was off. Whether or not Jason and Randy were able to keep up in the rough terrain wasn’t anything I’d worry about. Theywere big boys. They’d worked the case long enough. With the flashlight in one hand, I took off running.
