Page 9 of Whisper Through the Pines

Raven nodded. “Yeah, and I know Rio has them too.”

“Okay, we look for the bodies. There’s a blood trail we can follow.” Jenna moved her gaze to all of them. “This killer could be watching us and might want to add us to his list of victims, so stay sharp and stay together. Don’t talk—listen. Watch Ben for a reaction. He is our best asset in situations like this.”

They moved out scanning the forest, but as before no sound came. Even the rush of water in the river had been muted by the fog. Before them Ben moved, sniffing the air, his ears pricked listening for any sounds. The hard solid trail gave up no evidence apart from the blood. No footprints, no hair caught in the branches. It was the same scene as before, as if the killer didn’t exist. Ahead, their flashlights lit up two humps on the path, and as they drew closer the two bodies of what appeared to be one older and one younger man came into view. The older man wore dirty coveralls and the younger, Wranglers, cowboy boots, and a jacket with the logo of the local hockey team across the back. Raven bent to examine the remains and then straightened. “The older victim has an almost clean cut, blood spatter is head-high and covering the surrounding trees, but I figure the younger one tried to run. He has a sharp forced injury to the spine. He went down and was dispatched here.” He pointed to a massive pool of blood surrounding the second body.

“Okay, we’ll collect as much evidence as possible. We’ll record the scene first.” She turned to Rio. “You do that and we’ll keep watch and then we’ll all walk back to the trucks and get whatever we need to retrieve the bodies. We’ll come back in daylight and search for evidence. Right now, it’s too dangerous. We don’t know if this is one man or many.” She turned to look at Rio. “I would never endanger Em’s life. I have a doctor right here, more than capable of removing the bodies without contaminating evidence. I’ll call her the moment we’re on the road and she can meet us at the morgue.”

As Rio went about recording the scene, Raven moved closer to Jenna. “I honestly believed it was over between Rio and Em. I’d never make a move on a colleague’s girl. It’s unprofessional.”

“It was well over.” Jenna swung her flashlight around and peered into the darkness. “She could never commit to him. He might have had feelings for Em, but to her, he was just a good friend. She asked me once how I knew Dave was the one for me. I told her if she needed to ask, she’d answered her question.”

Nothing moved in the forest, and apart from Ben whining his distress about finding dead bodies, it seemed as if the Axman had slipped through their net. Concerned someone was close by watching them, Raven went through the task of retrieving the bodies, collecting soil samples and blood samples, and conducting a body temperature reading on each victim. It was all he could do for now. As they carried the bodies back to his truck and loaded them in the back, he turned to Jenna. “If you wait for me, I’ll follow you home, just in case something happens to the truck.”

“I’ll be okay.” Jenna shook her head. “I panicked, is all. Dave only serviced my truck a couple of weeks ago. If anything happens, I’ll call you. I’m sure you’ll be hanging around the morgue before you head home.”

Thinking of Emily, working late hours, he nodded. “Yeah, I’ll give her a hand to process the bodies before I head home.” He nodded toward Rio and Rowley. “If they’ll help me unload the bodies at the morgue, it would make life easier. If they don’t want to stick around, I’m happy to take it from there. Why don’t you head on home and check on your boys? I’ll drop you at Aunt Betty’s.”

“Thanks.” Jenna gave him an exhausted smile. “I appreciate you.” She walked to Rio and Rowley. “Help Raven unload the victims at the morgue and then you can head on home. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Eleven

Loneliness surrounded Jenna as she drove along the highway. The darkness and thick mist hadn’t worried her during her early times in Black Rock Falls. Before Kane had arrived in town she often went out on patrol alone, mainly because it was only her and Rowley. Old Deputy Walters spent most of his time in the office. Had she been braver then or as time went by had she become dependent on Kane to protect her? She gripped the steering wheel tightly and peered into the mist. The time it took her to drive from Main had seemed to take forever, and she sighed with relief as the gates to her ranch swung open and allowed her to enter. As she drove along the driveway, ahead she made out the porch lights glowing like a beacon to welcome her home. She’d never had that years ago. Those days she came home to an empty cold house without the protection this one now gave her. She grimaced at the smell of death sticking to her clothes and hair. Raya would be watching the boys and she could take a long hot shower to remove the stink before she looked in on them.

Jenna used the retina scanner to disarm the security system, stepped inside the front door, and rearmed it immediately. She removed her boots and heavy jacket in the mudroom, walked into the office, and placed her weapons in the gun safe, before heading for the family room. She stood for a few moments surveying the emptiness. Raya always sat up and either knitted or watched TV until she got home. The roaring fire she expected was just glowing embers. She frowned. Considering it was getting near to ten, she might have decided to use the spare room and go to sleep. She’d triggered her fight-or-flight response earlier and the adrenaline still pumped through her system. Her heart pounded as she moved along the hallway. The door to the spare bedroom that Raya usually occupied was closed, but the boys’ bedroom door sat open a little. With trembling fingers, she pushed open the door and gasped with relief seeing both her sons sleeping peacefully. Pumpkin, their black cat, sat curled up asleep at the end of Tauri’s bed. She opened one eye a slit and then went back to sleep. Jenna stood for a few seconds watching them before heading for her bedroom. Her door was open and the light from the hallway spread across the bed. She froze at the sight of a figure spread out on top of the comforter.

She gaped, trying to make out the shape. It was way too big to be Raya and it wasn’t Kane. He’d have called her the moment he arrived home. It wasn’t Duke either—where was Duke? The dog usually slept under Jackson’s bed when Kane was away. She backed out of the room, closed the boys’ door, and went to Raya’s room. She opened the door and peered inside. The made bed was just as she’d left it. Where was Raya? She headed back to the gun safe, turning out lights along the way. With her M18 pistol in her hand, she slipped back to her bedroom and stepped inside, aiming her weapon at the bed. The next second an arm came across her neck, lifting her from the ground. Her weapon was torn from her hand and a very familiar voice came close to her ear.

“I don’t know how you got inside my house, but you’re not getting out alive.”

Gasping for breath, Jenna smelled Kane’s cologne and went limp. Fighting him would be a deadly mistake. She could feel his heartbeat thumping through her back. “It’s Jenna, Dave. Jenna.”

The recognition wasn’t instant, but the grip around her neck relaxed enough to allow her to breathe. Dragged backward, Kane’s breath brushed her ear and then the room flooded with light.

“You stink.” Kane turned her to face him, pulled her close, and kissed her. “I’m sorry.” He held her away and wrinkled his nose. “I smelled you before you entered the room and it wasn’t honeysuckle.” He rubbed his hands down her arms, his gaze flitting over her face. “I knew it was a woman, but assassins come in both sexes.”

So glad to see him home and whole, Jenna touched his face. He looked exhausted and his eyes still held the faraway cold expression he had in combat mode. Whatever he’d been through must have been terrible. She nodded. “I understand. It’s okay. I just came back from finding decapitated bodies in the forest. The second double murder since you left.” She so wanted to hug him, but the smell had started to infuse the room. “I’ll take a shower and we’ll talk.”

She walked into the bathroom and he followed close behind. As she disrobed, he collected her clothes, holding them out in front of him and carrying them away. She peered at him. “I can do that in the morning.”

“Some things just won’t wait.” Kane returned shortly after spraying the house with air freshener. He washed his hands and then leaned against the bathroom door. “Is that my ring around your neck?”

Jenna smiled at him and lifted the chain from around her neck. She slid off the ring and looked at him. “Hold out your hand.” When he did, she slid it back on his finger and kissed it. “It was like having you close.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t wake you before I left.” Kane dried his wet hand on a towel. “It makes it harder and I didn’t get any notice. Hopefully, I won’t be heading OS again. I figure there’s guys much younger than me they can call on.”

Deep inside, Jenna never wanted him to leave again, but that was part of Kane she could never change. She shampooed her hair and changed the subject. “When did you get home?”

“About nine-thirty. The boys were sound asleep and Raya was watching TV. Duke went ballistic and almost woke the boys. I sent him outside to cool off.” He yawned explosively. “Raya went back to her apartment and I sat on the bed removing my boots, picked up my phone to call you, and must have fallen asleep.” He yawned. “I’d been awake for at least forty-eight hours straight this time. I’ve had no time to sleep or eat much at all over the last ten days—I’m beat.”

Jenna understood not to ask about his missions. She burned with curiosity, but he’d never give her any details. She rinsed her hair and wrapped it in a towel and, pulling on a toweling robe, stepped out of the shower and into his arms. Suddenly she could breathe properly again, her fears and worries melted away. After he’d stopped kissing her, she looked into his eyes. “Are you okay? No injuries?”

“Nothing to worry about. I have a slight cough due to smoke inhalation and sore muscles, but I’m good.” He leaned against the door, watching her intently as she dried her hair. “One incredible thing happened, which I can tell you about because it’s going to remain here in Black Rock Falls—but don’t divulge any details, okay?”

Surprised, Jenna ran a brush through her dry hair and then applied cream to her face, observing him in the mirror. “You know I won’t say a word.” When he rubbed his chin and stared at her, she rolled her eyes. “Well, go on then, don’t leave me hanging.”

“I’d been running and carrying an asset for miles before I saw Wolfe’s chopper.” He stared into space for a few seconds and then looked back at her. “When I got there, I got the fright of my life. Would you believe a humanoid robot put out a hand and lifted me and the asset off the ground and dropped us inside the chopper? It took seconds. The moment we took off, the robot went about checking us for injuries.”

She stared at him in disbelief. Sure, she’d seen robots on TV, and everything they were capable of, but honestly had no idea of their strength. Her stomach dropped, recalling movies about the end of the world as she knew it, and the terrible scenarios with robots. “Are they planning on using robots in combat now?”