Page 127 of Coordinates of Death

“Love you.”

“You too.” She clicked off the call.

Kordell parked along the road in front of Aurora’s darkened condo and stiffened. Where was the police cruiser? Had she sent them home? Why were all her lights off when she was going to put on the teakettle? Something didn’t feel right. He cut the engine and jumped out of his SUV, racing toward the front door. He slipped on the sidewalk and halted at the steps. The door was ajar. Not good.

Kordell’s hand flew to his side, and he unleashed his weapon. He eased up the steps and nudged the door open. “Aurora?”

Lady Grey squawked from deep within the condo.

“Rory, where are you?”

Silence.

He flipped the light on and entered the kitchen.

A kettle lay on its side, with water on the floor beside a broken teapot. The picture Aurora had sent him earlier sat on the counter. Something shiny beside the photo caught his eye, and he shuffled forward.

Aurora’s badge. A note beside it contained a chilling message.

It ends where it began. Come find her at the spot where SBK started his kills. Only Kord can play. Kord, the clues are right under your nose. Ticktock. You have five hours.

“No!” Kordell’s legs buckled, and he latched onto the counter to steady himself, horrid thoughts racing out of control. The Shadow Box Killer had kidnapped Aurora. Breathe, Kord. Rory needs you. Think.

He reread the note. It ends where it began. What did that mean? And clues? What clues?

Only Kord can play.

But he needed help. I can’t do this by myself, God.

Kordell unhooked his cell phone from his waistband and hit Hill’s number. He’d want to know about her abduction.

“Hill here.”

“It’s Kordell. Sorry to call so late, but Aurora’s been taken.” No time for pleasantries.

A quick breath sailed through the speaker. “What do you mean, taken?”

He explained the situation, reading the note. “I’m going to take a picture of it and send it to my sister, Mic. She’s good at finding information.” He told him about the symbol of twins. “Do you think we’re dealing with twin serial killers?”

“Or simply that SBK has a twin. I was going to share this information in the morning briefing, but we found out that the materials used to make the shadow boxes were purchased by a Fiona Kramer. We don’t know the connection yet. We never did get anything from Sebastian’s laptop. Someone beat us to it and wiped it clean.”

Kordell grabbed a nearby notepad and pen, scribbling the name on top. “Thanks for the info. I’ll pass this name on to Mic and put the squad on alert. We need to find her, Garrett.” The man’s first name slipped out, but he didn’t care. This was now personal.

“I’ll update the team. It’s gonna be a long night.”

“And we only have five hours. I need to look for these clues. Wait. What happened to the cruiser out front?”

“What? That’s the first I heard of it. I’ll track them down. Stay safe and keep me updated.”

“Will do.” Kordell ended the call and texted Mic the name, asking her to search for information. Seconds later, a text came through.

On it.

So much for her going to bed, but right now, sleep was out of the question.

Rory needs me to find her.

He called his father to explain the situation and put the squad on alert. He’d give him an update when he could. His father ended their conversation with a prayer for protection. Kordell pocketed his cell phone and wandered into Aurora’s bedroom to check on Lady. He hated to invade Aurora’s privacy, but had no choice. He flipped on the light. “Hey, Lady. You okay?”