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They agreed. It was time for one more push to track Saldana down and end this once and for all.
CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE
Valerie pulled up at the gates of Buford Cemetery, Doctor Whitmore alongside her. The sun hadn’t come up yet.
The gates to the old cemetery were tall and foreboding in the autumn wind. The scene littered with fallen leaves swirling through the air. Charlie, Will, and Sam Teller were checking the other two locations across town.
Valerie turned to Doctor Whitmore. “Are you sure you want to come with me?”
“Yes, of course,” he said. “I feel responsible for all of this.”
“It could be dangerous,” she said. “I’ve fought Saldana once already, and he put up a difficult fight. He’s killed three victims and tried to kill you too. There’s no telling what he’ll do if he’s here and emotionally vulnerable.”
“Emotionally vulnerable?” he asked.
“Yes,” Valerie explained. “If he’s here, then he’s going to his grandmother’s grave. He knows we’re on to him and he’s running out of places to hide. Coming here would be because of the solace his grandmother’s grave gives him. He’ll be filled with emotion. On the edge. Persecuted. That’s when a killer like this is the most dangerous.”
“I’ve known Saldana for several years,” Doctor Whitmore said. “If I can help bring him in without anyone else getting hurt, then that’s some sort of atonement for me.”
“Okay then,” she said. “Stay with me at all times, and don’t do anything rash.”
Valerie took her gun out.
“Do you really need that?” the doctor asked.
“In my line of work, it’s a necessity, Doctor. Let’s just hope I don’t have to use it.”
They exited the car and Valerie led the way through the gates into the cemetery. It was dark, and the shadows played tricks on her eyes. She flicked on her flashlight and shone it ahead of her, sweeping it from side to side. Doctor Whitmore stayed close by her side.
The wind whipped through the trees, and the leaves crunched underfoot. It was a large cemetery, and Valerie knew it would take some time to search.
The headstones were old and weather worn. Some of them tilted precariously. It looked like it had been a long time since anyone had been here to tend some of the older graves.
“I wish we knew where his grandmother’s plot is,” Doctor Whitmore said, his voice frustrated.
“We need to be systematic about this,” she said. “He’ll see my flashlight. It makes us a sitting duck, but there’s no other option. Keep your eyes peeled. He could come at us at any moment.”
The two continued up the long gravel paths between the headstones, moving methodically through the maze of graves and mausoleums. The cemetery seemed endless, with no clear end in sight.
The silence of the cemetery was deafening, broken only by their footsteps and the breeze in the trees.
As Valerie and Doctor Whitmore continued through the graveyard, they felt a sense of unease as they searched for Saldana’s grandmother’s grave. The air was filled with tension, and it seemed like every step could be their last.
Finally, they came to a large mausoleum near the back of the cemetery. There was an inscription on the stone that read “Saldana”.
“It’s too old to be his grandmother’s,” Doctor Whitmore said. “But maybe there are other family plots nearby.”
Valerie nodded and continued searching.
She shone her flashlight into every nook and cranny, but there was no sign of Saldana. Suddenly, she heard a noise coming from the other side of the mausoleum. She turned off her flashlight and motioned for Doctor Whitmore to stay put.
She crept around the side of the mausoleum, gun drawn. Peeking around the corner, she saw a crouched figure by a grave.
Valerie lurched forward, her gun stretched out before her. But just as she was about to shout “freeze!”, the beam of her flashlight lit the macabre figure. It was an old, weather worn statue of a kneeling angel.
Valerie let out a sigh of relief and lowered her gun. Doctor Whitmore came up behind her, and she could see the relief on his face as well.
“It’s just a statue,” she said. “But it scared the hell out of me.”