Page 13

Chapter 13

“I knew Jason was seeing Dr. Drummond, but I don’t know if he had a connection with Dr. Gomez or Ms. Carmichael. And I can’t imagine how he’d know the woman at the biolab.” Robin Rutledge sat across the glass-topped table from Brenna and Nick at the Riverton Bistro where she worked part time while completing her degree at Riverton University.

Careful not to reveal any information from Jason’s patient file, Brenna asked, “During your relationship with Jason, did he ever display any tendencies toward violence?”

Robin shifted in her chair, her finger swirling along the rim of her water glass. “Jason and I dated for three months during the spring of my junior year. He liked to take me out to the levy overlook and just talk. At first, it was nice and peaceful. But the more we dated, the more possessive he got. I finally called it off, and told him I didn’t want to see him anymore.”

Brenna glanced across at Nick, waiting for Robin to continue.

“We were at the levy when I told him I wanted to break up. He went crazy.” Robin lifted her glass and swallowed a sip of water, setting the glass back on the table before she continued. “He wouldn’t accept the breakup. I avoided him, hoping he’d take the hint and leave me alone. That’s when he started stalking me.”

Nick leaned forward. “Did you notify the police?”

Robin nodded. “One night, I came home from working at the Bistro, and he was waiting for me in the parking lot of the apartment complex where I lived. I hurried up to my apartment to get inside before he tried something. Just as I inserted my key into the lock, he came up behind me and began shouting and pushing me against the wall.” Robin took another sip and set the glass down, her hands trembling. “I was so scared.”

Brenna reached across and covered the younger woman’s hand. “You had every right to be.”

“Thanks.” Robin gave Brenna a weak smile. “My neighbor came out and witnessed it all and called the police. When I pressed charges against Jason, the judge issued a restraining order and mandated psychiatric treatment with Dr. Drummond.” Robin looked up into Brenna’s eyes. “Do you think he killed Dr. Drummond?”

“We don’t know, and we don’t have enough evidence to point to Jason.” Brenna tapped her pen to the pad of paper in front of her. “Did Jason stop bothering you after the court decree?”

“If you mean, did he push me around again, no. But he still followed me, although at a distance.”

“When was the last time you noticed him following you around?” Nick asked.

“I can’t swear to it, but I think I saw his truck behind mine on Friday when I was on my way home from work. Plus, I think he followed me to church on Sunday.” Tears welled in Robin’s eyes. “I just ignored him and hoped someday he’d get on with his life and leave me alone. That is, until Dr. Drummond was murdered and the city cops started guarding my doorstep.” She shivered. “It gives me the creeps. I feel like I can’t walk out in the open without an armed guard anymore. Why am I a target? Is it because of Jason?”

“We don’t know, Miss Rutledge,” Nick said. “But we’re trying to find out.”

“Robin. Call me Robin.” She lifted her glass to take another sip, but it was empty. She jumped up from the table and straightened her uniform apron. “I need to get back to work.” She sighed. “I’m here till closing tonight, and my feet already hurt.”

Her feet aching in empathy for the woman, Brenna asked, “What time do you close?”

“Two. The place gets busy around nine and stays that way until after midnight.”

“One more thing, Robin…” Nick pushed his chair back and stood. “Do you own a computer?”

“Yes. What college student doesn’t have a laptop?” She smiled. “I’d be absolutely lost without it. Come to think of it, Jason was handy to have around if for only that reason. Anytime I had a problem with it, he’d fix it.”

“But you could hire a repairman for less trouble, right?” Brenna smiled.

Robin’s lips twisted. “Yeah.”

This young woman had been through enough with Jason. And now, she had to worry about a murderer on the loose.

The desire to jump from her seat, charge out into Riverton and find the culprit was a physical need burning in Brenna’s belly. But part of her job was to fit the pieces together, and, somehow, Robin was one of the pieces.

The younger woman smoothed the front of her apron again. “Can I get anything else for you two?”

Brenna tipped her coffee mug to stare down into a half-full cup. “Not for me.”

“I could use a top off,” Nick said.

“Coming up.” Robin raced off for the coffee carafe and returned in less than five seconds to refill Nick’s cup. She smiled at Nick, making Brenna’s chest tighten.

When Nick smiled back, the tightening eased lower to twist in Brenna’s gut.

Was that jealousy?

Not that she had a claim on the sexy FBI agent, but they had made love less than twenty-four hours ago. Wasn’t there a polite time limit a man should wait before he flirted with other women?

Brenna sank lower in her seat, her brow wrinkling over her eyes, feeling like a heel for even thinking such thoughts.

Nick’s gaze followed Robin all the way back across the room. Not until she pushed through the swinging kitchen doors did he turn to face Brenna. The smile he’d maintained now slipped. “What?”

“I’m just thinking.” Even to her own ears, her voice sounded grumpy. What was this man doing to her mental wellness?

“Stop it.” Nick reached out and touched a finger to her lip, calling attention to the fact she’d been chewing on it.

“Stop thinking? Or stop chewing on my lip?”

“If you’re thinking about the case, knock yourself out. If you’re thinking about us, stop thinking and biting your lip. What’s done is done. You can’t take it back.”

“Who said I wanted to take it back?” she tossed at him, aiming for flippant, but falling painfully short.

“You were second-guessing again.”

“How do you know I was thinking about us?” she asked, lifting her chin. “I could’ve been thinking about the case.”

“Possible, but not likely.”

“Well, as far as I’m concerned, that’s what I’m thinking about now.” Brenna sat up straight. “Do we have enough to bring Jason in for further questioning?”

“No, but we definitely need to keep a close eye on our bully.” Nick drummed his fingers on the table. “I don’t trust him.”

“Nor do I.” Brenna noticed his fingers were long and tapered. They’d certainly done amazing things to her last night.

“What exactly do we have?”

Nick’s question shook Brenna from a dangerous detour down a dead-end road. “We have a suspect with a history of stalking and violent behavior.”

Nick continued the list of clues. “He’s a former patient of the deceased and could know the professor from working at the university. However, I don’t see a connection to Carmichael or Stinson.”

“I’ll review Dr. Drummond’s file again for any clues. Maybe he dated Stinson and picked her up at a bar or something. Although, that doesn’t explain Michelle Carmichael. She seemed much older than Jason,” Brenna said. “It could just be the news articles that link them.”

“Having been the computer lab technician at the college, he knows his way around equipment. He could’ve planted that device in Drummond’s office to start the fire. I just can’t believe he’d be stupid enough to leave a signature with the Ethernet cable.”

“He didn’t strike me as overly bright,” Brenna said. “Belligerent and hot-headed, yes. Calculating and sneaky...? I don’t know.”

“The victims could’ve known him through his work with the computer store. Maybe they trusted him enough to let him in.”

“He had a history of violent behavior.” Brenna shook her head. “I can’t see Dr. Drummond willingly letting him into her home. She was a smart woman and knew the risks.”

“You have a point, and her house was the least disturbed, like she knew who it was and trusted him.”

“I think we’re still missing something.”

“Is this a gut feeling, Jensen, or do you have something solid?”

“Gut.” She stood, needing to flex her muscles and clear her head. She’d gone too long with too little sleep. “Can we go back to the office and get my car?”

“Yes. But I don’t want you going anywhere without me.”

“I promised my sister I’d have dinner with her tonight. I don’t suppose there’s a chance you’d let me go alone?”

He crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “Not a chance.”

Great. Dinner at her sister’s house with a man her mother would try to have her married to before the night was over. Maybe the flood would come and sweep her away before dinnertime. A flood sounded more palatable than any food served with a heavy dose of advice, topped with a heaping helping of why-can’t-you-be-more-like-Alice.

Sometimes, her mother’s disease really got Brenna down. But she couldn’t stop loving the woman who’d raised her, loved her and cared for her all her life. “The upside to having dinner at my sister’s is that she’s a good cook.”

“Good. I haven’t had home-cooking since the last time I visited my folks in Virginia.”

Brenna found herself wanting to know everything about this stranger she’d let into her bed and who would make inroads into her heart if she weren’t careful.

When she stepped out into the late afternoon sunshine, she stretched and turned her face to the sun, absorbing the warmth.

But no matter how rejuvenating the sun could be, too much of a good thing could be worse than winter. If the ground didn’t refreeze and the snow melting continued at its current pace, Riverton could be in deep trouble and even deeper water.

Brenna almost laughed at the irony. The longer they worked on the case, the more chance there was of the murderer making the list of victims deeper. The more she was around Agent Tarver, the deeper her emotions ran and the more likely it became that she couldn’t swim her way out of certain heartache. She almost laughed, but tears flooded her eyes, and she tripped on her way across the parking lot.

Nick’s hand steadied her before she wiped out in an embarrassing heap in the middle of a sludge pile of melted snow and dirt used to sand the icy streets.

Water ran through the parking lot an inch deep to the streets where it pooled at flooded storm drains.

What were they missing? What clues still remained beneath the surface?

As soon as Nick entered the war room, he shot a question Paul’s way. “Anything on the Ethernet cable?”

“Dr. Drummond’s cable was still attached to the computer. The cable used to bind her wasn’t necessarily hers.”

“Think there’s anything on her home computer?” Nick hung his leather jacket on the back of a chair and pushed a hand through his hair. “What about a stalker on social media gone berserk or an email from her attacker?”

“I tried to get on. I could boot the computer, but I couldn’t get the Internet to connect to the WIFI to check social media accounts. Her personal email inbox, sent files and deleted messages, had all been cleared.”

“That’s strange,” Nick said. “What about the recycle bin or anything stored in the cloud?”

“Nothing in the recycle bin and, again...no internet connection to check the cloud,” Paul said.

“Right.” Nick’s lips pressed together. “Send the computer to the crime lab. They’re better equipped to recover data.”

“Already done. I sent a car to Bismarck an hour ago with the computer, monitor, keyboard and mouse.”

“Good.” Nick walked to the whiteboard on the wall and studied the timeline.

“What did you find out from Jason Conlin?” Paul asked.

“He’s a bully, but I’m not sure he committed the crimes,” Nick said. “He had a connection to Dr. Drummond and possibly to Dr. Gomez. Robin Rutledge confirmed she’d dated him, but we don’t have a connection between him and the biolab lady or the real estate agent—unless they’ve had computer problems lately. Paul, will you check with The Computer Store records to see if any of our victims have been there recently?”

“Yes, sir.” Paul settled in a chair, opened his laptop and brought up The Computer Store’s website.

“Could be a chance meeting in a bar.” Melissa swiveled her chair toward the center of the room.

“Maybe.” Nick tapped his finger to the whiteboard. “Dr. Drummond disappeared on Wednesday night. Gomez on Friday night, Carmichael on Sunday. A pattern of every other night up to that point.”

“Until Stinson disappeared on Monday night.” Brenna moved to stand beside Nick at the board.

The warmth of her body next to him derailed his concentration for a moment, and he forced himself to move past it and onto the task at hand. “He missed last night, and my bet is we’re due another kidnapping.”

“And if we go in order of the news articles,” Melissa said from her perch on the conference table, “that would put the college student at the top of the list.”

Nick shook his head. Robin Rutledge had been scared when he’d talked to her. Imagine if she’d known the rest of the story and that she was prime for the next target on the killer’s list.

“I know, I know.” Paul stood. “Increase surveillance on her. Melissa and I can pull the first shift tonight.”

“Good. She works at Riverton Bistro until 2:00 am.” Nick glanced down at Brenna. If he didn’t go back to the hotel room tonight, he wouldn’t be tempted to take Brenna back in his arms and make love to her. “I’ll take over from midnight until dawn.”

“And you’ll sleep when?” Melissa asked.

He jammed his finger against the board. “When we apprehend the killer.”

“I feel a caffeine attack coming on.” Melissa hopped off the table. “Coffee, anyone?”

“I’m with you,” Paul said. “Make mine a double. It’s going to be a long night.”

Melissa and Paul exited the war room, leaving Nick and Brenna alone. All Nick could think about was pulling her into his arms and kissing her until the morning.

“I’m coming with you,” Brenna said.

“No, you’re not.” With the thoughts he had bumping around inside of his head, he didn’t need her any closer than she already was. “You need sleep.”

“I’ll catch a nap before I go to my sister’s home for dinner. I don’t need much sleep.” The dark circles beneath her eyes belied her words.

Nick wanted to tuck her into bed and kiss her to sleep—and a lot of other non-sleep-related things. “You’ll sleep all night.”

Her brows rose. “In the hotel room, without a guard?”

Nick frowned, and his lips pressed into a tight line. He couldn’t leave her alone, and it wouldn’t be fair to Paul and Melissa to keep watch over her after pulling a late shift. “You’ll come with me.”

“Right.” She turned away, a slight smile playing with the corners of her mouth.

Melissa entered the room, balancing a steaming cup of coffee in one hand. “Filled it too full.” She blew at the steam and sipped. “Mmmm, you don’t know what you’re missing.”

Paul entered carrying two cups.

The aroma of coffee filled the air, warming the room and tempting Nick. “Special Agent Jensen and I will take the midnight to dawn shift.”

“Sounds good.” Setting one of the coffee cups on the table, Paul sipped at the other.

Brenna glanced at her watch, her lips twisting into a frown. “I need to make an appearance at my sister’s house for a quick dinner.” She looked up at him. “Really, I don’t need you to come with me. I’ll be at her house the entire time. I can give you the address and everything.”

“I’m coming,” he said, his voice brooking no argument. “And don’t worry, your mother won’t bother me. I’ll just pretend she’s my mother.”

Brenna grinned. “Oh, she’ll love that.”

“It’ll be fine. We could use a break from the case, and a home-cooked meal is just the ticket.”

Paul’s head came up. “Home-cooked meal? Where?”

“Yeah, where?” Melissa chimed in.

“My sister’s house,” Brenna said.

“Forget it.” Nick gave Paul and Melissa a narrow look. “I’m taking her.”

“You get all the cushy assignments.” Melissa glanced at Paul. “Heads, we call out for pizza—tails, we go for Chinese.”

“I’ll flip.” Paul pulled a coin from his pocket and tossed it into the air. Then he slammed it against his wrist. “Damn. I’m going to have heartburn the rest of the night.”

Melissa grinned. “Pizza, it is!” She moved toward the door. “We’ll be positioned outside the bistro. If you need us, you know how to get us.” She patted the cell phone on her hip and turned to Paul. “You buyin’?”

Paul raised his hands. “No way. I’m all over women’s rights. Besides, I don’t pay for heartburn.”

Melissa laughed. “You’re just sore you didn’t win.”

Brenna chuckled as the two exited the room to make the call for their pizza delivery.

The sound left a warm feeling inside Nick’s chest. “You should laugh more often.”

Her chuckling ceased, and a frown settled over her forehead. “If I had more to laugh about, I might. Come on. We better get moving. I don’t want to be late to my sister’s. She and Stan are into punctuality.”

“What did you say your brother-in-law does?”

Brenna shrugged into her coat. “He owns a communications firm, and he’s the deacon at their church.”

“And your sister?”

“She’s a stay-at-home mom and consummate volunteer.”

Nick loosened his collar, already working on his departure speech for right after dinner. “Sounds like an interesting couple.”

“You’ll love them,” Brenna said, her tone flat. “They’re perfect.”

“That’s what I was afraid of.” He slung his jacket over his shoulders and shoved his hands into the sleeves. “Maybe they could shed a little light on the people they know.”

“Actually, we should ask Stan about the Ethernet cable. He deals in that kind of stuff. He might have an idea where we should look.”