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CHAPTER FOURTEEN

T he following morning, Wade pored over the files once more. This time he focused on the victims’ financial data. He needed to find something to tie all of the victims together. If he could do that, it might lead him back to the killer. That was his theory, anyway.

He found some charges for a grocery store where three of the victims had stopped weeks before their deaths. It was probably nothing. Then he noticed two of the victims went to the same hair salon, but it wasn’t enough.

While studying Genevieve Adams’ file, he found a donation to Senator Martin’s campaign. Plenty of people contributed to political campaigns, so it was likely nothing, but he checked and saw that Lorraine Moore donated too. After checking all five files, he realized every one of them gave money. There had to be a connection.

Maybe it was the guy taking the donations or another staff member of the senator’s. Wade struggled to write off Gary Swartz’ interactions with the victims as mere coincidence, yet he could see how they might be just that. But his gut wouldn’t let him do the same with the donations. He was certain he was on the right trail with them.

When Wade entered the office, Jamie was leaning back in her chair staring at the ceiling.

“What are you doing?”

She sat up and made eye contact. “Do you think the killer works at the park? Maybe a maintenance guy or a cashier in the snack shop?”

“The idea crossed my mind. What makes you ask?” Wade raised an eyebrow.

“I was studying the proximity of each of the victims to each of the other victims again, and it makes the most sense that the killer either works at the park or lives nearby. The park has numerous employees and volunteers, so we could take another look,” she said.

“I hadn’t even considered volunteers.” He pinched the bridge of his nose.

“He could also work someplace near the park.”

“True,” he said. “I take it you don’t think Parsons is the killer?”

“No. I don’t. And neither do you.” She sipped her coffee. “If you believed the killer was in jail, Emily wouldn’t still be staying at your place.”

“I’m beginning to think it’s a mistake for her to stay with me, anyway.” He took a drink of coffee and made a face.

“You should know better than to drink that sludge.”

“I should, yes.” He pushed his cup away. “I do have a theory I want to explore further.”

“What’s that?”

“While studying their files yesterday, I discovered all five victims donated to Senator Martin’s campaign.”

“That’s flimsy at best.”

“I know, but my gut tells me it’s more than mere coincidence.”

“Let’s examine those contributions then. I don’t think we’ll get a judge to issue a warrant for Senator Martin’s records to find out who first received the information for their donations, but maybe she’ll cooperate willingly.”

“Maybe. For all we know, the funds were paid online or over the phone. I saw the credit card statements with the notation, but I can’t tell which method they used to give. We can ask the lieutenant to call her. They have a good working relationship.”

“Or better yet, we could ask her nephew or her son.”

“Maybe we should rule them out first.”

“You don’t think either of them could be involved, do you?”

He sighed. “It’s unlikely, but I’m not willing to rule them out entirely. I doubt either of them would’ve been in charge of collecting donations.”

“Did you notice the amounts of the donations?”

“I wasn’t paying close attention to amounts, but I’m thinking they were all around a thousand dollars. I can check.”

“Hmmm.”

“What?”

“Remember the picture from the gala on Mary Van Britton’s profile?”

“Yeah.”

“Could the donations somehow be linked to her gala?”

“Like a ticket cost?”

“Exactly. I don’t know how her invitations are issued, but I wonder if it has something to do with donations over a certain threshold.”

“That’s a good question.” He sighed. “We need to speak with the senator again.”

“Let’s talk to the lieutenant before we go ruffling feathers.”

Wade glanced at his watch. Ten teenagers were assembled outside of the church awaiting transportation to the aerial adventure park. Fifteen permission slips had been turned in, so he’d wait another five minutes in case some parents were running late. He smiled down at Emily. “Do you mind if we wait another few minutes? I don’t want any of the kids to miss out because their parents didn’t get them here on time.”

“I’m happy to wait.” As she said the words, two more cars turned into the lot and let out the remaining five kids. “That didn’t take long at all.”

“I was always one of those kids who ran a few minutes late for everything. My parents couldn’t seem to get out of the house on time.”

“I remember.”

After waving to the parents dropping off their children, Wade opened the bus doors and took his spot in the driver’s seat. The kids made their way inside and Emily followed, dropping into the last remaining spot behind him to his right.

When they arrived at the park, a guide showed them around and then led them through the activities. After working through the ropes course, they reached the zipline. He watched as Emily demonstrated to a thirteen-year-old girl how to put on her harness. She had a way of talking to the kids in the same manner she would use to talk to an adult. Her method of relating to them worked well. He might consider trying it out himself.

When lunch rolled around, he grabbed for her hand. He pulled her gently to him and kissed the top of her head. “I’m glad you came with us today.”

“Thanks for inviting me. It’s been fun.” Her eyes sparkled like emeralds in the bright sunlight.

They made their way to a picnic table and sat. He opened their bagged lunches, and they ate in comfortable silence.

After the meal, he rose. “It’s time to get the kids rounded up for the next activity.”

The adventure park team was assembled near the river with tubes at the ready. He winked at Emily. “Remember the last time we went tubing?”

“Nora came with us. It was the summer before she disappeared. Back before you enlisted.”

He could practically see her shields go up. “I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

“It’s fine.” She carried her tube to the edge of the river. “It’s a good memory.” Emily didn’t say much as they floated down the river with the teens.

When the adventure park bus brought them back to the parking lot, he waited for the kids to load into the church bus before approaching her again. He put his arm around her shoulders, and she stiffened. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No. Everything’s fine.”

She’d been enjoying the day until he’d brought up the past. Was a future together possible when he couldn’t mention their history without causing tension? “You don’t seem fine.”

He’d been planning on taking her out for a romantic dinner but elected to skip it. There was no point. She was in no mood for romance.

Pete sauntered over. “Hello there, Detective.”

She glanced down at her phone and then shoved it in her pocket.

“Working on a Saturday?” he asked.

“Putting in a few hours.” She pushed her shades up and studied him. “Long time no see.”

“I’ve been around. You’re the one who disappeared.”

“Honeymoon.”

“Your husband is a lucky man,” he said.

“I keep telling him so.” She grinned.

“You back here for a reason?”

“Following up on leads.”

“Anything I can help with?”

“I hope so.” She leaned back against her car. “We got a printout of park employees and volunteers, but I’d like more information about their personalities and habits.”

“Why don’t we sit down and talk over suspects?”

“I was going to head home soon, but Ty texted that he’s working late, so I could hang around a while.”

“Did you bring that list? We can go over it. She pulled it up on her phone. “What do you know about Jerry in maintenance.”

“From what I heard he’s a quiet guy. Mostly keeps to himself.”

“And Austin Crowley?”

“A little too self-assured but works hard.”

She went down the list until they’d gone over each person on it. “While I have you here, can you answer a question about your mother’s gala?”

“What about it?”

“Are invitations issued based on donations?”

“I don’t believe so, no.”

“Oh.”

“Do you attend those galas?”

“That is one commitment, I haven’t found a way to escape. At least not yet.”

“The price of being a politician’s only son, I suppose?”

“Exactly.”

“Thanks for answering my questions.” Jamie glanced at her watch. “I’d better get going.”

He walked her to her sedan. “Okay. You take care now.”

After waiting for her to pull out of the drive, Pete climbed into his truck and followed at a safe distance. He had to make sure she didn’t realize she was being tailed.

When she turned down her long driveway, he pulled off onto the side of the road, grabbed his binoculars, and proceeded on foot. He would lose the element of surprise if he drove in. When he reached the house, he watched through the windows. Most of the curtains were open. A luxury afforded to those who had the cover of woods to protect them from prying eyes, but tonight was different. Tonight, he was here to make sure she made it back to his place in time for their date. They would spend one decadent week together. They couldn’t stay forever. A week was the perfect amount of time.

Wade stopped at a diner on the way back to his place. There was no way the establishment could be mistaken as romantic in any way, shape, or form. Bells jangled over the door when he opened it, and he held it until Emily was inside. They found a seat in a corner booth, and the server brought them laminated menus and took their drink orders.

They ordered when the waitress returned with their drinks.

Wade looked out the window instead of across the table at Emily. He couldn’t bear to look into her eyes.

“I didn’t intend to increase the tension between us,” she said.

He turned toward her and watched as she unrolled the napkin from around her silverware and placed it on her lap. “No, it’s my fault.” His work cell buzzed, so he pulled it out and glanced at it. “It’s Jamie. Give me a sec.”

“What’s up, Jamie?”

The voice on the other end of the line wasn’t Jamie. It was her husband, Ty.

“I’ll be there as quickly as I can. I need to drop Emily off at the house first.” He disconnected the call and tossed cash on the table.

“What’s going on?”

“That was Ty. Jamie wasn’t home when he arrived, but her car was in the driveway. There were signs of a struggle in the bedroom.”

“I’ll go with you. Maybe I can help.” She followed him to his truck and hopped into the passenger seat.

“Are you sure? It could take some time.”

“You don’t have time to go out of your way to take me back to your place. Besides, I want to help get Jamie home safely.”

“She’s always alert and ready for anything.”

“Those instincts will help her survive this ordeal.” Emily’s face paled. “Did this happen because he couldn’t get to me? Is that why he picked on Jamie?”

“Let’s not jump to conclusions, Em. It might not be the same guy.”

“We both know it is.”

“First we investigate. Then we follow leads.” He scowled. “Conjecture is frowned upon.”

“Of course, sir.” She saluted him.

They found Ty pacing in the driveway when they arrived. There were two patrol cars on scene.

“Where are the troopers?” Wade asked.

“Upstairs.”

Wade placed a hand on his shoulder. “We’ll find her.” He hoped they’d be able to bring her back alive. Silently, he lifted a prayer to the Lord on behalf of Jamie. And Ty. Only the Lord could bring peace in a circumstance this dire.

“Please do.” Ty’s voice came out thin and shaky

. His fear was evident. “Those officers think I had something to do with this.”

“It’s standard procedure to question a spouse. Don’t worry. The truth will come out.”

“Go find her and bring her home.”

“That’s the plan.”

Emily made eye contact. “I’ll stay with Ty. You should talk to the state troopers.”

“I’ll be back.” Upstairs, Wade found them documenting the scene. “Call in the crime-scene investigators.”

“You think we need them? This looks pretty cut and dry.”

“Jamie and I are working a serial killer case. She fits his victim profile.”

The larger of the two officers stuck his thumbs in his belt and stretched. “The husband looks guilty.”

“We will investigate every possibility.”

“You arrested your serial killer.”

“We arrested a single suspect on an unrelated charge, but he wasn’t our sole suspect.”

“The news didn’t mention that.”

“We don’t share all the details of an active investigation with the public,” he growled. “Let’s collect evidence before jumping to conclusions.”

Wade headed back downstairs and found a quiet place out back from which to call his lieutenant. Mac was going to freak.

Pete heard her struggling in the trunk. She shouldn't be awake yet. His victims always remained unconscious longer. Punching the steering wheel, he swore under his breath and slowed the car. As he made a turn onto a dirt road, his trunk popped open, and Jamie tumbled out. Before he could slam on the brakes, she was limping off toward the woods.

He braked and jumped out of his car. She’d appeared injured when he’d seen her in the rear-view mirror, so she couldn’t have gotten far. Her tracks would be easy to locate before darkness descended.

He listened carefully for the sound of her steps, but heard nothing. Only silence greeted him. She was smarter than he'd realized. If he didn't find her before dark, she'd escape his clutches. If she did that, she would point he finger at him, and he wouldn't be able to stay in Pennsylvania. He’d need a new identity and a new hunting grounds because the world would know his secret. Sooner or later, he’d get caught.

It was exciting. The idea of receiving credit for his work. He would need a new base of operations. Somewhere where he wouldn't be discovered.

His grandfather's farm had been perfect, but it wouldn’t take long for them to discover it if Jamie escaped. As the thought went through his mind, he saw movement in the distance. I’ve got you now.