Page 80 of Devil's Hour
Imelda stepped forward and cupped Royce’s face. “Thank you for saving Sawyer. I don’t just mean from the fire.”
Royce’s first instinct was to deny he’d saved Sawyer from anything, but even Sawyer had told him he’d just been passing through life instead of living it. “I think we saved each other,” Royce said instead.
“I’ve been praying for you to come along, Royce Locke. I cannot begin to tell you how happy it makes me to hear joy in his voice again. Even though you don’t need it, I want to give you my blessing.”
Tears stung his eyes, and he let them fall unchecked. His biggest fear was not being able to live up to her son, and he’d still harbored resentment that he’d never get Vic’s blessing to love Sawyer the way Felix had. This right here, it was the next best thing. Sawyer adored Imelda, and to have her approval meant a lot to him.
“That goes for me too,” Vic Sr. said, clasping his shoulders.
“Thank you both.”
The following day brought a lot of visitors who wanted to pop in and say hello to Sawyer, including Diego and Levi, who made a cute couple. The visitors lifted Sawyer’s spirits, even if he touched his bandaged hands to his face self-consciously. Every time he saw worry in Sawyer’s eyes, Royce reminded him that he loved his heart, and Sawyer was his home.
The Rigbys were the final visitors that day. By the time they arrived, Evangeline and Royce were the last two in the waiting room after sending everyone home.
“Do you mind if I chat with Royce privately for a minute?” Rigby asked Evangeline.
“Of course not. I’ll take Sherry back to visit Sawyer while you chat with Royce.” She looped her arm through Sherry’s, and they walked back into the unit.
“I’m sorry I missed the press conference. Congratulations, Commish.”
“Thanks, Locke. I just wish it were under better circumstances.”
“It was always going to be you, but Philips’s resignation made it happen sooner.” Royce took a deep breath. “What happened with the case?” He’d had a lot of downtime and thought he’d pieced most of it together but wanted to hear what they’d found in his absence.
“Father David was secretly recording confessions to either blackmail his parishioners into helping him or using it against them.”
“Sick bastard.”
“We found dozens of those tiny cassette tapes that fit in pocket recorders. I didn’t know they still made those. He’d written his victims’ names and dates of confessions on each one. Anyway, regarding Lynette, she confirmed to me she had confessed her affair with Ryan to Father David. Between the two of us, she told me that her marriage to Skip was in name only and had been since the girls were born. She’s…”
“His beard,” Royce supplied, not sounding a bit surprised.
“Yes.” Rigby nodded. “He said he doesn’t want to come out because it would kill his elderly grandparents, but Lynette said he’s more concerned about getting cut out of the will.”Call Me Skip was a real piece of work.“One of the young escorts had confessed to Father David about her illegal job. He used that to exploit her and the other sex workers after he hired Mr. Bradford to hack McGraw’s computers, phones, and email.”
“What did the priest have on him?”
“He had confessed to hacking into his university’s computers to change his grades. If the school ever found out, he would be expelled, and no other college would admit him. He knew his chances of gainful employment would be nil if that ever happened.”
Royce nodded. “What’s going to happen to him?” The kid could’ve bolted when Royce needed help, but he didn’t. Even though he did some shitty things, prison wasn’t the place for him.
“Referred him to Jonah, of course,” Rigby said. “The kid needs to use his skill for the greater good.”
“I agree.” He tipped his head. “How the hell did Father David meet John Bennett?”
“His therapy sessions were held at Holy Trinity. The counselor was also one of the escorts he exposed. He coerced the confidential information from her so he could approach the arsonist he thought would be most likely to help him. But the bastard was so charismatic, he made these people believe he was helping them, and they could join his mission to make the world a better place.”
“Like all the other cult leaders, he wasn’t teaching God’s love; he was trying to become a god.”
“Yes.” Rigby released a sigh. “I made sure all of those tapes were destroyed, except for one.” She reached inside her pocket and pulled out a cassette box withMarcus Wilkeswritten on top. “I thought you might want this. I know you want answers, and maybe you’ll find them here.”
Slipping the cassette in his pocket, he asked, “Did you listen to it?”
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “Whether you do or not is up to you. I do know IA has cleared Marcus, and Candi will be receiving her benefits. I don’t know how long it usually takes for claims to process, but I will ride someone’s ass daily until she has her money.”
Royce snorted. He almost felt sorry for the person in benefits assigned to process the claim. “That’s great news. Thank you, ma’am.”
“I’m afraid that’s where the good news ends.” Royce braced himself. “No one found the missing evidence and Babineaux is almost out of time, which means Humphries will walk.”