Page 61 of Last Girls Alive

“Then why don’t you ask me what you really want to know. Not just this bullshit line of questioning.”

“Very well, Mr. Keller. How well did you know Candace Harlan? And how many times did you have sex with her?”

The room was silent. Katie knew she had hit a nerve, but wasn’t proud of how she had to speak on the same level as Keller to get an answer.

“Answer the question, Keller,” said McGaven. His voice cut through the stillness of the room.

Keller fidgeted in his chair and was clearly deciding what he should or shouldn’t say. He finally said, “Yes, I knew Candace Harlan, as well as the other girls, but I can’t remember their names off the top of my head. It was always the same when I would arrive. Girls screaming about no privacy and how Shelly mistreated them. There was no proof, no bruises, no blood. They were a pain in the ass if you ask me.”

Katie leaned closer to Keller and said, “And did you or did you not have sex with Candace Harlan?”

“I don’t know what you want from me.”

“The truth.”

“Truth? That’s funny. You only want to put my head on the block so you can close your investigation. I got news for you, sweetheart, I didn’t kill anyone.”

Katie gritted her teeth and said, “That’s not what I asked.” Staring him square in the eye, she asked, “So, abuse and rape of an underage girl, that’s more your speed?”

He lunged forward. Katie didn’t flinch.

“Are we getting close to the truth now?” she said.

“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, falling back into his chair and looking away.

Katie asked the question again, but he was done talking.

“That how you’re going to play it? You have some wonderful things coming your way,” she said as she stood up and left the small meeting room followed closely by McGaven.

After the door closed behind them, McGaven said, “Do you think that was the best way to handle things?”

“You really think he was going to answer any of my questions?” she asked. “I wanted to see his reactions, and I got what we needed.”

McGaven thought about what she said but didn’t say anything.

A correctional officer approached them, “Hey, just to let you guys know. Keller is getting out—his bail has been made.”

Another officer approached, entered the room and escorted Keller to begin the paperwork process.

Katie was disappointed, but she had bought them some time. She still didn’t believe that Keller was the killer—but she had been fooled before. As Hugh Keller passed by he locked eyes with Katie, licked his lips, and blew her a kiss.

All Katie could do was watch him leave.

Twenty-Eight

Friday 1805 hours

Katie didn’t want to go home, but she also didn’t want to be alone. She stood on Chad’s porch in the rain waiting for him—she had forgotten that he was working his twenty-four-hour shift. After calling him at work, he had sensed her stress, so he had someone cover part of his shift and was on his way to his house to meet her.

As the rain poured harder, all Katie could do was wait. She stood pressed against his front door as the water drenched her clothes and matted down her hair. The last two days had run endless loops of recall through her mind until the memories took on a more sinister tone. She didn’t know if it were side effects from post-traumatic stress, her denial of dealing with certain experiences, or just the fact that she was juggling too many things, but the trauma kept coming.

Her behavior had taken an unprofessional turn—going into the bar alone had been reckless and out of character for her. The last thing she wanted was to compromise the investigation. Too many innocent lives depended on her catching this killer.

Shivering in the rain, Katie could smell fresh paint and adhesives that Chad must have used to fix something recently. She saw a few new potted plants on the walkway and realized that he was really working hard to fix up the cottage.

Headlights blinded her as Chad drove his large Jeep up the driveway with the windshield wipers on high. The lights quickly dimmed. The engine stopped. She watched Chad’s outline as he jumped out of the vehicle.

“Katie,” he said and rushed to her. “You okay?”