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CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

NOAH WATCHED AS the taillights of Melanie Raines’ car faded in the distance. He turned to Violet. “I know your first instinct is to track down Hanson and find out if he talked to Camilla.”

“You bet it is. Why didn’t he say something at the visitation? He could have told me he’d talked to Cami.”

“Let’s go back to the hotel and regroup. You’re exhausted, baby. Rest tonight and we’ll talk to Hanson tomorrow. In the meantime, we’ll dig into his background before we confront him.”

Violet’s hands fisted. “I don’t want to wait, but I know you’re right. If he’s involved in Cami’s death, I’m afraid he’ll run.”

He captured her chin with his palm and tilted her face up to his. “If he runs, we’ll run him to ground. You have my word.”

She stared up at him for a moment, then kissed him. “Thank you.”

The knot in his stomach loosened. Noah helped Violet into the SUV and soon the operatives were on their way to the hotel.

An hour later, Grant parked in the underground garage. They took the stairs to their floor, and Noah checked the suite again for bugs and cameras. “We’re clear.”

The operatives migrated to the sitting room. “Are you hungry, Violet?”

“A little. I’m more tired than anything.”

Grant grabbed the room service menu and scanned the options. “What about a grilled cheese sandwich? That always hits the spot for me when I need a lighter meal.”

Violet looked thoughtful. “That sounds good. I’d love tomato soup, too.”

“You got it.” Grant looked at the rest of them. “Same for the rest of you?”

“I’m in,” Rayne said. “I could use comfort food.”

Noah signaled for his friend to call in the order, then turned to Violet. He cupped her cheek and bent to kiss her. “Go change into comfortable clothes. We’ll talk when you return.”

“Come on,” Rayne said. “I’m ready to change shoes. I miss my tactical boots.”

Violet laughed. “Same here.”

After the women went into the other room, Grant glanced at the room service menu again. “Want me to order dessert?”

“Yeah. Since Violet is craving comfort food, let’s go with ice cream sundaes all around.”

“Perfect.” Grant called in the order, then said, “Forty minutes for delivery. You should change clothes yourself. I doubt you want to take a watch shift in your suit.”

“Not my first choice, no.” He headed for the other bedroom. “I’ll be back in a minute.”

Grant saluted.

Noah took an extra two minutes to shower before dragging on fresh clothes. Military training definitely had some advantages. Quick showers was one of them.

Clad in the standard Fortress uniform of a black long-sleeved t-shirt, black cargo pants, and tactical boots, Noah returned to the sitting room. “Anything unusual?” he asked Grant, who had stationed himself by the French doors.

His teammate glanced at him, frowning. “Maybe. Might be nothing.”

“What is it?” Noah joined him at the balcony doors. He saw nothing different from the last time he’d surveyed the hotel grounds.

“A black SUV with darkened windows has circled the block three times in ten minutes. Like I said, it may be something or nothing more than someone looking for a parking space.”

“I’ve got this. Go change before our food arrives.”

“I won’t be long.”

Noah kept watch for several minutes until Violet and Rayne returned to the sitting room.

“Is something wrong?” Violet asked as she rested her hand on Noah’s back.

“Grant spotted a suspicious vehicle. I’ve been watching for it for the past few minutes.”

“Do you think they found us?”

He turned and wrapped his arms around her. “Not sure, but I don’t like anything out of the ordinary, especially now.” Noah brushed his lips over hers. “Try not to worry. We’ll keep our eyes open and take action if necessary.”

She sighed. “I didn’t notice a tail when we left Morrison.”

“Neither did I. Doesn’t mean we didn’t have one.” Noah made it a practice to always be truthful with himself, and he’d been distracted with worry about the woman he loved. It was possible he’d missed a tail. “If we missed a tail, we’ll deal with it.”

Minutes later, Grant answered a knock at the door. He and Noah brought in the loaded serving carts.

Violet smiled. “I don’t remember asking for ice cream sundaes.”

“That’s funny.” Grant winked at her. “Noah was sure you’d asked for a sundae. I suppose I can suffer for the cause and eat yours, too.”

“No way, buster. Now that I think about it, ice cream is the perfect after dinner chaser.”

“Well, I’ll be available if you need a hand with the dessert.”

Noah set the plates and soup bowls on the breakfast bar, along with the utensils. “We should eat while the sandwiches and soup are hot.”

Within minutes, the plates and bowls were empty, and Grant distributed the sundaes to his teammates. “Dig in. They’re melting.”

When the dessert dishes were empty, Noah said, “I’ve got the watch. Grant and Rayne, get some rest.”

“Wake me if you need me.” Grant walked Rayne to her room, pressed a light kiss to her mouth, then nudged her inside the room. After she closed the door, Grant gave a quick nod to Noah and Violet and went to the other bedroom.

“That was interesting,” Violet murmured.

“Oh, yeah.” He chuckled. “I can’t wait for the rest of our teammates to see their interaction. I think something more is going on between them than Grant or Rayne will admit. Should be fun to watch.”

Noah held out his hand. “Sit with me for a while.” When she slipped her hand into his, he led Violet to the couch and tugged her down to sit beside him.

“You don’t want to confront Jeff Hanson tonight, do you?”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulled her against his side, and kissed her temple. “I meant what I said to Melanie Raines. We’re not leaving Morrison until Camilla’s killer is behind bars or six feet under the ground. We have time for you to rest and regroup. Tomorrow will be difficult, so tonight I want you to take the time you need to grieve and build up your strength. If Hanson is guilty and runs, we’ll find him.”

Violet leaned her head against Noah’s shoulder. “I don’t know what to think about Jeff. I was so sure the killer was a cop.”

“I feel the same way, but we have no proof, only Lauren’s belief it’s a cop. Either a lawyer involved in the case or a cop with access to the records could have leaked the information to the killer. We need proof or a confession.”

“What does your gut say?”

“It’s interesting that the Hansons keep popping up in our inquiries.”

“And the chief is very involved with Rosalie.”

“That is a complication.” He looked down at her upturned face. “If Chief Hanson is involved in the deaths of these women, including Camilla, people may accuse you of targeting him to get back at your aunt for the way she treated you and your sister.”

“Most people think Rosalie was an angel for taking in two orphans and raising them without financial help. They wouldn’t have heard anything different from Cami. She was careful not to bad mouth Rosalie.”

“You remember Mrs. White is part of the quilting circle.”

She blinked. “So?”

“Their reputation as the center of the grapevine is based on truth.”

Violet stared at him a moment, then sighed. “Ugh. I didn’t think about that. Mrs. White is one of our staunchest defenders.”

“Which means she wouldn’t let Rosalie’s lies go unchallenged. She loves you, babe.”

“You’re right. Camilla and I wouldn’t have made it on our own without her. If anyone paid attention to us in the past, they know she’s one of the most important people in my life. I don’t want the killer to target her.”

“I don’t think you need to worry. If the killer sticks to his pattern, he’ll choose young, beautiful women. While Mrs. White is gorgeous, she doesn’t fit the profile.”

“The sooner we identify him, the better I’ll feel.”

They sat in silence for a while. Noah enjoyed holding his future wife. “You’re tired, Violet. You need to sleep.”

“Will I disturb you if I stay out here?”

His heart squeezed. “Of course not.” Noah snatched up the blanket and pillow Violet used the night before and urged her to stretch out on the sofa. He covered her with the blanket and kissed her gently. “Sleep. I’ll be close if you need me.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Research.”

“On what?”

“If it pans out, I’ll tell you in the morning.” He might need some help from the Fortress tech squad to run down alibis on the murder dates, though. His information search would cover a lot of ground in the few hours he’d be on shift. Perhaps Grant could finish the research.

“I love you, Noah,” Violet murmured.

“Love you, too, sweetheart.” After giving her another brief kiss, Noah picked up his laptop, sat at the breakfast bar, and dove into his work.

At two o’clock, Grant walked into the sitting room. When he saw Violet asleep on the sofa, his eyebrows rose. “She okay?” he whispered.

Noah nodded. “Didn’t want to sleep in the other room. Come look at this,” he murmured.

“What do you have?”

“Timelines for the Hansons and the murders or disappearances.”

Grant sat beside Noah and studied the screen in silence. He frowned as he scrolled down, reading the information Noah had amassed. Finally, Grant sat back and looked at Noah. “Fitz isn’t our man.”

Noah shook his head. “He has an alibi for every murder.”

“That leaves the other two Hanson men as possible culprits. At least one of them has an alibi for each murder or the time when the other women went missing.”

“What does that tell us?”

“We’ve got nothing,” he muttered.

“This is circumstantial,” Noah admitted. “But think about when the murders and disappearances started and the timing of each one.”

Grant was silent a moment. “We already know the murders started during Violet’s senior year. What am I missing?”

“Chief Hanson has alibis for half of the murders and disappearances.”

His teammate blew out a breath. “And the lawyer has alibis for the other murders and disappearances.”

“What’s that tell you?”

“Either we have a stunning coincidence, or the two men are working together.”

“Is Jeff protecting his father?” Violet asked.

Both men turned toward her.

“Why do you think that is what’s happening here?” Grant asked.

“I heard what you said earlier. The murders started after Mrs. Hanson left. Noah, have you checked the dates that Jeff came home to visit his family? Do they coincide with the murders that Chief Hanson has alibis for?”

“I haven’t confirmed that yet. Give me a few minutes.”

Violet stood. “I’ll make more coffee.”

“Thanks, sweetheart.”

When she drew near, Violet paused and brushed a light kiss over Noah’s lips, then continued to the small kitchen where she prepped the coffeemaker. Once the brew began dripping into the carafe, she said, “I’ll be back in a few minutes. I need a shower to clear the cobwebs from my brain.”

“Take your time,” Noah murmured. “Today will be a long, grueling ordeal. Take this time to prepare yourself mentally for what’s ahead.”

She nodded and went into the bedroom.

He turned back to his computer and angled the screen so Grant could see the information as well. After running a search, he sat back.

Grant whistled softly. “Violet might be right. Jeff could be helping his father to protect him. Depends on how you spin the story.” He glanced at Noah. “But I don’t think that’s the case, not after this many years of killing women. I believe the lawyer developed a taste for murder. We still don’t have any proof, though.”

“Now that we know what we’re looking for, we can narrow the search.”

“We need Zane’s help with this, buddy. Tracking down the proof we need will take us too long, especially since we’ll be tied up most of the day with Camilla’s funeral.”

His friend was right. Not only would they be busy today, Noah’s attention would focus almost entirely on Violet and what she needed. He should hand off the detailed search to Zane. He had the computer programs and time to find incontrovertible proof that one of the Hansons had murdered Camilla.

Noah’s lip curled. Unless he was wrong. He considered that for a moment and dismissed it. Too many things added up to at least one of the Hansons being the perp.

Rayne left the bedroom and closed the door behind her. “Violet said you know who has been murdering the women.”

“We have suspicions without proof,” Grant said.

“Well, don’t keep it a secret. Who is it?”

“James or Jeff Hanson, or both of them.”

She stared. “They’re working together?”

Grant summarized what they’d discovered, and what they still needed to know.

Rayne scowled. “If our teams were here, we could turn Riley loose and uncover that information faster. Zane has too many responsibilities as it is.”

“Our teams needed Riley with them.” Noah picked up his phone and sent Zane a text explaining what he needed. If the tech guru was sleeping, Noah didn’t want to wake him. Z would set the searches to run as soon as he woke. To his surprise, Noah received a response seconds later.

Grant’s eyebrows shot up. “He’s awake?”

“Yep. He’ll set the searches to run and get back to us with the results as soon as they’re finished.”

Rayne shook her head. “That man never sleeps.”

Another message from Zane came in. This one brought a smile to Noah’s face. He turned his phone around to show his teammates the photo of Zane holding his sleeping son. “This is why Zane’s awake. His son had a nightmare and needed Z to protect him from the monsters.”

“Oh, he’s growing so fast,” Rayne murmured. “If I have children someday, I hope they’re this cute.”

Although he remained silent, Grant’s gaze shot to Rayne with a laser’s focus. “You want kids?”

She nodded. “Children are a gift.”

And that was something else Noah and Violet hadn’t discussed yet. Children. He wanted several, but did the love of his life want them, too?

Grant strode into the kitchen, poured three mugs of coffee, and handed one each to Rayne and Noah. “What’s the game plan for today?”

“We make sure Violet is never alone for any reason.”

“You think the killer will target her at the funeral?”

“It’s a possibility we should plan for.”

Grant frowned. “I don’t know. Too many witnesses around to be an easy grab-and-run operation.”

“We’ve done it.”

“We have more than standard law enforcement training. The biggest crime spree Morrison has seen is probably because of the Hansons.”

“My point exactly. No question that the Hansons will be at the funeral. If we’re right in our belief that these men are to blame for the murders, it wouldn’t take much to take advantage of the chaos.”

“We won’t let that happen,” Rayne said.

He believed his teammates would watch over Violet. So why couldn’t he get rid of the ball of ice in his stomach, the one telling him that the enemy was closing in and his future wife was in grave danger?

The bedroom door opened, and Violet walked into the sitting room. “What did I miss?”

Before Noah could answer, the fire alarm went off. He and his teammates exchanged glances. “Coincidence?”

Grant scowled. “I don’t like it.”

Neither did Noah.

“Could be a drill.” Rayne set down her empty coffee mug.

“We can’t take that chance.” Violet retraced her steps to the bedroom and returned seconds later with her mike bag over her shoulder. “In case a guest is injured during the evacuation.”

Noah checked his weapon and slid it into his holster. “Let’s go. Stay close.” He opened the door a crack to check the hallway. Guests streamed toward the elevator in various states of dress.

He stepped into the hall and raised his voice. “Use the stairs. The elevators aren’t safe in a fire.”

Many people paused, then changed directions. A few stopped at the elevator and pressed the call button.

Noah reminded himself that he didn’t have a badge anymore. He couldn’t insist they use the stairs for safety.

He and his teammates joined the guests heading toward the stairwell. During the trek to the lobby, Noah kept his hand wrapped around Violet’s, alert for trouble.

When they reached the lobby and exited the hotel, Noah quartered the area as he urged Violet and the others toward the stretch of woods across the street from the east side of the hotel where many other guests gathered.

A high-pitched scream filled the air, followed by a child’s sobs.

A few yards away in the opposite direction, a fight broke out between two men who yelled profanities at each other as they threw punches and rolled on the ground to gain the advantage.

“I need to check on the child,” Violet said.

Of course she did. Her healer’s heart wouldn’t allow anything different. Another glance at the two combatants told Noah he’d have to help Grant separate the two idiots still slugging away at each other. Rayne might have been a cop, but these men were obviously high on a drug, which made them doubly dangerous. “Rayne, go with Violet. Stay sharp.”

She nodded and walked with the medic.

Noah glanced at Grant and sighed. “Come on. Let’s settle these guys down before Violet has two more patients to treat.”

“Hope the cops and firefighters show up soon. This is one reason I haven’t missed being a cop.”

“Same.”

He and Grant waded into the fray and separated the two men shouting profanities at each other. “Knock it off,” Noah snapped. “We’ve got families with kids out here. They don’t need to see you throwing punches at each other or listen to your foul language.”

The six-foot man with serious muscle attempted to lunge at the man in Grant’s grasp. “He’s a no-good wife stealer.”

“Liar,” the other man shouted.

“Don’t care what your problem is, buddy.” Noah adjusted his hold. “If you and the other guy want to throw punches at each other, wait until all these hotel guests are back inside with their families.” He tightened his grip. “Understand?”

Muscle groaned. “Yeah, man, I got it.”

“Good.” He shoved Muscle away from him and pointed to a tree ten feet away. “Sit there and keep your mouth closed. Don’t even look at the other guy.”

Grant stiffened, color draining from his face. “Noah.” He inclined his head toward the other side of the crowd.

He spun, his gaze shooting to Violet.

She stood at the edge of the crowd, almost in the tree line, hands raised. White-faced, Violet looked at Noah, her expression a mask of fear.

Several guests finally realized something was amiss and scrambled away from Violet and Rayne. A young child and her mother were at Violet’s feet, the mother covering as much of the child’s body as she could. Rayne’s weapon was rock-steady, muzzle pointed at Jeff Hanson who had a Sig’s barrel pressed against Violet’s temple.

Noah palmed his weapon and used a hand signal to communicate with Grant as he maneuvered through the crowd hurrying to escape the danger. “Let her go, Hanson,” Noah snapped.

The lawyer sneered. “I don’t think so, Mann. You have more immediate problems than your girlfriend.”

“Got news for you. No one is more important to me than Violet. If you harm one hair on her head, I will kill you.”

“But your woman will still be dead.” Hanson used the muzzle to gesture toward Noah. “Bowen, get over there next to Mann. Make one wrong move, and I’ll shoot your girlfriend, too.”

A muscle in Noah’s jaw flexed. Not what he’d hoped would happen. Time to come up with another plan. “What do you want, Hanson?”

“For you to have stayed wherever you came from instead of muddying the waters in Morrison.”

He remained silent, praying Hanson would get to the point instead of wasting time. The last thing he wanted was for the local cops to get involved in this standoff. Noah didn’t know their training or skills. He needed to end this before anyone else got hurt, especially Violet.

“Since that’s not possible, I’m taking Violet with me. She and I will have a chat.”

“No,” Noah said flatly. “You’re not taking her.”

The lawyer snorted. “You don’t have a choice in the matter. I have the upper hand here. Besides, you’ll be too busy to stop me.”

Alarm flared through Noah. “Why do you say that? What have you done?”

“Planted two bombs.” He grinned. “One of them is on that sweet little girl in front of the beautiful Rayne. Too bad I don’t have time to play with Rayne, too. I think I’d enjoy using a knife on her.”

Oh, man. “Where is the second bomb?”

“In the hotel. I included enough C-4 to bring down the entire building. So if you want to save all these innocents, you better find the bomb and dismantle it.”

“Don’t do this, Hanson. You don’t want to hurt innocent kids.”

“I’ll do whatever is necessary to finish my job and get out of the country.” Hanson’s gaze slid to Rayne and pointed his Sig at her. “Sorry, darling.” He pulled the trigger.