Page 17 of The Last To Know (Hallowed Halls Series #2)

T he key slipped into the lock. He was home. Soon, his heavy footsteps lumbered down the hall.

The scent of pure evil permeated every molecule of her being, and the familiar dread settled in around her. It took all her strength to leave the comfort of her safe haven—the tiny space in her bedroom closet where she found a small amount of peace—to face him again.

She’d prayed. All day long while he’d been working, she’d spent the time on her knees until they ached. Numbness seeped up her legs. She’d begged and pleaded with God to kill him and end her pain. God had other things in mind. Other plans. Or maybe He was simply not in the business of answering the prayers of sinners.

◆◆◆

Darkness pressed in all around. Hannah fought back a scream. She could feel the woman’s fear as if it were her own.

“You okay?”

Hannah jerked toward Cooper’s voice. He watched her with fresh worry. As the nightmare faded, her breathing returned to normal. Reality replaced the woman’s fear. It wasn’t real. This was real. They were still in the vehicle heading back to the hotel.

The lulling of the ride had rocked her to sleep. Since she’d been out of it, the weather had worsened into all out-blizzard conditions .

“Yes, yes, I’m fine.” But she didn’t sound it.

“Are you sure? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

A haunt who lived in her dreams and who scratched and clawed for release into the real world. One day, she’d see him face-to-face and she’d have to kill him.

Hannah ignored Cooper’s statement and leaned forward. “It’s really coming down. How are you holding up? Do you need a break from driving?” Her voice still reflected the terror, and she struggled to disguise it from him.

She glanced over her shoulder to where Zeke busied himself on his laptop. He gave her a lopsided smile.

“I’m okay, but I’m ready to reach the hotel.”

She noted the death grip Cooper had on the steering wheel.

“How close are we?”

“Several miles still.” Zeke answered for Cooper.

As if to emphasize the danger facing them, the tires spun.

“I can barely see the road.” Cooper leaned forward. The Suburban hit a patch of ice and did a 360-degree spin.

Hannah screamed and grabbed for the hand grip near the door.

“Hang on,” Cooper yelled.

The SUV gained momentum within the spin. Whiteness flashed in a blur all around. A loud blast resounded through the deathly silent cab. One of the tires had blown, sending the vehicle careening toward the nearby woods. Each second chimed in time with Hannah’s frantic pulse.

A moment later, the SUV plowed into the deep snow near the edge of the road, slowing its speed but not enough to keep the vehicle from slamming into a grove of fir trees. The momentum of the crash sent Hannah lurching forward, straining against the restraint of her seatbelt.

The crash was over in seconds. The shock took longer to subside.

“Is everyone okay?” Cooper looked from her to Zeke.

Both managed to confirm.

The Suburban had stalled out on impact. Cooper tried several times to revive it without any luck. “We’ll need a wrecker to pull us out.”

“There’s no service.” Zeke held his phone in several positions with the same results.

The vehicle’s onboard emergency roadside assistance also failed to work.

“We’re stuck until the storm lets up and we can walk out, or until someone comes along.” Cooper blew out a frustrated sigh.

“And that could be hours in this type of weather.” The temperature inside had already dropped considerably without the heating unit running.

“I heard an explosion,” Zeke said.

“We must have hit something.” Cooper told them it could have been anything. “Visibility was down to zero.”

Hannah couldn’t stop shivering. As much from the dream as the terrifying accident.

“There are some blankets in the back.” Zeke must have seen her shaking. He reached over and handed Hannah and Cooper one before grabbing one for himself. “Since we have time, we might as well work the case. It will keep our minds off the storm and the cold.”

Always the practical one. Hannah smiled at the clearly Zeke comment.

Hannah couldn’t get something Isobel said out of her head. “I keep thinking about what Isobel said about Ellison asking her to deliver his notes to the man she calls his brother. She confirmed he wasn’t one of Ellison’s visitors, yet he must have kept in touch with the brother through the years.”

“Before I lost service, I did my best to track the number Ellison gave her,” Zeke told them. “It was a dead end.”

“They could have been speaking for years. I had no idea,” Cooper said in disbelief. “Of course, he’d know where the brother lived. Maybe he planned to have his brother carry on his killing or perhaps he was going to use him to reinforce his claims of being set up.”

Hannah studied him curiously. “You think he was telling the truth?”

“No, I don’t. I think he was trying to save himself by creating doubt. He killed those women like he killed my mother.”

“Maybe he was working with this man he calls his brother,” Zeke suggested.

Cooper’s mouth thinned. “A family that kills together. . .” he stopped suddenly. “Did you hear that?”

Hannah listened. “Someone’s coming. They’ll never know we’re here in this storm.”

“I’ll see if I can get their attention.” Cooper opened the door against the wind and got out.

“We’re coming with you.” As soon as Hannah stepped from the vehicle, she landed mid-calf in deep snow.

Zeke grabbed her arm. “Careful.”

She looped her arm through his and they joined Cooper. The three headed out to the road.

Headlights barely pierced the whiteout.

“The driver won’t see us until he’s right on top of us.” Cooper returned to the vehicle and brought back one of the blood-red blankets.

The vehicle drew closer, its headlights becoming brighter. Cooper waved the blanket around. When the car didn’t show any signs of stopping, he tossed it onto the passenger side of the windshield.

The car braked suddenly, spinning its tires. Thanks to the driver’s slow speed, the results weren’t as bad as theirs.

“Thank You, God,” Cooper yelled before heading to the driver’s side.

Hannah couldn’t imagine how frightened the driver must be having been stopped so strangely.

Cooper leaned close and did his best to explain who they were. He pulled out his identification.

The driver slowly lowered the window slightly. “You guys scared me. I wasn’t expecting anyone to be on the road.” The man smiled and glanced at each of them.

There was something familiar about him that Hannah couldn’t place. Impossible, surely. They’d never met. Just the remnants of the disturbing dream bleeding into this frightening moment.

“You guys need a ride somewhere?” An older man, he wore a watch cap pulled down over his ears. Brown eyes held nothing but a slight interest in them. Certainly, no sign he recognized Hannah.

Just her imagination.

“We’d appreciate it.” Cooper told him they were staying on Grand Island at the Island Breeze. “I hope that’s not too much trouble.”

“Not at all. Hop in. Excuse the mess. I practically live in my car.” He shoved fast-food wrappers from the passenger seat. “Name’s Nolan Lewis.”

“Nice to meet you, Nolan. I’m Cooper. This is Hannah and Zeke.”

“You all federal agents?”

Cooper chuckled. “We are. Thanks for the ride.” Cooper turned to Hannah and Zeke. “Why don’t you get in where it’s warm? I’ll grab our things and be right back.”

“Sure thing.” Instead of getting in beside Lewis, she climbed into the back seat while Zeke opened the passenger door next to Lewis.

“Just shove that stuff out of your way,” Lewis told her. The back seat and floorboards were littered with trash.

Cooper returned with their computers and the sketchbook Isobel had given them. He slid in beside Hannah.

“Well, let’s see if we can make it to the island without having an accident.” Lewis appeared amused by his own joke. He put the car into Drive and eased down the road. “What are you all doing out here in the middle of nowhere?” Lewis stared at Hannah in the rearview mirror. “You were lucky I came along when I did. This road doesn’t normally get much traffic.”

“We’re working a case,” Zeke told him and shifted in his seat so that he could examine Lewis. “Do you live around here?” Zeke was a naturally curious person even when he wasn’t investigating.

Lewis spared him a look before focusing on the road. “Nah. I’m a window salesman. I have a route all over the state. What’s your case about?”

Cooper told him they really couldn’t discuss the details of an active case.

“Wait, this isn’t about that murder I heard about on Grand Island, is it?” He looked between the three waiting for confirmation.

“Again, we can’t say.” Cooper’s tone held a touch of frustration in it.

“Oh, right. I get it.” He winked at Cooper and changed the conversation to the weather. “I haven’t seen a storm like this in years. You guys picked the wrong time to be investigating.”

Hannah couldn’t shake the feeling she’d seen Lewis somewhere before. For the rest of the trip, she tried to place it and couldn’t.

When Lewis pulled into the parking lot for the Island Breeze, Hannah was grateful to get away from the strange man.

“You all take it easy out there,” Lewis said, his attention once more on Hannah. “There are a lot of bad people around. You don’t want to end up like one of your victims.”

Hannah froze in place at the strange comment. The three watched Lewis drive away.

“What an odd thing to say,” she whispered. “You don’t think he’s . . . ?”

“Our killer?” Cooper shook his head. “No. He’s an odd bird. But he doesn’t fit the description Isobel gave us.”

Still, the name Nolan Lewis was imprinted on her brain. She wouldn’t soon forget the strange encounter, and she wanted to check him out further.

“What happened to you?” Megan met them at the entrance. “I expected you back some time ago. I’ve been trying to reach you. With the storm coming in so unexpectedly, I’ve been worried.”

Hannah explained the accident. “We’ll need to have the vehicle towed.”

“I’ll call the rental company and let them know. They can send over a replacement. Come inside and warm up. The restaurant made a pot of chicken tortilla soup for us. It’s delicious. There’s cornbread as well.”

The fire in the lobby beckoned. Hannah held her hands close. She was chilled to the bone and couldn’t stop shaking.

Cooper stood beside her. She turned and found him watching her. His light-brown hair soaked from the snowfall. He had the profile of a hero. And she wanted more than anything not to have feelings for him.

A confused smile spread across his face. “Still thinking about Lewis?”

She slowly nodded. “I can’t shake the feeling I’ve seen him before.”

“He may just have that kind of face. I did a quick check on him. Appears clean.”

Hannah tried to let go of her uneasy feeling. “Thank you. I’m sure it’s just the case making me jumpy.” She held his gaze and wished for so much more. The warmth from the fire melted the cold from her body. However, the winter storm in her heart would never end.

“Why don’t we get something to eat?”

She was happy to follow him to the table where soup and cornbread warmed. Zeke had bypassed the food to dive into work.

She and Cooper carried their bowls over to where he sat talking to Megan.

Hannah pulled out her chair. “What’s new on the missing judge?” She tasted the soup and closed her eyes briefly at its delicious flavor.

“Her sister identified an outfit that was missing from her closet along with her purse. Her phone and house key were still at the house so . . .”

“She didn’t leave on her own accord,” Hannah concluded.

“Exactly. Jack and the team are winding up their investigation there. Her security cameras were remotely disengaged just like Giselle’s and Tiffany’s.”

Cooper sat back in his seat. “We’re looking at someone who knows how to disarm elite security systems. We need to find out if Giselle and Tiffany and Veronica had the same security firm handling their systems.”

“Already did, and they were all different businesses,” Megan told them.

“So, we’re looking at someone highly skilled with the technology used to operate the systems. Enough to know how to disable them remotely.” Hannah had no idea how they would find such a person.

“He won’t be easy to locate simply by his ability to dismantle a security system. He could have taught himself how to do it. If so, that route will be a dead end.” Cooper looked between them.

“You’re right. Still, it doesn’t hurt to check in with the home security firms around the state and see if any present or past employees send up a red flag. I’ll search the criminal databases for any similar MOs.” Megan jotted notes as she spoke. “Can we assume Giselle was found unworthy because of her drug and alcohol issues? Tiffany and Veronica don’t appear to have any substance abuse problems as far as I can tell. They’re both single—unlike Giselle.” Megan shrugged. “I’m not sure if that’s important or not.”

“Probably not.” Zeke’s fingers clicked along the keyboard. “I remember reading about the victims from the original Embalmer case.” He sat back in his seat. “Here it is. The women who were selected to be embalmed were both married and single. Same for the unworthy ones.”

Hannah’s hopes sank. “Let’s focus on the unworthy victims from the past for a minute. Did any of them have a drinking problem or other issues that might condemn them as unworthy?”

“Not really,” Zeke said. “All the women had careers. I couldn’t find anything in the unworthy victims’ pasts to warrant the condemnation.”

“Whatever their sins are, they’re known only to my father and maybe to this copycat. Can we get a side-by-side collage of all the women past and present?” Cooper asked.

Hannah frowned. “What are you thinking?”

He looked her way. “Maybe it isn’t about who they are, but what they look like. Maybe he has a type.”