His mind’s eye recreated the image of the girl’s dead body. The gaping red smile slashed across her throat came to him like a nightmare from hell. He took a beat to gather himself, refusing to allow a memory to unnerve him. Dammit, he’d been in worse situations, seen more horrendous murders than he was prepared to admit. He turned into the cellar and used the flashlight to scan the room. It hadn’t changed much. Apart from a chair pushed to one side and a disturbed area of dust in front of an old wooden table, the place was empty. Relieved, he drew a deep breath then stared at the pool of dried blood, no longer red but a black reminder of murder. As he turned the beam, he picked up a wire running to a light bulb suspended from the ceiling. He’d make sure Wolfe knew this was a new addition to the cellar and the same battery set-up as the one they’d found in the other house. “Your knowledge base just keeps on growing, Shadow Man.”
He examined the chair, figuring it could be the one in the video where the killer had used to restrain Lindy. Another blast of cool breeze shot down the air vent, sending shivers down his spine. He’d seen enough. He was heading for the door when his flashlight picked up a glint on the dirty floor. He squatted to take a better look and found a silver chain with a bluebird charm attached. He used his cellphone camera to take a few shots, and then examined the chain. It was complete, so the killer hadn’t torn it from the girl’s neck. He pulled an evidence bag from his pocket and dropped the necklace inside. He frowned. None of the parents of the missing girls had mentioned that their daughters owned a silver chain. I hope this doesn’t mean he’s taken another one.
Thirty-Eight
The moment the deputies moved out of sight, Jenna let out a long painful breath. She’d gripped her trembling hands together to prevent them seeing, but the shock of what happened racked her body with tremors – and it hurt. She’d put on a brave face to put Kane’s mind at ease but the pain in her back was significant and it had taken an inner strength she didn’t know she possessed to hold back the tears stinging the backs of her eyes. The Shadow Man was a callous coward. She didn’t want to imagine the terror he’d inflicted on Lindy before her death and now Amanda was in his clutches. She laid her weapon on the ground beside her, pulled out her cellphone and called Rowley. She updated him, and then listened with interest.
“Nothing on the search or from the Braxtons. The hotline calls are much the same, nothing of significance. I’ve spoken to everyone who called but all the leads run dry.” Rowley sighed. “We’ve had a couple of calls – one came from Lucy’s mom just before. I wasn’t going to bother you with it right now but since someone tried to kill you, I figure it might be important. Lucy recalls Packer and Kittredge having a conversation about shooting out at the range. They chatted about their hunting rifles and made plans to meet there.” He cleared his throat. “I followed up and spoke to the manager of the rifle range and both men are more than capable of shooting from the distance you mentioned.”
Jenna rubbed her forehead. “We had them on the list to interview again. What was the second call?”
“It came in on the 911 line. The Zammits’ place backs onto the hillside, where you figure the shooter was standing. Mrs. Zammit said she caught sight of a light-colored pickup truck driving recklessly toward town on the dirt road bordering their property just before. Called in thinking the driver could be drinking and was worried about him speeding through town with all the kids on vacation and all.” Rowley took a breath. “I would have driven out to take a look but I’m alone here, so all I could do was to go outside and watch the flow of traffic. I didn’t see anyone speeding but there is a ton load of light-colored pickups in town. Looks like I missed an opportunity to catch the man who shot at you. I’m sorry, ma’am.”
“He couldn’t have gotten to town that fast.” Hearing a rustling sound close by, Jenna scanned the area. “At least it confirms the pickup was a light color. Keep me updated.”
“Sure will, ma’am.”
Unsure what the sound was that was getting louder by the second, Jenna disconnected. A large bush a few feet away would offer her more protection. She eased painfully into its shadows and sat panting. The small effort had sapped her strength. Staring all around, she noticed a shadow moving at the other end of the barn. She slipped her Glock into the palm of her hand and aimed, then flicked the mic switch on her com pack. “Kane, I see someone on my side of the barn. I have a clear shot.”
“That would be me, Jenna, so hold your fire.” Kane’s voice sounded less than amused. “There’s no sign of Amanda in the root cellar. I went around back to check on something. Where are you? I can’t see you.”
Relieved, Jenna leaned back against the wall. “I’m behind the bush a couple of yards from the barn door.”
“Roger that.”
Kane seemed to emerge from the shadows like a ghost. He came to her side. Jenna looked up at him. “You vanished then reappeared. I didn’t hear you coming.”
“That’s good; when you spotted me before, I figured I was losing my edge.” He crouched down beside her and pushed a strand of hair from her eyes. “You gonna be okay sitting here if I go get the beast?”
Wondering why he was treating her like a casualty, Jenna stared at him. “I’m fine. I’m quite capable of walking back to your truck.”
“I’d rather you didn’t.” Kane gave her a long, searching look. “You’re as pale as a ghost and if the sniper is intent on taking you out, we’d need to run to the cover of the house at least.”
“What makes you think he’s still out there?”
“This.” Kane pulled an evidence bag from his pocket and dangled it in front of her nose. “I don’t recall any of the victims’ parents mentioning their daughters owned a silver chain with a charm like this, do you?”
Jenna swallowed hard. “So if the Shadow Man left it behind on purpose, he’d be waiting for a reaction?”
“Oh, yeah. He’s been careful to cover his tracks – this isn’t an oversight.” Kane’s mouth turned down. “I’m hoping he’s not abducted another victim.”
“Dammit, we haven’t found a trace of Amanda and if he’s taken another gir
l already, he’s escalating faster than anyone we’ve dealt with before. I’ve stretched our resources to the limit and since the FBI figure we can handle this on our own, I’ll have to start deputizing some of the local volunteers to assist. The problem is everyone’s exhausted from searching already.” Dismayed, Jenna shook her head. “I’m done here. Wolfe doesn’t need our help, so we’d better get our butts into action and chase down the other suspects on our list.”
“Not so fast.” Kane rested one large hand on her shoulder “Jenna, I’ve been hit wearing a vest and it’s similar to being shot, just without the blood. I know Wolfe figures you’re okay but you should let the paramedics examine you and maybe have an X-ray.”
As if I have time. She stared up at him. “Not until we find Amanda.”
“At least ice the injury or you’ll be no good to anyone.” Kane cleared his throat. “You know I’m right, Jenna.”
“Dave, I know my body.” Jenna shook her head. “Nothing’s cracked or broken. I’m sure you know the feeling and yeah, it hurts, but I’ll be fine. I don’t need to go see the paramedics. I’ll get some ice on it when I get back to the office.”
Wanting to prove a point, Jenna tried to push to her feet and a wave of agony seared up her spine. She bit back a moan and decided leaning against the wall was a better option. “Okay, go get the truck.”
“I’ll drop the necklace in to Wolfe on the way. I won’t be long.” Kane moved his concerned gaze over her. “Drink the water. I’ve a bunch of instant cold packs in my field kit you can use.”
Jenna smiled up at him. “Yes, Doctor.”