Jenna squeezed her arm. “Thanks, Jo.”
The door clicked open and Jenna stood to one side to allow Kane to escort Dr. Turner from the room. The doctor said nothing when he stared at her but his face was set in a cruel smile. Jo was correct, he did have something up his sleeve.
Forty-Seven
Nervous anxiety had given him stomach cramps all morning. The thrill of watching his girl kill again was fast becoming a nightmare. He didn’t know what to do and couldn’t stop her, she was like a tornado, wild and uncontrollable. She unnerved him, no she darn right terrified him. He couldn’t go to the sheriff, his involvement made him as guilty as her, and he hoped Dr. Turner would supply him with an alibi. He had no choice but to go along with the final cheerleader on her list and hope it would be over. When the bells rang and students streamed out of the classrooms heading for the last class before lunch, he dragged her into an alcove. “We need to talk.”
“What’s up?” She gave him a slow smile and leaned in close. “We shouldn’t be seen together, not until we’ve dealt with Vicky Perez.”
Afraid someone would see him with her, he turned his back, to hide her from view. “All hell is breaking loose. They found Laurie’s mom murdered this morning and now the sheriff has called in the FBI.”
“The FBI?” She blinked at him. “Really?”
“Yeah, I saw them together talking up a storm. They’re hard to miss in their jackets.” He grabbed her by the arms. “Did you kill her?”
“Why would I want to kill Laurie Turner’s mom?” She burst out laughing. “Who told you this shit?”
As if he’d divulge his clandestine meeting with Dr. Turner late last night. The doctor had found his wife murdered and asked for his help. Dr. Turner was convinced he wasn’t involved and he’d gone along with his plan to move the body into the alleyway. The shock of realization that his girl was killing without him, had brought his world crashing down. He knew she was lying to him and it made him angry. He’d seen the mess in the apartment and it hadn’t been easy getting Mrs. Turner’s body into the alleyway, even with the doctor’s help. There was no way his girl could have taken on Mrs. Turner alone. He gave her a little shake. “Stop it. It’s not funny.” He examined her face. “You’re seeing someone else behind my back, aren’t you? You went missing in town last night, just around the time Mrs. Turner was strangled.”
“I went home.” She blinked at him. “I wanted to hang around but when Vicky started crawling all over you like a rash, I got so mad I wanted to stab her right there.” Her lips curled into a seductive smile. “It would have been too quick for her and I want to finish her in our secret place. I like that watching me kill makes you want to make out.” She giggled. “You’re as messed up as I am, huh?”
Am I? Guilt and sickness had overcome him after killing Becky and yet his girl seemed to thrive on murder. He chewed on the inside of his cheek. It was as if she had no feelings and the killing didn’t bother her. In that moment he realized, she didn’t love him at all. She wasn’t capable of love and had manipulated him to live out some crazy fantasy. Now, it was obvious she’d teamed up with another guy. If he denied her now, she’d turn on him like a rattlesnake. He stared into her big guiltless eyes and ground his teeth. He’d play her game and then ask his folks to send him away to college. He’d already had offers and it was his only way to get rid of her.
“Don’t look so worried. We have this.” She twirled a strand of hair around a finger. “Do you know why the principal was calling students to his office? Does the sheriff figure one of us killed Laurie’s mother?”
He nodded. “Yeah but don’t worry, you’re not on the list.” He shrugged. “They’re only calling guys, so if you’ve been seeing someone else, I guess you’d better warn him.”
“It’s just you and me.” She stared into his eyes, her expression deadly serious. “Now the sheriff believes its someone from the school, they’ll be watching everyone closely, so we haven’t much time. It’s got to be tonight.” She leaned into him and wet her lips. “I have plans for Vicky. I’m changing up my style to confuse the cops. I’m not planning on strangling her, she’s too strong.” Her lips lifted into a smile. “Do you recall seeing those old bottles of chemicals in the barn?”
Dread crawled over him in a dark, cold cloak. He swallowed hard. “Yeah, acids and stuff, I think? Why?”
“I found a bottle of chloroform.” She giggled. “Do you know what that does to people? It puts them to sleep. A few drops on a rag held over her mouth and she’ll be out. We’ll be able to tie her up and she’ll be under my control. I’ll be able to take my time and do whatever I want and she won’t be able to do a thing. We’ll need another pair of shorts. See, using different ones each time confuses the cops.”
He scratched his cheek. “It’s too late now and I’m not going through some guy’s backpack looking for his sweaty underwear.”
“Then bring a pair of yours.” She cupped his cheeks. “I know what I’m doing. Having three different DNAs at a crime scene and nothing else, they’ll believe someone took your shorts as well. Don’t worry, no one will catch us and soon it will be over.”
He pushed his hands into his pockets to stop them trembling. She was capable of anything and he wouldn’t be able to watch her torture Vicky. He shook his head. “If you cut her up real bad, it will be harder to dump her. Where can we take her without being seen? The cops are all over the place right now, and they still have reinforcements from Blackwater.”
“It doesn’t matter where we dump her.” She dropped her hands agitated. “We’ll toss her out on the side of the road, somewhere remote.” She picked up her backpack. “I’ve gotta go. I’ll see you tonight at the barn. Get her there by eight. I’ll be waiting inside.”
He rubbed the back of his neck. “She might not come with me.”
“She will, she hasn’t stopped talking about you.” Anger flashed in her eyes. “She makes me mad. You make sure she’s there because you don’t want to make me angry too, do you?”
Forty-Eight
Exhilarated, Jenna gave Kane a high-five as she walked from seeing the judge. “Oh my gosh, I was sure he’d refuse. Although we can’t read his case files, Turner will have an appointment book for sure.” She grinned at Kane and waved the paperwork triumphantly. “Now when do we deliver the good news to Dr. Turner?”
“We have half an hour before the autopsy.” Kane checked his watch. “Not long enough to conduct a search… and you’ll want Wolfe along as well… but time enough to grab a bite at Aunt Betty’s.” He opened the door to his truck.
Jenna pulled open the passenger door and climbed in. “Sure, I’m hungry too.”
Aunt Betty’s offered a respite from the tension around a murder investigation. Jenna inhaled the smells of not a greasy spoon but a place more like Grandma’s kitchen on baking days. As a child, she loved visiting her grandma and helping her bake cakes and cookies. It was part of her grandma’s routine, once the family left home, with only herself and Grandpa to cook for, her grandma would cook up great pots of food each weekend and pack them into the freezer for the rest of the week. Her grandma told her it saved time and energy, doing everything on the one day. She never had to worry what was for dinner and had a choice of meals and insisted it was like eating out every night.
Refusing to think about the upcoming autopsy, Jenna went to the counter to peer at the day’s specials. She ordered chunky beef pie with fries on the side and caught Kane’s mouth twitching into a smile. She looked at him. “What?”
“The pie sure looks good, the pastry has so many layers it melts in your mouth.” Kane ordered the same meal. “But you eat like a bird. I’m wondering if you’re the same Jenna I know or you’ve been taken over by an alien body snatcher?”