Tracing a Killer, page 17
“Remember when you interviewed the HR woman who hired David? She was going to send me the shift schedule to see who worked the most with David and might know something about him that could help us catch him.”
Hannah pulled up a chair. “Yes, I remember. What did you find out?”
“David mostly worked alone doing cleanup and maintenance, but there were a few times he did work projects with other park employees. I’ve got two names for you. Thought you might want to interview them. Won’t take but a second to track down their phone numbers.”
“Thank you. That could be helpful. I’d like to find out if they know where he stashed that boat.”
“Okay, give me a minute.” Isla had already put her finger back on the keyboard. She clicked through several screens and then wrote down two phone numbers beside the names she had already written down. Her phone rang. She looked at the phone screen. Her jaw fell. “I have to take this call.” Her voice had changed.
She rose and walked into the kitchen, closing the door behind her but leaving it ajar.
Hannah could hear Isla’s muffled voice but not any words.
“Wonder what that was about?” Trevor looked up from his laptop.
Hannah shrugged. It had certainly changed Isla’s mood.
The call ended but Isla did not return to the seating area. No sound of Isla opening cupboards or turning on a microwave emanated from the kitchen.
Something was wrong. Hannah pushed back her chair. “I’ll go talk to her.”
She opened the kitchen door. Isla was leaning against the counter with her bent head resting in her hands.
“Hey...” Hannah’s voice was soft. “Everything okay?”
Isla lifted her head. Her eyes were filled with tears. “That was the adoption agency.” She sniffled. “My application to foster Enzo was turned down.”
Hannah felt like a knife had gone through her own heart. Her throat grew tight. “I’m so sorry.” She held open her arms and gathered Isla into them.
She held her friend tight while she sobbed.
Isla pulled away and swiped at her eyes. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to go lie down for a while.” She stepped toward the door but then turned back. “I’ll tell the rest of the team when I’m ready. If anyone asks, I don’t mind you letting them know.”
“Sure, I understand,” said Hannah.
“Thank you for being a friend.” Isla lifted her head and managed a smile. “I’ll get through this. God is faithful, and I will trust his timing in everything.”
She admired her friend’s steadfast faith. “You’ll get this thing cleared up and have a child to foster. I know you will.”
“Thanks. I won’t give up hope.” Isla left through the back door.
Hannah watched from the window as she headed to the bunkhouse, feeling her own eyes warm with tears.
She returned to the sitting area with a heavy heart.
Trevor was leaning forward on the sofa petting Captain. “Everything all right?” He sat up straighter.
“Isla is really hurting right now. Her application to foster that little boy got turned down.”
“What a tough break.” Trevor shook his head. “That must have knocked her off her feet.”
“She’s going to rest for a while.” Hannah sat down on the opposite end of the couch from Trevor.
“I got the impression she really wanted that in her life, to have a child.”
“She would be a great mom. She has the support of her grandmother to help raise the kid since she’s not married and I think she’s like me, that she’s kind of given up on meeting Mr. Right.”
Trevor turned so he was facing Hannah. “What made you give up?”
The question had such weight to it considering her attraction to Trevor. “I just got tired of being hurt by men and living that cycle of hope and disappointment every time it didn’t work out when I saw the guy I was dating for who he really was.”
She lifted her head and met his gaze. The light in his eyes and the softness of his expression drew her in.
“I’m really sorry that your life has gone that way. You deserved better.”
His words were so filled with compassion it was as if she’d let out a breath she’d been holding for years. “What about you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You must be about my age and yet you’re not married or with anyone.”
He shook his head for a long moment. “Maybe I was punishing myself. Like I didn’t deserve that kind of happiness because of what happened ten years ago.”
“Self-forgiveness is a thing Trevor.” She knew the words were for herself as much as him.
“It would be good to move on, wouldn’t it? For both of us.” He studied her long enough that his stare made her uncomfortable.
She looked away and stood up, feeling like there should be something more said between them. The conversation made her nervous and afraid. Was she ready to give her heart to this man?
To hide her agitation, Hannah moved over to Isla’s work area and grabbed a piece of paper from the printer. “I’ll just handwrite a note that says this building is closed off to the public. I don’t want to mess with Isla’s computers.”
After making the sign, Hannah picked up the piece of paper that had the names of the two people who might be able to shed more light on David Weller. She pressed in the first number but got no answer, not even a voice mail.
“Dead end.” She shook her head and looked at the piece of paper. “Maybe this woman, Maggie Dunne, will be helpful.”
Hannah pressed in the number and waited. A woman’s crisp voice came across the line. Hannah asked some preliminary questions and explained that she was with law enforcement. It seemed that Maggie had tried to befriend David because he seemed kind of lonely.
“We talked quite a bit. Over the season, I invited him to a few things that the other employees were doing together. He always had an excuse.”
“Do you know if David owned a boat?”
“Oh, sure, just a small motorboat he invited me to go out with him on it. I went, but I was a little concerned that he thought I was interested in him romantically, which was not my intent. I kind of gave him the cold shoulder after that.”
“Do you know where he kept his boat when he was on the island?”
“I know when I went out with him, he launched from a little inlet that was a short hike from the Garr Ranch.”
She tensed. David liked to have his boat close to where she was right now. Hannah tried to remember if her family had ever docked near the ranch. “You launched the boat from an area by the ranch?”
Trevor raised his head from his laptop, as if what she had said sparked his interest.
“Yes, we left the car in their parking lot just outside the ranch entrance and walked from there.”
Now she had an idea of where the docking area might be. Hannah thanked the woman and disconnected from the call.
“That sounded a little more hopeful,” said Trevor.
“David might have his boat close to here. I want to go out and search the bay.”
“Not alone.”
“Maybe Ian and Lola can go with me,” she said.
“I’ll go with you too. I should not stay here alone anyway.”
She pressed her radio. “Ian, are you there?”
His voice came over the line. He sounded out of breath. “Lola picked up a scent. We had to follow it.”
“Oh, good. Hope it leads somewhere.” Disappointment settled around her. Going down to the water would have to wait.
Hannah disconnected from the radio, crossed her arms and stared out the window for a long moment. “We’re going to have to wait on that. The others might come in for lunch soon.”
“Speaking of which. Why don’t I go grab us something to eat?”
“Sure, I’m hungry,” she said.
Trevor set his laptop on an end table and moved to the kitchen.
Captain rose from the rug where he’d been lying and whined. “I’ll take him out real quick to do his business.”
Hannah opened the door. Captain ran outside. She stepped across the threshold but stayed close to the building.
Plenty of people milled around the other buildings and in the woods closer to the bunkhouse. Her heart beat a little faster, but she couldn’t say why.
Captain had wandered around the corner of the building out of sight.
She stepped away from the community room and called out to her K-9.
Her attention was drawn back to the woods. A man in a hat and sunglasses stepped out from the trees. He looked right at her before turning and disappearing into the trees.
Her throat went tight as she pressed the button on her radio. “Ian, the RMK is here not too far from the bunkhouse. I’m in pursuit.”
“I’ll get there as fast as we can.” Ian’s words were jumpy. He must be running.
Meadow and Chase responded that they had been searching not too far from the bunkhouse. “We’re on it,” said Chase.
Though she did not see him anywhere, Ian would be close by if he and Lola had been hot on the RMK’s trail. She ran toward where the RMK had gone. Captain had come back around the building and was a few paces behind her.
She entered the trees where several people were standing by the bird-watching signs, looking up. Her heart raced as she scanned the area. Her eyes were drawn to a man she saw only from the back who was wearing a baseball cap. Though he was not running, he was moving at a steady pace.
She hurried to catch up with him. He disappeared in the thickness of the trees. When she looked over her shoulder, Captain was still behind her.
She pressed her radio. “Ian, where are you?”
“Just got back to the bunkhouse.”
It didn’t make sense that he was that far away. Hadn’t Lola just been on the RMK’s scent?
She increased her pace, moving in the direction she’d seen the RMK go. She stepped into an open area. She could see the lake in the distance.
Sensing that someone was behind her, she whirled around, The man in front of her wore sunglasses and a baseball hat, but it was not the RMK.
David Weller grinned at her. “Did you think I wouldn’t see the notices sent out to employees describing the man you’ve all been looking for?”
She’d been tricked.
She reached for her gun just as he grabbed her arm and yanked it behind her back.
She needed to buy time, to try to break free. “You killed my friend because she looked like your sister?”
“So what if I did.” He pushed her arm up higher causing pain to shoot through her body.
She angled side to side trying to get away. Maybe someone would see them struggling before he got her to the water to drown her. Ian might find her if she could only delay long enough. If she could throw him off his game mentally, she might have a chance. “And that man and that woman who looked like your mom and dad. You killed them too.”
David grew very still, snaking his free arm across her chest and pulling her close. He hissed in her ear, “I could never live up to Mommy and Daddy’s expectations. They ridiculed me. My sister too. They got what they deserved.”
It was clear there was no psychological separation between the symbolic parents David had probably killed and his real parents.
He had all but confessed to the killings. She only hoped she would live to testify against him.
When she tried to twist her body, he held her so tightly she could barely move.
She wrapped her leg behind his so she could trip him. They both fell on the ground.
His hands clawed at her as she crawled to get away. He jumped on top of her back with her stomach pressed against the ground.
A hard object hit the side of her head.
She could smell salt in the air and hear Captain barking as she lost consciousness.
EIGHTEEN
Trevor rushed outside when Hannah and Captain hadn’t returned after he’d pulled sandwich stuff from the fridge. Ian and Lola raced toward the community room.
Ian pointed. “Hannah is in pursuit of the RMK. Get back inside.”
“No way,” said Trevor. “Hannah might be in danger.”
Ian was already several paces in front of him and probably realized that arguing was pointless. The two men hurried toward the trees. Ian slowed down and looked from side to side. “Something is not right. Lola is not picking up any kind of trail like she did before.”
Chase’s voice came through the radio. “We’re getting close to the community room, but I don’t see you.”
“We’re in the trees,” said Ian.
Trevor stopped a man who had binoculars around his neck.
“Did you see a woman in a uniform around here?”
“Yes, just a few minutes ago. She went that way.”
Both men ran in the direction that the birdwatcher had pointed.
They came to an open area, where they could see the beach in the distance. Some people were flying kites along the beach. Several people were out on the water in boats of different sizes. A balloon floated over the water.
Trevor shook his head. “Where did she go?”
Then he heard it, a faint but distinct barking.
Lola’s ears perked up and she licked her chops.
“That’s Captain,” said Ian.
They ran toward the sound of the barking, moving around a rock formation that had blocked their view. They found Captain pacing the shore and barking. Trevor scanned the water, allowing his gaze to rest on each boat. A short distance from the shore, a man in a motorboat looked over his shoulder at them. He pulled down his baseball cap lower on his face before increasing his speed. He had something in the boat covered in a tarp.
Alarm bells went off in Trevor’s head as he continued to watch the man. Wind caught the corner of the tarp. Trevor thought he saw what looked like a foot, but why would the RMK kidnap Hannah? “I think that’s our guy,” said Trevor.
Both men glanced along the shore. They needed a boat.
Ian ran toward a man who had just brought a small craft up on the beach. Trevor called Captain and followed Ian and Lola.
“Official police business. I need your boat.”
The man stepped away from his boat. “I’ll help push it back into the water.”
Ian, Trevor and the two dogs jumped in. Once they were in deep enough water, Trevor yanked the pull cord to start the engine, then steered so they were headed in the same direction as the boat that Hannah was probably in.
They passed several other boats but did not see the one they were looking for anywhere.
Trevor steered around a bend. What did the RMK have in mind, anyway? Was this some sort of trap to get at him? If the RMK had been watching at all, he must have noticed how often he and Hannah were together.
Both dogs seemed to be on high alert, with their heads lifted as they sniffed the air.
Trevor shouted above the hum of the boat engine as he scanned the glassy lake. “He’s probably going someplace secluded.” But where?
Trevor steered closer to the shore and away from the larger boats. Up ahead, he saw trees close to the shore. He headed in that direction. Once around the trees, they entered a C-shaped cove that was framed by a long shoreline on each side covered in rocks and scrubby trees. Up ahead was a man dumping Hannah’s body into the water close to the boat. The immobile body barely made a noise as it hit the buoyant water, falling close to the rim of the boat. The man put his hand on Hannah’s head and pushed her under.
Ian’s hand hovered over his weapon, but he did not draw it. They were still too far away to get an accurate shot. Their boat was already moving at top speed.
The wind blew the man’s hat off and Trevor saw the brown curly hair. David Weller.
David’s head shot up. He straightened from where he had been bent over holding Hannah’s head under water. He started the boat up and sped back toward the open part of the lake, leaving Hannah behind. She floated face-first in the water.
“We have to get to her,” Trevor shouted.
Ian looked at the fleeing man and then back at Hannah.
“Take over,” said Trevor.
Ian scrambled toward the back of the boat to steer. The boat slowed and drifted in the exchange between the two men as they drew closer to Hannah’s floating body.
Trevor shouted the command at Captain he’d heard Hannah use. “Save.”
Without hesitation, Captain leaped out of the boat and paddled toward Hannah. Trevor jumped into the water, as well.
Ian sped off toward the other boat. Swimming in the salt water was arduous. He had to get to Hannah. Captain seemed to take the buoyancy in stride as he got closer to his partner. Still not moving, Hannah had flipped sideways in the water. Captain reached her and tugged on the collar of her uniform to turn her so she was face up, then dragged her toward the shore.
Knowing that Hannah was in good paws, Trevor swam in the direction that Captain went to get to the nearest dry land. Captain brought Hannah ashore with her legs still resting in the water. Trevor reached her seconds later, kneeling over her as water dripped from his hair.
His heart squeezed tight at seeing her pale, lifeless face. She still had a pulse, but she’d probably swallowed water. He began to perform CPR, pressing below her rib cage and then placing his lips on hers. She gurgled. He turned her head to the side. Water spilled out of her mouth.
Still dazed, she looked up at him, reaching her hand to touch his cheek. “Hey,” she said.
Her voice made him think of a summer breeze.
He rested his hand on hers. “Hey there. Glad you’re okay.”
Captain moved in and licked Hannah’s forehead. Hannah laughed as she sat up and reached out to touch Captain’s dripping wet jowls. “My buddy.”
