BIG SKY SECRETS 03: End Game (18 page)

The guy was dead, all right. Someone had made sure of that.

The body was sprawled like a rag doll on the rocks, the shirt torn away by its long, rocky trip down into the ravine. She could see two bullet wounds in his chest.

But it wasn’t the condition of the body that made her take a second look. It was the identity of the victim.

This wasn’t the truck driver.

It was Arnold Lane, and someone had wanted to make very,
very
sure he died.

Which meant Carl Wilson was still missing.

The real killer was still out there.

And if he stayed true to his pattern, there were just eleven days left before he’d strike again.

Megan pulled into her drive at eight-thirty and wearily climbed out of her patrol car.

It had been a long, long day.

Arnold Lane had been positively identified, and that eliminated their most likely suspect. But was his death related, or had he simply ticked off one too many people with his charming personality?

Hal and Jim were investigating his activities during his absences from the ranch but had come up dry so far, and that left far too many unanswered questions.

She whistled for Buddy and waited to hear the dog door slap shut at the back of the house, and for Buddy to come barreling around the side of the house to clamber at the gate of the chain-link fence as he always did, begging for attention. With every passing day, he seemed brighter, stronger and more alert, acting more and more like a pup than an old dog in his joy over his new home.

But the little door didn’t slap shut.

No dog appeared.

“Buddy?”

An uneasy feeling crawled through her as she let herself into the yard and walked around the house. Where was he?

Inside, her footsteps echoed in the empty house. Even before she walked through every room, she sensed that she was completely alone. If the dog had died, she was going to be heartbroken.
“Oh, Buddy,”
she whispered. “Where are you?”

But he simply wasn’t here. The yard gate had been securely fastened. And she knew he wasn’t agile enough to leap the fence, which left only the possibility of theft. But who would steal a dog?

Mystified, she looked through the two bedrooms once more, checking under beds and in the corners. And then she saw a folded piece of paper tucked under a fat sandalwood candle on the dresser.

She lifted the candle, carefully opened the piece of paper by its edges, and despite all of her years in law enforcement, her heart caught in her throat.

Bang. You’re dead.

You could’ve been, if you were here.

Sorry I missed you—but there will be another time. I promise you that.

Anger rushed through her as she read the note, then read it a second time. Someone had been here. In her house. Violating her personal space. What if she’d been asleep and hadn’t heard him break into the house?

She could defend herself in hand-to-hand combat. Packed a gun and shot better than ninety-eight percent on her marksmanship tests every quarter. But she was still vulnerable—as anyone was.

And the mere presence of this note made that message perfectly clear.

S
cott called an hour later and said he was stopping by. Calling ahead was a wise decision. If he hadn’t, she would’ve had her service revolver loaded and ready at the first sound of a vehicle coming up the lane.

She met him out in the driveway. “What’s up?”

“You sounded tense on the phone just now,” he said, hooking his elbow in the open window of his truck and draping his other hand over the top of the steering wheel. Next to him, Jasper watched her expectantly, his tongue lolling and his tail thumping on the seat. “I’ve been worried about you since you took off during church on Sunday. Is everything all right?”

“Not the best. I told Hal that he needed to hire you permanently, because we definitely need more help.”

“Did you also tell him that I’m not interested?”

“Nope.” She grinned. “I figured we could work on that little detail later. Hal is such a nice guy that it can be very hard to say no.”

Scott shifted in his seat and glanced behind her, then gave her a quizzical look. “Is that a gun at the small of your back?”

She’d left her T-shirt untucked to better mask her lower-back holster, but he certainly had a good eye for detail. “Could be.”

His eyes flashed with instant curiosity. “Really?”

She snorted. “And you say you have no interest in being a cop.”

“I don’t. So what is it?”

“My backup weapon. Glock 23, 9mm.”

“Nice. So what’s going on?”

Despite her initial reservations about working with him, she’d come to trust him and his sharp perceptions. Compared to working with Wes or Ewan, his thoughtful analysis of details was a complete breath of fresh air. “This week’s newspaper will be running a story on the body found in the ravine. We’re probably going to see the panic level rise around here…and start receiving a lot more calls concerning possible tips.” He nodded.

She considered her words carefully. “When Carl Wilson disappeared from his hospital bed, it seemed possible that he could’ve been kidnapped by Arnold Lane, our prime suspect in the serial killings.”

“True. If Lane drove that black pickup and caused Carl’s accident, he might’ve feared that Carl could identify him.”

“It just got more complicated than that. A search-and-rescue dog found Lane’s body this morning. He’d been murdered and dumped in a ravine.”

Scott thought for a minute. “Obviously a very ill, older man like Carl couldn’t have done it.”

“Not a chance.”

“So you’ve got someone else out there…someone with a vested interest in getting Lane out of the way.” Scott frowned as he stepped out of his truck, closed the door and leaned against it. “Someone who may or may not be tied to the serial murders.”

“Exactly.” She glanced over her shoulder at the house.

He followed her gaze. “Where’s your dog? Is he all right?”

Scott wasn’t part of the sheriff’s department. He hadn’t been around long enough to build the kind of unshakable trust between them that could grow only over years of shared experiences.

And yet her gut instinct told her that if she was ever in serious trouble out here, he’d be a powerful ally. And it didn’t take much thought to realize that he’d be the one she should call first.

“Buddy was missing when I got home. I searched everywhere and ultimately found him chained inside the barn.”

“Something you never do?”

“Of course not. He can let himself in and out of the house through a dog door, and he has a locked, fenced yard. So someone was here while I was gone.”

“Kind of coincidental, isn’t it—with everything that’s been happening?” Scott’s words were light, but his eyes were dark with concern.

She sighed. “It’s no coincidence. Someone wanted to deliver a message, to remind me that I’m vulnerable. It isn’t the first time it’s happened. And in case I didn’t understand the implied message, he left a note.”

A muscle at the side of Scott’s jaw ticked. “This evening.”

“Yep.”

“Have you called the sheriff’s office?”

“I
work
there. I don’t need to call for another deputy to come out and tell me what I already know.”

“Which is?”

“An unidentified man broke into my house. He terrified my dog—Buddy was shaking when I found him. The font style on the note matched the one I received before—and also matches a note carried by a victim that our rapist/serial killer set free. For some reason, this animal has targeted me personally. He’s daring me to catch him. But we aren’t closer to doing that than we were a month ago.”

“Arnold Lane’s death does seem to eliminate a suspect.”

“But we still don’t have any solid leads…other than the fact that the guy seems to have a laser printer and likes using pretty fonts when he writes me threatening notes.”

“And he has a particular interest in you. Which makes me think that once upon a time you either jilted him, arrested him, or did something to make him really mad.”

“I have no past boyfriends with wounded hearts, believe me. My two most serious relationships ended because the guys couldn’t deal with my career. I haven’t dated at all in a good long while.”

“What about enemies? Investment deals…arguments over land…legal suits…”

“This place was on the market for over two years before I bought it. The owners were relieved to finally make the sale. And with my salary and the mortgage on this place, I’m hardly looking into any investment schemes.”

“Any particularly nasty arrests?”

“Of course. A few. Not many people are happy when they end up with a hefty speeding ticket, or in jail, or prison. The domestic situations are the worst. But I’ve never had any revenge threats that I can think of.” She smiled a little, remembering a few. “Well, maybe by some drunks, but I’d bet they didn’t remember a word they said by the next day.”

“Any other ideas why someone would target you?”

“I’ve read a lot of studies. Some said that most rapists feel deep hostility toward women, so they take plea sure in physical coercion. It makes them feel like real ‘he-men,’ because they aren’t anything close.” She snorted in disgust. “I’m guessing the suspect is toying with me because I’m a woman and a cop—two figures he hates. If he can make me afraid, he’ll feel like a
really
tough guy. The ultimate power trip.”

“You can’t stay out here alone. Not anymore.”

“What? I should run and give him that satisfaction? No way.”

“Megan—”

“It isn’t going to happen.”

“Look at your house.”

“What?”

“Take a good look, because that old wood siding won’t stop a bullet. With the right ammo—available anywhere—your friend could blast holes through those walls until all you had left was matchsticks, and you would be dead. If this guy is after you, you won’t be safe here.”

“I’m well aware of that. But I have a dog. I’m well armed.”

“Do you have friends in town?” He paced a few yards away, then turned back. “Any place else you can go? One of the other deputies, maybe?”

“No. If I did that, I’d only draw danger there. And honestly, I don’t think this guy plans anything like that. He’s getting his thrills with innocent victims. From me, he’s getting the pleasure of proving himself invincible and uncatchable.” She paused. “If that’s even a word.”

“But he
will
escalate.”

“I think we’re going to get him first.”

“There are no guarantees of that, Megan. Come to my place, then—at least until this is all over. I’ve got a lot more room there than I’ll ever use.”

“Now, that would look appropriate,” she said, trying for a light tone. “What would my mother say?”

“Does it matter, if your life is at stake?” He thought for a moment. “Then how about this. There’s only one, dead-end lane leading up to my property. Anyone coming up there would have to go right past my house, dog and Terminator.”

“Who?”

“That goose I bought at the auction. He goes after everything that walks, crawls or slithers and he’s even noisier than the donkey. He has the mailman terrified, so no one else will get past him, either.”

She managed a smile. “What a sweetie.”

“Look, there’s also a stone guest cottage a few hundred feet back of the house, with water and electricity. You could use it as long as you need to.”

She gently pulled her hand from his. “I still don’t—”

“Consider it a safe house. The previous owners were going to use it as a motherin-law’s place, so it’s pretty nice.”

“It’s really thoughtful of you to offer. I do appreciate it. But…I can’t accept. I need to stay right where I am.”

He stared at her. “You really don’t understand how serious this is. I don’t care if you’re armed to the teeth—it would take just a single bullet for you to die. You aren’t safe here. You don’t need to take that kind of risk.”

Spoken just like her last boyfriend, who’d ordered her to give up her job and her independence, and play it safe with some ordinary job in town.

Her old hurt and frustration resurfaced. She’d thought Scott was different, that he’d understand her life. But instead, he knew the dangers all too well, and now she knew that he’d never be able to stand by and let her face them.

Once again she’d started to care too deeply about someone, and she’d been wrong.

“I know you don’t want to be a cop any longer. If you can’t handle it anymore, that’s okay. But this is my life, and I can. I
need
to do my job. End of story.”

He pulled back as if she’d struck him. “I didn’t mean to interfere.” He hesitated, then shook his head with obvious regret as he got back into his truck. “Have it your way. But don’t hesitate to call me if you ever need help.”