Shadow Play (19 page)

“But you do compartmentalize, and you evidently felt very comfortable with the Walsh identity. Was it because you were so adept at fading in and out when you were taking all those children's lives?”

Silence. “I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Do you want me to reel off the names and numbers of your kills? It started with little Donna Prahern in Sacramento, didn't it? No accident. None of them were accidents.”

“Why, I have no idea of what you're accusing me.” He paused. “And I have no intention of listening to your raving about crimes that have nothing to do with me. That's not why I called.”

“Why did you call?”

“I'm very irritated that you interfered with me. You had no right. I believe you have to be punished. You should have hung up on Nalchek when he phoned, begging you to help him.”

“It's what I do. Identify and then find a way to put monsters like you in a prison or gas chamber.” Her tone hardened. “And I'll do that, Walsh. No one deserves it more.”

“So dedicated,” he said softly. “Do I detect a touch of possessiveness? Let's put it to the test. You were very bitter when I took the reconstruction of that sweet little girl, weren't you? How badly do you want her back?”

She didn't answer for an instant. “Are you offering?”

“I might be. How much do you want her?”

“Money?”

“Now I'm sure you know that's not in the cards. You'd have to earn her.”

“And for all I know, you've already destroyed my reconstruction.”

“True.” He added, “But as it happens, I haven't gotten around to it yet. You still might have a chance. Why don't you come and get her?”

“When you've just said you want to punish me? I know what that means to you.”

“Yes, but you left your cozy little cottage and came out to the Golden State to try to retrieve that skull. That tells me what it means to you.”

“What it means is what it will always mean. A way to catch the filth who was coward enough to kill a little girl and hide her body in the ground.”

“Are you trying to make me angry?” His voice was amused. “There's nothing cowardly about killing in any form. Society totally rejects the idea of murder, they even seek to put to death those who have the courage to go their own way in spite of their stupid rules. To be clever and skilled enough to take a life and walk away a free man makes me far more remarkable than you and that detective, who are trying to find and punish me.”

“You actually believe that?”

“Of course.”

“And the act of killing is only a challenge no matter who the victim? A helpless child, an old man?”

“You sound so revolted. As you say, it's the challenge of the kill itself. I do appreciate the ending of a young life because it's regarded with such horror. But just the act itself immediately puts me in the crosshairs of do-gooders like you and Nalchek. If I make a mistake, you could bring me down. It's me against the system.” He paused. “But I much prefer that it be me against you and Joe Quinn. So much more interesting. So why don't you come and see if you can take this reconstruction away from me?”

She looked at Joe, then said, “A trap, Walsh?”

“A challenge, Eve.” He chuckled. “I'll e-mail you the location where you can find the skull, and you can take a look and see if you want to attempt trying to bring her home. Isn't that the phrase that you use? I read a magazine interview with you about your sculpting process. I was quite touched.” His voice suddenly lost all hint of humor. “But now that you mention traps, if you try to load the dice against me and bring on police or FBI reinforcements, you will not only not see the skull to judge whether you wish to take your chances, but you'll see your fine reconstruction destroyed before your eyes. It's just between you, that fine lover of yours, and me. Do you understand?”

“I understand that you're trying to set us up.”

“Then meet the challenge and try to win the prize.” He hung up.

Eve drew a shaky breath as she turned to Joe. “What do you think?”

“I think he's a complete sociopath, and he wants you dead,” he said harshly.

She nodded. “Jenny said that he meant to kill me, but he didn't have time after he stole the skull.” She grimaced. “It's clear he didn't like my chasing after him.”

“On the contrary, I think he did like it. Now he doesn't have to go back to the lake to finish you off. He thinks he can do it here.”

Her e-mail pinged, and she looked down at the phone. “That's probably the location.”

“The trap, you mean,” Joe said. “Give me your phone and let me handle it.”

“Joe.”

“He wants to kill you.”

“It's a chance to get the reconstruction.” She looked at him. “It may be a chance to get Walsh. We have to get him, Joe. It's not only Jenny. I sat there all afternoon and read all those case files about those murdered children and their families.”

“Too much risk.”

“I can work around it.”

“Good God, you're going to do it.”

“I'm going to try. I'm not going to do anything suicidal. As soon as I can, I'll notify Nalchek and try to bring him up there to trap Walsh. But I'm going to see if I have any way I can retrieve that skull. If I can't, I'll see if I can learn anything, do anything to bring me closer to catching Walsh before he kills again.”

He met her gaze for a long moment, then glanced at her phone. “Pull up the damn e-mail.”

She pushed the e-mail access. “It has to be Walsh. It's a map.” She scanned it and handed it to Joe. “Somewhere near Tahoe. No X marked the spot. He's probably going to contact us later.”

“When he's sure you're going to meet his challenge,” Joe said bitterly.

“I can't do anything else, Joe,” she said.

“Do you think I don't realize that?” he asked as he took her elbow and led her toward the car. “I was sitting right there beside you today. Do you believe I wasn't sick to my stomach? I wanted to kill the son of a bitch by the time I jerked you away from that computer.” He opened the car door for her. “So I'll take you to Walsh. I'll try to keep you safe while you get that reconstruction. But if there's a choice between getting the skull or taking out Walsh, it will be Walsh. I won't care if you can't bring Jenny home.” He slammed the door and strode around to the driver's seat. “She'll have to be satisfied with my sending her killer straight to hell.”

 

CHAPTER

9

SONDERVILLE

He was coming.

He would be here soon.

Margaret sat absolutely still beside the creek, waiting. She was excited, she realized. Was there an element of fear with that excitement? Maybe. Strange. She was seldom afraid.

But everything she'd been feeling since she'd arrived in these woods was somehow … different.

He had stopped just beyond the trees. He was looking at her.

Excitement again.

Don't let him see it. “Are you going to stand there and gape at me? I promise I don't have any explosives strapped to me tonight, either, Nalchek.”

“How do I know that?” He came toward her. “You're an unknown quantity. Eve may trust you, but I don't.” He stopped a few yards from where she sat. “And I don't know how she can trust you, either, with what little she knows about you.”

Margaret chuckled. “We have a sort of history, and I was able to help her when she needed me. That must count for something in the balance.” She tilted her head. “Haven't you ever run into a situation that warranted a little faith in the face of suspicious circumstances?”

“No.”

“I think you have.” She studied him. He was all lean hardness, and his eyes were cool and intent. But there was a barely contained explosiveness beneath that restraint. She knew how strong he was, and she could sense that at the moment, he was barely able to stop himself from lashing out. “Maybe not lately. Why are you here, Nalchek?”

“Because you're here.” He dropped to his knees beside her. “I could ask you the same thing. You know you shouldn't be in these woods.”

“And how did you know I was here?”

“I assigned a man to watch the hotel and report if you left it.”

“Why?”

“Because I wanted to keep my eye on you.” He added roughly, “And you hitchhiked here again, dammit. How stupid can you get? That's inviting an attack.”

“I'm a pretty good judge of character.” She smiled. “And I can take care of myself.”

“I didn't notice that last night.”

“You surprised me. Besides, I knew right away that you were probably no threat.”

“Then you were wrong. I am a threat to you.”

She went still. The fear was back. Her gaze flew to his face. Then she relaxed. “You're bluffing. You just want to be in control. You wouldn't hurt me unless you had to.” She paused. “But I'm surprised you would want me to believe it. I don't think it's what you'd ordinarily—” She nodded suddenly. “You want something from me, and you're not sure I'll give it to you. What is it?”

His expression didn't change. “What do you think I want?” He reached out and touched her cheek. “Yes, I do want to be in control. Why do you think I became sheriff?”

Her cheek was tingling beneath his fingers. She could feel a tightness in her chest. “Because you're one of the good guys?”

“How do you know? Oh, that's right, you're such a great judge of character.” His hand moved down to cup her throat. “Bullshit, Margaret.”

She could feel her pulse beating hard against his hand. It felt strange and rhythmic and completely sexual. “I am a good judge of character.” She moistened her lips. “And you would never use your office to either hurt me or for sexual gratification. You're just angry or frustrated about something, and I'm handy to vent.” She took his hand from her throat and leaned back. “And the fact that you can't put me in a convenient pigeonhole is making it worse.” She met his gaze. “But I'm no one's whipping boy, so tell me why you're being an ass. What do you want from me?”

He stared at her for a moment. “I'm beginning to think of all kinds of things.”

“Don't start that again. I'm not your type. You thought I was a college kid. You probably like them tall, leggy, and sophisticated. I'm not any of those things.”

He smiled faintly. “No, you're not. But you're undoubtedly interesting.”

“You're damn right.” She got to her knees, her hands clenching into fists. “Why did you come looking for me? I'm sure it wasn't to make sure I made it safely here to the woods.”

The corners of his lips deepened. “You look like you're going to take a swing at me.”

“I'm tempted. I don't like being used.”

“I didn't use you. Well, maybe a little.”

“I don't like being manipulated, either.”

He shrugged. “I only tried, I didn't succeed. I guess I didn't appeal to you.”

He knew that wasn't true. That moment had been brimming with sexual tension, and Margaret was aware she was usually transparent as glass. “Why?”

His smile faded. “I'm tired as hell of being the outsider. This is my town, my case, and Eve would never have been involved with that little girl if I hadn't sent her the skull. Then she brings Quinn and you into it and leaves me out in the cold. That's not going to happen.”

“She doesn't regard it as a competition. She's grateful for your help.”

“As long as she calls the shots.”

“You weren't this angry earlier today.” Her eyes narrowed on his face. “What happened?”

“She phoned me from Sacramento and wanted to know Jenny's blood type. When I asked her why, she said she'd call me back.”

“And she didn't do it?”

“No, and when I tried later, the call went to voice mail.” He smiled crookedly. “So I decided I'd go and search for answers from someone else who belongs to the club.”

“Me?” She shook her head. “I don't know why she'd want to know that. I haven't heard from Eve since she left the hotel.” She frowned. “She doesn't want to involve me any more than she has to, Nalchek. At least, she doesn't feel guilty about contacting you.”

He didn't answer.

“Oh, for Pete's sake, she called you, didn't she? Why are you being so possessive about the little girl in that grave?”

“Don't be ridiculous. It's my job.”

“It's more than that,” she whispered.

His gaze flew to her face. “More?” he repeated softly.

Fear again. Yet she had just said that she knew he wouldn't hurt her. It didn't matter. Unreasonable or not, the fear was here.

She braced herself to try to break through it. “Did you know Jenny before she was killed, Nalchek?”

He was suddenly rigid. “What?” She could see he hadn't expected that question and could sense the shock. “What the hell do you mean?”

“It's a clear question, isn't it? Did you?”

“There's nothing clear about it. Are you asking me if I had something to do with her murder?”

“No, but I'm asking you if you had reason to be so obsessive about Jenny's death. Eve just accepted it because she's obsessive about her, too.”

“But you don't accept it. And you're confronting me about it while we're alone, and you couldn't be more vulnerable.” He leaned closer to her. “Which makes my point about the fact that you're about as able to take care of yourself as the little child in that grave.”

“Stop it.” She drew a deep breath. “Answer me. I'm not going to back down and let you intimidate me. I stand by my guns.”

“Except you don't have a gun or any other weapon.”

“I know karate and several varieties of street fighting.” She glanced down at his holster. “And, besides, I'm sure you wouldn't shoot me. Did you know Jenny?”