Stolen Lives: A Detective Mystery Series SuperBoxset (56 page)

With less than thirty yards to the house Hemsworth once again signaled the team to stop, though Cooper inched forward a few more steps, nestling near the base of a tree as she eyed the killer’s home. She saw only one window near the front door, and a porch with a chair on it. A chimney jutted from the side, smoke escaping through the top.
He’s in there. He’s waiting for me.

“Cooper.” Hemsworth’s voice broke the silence, and he motioned for her to come close. She backtracked slowly, sliding into place as Hart joined them. “There’s only one way in, through the front door. We’ll send in one four-man team. It’ll be quick, and he’ll be surprised.” Before Cooper could object the high-pitched squeal of a speaker triggered a groan from the agents in the forest.

“Hello.” The voice echoed through the loudspeaker, bouncing off the tree trunks. “I’m glad all of you could make it this afternoon. It’s turned into such a lovely day.”

Nervous chatter radioed between agents, everyone unsure of their next move, but Hemsworth regained control. “Hold position. Let’s see what kind of hand he’s playing before we show him ours.”

“But I already know your hand, Agent Hemsworth.” The killer’s voice caused Hemsworth to freeze like a statue. “I don’t have an interest in killing your men today. Tell them to stay put and have Detective Cooper join me inside.”

Without a word, Cooper turned for the cabin, but an arm yanked her backward and suddenly Hart had her pinned against the trunk of a tree. “What the hell are you doing?”

Cooper struggled against Hart’s weight and strength, unable to move. “Let me go, Hart.”

“You’re playing right into his hands!” He gave another hard shove. “You walk in there, and you’re dead—”

“I stay out here, and my sister and her family are too!” Cooper grabbed hold of Hart’s wrist and twisted it violently. He winced, and she shoved him away. She peeled off the Kevlar and tossed it to the ground. “I’m not letting my family die in there.”

Hart and Hemsworth exchanged a look, but it was Hemsworth who spoke. “You get five minutes. We don’t hear anything from you by then, and I’m sending everyone inside. We’ll have the medical unit on standby.”

Cooper nodded and stepped out from behind the tree, both hands in the air as she approached the front of the cabin. The speaker squealed again, and she winced. “Place your pistol on the ground, Detective.” Cooper complied, slowly, and then put both hands in the air. She examined the rest of the structure on her approach, looking for any cameras, and spotted a small device at the crest of the roof. However, she saw no wires, nothing suggesting the killer had power being fed into the building.

Sweat stung Cooper’s eyes as she reached for the bronze door handle, which was unlocked. It felt gritty and warm from the afternoon sun. Once inside she shut the door behind her. The cabin was dark, the only light from outside entering through some of the cracks of the curtains of the front window, and her eyes struggled to adjust. She remained near the front door, only taking a few steps farther inside. She noticed a table to her right, a bookcase to her left, and straight ahead the silhouette of a body.

“I’m impressed, Detective.”

A light flicked on, and Cooper lifted her hands to shield her face from the brightness. She blinked repeatedly, lowering her hands as her eyes adjusted to the light, slowly clarifying the killer’s features from the dark silhouette. He was tall, maybe an inch over six feet. He wore a dark-blue button-down shirt and jeans with hiking shoes. His hair was buzzed short, the color a faded black that was peppered with grey. His body was lean, the thinness of his arms accentuated by the size of his hands. The only disproportion of the killer’s body were his eyes. They were small and beady and detracted from the rest of his formidable frame. He flashed a half smile, exposing his age as his skin crinkled around his eyes, cheeks, and forehead.

“Where’s my sister?”

The killer took a few steps forward, and Cooper noticed the televisions and monitors set up in the corner of the room. Cameras fed the killer the images of Hemsworth and the rest of the FBI agents coiled behind trees with their weapons aimed at the cabin. “I’ll need the pistol at your ankle.” He moved within an arm’s reach of her, and she could smell the stink of his breath. “Please.”

Cooper reached down and removed the concealed weapon. She placed it in his hands, though she made it a point to avoid the skin of his palm. “If you’ve hurt them—”

“Calm yourself, Detective Cooper.” The killer walked backward, tossing the gun between his hands. “Do you really think I would have led you all the way out here to show you nothing but dead bodies?” He stopped when he neared the surveillance equipment on his desk. “I think you’ve seen enough of that for now.”

The floorboards groaned as Cooper walked, and her eyes fell to the door on the left, the only other exit besides the way she entered. “I want to see her.”

“I know,” the killer said, portraying a sympathetic tone. “You’ve come so far.” He clasped his hands together excitedly. “I knew I picked the right one when I found you. It was too good to be true. The stars aligned for us, Detective.” He smiled again, his small, beady eyes locked on her. “We’re going to make history, you and I.” His voice trailed off, softening. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited.”

Cooper recoiled, stepping away from his reach. “You keep stalling, and the FBI will bust down that door, and you won’t get to play whatever sick game you have. So I suggest you tell me where my sister is, now.”

The killer aimed Cooper’s own gun at her. “This isn’t about games, Detective. I’m disappointed you haven’t seen that yet. But you’re right.” He took a breath, straightening himself out. “We don’t have much time.” He flicked his wrist, and the gun pointed toward the door. “Ladies first.”

The door led to a narrow staircase that descended at least twenty feet below ground. Every few feet a light illuminated their path, and Cooper found herself slowing as she neared the end of the staircase, and she felt the tip of the pistol dig into her back. “Just a little farther, Detective.” When Cooper stepped around the corner of the wall that concealed the rest of the hidden basement, she sprinted to her sister’s side.

Beth, Tim, Sarah, and Mary were strapped into four wooden chairs lined up against the basement’s back wall. Their wrists, ankles, and waists were all chained, pulled tight against their skin to minimize their mobility. Wires protruded from the top of the helmets on their head, and Cooper followed the wires to a machine in the corner, which was attached to a generator that pumped its exhaust into a fireplace. And even with the hum of the generator and the gags in their mouth, Cooper heard every moan, scream, and cry.

“Beth, are you all right?” Cooper cradled her sister’s face, and she nodded in response. She quickly went down the line, checking the girls and saw that Mary had wet herself. Aside from the restraints, they were unharmed. When Cooper turned to face the killer he still had the pistol in hand. “Let them go, now.”

“But before you sounded like you were so fond of games.” The killer picked up a small, rectangular box and threw it to Cooper, who caught it clumsily with both hands. “And considering we only have a few minutes left together I suggest you play along.” The sadistic tone grew in comparison with his smile.

Cooper slowly turned the box over in her hands. It was flush on every side except for one that had four separate switches. She looked from the device to Beth, and she felt her body tremble.

“So, this is what’s going to happen,” the killer said, his voice returning to the same teacher-like tone when they spoke on the phone. “Your sister and her family are attached to a high-voltage battery capable of pumping thousands of volts of electricity into their bodies and frying them to a toasty crisp. The device in your hands has four switches. Three of them are harmless, but one will trigger voltage to pass through their bodies and kill them right in front of your eyes. That happens, and I turn myself in. You save them, and we all go free. A fair deal if I do say so myself.”

The four silver switches caught lamplight in the basement, the metal gleaming, and Cooper set the box down. “You’ll kill them out of spite.”

A glimmer of rage flashed across the killer’s face, which up until now had retained a measure of control. “You should know better than that!” Spit flew from his mouth, and the pistol in his hand trembled in sync with his rage. “Look at everything I’ve done for you, Detective.” He glanced around and gestured to the cabin. “You’ve dedicated your life to catching killers, and I promise you that I’m the best you’ll ever see. I’m your final labor.” He took a breath, forcing himself to regain control of his emotions. “Time is running out, Detective, and stalling will only seal your sister’s fate. The moment I hear the FBI bust down that door, I shoot your family regardless if you’ve tried to save them.” He glanced down to the device on the floor and raised his left eyebrow. “Don’t lose them like you lost your child.”

With everything the killer had done, all he was able to accomplish, Cooper knew she didn’t have a choice but to play along. It was the only way to save them. “The entire cabin is surrounded. Even if they survive, the moment you step outside you’ll have thirty federal agents on your tail. You won’t have a chance.”

The killer checked the time on his watch. “I like my odds.” He looked down to the box in her hands. “But do you?”

The metal box grew slick from the sweat running off her palms. She turned to Beth, whose cheeks were drenched in tears. Cooper moved her thumb to the switch on the far left. She felt the blood drain from her limbs and her entire body become weightless as the nerves collected in the pit of her stomach. She pressed her thumb against the switch with the lightest pressure. Her body trembled, and she drew in a sharp breath and flicked her thumb up.

All four of them shuddered in their chairs, hyperventilating. Sarah cried and thrashed violently against the restraints. Beth kept her eyes on the girls, while Tim kept his shut, his body drenched in sweat. But despite the outcry, they were alive.

“Two more to go!” The killer followed the harsh words with even more sadistic laughter as the tips of Cooper’s fingers flashed white on the tight grip of the box.

A drip of sweat rolled from her nose and onto one of the chrome switches as she moved her hand to the far right, opting for the switch on the opposite end of her first choice. The pounding beat in her chest thumped harder and harder the longer she hesitated. She eased her thumb against the rounded bulb of the switch, and her heart rate spiked. She shut her eyes, felt her legs go weak, then flipped the switch.

A synchronized moan escaped Beth and the family, but when Cooper opened her eyes they were alive. She dropped the box from her hands and collapsed to all fours. She drew in deep, long breaths and felt the tears welling up in her eyes, the stress and anxiety reaching a fever pitch.

“Such a simple task, Detective,” the killer said. “And yet it has worked you over like a small child screaming for its mother.” He shook his head, the gun still aimed at her. “One more to go.”

Cooper eyed the box with disdain, the switches glaring back in mocking fashion, only the two middle switches still flipped down. She reached for the device with a shaking hand, and it scraped along the dirt floor as she pulled it toward her. She clutched it delicately, and pushed herself back to her feet. She stumbled, lightheaded, but managed to walk to Beth’s side. Keeping the box in her left hand, she held her sister’s hand with her right.

Laughter burst from the killer’s lips, unable to hold back his smile. “Dammit, Detective, you are a beautiful sight to behold!” He licked his lips, pacing back and forth in the small basement, making a point to keep the pistol aimed at her. “Even at the very end, with nothing on your side but chance, you’re willing to die with your family.” The large smile made his skin grow tight and pink. “You’re everything I’d hoped you be, Detective.” The manic excitement in his voice slowly calmed, and his eyes fell to the box. “Only one more left.”

Beth squeezed Cooper’s hand tight, and she looked down at her sister. She mirrored the tears that ran down Beth’s face, and her voice grew thick with grief. “I love you. So much.” Beth nodded in response. With her eyes still locked on Beth, Cooper slowly brought her thumb to the switch on the right. Her sweaty skin was slick against the metal. “We’re going to be okay.” Her body stiffened, and the moment she flicked the last switch, she squeezed Beth’s hand as tight as she could.

A simultaneous shudder ran through all of them, but the only thing Cooper felt was the vice-like grip from Beth’s hand. Cooper glanced down to Tim and the girls, all three of them still alive, and then collapsed to the floor. One hand holding Beth’s, and the other still clutching the box.

The killer clapped, the pistol now holstered at his side. The applause was slow at first but gained momentum and rang in chorus with the killer’s laughter. “Well done, Detective. Well done.” He walked over and removed the box from Cooper’s hand, which she let go without any resistance.

The killer lifted the box into the air, smiling, still chuckling to himself. “It’s always amazing to me what the unknown can do to a person. The chaotic consequences of chance can make or break an individual. And do you know what the best thing about the future is, Detective?” He placed his thumb on the last switch. “It can always change.”

“No!” Cooper outstretched her free hand, still keeping hold of Beth, but the moment the killer flipped the switch another cry belted from the gagged mouths of her family. Yet this one was no different than the others.

“Hahaha!” The killer tossed the device from his hand, and it crashed to the ground with a thud. He paced around the room, drunk off his own musings. “You should have seen your face, Detective!” He bent over laughing, his arms clutching his stomach and tears streaming from his face. After a few more hard chuckles he slowly regained control and reeled in the hysterics. He glanced up to the basement’s ceiling. “I suppose they’ll be coming through any minute now.” He looked back down to Cooper. “Our time is up.”