The Lord Is My Shepherd (27 page)

“So, it's someone Oliver knows.”

“Yes. I think he's been stalking Oliver, killing people when he finds him. Trying to drive him crazy.”

“What did I say about leaving the detective work to the professionals?” Mark asked.

“I don't remember. That's probably a good thing.” She looked down at the cast on her foot. “What happened?”

“Hey, you still haven't finished telling me your part of it,” Mark said.

“Please.”

He took a deep breath. “You were unconscious at the foot of Oliver's cross. He put a cloth over your head. You and Oliver were still alive. The other six were dead, though.”

“Six? There were only the two others on the crosses.”

“When we arrived there was also a centurion, a disciple, and two more women waiting to be put into position. Jeremiah found them after we chased the killer and lost him.”

“You said Oliver is okay?”

“Yes. You are too. Your foot's broken. They've put a cast on it already, but that's the worst of it.”

“I dropped the ladder on it.”

“Then that shouldn't have come as a surprise to you.”

“No.” Cindy took a deep breath and recounted the story to him from her arrival at the church. He listened quietly until she had finished telling it and then whistled low.

“You have been through it, haven't you?” he asked.

“What happens now?”

“We're putting you and Oliver under lock and key so that this Karl, whoever he is, can't finish what he started.”

She lay for a moment, feeling the pain in her foot. She found the call button for the nurse and pushed it, hoping for some painkillers.

Under lock and key. Nice and safe. It's been ages since I felt safe.
“But what if he keeps killing people?” she asked.

Mark cleared his throat. “Hopefully, with the two of you unavailable as witnesses or victims, he'll stop.”

“Hopefully?”

He shrugged. “There are no guarantees, especially with something like this.”

“I've got a better idea,” she said, struggling to sit up again.

A nurse walked in. “What do you need?”

“Can I have some pain medication for my foot?” Cindy asked.

The nurse picked up her chart and flipped through it before checking her watch. “It's about five minutes early, but I think we can make that happen.”

“Thank you.”

When the nurse left Cindy turned back to Mark.

“So, what is this better idea you have?” he asked.

“I think you should use us as bait.”

“Okay, now I know he hit you harder on the head than we thought. I'll get the doctor.”

“No! This isn't going to stop until we stop him. If Oliver disappears so does Karl. That's what's happened every other time. Karl will just wait and then show up again later.”

“Maybe we'll be better prepared.”

“Maybe you won't be prepared at all. This has to end before anyone else dies.”

“I'm not willing to gamble with your life,” Mark said.

Cindy looked him straight in the eye, just like her grandfather had taught her when she was eight and learning to play poker. “I am.”

He blinked first and dropped his eyes. She allowed herself a tiny smile. The nurse returned with her painkillers, and Cindy gratefully swallowed them.

“Did your husband have to go to work?” the nurse asked.

Cindy stared at her in complete bewilderment.

“Yes, unfortunately he did,” Mark said hastily.

The nurse turned to him and gave him a once over. “And just who are you again?”

“I was the best man.” Mark smiled.

The nurse nodded and left the room.

“Do I want to know?” Cindy asked.

“Probably not. But, for future reference if one of the nurses says something, you and Jeremiah are newlyweds.”

“That's the last time I go to a Seder,” Cindy vowed.

T
HE AFTERNOON HAD BEEN INTERMINABLE BUT JEREMIAH WAS FINALLY done meeting with and comforting members of the congregation. In the parking lot it took him a moment to remember that he had driven Cindy's car.

He fished her keys out of his pocket and a minute later had pointed the car toward the hospital. He was exhausted but he wouldn't be able to rest until he had checked in on Cindy.

When he reached the hospital it proved difficult to find out which room they had moved her to. The nurse on duty told him that she couldn't release that information but luckily the nurse from the morning walked by, recognized Jeremiah, and took charge of escorting him.

“Your wife is doing much better,” she said.

“I'm so very glad to hear that.”

“The police have kept a close watch on her, and we've restricted access to her area of the floor.”

“Thank you, I appreciate the effort. I had this fear as I was driving over that something might have happened to her.”

“I've personally acquainted the staff with the danger, and I can assure you we're all looking out for her.”

They walked into Cindy's room. She was awake and smiled at him.

“Look who I found for you,” the nurse said cheerfully.

“Hi, honey,” Jeremiah said. He walked over and picked up Cindy's hand.

“You two behave,” the nurse said, before leaving the room with a chuckle.

“I'm glad to see you awake,” he said. “I've been worried about you.”

“Thank you,” she said. “It's not exactly how I planned to spend the day.”

“How are you doing?” Jeremiah's glance took in the cast and bandages. She was pale, but her gaze was steady and her hand was warm to the touch.

“They won't let me go home.” She frowned. “I tried arguing with one of the doctors, but he said tomorrow. Then he followed that up with a
maybe
.”

He grinned. “You must be feeling better.”

“Why?”

“Earlier this week wild horses couldn't drag you home and now you can't wait to get there.”

She smiled. “I don't like hospitals.”

“Most people don't.”

“I hate the medicine smells and the beeping of machines, and the feeling of sickness and death. This time it's so much worse, though. I feel completely helpless and exposed.”

“I'm pretty sure that's the standard hospital gown experience, although I could be wrong.”

She made a frustrated sound in her throat. “It's like I've got a huge target painted on me.”

“Perfectly understandable, given what you've gone through. I imagine Oliver must feel even worse.”

“Speaking of Oliver, how is he?” Cindy asked, reaching for a cup of water on the table nearby.

Jeremiah let go of her hand and settled himself in the chair next to the bed. “I don't know,” he admitted.

“I'd like to pay him a visit. Can you help me?”

“What is it you have in mind?”

“I have a lot of questions, and I don't intend to leave his room until I get some answers.”

“Fair enough. You could be in for a long wait, though. I know he wasn't conscious earlier today and even when he comes to he's going to be on so much medication he might not be coherent for a while.”

“It doesn't matter. They told me I couldn't leave the hospital but they didn't say anything about leaving my room.”

He shook his head. “You've got your mind set on this, don't you?”

“Yes, now can you humor the helpless, exposed woman in the hospital gown?”

“It would be an honor to humor you,” he said. “Let me find a wheelchair to make this easier.”

“You don't want to see me try out my new crutches?” She pointed to the set leaning against the closet door.

“Actually, I didn't want the entire hospital to see just how helpless and … exposed … you are.”

He left the room and returned with a battered wheelchair.

“That was quick.”

“I just told the nurse my wife wanted to go for a little stroll.”

“I've been meaning to talk to you about that,” she said, blushing.

He couldn't help himself and he smirked. She noticed. “It's not funny!” she protested.

“It's a little funny,” he said.

Mark stood at the front of the room. Dozens of officers from Pine Springs and the neighboring communities sat in chairs, receiving handouts with physical descriptions and rough sketches of Karl as provided by Cindy. For the first time in days he felt like they had a fighting chance of putting an end to the bloodshed.

“We've alerted all the cemeteries in the area to watch for any suspicious activity. Thanks to the fact that Karl accelerated the crucifixion by at least six hours, we can't count on him waiting until late Saturday night or early Sunday morning to recreate the empty tomb and the Roman soldiers. There's also a chance that he'll skip the cemetery altogether, so we're exploring possibilities for other targets. However, odds are good he'll go for this one.”

“If you see him, shoot first and ask questions later,” Paul chimed in. “He's already killed dozens of people, and we can't risk letting him escape.”

“Okay, you all have your assignments. Remember, watch one another's backs. This guy already took out two cops without a struggle. Let's catch this guy,” Mark said.

With grim faces the officers left the room and headed for their cars. Paul edged closer to Mark. “Do you get the horrible feeling that we've just provided Karl with Roman soldiers?”

“I try not to think about that,” Mark admitted. The fact that Karl had crucified real thieves was a detail no one had overlooked. The killer's grandiose crimes were becoming more detailed and specific. “I guess we should be grateful there are no army bases in town.”

“Okay, partner, let's work on the next possible scenario.”

“Right with you,” Mark said. “I need to grab some more coffee first though.”

He walked out of the room and made his way to the coffee maker. He had just finished pouring himself a cup when one of the dispatchers jogged over to him.

“What is it?” he asked.

“I just heard that a busload of tourists has been reported missing in Los Angeles a couple of hours ago.”

Mark shook his head. “I'm sure they'll turn up. It's L.A. Odds are they had their tires stolen off the bus or they decided to spend an extra hour in front of the Chinese theater. Anyway, since when do those types of reports concern us?”

“Since this week. Since this one.”

He looked at her intently. “Okay, tell me.”

“The tourists are from Italy.”

Oliver looked even worse than Cindy felt. He was awake and clearly suffering. His forehead and one eye had been bandaged. The other one was filled with pain. Bandages had been tightly wound around his chest, and his hands were thoroughly wrapped, but spots of blood stained the gauze. She winced as she looked at him. In her mind she still saw him hanging on the cross.

“How are you, Oliver?” she asked.

“Not so good,” he admitted. “I remember seeing you get out of your car. You called the police?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you. You saved my life.”

“You're welcome.”

“What happened to you?”

“Cindy was captured as she tried to cut you down, Jeremiah said. “Karl tried to make her a part of the story—one of the women at the cross.”

“Is he dead?”

“No, he got away,” Cindy said.

“I'm so sorry, Cindy. I never in a million years wanted you to get hurt.”

“And yet you never warned her of the danger,” Jeremiah said, his voice cold and unforgiving.

“I didn't think he would do anything to her. I mean, why would he hurt her?”

“Why would he hurt anybody?” Cindy countered. “And why would he want to kill you?”

Oliver shook his head slowly.

“Why is Karl targeting you? How do the two of you know each other?” Jeremiah asked.

“Oliver, remember everything you told me that night at dinner? You told me to face my problems. You encouraged me to talk about my past, about my sister. You were right. You gain nothing by staying silent, but you could save a lot of lives if you told us what Karl wants.”

“Karl and I were in seminary together,” Oliver said, his voice barely a whisper.

“You went to seminary?” Cindy questioned.

He nodded. “I graduated too.”

“And you didn't go into ministry?” Jeremiah asked.

“I couldn't. Not after what happened.”

“What happened?” Cindy pressed.

“We were best friends. We both had very religious upbringings and felt a call to ministry when we were young. People always made fun because Karl was so shy and had a hard time speaking to people. His parents were very legalistic, and they never spared the rod. Next to him I looked like a fun-loving extrovert, even though I wasn't.