Web of Justice (18 page)

Hank nodded, King grunted, and Jake and Annie remained quiet.

Lisa glanced at Don, then held the microphone under her thin, sharp nose and spoke. “Detective Corning, what can you tell my viewers about what happened here today?”

As much as Hank disliked Lisa, he was the face of RHPD at the moment, and he chose his words with care. “We’ve discovered the body of an unidentified female, approximately twenty-five years old. Investigators are in the process of examining the scene.”

“Detective, is this another murder by Izzy Wilde?”

“There’re some indications it might be. However, it’s too early to make any solid claims.” Hank hesitated. “I’d like to remind the viewers, however, that Izzy Wilde is still at large. Please call Crime Stoppers if you should see him or suspect you know where he is.”

Lisa turned to face Annie and spoke into the mike while Don trained his camera on the Lincolns. “The presence of Lincoln Investigations indicates to me this case is related. I happen to know they were instrumental in the original capture of Izzy Wilde.” She poked the mike at Jake.

Jake frowned at the microphone. “We aren’t privy to all that goes on within the police department. We were hired by a third party and are here because of the possibility of a relationship between the two murders.”

Lisa swung the mike over toward Annie.

“You’ll have to refer any further questions to Detective Corning,” Annie said.

Hank took a step forward and Lisa swung the mike his way. “I’ll make a further statement when we know more,” he said. “That’s all for now.”

Lisa turned away and looked at the camera. “We’ll keep you updated on this story as it unfolds. For Channel 7 Action News, I’m Lisa Krunk.”

The red light went out. Lisa clicked off the mike and turned to Hank. “Thank you, Detective,” she said, another fake smile taking over her face.

Hank nodded and Lisa left, Don following at her heels.

Hank heard a faint zipping sound coming from fifty feet away. The victim’s body was being placed into a body bag, and soon she’d be carried away for further inspection at the capable hands of Nancy Pietek.

But for now, Hank still had no idea who the Jane Doe was. Nor did he have any solid clues as to the whereabouts of Izzy Wilde.

Chapter 29

Thursday, 2:05 p.m.

JAKE WATCHED Lisa Krunk climb into the van and it zipped away, kicking up clouds of dust as it made its way from the cemetery. No doubt the pesky newswoman had gone to bother someone else for the time being.

Always striving to get the best of any situation and outdo her so-called competition, Lisa was tight about giving out information, but she seemed to expect everyone to bow at her feet. Jake had no doubt that in her characteristic attempt to create a sensational story, she’d be sticking her nose into the case again before long.

Jake turned back and spoke to Hank. “We didn’t get a look at the body. Was she …?”

Hank nodded and glanced over to where CSI was finishing up with the scene. “Just like the last one.” He looked at Jake and spoke in a monotone voice. “Shaved head and choked to death with a belt. Just over an hour ago. Just before he called you.”

Annie slipped a flash drive from her handbag and handed it to the cop. “Here’s the recording of his call.”

Hank took the drive and rolled it over and over in his fingers while he spoke. “Callaway had no luck in tracing the call. Wilde used a disposable phone. No GPS.” He held up the drive. “Let’s hope he has better luck with this.” He tucked it into his shirt pocket and removed his cell phone. “Do you want to see a photo of the victim?”

“No, thanks,” Annie said. “We’ll take your word for it.”

“I assume she has black hair and dark brown eyes?” Jake asked.

Hank nodded slowly. “Just like Olivia Bragg, Lindy Metz, and Tanya Arbuckle.” A faint smile touched his mouth. “I make it a habit to memorize the names of the victims.” He took a deep breath, a glint of anger showing in his eyes. “I need to find out the name of this one.”

Jake knew Hank felt the same way he did about the victims. They weren’t just victims, they were real people with real lives. And they all have names, families, and friends. Thankfully, Lindy and Tanya survived their ordeal, but Olivia and Jane Doe deserved to be remembered. Not just by those who knew them, but also by those who didn’t.

Hank crossed his arms and mused, “I wonder if we’ll get a package in the mail tomorrow. Somehow I don’t think so. I believe sending a lock of the victim’s hair to the precinct was Wilde’s way of announcing what he’d done. Goading us, maybe.”

“If he doesn’t, then his MO has changed,” King said.

“Maybe,” Hank said. “But he still kills his victims in the same way and for the same warped reason. Yes, this time was different. At least for him. His first three abductions took place after dark. This one was in broad daylight. His MO has changed somewhat, but in his mind, it’s justified.”

“He was angry,” Annie said. “Angry that Tanya was rescued, and he couldn’t wait for some kind of revenge.”

King motioned toward the crime scene. “Or he couldn’t wait to kill his mother again.”

“Both times that he called us,” Jake said, “he repeated the same thing. ‘She’s back.’ And he has to keep killing her over and over.”

“Do we dare hope this is the final one?” Annie said. “Perhaps this time he feels he returned her to her grave.”

Nobody had an answer.

Finally, Jake spoke. “I assume Izzy hasn’t called his brother yet.”

“Nope. Carter Wilde doesn’t get many personal calls, but we’re monitoring all of them. So far, nothing.” Hank scratched his head. “He’s unpredictable. That’s the problem. We have no idea what he’s gonna do next or where he’s gonna go.”

“Even unpredictable people can be predictable,” Annie said. “For example, he has to eat. He likely has to buy gasoline for the vehicle. He has to sleep somewhere.”

“We’re doing our best to cover those areas,” Hank said. “But this small city seems much larger when we have to be everywhere at once.”

Annie continued, “We have to assume he’ll be searching for another victim eventually.”

“So what’s his next move, Annie?” King said.

Jake looked at King, wondering if the cop was being his usual cocky self or not. The look on King’s face told Jake it was a serious question.

“I think he’s satisfied for today,” Annie said. “He’s gonna look for someplace to hide out. He’ll park in some out of the way place, get some sleep, maybe something to eat, then tomorrow … who knows?”

“The problem with that is, we don’t know what he’s driving.”

Hank spoke up. “And that’s why we need to make it our first priority to find out who this Jane Doe is.”

“We might have to wait until she’s reported missing,” King said. “We can’t be showing a photo of a dead woman on people’s TV screens, and we can’t canvass the entire city in a few hours.”

“No,” Hank said. “But we can hold a press conference and ask people to call in if they suspect a young woman’s missing. I’ll make sure 9-1-1 puts every call through, whether the person has been missing forty-eight hours or not.”

“There might be another way,” Annie said.

They all looked at Annie and Jake grinned to himself. His wife should’ve been a cop. She was always coming up with a brilliant idea.

“There might be surveillance at the mall,” she said. “If it caught a glimpse of her or her vehicle, it might tell us something.”

“We tried that as soon as we found the gray Volkswagen,” Hank said. “Nothing turned up.” He squinted and rubbed the back of his neck. A moment later, he snapped his fingers and said, “But I still think you’re on to something.”

“Oh?”

Hank nodded. “We know what our victim looks like now, and we know what she was wearing.”

He pulled out his cell and hit speed dial. In a moment, he said into the phone, “Callaway, I want you to arrange to get any camera footage you can from every store in Hillcrest Mall. Everything from ten this morning until noon. We need to take a look at it all ASAP. It’s urgent.” He hung up the phone. “If she bought anything at all, we’ll find her.”

“There was no camera footage outside the mall?” Jake asked.

“Nothing that showed the area where the kidnapping took place,” Hank said. He dialed another number. “Nancy, I need a close-up picture of our Jane Doe’s face as soon as you can make her look normal.” Hank nodded and said, “Thanks, Nancy.” He hung up and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

“Let’s hope something turns up,” King said. “That’s all we got.”

“If it leads to finding out what car she was driving,” Hank said, “then we’ll be one step closer to finding Izzy.”

“Good thinking, Annie,” King said, and Jake thought it was rare praise coming from a cop whose accolades were few and far between.

“We’d better get going,” Hank said, turning to Jake. “Let us know if you have any more ideas.”

Jake nodded. “Of course.”

Hank went and spoke to Jameson for a minute. When he came back, he and King got into the Chevy. It clanked to a start, and the two detectives drove away.

Annie looked at her watch and opened the passenger-side door of the Firebird. “Matty’ll be home soon. We’d better get going, too.”

Jake got in behind the steering wheel, brought the engine to life, and turned to Annie as she buckled her seat belt. “One thing I noticed. So far, Wilde has been operating in the northern half of the city.”

“Maybe because it’s closer to home for him.”

Jake backed out, then pulled ahead and drove up the lane, turning onto the street. He glanced at Annie. Her brow was in a tight line. She was probably trying to come up with another brilliant idea. “You don’t think he’ll chance going home again, do you?”

“I doubt it. Not now. I expect the place is being watched.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right.” He looked over at Annie again. “What’s on your mind?”

“I’m afraid he’s not going to wait. He’s going to make another attempt to kidnap someone else soon.” She sighed. “Perhaps he won’t, but people’s lives—women’s lives—are in danger.”

Jake reached over and patted Annie on the leg. “I understand how hard this is on you, but everyone’s doing the best they can.”

Annie gave Jake’s hand a squeeze. “I hope our best is good enough. And soon enough.” She pointed out the windshield. “Now get your eyes on the road and your hands on the steering wheel. We’re no good to anyone if we end up running into a tree.”

Chapter 30

Thursday, 2:35 p.m.

WHEN HANK AND KING arrived back at the precinct and went inside, Captain Diego was standing in his office doorway. He beckoned them over, then stepped back inside and dropped with a sigh into his high-backed leather chair behind his overflowing workload.

Hank went into the office, his eyes automatically zooming in on Diego’s desk, half-expecting to see another delivery. There wasn’t.

He took a seat, leaned forward, and looked at the captain. Diego appeared exhausted. The stress of the last few days showed as bags under his eyes, and Hank assumed the mayor had been rubbing him the wrong way again. The city mayor expected miracles from RHPD, but steadfastly refused to support a budget increase.

“What’s up, Captain?” Hank asked.

“You tell me.” The captain sat back, straightened his dark blue tie, and looked back and forth between Hank and King.

King leaned against the filing cabinet and crossed his arms. “No ID on the victim, but there seems to be no doubt it’s the work of Izzy Wilde.”

“I want to hold a quickie press conference,” Hank said. “We have to find out who she is.”

Diego nodded. “I’ll get it set up for three thirty.” He made a note on a pad in front of him.

“Even if we find out who she is before that, it’s still important,” Hank said, explaining what he hoped to find through the mall security video. “We need to warn potential victims, especially anyone who fits his profile.”

Diego leaned forward. “The narco squad has apprehended two men suspected of the prisoner transport assault. They admitted to being the ones who organized it, but they won’t give up Salaz. And if they can be believed, they have no knowledge of who Wilde is. Their intention wasn’t to free him. They only wanted Salaz.”

“I never expected they would be any help,” King said. “Wilde is on his own, and no self-respecting narco would give a crazed killer the time of day, let alone go out of their way to free him.”

“That’s a bit of good news, at least,” Hank said and tilted his head to one side. “Is there anything else, Captain? You look a little worried.”

“Not worried, just apprehensive. It’s nothing that concerns you,” Diego said. “You’re doing your job.”

“Try me,” Hank said.

Diego took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Needless to say, the news of today’s murder is unsettling, and I’d hate to think we were negligent in any way in allowing Wilde to escape.”

“No one was negligent, Captain. There were unforeseen circumstances, and no one can be held culpable.”

Diego nodded and steepled his hands under his chin. “I’m sure you’re aware of how easily public opinion can be swayed. A lot of good men have been forced to retire for a lot less.”

“I’ll think of something for the press conference to set the record straight,” Hank said.

“Run it by me first, Hank.”

“Will do.”

“And get this maniac before someone else is killed. Every officer is at your disposal. Keep me informed.”

Hank assured Diego he would, and they left the office. The captain had no reason for concern. He was just overstressed. Diego was well respected among the men, and Hank was pretty sure everyone would have the captain’s back if crunch time came.

“Call me if you need me,” King said, shuffling toward the back of the room.

Hank went to his desk, set his briefcase beside his chair, and picked up a folder sent from the ME’s office. He flipped it open.

He recognized the photo inside as that of the victim. The leather strap had been removed from around her neck, and her mouth was now closed. Considering the woman was dead, she looked about the best she could.