What Burns Within (26 page)

“Even the choir Julie was in,” Ashlyn added. “Sometimes they use rented school buses to travel if they have an engagement, or they might have had a group photo.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, what exactly will you be doing while we’re collecting all this information?” Zoe said.

“We have a fire scene to attempt an evidence recovery from. The concrete barriers that blocked fire trucks from accessing that side of the building have to be moved first,” Daly said. “At this point, it’s too soon to tell, but we’re hoping that there might be some clues at the scene where Isabella’s body was left that can help us with the investigation.”

Ashlyn felt like her heart had jumped into her throat. Tain’s eyes crinkled at the corners as he glanced at her, and she drew a deep breath.

She knew it was a long shot, but she had to test her hunch about that room. A hunch that had been building since they’d questioned Luke Driscoll at his church.

“From yesterday?” The doctor glowered at Craig for a moment and then went to the records desk. “What was the name?”

“Lori Price.”

He pulled a file from the cabinet and flipped it open. “You’ll need to speak to Dr. Zaid about this.”

“Is he here?”

“I’ll try paging her.”

So much for a nice bedside manner. Craig was relieved that the doctor had turned his deepening scowl in another direction for a moment.

He hung up the phone and glanced at the clock on the wall, stared at Craig for a moment and then turned back to look at the clock again.

“She’s…”

“Sorry, Mark.” Craig heard the voice from behind him. She came into his peripheral view as she leaned against the counter beside him. “What do you need?”

Mark, who hadn’t introduced himself to Craig and had remained nameless until then, nodded at Craig and passed Dr. Zaid the file, leaving without a word.

She glanced at the file before looking over at Craig, who held up his ID automatically.

“Zafina Zaid,” she said. “What can I do for you?”

“I need to know the results from the rape kit you did on Ms. Price.”

“Follow me.” She led him down the hall toward a small office, her long legs moving at a brisk pace but somehow maintaining an elegant, feminine gait. She glanced at him as her eyebrows rose over her black eyes. “Generally, the investigating officers are here during these exams.”

“I know.” He sat down across from her.

“No excuses. I can almost respect that.” Zafina flipped the file open. “Not that I need to look. Fortunately, we don’t do so many of these that we lose track.”

She recounted the details succinctly and precisely, without even a hint of a blush in her olive cheeks. The doctor didn’t glance at Craig until she was finished detailing the proof of trauma. “You don’t look surprised.”

“I’m not. The same guy has raped five other women that we know of.”

“Ah.” She tossed her silky, dark hair over her shoulder. “The bend-over bondage rapist.”

Craig winced. “I don’t think he’s been dubbed that in the media.”

“He’s being called that by people like us, who have to see the results of his handiwork. No doubt the press is calling him something civil, like the Silent Stalker. Scary, but not enough for anyone to really break a sweat over.”

“Tell that to my supervisor,” Craig muttered.

“You’re going to maintain that your department is doing everything it can when you weren’t even here for the rape exam?” Her black eyes were enormous as she stared at him.

“You sound like a reporter, not a doctor,” Craig said, standing.

She stood as well, her height enabling her to look him in the eye with ease. “We get reporters here, you know. Asking questions. Wanting to know who the investigating officers are.”

“And in the future you can refer them to the media liaison person at the RCMP.” He turned to open the door, stopping when he felt her hand on his arm.

“Look, I’m just warning you that there are some people who feel this case isn’t being given priority. Until yesterday, I’d only heard whisperings within my professional community. Now I’m on every reporter’s hit list for an interview. Don’t tempt me to give them my candid opinion.”

“Ms…. Dr. Zaid, I’m not here to tell you what or what not to say to the press. You do what you can live with, within the boundaries of your ethical guidelines in your profession. All I care about is finding the guy who’s doing this and putting him away. Being hounded by reporters comes with the territory when you work in a hospital with rape victims and attempted homicides, and if you don’t like it I suggest you find another line of work.”

She followed him down the hall, undeterred. “So you’re telling me that your department is doing everything it can. I doubt it. You want to know what I see? An overworked young officer trying to catch a rapist without a partner who’s going to get hung out to dry if he doesn’t catch this guy soon. Maybe if I said something, your superiors would at least give you some help, shoulder the blame.”

Craig took a few more steps and then realized that she wasn’t following him anymore. He spun on his heel and walked back to where she stood.

“I did have a partner. Constable Lori Price. Now maybe you can get off your high horse and try to appreciate why I wasn’t here for her exam, and no, I don’t have a new partner. We weren’t exactly expecting this.”

He pushed her stricken look from his mind as he spun around and walked away, the incident almost overriding the one thing that was different about Lori’s case than the others.

There was semen present.

Tain tried to keep the anger out of his voice. “You are the most stubborn, infuriating person I’ve ever had to deal with.”

“Oh, come on.” Ashlyn twisted her face to give him a look of profound exasperation. “You’ve dealt with yourself plenty over the years.”

“Why is it that you think being reasonable about something makes you seem weak? You don’t have anything to prove here.” He choked back what he wanted to add. That she didn’t have anything to prove to him.

“Why is it that when a woman holds firm, she’s stubborn and unreasonable, but when a man does it, he’s principled?”

“This isn’t about you being a woman.”

“Really? Then why the hell do you have a problem with me going up there?”

“I…Damn it, Ashlyn, I don’t have a problem with you going up there. But I said I’d do it. Why are you trying to stop me?”

“You said you’d do it to support my proposal to Daly.”

“No, Ashlyn, I didn’t. I said it because I believe it’s our best chance for fresh leads in this case.”

He watched her uncross her arms and reach around to scratch her neck, a mannerism he was used to seeing from her.

“I’m lighter than you are. If one of us has to go—”

“Hey, wait a second. I thought you wanted prints from the table and the window? Now you’re talking about going into the room?”

She glanced away from him, toward the place on the grass where the truck was being moved into position, as close to the back right corner of the burned-out building as it could get.

He reached for her arm and held it gently but firmly until she looked up at him. Her face betrayed a mix of defiance, apology and frustration.

Tain shook his head. “I can’t let you go up there.”

“What if there’s evidence, Tain? What if there’s something in that room that could help lead us to the killer?” All the other emotions that had flickered across her face had dissipated into one sincere appeal, to his determination to solve this case.

“Christ, Ashlyn, you don’t pull your punches, do you? Did you ever stop to think of what Daly would do to me if something happened to you up there, and he found out I knew you were prepared to take a risk like this?”

“Daly knows that, at the end of the day, I’m a police officer. I face risks on the job. Just like Craig.”

Craig. Tain swallowed, feeling his breath stick in his throat. “This isn’t about you being a cop. It’s about acceptable risks. If you’re go—”

“It looks like we’re ready,” Daly said. Then his gaze went to Tain’s hand, still on Ashlyn’s arm. “Is there a problem here?”

“No,” Ashlyn said. She stepped back as soon as Tain loosened his hold.

Daly frowned. “Good. Then it’s time for you to get up there.”

She turned and walked toward the truck. Tain started to go after her, but Daly put his hand up to stop him.

Daly looked him straight in the eyes. “When you were assigned to work with her, I told you I didn’t want any problems.”

“I know that, but—”

“Why do I get the impression personal feelings are clouding your professional judgment?”

“I disagree. You’re jumping to conclusions without all the facts.”

“Really? Then enlighten me, Tain. Why don’t you want Ashlyn going up there?”

Tain looked at Ashlyn as she put the required safety gear on. She’d be furious. And Daly trusted her. But Tain knew he couldn’t forgive himself if anything happened to Ashlyn.

He looked at Daly and took a deep breath. “She’s prepared to go into that room if she thinks there’s evidence.”

A voice called, telling Daly they were waiting for them. Tain held his gaze, unblinking.

Then Daly turned on his heel and marched toward the truck, pausing midstride as he saw the lift already being raised toward the window.

“No issues with heights?” Adrian Vaughan asked her.

Ashlyn shook her head. “It isn’t like this is even that far up. I imagine twenty or thirty floors might be enough to make you catch your breath.”

“When you’re dealing with a fire you’ve got a lot of things triggering the adrenaline. I never really notice the difference.”

“Really? I’d think it would be foremost in your mind.”

“You think more about the kind of fire, potential explosives, people who are caught inside. And those are the background thoughts. You have to keep your training front and center, or you’ll make mistakes that could cost you your life.”

“I know what you mean,” she murmured.

The radio crackled. “Ashlyn Hart, I expect you to follow your instructions to the letter. That means absolutely no unnecessary risks. Do I make myself clear?”

“Is your sergeant always so touchy?” Adrian asked.

She sighed. “If Tain were going up, Daly wouldn’t care.”

Adrian’s eyes widened, and she put up her hand.

“It’s not like that. I’m a friend of the family.” She knew the part-truth was the easiest way out of the situation, not that she owed Adrian an explanation. Ashlyn picked up the radio. “Absolutely, Sergeant.”

“I’m serious, Ashlyn.”

“So am I. I’m only going to do what’s necessary to help us solve this case.”

“Ashlyn…”