A Killer's Watch (14 page)

~~~

“Did you hear that?” Allison asked Diana. Both girls had
been silent for a long time, each one missing her family, thinking of the life
they’d left behind.

“What?” Diana asked, sleepily. She’d been dozing on and off,
since waking to the nightmare.

“I think he’s back. I heard him speak.” Allison braced
herself for the possibility that they could put their plan into action. “Get
ready. If he unties one of us, we attack. Right?”

“Right.” Diana sounded less sure now, than she had earlier.
Depression had set in, making the possibility of escape seem like a distant
dream.

“No, really, you have to be ready. Remember, hit him as hard
as you can in the nuts, then give him a karate chop to the neck. I’ve seen it
on television, it always works.”

“I thought you said to knock him out with the camera,” Diana
sounded confused.

“We can do that, too. After we chop his windpipe. He won’t
be able to stand, or to breathe. It will work, I swear!”

“Okay, okay. I’m ready.” Diana sounded anything but, too bad
Allison didn’t have time for a pep talk. The door to their chamber was opening.

“Good luck with the interviews.” Ethan kissed Jeri before
grabbing his keys.

“You too, with the
flyovers
,”
Jeri replied, glancing at her phone before sliding it into her pocket. “I keep
expecting
a
call, telling us that
Allison’s body has been found.”

“I know it’s hard, but we can’t think like that. We’re going
to find both girls. Today,” Ethan infused confidence into his response.

“I have to wonder what he’s waiting on. He killed Shelby
within two days, but he’s had Allison for three, as of today.”

“Not quite three, as he abducted her close to midnight, but
I get what you’re saying. Why is he keeping both girls, at the same time?
Shelby’s body turned up the day after he abducted Allison.”

Jeri’s tablet dinged, alerting her to new email.

“Anna sent thirty more images of women from Clevestone,”
Jeri sat at the table to pour over the pictures.

“I’ll send Monique over, she can help you look. Sorry, but I
have to leave. Let me know if you find anything,” Ethan paused in the doorway.
“Love you.”

“Love you, too,” Jeri looked up, remembering to smile.

~~~

“It’s too bad the interviews are so far apart, I’d really
like to talk to those three women in Clevestone as soon as possible,” Jeri
pressed the gas pedal a little harder.

“Look at it this way, by the time we’re able to get to
Clevestone, this afternoon, Anna may have found us a few more women who bear a
resemblance to Shelby and the missing girls.” Ever practical, Monique gripped
the door handle, wishing she was the one driving. Jeri took the curves much too
fast, in her opinion.

Jeri felt Monique’s tension, saw her death grip, and
instantly slowed down.

“I’m sorry, but I know those girls are running out of time.
It feels like we’re not doing enough.”

“We’re doing everything we can, and then some,” Monique also
relaxed. “Let’s talk about the interviews. I assume that you want to take the
lead.”

“Not really, we’ll play it by ear. Remember to be cool,
calm, and casual. Make them feel that we
know
that they are not
involved, that we’re merely excluding them out of necessity.”

“I’m with you. A little bit of honey goes a long way,” Monique
nodded.

“Exactly. Our guy will grow more confident, once he feels
excluded from the suspect pool. And we’ll have better insight into each man’s
character.”

“They make mistakes when they get cocky.”

“Yes, they do. But it’s more than that. Not only is our
killer charismatic, but he’ll enjoy being a part of the investigation. Anson so
loved to prove his superiority. I suspect that this guy is much the same.”

“So he’s charming, and possibly condescending. Anything
else?”

“He’s narcissistic. It’s his sandbox, we’re all just playing
in it.”

“Make a left,” Monique pulled out the list. “This is the
Taylor home. Father, Don, mother, Sue, three kids,” she read.

“I remember this house. The basement was filled with plastic
containers. There was barely room to move, much less hide a kill room.”

“Can’t eliminate him based on that. His home is one of the
nine we visited, before the website came down.”

“I know,” Jeri parked the car. “Put on your most
ingratiating smile, Monique. Let’s get this over with.”

~~~

“Can we fly any lower?” Ethan asked the helicopter pilot.

“Sure, as long as there are no buildings, or people, we can
go below five hundred feet,” he answered, reducing the chopper’s altitude.

“Great, thanks,” Ethan motioned to Chloe, buckled into the
seat beside him. “Are you okay?”

“Never better, I love flying.” Chloe flashed him a grin,
then turned her attention back to the window.

“Let’s see if you say that, after today. Flying grid
patterns this low over acres and acres is not exactly fun.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Chloe tossed back. “Although it’s
difficult to imagine owning this much land, and not doing anything with it.
These people don’t even have a garden.”

“For some, it’s the ownership that holds value, not the
actual uses for the land.”

“Not me, man. If I had this much property, I’d grow corn,
and cucumbers, and…hey, what’s that over there?” Chloe pointed to what looked
like a pile of rocks.

“Let’s find out,” Ethan motioned to the pilot.

The helicopter swerved left, taking them closer to the
river, and the rock pile.

“I don’t see an entrance of any kind,” Ethan said as the
chopper hovered.

“Neither do I, but it’s weird. Who would pile up a bunch of
rocks like that, for no reason?”

“Kids, who knows,” Ethan shrugged. “Take her up.”

It was going to be a long day.

~~~

“But
,
Graham, how could he
just leave like that?” Belinda was dumfounded that Thomas left, without a word.
“Who will take care of the house? I have meetings this afternoon, and you’re
always much too busy.”

“Mother, did you check to see if there’s anything missing? I
seem to remember a set of silver goblets on the dining room buffet, but I don’t
see them now.” Graham was ready to move on, but he knew it would be some time
before his mother settled down, after learning that she’d been robbed.

“What? Yes, the set that dear Aunt Margaret gave your father
and me as a wedding present. Are they gone?” Shocked, Belinda rose to see for
herself.

“I’m afraid so, we should really check the house, see what
else he may have taken.”

“Thomas stole from us? Why, I never would have guessed he
could do such a thing. We should call the police, immediately!”

“We will, Mother. But first, we should check for anything
else that might be missing. You should look in your room, particularly your
jewelry box.”

“But, I didn’t notice anything missing when I replaced my
sapphire set last night. He would have had to come into my room, while I slept,
to take my jewelry.” Flabbergasted with the notion, Belinda sat down hard on
the dining room chair.

“Still, you’d better take a look, Dear.” Ever the devoted
son, Graham walked over and patted his mother’s shoulder. “Would you like me to
accompany you?”

“Please, I just don’t think I could take it, if Thomas took
such liberties.” Belinda looked up at her son with gratitude. Graham was such a
blessing.

“Of course,” Graham smiled. “First, take a look around here,
do you notice anything else missing? I’ll check the buffet cabinet.”

“Look for the tea service. Your father had that sent over
from England on our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. And the crystal, check to
make sure that it’s all still here.”

“I seriously doubt that he would cart away the Waterford in
the middle of the night. It’s much too cumbersome, and worthless if it’s
broken.” His back to his mother, Graham grinned. He’d considered taking the
stemware, just for the pleasure of breaking it.

“Oh, please do look, Son.”

“Yes, Mother.” Graham dutifully opened the cabinet doors.
“Well, I have good news, and bad. The Waterford appears to be all here, but the
silver tea service is gone, so is the silver cutlery.”

“Heavens, noooooo!”

His mother’s reaction was exactly as he’d hoped. He couldn’t
wait until she realized that her precious diamond broach was gone, along with
so many of her other favorite trinkets.

“Why would he do such a thing? We paid him handsomely, did
we not?” Belinda was on a rant, feeling violated and confused by a trusted
employee’s betrayal.

Graham let her go on, but he tuned her out. Belinda would
dine out on this story for weeks, possibly months. Graham felt not one ounce of
pity, or remorse, over taking her treasures. His mother deserved a little pain,
after inflicting so much of it on him through the years. Her constant meddling,
the incessant monologues he endured over countless meals, all while appearing to
be hanging on her every word. All of it was justification for today’s small bit
of misery.

He didn’t even include the fact that this ruse was keeping
him from enjoying time with his special guests. The girls had both been awake
last night, when he paid them a visit. That wasn’t always the case. Having them
both look at him with terror swimming in their eyes, while pleading that he
release them, just for a moment, pleased him enormously.

He itched to go to them, now. To take Diana to his operating
table, and enjoy her fully. Allison was also a temptation, but it was Diana’s
face that filled his thoughts, taking him back to a time when he was happy, and
in love.

“Graham, are you listening?” Belinda’s monologue changed
enough to jar Graham from his daydream.

“Yes, Mother, of course.”

“Then answer me! How could Thomas have stolen from us? How
will we ever trust anyone again?”

God, she was still on that, Graham thought, turning to
comfort her.

“Not everyone is like that, Mother. We’ll find another
butler, I’ll call the agency this morning. We’ll make sure that they vet this
one more thoroughly than Thomas. I’ll insist on it.”

“They’d better. You tell them that I’ll let all of my
friends know about this travesty. And tell them I expect an apology, at the
very least.”

“Yes, Mother. Why don’t we go upstairs? I don’t see anything
else amiss down here.”

“Yes, Son, let’s. I may need to lie down for a bit.”

“He was just plain creepy, for lack of a better word. Did
you see how he kept staring at you? How did you stand it? I feel like I need a
shower, just because I was sitting next to you.” Monique shuddered as she and
Jeri walked to the car.

“Too bad it’s not a crime to be a letch,” Jeri tossed
Monique the keys. “You drive, please. I’d like to check in with Ethan, and
Anna.”

“Sure.” Relieved, Monique made the catch. “But first,
explain to me why you’re sure he’s not the one we’re looking for.”

“He’s socially awkward, for one. And he’s much too frail to
carry around over a hundred pounds of dead weight, all by himself. Being tall
enough is one thing, but being strong is entirely another. And most
importantly, he has limited computer skills. Did you see the confusion on his
face, when we started asking about his online profile? He’s not our guy.”

“No, I suppose not. Where to next?”

“Graham Grant. He’s one of yours. Take a right, out of the
drive, then a left on the highway,” Jeri showed Monique the map.

~~~

“What’s that?” Chloe pointed to a depression in the
landscape, surrounded by a grove of trees.

“It could be a door,” Ethan leaned over to look. “Take us
closer, Jeff,” he told the pilot, pointing to the trees.

As the chopper dipped, then circled, Ethan and Chloe peered
at what was obviously a doorway, built into the ground.

“Whose property is this?” Chloe asked, knowing she’d never
seen it before.

“The Masons,” Ethan told her. “It’s one of ours, but they
never mentioned a second cellar. We searched one closer to the house.”

“Should we take a look?”

“I don’t see any ‘No Trespassing’ signs,” Ethan answered.
“And we’re far enough from the house that we’re not disturbing anyone.”
Translated, that meant that no one would be the wiser, if they landed and
checked it out.

“Jeff, will you set it down?”

“If you say so.” Known to be a maverick, Jeff didn’t see the
harm.

“It doesn’t appear that anyone’s been here for a while,”
Chloe yelled as they neared the door. Jeff kept the chopper running. “The
ground isn’t disturbed.”

“No, and the spider webs covering the door aren’t disturbed,
either. Still, I’ll take a look.” Ethan opened the unlocked hatch, and peered
inside. It went nowhere.

“Who builds a doorway to dirt?” Chloe asked, surprised at
what the opening uncovered.

“This could be the reason they didn’t mention it when we
were here. They’ve obviously filled it in. Let’s go.”

~~~

“Who could that be?” Belinda asked Graham, in response to
the ringing doorbell. “Whoever will answer the door, now that Thomas has left
us?” Belinda had gone from shock, to anger, to sadness, and back to anger over
the departure of their trusted employee. Now it appeared that she had moved on
to self-pity at the inconvenience.

“I believe that I’m perfectly capable of answering the door,
Mother. The agency said they would send someone this afternoon. Not to worry,”
Graham spoke as he traversed the old Persian, on the way to the door.

“But it’s unseemly, a Grant, answering the door. Who could
that be?”