A Prayer for the Devil (39 page)

Fatih parked the cab a few blocks away from Aaron’s house and pulled on a hooded sweatshirt. Now dressed all in black, he walked along the tree line of each house until the mansion was in sight. He slowly approached the security guard’s car while pulling the gun out of his belt. The car’s window was open; he could smell cigarette smoke and hear music from the radio. The interior light was on, and the man appeared to be reading the newspaper. Not wanting to kill him and ruin his chance to make Luke’s murder look like a suicide, he backed away and carefully walked the perimeter of the property to see if there were any other guards. When he reached the back of the lot, he noticed a small clearing in the woods. Entering, he was surprised to see an aluminum ladder glistening in the full moon’s light. After checking the rest of the property, he ran back and climbed over the wall. When he reached the other side, he positioned the ladder so he could climb back over, just as Luke had done so many times before.

He crept silently around the house and peered into each ground-level window. Seeing a white Cadillac in the driveway, he hoped the priest was home. He crouched by the front door and looked through one of the etched glass side lights, and he saw a green indicator light on the alarm keypad. Knowing that this typically meant that the system was disengaged, he checked every window and door to see if any were unlocked. Not having any luck with the ground floor, he ran and grabbed the ladder from the back wall to see if he could reach the second-floor windows. After a few tries, he pushed on one and it opened. He listened for an alarm and, not hearing one, he hoisted himself through the window and landed in a large bathroom with a
whirlpool tub. He closed the window behind him, then took a penlight from his pocket and began searching for Luke.

He shined the light around the bedroom adjacent to the bathroom. Seeing a Bible on the nightstand, he thought that he had found the priest but was disappointed to find that no one was in the bed.

He proceeded to the hallway, moving quickly with his gun in one hand and the light in the other, and checked each room carefully. There was no sign of anyone until he walked through the open door that led to the biggest bedroom in the house. It was dark, and a woman he assumed was Luke’s brother’s wife lay in a short, silky nightgown, sleeping facedown on the bed. From the back, Fatih could see her brown hair, long shapely legs, and black thong. He stared at her in disgust, yet found himself becoming uncontrollably aroused. Mad at her for causing him to lose control, he pointed the gun at the back of her head and thought about pulling the trigger, whispering, “I should kill this worthless whore.” But regaining his composure, he forced himself to walk out. When he finished looking through every other room in the house, he walked out the gym door, leaving it unlocked in case he had to return.

Once back in the taxi, he sat and thought about what he should do next. If Luke was staying at the house, he should have already been home. When he saw a set of headlights in his rearview mirror, he sank down in his seat. Seeing Luke’s old pickup truck pass by, he smiled and thanked Allah.

He followed the truck, making sure to stay far enough behind that he wasn’t noticed. When it stopped by the security guard’s car, he was happy that he hadn’t killed the man. After a few minutes, he was surprised when the truck pulled away. He followed and was confused when the pickup turned toward the airport. Realizing that there were a lot of other cabs on the road, he sped up and followed closer, confident
that he wouldn’t be noticed. Fatih was now worried that if Luke got on a plane, he would have no chance of killing him.

Surprisingly, the truck turned at the sign for “arriving flights.” The pickup pulled over to the curb and parked. Confused, Fatih did the same. When a police officer approached the pickup, he began to panic. Moments later, the truck pulled away and Fatih followed. As expected, the truck circled the airport, and after a few minutes they were back at the arrivals curb. Fatih waited and hoped that the police wouldn’t make Luke move the truck again. Hearing a knock on the window, he jumped and looked as a woman in a dark suit asked, “Are you available?” Startled, he didn’t understand, but then realized that she wanted a cab. Knowing that his taxi light was off, he pointed silently at the car’s roof, and she walked away.

He waited behind the truck for what seemed like an eternity, praying that a police officer would not make him move the cab. Then, suddenly, he saw a man pass through the sliding glass doors and head toward the truck. When the man turned to open the door, Fatih was shocked. It was his target, the priest.

AFTER PARKING, LUKE AND
John rushed through the light snowfall toward the boat. Vincent met them at the back and helped each one aboard, anxious to hear what had happened in Saudi Arabia. Hunched around the kitchen table, Luke quickly relayed the events of the last forty-eight hours. Vincent was shocked to learn that Fatih’s parents were still alive.

When Luke further explained that Fatih’s mother, Kamilah, couldn’t talk because they had cut out her tongue, the other men were horrified. Vincent was visibly shaken because he had been so close to Fatih. He had eaten dinner with him, slept in the same house, and had even attended church with him. Once Vincent heard that Kamilah admitted that her husband and son were responsible for the bombing, he stared at Luke with an unspoken question. Luke replied by simply nodding his head. Now Vincent knew for sure that his parents were murdered by Fatih and Ismail. Tears welled in his eyes.

Continuing, Luke sadly explained that Jami wasn’t returning. Without her help, his trip would have been a failure. She had sacrificed her freedom to catch the people who had killed her sister, and in doing so had led them to their own families’ killers. The final shock came
when Luke told them that Fatih had just returned to Boston. When they asked why, Luke reluctantly admitted, “To kill me.”

Vincent jumped from his chair and pleaded, “We need to go to the police, and I mean now!”

John whispered, “So that’s why you wanted me to check on Aaron’s house.”

Luke nodded.

Despite what Vincent thought, Luke wasn’t sure that he had enough evidence to arrest Fatih, but perhaps he might be able to convince Detective Romo to help. Even though it was the middle of night, Luke picked up his cell phone and dialed the detective’s number. When he didn’t answer, Luke left a message that he thought he knew who was responsible for the bombing in Boston. He added, “If you want to meet in the morning, I’ll be at the harbor on my brother’s boat. No one will see you.”

They agreed that they should be safe on the boat for the night, and they hoped they would be hearing from Romo in the morning.

When John stood to go, Luke said, “Why don’t you stay with us tonight?”

John declined and added, “I’m supposed to meet with someone who might want to lease Aaron’s office first thing in the morning. I want to make sure it’s clean before they arrive.” John bent down to pet Justice, who was sleeping on the floor, then shook hands with Vincent and Luke before leaving.

Walking into his bedroom, Luke noticed that Vincent had placed Blade’s ashes on his nightstand. He touched the box and said, “Keep helping me, Blade.” After taking a shower and putting on a pair of sweatpants, he heard a knock on his door. It could be only one person. “Come in, Vincent,” he said. Vincent entered the room, holding Justice in his arms. “I’m sorry to bother you, Luke, but I wanted to talk to you alone.”

Luke smiled. “No problem.” Vincent sat and said, “Can you tell me exactly what Kamilah said when you asked her about my parents?”

Luke explained, “It was the last thing I said to her. She was looking directly at me, and after I asked the question, she looked at the ground, ashamed at what her family had done.”

“I can’t believe it. She was like a second mother to me. She made me dinner, bought me clothes, and took care of me when I was sick.”

“I am positive that she had nothing to do with any of this,” Luke assured him. “They cut out her tongue and threatened to amputate her hands if she ever mentioned Boston again. She’s suffered immensely because of her evil husband and son. She can’t be held responsible for anything that happened to your family or mine. I’m sure her feelings for you were genuine. It was obvious that she was brokenhearted. Remember, she didn’t have to tell me anything, but she told me everything.”

“Where do you think Fatih is now?”

“I’m not sure, probably in some fleabag hotel watching porn and waiting to see if he can find me in the morning.”

“And what do you think he’s going to do if he finds you?”

“Probably try to run me down with a car or shoot me when no one’s around.”

“Does that frighten you?”

Luke forced a smile. “Not really. I’m prepared.”

“Prepared for what?”

“To meet God.”

Vincent smiled back. Luke asked, “What would you do if you saw him again?”

Pulling the gun out of his belt, Vincent aimed it at the wall and said, “No question about it, I would shoot him as soon as I could. I want him to pay and, more important, I want him dead.”

LUKE COULDN’T SLEEP. HE
stared out the skylight and watched as eerie-looking clouds floated by, alternately obscuring and revealing the bright full moon. Vincent evidently wasn’t sleeping either, for Luke could hear him tossing and turning in the next room. How could they sleep, knowing that Fatih was in Boston? The cold reality was that Fatih was probably hunting for Luke at this very minute. Luke was tortured thinking about what he would do when he came face to face with his brother’s killer. He thought about what Vincent had said. Did Luke also want Fatih dead, or could he be satisfied with him just being captured? If it came down to a choice, would he kill Fatih to save his own life? Horrified, Luke wondered what kind of priest thought like this.

He glanced at the clock and saw that it was 4:12 a.m. Feeling the boat move, he figured that Vincent was taking Justice for a walk. Looking up at the skylight, he heard a muffled crack and saw something splatter on the glass. Hearing another, he heard Justice yelp. Realizing what was happening, he knew he was trapped. He could hear footsteps approaching, but he didn’t have time to lock the door. Petrified, he crouched down next to the bed, feeling helpless. His mind
raced, and suddenly he had an idea. He reached up to the top of the nightstand and frantically felt for the skylight control panel. Finding it, he punched each button until it began opening. When it had moved just a few inches, the door crashed open.