A Silent Fury (15 page)

Help! Help me!
Her mind screamed; terror nearly scrambled her thinking.

Then an idea filtered through the fog of fear.

Fisting her hands, she laid her arms spread eagle on the bed then brought them up with all her strength, effectively boxing her attacker's ears.

A howl of rage and pain reached her as he flung himself back. As he jerked away from her, she grasped the mask covering his face. The sliver of moonlight caught on a lantern-shaped chin. Then he was in the dark and disappearing fast.

Kicking at the covers, Catelyn rolled to her right and landed
on the opposite side of the bed. Fleeing feet headed for her bedroom door.

“Oh…no…you…don't!” she ground out through gasps for air and gritted teeth.

But she was on the wrong side of the bed. Her gun was in the other nightstand. Flipping herself over the bed, she grabbed the drawer and yanked.

Gun in one hand, cordless phone in the other, she took off after the escaping thug. She could hear him pounding through her kitchen, then the slam of the back door.

She punched in 911 and headed out after her target.

J
oseph lifted his head from the kitchen table, rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked around. He'd fallen asleep over the case files.

What time was it?

The stove clock read 1:38.

Time to get comfortable and get some sleep. He still had his gun strapped to his arm and his phone on his belt. His gaze dropped to the picture of the missing girl. Kelly Franklin. Was she still alive? Was she hurt? Suffering? Or was she already long dead, Tracy's killer striking twice. But she'd been alive after Tracy had died. That much he thought he knew. The flip-flop left at the first scene indicated she was at least still alive when she was taken from the campus.

And the other found in a storage shed full of stolen goods. Was she a part of the ring? Or had she stumbled on all of this accidentally? Digging into her life had shown her to be a “good girl” who hung out with the right crowd with the exception of Tracy Merritt. Kelly went to church every Sunday. Was friends with Alonso, girlfriend to Dylan, who had a bit of a shady past, but seemed to be trying to turn it around. Maybe Kelly was a positive influence on him.

Why was she at the school that night? To meet Dylan as he'd
said? But neither were dorm students. Because she lived in town, normally, Tracy wouldn't stay on campus overnight, but because she played basketball, she was allowed to be a temporary residential student.

So, Kelly and Dylan had planned to meet that night at the school for whatever reason. Kelly arrived early and got into an argument with Tracy. Dylan came upon them fighting, got into the thick of it, then left when Kelly wanted to finish whatever she and Tracy were arguing about.

He pulled out the text message log from the phones. Kelly and Dylan had arranged their rendezvous. Nothing about meeting Tracy. So it hadn't been prearranged. Tracy's cell had no texts that evening.

Zachary's had several to his coach about meeting for practice, confirming game times, baseball chit-chat, and then telling him about Tracy's funeral. Nothing unusual. Nothing revealing. Nothing to indicate who he was meeting with the day of the funeral. He could have received a text anytime during the day and met up with the person several hours later.

However, there was one text that Zachary had received about an hour before he was reported to have left the house. It read “Stay out of stuff that's not your business or you'll be very sorry.”

The text came from Stacy Dillard's phone. This was a new twist. What was the woman doing sending that text to Zachary? Definitely something to ask her about tomorrow.

Joseph sighed and put the papers aside then reached up to rub his eyes.

And then there was Catelyn. What was he going to do about the only woman who'd ever driven him to distraction? Made him pace the floor at night thinking about how much he missed her and wished God would intervene to change her heart.

Her parents had done a number on her. Especially her father. Suicide…whoa. No wonder she was so angry.

Joseph sighed—and nearly jumped out of his skin when his phone buzzed.

Dispatch. What?

“Joseph here.”

“This is Margo in dispatch. Sorry about the lateness of the call, but I just got a 911 call from your partner's house reporting an intruder. I know Catelyn pretty well and know you guys are working together. Figured you'd want to know.”

“You figured right. I'm on my way. Thanks.”

Joseph punched in Catelyn's number as his steps ate up the distance between the kitchen and the back door. Her phone rang four times then went to voice mail.

He hung up as he threw himself into his car. He could be at Catelyn's in approximately seven minutes. He planned to make it in five.

 

Where was he? Fury battled common sense. Her gun gripped in her right hand, she followed the path she thought her intruder had taken. Flashing lights pierced the darkness letting her know help had arrived.

But the guy she was after was getting away.

Had gotten away.

She'd lost him.

Winded, she leaned against the nearest telephone pole, and searched every nook and cranny within seeing distance.

He was around here somewhere, she felt sure, but with so many houses, bushes, trees, open garages, there was no way to figure out where he'd gone.

But they would search.

The squeal of tires caught her attention and she spun to see taillights disappear around the corner.

Picking up her cell, she dialed dispatch again. She needed Margo to patch her through to whoever was going to be in charge.

Eyes still scanning the shadows, she listened to it ring. Margo picked up before the first ring ended. “Catelyn, is that you?”

“It's me. He got away. I think he's heading north down Kendall Street. Get a car after him, will you?”

“You chased him?” She sounded outraged.

“I knew you were sending backup.” Catelyn winced at the slight whine in her voice. “Anyway, I need some manpower out here to search the area and make sure he isn't taking refuge in someone's house or garage. I'm pretty sure he was in the car and is long gone by now, but we've got to check.”

“It's on the way.”

“Catelyn?”

She turned and her heart nosedived to her toes before banging back up. “Joseph? What are you doing here?”

“Margo called me.”

“Ah. Well, she needn't have bothered. Sorry to get you out of bed.”

“I haven't made it there yet. What happened?”

Remembered terror flooded her and she shivered. “I was asleep, or at least dozing. Something woke me up and I realized I wasn't alone in the room. Then I felt a pillow slam over my face…” She broke off and swallowed.

“Catie,” he whispered, and wrapped his arms around her.

It felt like coming home.

The shakes set in and she felt the tremors rock through her. Yes, she was a cop, but she was still human. And she'd been personally attacked twice now. Her house and now her physical person. It was enough to throw the strongest person off her game.

She pulled in a deep breath and stepped back. “Thanks,” she whispered without meeting his eyes.

“You're welcome. Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”

“I'm all right. I'm just wondering how he got in.”

“Let's check it out.”

Catelyn started back the way she'd come. She hadn't gone too far from her house when she'd lost the guy. Back in her driveway, she noticed something for the first time. “My garage door is open.”

“You didn't open it?”

“No. I was stunned and mad when I came out chasing that guy and didn't stop to think about it, but I always close my garage at night. Maybe that's what woke me and not the smell.”

“Did you lock the door going into the house?”

She sighed and rubbed her eyes. “I think so. I remember checking all the locks before going to bed, so yes, I'm pretty sure it was locked.”

He stepped closer. “Let's see if we can get some prints off this. I can't tell by just looking at it, but I bet someone picked your lock. Did you notice if he was wearing gloves?”

She closed her eyes, forcing herself to remember what she'd felt when she'd reached up and felt his arm, his head, his fists. His ear.

“No, he wasn't and he was wearing two earrings in his left ear. Plus, I pulled a ski mask off and caught sight of his chin. Unfortunately, I couldn't see anything else.'

“So you wouldn't recognize him if you saw him again?”

“No,” She sighed. “Probably not.”

 

Two hours later, the crime-scene unit had finished up and the clock was pushing 3:45. There'd been no sign of her intruder. Joseph walked into her den and sat on the couch beside her. She had her knees pulled up, her forehead resting on them.

He reached over to rub her shoulder. “Are you going to be all right?”

“I don't know” came her mumbled response.

“It's a good thing you scratched him. The tissue they scraped from under your nails will be helpful—especially if it matches up with a guy who's got two earrings in his left ear.”

“I know,” she said to her knees.

Tilting her chin, he looked into her eyes. Eyes so blue, they usually reminded him of the ocean on a clear day. Only tonight, they were stormy gray. Vulnerability shone through the clouds and his heart clenched with sympathy.

He leaned closer, placing his lips on hers, feeling their softness, remembering their texture. He waited a moment, giving her the opportunity to pull away if she wanted.

Instead, a soft sigh escaped her and she let him kiss her. Just a soft, comforting kiss that touched his heart with tender fingers, yet left him longing for more.

Then he transferred the kiss to her forehead and she wrapped her arms around him to let him hold her.

Never had a moment been so sweet. He cherished it while he could, figuring when she got her feet back under her, she'd be off and running again.

“You'd better go,” she mumbled against his chest.

“I know.” He didn't move. She was letting him hold her, letting him see her vulnerable side and he didn't want the moment to end.

“You're not going to get much sleep,” she warned him.

“I've gone on less.”

With a sigh, she pulled away and his arms ached with loneliness. The sensation startled him, then he realized she was right. He should go.

He stood, and she gave him a small shove. “Give me a wake-up call, okay?”

“Sure. Try not worry. Your guy's probably not coming back.”

“Probably not, but I'm still getting an alarm system put in.”

“I can't believe you don't have one already.”

She shrugged. “I've thought about it, of course, even had a company come out and give me an estimate. They're pretty expensive and with Mom in the nursing home…”

“Doesn't her pension pay for that?”

“No. She quit the force, remember?”

“So you…”

“Yeah, me.” She waved him to the door. “Go on, get out of here. I'll see you tomorrow…um, today…in a couple of hours.”

He lifted a hand and ran a finger down her cheek, started to say something, then closed his mouth and walked out the door.

C
atelyn couldn't believe it. First, she'd let him kiss her after she'd given him a list of reasons a relationship between them would never work. And second, the big lug had slept in his car for the past—she looked at the clock—three and a half hours. She'd fallen into bed after setting her alarm and only rolled out fifteen minutes ago. She'd slept hard, her body craving the rest, and yet she'd been restless, too, worried her intruder might come back. And feeling guilty for resting when Kelly was still missing.

Joseph hadn't told her that he was planning on standing guard because he knew she wouldn't let him…or would, at the very least, lose sleep over his act of chivalry because she'd feel guilty that she was snug in her bed while he earned a crick in his neck.

The man knew her well for the most part.

Standing in her kitchen sipping a cup of the strongest coffee she could stand, she looked out her window and watched him stir.

He cared about her. She'd have to be comatose not to see it. The thought warmed her and scared her to death.

But she just couldn't get past her parents' lousy marriage—and the fear that she couldn't live up to Joseph's expectations of what being a wife entailed.

Although she realized she desperately wanted to. As long as she could be his wife and do her job. But that wasn't to be. He wanted a wife who'd be happy staying at home and there was no way that was going to be her.

That line of thought startled her. For so long, she'd refused to even consider marriage to another cop simply because of her childhood. But Joseph, ever since their first meeting when she'd been a hurting teen and he'd been the brother of her best friend, they'd had a connection…a…something.

So, did that mean if Joseph suddenly decided he would be happy having a cop for a wife, she'd change her stance on marriage to a police officer?

Groaning, she reached up to massage the back of her neck with her right hand, then finished of her coffee. She set the mug in the sink and looked back at the man in the car.

She did know one thing, though. No matter how conflicting her feelings, she cared for the guy. Maybe even loved him. Probably did. Okay, definitely did. Always had. Always would.

Pouring the rest of the ten-cup pot of caffeine into a thermos, she grabbed her lightweight police jacket and headed out the door and over to the car.

A light tap on the window roused him. He opened one eye and glared at her. She smiled and remembered the times he'd fallen asleep at his parents' home after a large family meal. His mom or dad would try to wake him and Catelyn, Marianna and Gina, two of his sisters, would watch and giggle about how grumpy he would be. Nothing had changed in all those years.

The window slid down. “Go away.”

“You're an idiot,” she said, hearing the affection in her voice.

“I know, but I couldn't just leave. I was…”

“Worried?”

“Huh. Maybe. I know you can take care of yourself pretty
well, but…” He shrugged and opened the other eye. “Is that coffee?”

She laughed at the pleading tone in his voice.

Opening the door, she settled in the passenger seat. “You drive and I'll pour.”

“Deal.” Cranking the car, he pulled away from the curb and rubbed the stubble on his chin. “Guess I'll clean up when we get to the station.”

“What's the plan today?”

“I want to talk to Billy Franklin about his backpack and that flip-flop showing up in the storage shed.”

She handed him the brew. “We probably should have pulled him out of bed last night and demanded some answers.”

“I think we had enough to deal with last night. So, we grabbed a couple hours of sleep. We have to watch out for ourselves, too.”

She rubbed her eyes. “I know you're right, it's just that Kelly's missing and we've still got a killer out there. It feels wrong to sleep even for a minute.”

Joseph placed his coffee cup in the holder and reached over to squeeze her hand. “I know. We'll find her, though. Right now, I want to find Billy Franklin. I haven't been able to track him down all day.”

She smiled at him, remembering his tender gentleness only a few hours earlier. Her dad never would have…

Her smile slipped and she said, “Have you called Coach Dillard?”

“Yeah. He said he hadn't heard from Billy and didn't have any idea where the kid might have gotten to. He did mention that Billy wouldn't miss the big game.”

“How's his dad doing?”

“Better. It wasn't his heart. He had an anxiety attack.”

“No wonder. I can't say I'm surprised.”

Joseph reached for his coffee once more as he drove and Catelyn considered her feelings for the man. She wanted things to work out between them more than she'd thought possible.

Especially after last night…

But could she lay it all on the line like that? Trust him with her heart? Fully open herself up to someone else. A cop? One who wanted a traditional stay-at-home wife? Could she get past her own fears of what marrying another cop would entail?

She shuddered at the thought, but couldn't help the yearning desire to answer each question with a resounding yes. But the truth was, she just didn't know.

“Give me fifteen minutes, then we'll head over to the Dillard house. I want to talk to Stacy Dillard about that text message she sent Zachary.”

She nodded. “She may be at church. Let me call and see if anyone is home.”

He disappeared into the building and Catelyn got on the phone.

 

Mrs. Dillard let them in, albeit reluctantly. Joseph stepped through the door, taking in his surroundings—and the fading bruise on the woman's left cheekbone.

“What's this about, Detective? I have a sick child upstairs.”

Joseph raised a brow. Were they going to do this in the foyer?

As if reading his mind, Stacy motioned for them to precede her into the den area. Catelyn sat on the edge of the nearest recliner. Joseph chose the love seat.

Stacy stood in the doorway, arms crossed. Joseph cleared his throat. “Mrs. Dillard, why don't you have a seat?”

She did.

Catelyn intervened. “I'm sorry Alan Jr. is sick. We won't take much of your time, but we need to ask you about Zachary.”

“That's what you said on the phone.”

“When we saw you at the funeral, you said you didn't understand why we thought Dylan would be a suspect in Kelly's disappearance. You thought we should be looking more at Zachary.”

The woman took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes. Yes, I did say that.”

“Then Zachary ends up shot and we find a text message on his phone from you.”

Stacy paled, her right eye twitched. “I see.”

Catelyn looked at Joseph. He nodded. He'd noticed she didn't ask which text message they were asking about.

“You threatened him.”

She grimaced. “I wondered when that would come back to haunt me.”

Joseph got up and wandered over to the glass gun rack. “That's a nice set of rifles you have there.”

“They're my husband's.” She twisted her fingers.

“Did you shoot Zachary?”

The woman let out a laugh. “What? You've got to be kidding. I was standing there in line with you when Zachary took off with you guys right behind him. When would I have been able to shoot him?” She waved a hand. “And I didn't want to shoot him anyway, I just wanted him to keep his mouth shut.”

The woman had a point. She didn't shoot Zachary and she had two police officers who could give her an alibi. But did she know who shot him or did she hire someone to do it? He made a note to pull her financial records. “What was the text about?”

“Zachary knew Alan and I were having problems. I…met with a…friend. Zachary saw me meeting with…this friend. I was desperate—and stupid. I thought if I took a tough stance, Zachary would back off.”

“Did he?”

“No, he wanted money to keep quiet.”

“Blackmail?”

“Yes.” She swallowed hard. “I asked him for some time to get the money together.”

“So you were going to pay him?”

“Yes.”

And that was as much as she was going to say, Joseph could tell. He wondered if her reticence to talk had anything to do with the bruise on her cheek. “I'm going to need the name of your…friend.”

His phone rang. “Excuse me.” He left Catelyn talking to Stacy while he took the call from one of the dispatchers. “Hello?”

“Billy Franklin was spotted at the church where he attends. The one on North Spring Street.”

“Thanks.”

Joseph hurried back into the den. “Come on, Catelyn. “We've got to go pick up Billy.” He turned to Stacy. “We're not done yet.”

She shrugged. “I'm not going anywhere.” Then she bit her lip. “Just don't tell Alan, please.”

Joseph didn't make any promises, just followed Catelyn's brisk jog to the car.