Conviction: Book 3 of the Detective Ryan Series (23 page)

Chapter 41-PM

The first text came through earlier in the night, telling the Puppet Master the location of the safe house. It took him two hours to stray away from his job and drive to the location. He knew the D.A. would trust Detective Ryan to watch over Claire. After all, they knew he was after both of them. They were bait, drawing him out of hiding at the thought of killing both women. They just never anticipated the plan he set in motion.

He expected the house to be guarded by police. When he approached, he cut the lights on his car, finding only one vehicle parked in front. Knowing Detective Ryan would be suspicious if she found anyone else parked near the house, he drove down the road and left the car two blocks away.

Walking back, the Puppet Master noticed the spacious property surrounding the two floor ranch house.
The white wrap-around porch was a nice touch
. There were so many people who would love a house like that. From the outside, it was a dream home, but not for the Puppet Master. The lights on the outside of the house would give the occupants inside a better view to the surrounding property.

Trying to keep himself far away from the lights, the Puppet Master walked around the house in search of any police or any other uninvited guests. He knew it was a trap, but it was one he had concocted and was nearly ready to act on.

Circling back around, the Puppet Master counted the windows and checked to make sure no one was watching him. He was too concerned about the house instead of his surroundings.
Snap
. A twig broke under his foot as moved closer.

Running back into the bushes, he concealed himself as Detective Ryan opened the curtains. He wondered if she saw him, but became confident when he saw her open other windows.

“She can’t see me,” the Puppet Master whispered. He decided to test her by walking from one side of the house to the other, staying away from the lights. He watched as Detective Ryan continued running to the windows searching for the noises. “It’s been fun toying with you, but I think it’s time to end the games.”

He hurried back to the car and pulled out the two black roses from the passenger seat. Returning to the house, he placed the flowers on the porch before slamming his fist repeatedly on the door. He knew the Detective’s first instinct would be to hide Claire, which gave him enough time to move to the side of the house where there were hardly any windows.

He could hear the sound of the front door open. If she decided to take a look around, his cover would be blown. She would see him standing next to the house and know he was the one the police were after. He took a deep breath, determined to run for the bushes until his cell vibrated in his pocket.

Count to ten and come to the front door.

This was the moment he had to decide how much he could trust Claire. She had been flawless in executing her part of his plan. Closing his eyes, the Puppet Master counted to ten and returned to the porch. The woman standing at the door had her back to him, providing the opportunity he needed.

“Claire, give me the gun,” Detective Ryan said calmly.

“You don’t get to call the shots anymore. Although, you never really did. We just let you think you were.” Hearing Claire’s voice left a smile on the Puppet Master’s face. The moment he heard Detective Ryan question Claire, he knew it was his moment to exact revenge.

Sliding the gun from the back of his pants, he gripped the nozzle tightly and smashed the handle into Ali Ryan’s head. She dropped to the floor instantly. It was easier than he thought. With the difficult part over, the Puppet Master was ready to have his fun.

“Let’s secure the bitch before she wakes up.” He grabbed Ali’s legs and dragged them inside the house so he could close the door.

“I’ll go find some rope,” Claire replied. She leaned in planting her lips on the Puppet Master’s.

He waited until she left the room before bending down next to the unconscious detective. “Come on; you don’t wanna miss all the fun.”

*****************************************************

Ali

What the hell happened?
The last thing I remembered was hearing someone bang on the front door. The more I tried to think, the more I felt a painful throbbing in the back of my head. I tried to reach around to feel the lump, but couldn’t move. My wrists and ankles were bound to a chair.

“Shit, she’s waking up.” I heard a woman say.

“Good. I can’t wait to see her face when she hears the truth.”

The voices were familiar, but I couldn’t pinpoint who the man was. It was someone I knew, but the cold, callous tone made it difficult to confirm.

“Wake up, bitch.” The hard slap across my face was enough to jolt me from my daze. My eyes lit up to see Claire standing in front of me. “You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to do that.” She swung again, backhanding me across my other cheek.

The burning sting ignited a fury that I wanted to unleash on her. I struggled against my restraints, feeling them bite into my skin with every move I made.

“You’re never getting out of here alive,” I spat.

Claire pulled my spare gun from the back of her pants. It was the one I left inside my bag in the bedroom I placed her in before checking the front porch.

“You got it all wrong, Ali. You’re the one who won’t make it out alive.” She placed the gun underneath my chin with a sadistic smile on her face, so much different than the Dr. Cain she let everyone else see. “I just hope he lets me be the one to pull the trigger.”

“He? You mean the Puppet Master, the same guy that’s been threatening you for months? You’re going to trust him after he killed your friends?”

“You really, don’t get it, do you? I thought you were supposed to be this great detective, the woman that could solve any case.”

“What don’t I get, Claire?”

“You catching me, the death threats, the worthless pieces of shit he murdered while I was in prison; it was all part of his plan.”

“Claire, he killed your friends.”

“They weren’t my friends. Friends wouldn’t talk shit behind your back because you wanted to get good grades or you worked hard to get promotions at work. I busted my ass to get my position at the hospital. Sheila practically begged me to hire her as my assistant, and she did a shitty job when I hired her. Rebecca just slept with whoever to get ahead. She slept with lawyers, witnesses, and judges just to win cases. Hell, she slept with all the partners in the firm so she could put herself in position to become one of them.”

“So you let him kill them because they were incompetent and slept around? They were still your friends and stuck by you after your arrest.”

“Did they? Sheila never came to visit me in prison. Rebecca was only there because she was my lawyer, and she was only doing that because I confessed to her about the murders. She would’ve been forced to testify against me if she wasn’t my attorney.”

“You really are a sick, twisted bitch. What the hell happened to you? You were a doctor. You were supposed to help people.”

“I did, and then Ron DeMarco had his way with me. In one night, he took everything from me. I couldn’t look myself in the mirror for a month, not until I started going to the meetings. That’s when I met him, and I started to feel whole again.”

“You really think you can trust him? Once he’s done with me, he’ll kill you too. Think about it; you’re the only one that can tie him to any of the murders. If both of us are found murdered in the house, it just looks like we were attacked. But if you go with him, they’ll know you had something to do with my death and come looking for you. Then it’s only a matter of time before they find you.”

Claire stepped away as a voice calmly said “Don’t listen to her.” The male voice I heard earlier rounded the corner. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw who it belonged to.

“Reyes?”

“Surprised, Ali? I knew you would be.” He approached with two black roses in his hand. “This has been a long time coming.”

I struggled against the ropes feeling them cut into my skin as droplets of blood trickled down my hands. Reyes, the rookie cop I tried to take under my wing last year, was the same man Claire called the Puppet Master.

“You killed all those people?”

“Not all of them. DeFalco and Claire took care of most of them. I’ve only dirtied my hands a few times. But your death I will enjoy the most.”

“You were the one that attacked me on the bridge, the one who kidnapped my sister, and setup Rodney?”

“And I enjoyed watching it tear you apart. I’ll admit, I had hoped the fall from the bridge or the icy water would have killed you, but I’ve enjoyed torturing you ever since.”

Knowing Reyes was the Puppet Master caused me to thrash around in my chair more violently. “I’m gonna kill you.”

He took one of the black roses and brushed it against my cheek. I pulled away from him, but felt his other hand grab my chin and held my head in place.

“I know how much you hate me right now. It’s the same anger and hatred I’ve had for you for far too long.”

“What are you talking about? We’ve known each other for a year. What the hell did I do to you?”

“Does the name, Carmela Jimenez ring a bell to you?

I racked my brain to remember the name, remembering her from earlier in my career. “She was the girl that took the stray bullet from the first time I shot at a suspect. What does she have to do with this?”

“She was an innocent girl you shot, and let bleed out on the street. She was also my baby sister.”

“And you think this is gonna bring her back?”

“No, but it’ll feel damn good to kill the bitch that took her away from me. You see, I just wanted you dead. But then your boyfriend saved you. The one chance I had to get revenge slipped away. So I thought it would be best to take someone you loved and make you feel the pain I felt. An eye for an eye, a sister for a sister, but that would only make you fight harder to find me. I needed to hit you where it would do the most damage. Since I already had an in with the self-help group, I used it to get to know your boyfriend a little better. After overhearing him talk about your break-up, I knew it was the perfect time to strike.”

So you killed him because I shot your sister?” The tears were welling up. It was my fault Matthew was dead. He was killed because of a psychopath’s determination to attain vengeance for something that happened several years ago.

“Yes, but framing your partner just made it so much more enjoyable. Seeing you turn your back on him was the icing on the cake. But there was still so much more to do. I made promises to Claire that I fully intended to keep. Her mission for revenge was incomplete. So I did what had to be done. I killed her two self-absorbed whorish friends and that pain in the ass A.D.A. in order to get her released from prison. Which brings us here, to the last few moments of your life.”

“You’re not gonna get away with this,” I shouted.

Reyes, walked behind me. His hands were on my shoulders. He dropped to a knee placing his mouth by my ear. “I already have. I’ve circled the area about a dozen times. There’s no one here, which means no one knows you’re here.” His chin rested next to his hand on my shoulder as he looked back to Claire. “I think we should play with our toy a little more.” He turned his head towards me, focusing his hot stale breath on my ear. “Sorry, but this might get a little messy.”

Reyes took a knife from his pocket and clicked it open. The blade traced my jawline before he dragged the tip down my chin to the base of my throat. He continued bringing it to the top button of my shirt. Each flick of the wrist ripped another button loose until my shirt was open.

“You think that scares me?”

“Oh I don’t plan on doing that. I just want to make sure you don’t bleed out from the first shot.” He placed the knife against my chest and brought it to my arm. The tip pressed firmly against my flesh. I could feel it slowly piercing my skin, but then it stopped after a car door slammed shut. “Move her into the other room,” Reyes snapped.

I didn’t know who it was, but I owed my life to whoever just pulled up to the house.

Chapter 42-PM

It was the moment the Puppet Master had dreamt of for years. Detective Ali Ryan was at his mercy, helplessly tied to a chair. The tip of the knife was slow to puncture her arm. The trickle of blood dripped down her sleeve. He was just about to jam the rest of the blade in when the sound of a car door stole his attention.

“Move her into the other room.” He barked the order at Claire as she peered out the nearest window.

“It’s that other detective, the pretty boy.”

“Thornton. I’ll handle him. Just hide her in the bedroom.” He placed the knife back in his pocket before looking back to Detective Ryan. “You better hope he’s smart enough to leave before I have to kill him too.”

“Ja_” Ali tried to shout, but the Puppet Master was quick to place his hand over her mouth, muffling the sound until Claire used a wad of paper towels as a gag.

He waited until Claire dragged the chair to the back and disappeared through the bedroom. Opening the door, he caught Thornton searching around the front. He drew his gun, pretending to be on watch.

“Freeze!” the Puppet Master shouted.

Thornton raised his hands. “Reyes, don’t shoot. It’s me, Detective Thornton.”

“What are you doing here?”

“I came to check on Ali. Where is she, and why are you here?”

“She called me to watch the place until she got back. There was no food in the house and she didn’t want to drive around with the prisoner.”

“I think I’ll wait here till she gets back. I’m supposed to take over the watch while they get some sleep.”

“Funny, she never mentioned anything about it.”

“You can call it in to your lieutenant if you want.” Thornton moved closer to the porch, pulling his cell. The Puppet Master played along, fearing he would blow his cover. He reached for the phone, dropping his guard long enough for Detective Thornton to draw his gun.

“What the fuck?”

“No one was supposed to know about the place. There were only a few people that even knew Dr. Cain was being moved to a safe house. You weren’t one of them. Now, where the hell is Ali?”

The Puppet Master merely smiled at Thornton before swatting at the arm with the gun in it. The glock spilled to the ground allowing the Puppet Master to raise his weapon.

Thornton was quick to grab his wrist. The gunshot echoed through the night sky as they struggled for control. A palm strike to the nose and a knee to the stomach knocked the Puppet Master to the ground, while Thornton stood over him. He could feel his wrist being twisted and pulled back as the gun was ripped from his hand.

“I won’t ask you again,” Thornton shouted with rage in his voice. “What are you doing here, and where’s Ali?”

“Check the house. You might still find her in one piece.”

“Get the fuck up; you’re coming with me.

The Puppet Master had his hands pinned behind his back as Thornton cuffed them and pulled him to a standing position. They walked back to the house together with the Puppet Master leading the way.

“Ali, you here?”

“Shout all you like, Detective.”

“Shut the hell up,” Thornton spat as he struck the Puppet Master between the shoulder blades. “Not another word out of you unless I’m asking you a question; you got that?”

“Now I’m not sure if I should respond. You told me not another word, but you asked a question.”

“Just shut up and show me where to find Ali.”

They entered through the front door. Another click could be heard from behind the door. “That’s far enough, Detective.” The Puppet Master knew Claire was waiting behind the front door. “Hands up, or I’ll blow your head off right now.”

“So, you two have been working together all this time?”

The Puppet Master spun on his heel displaying the satisfied smirk on his face. “I can’t believe it took you this long to figure out. You and Detective Ryan are supposed to be the top two detectives between Ulster and Dutchess County. Yet neither of you stopped to think the man you were so desperate to find was working alongside you for months.” He watched as Claire relieved Thornton of the gun.

“Take the cuffs off him,” she ordered.

Thornton gave a side eye, which probably meant he was weighing his options before ultimately doing as he was told. Once the cuffs were off the Puppet Master, he grabbed the Detective’s arms and shackled them, ensuring he couldn’t cause any more trouble.

“Go get us another chair,” the Puppet Master commanded. Claire obeyed the order and hurried back to the kitchen.

“You really think you’re gonna get away with this?” Thornton asked as he glanced towards the kitchen.

“You said it yourself; no one knows any of us are up here. But don’t worry; I’ll make sure your death is quick. There’s no need to make you suffer.”

Claire returned with a chair, which was shoved towards Thornton. “Sit down, hot shot.”

The Puppet Master adjusted the handcuffs, securing Thornton to the chair. “There, that should hold him.” He turned to Claire and smiled. “Drag her ass back out here.”

********************************************************

Ali

Knowing James was outside with Reyes was tearing me up inside. Part of me wanted him to walk away so his life would be spared, but the other part wanted to be selfish. It was that lingering hope that he would outsmart Reyes and Claire, arresting them both or putting a bullet in their heads as he rescued me. But I couldn’t sit back and hope for either situation. I needed to do something to save myself. The only way that would happen was to free myself of the restraints. Lucky for me, Claire was dumb enough to leave me near the S.W.A.T. gear.

I gripped the sides of the chair, I pulled myself forward until I landed on my tiptoes. I only needed to move a few feet, but felt pain in every inch I made. Setting the chair back down next to the bag, my hands blindly searched for something to cut the ropes.

In the distance, I could hear a gunshot go off. There was no turning back. I needed to get free. Thornton was in danger. I didn’t know if the shot connected with either man or if it was a stray. It didn’t matter; we’d both be dead if I didn’t get free.

My hands probed the bag until I pulled a Swiss army knife from the tactical gear. I frayed the rope enough to loosen the binding on my left hand. Slipping it out, I worked on the ropes that kept my other hand and legs at bay. I could break free at any moment, but the sound of Claire’s voice caught my attention. She was coming closer to the room. I needed to make a choice; continue to play along with their game, or take matters into my own hand.

I was done playing their game. I didn’t care if they killed me, but I wasn’t going down without a fight. Cutting the last bit of rope, I hurried to the door and waited for Claire to enter the room. The door opened with the gun outstretched.

“What the fu_”

Before she could say anything else, I grabbed her arm and used a Judo throw to take Claire down. I ripped the gun from her hand and smashed my forearm into her nose.

“Get the fuck up,” I ordered. Grabbing her by the arm, I forced Claire to her feet and shoved the gun against the side of her head. I walked into the hallway and found James sitting in a chair with Reyes standing behind him. “I got your girl; now drop your gun, Reyes.”

He pressed his gun to the back of James’ head. “Claire knew the dangers of the plan. She was willing to die for it.”

“Then you won’t care if I put a bullet in her head?”

“No, but I don’t think you want me to shoot Thornton. I mean this would make the second boyfriend that dies in front of you.” I pulled my gun away from Claire and aimed it at Reyes. “Go ahead, pull the trigger. But if you shoot me, I shoot him. If you shoot Claire, I’ll shoot him. Either way it doesn’t look too good for your Don Juan.”

“Then I guess we have a stalemate.”

“Or you could sacrifice yourself for him by letting Claire go and handing over your gun.”

“You really think I’m that stupid?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Suit yourself.”

He pulled a second gun from the back of his pants, directing it at me. He pulled the trigger before I could think. The bullet whizzed by my ear causing me to duck. Claire slammed her elbow into my stomach and connected a right hook that put me on my ass. She recovered the gun and aimed it at me again.

For a moment, I thought our lives were over. Reyes and Claire had the upper hand, ready to pull the trigger at my slightest move.

“James,” I shouted as his eyes met mine. “I’m sorry…I love you.” I closed my eyes and waited for what happened next.

The front door slammed open, taking everyone by surprise. I kicked Claire’s legs out from under her, knocking her to the floor. She tried to aim the gun at James, but I was quick to pin her arm over her head. The bullet fired into the wall. I looked to see what happened with Reyes. He was busy fighting off the six-foot beast he framed for murder.

Claire took the opportunity to cheap shot me in my throat. She slid out from under me and aimed again. This time I rushed her, slamming my body against her, sandwiching her into the wall. I left her on the floor while I retrieved the glock. I turned to see her scrambling for one that Reyes dropped. Before she could point it, I fired my weapon twice. The first bullet hit her left shoulder. The second hit squarely in the chest.

Reyes turned towards the gunfire, seeing the blood pouring from her chest. “You bitch,” he shouted. Grabbing the gun, he pointed it at me. I was ready to return fire, but didn’t need to. Rodney, the man Reyes had fought, tackled him to the ground.

“You’re done, Reyes,” Rodney said.

With the fighting done, I noticed the swirling red and blue lights filling the house as more police filled the entrance. They took Reyes into custody while Rodney and I checked on James.

“You all right?” Rodney asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Took you long enough to get here.”

“We wanted to make sure we had enough incriminating evidence on Reyes and Claire before we moved in.”

“Looks like your plan worked, Ali.”

It didn’t work out exactly as I had hoped. We played too close to the edge, and James nearly paid for it. Then I looked back where the medics were trying to stop the bleeding from Claire’s wounds. It was no use. The second shot was a kill shot. I knew where the bullet hit, and there was no way she would live through it.

“Yeah, the plan worked perfectly,” I mumbled.

As we walked out of the house, two car doors opened. The lieutenant stepped out of the driver’s seat and walked up with my sister, Amanda.

She sprinted up to me. Her arms wrapped around my waist as she buried her face into my shoulder. “Don’t you dare pull that crap again,” she cried.

“Don’t worry; it’s all over. He won’t hurt us again.”