Dead Ringer (37 page)

Jacob sat forward in his chair. "What were the girls' names?"

"Ruth, Judith, Rachel, Eve, and Sarah."

Jacob shoved out a breath. The charms were engraved with the girls'
birth names. "What happened?"

"From what we could piece together, Delia caught Allen with the two
oldest sisters in the back shed. The girls were partially clothed. Delia went
nuts. She told Allen he could never visit them again."

"Her husband backed her up?" Zack asked.

"According to Delia's next-door neighbor, he did. He'd never wanted the
boy around anyway. The kid reminded him of all the mistakes he'd made. He took
the boy back to his mother and informed both of them that Allen was never
welcome again."

"How old was Allen at the time?"

"Sixteen." Houseman shuffled through his papers. "Here's a picture taken
shortly before Elijah and Delia were murdered."

The family portrait was of Mother, Dad, oldest son, and five daughters.

Jacob drew in a breath. "Look at the girls. The oldest must be Jackie
White, then Vicky, and then Amanda. That infant has to be Adrianna and the
toddler beside her is Kendall."

"And our killer is the son," Zack said.

Houseman sighed. "I read about the recent murders but the names were
different and so much time has passed. I didn't connect the dots."

"There's no way you could have," Jacob said. "The names on the charms
had never been released to the public."

Houseman frowned. "No one realized how upset Allen Turner was. A week
later he stole a car and came back to the Turners' house. Using a kitchen
knife, he first stabbed Elijah in the garden. It looks like Delia saw what was
happening and hid the two youngest children in a closet. She didn't have time
to find the other three. He killed her in the kitchen as she was calling the
police. He cut up the second daughter's hands as she fought him off."

"Vicky," Jacob said. "That explains the old defensive wounds the coroner
found." Kendall's dream hadn't been a dream at all. It had been a repressed
memory.

"He'd have killed the older girls if a neighbor hadn't intervened. The
neighbor showed up with a baseball bat and knocked the knife out of the kid's
hand. He thought he broke the kid's hand. But Allen was able to get away. He
and his mother vanished."

"They were never found."

Houseman shook his head. "We couldn't find them."

Jacob nodded. "We think now they went to Alaska."

Houseman had been briefed on the recent homicides. "Now he's back to
kill the sisters."

"That's what we think."

"And the two younger sisters?"

"We found the youngest. I've been trying to reach the older sister for a
couple of hours but she's not answering her cell."

"Who is it?"

Jacob clenched his right hand. "Kendall Shaw. She's missing and so is
her very pregnant roommate."

Houseman raised an eyebrow and glanced back at his files. "Mrs. Turner
was pregnant with her sixth child when she was killed."

"Damn," Zack said. "We know the Turners owned land east of the city."

"They hunted there but didn't live there. They lived in a farmhouse in
Hanover County." Houseman flipped through his notes and read out the address.
It was still raw, rural land--a perfect place to hide women.

Jacob and Zack rose at the same time. "Thanks."

Sweat dampened Nicole's brow as she lay panting in the center of the
bed. Her contractions were less than a minute apart.

Kendall had tied back her hair with a shoelace and now held Nicole's
hand as another contraction gripped her body. The baby would be here any
second. When the contraction passed and Nicole collapsed against the pillows,
Kendall moved to the end of the bed and pushed up the sheets. She helped Nicole
out of her pants, careful to keep her covered from Todd's watchful eye.

He stood by the door. A gleeful smile turned up the edges of his lips.

Kendall tried to look calm for Nicole's sake. "We're right on schedule."

Nicole gritted her teeth. "I want to push."

"Okay. Okay." Was that a good thing or not? She glanced down and thought
she saw the tip of the baby's head. "I think I see her."

"Can I push?"

Kendall had no idea. "Yes."

Nicole moistened her lips. "How would you know?"

"I just do." She didn't look over her shoulder at Todd. "I'm going to
need hot water so I can wash my hands and clean the baby off."

Todd shook his head. "Make do with what you have."

"I'm worried about infection."

"I'm not. As long as the baby is fine that's all I care about."

"Kendalllll!"
Nicole arched her back and started to pant.

Kendall looked down. The baby's head had started to crown. She had no
idea what was going to happen once the child was born, but now all she could
worry about was the birth. "She's coming, Nic. Push. Push hard!"

Nicole bore down and screamed through clenched teeth. Todd moved closer,
peering with great interest. The head emerged.

"Push!"
Kendall said.

One final scream and the baby's shoulders passed. Kendall caught the
wet, blood-soaked baby as she moved out in one final whoosh. Immediately, she
turned the baby on her side, cleaned the mucus out of her mouth, and rubbed her
between the shoulders. The baby started to wail.

Nicole started to weep. "Is she all right?"

"She's fine," Todd said. There was pride in his voice.

Kendall took the other lace she'd removed from her shoe and tied off the
umbilical cord. Seconds later the placenta emerged. "I need to cut the cord."

Todd flipped open a pocketknife. "I'll do it."

Kendall covered the baby with her hands while Nicole pushed up on her
elbows to watch Todd. The worry in her eyes was not for herself but the baby.

However, Todd's hands were as steady as a surgeon's. He cut the cord.

Kendall wrapped the baby in a blanket from the bed and laid her in
Nicole's arms. Nicole glanced down at the child. Tears spilled down her cheeks
as she gazed upon the baby.

Kendall covered Nicole and wiped the blood from her hands on the sheet.
She met Todd's gaze. "Leave them and I will go with you. Please. Just leave
them be."

He stared at her for a long moment. "You would go with me?"

She used the word she'd heard him utter so many times. "We can be a
family."

He reached out and touched her face.
"Family."

She stiffened at his touch but she managed a smile. "Yes. It will be
better if it's just the two of us."

For a moment he hesitated. Nicole cradled the baby close.

Todd shook his head, moving to the head of the bed beside Nicole. He
reached down and pulled the baby from her arms. "It has to be the three of us
to complete the Family."

"No!" Nicole yelled.

He moved toward Kendall. "Take our baby, Kendall."

Kendall took the child, not daring a glance at Nicole's stricken face.
The bundled infant squirmed in her arms as if sensing she'd been wrenched away
from her mother.

Todd leveled his gun at Nicole's head. "It's just the three of us now."

Kendall clutched the baby tight against her. "Don't kill her, Todd. You
and I and the baby will leave but don't kill Nicole. Don't make me hate you."

The memory of her mother's screams echoed in her head. "You killed my
mother. If you kill Nicole I will never forgive you."

He frowned. "We are family. You can't hate me."

"Families hate all the time. If you want me to love you, leave Nicole
alone. She can't hurt us now."

Tears streamed down Nicole's face.

Todd stared at Kendall. The raw pain in his eyes was almost
heartbreaking. "I didn't want to kill her. I just came back to talk to her. But
she got so angry. She found me with Ruth and Judith. She didn't understand how
much I loved them."

Tears choked Kendall's throat. "And you stabbed her."

Todd lifted the gun, holding it to his temple. "I didn't want to."

"Don't kill Nicole. If you love me you'll leave her be."

A tense silence followed and then he nodded. "Okay. For you, I'll let
her live."

He moved toward Kendall, the gun in his left hand. He wrapped his right
arm around her and guided her and the baby out of the room and down the stairs.

Behind them, Nicole's weeping filled the house.
"My
baby!"
Her moans mingled with the child's cries.

The front door opened. Cold air hit Kendall's face and she held the baby
closer. He put her in the cab of the truck and hurried around the front of the
vehicle, all the while keeping his gaze on her. He got behind the wheel and
fired up the engine. He took a moment to adjust the heater so that she and the
baby would be comfortable. But the windows, shattered from his bullets, allowed
the cold air into the cab. The baby cried louder.

"Why is she crying?" He sounded angry, annoyed.

"I don't know."

"Tell her to shut up or I'm tossing her out the window."

Kendall held the baby close and started to rock her gently back and
forth.

Todd put the truck in drive just as flashing blue lights appeared at the
top of the driveway. Kendall clutched the baby. At least ten police cars
blocked the entrance.

She nearly wept with relief.

Todd cursed and thrust the truck into reverse. He started driving toward
them,
then
quickly veered onto a dirt road that
intersected the driveway.

The side road was bumpy and rough and the flat tires made the truck
unwieldy. Kendall bounced in the seat. With the baby in her arms, it was nearly
impossible to keep her balance. She fell forward and hit the dash hard with her
shoulder before she righted herself.

Todd didn't even toss her a side glance. He kept driving down the
narrowing road. Snow started to fall and soon the windshield wipers couldn't
keep pace.

Without any notice, the truck's tires hit a slick spot and the vehicle
skidded sideways until it hit the side of a tree.

Ayden parked his car at the top of the driveway. Gun drawn, he pushed
through the house's front door. His gaze swept the dimly lighted interior.

From upstairs, he heard Nicole's cries. He didn't rush up as instinct
demanded. Instead, he and the uniformed cops flanking him methodically swept
the
house's
interior. Until he knew differently he
wouldn't assume Todd was working alone.

Once the house was cleared, he followed Nicole's cries to the third
floor. He moved down the hallway toward the lighted room at the end. Her cries
tore at his heart.

"My baby," Nicole cried.

Ayden burst into the room. Nicole lay back against the pillow, her body
wrapped in blood-stained sheets.

"He's taken the baby," she said.

"Is there anyone else working with him?"

"No."

Immediately, Ayden holstered his gun and went to Nicole. He got on his
phone. "This is Sergeant David Ayden. I need a rescue squad." He gave the address
before closing the phone. "Nicole."

She stared up at him with bloodshot eyes. Sweat had matted her hair to
her head. "He took my baby. And he took Kendall."

"Where are they going?"

"He didn't say."

Blood was normal at birth. But Nicole was losing too much. And her face
was deadly pale. He raised the sheet and realized Nicole was hemorrhaging.

Jacob cursed when he saw the truck careen off the road. The driver's
side took the brunt of the impact but he feared for Kendall.

"Jesus," he said.

Zack pulled out his gun.

Jacob slammed on his brakes and put the car in park. He drew his gun and
jumped out of the driver's seat. He was less than twenty feet from the truck.

"Get out with your hands where I can see them!" Jacob shouted.

Todd appeared to be slumped over the steering wheel but straightened at
the sound of Jacob's voice. He grabbed a handful of Kendall's hair and pulled
her toward him and pressed the gun to her head. A baby's cry broke the tense
silence.

Todd pulled Kendall out of the driver's side of the cab and held her in
front of him as a shield. She clutched the baby, trying to turn sideways so she
could protect the child. Todd forced her to face Jacob. "Leave us alone or I'll
kill them both now."

Zack and Jacob kept their weapons trained on Todd. "Okay," Jacob said,
but the detectives didn't move.

Todd snarled at Jacob. "Put your guns down!" He cocked the hammer of his
gun and pressed it to Kendall's temple.