Hide'n Go Seek (23 page)

"Where?" she whispered, her other hand buried in Shiloh's ruff.

"In Sacramento. He never left. The authorities are working on the theory that he stumbled into the cordoned-off area after a night of drinking. The area was unstable. Part of the building shifted, crushing him under a heavy load of concrete."

Kali placed her second hand over his and squeezed tight.

"Poor Susan." She stared at their clasped hands, but he doubt she saw them.

"Kali? Kali, I'm so sorry."

"When?" Clearing her throat, she asked in a hoarse voice. "When did he die?"

Grant stroked the side of her hand on his. "Don't know yet for sure. He was found in sector four at the site." His thumb moved gently back and forth. She watched the movement for a long moment, then lifted her head to face him. He didn't have much more information to give her. Except one thing. "He would have died instantly."

Her eyelids slammed shut. He could only imagine she knew exactly what condition Brad's body had been found in. She had a wealth of images to draw on for that. Her bottom lip trembled as she struggled for control.

He admired her even more when her lips firmed, but his heart broke when she asked the next question.

"How do they know it was him? Could there be a mistake?"

Her shoulders hunched against his answer. There was no way to make it easier on her. He turned her hand protectively then squeezed her hand gently, bracing her. "I'm sorry. The victim's DNA is being tested to be sure, but there’s little doubt. The victim had on a SAR vest and Brad's wallet was on the body. Everything else fits too."

Her shoulders slumped. "Oh." She produced a sad smile. "Being buried alive is every rescuer's worst nightmare, you know. It's something we see too much of. Something that sits in the back of our psyche and festers." Kali closed her eyes, hot tears meandering downward at the corners. "It really hurts that he died alone."

"A couple of the locals said he'd stayed around for a while, drinking heavily."

Kali nodded. "He sent Sergeant home to Susan and stayed behind to drink away his demons alone." Tugging her hands free, she stood and walked to the railing. Shiloh followed to lean against her leg. Several sniffles sounded. He wanted to walk over and take her into his arms, but she'd walked away. A part of him understood. She needed to find her balance in a world that had suddenly shifted. As he watched, she wiped away her tears on her sleeve before turning her face into the breeze

"Is there anything I can do?" she asked after a moment.

Grant joined her at the railing.

"I don't think so. Susan's mother is arriving tonight. Brad's body will be shipped home in the next few days. I'll keep you up-to-date on the arrangements when they're made."

"Please do. How's Sergeant?"

"According to Susan, he's fine."

Kali cringed. "Sergeant will be lost. Brad raised, trained, and worked him from a young pup."

Grant didn't have an answer for that.

"I wonder what she'll do with him."

"I doubt she knows at this point."

Kali sniffled, releasing a heavy sigh. "So much death."

"I told Stan. He said he'd be here..." Grant checked his watch, "soon. I can't stay. I'm meeting with the profiler, then I'll try to grab a few hours of sleep."

"Oh, I never thought. You've been out all night on the scene, haven't you?" She rubbed her eyes. "Any news on last night's victim? Do we know if it was Melanie, for sure?"

"Not yet. The coroner has her now."

She sighed. "I came home instead of hanging around, but I didn't sleep. It gets harder every night."

"It's difficult to rest knowing this killer is out there, isn't it."

She stopped. "Damn, this is hard. I'm just wondering if Brad could have been a victim of the killer?"

Grant's heart ached. "No, Kali. All indications say it was an accident."

With a tremulous smile, she nodded. "Thanks. It does make it easier. I don't think I could have stood it otherwise."

"It's tough enough to deal with as it is."

"Stan and I are both going to miss him." New tears formed at the corner of her eyes. She wiped them away. "I relied on Brad's laughter, his compassion and, most of all, his support. My world has become a darker place." She forced a tremulous smile through her tears.

He couldn't stand it. Stepping closer, he opened his arms.

And she fell into them.

Enfolding her close, he held her while the tears poured. He'd be late. Too damn bad. Sometimes schedules had to adapt. He closed his eyes and rested his head against hers.

It surprised him how quickly the storm burned out. Finally she lay with her head resting against his chest staring out toward the ocean. He just held her. When she made a move to retreat, he forced himself to drop his arms, allowing her to step back.

"Better?" He searched her eyes, beautiful deep blue awash in tears still but, thankfully, not so lost as before.

"Thank you. It's going to take some time, but I will get there. Brad wouldn't have wanted me to wallow. He'd rather I open a bottle of champagne and celebrate his life. I'll talk to Stan, maybe plan something like that." She retreated another few steps.

He hated the widening distance, but the moment was over. "Hold off spreading the news. We’ve asked Susan and Stan to keep a lid on this for a few days. Try to avoid any interference and cross over on our investigation. Just for a day or two."

She attempted a smile. "Right. We still have a killer to catch. You need to go. I'm fine. Stan will be here soon and that will help. I want you to make your meeting with the profiler, then please get some rest. This madness needs to stop."

She hooked Grant's arm and ushered him back through the house to the front door. She opened it and damn near pushed him out.

"You're sure you're alright. I hate to leave you alone."

This time her smile had real humor. "I'm fine. Go. And..." she reached up and kissed his cheek. So gently, so tenderly, he almost snatched her back into his arms.

It was the first physical move she'd made toward him.

With that, he left. But in his car, driving down the highway, he couldn't stop grinning.

Progress.

Kali stood looking out at the empty driveway long after Grant left.

She hated that sense of loss as the distance between them widened. Could he see the energy, the colors vibrating between them?

Even through her grief and tears, they'd been hard to miss. It gave her hope. Something she badly needed today.

Her eyes burned from the tears already shed, and she could only imagine how they'd be by the end of the day.

God. Brad, her staunchest defender and best friend since forever was never going to come home again. With this hell consuming her, she hadn't had time to really worry about him. She hadn't allowed herself to consider such an outcome. She'd been expecting him to show up out of the blue with that sheepish look of his. Instead he was already dead. And no one had known.

Picking up the phone, Kali dialed Susan's number. If Brad's death was painful for her, she could only imagine what Susan was going through right now. Her heart ached for the widow. Susan and Brad had been married for over ten years. Kali had lost a beautiful friend, but Susan had lost her partner.

"Hello?"

The ravaged voice made Kali's stomach clench in sympathy. "Susan, it's Kali. I just heard. I'm so sorry."

"Sorry?" Susan's voice had a dreamlike quality, as if she wasn't fully hearing Kali's words.

"Yes. I know how difficult Brad's death is for you. It's hard on all of us. These rescue missions can be dangerous, but we don't really expect anything bad to happen to those we love."

"Love?" Susan's voice sharpened. "What do you know about love? Brad was
my
husband. He was down there because of you. Because
you
needed him. This is your fault. Yours. He's dead because of you." Her voice cracked with tension, her blistering words singed Kali's heart. "Stay away from me. Don't call me again - ever. I hate you!"

Kali sat frozen. Logically, she could rationalize away everything Susan had said. Susan was upset, grieving and angry at the world. Kali knew that, but her heart didn't care.

It hurt.

Brad had been her friend. She'd loved him, too. And it hurt to know that to a certain extent, Susan had been right.

A couple of times, Brad had mentioned quitting, staying home with Susan because she wanted him to, instead of gallivanting off at a moment's notice. Kali knew Susan had made sacrifices. She'd endured missed birthdays, messed up plans, long absences. These had only gotten worse with Brad's increased drinking bouts.

Kali had always persuaded him to stay. Brad was good at what he did. Very good. The rescue world needed him.

But at what cost to Brad?

Guilt sat heavy on her heart.

Her world would never be the same again.

Sitting there, she heard the crunch of gravel as a vehicle drove in. Stan. At least she hoped it was he; she didn't want to see anyone else.

Getting up, she walked to the front door and watched Stan park his car.

Her spirits lifted at the sight of him...until she saw his expression.

Grief had ravaged his face, wrinkles appearing where there hadn't been any. Skin folds deeper, but thinner, like all the substance had drained from him.

"Kali?"

She teared up. "Oh Stan."

They held each other for several minutes. Holding Stan's frail body, her grief receded as concern for him grew. Stan couldn't handle much more.

She pulled back slightly, gave him a sad smile and ushered him toward the kitchen. "God, I can't imagine not seeing Brad ever again."

"I know." Stan hesitated, as if wanting to ask a question but not daring.

Tiredly, she glanced his way as she automatically gravitated to the coffeepot. "What?"

With a heavy sigh, he asked softly, "I wondered if you had any news, preferably good news, about Julie?"

Kali blinked, her forehead creasing. What was he talking about? Good news. There wasn't any left in this world. "News? Julie? Oh, my God." She spun around. "That's right, you haven't heard."

"What? What did you find?"

"We found the other victim."

"What?" Stan grabbed her by the shoulders. "Where? Was it Julie? Please, tell me it wasn't." Kali, surprised by his outburst, didn't answer fast enough.

"Kali, please. Tell me." Agony threaded his voice.

She closed her eyes. She didn't want to tell him. They had too much pain now. Death surrounded them. "It wasn't Julie."

"Oh, thank God." Stan searched her face, but what he read made his shoulders slump. His arms dropped to his side, while dread hooded his eyes. "Who was it?"

Pain shattered Kali's calm once again. "The FBI people have to confirm it." She took a deep breath. "But I think it's Melanie."

This time tears washed Stan's rummy eyes. "Melanie? Little Melanie Rothschild? She's just a girl. A teenager."

"She celebrated her twentieth birthday a couple of months ago, I think." Kali's voice choked. "Not even twenty-one."

"Oh, my God! Why? What could she possibly have done to this guy?"

Kali had no answer.

Stan stepped through the glass doors into the sunlight shining on the deck one hand over his face, his head bowed, his shoulders shaking. Kali gave him a few moments. She poured coffee and took her time carrying the cups outside. She sat down in her favorite chair and waited. The air was fresh and clean. There was no sign of the horror and pain going on in the world. There was no fear, or sense of threat out here. Maybe, because she knew about the surveillance team...and that she wasn't alone. She didn't believe the killer was after her...yet. But neither did she want Stan to be a target.

Stan turned to face her, one last sniffle sounding. "I saw her at the center a couple of days ago." Stan screwed up his face. "Wednesday, maybe? I can't be sure until I check the schedule."

"Do you remember who else was there?"

Stan wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and frowned. "I remember a class had started, I'd escaped to my office and she stopped in to say hi. Although, I admit my memory is a bit faulty lately."

A ghost of smile kissed Kali's lips. Stan's memory had long been an issue, but particularly this last year.

"Jesus, Kali. What kind of evil has found us? We have to close the center until this is over. He can't have any more of our people. Let's cut off his supply."

"I think it's way past that point. He already knows many of the people. Let's ask Grant about closing the center." Kali dialed his number, hoping to catch him between his meeting with the profiler and his planned nap.

"Ask him about Melanie, too." Stan collapsed on the kitchen chair and rested his head on his hands. "Maybe it's a mistake."

As she waited for Grant to pick up, Kali turned to look at Stan. "What about Melanie's family, wouldn't they have missed her? Have they called her in as a missing person?"

"They've gone east for a couple of weeks. Melanie's in college part-time and didn't want to miss classes."

The mention of schooling twigged Kali's memory. "Right. She'd worked part-time in a vet clinic for years and wanted to become one herself."

"Yeah. I can't believe she's..."

"Let's find out for sure."

Grant's tired but welcoming voice filled her ears, easing some of the hard knots from today's series of shocks. "How are you?"

She understood what he was asking. "I'm okay. I'm adjusting. Slowly. Stan is with me."

"Good, I'm glad he made it. It's better if you're not alone right now. Probably better for him, too."

She glanced apologetically at Stan and moved her conversation into the kitchen. "Did you confirm ID of last night's victim? Was it Melanie?"

"It appears so, but we haven't located her next of kin. Also, I wondered if you knew if she’d been a survivor of some kind? If she had been that would help to cement the link with the others."

"Melanie lived at home, but her parents have gone back east for a couple of weeks. Stan says she was a student here at Rosewood College. As to the other...I’m not sure. Hang on." Kali turned and asked Stan.