Officer on Duty (Lock and Key Book 4) (22 page)

Meredith’s lasagna tasted every bit as good as it smelled.

“Your mom is amazing,” Lucia said. “Hands-down the second best neighbor I’ve ever had.”

“I’m not sure whether I’m afraid to ask who the first is.”

She cut another bite from the square he’d served her. “Oh, he knows who he is. I only hope the feeling is mutual.”

“I told you the last person who lived in this house was an old man with a penchant for mowing shirtless, right? There’s no contest. Seriously, Lucia…

“There haven’t been any other neighbors. There haven’t even been any other women – not really. What we’re doing isn’t a first for me, but it’s damn close. I want to do this right. I want to be good for you, and not just when we’re in bed.”

Heat radiated from the center of her chest out into the rest of her. When Jeremy had spent the night at her place a few days ago, it’d been a turning point of sorts. He’d taken the next three days off work, and they’d seen each other every day. There’d been no more talk of taking a break.

And when he was around, the dark cloud of her guilt had a way of lifting for minutes at a time, allowing her to enjoy his presence.

Not that the effect was complete, or that it lasted for long. Olivia was still missing, and that fact was as corrosive as acid, burning her up from the inside out. It had been a week, now.

Lucia barely slept anymore.

“You are good for me. And I want to be the same thing for you. Which is why I feel bad sitting here having you wait on me hand and foot.”

“Do you ever let anyone do anything for you?”

“Of course.”

He shot her a look of disbelief, one eyebrow rising. “I’m not convinced, and for Christ’s sake, I’m a grown man – it won’t kill me to put some lasagna I didn’t even make on a plate for you.”

She shifted in her seat, spearing the last bite with her fork. Her heart felt suddenly heavy, along with the rest of her. Every time she thought of Olivia, it was as if the blood in her veins turned to wet cement: a thick grey sludge that weighed her down.

“Can I get you another slice?” he asked.

She eyed the dish on the counter in front of him. “Why don’t you sit down and eat?”

He obliged, settling into the chair across from her.

“Before you got hurt, Paige was talking about joining your teen class.”

“She mentioned that to me, too.”

He nodded. “I figure I can drop her off and pick her up on days when I’m off, and my mom has agreed to handle the rest.”

“When I go back to work, I can give her a ride home. The teen class wraps up my workdays on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”

He was quiet for a moment, then nodded. “Appreciate it.”

She paused, second guessing herself. “Are you sure you want me to? I mean, if you don’t, I understand.”

“What do you mean?”

“After the way I messed up with Olivia, I’d understand if you didn’t want me in charge of Paige.” Her eyes stung. Why had she even suggested it?

“Hey.” He reached across the table and touched her hand. “I agreed, didn’t I? And listen – the woman who attacked you will be caught soon, probably before you return to work. We’re gonna find Olivia, too.”

She shook her head. “It’s been a week, Jeremy. I know what that probably means.”

Guilt and grief formed a collar of pressure around her throat, so that suddenly, she couldn’t swallow. There were times when this still all felt so surreal: like a bad dream she’d wake up from at any second.

Other times, the reality of it was crystal clear and crushing.

“How’s your head?” he asked.

“A lot better. I’ll be having the stitches removed in a couple days.”

Silence reigned for a full minute.

“I’ve had my ear to the ground for the past week,” Jeremy eventually said. “I want to know where Olivia is just as badly as you do. As soon as I hear anything worth telling, I’ll let you know. Meanwhile, we can get you out of the house if you want. I’ve been thinking of taking Paige to the beach – I haven’t done anything fun with her since that day we all went.”

“You should go, just the two of you. I’ll sit this one out.”

“You sure?” Lines appeared between his eyes.

“Yes.” She couldn’t stomach the thought of lounging in the sun, enjoying a sea breeze, while Olivia was still missing. There was just no way.

Beverly didn’t need much, and she found what she did need at a hunting store, a hardware retailer and a farm supply store. She had to drive all the way to Raleigh to get to the hunting store that’d sold her what she’d needed, but that was just as well. After the incident several days ago, she couldn’t risk being recognized locally.

Still, leaving the girl behind had been nerve-wracking. Before leaving she’d reinforced the door with a second lock and nailed boards over the window. Luckily, it had held up – the girl had been there, sulking, when she’d returned.

It was the first time Beverly had left her house since bringing the girl home, even for work. Her manager said she’d need a doctor’s note when she came back, so she’d have to get one so that it didn’t seem suspicious.

Maybe she could complain to the doctor about female troubles. No one would suspect her of lying about that.

She couldn’t afford to think too deeply about it now – she had far more important things to do.

Her fingertips left sweat on the keyboard as she sat down at the kitchen table, logged on to Sarah’s computer and re-read the instructions page she’d studied the night before and again that morning before leaving on her shopping trip.

Within a minute, she’d confirmed what she already knew: she had everything she’d need.

At the hunting store, she’d been a wife buying powder for her husband’s rifle.

At the hardware store, she’d been a wife buying the pipes her husband had sent her to pick up for their bathroom remodel.

At the farm supply store, she’d been a hobbyist buying fertilizer for her modest homesteading farm.

Now, she was a woman with a purpose. It’d been far too long since she’d been able to claim that, since Sarah had robbed her of her rightful role in life. The exhilaration caused sweat to collect at her temples as she examined her purchases, turning the pipe pieces over in her hands.

The metal shone, making her heart beat faster.

Everything was finally coming together. She’d suffered so much – had lost her way for a while. But now, she was finally being restored. Rewarded.

Everything happened for a reason. The struggle she’d had with the two women at the fountain the other day had been an opportunity.

An opportunity for her to realize that she could fulfill her purpose more quickly if she applied the strength of her mind instead of her body.

Also, she had the girl. She’d barely managed to force her into her vehicle, but she had her. If keeping her caged was what it took to protect the life she had so little regard for, then so be it.

Closing her eyes, she tipped her head back and thought of her first life – her childhood, and her passage into womanhood. Years had passed since she’d lived on the retreat, but for the first time since she’d been forced to leave, she felt the sense of safety that’d cloaked her there.

It was as if fate was embracing her, showing her that she’d found her way at last. She’d be responsible for giving life not only to the girl’s baby, but to every baby she saved with this plan, and no one would ever be able to take that away from her.

* * * * *

“You hear? Cypress PD got footage of the suspect.”

Jeremy froze as a bolt of electricity shot down his spine. “From where?”

He looked up at Blevins, who stood in front of the coffee maker in the department’s break room.

“Pawn shop on Main caught her going by on foot about two minutes before the attack, trailing the two victims.”

“How sure are they that it’s her?”

“She’s wearing the black running shoes and pants the victim reported seeing, and her appearance on camera fits the timeline perfectly. If she wasn’t the attacker, she would’ve at least witnessed the attack. She was wearing a jogging outfit with the hood up, even though it was seventy-five degrees out, and carrying a purse they figure she may’ve used to strike the victims.”

Jeremy’s skin prickled with anger and excitement – excitement at the thought of finally having a real visual, of getting that much closer to catching the person who’d attacked Lucia and her student, and had probably also killed Brianna and Kaylee.

They were that much closer to getting Olivia back. Dead or alive, the family needed
something
. News. Closure. A miracle.

“I want to see.”

Blevins slapped his papers down on the nearest table, nodding at a grainy print-out. “This was the best still they could capture. She was only within range of the camera for a couple seconds.”

The woman looked a little taller than average, with a medium build. She could’ve been anyone, except for that her hood was up, hiding her hair despite the humid heat. No one would’ve been comfortable dressed as she’d been on that night, least of all a jogger.

Not that she was jogging. No, she was walking, a handbag about the size of a manila folder dangling from her shoulder on a long strap.

A strap long enough to swing it by … and long enough to strangle someone with.

With her substantial height and long limbs, the woman had probably had a relatively easy time overpowering her victims. Her larger stature combined with the element of surprise would’ve afforded her a significant advantage over the average female, let alone a sixteen year old girl.

Jeremy stared for a while, then looked away.

“Now we need an ID.”

Blevins nodded. “Detectives over at Cypress are acquiring security footage from that night from every building with cameras in the entire downtown area. Maybe they’ll catch her getting into a vehicle and we can get some tags.”

“Maybe. She tends to strike within the same area, though – walkable places within and near downtown. Jennings Memorial and Walters Park are within half a mile of each other, and Kaylee’s house was over on Palmetto Street. That’s what, five blocks from Main? Six?

“If she has reliable means of transportation, why risk being sighted in town when she could stalk down people in rural areas with less risk? There are plenty of less dense neighborhoods out in the county.”

For that matter, why keep attacking in Riley County at all? Cypress was a small town, and her chances of being identified were high. There was no big city bustle to blend into. If she was mobile and smart, she’d move on and stop frequenting the same area.

“If she lives downtown and is confined there, that means she was right under our noses that night, and nobody saw her.”

Jeremy nodded. “If she retreated to a nearby home or building with Olivia, that could explain how she and the girl both vanished.”

Blevins frowned. “Someone’s gotta know who this is. She has neighbors, especially if she lives downtown. They’re showing this shot on the news tonight and will be printing it in the paper tomorrow. There’s a tip line, and they’ve put up a cash reward for any info leading to her or Olivia.”

“Times have changed around here, haven’t they?” Jeremy scratched an itch between his shoulder blades, thinking back to a little over a year ago, when things had been serene in their little tourist town.

“That’s the damn truth – our crime stats are jacked. Nobody’s gonna put us on any of those top ten lists of America’s best beach towns anymore.”

* * * * *

Jeremy had originally intended to take just Paige to the beach, but then he’d exchanged a few texts with Richardson, who was nearly as bored out of his mind at home as he’d been in the hospital, and had invited him and Amanda.

His mother’s Saturday plans had fallen through, so he’d invited her too.

The only person missing was Lucia. He’d tried to convince her to come along, but she’d insisted she didn’t feel up to it, and wouldn’t hear any talk of him canceling his plans with Paige.

Thinking of her sitting alone at home made his heart heavy. It was an ideal summer day, with the noon sunlight making the blue-green waves glimmer and a breeze stirring salt-scented air that otherwise would’ve been stiflingly hot.

He knew damn well she was sitting at home, stewing in her guilt.

“What’ve you got in that cooler?” Richardson asked, sitting in one of a handful of canvas beach chairs. His injured arm was bandaged and immobilized in a high-tech looking sling, but he wore board shorts, sunglasses and a familiar grin.

“A little bit of everything,” his mother said, opening the cooler they’d brought.

Inside, there was water, tea and soda on ice. Richardson chose predictably, and Paige reached for one of the teas.

“I brought plenty of food,” his mother said, pointing toward a second cooler, “so don’t be shy.”

They’d only just set up the beach blanket, umbrella and chairs, but it was already obvious that Jeremy’s mother had her sights set on spoiling Richardson. Between all the attention from her and Amanda, it’d be surprising if he made it through the day without running headlong into the water, bandages and all.

Well, maybe after he ate his fill. When Meredith told him she’d brought fried chicken, he looked like he might break out into the Hallelujah Chorus.

“You make sure you pack up a plate for Lucia,” Meredith said, shooting Jeremy a meaningful look over her sunglass lenses, “and take it straight to her when you get home.”

He nodded. “I was already planning to.”

“Good.” Meredith frowned. “That poor girl… I wish she’d come along and let herself enjoy the day.”

“Me too.” He understood why she hadn’t wanted to, though – understood all too well. And not being able to solve her problem for her was eating away at him.

What could he possibly do? She wouldn’t be okay until Olivia was found safe.

If
she was found safe. He wouldn’t have admitted it to Lucia for the world, but the chances got slimmer every day. His hope was hanging by a thread.

Still, he longed for a miracle, for this nightmare to come to a conclusion and disintegrate into a matter of reports, court cases and prison bars.

After the terrible things the county had endured recently, was it really too much to ask for everyone to catch a break this time?

* * * * *

“This looks great,” Lucia said, staring down at the plate of fried chicken, potato salad and green beans. “Thank you.”

“It’s no problem,” Jeremy said, standing in Lucia’s kitchen with Paige. “We had plenty of leftovers, and I figured you might like some.”

She nodded, doing her best to force a smile to her lips.

“Grandma’s potato salad is famous,” Paige said. “At least around here, anyway.”

Lucia finally managed to smile. “I can’t wait to try it. How was the beach?”

“Good,” Paige said. “The water was really warm. I didn’t go out as far as I did last time with you, though.”

Lucia almost said something about them going together again sometime soon, but hesitated, not wanting to make any promises she couldn’t keep. Right now, the desire to hang out at the beach was beyond her.

Jeremy and Paige lingered, and she got the sense Jeremy was doing it on purpose. Reluctantly, she popped the fried chicken and green beans into the microwave, setting the potato salad aside in a separate bowl.