Chapter 5
Five
Tuesday
The trip to Fredericksburg was fairly uneventful.
However, getting Chester into the car was somewhat of a struggle.
He was usually very compliant, but it was clear he wasn’t excited about another long car ride.
She finally had to pick him up and force him inside.
He was a rather large border collie, so she hoped this wouldn’t become a habit.
He loved short jaunts into town, but she was pretty sure seeing her suitcases brought back memories of their trips to St. Louis.
She decided to fold up his crate and put it in the trunk, hoping he’d be more relaxed if he was allowed some freedom in the car.
It did seem to help. After several miles of rapid panting, he finally settled down and curled up on the passenger seat. Within a few minutes he was asleep.
They stopped several times so Erin could take him out. She bought hamburgers at a fast-food restaurant and shared a plain one with Chester. She finally got a doggy smile and a tail wag.
Kaely’s admonitions caused her to watch the traffic behind her as well as the cars that pulled into the same places where she stopped. But there weren’t any vehicles that kept showing up. Nothing that made her suspicious. She was confident she wasn’t being followed.
When she reached Fredericksburg, she followed her GPS to a large, two-story, brick house with black shutters, a black front door, and a two-car garage.
It was a lovely home. Just the kind of place she could see Kaely living.
Although there were other houses in the same neighborhood, they were spaced far enough apart so that there was a sense of privacy.
Good. That was one thing she loved about the cabin and had hated about her apartment in St. Louis.
People all around her. It hadn’t helped her struggle with agoraphobia.
She’d just pulled into the driveway when the front door was flung open, and Kaely came bounding down the stairs to greet them, her arms spread wide.
The sight made Erin smile and get a little misty-eyed.
Kaely was such a good friend. She’d helped Erin in so many ways.
There was something about her commitment to their friendship that actually made Erin feel better about herself.
It was odd, seeing herself through other people’s eyes rather than believing the negative thoughts that tried to capture her mind and invade her dreams.
“You’re here!” Kaely said as she wrapped her arms around Erin after she stepped out of the car. “We’re so happy to have you stay with us.”
“Again, are you sure you want to put me up?” Erin asked when Kaely let her go. “I saw a nice hotel not far from here.”
Kaely shook her head. “They don’t allow dogs. We do.” She peered into the car and smiled at Chester, who was awake and clearly excited to see her.
“He was afraid I was going to cart him back to St. Louis,” Erin said.
“I don’t know why he hated going there so much.
My only guess is that somehow it reminded him of the people who left him behind.
Maybe they lived in an apartment, I don’t know.
I’ll be relieved when he finally trusts that he’ll never be abandoned again. ”
“Well, he’ll love staying with us. I put Mr. Hoover up for now. We’ll introduce them later. Let’s get you both inside.”
“Is Noah here?” Erin asked.
“No, he’s at work. They’re not only working the Novel Killer’s case, they also have several others.
The command center is almost completely set up.
Noah and a few others from his unit will work there starting tomorrow and focus only on that case.
Other special agents will stay in Quantico and work the other cases.
That will make it much easier for Noah.”
Erin put her suitcase down. “Excuse me? The Novel Killer?”
Kaely smiled. “Some people at the Bureau are calling him that. I guess I picked it up from Noah.”
“The press have this yet?”
“No, thankfully,” Kaely said, “but Noah says it will leak soon. Too many people and agencies are getting involved. It seems there’s always someone who is willing to sell information. For now, everything’s quiet, but I wouldn’t count on it staying that way for long.”
It was true, unfortunately. There were those in the media who would pay quite a bit for scoops that would bring them attention.
It could make a case harder to close. Not only did it give the UNSUB information that he could use to hide from law enforcement, but there were also too many citizens who were certain that their boyfriend, husband, neighbor, relative, boss, or the pizza delivery guy was a serial killer.
The police wasted a lot of time chasing down leads that went nowhere while scaring the heck out of innocent people who didn’t want their family, friends, and neighbors thinking they might be busy planning their demise.
“You want to bring Chester in last?” Kaely asked.
“Might be a good idea, but I’m not so sure what he thinks about that.”
Chester was pulling against the restraint that kept him in his seat. It was loose enough so he could lie down but still prevented him from jumping into Erin’s lap or getting away from her when she opened the door to take him out.
“I haven’t got that much luggage,” she said. “I’ll grab a couple of things, you can get Chester, and I’ll come back later to get the rest of my stuff.”
“Sounds like a plan Chester would agree to. Is that his leash on the floor in front of him?”
Erin nodded, went to the trunk, and picked up a tote bag and a small suitcase. When she closed the trunk and went back to get her purse, Kaely already had Chester out of the car. He immediately relieved himself on Kaely’s yard.
“I’m so sorry,” Erin said. “I’ve got plastic bags in the car that I use to pick that up.”
“Oh, fiddle. Don’t worry about it now. We’ll get it later.” Kaely laughed at her. “Noah and I do realize that dogs use the bathroom outside, you know.”
Erin sighed. “I know. And thanks. I just don’t want you to be sorry you invited us here.”
Kaely frowned at her. Then she led Chester over to where Erin stood, and she put her arm around her. “You do know that I love you, right? Having you here makes me very happy, Erin. That’s how friends feel when they get to spend time together. Don’t you understand that?”
Erin stood there, staring at Kaely, unable to answer her question.
She used to have friends. Before . . . that night.
Had she forgotten what it was like to be close to another human being?
She was so happy to have Kaely in her life, and she definitely considered her a friend.
So why was it difficult to accept that Kaely actually wanted her to stay in her home?
That it wasn’t an imposition? That was the way she’d felt when Kaely was in Sanctuary.
The truth was, Erin had spent so much time hiding in her apartment, and now hiding in a cabin in the woods, that maybe the concept of friendship had gotten lost somewhere along the way.
At least the part about believing someone actually wanted her in their life.
“I . . . I’m glad to be here too,” Erin said. “I’ve really missed you.”
“I know.” At Erin’s surprised look, Kaely grinned. “I am pretty special. How could you not miss me?”
Erin laughed. “If only I had a snowball.”
“Nah. I fell for that a couple of times when I was in Sanctuary. But we’re not expecting any snowfall. At least not until the end of the week.”
Erin’s jaw dropped. “Seriously?” She’d just reconciled herself to the knowledge that winter was over, and she needed to embrace the seasons that followed.
“Gotcha.”
Erin shook her head. “You’re incorrigible. You really are.”
Kaely laughed and led Chester toward the house while Erin followed behind. She’d been a little put out at the idea of having to come here and hide from some psychotic killer, but now that she was with Kaely, she realized just how thankful she was.
Kaely’s house was nicely decorated. She seemed to have a gift that Erin lacked.
It was one reason she was a little worried about changing things at the cabin.
She had the ability to pick exactly the wrong things.
She’d finally given up in her apartment in St. Louis.
In the end, it had become nothing much more than functional.
She traipsed behind her friend, down a long hallway to a door at the end.
“This is the guest room,” Kaely said as she swung the door open.
The room was beautiful. The furniture was white, and the bedspread and pillow shams had little blue flowers.
They matched the frilly curtains. Accent pillows echoed the dusky blue paint on the wall.
A rocking chair in the corner tied everything together perfectly, along with an overstuffed chair near the bed.
There were fresh flowers on the dresser and a TV mounted on the wall.
It was such a relaxing room. Frankly, Erin could barely wait to climb into the double bed. It looked so comfortable.
“Noah and I are upstairs, so we won’t keep you up if you want to write—or just watch TV. There’s nothing in the fridge that you can’t have. Please just help yourself.”
Chester, who had followed them, suddenly turned around. A large cat had come into the room. He sat down and stared at Chester with interest. He didn’t seem upset or anxious about the large dog that gazed at him with curiosity.
“Chester, be good,” Erin said, nervous about his reaction.
“How did you get out of the office, Hoovey?” Kaely asked, sighing. She shook her head. “I swear, that cat is too smart for me. You be good and make friends, you hear me?”
“He’s huge,” Erin said. “What kind of a cat is he?”
“A Maine coon.” Kaely smiled. “And he has an attitude. He thinks this is his house and Noah and I are just here to serve him.”
Mr. Hoover got up and walked over to Chester.
He put his head up and sniffed Chester’s nose.
Chester backed up a little and crouched down, putting his legs in front of him.
Then he laid his head on the floor, his tail wagging so fast it looked like a blur.
Suddenly, he jumped toward Mr. Hoover, obviously trying to get him to play.
Mr. Hoover’s response was to fall over on his side and pat Chester’s face with one of his furry front paws.
Chester seemed unsure how to respond, but sensing that the cat wasn’t going to join him in a game of chase, he began to lick Mr. Hoover’s face.
“Well, there we go,” Kaely said. “They’re already friends.”
Erin smiled, relieved that she didn’t need to worry about either one of them. “Looks like it.” She put her suitcases on the bed.
“I’ve never seen him react like that to anyone,” Kaely said.
“Especially a dog. I mean, he’s fine with other animals, but he’s never allowed any of them to lick him.
This is amazing. I think I told you that he was left behind—just like Chester.
He’s had a lot of issues to work through.
” She frowned at Erin. “I guess they’ve both been abandoned. It’s almost as if . . .”
“They’re connecting because they’ve experienced the same trauma?”
Kaely shrugged. “That seems like a stretch, but look at them. It’s like they already knew each other.”
“Even with what he’s been through, Chester accepts people and animals easily. Well, you know how he is. Everyone’s his best friend as soon as he meets them.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I’m just grateful they’re okay with each other. One less thing to be concerned about.” She leaned down and ran her hand over the large cat’s gray and white fur. He purred loudly. Kaely straightened up. “You get settled in while I get the rest of your stuff.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.” Kaely started to leave the room but then stopped.
“A friend of mine is meeting us after supper. Sheriff Skinner. He’ll go over the information he has on the case.
Even though you’ll be questioned by the lead investigator at the command center at some point, I want you to be prepared.
I know how you think. You’re a lot like me.
We both need time to engage our little gray cells. ”
Erin grinned. “Not sure I can hold a candle to Hercule Poirot, but thanks.”
“I think you’re incredible.” Kaely smiled. “Only second to me, of course.”
Erin shook her head. “Too bad I’m not as humble as you are.”
“Funny.”
Instead of leaving the room, Kaely stared at Erin with an expression that made her swallow hard.
Although she was aware that Kaely and Noah believed a killer had used the MO from her book to murder someone, she still held out hope that they were wrong.
Until Kaely’s call, it really hadn’t ever occurred to her that psychopaths read too.
Finally, Kaely turned and left. Erin felt that she’d wanted to tell her something but had decided against it for some reason.
Surely there wasn’t anything worse than what she already knew.
Rather than unpack, Erin sat on the edge of the bed. She felt spent, as if she’d just run a marathon. Was she actually responsible for the death of an innocent person? Could she bear the weight of another death?
She wasn’t sure of the answer.