Chapter Twenty
PATSY
At the end of our meeting, I grabbed a firearm from our gun cage and took an extra couple of clips. I tucked everything inside my jacket, feeling better almost immediately. After that, I pulled Wes outside the bus to give him a wee bit more guff about why Candy had asked to talk to him.
Apparently, Cassidy and Mike had gotten a big break in their case even though they still hadn’t caught the men who’d chased Wes through the streets and up onto the roof of the urgent care center.
The terror I’d felt of almost not getting there in time to save Wes from a bullet to the brain, still threatened to stop my heart.
There must have been something in my expression because he rushed to reassure me. “Candy says the men couldn’t possibly know where I am now and he assured me I’m safe here, sweetheart.”
I searched his sweet gaze and then broke eye contact, pacing away from him as I stared down the dirty street, praying he was right.
I needed this kind man in my life. Losing him now would break me.
I had to keep him safe. I nearly jumped out of my skin and spun around when he placed a hand on my back.
“Sorry, love.” He took hold of my shoulders and stared into my eyes. “You’re so lost in thought. What is it? You don’t want to do this? We have to catch the serial killer.”
I swallowed hard, doing my level best to dislodge the lump there.
“This is all my fault, Wes. I did this without askin’ ya.
I volunteered ya for this shit. I don’t know what I was thinkin’ puttin’ yer safety at risk.
Yer a civilian and yer right. The serial killer must be caught but not at the expense of yer safety.
What if somethin’ happens? What if—?” His grip tightened as he searched my eyes intently.
“I’m not defenseless, Patsy. I know that you think I’m helpless because I’m a mathematician, but I’m not.
And even if you hadn’t agreed I could help, I would’ve volunteered if I’d known what the FBI needed.
” He let go of my shoulder and brought my chin around as I tried to look away.
“Listen…I know you’ll protect me, Patsy. I trust you.”
I blew out a long breath, saying nothing as he pulled me into his arms. I hugged him hard, then remembering where we were, turned him loose. I smiled at him. “Okay. Let’s get this bullshit over with.”
He nodded, smiling slightly. “Okay. Should we call the detectives now?”
The door to the bus suddenly opened and Candy appeared in the doorway, mobile in hand. “Wes, Detective Ryan is on the phone.”
“Oh, okay.” Wes took the boss’ mobile. “Hello? Yes, Detective Ryan.” He paused as Cassidy spoke to him, keeping his eyes on me the entire time.
He nodded before speaking again. “Sure. Patsy and I can meet you at two. Do you know where we—” He cut off his sentence and waited.
“Okay, that’d be fine. I’ll have Captain Sorensen send a—oh…
you do? Great. See you then.” He swiped the mobile and handed it back to Candy who waited patiently a few feet away.
“The detectives want to pick us up at two. They said you already sent them our location.”
“Yes. I sent them a pin.”
Wes nodded and glanced over at me. “I guess we’re meeting the detectives at two.”
Candy looked at his watch. “That’s in about twenty minutes.”
I glanced at Wes. “Good. I’m starvin’ and I’m sure ya are too.”
He rubbed his belly. “I could eat.”
“Jesus, I should have brought you two sandwiches or something.” Candy looked apologetic as he shook his head.
“It’s no bother. We’ll have Cassidy and Mike take us to a restaurant in a neighborhood nearby,” I said, “’tis the least they can do if they’re bringin’ us bad news.”
“They didn’t say it was bad news, only that they had an update on the case involving the men who chased you.” Candy smiled at Wes. “Have a little faith in the detectives, Wes. They really are on your side. We all want them caught.”
Wes reached out and shook Candy’s hand. “You’re right. Thank you, Captain.”
I glanced at Wes. “We shouldn’t be standin’ out here in the open just in case anyone ID’d Candy as FBI this mornin’.”
Candy nodded. “I deliberately had Mars park the bus far enough away that there was little chance of being seen by anyone from the camp. Especially with so much police activity going on around there, though, I agree, Patsy. The less face-to-face contact you two have with any of us, the better. By the way, I’ll have a few more guys from the team pitch a tent in the camp tonight.
They’ll be nearby, just in case the killer comes looking for you. ”
I managed to give him a forced smile. “Thanks, Candy.” We watched him turn and climb back into the bus before we walked a block away and sat ourselves down at a bus stop.
Thank the saints Wes was safely by my side.
Ten minutes later, my mobile dinged with an incoming message from Cassidy Ryan.
I sent him a pin and they pulled up in a Prius a few minutes later.
“How does lunch sound or did you eat?” Mike asked as he pulled out into traffic.
“We’re starvin’,” I said.
Cassidy smiled. “Good. So are we. How do you feel about barbeque?”
I glanced at Wes, and he nodded. “Barbeque sounds great. Thank you,” he said.
Cassidy gave Mike directions to a place in Inglewood, not far from where we were and he made a U-turn to head in the right direction.
“We should probably bring ya up to speed with why we’re in this neighborhood,” I said, catching Mike’s gaze as he glanced at me in the rearview mirror.
“Candy already filled us in on the serial killer case,” he said. “Anything to report from last night?”
Wes and I exchanged a glance and then looked back at them. “Ya wouldn’t believe it if I told ya.”
Cassidy twisted around to look at us in the back seat. “Oh, yeah?”
I nodded and launched into an explanation of everything that had happened including how someone had been scared away from our tent before trying to enter it this morning. By the time I’d finished, Cassidy was frowning.
“Can I just say, serial killers are a whole other kind of monster,” Mike said.
“Have you ever had to investigate a homicide where the murderer turned out to be a serial killer, Detective Williams?” Wes asked as Mike pulled into the restaurant car park.
He exchanged a glance with Cassidy before nodding. “Yeah, we chased a really bad one about thirteen years ago and then a few years later, a copycat of that guy. They’re real pieces of shit.” Mike parked and we all got out.
“I don’t envy you,” Cassidy said as we walked toward the restaurant. When the door opened, a couple walked out all smiles and laughter. The second they got a look at Wes and me, their faces fell as they took in our glad rags and made a wide circle around us as they passed.
“Shite,” I said, looking down at my filthy clothes. “Completely forgot we were dressed like this.”
Cassidy and Mike stopped and turned around, eyeing us up and down before laughing.
“Feck off, arseholes.” I gestured toward the restaurant. “We can’t go in there like this.”
That just made them laugh harder. Cassidy pointed to the outdoor seating across the front of the building after he got himself under control. “I’ll go in and ask for a table outside.”
“Good as gold.”
Five minutes later, we were seated at the very end of the outdoor seating which was roped off from the street like they did with lines at movie premiers.
Wes took it all in his stride, even when he’d gotten looks from the hostess when he’d asked where the restrooms were.
He’d endured the young lady’s horrified stare as she pointed inside.
I just smiled and joked that at least we smelled better than we looked when I went with him.
I was pretty sure we’d have been chased out if she hadn’t followed us in and waved us back to the toilets after quietly telling a coworker that two nicely dressed men had accompanied us.
“I don’t think we were meant to overhear that,” Wes insisted.
I laughed as I stepped into the stall beside him, greatly relieved it was clean. We washed our hands and quickly made our way outside. A server came and took our orders and then I started asking questions.
“What’s happened? I know it must be somethin’ important or ya wouldn’t have made a special trip over to talk to us.”
“We had a very interesting meeting with Detective Kershaw,” Cassidy began. “He’s the detective working on the murder that Marigold Bishop witnessed.”
Wes leaned forward. “What was interesting about it?”
“He was very helpful.” Cassidy went on. “Patsy and Agent Smith sat with our sketch artist and when she’d finished with them, I faxed the likenesses of all three suspects over to Kershaw so he’d have them in advance of our meeting.”
Mike continued. “We’re very glad we took the time to compare cases. It turns out, he was able to piece a lot of things together for us.”
“Like what, Michael?” I asked.
Cassidy lowered his voice. “For one thing, he recognized the two men who assaulted Father Gilmartin straight off, but they also knew the other man.” He glanced at Wes.
“The one who looks a lot like you. I’m only able to tell you all of this, Wes, because though this investigation is ongoing, the details are important because none of the men have been caught yet.
” He glanced at me. “And we wanted you to be brought up to speed, on the off chance that they come after Wes.”
“Well, it’s a good thing we’re sleepin’ down here surrounded by the FBI then,” I said. “Who are they, Cassidy?” Wes looked laser focused on what the detectives were saying.
Mike glanced around and then leaned forward to make certain no one could overhear him. “They’re affiliated with the Italian mob.”
“What?”
Wes’ eyes were as wide as I’d ever seen them.
Mike said, “We believe that they were hired to kill Abraham Feldman. That’s the man who was murdered…the homicide Detective Kershaw has been working on.”