Chapter 15 #2
I make it to the door first and shove with my shoulder. Like the rest of the house, the thing must’ve already been on its last leg, because it gives way easily. We stumble through into the living room as we hear a crash toward the back.
Heading for the sound, we find ourselves in the kitchen and see Savannah as she exits through the back door, but she doesn’t see us.
She’s gone.
“Holy fuck,” Rory swears under his breath, gaping down at the floor.
Luke and I finally take notice. Our faces shift and match Rory’s shock.
On the ground lies a shirtless man in his boxers—his bloody boxers.
His neck has been slit. Blood spray decorates the white cabinets.
The small table and chairs are overturned and scattered.
The counters are a mess, but that doesn’t look like it was from a struggle.
It appears that the homeowner is simply disorganized.
Rory steps forward, examining something on the man’s chest. He twists his head to the side, getting a better look. Then he utters, “Oh my God.”
“What?” Luke asks as we move to Rory’s side together.
Rory lowers down onto one knee, pointing at a few papers. “I think Savannah is the Avenging Angel of Brooklyn.”
When I study the papers closely, I realize there’s a knife that has been stabbed through the papers and into his chest.
“The what?” Luke asks.
Rory gives Luke a baffled look. “Do you not watch the news?”
Luke raises his hands in defense. “Not often. It’s depressing.”
I step to the other side of the dead body, scan the print on the papers, and read aloud the important bits.
“Mitchem Stanford. Twenty-eight years old. Blah blah blah.” My eyes widen.
“He was about to be convicted of statutory rape, but the charges were dropped.” Grabbing a random fork from the counter behind me, I use it to look at the next page.
“The girl was fifteen and recanted her statement. Police suspect Mitchy boy here harassed and bullied her into silence, but they couldn’t prove it.
I guess the evidence they had wasn’t concrete, so they had to let the case go. ”
Rory slaps his thighs and stands. “That confirms it for me. Savannah has been moonlighting as a vigilante. Kinda sexy, if I’m being honest.”
“How would you know? The police haven’t released all the details about the Avenging Angel cases,” I argue.
Rory raises a single brow. “You should resign as CEO if you can’t hack a simple police database.”
“Why would I feel the need to hack a police database for something completely unrelated to me?” I hold my hand out in a questioning gesture.
Rory crosses his arms. “Boredom, curiosity, true crime obsession. I could go on.”
Luke blinks rapidly. “You’re the CFO. When are you ever bored?”
“I’m feeling judged right now.” Rory holds his hands up to Luke and me.
“That’s because we are judging you,” Luke responds in a flat tone.
I love them, but sometimes their banter happens at the most inconvenient times.
“Yeah, yeah. Let’s address that later,” I interrupt. “We need to do something about this right now.” I motion to the dead body.
“Savannah already took care of the scumbag. We can’t kill him twice.” Rory shakes his head.
My lips turn thin. “I mean, we need to make sure she didn’t leave behind any evidence.”
“And how do you suggest we do that? I left my crime scene clean-up kit at home,” Luke returns sarcastically.
Waving my hands around wildly, I try not to get too loud. “I’m being serious. We don’t want her to get caught and go to prison.”
“According to the Brooklyn PD, she’s killed eight men,” Rory states. “Well…now nine.” He tilts his head toward Mitchem. “And she hasn’t been caught yet. I’d say she has the leave-no-trace thing under control.”
Luke poses a valid question. “But what if?”
“Exactly. What if? Are you willing to take the risk that maybe this is the crime scene where she leaves something behind?” I argue with Rory.
“You’re right.” Rory concedes. “Okay. So what do you suggest?”
“I got this,” Luke chimes in.
Rory and I look at him quizzically.
A sense of resolve and determination comes over Luke. “Just trust me. Head outside, and I’ll take care of it.”
“Alright,” I respond, unsure. “You know where to find us if you need help.”
Rory and I are waiting next to the stoop for less than five minutes when Luke joins us again.
“Done,” he says, not even bothering to shut the front door.
My forehead wrinkles, and Rory scrunches his nose.
“Trust me,” Luke pushes again, walking away without waiting for us.
We follow him after a moment and head back to my car. We’re only a quarter of the way back when there’s a huge explosion. I duck my head, and Rory does the same, but Luke just keeps walking.
“What did you do?” Rory asks.
Luke acts as if this is any other early morning stroll. “It’ll be ruled as an accident. Don’t worry.”
Rory and I stare at each other, shock written all over our faces.
“Are you coming or not?” Luke shouts back at us.
The rest of the walk takes forever. The sun will be rising soon, and none of us has slept at all.
Outside Savannah’s apartment, Rory comes to a stop. “I need to talk to her.”
“Now?” I question, outraged and sleep-deprived.
Rory rubs his chin. “Earlier…she and I…”
“We’re going to let her rest. We’re going home and getting some sleep as well. There’s always tomorrow.”
Being the voice of reason makes me feel like the dad of the group. Not what I was going for, but here we are.
Rory sighs and gets into the car with Luke and me. Once we’re all settled in the car, I turn on the heat and head for the penthouse. They’re both snoring and dead to the world before I turn onto the next street.
I know I told them that we need to leave Savannah alone. I have the feeling she needs some space, but giving Savannah space doesn’t mean I won’t be watching her.