Chapter 12
TWELVE
Katie had been searching for more information regarding whether her cases had to do with dismemberment as fantasy or control, and decided to get comfortable on the couch as she read through homicide and serial-killer articles from across the US.
Only one lamp was on and the rest of the house was dark. She soon fell asleep.
She was woken by a soft scratching at the front door and the rattle of the handle.
Katie sat up with a start as she acclimated herself to the living room and not a terrible dream. She looked around and didn’t see Cisco, which was strange.
Putting her feet on the floor, she remained still.
There was more scratching coming from the front porch.
Katie grabbed her Glock and stealthily moved toward the front door. She glanced around and saw Cisco lying next to the door leading to the garage.
Why didn’t he alert to the sound?
She went to the window that had a view of the driveway, and peered out. There was a police cruiser down the street and she could see a black truck in the driveway.
She let out a breath and lowered her gun. Then opened the front door, where John stood with an overnight bag.
“John,” she said moving to hug him. “I’m so glad you’re here.”
“Hey, what’s wrong?” he said, dropping his bag to hold her closer.
“Nothing. Just… glad you’re back.”
“I wanted to surprise you, but I couldn’t find my key.” He chuckled a bit as he held her close.
“You didn’t have to leave the conference early,” she said.
“I know. But I wanted to be here.”
Katie released the hug and looked into his eyes. She kissed him.
John smiled. “Maybe I should go away more often.”
Katie opened the door wider as John entered. He looked around. “Where’s Cisco?”
Katie pointed to the door leading to the garage.
“What’s he doing there?”
“He has a new friend.”
John looked puzzled.
“A stray cat decided to break into my garage. We’ve been holding on to her for a bit.”
John laughed.
“And… Cisco seems to have taken a liking to her. I’ve been trying to find the owners, but there’s not been any luck.”
“So now you have a cat… Did not see that one coming.”
“Do you want something to eat?” she said, heading to the kitchen.
“That’s not exactly what I had in mind,” he said playfully.
Cisco finally left his spot to come and welcome John. Katie took her comfortable place on the sofa watching them play.
Finally, John sat down next to Katie and let out a sigh.
“How was the conference?” she said.
“It was great. Learned some new stuff and met people.”
“Anything that can help our cases here?”
“Absolutely. There are some great advances—especially in fingerprints. But…”
“But what?” she said, smiling.
“How are you? I’m not going to accept just ‘fine.’”
Katie adjusted her position and turned to him. “I’ll admit having a severed finger left in my car was jarring, but I’m treating it like any other case.”
“And…”
“And that’s why when a dismembered arm was found today… It’s just an investigation.” She loved looking into his eyes.
“I know you can take care of yourself, but this case sounds really sinister and someone is directly targeting you.”
She nodded. “I’ve thought about that. But I don’t think it’s me personally, just the attention of our team.” That was wishful thinking, but she didn’t want John to worry. She’d get to the bottom of it.
John leaned back with a stern look on his face.
“I’ve brought in Deputy Chris Anderson to help me until Gav gets back.” She waited for a response, but then decided not to as she leaned in to kiss him. “I’ll be just fine.” She kissed him again.
“Anderson is a good guy.”
“I think so too,” she said. “Cisco and I tracked him from the crime scene and he seemed to be a natural cover officer.”
John remained quiet, so Katie studied him for a moment. She could read his emotions and it was clear there was something bothering him, but she didn’t push. When and if he wanted to tell her, he would.
“I bet you’re tired. Let’s go to bed.” She stood up, taking John’s hand, and guided him out of the living room.
John smiled, wrapping his arms around her. “This is the best part of coming home from a conference.”
A trail of clothing followed them to the bedroom.