CHAPTER NINETEEN
Alison woke to her alarm. She’d barely been able to sleep, but not because of the current investigation.
For the past two days, Derek had not said much about the investigation.
Up until then, he had given her regular updates on what he and her father were doing, but over the past two days, his messages had changed, and she had an idea what was up.
She wasn’t able to sleep as she thought about the implications.
If there was nothing to tell her, Derek would have come out and said that already. By not saying anything, she suspected that Derek and her father had found something, but they were waiting for her case to be over, so she wasn’t distracted from it. And that was what was distracting her.
Alison was sure they had found something, but were waiting for her to be done in Philadelphia before they explained what they had found. There was the possibility they were waiting for her to return before they went to talk to a suspect. They might only have one shot at interviewing someone.
She hadn’t come out and asked Derek what they had. She needed to be as focused as possible on the current case, and she knew her men would have things under control back in California.
Alison checked her phone again as she got out of bed.
No message from Derek, nor from Hartley.
That meant they hadn’t located Kenneth Sterling yet.
As soon as they did, Alison would be alerted.
And not only had they not found him, but there was no lead to follow.
No possible sighting, nothing on camera, no credit card transactions.
If there was something they could follow, Hartley would have called Alison.
Alison knew she had to see the case through, but she was growing worried that it might go on indefinitely, and the pull to return to California to help Derek and her father would grow stronger and stronger.
If she wasn’t helping anymore with the case in Philly, she needed to go home and concentrate on the case there.
As long as the case didn't spread there.
Alison’s blood turned cold. The murder of her sister had gone unsolved for years.
What if the killer knew that and planned to use it?
They were already trying to frame her. What if the plan now was to lie low and wait for her to go home before killing someone there and posing photographs of the people connected to Emma’s case around the body? And in the process, framing Alison.
It would create emotion, and that brings motive. It could easily be argued that I’m upset with the justice system because it failed Emma. If that is what the killer has planned, then they truly are brilliant.
That put Alison in a catch-22. She could stay, and maybe nothing would happen, or she could go home to try and solve her sister’s murder, only to be part of the next murder.
Alison had been able to put herself in the mind of a killer somewhat, but she wasn’t so sure anymore. Could she outthink this killer?
Alison wasn’t sure about that anymore, but she was sure that she had to try, so she headed to the bathroom to take a shower and brush her teeth.
She didn't need to eat until she got to the FBI offices. The more time she spent there rather than at the hotel, the less chance the killer had of manipulating the case around her. They could order food to be delivered to the office and eat while trying to figure out the killer’s next move.
When she was done, she grabbed her bag, jacket, and shoes and headed downstairs to hail a cab. There, she found a familiar face.
"Dr. Carver," Alison said. "How are you?"
"Do you have time to talk?" Carver asked. "Ten minutes of your time."
"Of course," Alison said.
"I’m at the same table as I was the last time," Carver said. "Get some coffee and come and sit with me."
"All right," Alison said. "Give me a moment."
She went to the coffee bar and ordered herself a drink. She hadn’t told Hartley a specific time when she would arrive at the office, only agreeing to be there early. Ten minutes would not make a difference. And Alison could only think that Carver had information for her.
Or she’s making good on her promise and taking over the case.
There had been more deaths since Dr. Carver had last been in the hotel lobby, so that made the most sense. Still, Alison couldn’t be sure. Carver had been cold at times, but also hugged her, then happy and supportive at other times. It made Alison wonder what was coming next.
Alison ordered her usual black coffee with no sugar and took it back to the table to talk with her former colleague.
"What did you need to talk to me about?" Alison asked, worried that Carver would try to take over the case, especially at a time when Alison was worried about being framed.
What would Carver make of it? Would she be more on the side of Detective Wolfe or Special Agent Hartley?
Would she toss Alison from the case completely?
"It’s somewhat of a delicate situation," Carver said. "You’re the only one I can talk to about this. The only one he’ll talk to."
"He?" Alison asked.
"Kenneth," Carver replied.
Alison swallowed, and her breathing quickened. "He’s been in contact with you?"
"It’s more than that," Carver said. She pursed her lips before taking a mouthful of coffee. Then she stared at Alison as if sizing her up. "I don't want to talk to anyone else about this until you’ve had a chance to assess the situation, and I don't know what he might do if I bring anyone else."
"Just tell me what’s going on," Alison said. "We’ve been looking for him for days. Agencies across the country are looking for him."
"He can't have killed anyone in Washington, D.C.
," Carver said. "He’s been at my house the entire time. He said it would happen like that, but I don't know if he’s still a part of it, and this is some grand plan of his and someone else. I’ve spoken to him, and I believe him, but I need a second opinion.
We might have had a rocky start, but I trust your opinion, Dr. Payne. "
Alison gave a tight smile in reply. Yet, something made her hold the smile as it threatened to drop from her lips.
It felt like too much of a U-turn compared to before.
There had always been an undercurrent of dislike from Dr. Carver.
The way Alison had been treated the last time they were in the lobby together made it seem as though Alison was her subordinate.
Alison knew that Dr. Carver believed herself the better of the two of them, so why come to Alison for a second opinion when Carver’s own opinion should hold more weight?
"Just tell me what’s happened," Alison said. "I’ll help you in any way I can."
Does she want me to trust her? Is that why she’s giving me compliments? To throw me off guard?
"I knew you would help," Carver said. "He came to speak with me three days ago, begging me not to tell anyone where he was. He told me he hadn’t killed anyone, and that I was the only one he could come to. I was terrified when he first turned up at my home."
"I can't imagine," Alison said, leaning in and trying to play her part as well as she could. She wanted to reach out and take a drink of her coffee, but she wasn’t sure where the conversation was going yet, and she might need a diversion.
"Then he started speaking to me, and claiming his innocence, and he was all over the place, to be honest, but I know him. I knew him, but he hasn’t changed in all that time.
It felt like I was talking directly to the man I once knew.
It was unsettling. But the more he talked, the more he convinced me.
He said if we waited long enough, someone else would be killed, and that would prove his innocence, and that did happen, but I still questioned it.
What if he were working with someone else? Then the truth hit me."
"What was that?" Alison asked.
"He’s too incompetent," Carver replied with a grimace and a shake of her head. "I hate to say it, but he doesn’t have the mental capacity to plan any of this out, let alone all of it. I haven’t dared to say that to him because I know how much it would antagonize him.
It took a long time, but he’s ready to talk to you. "
"To me?" Alison asked. "Why me?"
"You’re one of us," Carver said. "That’s a good foundation. I vouched for you, and he listens to me. Also in your favor is your record. We both know what you’ve achieved over the past two years.
You’re one of the most trusted names in forensic psychology and profiling. We can't go to anyone else, right?"
Alison took a moment to show she was thinking it through, even though she already knew where Carver was leading her. If Alison was right, that was into a trap, and the conversation was designed to get her there.
"It’s common knowledge now that we’re looking for someone connected to law enforcement," Alison said. "We don't know who the person is. He’s worried that the killer is someone inside the force or the FBI."
"I don't believe that," Carver said. "I tried to convince him of that, but he wouldn’t listen. He’s worried that if he comes in, whoever is orchestrating all of this will try to pin it on him."
"Why did he run in the first place?" Alison asked.
"He didn’t," Carver said. "He went out of state to visit some friends, and word got back to him that the police were looking for him and they had raided his house and his cabin.
He was terrified of…He was a good man in many ways, but he was never equipped with common sense.
I don't understand how he made a career as a profiler.
He decided this would be the best course of action.
Don't ask me for any rhyme or reason to the thoughts that man has.
Just talk with him and make him see sense. "
"I’ll talk with him," Alison said. What would you say if I spoke about telling others about the situation? How would you scare me into keeping this to myself? You must have thought of that. "Is he at your home now?"
"No, he won't stay there," Carver said. "I can take you to him, and once you’ve talked to him, he’ll go with you to the FBI offices, I know he will." Carver sighed. "I wish it didn't have to be like this, but he was also stubborn, and like a child at times."
"It’s fine," Alison assured. "As long as he comes in and we can discount him from the investigation, then we can stop wasting resources."
"Thank you," Carver said.
There was a warmth in the thanks, a genuineness that was perhaps born from being happy to have convinced Alison, rather than being glad for her help.
When we met the last time in the lobby, you hugged me, and I thought that was odd. Was that when you stole a hair from me to plant at the crime scene?
Alison finally reached for her coffee and took a drink, almost spitting it out.
"Ugh," Alison complained. "Give me a second. They forgot to put sugar in this morning. I’ll grab some, and then we can go. I want to talk to him as soon as I can so we can move on from him as a suspect."
Alison got up and placed her bag on the table, showing Carver: Look, I trust you with my possessions. I’m taken in by your story and believe you.
She went to the coffee bar, her back angled to Carver.
"Excuse me," Alison said with a pleasant grin, while slowly removing her phone from her pocket. "Can I have sugar sachets, and oh…" She faced the server the entire time, glancing down as she typed a message to Hartley.
I don't know where I’m going. Track my phone, but don't move in until we reach the destination. Dr. Carver is our target.
"No, sorry, just the sugar," Alison said, grinning wider.
The server turned and grabbed some sugar packs, and Alison slowly slipped the phone back into her pocket, hoping that Carver didn’t spot the move.
Sterling wasn’t at Carver’s home. She wanted to bring Carver in, but needed to get to Sterling as well, and with no evidence beyond what Alison had gained from their conversation, she would be released from custody quickly.
"Thank you," Alison said as she took the sugar from the server. She turned quickly and went back to the table, shaking the packets, then tapping them against the side of the table. She opened three sachets and poured the sugar into the cup, stirred it, and then tasted it.
"Mmm, that’s better," Alison said. "Are you ready to go?"
Carver smiled. "Let’s do this."