Chapter 8
8
T ravis spoke first. “Kade is the primary witness in the investigation. He was just giving me his statement. The victim is Breanna Kyndall, as you know.”
Carr made a show of crossing his arms over his chest. Kade wanted to point out that the man should most likely be taking notes instead of leaning back on the heels of his boots. Make no mistake about it, Carr was as strong as an ox. He might not be agile, but he had big, meaty hands with a whole lot of strength to back them up once he grabbed hold of something.
Bree’s hand tensed at the sound of Carr’s voice. Involuntary reaction? Kade’s gut told him not to mention it to the sheriff. Carr had always rubbed Kade the wrong way. This time was no exception. The man’s entitlement to the sheriff’s position and the authority—authority he hadn’t earned but had been given to him by his wealthy aunt—that came with the job bothered Kade the most. It always had. Personal feelings aside, Kade thought the sheriff was underqualified and incompetent, even for a county like Jackson.
“Has she been conscious?” Sheriff Carr’s back was ramrod straight as he surveyed the room.
“No, sir,” Travis said. “A nurse will be by to take her to get an MRI soon.”
Travis filled the sheriff in on everything they knew so far.
Carr listened, nodding every so often. “I’ll take over from here.”
Bree’s finger twitched again.
Without drawing attention to himself, he slanted his gaze toward her face, searching for something…movement. A flutter of her eyes. Anything that might tell him this was more than just reflex.
“Yes, sir.” Travis sounded resigned.
Carr turned to Kade. “Thank you for your statement. I’ll take over from here, son.”
Son? That word was fingernails on a chalkboard to Kade. “I’m the closest she has to next of kin. I’m sticking around.”
Kade sized up Carr, expecting a fight. He was surprised when he didn’t get one. There’d been rumors, hushed conversations, about the man’s childhood before his aunt had taken him in. Not that Kade didn’t have sympathy for all abused kids. There was nothing worse than a person taking advantage of someone weaker. Kade could relate, even. He’d dealt with his past by going into the military and becoming the best damn soldier he could. Carr seemed to have taken a different route—one of rumored abuses of authority.
The abused becoming an abuser—no matter how seemingly small the infraction—had never been an option for Kade.
“Her dad moved away a couple of years back if memory serves.” Carr looked down and to the right, a sign he was being shifty.
“That’s right,” Kade murmured.
“Do you have a number where her next of kin can be reached?” Carr was focused on Kade now, looking him up and down like they’d had words in a bar. Was he sizing him up?
Didn’t Carr? “No, I don’t. My sister might. I’ll ask her.” He had no intention of breaking physical contact with Bree. Her fingers tightened around his.
The door swung open, and a pair of nurses entered with a gurney. “My name’s Millie, and this is Adrienne. We’ll be taking Ms. Kyndall to get an MRI.” Their tones left no room for argument.
Kade was grateful for the break in tension. He also intended to accompany Millie and Adrienne. There was no way Bree was being moved out of his sight.
“Call me when she wakes…?” Carr pulled a business card from his front pocket and held it out to Kade.
Kade took the offering and stuffed it in his back pocket.
The nurses managed to shift Bree onto the gurney.
“We’ll have her back in a few minutes,” Millie started, but Kade was already shaking his head.
“I’m going with you.” The words came out with so much measured certainty Millie seemed to know better than to argue. She nodded.
Carr followed them out and then disappeared down the hallway with Travis. Kade stood guard outside the X-ray room, his back against the wall. His cell buzzed. He checked the screen and saw that his sister was calling. “What’s up, Chloe?”
“I can’t sleep, and I wanted to check on Bree. Any updates?” It was late or early, depending on one’s point of view, and his sister’s raspy voice sounded like she was having a rough night between this situation and Grayson not feeling well.
“She’s still unconscious. The doctor said she might have been given something to make her more compliant.”
Chloe drew in a sharp breath.
“She took a few hits to the head, and the sick bastard carved her skin with a knife. Those are the main injuries. The doctor is optimistic about her recovery.” That was as much as Kade knew and it said a lot about the sicko they’d be looking for.
Chloe sucked in a burst of air. “Ohmygod!”
“What is it?”
“Have you read anything about the twisted bastard who has been traveling the state, killing women?”
“I’m not up on news,” he admitted.
Chloe told him about the Reaper. “Sounds like his work.”
Kade muttered a string of swears.
The sad truth, Kade had read, was that a woman’s biggest threat was her husband or boyfriend. But that clearly wasn’t the case here. “Has she been spending time with anyone after finding out about Zeke?”
“No one that I know of,” Chloe admitted. “It was a shock to hear that the two of them were in a relationship, to begin with. I kind of thought…”
Those words struck harder than Kade knew better than to allow. He had no designs on her. He hadn’t made any promises to her. A voice in the back of his head reminded him it was his loss. “What?”
“Nothing. I guess I thought the two were an odd match. But what do I know?” Chloe admittedly didn’t know Zeke well considering she was eight years old when he left for the military.
“Zeke’s a good guy,” Kade defended.
“He is… was …the best. That didn’t come out right. I’m just saying that I didn’t realize the two of them were even a thing.”
“They dated in high school for about two seconds.” Kade figured the two had realized they still had feelings for each other and had decided not to waste time. It was game over when a man figured out who he belonged with. An annoying inner voice returned, reminding him that figuring it out too late had cost him the win.
“Even so. I always thought of them as best friends, brother and sister.” She sighed heavily. “You’d know better than I do. You guys were so much older than me. Plus, what do I know about relationships.”
Something in her voice caught his ear. “Everything okay with you?”
“Yeah. You know how it is. I left Grayson’s dad before our son was born and he had no qualms about it. I have no idea what I’m going to tell him about his father when he gets old enough to ask.” She paused a beat. “Not that I’m all that jazzed about dating or rushing into a relationship, but there are days when I wonder what it would be like to have a husband around to help. You know, someone who shares kid duties and kisses me every night before we go to bed.” Another beat. “Is that weird to want those things?”
“Believe me, I understand.”
“I only think about having someone around when Grayson is sick or during times like these. You know, the holiday season is upon us, and it gets so busy sometimes I’m ready to pull my hair out. And then there are those times when I think having to compromise with one more person might shove me over the edge.” A pause. “And yet, I miss being in a relationship. Seeing that look in someone’s eyes and realizing he misses me as much as I miss him when we’re not together…” She paused. “Those moments make everything else worth it.”
Kade had never been one for looking at the flip side of a coin. His life had been black and white, which was most likely why he was so good at being a soldier and not so good at relationships. “When did you get so grown-up and smart?”
“I’m not so sure about the grown-up part, but I’ve always been smarter than you.” Chloe snort-laughed, a definite sign she was exhausted.
She was smarter than him, even though he’d never admit it. “Someone sounds delusional.”
Chloe’s voice reclaimed a serious note when she said, “I’m grateful you found Bree in time.” Those last two words were spoken with quiet sincerity. “We’ve never been close because of our age difference, but I like her and, for some reason, thought I saw a spark happening bet—”
“Same here.” The door behind him opened. He sidestepped to allow the nurses’ passage. “I gotta go. Get some sleep. I’m not sure when I’ll be back.”
“I’ll stop by the hospital in the morning and bring decent coffee and some bagels.” His sister could always be counted on. She had been one of the few constants in his life.
“See you tomorrow.” Kade followed the nurses back to Bree’s room. Dr. Miller filed in just as she was being settled into her bed.
“Lab results are in.” He held up an opened file and scanned the page. “Her numbers look good.” He hesitated. “She tested positive for ketamine.”
“The date rape drug?”
Dr. Miller nodded. “I’m feeling even better about a full recovery.” He glanced at her in the bed. “At least physically.”
Kade didn’t ask what sort of horrors she might’ve endured that she’d be reliving for the rest of her life.
“I’ll take a look at her X-ray and see you in a few minutes with hopefully more good news.” Dr. Miller excused himself after Kade thanked the man for the update. He truly appreciated being briefed so quickly on the situation. He texted his sister with the good news. He also needed to call Bree’s father before the sheriff did. Kade was just thankful he’d shown up to the Hollow when he had. The alternative sent more of that fiery anger racing through his veins.
Kade texted Travis with a request the deputy be the one to call Bree’s father.
Travis responded almost immediately. Planned on it. Good. Travis knew Bree and her father personally. The news would come across better from him than Carr.
Kade texted back with an update about the labs. Afterward, he reclaimed the seat next to Bree’s bed and took her hand in his. Her index finger twitched against his palm. It probably wasn’t more than a reflex. Still, his heart beat a little faster, and warmth spread through his chest. “I’m here, sweetheart.”
There was no more movement from Bree after that twitch.
For the next few hours, he kept a vigilant watch on the door as he fought the urge to sleep. When it opened, he sat up straighter, keeping Bree’s hand safely in his.
Travis walked in, his expression grim.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” Seeing that look on his friend’s face meant bad news.
“I’ve been digging into the case.” Travis rubbed the day-old stubble on his chin. He glanced at Bree before nodding his head toward the door. “You want to take a walk?”
“I’d rather be here when she wakes.” She would wake. She would be fine. There was no other option in his mind.
“Mind if I sit?” Travis motioned toward the chair close to Kade.
“Go ahead.” Whatever news was coming, Travis seemed like he needed to give Kade a minute to brace himself for it. Or maybe Travis was trying to find the right words. Either way, Kade didn’t figure this was going to be good news.
Travis nodded and took a seat close to Kade. He leaned forward and dropped his shoulders down.
“Tell me what’s going on.” Travis didn’t look like he’d slept either.
“The carving in Bree’s shoulder kept bugging me. The area had to be a choice, and why carve into it? Did this guy like a souvenir? Did he like to mark his victims? Did he leave a signature? Plus, there has been a guy who fits the profile. He took five victims before disappearing two years ago. We believed he was arrested on a different charge and that’s why the killings stopped. I didn’t say anything about it before because I wanted to be certain. So, I input the information into a Department of Homeland Security database.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “I input her description—blond hair, brown eyes.” Travis studied his hands. “The fact that she lives in Texas. Is pregnant.”
“I’m guessing it was a match.”
Travis looked up. “How did you know?”
“Chloe put two-and-two together and was afraid the Reaper had resurfaced,” Kade said.
“Sure enough, I got a call from a friend of mine with the San Antonio Police Department. I told him what we knew, and he immediately asked how long she’d been missing before she was found. Then, he asked if it was a rescue or recovery. I told him she was still alive. My friend said, if this is the same guy he’s thinking about, she’s damn lucky.”
“How many victims?” Kade cocked a brow at his longtime friend.
“There’ve been five others, all blonds, all from Texas in a triangle between Dallas, San Antonio, and Houston. All the victims were close to the same age as Bree. Similar physical descriptions. One other was pregnant.”
“Jesus.” Kade stabbed his fingers through his hair. “And what about the others? Were they able to give a description—”
Travis was already shaking his head. “There are no other survivors. She’s the only one.” Travis mumbled a few choice words before continuing. “One of the vics escaped only to be hunted down and punished twice as much.” He stopped for a few silent moments like he needed to gather his strength before continuing. Travis cared. What he’d just said confirmed Chloe’s suspicion and told Kade the killer would come back for Bree. And keep coming back until she was “punished.”
“Usually, the victims go missing for six or seven days before he kills them. He has a ritual the FBI has been trying to piece together. Suffice it to say that no one has figured out the pattern in the carvings. This goes back at least eight years. The task force, including the FBI and all three major police departments, dubbed him the Razorblade Reaper for the carvings and…”
“Go on,” Kade urged.
“The moniker ‘Reaper’ comes from the way he likes to deliver the fatal blow.”
At the same time Travis spoke, Bree’s index finger twitched. Kade muttered a few choice words as he focused on her, and her eyes blinked open.
Travis hopped to his feet. “I’ll get the nurse.”