Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
Several hours later, they had a photo of the captor in hand. Aiden and Kennedy headed back into the coffee shop once more to review their system. Now that he had an idea of who they were looking for, Aiden wanted to see if the man had been in the shop earlier that day.
The manager gave them permission to view the files, and they began with yesterday morning’s footage as soon as the shop opened. It was a painstakingly long process, scouring the footage for the man in the ball cap.
He never showed.
Aiden was frustrated but not surprised. As careful as he seemed to be, it would have been stupid for him to show his face inside.
Still, he wanted to check with the workers.
There was no telling how a psychopath’s mind worked.
If it was the same guy, he’d clearly gotten away with it several times already.
The longer he continued, the cockier he would become—and hopefully, he would slip up.
The young woman who’d been working with Maya last night was here again today, and Aiden wanted to check with her first.
“Do you remember anyone out of the ordinary here yesterday? Anyone who stood out?”
She glanced at the screen and shook her head. “Not that I can remember, no.”
He showed Dani the photograph.
“Does this man seem at all familiar?”
“Do you think...?” Her teeth cut into her bottom lip. “Oh God, I never thought...”
“It’s okay,” he reassured her.
The young woman’s eyes filled with tears. “I never should have left her. I should’ve stayed so we could walk out together.”
“You didn’t know this was going to happen,” Kennedy soothed her. “In the meantime, though, it might be better to stick together at all times.”
She nodded and swiped at the tears sliding down her cheeks. Aiden met Kennedy’s gaze and tipped his head to one side, letting him know to join him outside when he was done.
Aiden stepped out the front door and glanced around the parking lot and surrounding area again, trying to see it through fresh eyes.
At the moment, they only had the footage from the coffee shop and the ballet studio across the street.
It would take time to get warrants to search the other camera systems from the surrounding businesses.
He hated red tape. Why couldn’t people cooperate when time mattered?
The guy had avoided the cameras around the coffee shop, solidifying his theory that he had staked it out before making his move. Whoever this guy was, he was smart. He researched. Took his time. He’d gotten away with it before, and he would get away with it again unless they stopped him.
What was his weakness?
Aiden propped his hands on his hips and glanced around. A group of women milled around a corner a few blocks west, and he stared at them for a moment, his mind whirling.
He tried to put himself in the man’s shoes.
What would he have done?
He would have stayed far enough away so as not to draw attention to himself, yet close enough that he could see Maya when she left the coffee shop.
It was pure luck for him that Dani had headed out earlier than expected.
The man had probably parked down the street so he could fall in behind her when she pulled out of the parking lot.
It was pure speculation, but it was all he had to go on at the moment, and he couldn’t afford to leave any stone unturned.
Aiden threw a quick look over his shoulder and met Kennedy’s gaze as he stepped outside. “Walk with me.”
He tipped his head toward the women working the street corner, and Kennedy fell in beside Aiden. His eyes lit with understanding when he saw where they were headed.
“Wonder why the locals didn’t question them already?”
“Probably weren’t out this morning.”
Several pairs of wary eyes turned toward them as they approached, and he lifted one hand in a little wave to ease their concern.
A young woman in a candy-red leather brassiere sidled toward him on sky-high heels.
“What can I do for you, sugar?”
“Were you by chance working last night?”
Her head tipped slightly to one side. “Depends who’s asking.”
Aiden pulled his wallet from his back pocket, then dug out a twenty and passed it to her. Without even glancing at it, she tucked it away and nodded for him to continue his line of questioning.
“A man came through here last night in a light-colored van. Would you happen to remember anything about the driver?”
A little smirk tipped her lips. “Honey, I see a lot of cars come through here on any given night.”
Kennedy held up the grainy black-and-white photograph they’d pulled from the ballet studio.
“A young woman was abducted from the coffee shop down the street last night. We’re trying to find the person responsible.”
Aiden pointed toward the corner.
“I have a feeling he may have been parked down this way somewhere. I want to make sure we find this guy and keep you ladies safe.”
A battle brewed in her eyes for a moment before she glanced over her shoulder.
“Raquel.”
At the sound of her name, a young brunette ambled forward. “Yeah?”
The first girl pointed at the picture Kennedy held. “You remember this guy last night?”
Raquel nodded. “Parked right up there.” She pointed about a block over. “Thought he might be looking for some fun for the night, so I spoke to him. He was rude. Told me to leave him the hell alone.”
“Do you remember what he looked like?”
Raquel shook her head. “He was the forgettable type. Couldn’t really see all of his features anyway with the hat on.”
Aiden tamped down his disappointment. “Well, thank you anyway.”
Kennedy and Aiden turned to leave but were brought up short by the woman’s voice.
“Hey.”
Aiden threw a quick look at her. She pulled out her phone and took a second to flip through it before holding it out to him. “I took a picture of the van.”
His heart rate kicked up as he took the phone.
“He kind of creeped me out,” she said. “You never can tell with people.”
“No, you can’t,” he agreed.
Aiden enlarged the photo on the screen, and a surge of satisfaction welled up inside him.
There he was.
“We’ve got you now.”