LITMIR.BIZ

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his brother. “But if he doesn’t know where she is—”

      Alec cut him off. “How long do you think it will take him to find out? You’ll just be putting additional people at risk.”

      Katie looked at both men. “I won’t do anything that puts my parents or anyone in danger.”

      “Okay.” Chief Blade glanced at Alec. “What do you suggest, then?”

      “Twenty-four hour protection in a safe house.”

      “For how long?”

      Irritation flashed in Alec’s face, and his jaw hardened. “For as long as it takes.”

      “Hell, Alec, we’re a small force. We don’t have the budget to cover that type of protection. The best move is to get her out of town.”

      Alec rubbed the back of his neck. “There is no place safe.” Alec took a deep breath in an obvious effort to hold on to his temper. “This isn’t about Katie. It’s about control. Of me. If he lets her get away, he’ll have lost control. He can’t allow that to happen.”

      She’d been numbly listening, but now stood on shaky legs. “I still…I still don’t understand. Why me?” She realized just how weak and whiny the question sounded, but she was beyond caring.

      “Because,” Alec said, “he believes I have a romantic interest in you.”

      “That’s ridiculous. We haven’t even gone out on a date.”

      “Very true. But that wasn’t what it looked like two weeks ago when I had forgotten my wallet and you covered my breakfast check.”

      “And you came back an hour later with money and daisies,” she added. This couldn’t be happening. Not to her.

      Chief Blade looked at Martinez, who had just shown up at the foyer door. “I’m through in the bedroom. Now might be a good time to get the fingernail clippings and scrapings for DNA testing. And then we’ll let you go change out of what you’re wearing.”

      Martinez made quick work of obtaining the samples while the other men watched. Standing, he again picked up his case. “I’ll go get started on the kitchen.”

      Martinez started to turn away, and then stopped. “If you’re looking for a safe house, I just moved into a new place. Last owner was a security freak. This guy wouldn’t have any reason to look for her out there.”

      The police chief seemed to consider the suggestion. “Okay. Perkins, Jamison and Thompson are backups. I want all four of you staying out there. At least for tonight.”

      IT WAS WELL AFTER one in the morning when Alec and Jack sat down in Jack’s office. Deep Water’s police department, which was composed of nineteen commissioned officers and six non-com support staff, had recently moved into a renovated building, dating back to the turn of the century.

      When most towns in Central Florida’s Cougar County were plowing down the buildings that reflected their mediocre start, Deep Water had embraced its heritage of cattle barons and citrus kings. Buildings that had been ready to fall down were shored up, restored. Layers of asphalt were removed from downtown streets to reveal the worn but beautiful bricks beneath.

      The Big Freeze of 1895 had run off most of the citrus industry, but even today, cattle grazed on much of the land outside the city limits. The feed store, which still occupied a prime chunk of ground at the center of town, maintained a hitching rail, and it wasn’t unusual to see a cow pony tied there early in the morning.

      A modern town with grace and integrity. And now a monster.

      Alec slumped back in the chair, and, resting his head against the wall, closed his eyes. Without aspirin, the headache had gotten worse. A good night’s sleep usually took care of it, but he doubted he’d be getting one of those anytime soon.

      He’d already supplied his fingerprints for comparison to those found in the house, as had Katie.

      Jack propped his elbows on the desk. “I’ll send an officer around to get elimination fingerprints from the landlord. The evidence will go to the lab in the morning. Including the shoe cast.”

      A fairly clear footprint had been found just outside the kitchen door. But even if it belonged to Katie’s attacker, it would have little value until they had a suspect in custody.

      Deep Water didn’t have a laboratory of its own, so the evidence would be sent to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s lab in Daytona Beach for analysis. Alec didn’t expect them to come back with anything useful. This wasn’t the kind of killer who made mistakes.

      “I should have seen this coming,” he said quietly. “I should have recognized the probability Jill’s killer would follow me to Deep Water. Nothing but damned arrogance on my part.”

      “You always were arrogant. Even in high school and college. It’s what made you good.” Jack studied him. “As far as the rest, we all make mistakes.”

      Alec scrubbed his face. “Not the kind that cost women their lives.”

      Jack popped open a can of iced tea. After several long swallows, he set it aside. “But she’s okay. We just need to figure out how to keep her that way.” Jack stirred the dish of hard candies on the credenza behind him. He’d quit smoking several months ago, and now satisfied his oral fixation with cherry drops.

      Jack tossed the wrapper toward the trash can. “With that in mind, maybe it’s time we start being honest with each other.”

      “I wasn’t aware that we weren’t.”

      “You’re right. It’s not really a matter of honesty, is it? It’s more a matter of letting it all hang out. Saying not only the easy things, but also the hard ones. We’ve never done that. We Blades aren’t really made that way, are we?”

      “No,” Alec agreed. “Maybe you should tell me what it is you want me to be honest about.”

      Jack leaned forward. “Is there another reason you might want to keep Katie in town?”

      “Keeping her alive would seem like a good enough reason for most people.”

      Jack nodded. “Yes, it would. But so does nailing the man who murdered Jill.”

      “What are you talking about?” But he knew.

      “It’s been eleven months, Alec. And we both know the stats. The longer a homicide goes unsolved, the less likely charges will be brought.” Rising, he paced to the window. “I’ve seen it in your eyes. You’re not so much tormented by Jill’s death as you are by the possibility that you may never catch this guy. You’ve helped put hundreds of his kind behind bars, but you can’t get this one. It eats you up inside. So much so that you might be willing to grab on to anything to turn the odds in your favor.”

      Jack faced him. “And then suddenly you have it. Bait.”

      Alec’s right hand curled into a fist over the arm chair. “You’re right. All of what you’ve said is true. Even the fact that I’m desperate enough to use any advantage. But do you really think I would place an innocent woman at risk?”

      When his brother remained silent, Alec had his answer. “Well, you’re wrong. I have one woman’s death on my conscience. I couldn’t handle a second. And maybe you need to ask yourself how well you’re going to sleep if you cut her loose and he does go after her. If she winds up dead. Who would be the cold SOB then?”

      Alec got to his feet. “Katie Carroll is in extreme danger. Get another opinion. Call Seth Killian. He’ll tell you the same thing. You fail to give her protection, and you might as well stake her to the ground like a sacrificial lamb.”

      Jack looked up at his brother. “Call Seth? Your friend at the FBI? I guess I should trust his opinion. After all you two are tighter than brothers.”

      Alec knew he should never have brought up Seth’s name. “Call

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