The Heart of A Killer

Twenty-One

“I want you to tell me about the mob and the drug network you have going.”

Gabe paused with the bottle of beer halfway lifted to his lips. He put it down on his kitchen counter. “You don’t waste time, do you?”

Dante shrugged. “No time to waste, man. You know what we’re up against. This is all connected somehow.”

Gabe finally took a long swallow. “Yeah? How?”

“We interviewed Dr. Crey Robinson and think he was dealing drugs to Tony Maclin when Maclin was in high school and Robinson was a medical student.”

Gabe hated this shit, hated that it involved kids. But that’s where the money was, wasn’t it? And you followed the money trail if you wanted to be in big business like Bertucci. “What do you want to know?”

“How big is this network? What’s the organization?”

“The mob provides the product and recruits the sellers. The sellers go out and find the buyers, who in turn provide the money by buying the product.”

“And who are the buyers?”

Gabe shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant, as though he didn’t give a shit. “Anyone and everyone. You know how it is. Rich people, poor people, young and old.”

Dante nodded, his expression benign. He wasn’t making judgments. “Let’s keep it with the young for now. Who’s tracking the high schoolers? You have a network of sellers in charge of getting the product to these kids?”

“Yes. There’s a hierarchy. Bertucci’s family took over that market about forty years ago. They have a stranglehold in the city and county. No one steps on his territory and gets away with it.”

Dante took a drink and nodded. “I can imagine. The family’s pretty powerful.”

“They are.”

“And how did you get wrapped up in all this?”

Now it was Gabe’s turn to take a long pull of his beer, give himself time to come up with a suitable answer. “Just lucky, I guess.”

“Is this really what you want to be doing with your life, Gabe?”

The truth this time. “I told you, I’m doing exactly what I always wanted to do.”

Dante sighed, and Gabe felt his disappointment. He wished he could tell him the truth about what he was really doing, but he couldn’t. That’s how the game was played, and how he lived his life. Someday maybe he’d be able to tell his friends he was one of the good guys.

Then again, maybe not. And sometimes the people you cared the most about had to believe you were the scum of the earth. If that’s how his job got done, that’s what he’d live with.

“So a kid like Maclin back then… If he was buying drugs from Robinson, a college student…”

“Robinson would have worked for one of Bertucci’s guys, a top-tier distributor who kept an eye on all the sellers. The distributors are given product and funnel it down, and the sellers get out there and push it to the kids. Then when they’re out of product, which is usually in a hurry because these kids are greedy, they turn in their money, get their cut and get more product.”

“Lucrative business?”

Sadly, yes. “Like you wouldn’t believe. People like their drugs.”

Dante slid him a sidelong glance. “How about you?”

“Me?” Gabe laughed. “I don’t touch the shit. It’s for business only, not pleasure. I’ve seen how whacked out people get on that stuff.”

“Yeah. I’ve seen plenty of it, too. At least I don’t have to worry about you OD’ing on me.”

“No, you don’t have to worry about that.”

“I do worry about you staying alive, though.”

Gabe took a swallow of beer. “You know what, Dante? I worry about that, too. Every goddamn day.”

They both went silent then, and Gabe was glad for that. He needed to think about what he’d said, if there was anything he’d given away. He already gave away too much to his friends, and it threatened his job. But what could he do about that? Walk away from Anna? From Dante? No matter what his job, he still had his friends, and there were some people he’d never turn his back on.

He walked a fucking tightrope every day. And it was getting harder to remember what side he was on.

“Is there any way you could find out if Robinson was part of the network?”

Gabe figured that question was coming and shrugged. “I could try. It was a while back, though. There might not be a record of him, but I’ll ask around. Sometimes they like to keep track of their old dealers, just in case they need favors.”

“I guess that could come in handy.”

“You never know. Drug dealer one day, politician the next. Blackmail is a handy thing in this business. And with Robinson having been a medical student…? They might have wanted to keep tabs on him in case they needed him later on.”

“For impromptu bullet removal?”

Gabe quirked a half smile. “Something like that.”

“I guess your job is never boring, is it, Gabe?”

He lifted his bottle to his lips. “Nope.”

Dante called Anna after he left Gabe’s condo late that night, figuring she’d still be working. Surprisingly, she said she was at home.

Maybe that was Rusty’s influence. She couldn’t abandon the dog all day long. Having someone other than herself to take care of might mean she had to take care of herself, too.

He walked in the front door and found her-and Rusty-curled up on the sofa watching a movie. Her hair was in a ponytail and she wore a tank top and very short cotton shorts. He tightened as he remembered the lack of intimacy between them the past couple weeks. The smile she gave him was encouraging.

He grabbed a soda, kicked off his shoes and climbed in next to her and Rusty.

“I made popcorn,” she said, handing him the bowl.

He took a handful and focused his attention on the TV. “What are you watching?”

“Die Hard.”

He turned to face her. “And here I expected to find you weeping over some chick flick, your tear-filled face buried in Rusty’s fur.”

She gave him a horrified look. “Do you not know me at all?”

He laughed and kissed the tip of her nose, then shoveled more popcorn into his mouth. “This is why you’re perfect for me.”

“Hmm,” she said, then laid her head on his shoulder. “Maybe you want to watch a chick movie. Something weepy with a tragic ending, maybe?”

“Gag. I can go back to my own place, you know.”

She moved the bowl to the table and climbed onto his lap, facing him. Rusty jumped to the floor, clearly annoyed by the two of them moving around on the sofa. “No, you can’t go back to your own place.”

He placed his hands on her hips, definitely more interested in her sitting on him than in any movie. “I’d rather be right here with you.”

“You’re just saying that because we haven’t had sex in a while.”

“You noticed. Finally.” He lifted her tank top and slid his hands under. The softness of her skin and the heat of her turned his dick from semi to rock hard in the span of two-point-two seconds.

“Now you sound like a man who’s been married for a long time.”

He laughed and lifted her top off, sweeping his hands over the swell of her breasts. “And now you sound bitchy and wifey.”

She arched a brow and pulled his shirt off, then raked her nails down his chest. “You’re an asshole.”

He unhooked her bra and removed it, tossing it to the floor. “I love when you whisper sweet words to me. Gets me all hot and hard.”

She rocked against him, making him hiss.

“Why, yes…yes, it does.” She slid back on his legs and palmed his erection. “What are you going to do about that, Dante?”

He wrapped his hands around her butt and stood, marched them into the bedroom and threw her on the bed, being none too gentle about it.

She’d riled him up and he was long on passion and short on patience now.

He pulled her shorts down, then her panties, stood over her while he shed his clothes, anxious to remove any barriers between them. He was in a hurry, but not so much of one that he couldn’t take a few seconds to stare down at her as she sprawled on top of the covers. Her body was beautiful, curved and lush, and he spotted several areas he wanted to take a long, slow journey across with his tongue.

God, the things her naked body did to his nervous system. She made him breathe faster, made his heart pound. He’d already started to sweat. And he was hard, tight and straining.

He sucked in a breath and leaned over her, mapping her hip with his tongue and moving along her rib cage, each harsh breath she took like a song to him. He moved up her body with his tongue, raked it across her neck and drew back to look at her, at the heat in her eyes that matched the inferno burning inside him.

He bent, kissed her, loving the taste of her, buttery and salty like popcorn as he slid his tongue between her lips and sucked. He was already out of control. This wasn’t going to be slow and easy.

Anna wrapped her legs around him, her frenzy equaling his.

He didn’t want to be gentle, not when he’d gone so long without her, and she gave him permission not to be. She scratched his arms, dug her heels into him, moaned against his lips and pressed her body against his, all clear signals that she was ready.

But he wanted her more than ready. With a gentle push, he moved her to the side and swept his hand over her sex. She was hot silk, tight and quivering as he tucked two fingers inside her and began to move. And the way she looked at him-there was no more fear or hesitation on her face. She was with him the whole way now as he brought her to the peak over and over again, held her there and then watched her fall.

There was nothing more beautiful or more arousing than watching his woman come, knowing he took her there, that she trusted him enough to let go like this. And when she opened her eyes and he saw such naked desire in them, he knew he’d reached the point of no return. He rolled over and took her mouth, kissing her as he slid inside her with one deep thrust.

She murmured his name on a gasp, and it made his balls tighten when she wrapped her legs around him, when she lifted against him to draw him in deeper. He buried his face in her neck and listened to her sighs, every breath as he ground against her and brought her with him again to the very edge.

He lifted his head and met her gaze, linked his fingers with hers, and this time when she cried out, he shuddered, going with her, letting her know he’d never let her fall without him.

After, he held her, both of them much more relaxed as they stroked each other’s bodies.

This intimacy thing, even when they yelled at each other, was becoming scarily comfortable. Dante didn’t know what was going to happen after the killer was found and he had to leave town.

“You’re quiet,” she said, her voice low and unsure.

“Was just thinking.”

“About?”

“What happens when this case is over?”

“I guess you leave.”

She made it sound so matter-of-fact, as though she didn’t care. He knew she did, that she was as unsure as he was. But that was Anna. She wouldn’t cling. And he wouldn’t ask to stay. Which left them, essentially, nowhere.

“I guess I do.”

His phone rang. They both sat up and looked at the clock. It was after midnight. Never a good thing when the phone rang that late.

“Yeah.”

He listened, looked at Anna.

She already knew.

“Be right there.”

He closed the phone, climbed out of bed to grab his pants.

“Tell me,” she said, already out of bed and reaching for clothes.

“Roman was doing a drive-by in the alley to check security. Someone killed the uniform on patrol there, then attacked Roman and stabbed him.”

She was eerily calm, on her knees listening as he spoke. “Is he dead?”

“No. He’s alive. He managed to fight off the killer. They’re taking him to the hospital. And he’s conscious.”

Roman survived. It was the first solid lead they had. Maybe they could identify the killer now. He grabbed his shoes and slid them on.

“Okay. He’s alive.”

He stood and turned to her. She still hadn’t moved. He tipped his finger under her chin. “Yes, Anna, he made it.”

She nodded and he saw the tears she refused to shed. “You’re right, he did. Let’s go to the hospital.”

Anna was worried sick about Roman, but he didn’t look too bad for being attacked. He had a stab wound in the right shoulder, had fought off the killer’s attempt to carve and beat him. The suspect hadn’t gotten around to getting the job done. He’d gotten punched a few times in the face and upper body, and he’d been kicked.

Roman had found an officer down, called it in, and he’d been attacked from behind, blindsided by the suspect who’d gotten him with the knife before he’d known what hit him. But Roman was strong and he’d fended off the attacker long enough for the black-and-whites to show up.

He was alive. It was all that mattered. She was so happy to see him alive when they got to the hospital she wanted to put her arms around him and not let go, but he was too banged up for that. As it was, she sat by his side and held his hand, at least until it was time to take his statement.

“Routine drive-by, like I’ve been doing lately, right?” he said. “I wanted to check to make sure the units were doing their job, that the surveillance equipment was in place and still working, right?”

He shifted, winced as he sat up straighter in the bed.

“Anyway, the unit was parked in the alley and the driver’s-side door was open. Figured maybe Hannesey had gotten out of the car to do a walk through the alley. So I pulled up behind him and got out to go find him.”

Dante was recording, Anna was listening.

“What time was this?” Dante asked.

“About ten-thirty or so. I was on my way home. Anyway, I get past the Dumpster and I see Hannesey down. I thought, shit. I crouched down, see that he’s dead. But he’s not beaten up like the other victims.” Roman clenched his jaw. “He cut Hannesey’s throat and just left him there to bleed to death.”

Roman shoved his hand through his hair. His hand was shaking. Anna fought back tears, imagining what it must have been like for Roman to come up on that scene.

None of them wanted to lose one of their own, and a fellow officer being killed was like losing part of yourself. She felt responsible, as if she had started this chain of events. And now Hannesey was dead.

“I’m sorry, Roman.”

“Anyway,” Roman said, lifting his chin, “I called it in and stood up, ready to go hunting down the son of a bitch. That’s when he jumped me from behind. I turned around and he stuck the knife in my upper shoulder. God, it hurt like hell. I turned around right away to face him, figuring he was going to kill me. I was trying to go for the knife in his hand, trying to wrestle it away from him, but I was down one arm. We fought and he hit me in the jaw, kicked my leg out from under me and I went down. That’s when he kicked me in the ribs.”

Anna could visualize the scene. Roman was lucky the same thing hadn’t happened to him that happened to Hannesey. The killer could have taken the knife to his throat, too. “I’m glad you had fast reflexes.”

“Me, too. I knew he was going to kill me, just like the others. I got mad. Mad for George, and your dad, and for Jeff. For Hannesey, too. I fought back. And then I heard the sirens. He must have, too, because he took off.”

“I’m glad you made it.”

“I can’t believe the son of a bitch jumped me. I can’t believe I didn’t know he was there. How could I not know he was right goddamn behind me?”

Anna winced, knowing exactly what it was like to be taken by surprise in that alley. Images flooded her of that night so long ago, of what it felt like to have Maclin’s arms go around her and drag her into the Dumpster.

This isn’t about you. Snap out of it!

“Did you see his face?” Dante asked.

Roman shook his head. “He was dressed all in black, wore one of those biker skull masks that hide everything but your eyes. His eyes were dark brown. That’s all I remember.”

“How about build?” Anna asked.

“Pretty tall. At least six foot. Well built. Not like a bodybuilder, but good muscle. He wore thick gloves and shit-kicker boots.”

Anna turned to Dante. “That explains the marks on the bodies.”

Dante nodded. “But he stabbed Roman. That makes no sense.”

“He didn’t choose Roman as a victim. It was coincidence they were in the alley at the same time,” Anna said. “I don’t think he was prepared. Maybe he was setting the scene for his next victim.”

“Or even revisiting the scene to relive the kills. Hannesey and then Roman surprised him,” Dante suggested. “Maybe that’s why there was a change in his method. Roman being there threw him off his game.”

“I don’t care what it was,” Roman said. “I’m just damn glad I’m alive.”

Anna leaned over and squeezed his hand. “So am I. Very glad.”

Roman smiled up at her.

“Do you need me to call Tess for you?”

Roman shook his head. “Already did. She’s out of town on an audit. Wanted to cancel it and come right back, but I told her no. They’re going to spring me tomorrow anyway and she’ll be back by the weekend, so I promised her she could wait on me hand and foot then.”

Dante laughed. “Milk it for all it’s worth, buddy.”

“I intend to.” Roman waggled his brows.

“You’re terrible,” Anna said.

“No, I’m not. And admit it. You’re happy.”

“I am,” she said, fighting back tears.

He squeezed her hand. “Anna, stop that. I’m fine. Just some bruises and sore ribs, and the wound is superficial. A few stitches, is all.”

Anna exhaled a sigh and nodded. “I can’t tell you how relieved I am that you’re all right. I don’t think I can take losing anyone else. We have to catch this guy before anyone else dies.”

“We have leads now that we didn’t have before,” Dante said. “He’s losing his grip. I can feel it. He’s going to fuck up and then he’s ours.”

For the first time since this whole thing started, Anna was beginning to believe it.

“It’s also possible the suspect thinks Roman can identify him. That might make him desperate, and careless,” Dante added. “He might come after Roman.”

Roman laid his hands over his stomach. “Gee, thanks. Make me a target again.”

Anna turned to Roman. “There are uniforms stationed outside your room, and when you’re discharged there will be someone at the house.”

Roman laughed, and then winced, grasping his side. “I was teasing. I don’t need protection at the house. A good night’s sleep and I’ll be fine once I go home.”

“And we’re not taking any chances on your life,” Anna said. “You take the protection, understand?”

Roman looked to Dante, who just shrugged, so he said, “Yes, ma’am.”

She stood, leaned over and kissed Roman’s brow. “Rest.”

He grabbed her hand. “He’s going to keep doing this until we’re all dead.”

She nodded. “I know.”

“You need to get them out of here.”

“Them?”

“Dante and Gabe. They’re next.”

She closed her eyes, knowing Roman was right. “I know.”

Roman looked worried, his normal bravado gone. “I don’t want to lose anyone else, Anna.”

She sucked in a breath and swept her hand over Roman’s hair. “I don’t want that, either. We’re going to protect all of you. I promise. No one else is going to die.”

Anna decided that testosterone made men stupid. What part of bodies dropping all around them could they not fathom? Even strong, capable men could be killed.

But no, they wouldn’t listen, and now Dante was off meeting with Gabe about some lead he was working on. She was so irritated with him-with them both-she hoped he hung out with Gabe all night.

Dante had asked her to come with him, but she declined out of simple anger. And then he’d irritated her even more by telling her that whenever he wasn’t with her, a uniform would be. She was a target, too.

She’d argued with him until they’d ended up shouting at each other, but she couldn’t argue with her captain, who’d insisted that either Dante would be there to provide protection or a uniformed officer would.

Dammit. She hated feeling as if she couldn’t take care of herself.

She had agreed with Roman’s statement in the hospital: Dante and Gabe were targets and they should leave. They both said no and neither of them were her favorite people right now. And she still couldn’t convince Pohanski to put her back on the case.

Damn men.

The less she saw of any of them right now the better. The only male she liked at the moment was Rusty, and he had no balls, so he was an acceptable choice.

She and Rusty were curled up in bed and she was going to read every square inch of case files tonight if it took her the entire night. It wasn’t as though she spent any time sleeping anyway.

They needed a break in the case. Surveillance equipment at the scene in the alley showed the suspect sneaking down the alley on foot and disappearing behind the Dumpster. He lingered there for a while, but their view was skewed, so no idea what he’d been doing back there. Then Hannesey had shown up and was taken down, and Roman came on the scene to find Hannesey and the suspect jumped him from behind. But Roman was right-it was hard to distinguish anything from the way the killer was dressed all in black, his face obscured by the skull mask.

So she was going to go through the entire case tonight, starting from the beginning-the very beginning-until she found something.

She grabbed Tony Maclin’s file, wrinkling her nose as she did. She hated reliving the nightmare, hated Tony Maclin with every fiber in her body, but she had to look over the case again, had to look over everything one more time.

This time she was determined to read every single damn word of this file and study every photograph until she had them committed to memory. She’d lost a best friend and her father, a uniform had died and she’d almost lost Roman. It was time to push her trauma behind her and focus on Maclin’s case with an objective eye.

She opened the autopsy file and read from the beginning, taking her time. She wasn’t squeamish. Hell, she attended plenty of autopsies. She could handle the written word, even if it brought back memories she found unpleasant. He’d shown her no mercy. She’d be equally as merciless as she read his autopsy.

Bruising to his chest and back. Three of his ribs had been broken. His nose had been shattered and two of his teeth had been knocked out. Blunt-force trauma to his head, and pieces of brick found in his scalp.

Wait. She stopped, read that section again.

Brick? What brick?

She flipped through the medical examiner’s notes, read that blunt-force trauma to the head was listed as the cause of death, attributed to being struck by the brick.

Again, what brick?

She’d been dazed and in shock that night, but as she’d lain there against the wall and watched the guys pummel Tony Maclin, she sure as hell never saw any of them pick up a brick and hit him over the head. Sure, they’d struck him with their fists, but no one had used a brick on his head. Not that she remembered.

Maybe Dante or Gabe would, though.

Where had she left her phone? Kitchen, when she went in there to fix a soda. She slid out of bed to go get it, stopping cold when she heard a noise in the backyard. Something had either been bumped into or knocked over.

And it wasn’t windy outside.

Rusty leaped off the bed on alert, the hairs on his back rising. He started to growl.

“Shh,” she whispered. “Rusty, down. Stay.”

Rusty did as ordered. She turned off the light in her bedroom, then reached for her gun. A round was already racked in the chamber, so she crept out of the bedroom, closed the door to keep Rusty in there and headed down the hall toward the back door.

She saw her phone on the kitchen counter, grabbed it and dialed Dante’s number, holding the phone up to her ear.

He answered on the first ring.

“What’s up?”

“Nothing, probably, but I heard something in the backyard.”

“Where’s the uniform?”

“I don’t know. Out front, I guess.”

“Go get him. We’ll be right there.”

“Don’t. It’s likely just a cat or the wind. The uniform and I can check it out.”

“There’s no wind and you’re wasting my time talking. Don’t go out there. We’ll be there in ten minutes.”

“Okay.”

She clicked off and slid her phone in her pocket, went to look out the back door.

But she also wasn’t stupid. She went to the front door and opened it.

No one was there. Uniform was supposed to stay at the front door at all times. She walked outside a few steps and didn’t see him.

She shut the front door in a hurry, locked the dead bolt and pulled the chain across, then turned to face the back door.

Shit.

She took a deep breath, let it out slowly, trying to calm the pounding of her heart.

Maybe the uniform went to take a leak. It was plausible enough, right?

Yeah, and it was going to snow in July.

She was going to try really hard not to conjure up the boogeyman where there wasn’t one.

But then Rusty started barking in the bedroom, and she saw something move out back.

Dante said to wait for him. But dammit, she was a cop. She wasn’t some untrained bimbo who needed a man to come save her. She was going to check it out.

She unlocked the slider, then pulled it open slow and easy.

It was muggy tonight, the air totally still. She couldn’t hear anything but her own breathing. And Rusty, who was still barking in her bedroom.

She pulled the screen door back and stepped onto the patio. She made a quick glance over to the table and chairs, then over to the barbecue. Nothing looked out of place. She moved farther out into the yard and leaned out toward the back door by her bedroom, saw nothing and decided it had to be some kind of animal, but she’d do a thorough search.

She’d made one step into the grass when a body slammed into her.

Stunned, she was tossed into the grass and she lost her grip on her gun. It went flying a few feet out of her grasp.

Shit! Whoever knocked into her was big, heavy and definitely male, from the size of muscle mass and how hard he hit her. She tried to fight him off, but he was too big for her. He was a blur dressed all in black and she couldn’t even see skin. He pinned her to the ground with the sheer size of his body, and memories of that night twelve years ago came flooding back.

“No!” she shouted. This wasn’t twelve years ago, and she wasn’t a scared sixteen-year-old anymore. He lay on top of her and she raised a leg up, effectively jamming it into his balls. She heard him grunt, and she used the advantage of his temporary pain to throw him off, then scramble away for her gun. But he grabbed her leg and jerked her back just before she could get her fingers on her gun, dragging her into the grass.

Then he slapped her across the face. He wore gloves, making the smack more painful.

Stunned at the impact, she lay there for a few seconds, trying to get the ringing out of her head as sharp pain sheared through her senses. He rose up and she saw the glint of a knife.

Oh, no. Not again. As he came for her she figured he probably thought she was scared and wouldn’t move.

But this time she wasn’t scared. She was angry.

That gave her the element of surprise this time. She bent her knees and shot them out, jamming her feet into his stomach and sending him flying backward. She scrambled and grabbed her gun, but by then he was on the run. She fired off a shot as he flew through the gate.

“Anna!”

She swiveled to see Dante and Gabe tear through the doorway, both of them with guns in their hands. She aimed the gun barrel toward the ground. “He just left through the gate,” she said, panting and out of breath.

“Stay with her,” Dante said, then tore out of the yard.

“You okay, honey?” Gabe asked, hooking one arm around her and holding his gun in his other hand. He pointed it toward the gate, but backed them toward the house so they’d have a position of safety.

“Yeah, I’m fine. He knocked me around a little, but I’m okay. Where’s the uniform?”

“In the bushes outside.”

Dread made her stomach drop. “Is he dead?”

“No. Looks like someone slammed his head good into the side of your house. He’s out cold. We already called for an ambulance and the cops.”

She blew out a sigh of relief. “Thank God.”

She followed him out front and they saw to the uniform, who was coming around. He had a bad gash on his forehead, but she was so damn happy he was conscious. When the ambulance and police cars screamed into her driveway, they stepped out of the way to let the paramedics deal with him.

“Let’s go inside.”

Gabe sat her down on one of the kitchen chairs, then turned on the light.

“You need some ice on your face. He walloped you,” Gabe said, giving her a once-over and frowning.

She put her hand to her swelling cheek. “Yeah, the bastard slapped me a good one. I saw stars for a few seconds.”

“What the fuck happened?”

“Hang on.” She got up, winced a little as she limped down the hallway to let Rusty out, praising him for being such a good dog. He wagged his tail, went over to warily sniff Gabe, then laid his head in her lap when she sat again.

Gabe was already crushing ice and putting it in a bag.

“I heard a noise outside. So I went to investigate. The asshole football tackled me as soon as I cleared the patio.”

“No sign of him,” Dante said as he came through the slider and closed it.

He came over to her, lifted the ice pack away and winced. “Damn.”

“I’m okay.”

“You’re lucky he didn’t do more damage. Why didn’t you stay in the house and wait for us, or call the cops?”

She tilted her head to the side and gave him a “duh” look. “I am the cops. I went out front to get the uniform but didn’t see him.”

Dante dragged his hand through his hair and paced. “So you go outside in the dark by yourself when you know a killer is after you? What the hell are you thinking, Anna?”

She shrugged and put the ice pack back on her cheek. “I’m thinking I was lucky you two showed up when you did, though he seemed to be on his way out of here as soon as I got hold of my gun and aimed it in his direction.”

Dante kneeled in front of her. “Did he have a gun?”

“Not that I could tell. He had a knife, though. When he stood over me he pointed it at me.”

Dante swept her hair away from her face. “That’s not good.”

“No, but the odd thing is, he had me at an advantage and didn’t use it. He slapped me so hard I was dazed, and when I shook it off he was hovering over me with the knife. He could have stabbed me right then, or even when I was temporarily out of it, but he didn’t.”

Dante stood and pulled up a chair. Gabe handed him a beer and pulled out another chair. “Hesitation?” Gabe asked.

“Maybe. Or maybe he wanted to threaten me. I got the idea I wasn’t really a target.”

“Like he wanted to scare you more than hurt you?” Dante asked.

“Something like that. I could be wrong, though.”

It took a couple hours to take statements and for Forensics to sweep her backyard. As Anna suspected, they didn’t find much. With the battle between her and the assailant, and Gabe and Dante back there running after the suspect, the grass was a wreck and they couldn’t get decent footprints.

Gabe called Roman, who rushed over. His arm was in a sling and he still had a limp and was bruised up, but he was starting to look a little better. He frowned when he saw her.

“Son of a bitch,” he said, leaning over to brush her hair aside. “He hit you?”

“Yeah.”

Roman sat next to her in the kitchen. “I’m so sorry. I should have been here.”

She smiled. “I don’t need a babysitter, Roman.”

He lifted his arm and winced a little. “I doubt I could have offered much help anyway, goddammit.”

“You could have shot the bastard.”

Roman laughed. “I would have, too. I want him dead.”

“We all want him dead.” She filled him in on what happened while Gabe and Dante worked with the CSU team and the uniforms.

“Units have already been sent to find Sam Maclin. He’s not at home.” Dante said. “And his mother doesn’t know where he is. He left the house about seven tonight, said he was going out, but didn’t say where he was going.”

“That makes him a viable suspect,” she said. “What about Crey Robinson?”

“On duty, as usual. Which doesn’t mean anything.”

“No, it doesn’t.”

She was wiped out by the time the CSU team left. Dante was about to shuffle Roman and Gabe out the door when she remembered.

“Oh, wait. Maclin’s file.”

Roman and Gabe stopped at the front door. “What?” Gabe asked.

“I found something in Maclin’s file.”

They were in the living room now. Anna had drunk a couple beers, so she felt a lot better. Dante insisted she curl up with Rusty and rest. He sat next to her-really close. She couldn’t say she minded all that much.

Roman slid into the recliner. “What about Maclin’s file?”

“I finally read his autopsy report, front to back. I’d read it before, several times, but admittedly I skimmed because it was so unpleasant to relive the ordeal of that night. This time it finally sunk in. I think the connection wasn’t there for me because it had been so long since I was in that alley.”

“What?” Dante asked.

“Tony Maclin died of blunt-force trauma to the head. From a brick.”

Dante frowned, then looked at Gabe and Roman. “A brick? Nobody hit him with a brick.”

“I don’t remember a brick,” Roman said.

Gabe sat on the edge of the recliner and shook his head. “No, there wasn’t a brick.”

Anna nodded. “That’s what I thought I remembered, too. I know you guys punched him, but there was no brick. But do you understand what I said? Cause of death was blunt-force trauma to his head-from the brick.”

“Wait.” Dante looked at the others, then switched back to Anna. “We didn’t kill him?”

She smiled. “No. You didn’t kill him. I think you all hit him until he passed out, then when you helped me inside, someone else picked up a brick and hit him over the head. That’s what killed him.”

“Son of a bitch.” Gabe sat there with an incredulous look on his face.

“Huh.” Dante stared at her. “All these years, we thought we’d beat him to death.”

“We didn’t kill him.” Roman looked at Dante and Gabe, then turned his attention to Anna. “Which means the suspect must have done the deed.”

“That’s a powerful secret. One he’s been holding on to for years,” Gabe said.

“But is it a good enough secret to want us all dead?” Anna asked. “Especially now, after all this time.”

Dante nodded. “People have killed for way less than that. If he has something to lose, and he thinks we might know the truth about what happened that night, then yeah, I’d say he’d want to eliminate all of us.”

Gabe stood. “Well, I’ll leave the crime solving to all of you. All I know is that’s one less death I’m responsible for.”

Dante stood and slapped him on the back. “Makes you feel all good about yourself now, doesn’t it?”

Gabe laughed. “Yeah. I might even go to church this weekend.”

Roman stood, too, slowly made his way over to Anna. “This doesn’t mean we’re out of the woods yet.” He kissed her cheek. “But it’s good to know we didn’t kill him. I’ve carried a lot of guilt over that all these years.”

“I know. You watch yourself.”

“I have been.”

Dante walked Roman and Gabe to the door, closed and locked it, then returned to her.

He scooped Anna up in his arms and carried her to the bedroom.

“I’m capable of walking, you know.”

He looked down at her. “And I could have lost you tonight. So let me indulge you.”

He laid her in bed, helped her undress, then pulled the covers over her. He called Rusty, who lay down on the floor on her side of the bed. Then he undressed and climbed into bed next to her and turned out the lights.

“I could get used to having you here in my bed,” she said.

“I could get used to being here.”

That was all either of them said before she drifted off to sleep.