Friday, June 29, 3:15 p.m.
As Faith followed the map on her phone and got closer to the Travis County residential neighborhood, her sense of unease grew. Why would Kat come to an area like this? The girl talked often about how she hated the burbs and that she’d never end up in a one-story ranch. Faith was trying to help the girl make something of her life, but the bones found at the deserted ranch left her with the fear that the girl was going to end up dead if she stayed her course.
As she spotted the entrance to the neighborhood, she dialed Hayden’s number. The call went to voicemail and she almost hung up, believing she was overreacting. But when his recorded voice told the caller to leave a message, she heard herself saying, “Hayden, this is Faith. Kat is missing, and I’ve activated the Find My iPhone app. Maybe I’m being paranoid, but something is not adding up. I’m going to continue to the location, but, like I said, it doesn’t feel right.”
When Hayden saw Faith’s message hit his voicemail, he hit redial, knowing she wasn’t the type to call and chat.
Faith answered with a breathless and agitated, “Hayden. Thank God.”
The agitation in her voice set his nerves on edge. “Explain to me what happened again.”
“I received a call from the shelter. Kat is missing. I’m at the house where her laptop is supposed to be.”
“When was the last time she was seen?”
“Yesterday. I dropped her off at school. I spoke with her at lunch but not since.”
He heard the tension in her voice. “She always has her laptop with her, correct?”
“Yes. That’s why I came here. But none of this looks right. I know Garnet is dead, but after seeing the bones of the three girls, I’m afraid Kat is going to make more bad decisions and end up like them.” The barely whispered words sounded as if she were afraid she’d break down.
“We’ll find her. Text me the location of the laptop, and I’ll meet you there.”
“Hayden, I think Garnet was working with Peter Slater.” Her voice was a raspy whisper filled with dread.
“Why do you say that?”
She was silent for a moment, and he knew she was focusing on fact patterns and logic. “I visited the sister of victim number three, Diane Saunders. She had a picture of Kathy waitressing at Peter’s birthday party at the club.”
It was another link to the girls and the law firm. “We don’t have the results of PJ’s DNA yet. Once it’s cross-checked against yours, we will know for certain.”
She expelled a deep breath, as if she was struggling to deal with an unraveling world. “Peter used to say how much he loved children. He said if he could have he’d have had a house full of them. Did he love children so much he’d have someone like Garnet make them for him?”
“Why would he stop after making three babies? He could have kept on for a long time.”
“You’re right. There could be more. But Margaret said once she was proud she’d given her husband a son. ‘A man needs a son,’ she used to say. Maybe he was waiting for his son, and once he had his boy, he didn’t feel the need to keep going.” Pain and sorrow laced around the words.
“Maybe. Or there are more dead girls and stolen babies to be found.”
God, she prayed that wasn’t true, but she had no guarantees there weren’t more. “Margaret would have done anything for Peter. She loved him so much. If she couldn’t give him a son, she’d have accepted his son from another woman to make him happy. She’d have also been content to let him keep doing whatever he wanted to girls like Josie.” Another sigh leaked over the line. “If the last girl gave Peter his son, then there’d be no more need to keep taking girls. He had PJ.”
“Once I receive your text, you need to stand down. I don’t know who is tied up in this, and until I do, you have to let me handle this. This can go sideways very quickly, Faith. You got it?”
“I’ve known PJ all my life. We practically grew up together. He’s the one who gave me Josie Jones’s name.”
Jesus, she was stubborn. “Faith, stand down. Agreed?”
“Yes.”
“I mean it, Faith.”
“I’m texting the location. Move your ass.”
He hung up and found Brogan jostling a jar of pills in his hands. “There’s another pregnant girl who’s gone missing. It’s Kat, the girl from the youth shelter. She’s been gone since yesterday. Faith thinks she’s found her location.”
“If Kat vanished yesterday afternoon, then Garnet couldn’t have taken her.”
“Kat might have run away. The kid has a history of running. Or the guy who killed Garnet, Sullivan, and Crow might be behind it.”
“It’s been thirty years since those women on the ranch died. Assuming Garnet doesn’t have another burial ground, he sat dormant for thirty years. Why pick this up again?”
“Peter Slater died three months ago. Maybe whatever deal he had ended, and he didn’t like it.”
“So he decides to kill the players in the original crimes?”
“Possible. Or maybe he saw it as a chance to blackmail money out of the firm or family. What I do know is that we’ve got a clock on us, Brogan. Paige doesn’t have a lot of time, and Faith is not going to wait long for us.”
Paige rocked back and forth, wrapping her hands around her belly as it cramped and twisted. The pains were getting closer together, and she was finding it hard not to panic. When this latest round finally released its grip on her, she crawled over and looked at the girl.
Kat’s body was so still that for a moment she thought she was dead. She poked Kat in the arm, but she didn’t move. A hard pinch to the back of her hand brought a slight moan.
She wasn’t dead. Which Paige supposed was good in the short term, but when she woke up and realized where she was now being held, she just might wish she were dead.
Another contraction grabbed Paige, stealing her breath. She was forced to retreat to her fetal position as she waited out this latest wave. When it passed, she kicked the girl in frustration. “You’ve got to wake up! He’s going to kill us if we don’t figure this out!”
The girl sucked in a breath and opened her eyes. She looked around, startled, and her fists were clenched as if she was ready to fight. She staggered to her feet but fell back against the cot as her legs gave out from under her. “What the hell is going on?”
A contraction twisted Paige’s belly, forcing her to pause before she could speak. “I wish I knew.”
Kat turned to the door. She pounded on it with her fist and started screaming.
“It won’t do any good,” Paige said. “I screamed for days when I first got here. No one ever came.”
Kat darted around the room looking for any way out. She was petrified and for good reason.
“You’re going to have to pull yourself together. Otherwise we’re both dead. That’s the only thing I’m sure of right now,” Paige said.
Kat took a deep breath and slowly sat down next to Paige. “I’m listening.”
“Garnet brought me here. I know we’re in Austin.”
“Who the hell is Garnet?”
“His full name is Danny Garnet. He owns the Second Chances bar.”
“Was that Garnet who was just here?”
“No.”
Kat blinked and shook her head. The drugs were wearing off. “I’ve heard that name before.”
“He’s very charming. Evil,” Paige offered.
Kat narrowed her eyes. “You’re Paige!”
“You know me?”
“I saw your picture. Everybody thought you ran away.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “I thought I had all the answers. I was so stupid.”
Just that moment, the door slowly swung open. Neither girl had heard footsteps or voices. It was just open. The one prayer Paige had been asking for was answered.
Paige felt another contraction and closed her eyes, breathing in and out as she’d seen on a television show once. Finally when she could take a deep breath, she said, “I can’t leave. Get help.”
Kat stood, and after looking at Paige and ticking through her options, she pushed through the door and vanished into the hallway.
Faith saw the flicker of movement in front of the large glass window and realized it was Kat. She shut off her car and got out, locking it behind her. A part of her was annoyed with the kid for giving her such a scare. What the hell was she doing out here?
When the front door opened, Faith was halfway up the walkway. She saw immediately that something was wrong as the girl wobbled and dropped to her knees.
Faith raced up and knelt beside her, immediately searching for injuries. “Kat!”
“There’s a girl.” Kat gripped Faith’s arm. “She’s in the basement. Her baby is coming right now.”
Satisfied Kat wasn’t bleeding or injured, Faith helped her to her feet. Relief and fear collided as Faith struggled to keep her voice steady. “Can you make it to my car? It’s parked across the street.”
“I think so.”
“Sit in the car and lock the doors.”
“What’s going on?” Kat asked. “This is so messed up.”
Faith heard the girl’s screams coming from the basement. She pressed her keys into Kat’s hands and pushed her out the front door. “No questions. Don’t come back into the house.”
Kat nodded and then took a couple of halting steps forward, gripping the keys as she staggered toward Faith’s car.
Faith followed the sounds of the screams through the house into a kitchen and down a flight of stairs. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. She followed the hallway toward the light that streamed out of the door. Faith ran to the open door and found Paige Sheldon lying on her back. She was drenched in sweat and gripping her belly. Panic radiated from her eyes.
Faith ran to her side. She then spotted the chain. Jesus. Hayden couldn’t get here fast enough.
“Paige, it’s going to be all right.”
The girl was silent as a contraction racked her body. When it finally eased, she was panting and pale.
Faith hurried to the small sink and washed her hands quickly before returning to the girl and lifting her knees, pushing up the folds of her loose skirt, and removing her panties.
“Paige, I’m Dr. McIntyre. Let me examine you.”
“Please,” she whispered. “It hurts so much.”
Faith had not delivered a baby since medical school, but she knew it would all come back to her.
“Paige, I want you to take a deep breath. When the next contraction comes, draw in another deep breath and push as hard as you can.”
The girl closed her eyes, bearing down as she cried and pushed. The top of the baby’s head crowned before the contraction ended and she collapsed back.
“You’re doing a great job. The next one is going to come fast, Paige. I want you to push as hard as you can.”
Tears streamed down Paige’s face. “I can’t!”
“Yes, you can. You don’t want your baby stuck in this godforsaken place forever. We need to get the baby born and get you two out of here.”
As Faith expected, the next contraction came even faster, and again the girl pushed and screamed.
This time the baby’s head emerged enough for Faith to see that it had ink-black hair. “I need one more push. Your baby is almost here!”
Paige screamed as Faith firmly tugged on the small head enough for it to slip out until the face was fully exposed. She quickly swiped the baby’s mouth and opened its airway. “One more push and your baby will be born.”
Paige’s face was drawn with fatigue and pain. “I can’t. I’m so tired.”
“You can and you will. Now get ready. Let’s do this together.”
The girl gritted her teeth and pushed. This time the infant’s head, neck, and shoulders slid out enough for Faith to get a grip and pull the child the rest of the way.
“Your baby girl is here, Paige. You did a great job.”
Paige collapsed back against her pillows as Faith focused on the baby girl. She placed her on her side and rubbed her tiny back with her knuckles. The child’s mouth opened and let out a cry.
“Is she all right?” Paige asked.
“She looks good.” Faith turned the baby over. “Your daughter is beautiful, Paige.”
Faith laid the baby, still attached to her umbilical cord, on Paige’s belly and shifted to delivering the afterbirth, which appeared to come out whole. Later doctors could confirm this and deal with the minor tearing Paige had suffered. The girl was incredibly lucky considering the conditions and lack of prenatal care.
Paige continued to lie against the pillows, exhausted, making no move to hold the child. Faith didn’t have clean scissors to cut the umbilical cord and accepted she’d have to wrap the afterbirth with the baby and have the separation done by the paramedics. As the baby cried, she found a clean bath towel and wrapped her in it.
“Paige, I’ve got to get you out of here,” Faith said. Holding the baby, she fished her phone from her back pocket and dialed Hayden. He should have been here by now, she thought.
Paige looked up, glancing toward the door. She cried out and she shrank back.
Faith felt the presence behind her and, bracing, turned and saw a shadow of a man hovering at the threshold. He had a tight grip on Kat’s arm and was pointing a gun at her belly.
“Let’s go, Faith,” he said. “You and the baby, now. We need a quiet place to talk. I have a few questions for you.”
The voice sounded familiar, and when he stepped into the light, she knew she’d met him before. For a moment her mind scrambled to place him, and then she remembered the fundraiser. Fear snaked up her spine as she pictured his easy smile and hard eyes. She hugged the baby close. “I’ve seen you before. At the hotel.”
“Good memory.”
Faith thought about the smooth, friendly smile he’d presented to her at the hotel. He’d asked her out for a drink and then called her office. “That meeting at the hotel wasn’t random, was it?”
“Smart lady.” He pointed the gun at Paige.
She moved forward, quickly placing herself in front of the gun. “You don’t have to kill her. Just leave her be. She’s suffered enough.”
“And she’s seen me.”
Faith had no doubt he would kill that girl and never lose a moment’s sleep. She had to give him some kind of distraction or the girls would die. She raised her chin. “Macy Crow is alive.”
He stood straighter. “Is she?”
“She’s awake, and I talked to her,” she said quickly, knowing she had his interest. “She knows where the package is.”
“Does she?” His eyes sharpened with interest.
“If you kill them, I won’t tell you.”
He looked amused. “I can be persuasive.”
“Apparently not enough. You didn’t get Jack Crow to talk.” Faith was doing her best to unsettle him.
“I’ve learned a few new tricks since then.”
“You and I leave now, I’ll tell you where the package is.”
“Fair enough. Bring the baby. Like I said, I’ve learned some new tricks.” They stepped out of the room, and Faith, holding the baby tight, followed. He closed the door behind her, locking it, and then motioned for her to climb the stairs.
Faith’s mind was spinning. Hayden was close. All she had to do was buy a little time.
As she reached the kitchen, she started toward the front door.
“No. Back door.”
She pictured Hayden rolling up in the cul-de-sac, seeing her car, and being distracted long enough for this man to get away with her and the baby. And if she died, he would surely double back and kill the girls. The baby began to fuss. “Aren’t you worried about the neighbors?”
“Keep it quiet, or I’ll kill it right here.”
She put her pinky in the baby’s mouth, and it suckled. Blood from the afterbirth had stained her shirt and was now dripping on the floor. “The baby needs to see a doctor.”
The wail of police sirens echoed in the distance, and he glanced over his shoulder. For the first time, he looked worried.
“Leave the girls,” she said. “I’ll tell you everything you want to know if you leave them.”
The sirens grew louder.
“We don’t have much time,” she said.
His jaw tensed. “They can identify me.”
“Does it matter? You get the package and you’ll get paid, right? Then you can vanish.”
Hayden’s lights were flashing as he and Brogan raced to the location. He saw Faith’s car parked in the cul-de-sac and moved in behind her. “Damn it. She doesn’t wait for anyone.”
Out of his car, he drew his weapon and hurried toward Faith’s car. The front door was ajar, and her purse and keys were on the passenger seat. He’d seen so much violence working for the Rangers, but he’d never thought about it touching Faith. He couldn’t entertain the thought of losing her, or he wouldn’t be able to function.
“She’s got to be inside. Call in marked units. I want this area surrounded.”
“Consider it done,” Brogan said.
The Rangers raced to the front door and heard the distant screaming and pounding from the basement. They hurried into the kitchen, and as Brogan moved cautiously down the stairs with his weapon drawn, Hayden glanced toward the back door and saw the small droplets of blood. “I’m heading to the backyard,” he said.
“Roger that,” Brogan said.
Hayden went out the back door and saw the trail of blood running down a narrow sidewalk leading to a back exit in the tall privacy fence that banded around the yard. He heard a car door close and ran, kicking through the privacy fence door. More blood droplets led to the side street that backed up to the house. He had only a split second to assess the situation. Blue four-door. Blood, woman in the passenger seat, and a man in the driver’s seat. The car wheels started to roll.
He leveled his weapon and fired, hitting the back right tire. As the car gained speed, he trained his weapon onto the left rear tire and fired. As much as he wanted to fire at the driver, he couldn’t risk hitting Faith.
But when the man in the front seat raised a weapon toward the passenger, a clear and calculated rage overtook him. Hayden drew in a breath as he lined up the sights on his weapon with the driver’s head. Don’t move, Faith. Don’t move. The car gained more speed even with the blown-out tires deflating quickly. He squeezed the trigger. His bullet blew out the back window and slammed into the jaw of the driver. The car swerved, careening left into a tree. He didn’t allow satisfaction as he raced ahead, desperate to see Faith alive and well.
When he reached the car, he kept his weapon drawn, his finger beside the trigger, ready to shoot again. Adrenaline pumped through his veins as his focus zeroed in on his target.
When he saw the man slumped over the wheel, Hayden yanked open the door and hauled the man out of the car. He heard a baby cry, saw a flicker of movement in his side vision, but kept his focus on the man.
The events that came next felt like they happened in slow motion, each critical action and reaction weighted with life and death.
Hayden threw the man face-first onto the grass and drove a knee into the small of his back as he kept his weapon trained on him with one hand and reached for his cuffs with the other. He snapped one cuff around one wrist and then, hauling the second wrist toward the first, clamped the cuff around it.
The baby’s cry grew louder, echoing its fear and panic as Hayden rolled the man on his back and pressed his fingertips to his carotid artery. There was no pulse. He recognized the guy. He’d tried to make a play for Faith the night of the fundraiser.
He then shifted his focus to the passenger seat. Faith was slumped over in the front seat, her body folded over the baby. Holstering his weapon, he raced to the passenger side and yanked open the door.
His heart sank as he thought about Faith dead and lost to him forever. He could not bear it. He could not.
Gently, he took her by the shoulders and carefully leaned her back, freeing the baby underneath. He could see a gash across her forehead and her lip was bloodied, but there seemed to be no other injuries. The baby cried. Faith blinked and moaned. She wasn’t unconscious, but badly stunned.
“Faith!” Sirens wailed around him.
Slowly she nodded her head. “I’m here.”
Jesus. A tangle of emotions clogged his throat, and it was all he could do to keep his voice even. “Faith, I don’t want you to move. The paramedics are here.”
“Kat and Paige are in the house,” she said. “They’re alive.”
“Brogan’s inside. He’s got it under control.” Hayden tried to take the baby from her.
Her grip tightened around the small bundle. “I have her.”
“You’re unsteady. Let me have her.”
She pushed back the towel and stared at the squalling infant and then handed the little girl to him. He cradled her like a football.
She looked over at the man lying on the ground. “His name is Kevin. I’ve met him before. He didn’t want Kat, Paige, or the baby, but used them to lure me to him. He was going to use me to get to Macy and whatever he thought Jack Crow had left her.”
“What would Crow leave Macy?” Hayden asked.
“She thinks her father had evidence against Garnet and he mailed it to Macy.”
“How do you know?”
“She’s awake. She told me.” A sob caught in her throat. “Jesus, Hayden, who would hire a monster like that?”
“I don’t know. But we’ll find out.” He kissed her lightly on the forehead. “I’m just so damn glad you’re okay. I wouldn’t have made it if I lost you.”
Instead of answering, she kissed him softly on the lips as the first of the paramedics stepped in to administer first aid.