CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Revenge is a dish best served cold.
—Gloria’s proverb
San Antonio, Texas
Friday, December 1, 10:00 p.m.
Kate shut off the engine, drew her weapon, and got out of the car. She stood in the cool night air as the gentle breeze reminded her of a calm before a storm. She stared at the lights glowing from the windows of the simple outbuilding constructed of weathered gray wood and a tin roof. A male figure passed in front of a large window, and then the door opened. William Bauldry stood in the doorway. He flashed her a wide grin when he saw her.
“Katie, you made it,” he said, as if this were all friendly.
“William.”
He waved her closer. “Come. Alyssa and Drexler are inside, and they’re just getting acquainted.”
“What have you done to her?”
“She’s fine. Still in one piece for now.” Again he motioned her forward. “Come on. I won’t bite.”
She drew in a breath and took her first step. When she approached him she stopped. “You go first.”
“Sure. You can never say I wasn’t a good host.” He backed away and extended his hands.
Her gaze shifted to him, and she made sure he was at least ten feet away before she glanced around the room. She spotted Alyssa immediately. The girl was in a chair, her chin slumped forward.
Drexler looked more menacing with his long hair and beard shaved. With no distractions from the cold black eyes, his smile looked lifeless. He gently stroked the girl’s hair. “We’ve been waiting for you. And for her to wake up. William said she’d be awake by now, but she’s a real sleepyhead. She has to wake up. It won’t be any fun if she sleeps through it all.”
Sara’s scream echoed in her mind. “William, I know why Drexler does this. What’s your reason?”
“I’ve been dreaming of a day like this for seventeen years,” William said.
Her heart raced, but her voice was steady and even. “But you couldn’t have known Drexler.”
“A happy accident. I saw him circling your mother’s house. I realized we might be of help to each other.”
A chill trailed up her spine. “You were watching my mother?”
William leaned toward her a fraction. “Did you know I installed monitoring equipment in your mother’s house?”
When he’d called her that night at her mother’s, he’d been stating fact, not toying with her. “Mom said there’d been a break-in, but nothing was taken.”
“It was me. I even rented the house across the street from her.”
She maintained a calm facade as her mind raced. Buy time. Buy time. She only hoped Mrs. Lopez had called Mazur.
William regarded the girl. “I had an entirely different scenario in mind. Alyssa wasn’t on the original list. She and Drexler are . . . improvisations.”
“Who made the original list? Charles Richardson?”
He shook his head. “No, Richardson was just another instrument.”
William had been using Richardson all along? “You realized what Richardson was when you met him in prison, didn’t you?”
“Funny how people like you and me can see the darkness in people. That’s a special gift we both have.”
She hated the idea that they shared anything, but he was right. They both could see the monsters. “You must have told Gloria during one of her visits to the prison that Richardson was gunning down women.”
He grinned. “Why would I do that? You and I aren’t the trusting sorts.”
“You trusted Gloria. She was your half sister. You grew up with her. She knew everything about you, didn’t she?”
He winked and touched the tip of his nose. “She did.”
“I think you also cared about her.”
“I did.”
“Why kill her?”
He moistened his lips as if he’d tasted a delicious morsel. “When I told her about Richardson, she was fascinated, as I knew she would be.”
Gloria had been more like William than she’d ever imagined. “Richardson was more than a curiosity, wasn’t he?”
“Using what he’d done and this was all her idea,” he said. “Of course, she never envisioned this particular scene, but she carefully planned the first two murders.”
“She wanted you to kill her.” The pieces clicked into place. “She knew she was dying of cancer, and she found out about her husband’s affair with Rebecca.”
“She found out about the tumor and Rebecca on the same day. That kind of shock would have killed a lesser woman, but not my sister. She knew if she was going to leave this earth, she’d do it on her own terms and she’d take people with her.”
Drexler tugged at Alyssa’s hair. “She’s not waking up.”
The girl’s jaw remained slack and her eyes closed.
William didn’t turn toward Drexler or the girl. His gaze remained on the gun in Kate’s hand. “She will wake up. A few more minutes won’t matter.”
“Who was next on Gloria’s list?”
“Isabella Sanchez. Martin’s lovely daughter.”
“Why her? Is killing her another way to punish Martin?”
“Yes. Gloria is not a woman you cross. If she wants you to suffer, you will.”
Gloria had intended to strip away everything good in her husband’s life: herself, the business, his lover, his daughter, and perhaps even his freedom. This kind of cold, calculating plan suggested she was not a novice to killing or with getting away with murder. “She killed his first wife.”
He laughed. “She did! She wanted Martin from the moment she first saw him. I don’t know what she saw in the man, but she wanted him. But as much as he said he loved Gloria, he would not leave his wife.”
“She worked in the dealership then and learned about cars and brakes.”
He winked. “Anything that got in her way had to go bye-bye. When she told me about Martin’s affair with Rebecca, I told her about you and how I had not forgotten our special bond. She said there might be a way we could both get what we wanted.”
“She picked up Richardson’s gun from the bus station locker, didn’t she?”
“Richardson always kept his gun there. Weeks before you arrested him, he visited the prison and told me where it was. He said he couldn’t risk getting it. So I sent Gloria to his lawyer’s office to get the key and then the gun. She was more than happy to run the errand because she knew the gun could be of use.”
Kate tightened her fingers around the grip of her gun. “And you knew a Samaritan shooting would bring me to town.”
He laughed. “I knew it would get your attention. I knew if I could just get you in the game, I could keep you engaged to the end.” Darkness shuttered over his eyes as he clapped his hands. “I’m having fun, aren’t you?”
She didn’t respond.
William laughed. “What about you, Drexler?”
“I’m getting excited.” He gently kissed Alyssa on the cheek. The girl didn’t move or flinch. “She’s going to have fun, too.”
“Kate?” William asked.
“This is between you and me. Alyssa is not a part of this.”
He arched a brow. “She is now. Seeing you and the detective made me so mad. I watched as you two picked up Alyssa from school. I couldn’t follow you into the gated community, but I got the idea for taking Alyssa. I just want you to know what happens to her in the next few days is all because of you.” The smile vanished from his lips. “You need to put the gun down.”
When she didn’t, he raised his hand, and Drexler pulled Alyssa’s head back and pressed the tip of the blade to her jugular.
“You know how this works,” William said.
It took the human brain at least a second to process what was happening, so regardless of whom she shot first, she might have a millisecond to shoot the other.
If either man dropped his guard even a fraction, all the better.
Setting her trap, Kate lowered her weapon, the Wonder Woman bracelet slipping down. Her gaze dropped in apparent defeat as her heart thudded in her chest. Time slowed to a crawl. Seconds felt like hours. From under hooded eyes she watched Drexler relax his hold on Alyssa’s hair a fraction. A victor’s smile tugged at the edges of William’s lips. Who to shoot first?
Then she drew in a breath and rapidly raised her gun and fired. Her bullet struck Drexler in the center of his chest. He staggered back a half step, wearing an almost comical expression as he stared at the bloodstain blossoming on his chest. He lowered his weapon and dropped to a knee.
Praying for one more second, she shifted toward William. But he must have anticipated the move because as she turned to shoot him, he dived toward her and slammed his body into hers. He grabbed her wrist and banged her hand hard against the ground. A bullet exploded from the chamber and struck the wall behind them. His fingers crushing the bones in her hand, he again smashed it on the floor. Pain shot up her arm, and as hard as she tried to hold on to her weapon, her fingers released it.
He pinned both her arms over her head and straddled her body. His breathing was hurried and excited. His vice grip on her wrists snapped the plastic Wonder Woman bracelet, breaking it in two. “I knew you’d go for him first. You couldn’t risk Alyssa’s life, could you?”
She spotted a flutter of movement in the corner of her eye as she struggled. “Let her go, William! This is between you and me.”
“You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this. How much I’ve dreamed about showing you just how much you underestimated me.”
He shifted his grip so he held both arms with one hand, then with the other reached for the snap of her pants and tugged hard. Fabric ripped.
A bloodcurdling scream cut through the barn as Alyssa stumbled across the room and jumped on William’s back. She pulled his hair and bit his ear.
He reared up and threw the girl off him. She hit the ground hard and tumbled. The delay was enough for Kate to stagger to her feet.
William picked up the gun, and when Alyssa rose up a second time, he slapped her hard across the face, splitting her lip and knocking her to the ground.
Fists clenched, Kate watched in horror as William raised the gun and pointed it at Alyssa’s head.
Kate charged.
Mazur turned off his lights as soon as he made the last turn off the deserted road and barreled down the driveway. He gripped the wheel, funneling his fears into action. If he dwelled on the stakes, he’d risk overthinking and making a mistake. He still hadn’t heard from Santos about the second property and prayed he’d arrived at the right place.
When he saw lights glowing from a large shed, he hoped he was on the right track. When he saw Kate’s rental car nosed in behind a silver four door and a green truck, he said a prayer of thanks. He jammed on the brakes and threw the car in park. Pulling his gun from the holster, he ran across the graveled drive toward the door on the left. As he reached for the door handle, he heard a woman scream.
Tightening his hand on the grip of his weapon, he pushed through the door and took a split second to survey his surroundings. Alyssa was cowering, her hands in front of her face. She was whimpering, but appeared okay. Another scream drew his attention to the right just as Kate plowed into William, who was holding a gun.
Kate didn’t have enough body weight or momentum to knock him over, but when her frame slammed against his arm, she created enough force to push it just as the gun fired. The bullet slammed into the wall, just feet from Alyssa’s head. Immediately Bauldry recovered and landed a right hook on Kate’s jaw. She took a half step and fell to her knees.
Mazur leveled his weapon, breathed out, and squeezed. His bullet burrowed through the side of Bauldry’s cheek. The man’s head snapped back as he staggered, gun still in his hand. Blood streamed down his face, staining his shirt. Dark eyes narrowing, William raised his gun toward Kate.
Mazur fired a second and a third time. These bullets caught Bauldry in the arm and chest and propelled him back. He dropped his gun. His expression was stunned as he dropped to his knees. He looked toward Kate as she rose up and glared at him.
“I love you,” Bauldry said before he collapsed to the ground.
Mazur ran toward Bauldry, grabbed his cuffs, and hooked Bauldry’s limp arms at the base of his back. He retrieved the gun before he looked to Kate, who had stumbled to her feet. Her face was red and already swelling.
“Kate?”
“I’m okay. Go to her.”
He ran toward his daughter. He scooped up his little girl and held her so close. She cried as her fingers clutched his shirt. In one second, relief washed over him, but as he looked down at the bloodstains on the side of her face, his heart broke. Nothing would ever erase the painful relief of this moment for him for as long as he lived.
He cleared his throat when he saw the blood around her mouth. “Are you hurt, Alyssa?”
“I left my bracelet in the car.”
“I found it.”
“And then I pretended to be asleep. When they weren’t looking I jumped on his back and bit his ear.”
He tipped her chin back and wiped the blood away. He studied the dark, angry bruise on her cheek. His girl had followed the advice Kate had shared when they had picked her up from school. “Shit.”
Mazur held his daughter close and watched as Kate swayed on her feet. He wasn’t sure what to say to her. He was relieved she was okay and wished he had the words to thank her.
Alyssa wiped away a tear. “Kate saved me, Dad.”
“She’s fierce. A warrior.”
Kate worked her jaw and rolled her neck, then stumbled toward Drexler. She rolled him on his back and checked for a pulse.
“Is he dead?” Mazur asked.
“Yes,” she said. Her voice was hoarse and rough.
“Kate shot him,” Alyssa said. “He had a knife to my throat.”
Mazur looked at his daughter and then past her to the constructed wooden box. Waves of emotions collided. Jesus.
Finally he cleared his throat and met Kate’s gaze. “Thank you.”
Kate lifted her chin. “Of course.”
She shoved a trembling hand over her head as she stared down at William.
“Are you really okay?” he asked.
Outside, the sirens of multiple cop cars approached through the night. Seconds later, there were cops everywhere.
“I’ll be fine.”
Kate leaned against the paramedic’s bay, fingering the broken pieces of the Wonder Woman bracelet as she watched the flashing blue lights from a dozen cop cars mingle with the spotlights on the forensic van. Yellow crime-scene tape had been strung around the bodies of Bauldry and Drexler, which still lay where they’d fallen.
It had been three hours since Mazur had raced to her and Alyssa’s aid. Once backup teams arrived, he’d driven his daughter home, leaving Kate, and now Nevada, on the scene.
Nevada approached her, his expression pleased. “The medical examiner will be here soon to take away the bodies.”
“Good.”
He folded his arms and hesitated as if searching for the right words. “You all right?”
No. She could barely stand, her head throbbed with pain, and for as long as she lived, she would never forget the look of fear on Mazur’s face as he’d hugged his daughter close. “Never better.”
“It’s got to feel good. This is a win in anyone’s book. You brought down the bad guys and saved a kid.”
“I wish it could be like this every time.”
Nevada shook his head. “Enjoy the wins when you have them.”
Gravel crunched under the tires of an approaching vehicle, and she saw Mazur rise out of it. As he strode toward them, she looked up at Nevada. “Mind giving us a minute?”
“Sure.”
Mazur’s face was drawn and pale under his thick stubble, which now darkened his jaw. He pulled Kate into his arms, and she willingly went. “I’m sorry I had to leave.”
The fingers of her good hand clutched the folds of his jacket as she allowed herself to relax for the first time in what felt like years. “Is Alyssa okay?”
“Sherry’s with Alyssa now. Alyssa is shaken up, and I know there’ll be more emotional fallout from this later.”
Kate looked up at him. “I don’t know what would have happened to us if she’d not been so clear headed.”
He looked down at her balled fist and uncurled her fingers to find the broken bracelet. A pained expression crossed his features before he met her gaze. “After all this has settled, I want to see you again.”
Personal ties in this business were so difficult to maintain that she’d not even bothered to try since she’d joined her team. But now for the first time, she wanted more than the chase and the darkness. She rose on tiptoe and gently kissed him on the lips. “I’d like that.”