Chapter Nineteen
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A GLASS OF water and one of her angina pills and Shelby’s mother was feeling better. After all the stress, the doctors felt it was a good idea to put her in the cardiac ward and keep an eye on her overnight.
Colton, her mother, Sabrina. All three of them in the hospital.
All three of them here because of me.
Shelby wasn’t one for pity parties, but the truth was the truth. She no longer believed Colton was the reason for all of this—she was.
The killer may have started with the three vets, but now he was after her. Somewhere along the way, he’d decided to not only target the team that had rescued Connor, but to take it from a cool, removed act of picking off the players, to a personal vendetta.
Why?
That was the real question.
If she could only figure out the killer’s motivation, all of this would make sense.
The chapel was on the first floor at the far north end of the building. Daniel had brought her a cane—a fancy one decorated with blue and pink roses. It was a little flashy, although she still felt like an old lady using it.
Down the hall she walked, dragging her leg like some horror movie heroine struggling to get away from the monster as she made her way past the cafeteria and closed gift shop. Nickelback followed, giving her a little bit of space but keeping a close eye on her just the same.
Tending to her mother had at least given Shelby a break from thinking about the revelations she’d uncovered in the past hour thanks to Colton. She still couldn’t believe she’d let him take the blame for Quan’s death. He was a slick talker, but she’d never before let him convince her to do anything she hadn’t wanted to do herself.
Did I want him to do it? Was I that shallow of a person that I would put my career ahead of the truth?
The thought made her sick to her stomach.
His voice rang in her ears. You’ve stopped a dozen different killers since that night. You did the right thing, letting me take the rap.
The chapel was cool and quiet, the lights dim. A cross with Jesus on it hung in the alcove, various saints forever eulogized in the stained glass windows.
Her heart hurt over everything; her head throbbed as she tried once more to bring the memories up from her brain. The truth, the pain she had caused, even the life she’d taken—regardless of the fact Iman Quan had himself, taken countless innocent lives during his time as the leader of 12 September—would forever be on her soul.
Killing him hadn’t stopped the group. Another egomaniac had taken his place and they continued to wreak havoc all over the world.
You saved me. Saved the rescue mission.
Why couldn’t she believe that was enough?
She wrestled her leg into a pew and sat. Candles flickered at the feet of the crucifixion statue. Shelby bowed her head and prayed.
SHE MUST HAVE fallen asleep, because she woke to the sound of male voices, low and earnest, arguing at the back of the chapel.
A yawn kicked up from her chest, and Shelby rubbed the back of her now-kinked neck, turning to see who was arguing.
Nickelback stood in the middle of the aisle blocking Theo’s way. “I said no.”
“Do you really want me to arrest you too?”
“On what? False charges like you brought against Colton?”
“Oh, I’ll find something, Jon Wolfe.” Theo looked crazed. His usually tidy hair stuck out in all directions. His normally tucked shirt hung outside his belt. “That’s right. I know who you are. You were a juvenile delinquent just like Bells. Joined the Navy so you didn’t end up in jail. Then you got quietly asked to leave. Why is that? Screwed something big up, didn’t you? And you’re still a screw-up. That’s why you can’t get a real job and have to hide behind Rock Star Security. I bet I don’t have to dig too deep to find something to arrest you for.”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but I left the Navy to take care of my sick mother.”
“So it says in your file, but I have it on good authority that’s not the real story, so save it. Get out of my way. I need to speak to Shelby about something we found at the bomb site.”
Jon Wolfe, huh? The name suited him. “It’s okay, Nickelback.” Shelby ran her fingers through her hair. “Let him through.”
Her bodyguard’s broad body didn’t move for a moment, and even though she couldn’t see his face, the body language she knew all too well. Her dad and Colton used it regularly when they thought they needed to stand between her and a threat.
Good thing she was used to megatons of testosterone. Shelby swiveled back around and sent a silent prayer to the Lord, asking for patience.
Theo arrived a moment later and sat beside her. “Your bodyguard does realize that I’m one of the good guys, right?”
“He’s just doing his job.”
“And I’m doing mine.” He fiddled with his phone. “I heard about your mother. Is she okay?”
“Things have been rough on her since my shooting. Her angina is acting up after today’s”—Shelby checked her watch; it was after midnight—“yesterday’s bombing. Please tell me you have a lead on who did it. The sooner we wrap up this case, the better for everyone.”
“The man you saw…was he wearing gloves?”
“Yes. It’s in the report I gave the police.”
Theo held out his phone with a picture on it. “Like this?”
The glove was in an evidence bag. All she could tell was that it was black leather. “Was this found at the house?”
Theo nodded. “Does it look familiar?”
“Not particularly, but I can’t tell much from that picture. I have three or four pairs of black leather gloves myself. It could be one of mine. I need to see it, examine it up close.”
He nodded. “I guess I could bring it here. I’ll have to drive to Good Hope and retrieve it—Mindy’s going through all the collected evidence first thing in the morning to make notes before she sends it to the lab in Tulsa. It’ll take a while since I’ll need to make a round trip.”
And after he showed it to her, he’d have yet another drive to Good Hope to return it to Mindy. He was already exhausted. All she needed was for him to have an accident.
“Why don’t I go with you? I can examine all the evidence and we can discuss the serial killer case in more depth on the way. Then you can drop me back here before going home to sleep.”
“Visiting hours are over, aren’t they? If you need a safe place, you can stay with me.”
“The hospital will make an exception for me and my dad. Once we’re done in Good Hope, you can bring me back here and go home. I’ll stay with Daddy and keep an eye on Momma and Colton.”
“Are you sure, Shelby?” His deep frown only highlighted the dark circles under his eyes. “You’ve been through hell. You need some sleep too. I can bring the glove here. It’s no problem.”
She was still tired, but her little nap had done her good. She was thinking straight again. The truth was finally snapping into place, shifting so she could see the whole picture.
Because that’s what she did. She caught murderers and terrorists and stopped them from hurting others.
She sure as hell wasn’t going to let Colton continue to take the blame for Quan, but she had one more killer to catch, and her confession about what had really happened that night in Baghdad could wait until morning.
“Let’s go,” she said, allowing Theo to help her out of the pew. Once she made it to Nickelback, she kept going, motioning for him to follow.
“Where are we going?” he asked, dialing his phone as he shot daggers at Theo.
“To Good Hope,” Shelby said, sending up one last prayer. “No one blows up my home and gets away with it.”
“For the record, this is a bad idea. You need more than one bodyguard if you’re going to expose yourself outside the hospital.”
Shelby reached out and put a hand on his phone to stop him from doing what she thought he was. “Do not tell Colton. Trust me, I have a plan.”
A few minutes later, she was in the backseat of Theo’s SUV with Daniel next to her. Nickelback rode shotgun.
“Daniel’s a black belt,” she told the other two men, giving the junior pastor a Miss Oklahoma smile. “He knows how to handle himself, don’t you, Daniel?”
None of the men seemed too keen on the situation, but their dissent didn’t bother her. She knew now what she’d learned that day three months ago. It was time for her to start righting her wrongs.
She had a killer to stop.
BEFORE JACK CLAIBORNE’S daddy—Shelby’s granddad—had come along and renamed the town, Good Hope had been called Empty Quiver.
It had contained nothing more than a training site the military had used in the 1940s, the St. Francis Boys’ Home, which later became the Good Hope Children’s Home, and a few scattered farmers.
Empty Quiver was the military code word for the seizure, loss, or theft of a nuclear weapon. Shelby didn’t need two guesses where that had originated or why the military site had quickly and quietly shut down in 1974.
By then, her grandma and grandpa had been looking for a place to rebuild their lives after their first son took his by diving off a pier into the Gulf of Mexico.
Within a few years, her grandfather had become mayor and changed the town’s name. He brought a modest amount of commercial business to the place, revived the school system, including the football team, and worked with locals to build a heritage museum and park, commemorating the native peoples and natural beauty of the area. Soon, the Claiborne Bible College was born.
As Theo left the highway, Shelby saw the welcome sign to Good Hope. This was her town. Her home.
And nobody, especially not a killer, was going to ruin what her family had worked so hard to build.
“The temperature is really dropping.” She rubbed her upper arms. “Swing by my house, Theo. I need to grab a jacket.”
His gaze met hers in the rearview. “The house is a disaster. It’s too dangerous to walk around in there.”
“Well, unless you see an all-night women’s clothing store in the area, that’s what we have to do.”
“Ms. Claiborne…” Nickelback started.
Shelby shut him down. “We’re going to my house. End of discussion.”
Her boss and bodyguard exchanged a look.
That’s right, boys. I’m running the show now.
Daniel patted her hand and Shelby glanced at him. Shadows danced over his face as they drove under the streetlights. “It is getting chilly. Winter’s coming, I guess.”
Winter. Would she live to see another season?
She drew her hand away, rubbing her arms again. “I missed the entire summer. Momma said it was a hot one.”
They continued to talk about the weather and then Daniel’s plans to take over the parish ministry twice a month to free her father up for more traveling engagements.
Theo pulled up at her house a few minutes later.
My poor house.
Good thing her grandparents weren’t around to see this. Crime scene tape flapped in the breeze as light from the moon highlighted the hole on the first floor. A pile of rubble seemed to ooze from the gaping side, spilling onto the driveway. The upper story leaned slightly, part of its foundation gone.
Shelby knew the feeling.
“This is so not a good idea,” Nickelback said.
Good idea or not, she was determined to see her plan through. The clock on the dash read just after three a.m. Her backup would be here shortly. “Daniel, can you help me with my cane?”
Navigating through the debris would be challenging, and it was important the killer believed she was still disabled. Plus, the cane might come in handy if she needed to knock someone out.
Her Glock was upstairs. She doubted she’d be able to get there before the killer revealed himself.
But she did have a small backup in the kitchen. That was the key—to get there.
How was the question. She’d have to go in the back door since the only way to the kitchen through the front required crossing the damaged dining room.
“Just tell me where your jacket is,” Theo said, putting the SUV into park. “I’ll grab it for you.”
“I can’t remember,” she lied, pulling the brain injury card. “I have to look for it.”
Nickelback leaned forward, eyeing the house. “Agent Ingram, you go in, look around, make sure there are no surprises. I’ll keep Shelby here until you give the all-clear.”
Daniel went around to open Shelby’s door as Theo also climbed out and headed to the porch.
Over the seat, Nickelback asked softly, “What are you up to, Agent Claiborne?”
Now she was agent. “Just keep your wits about you and be ready to use that weapon hidden under your coat.”
“We need backup.”
“This isn’t my first rodeo. Help is on the way.”
He snorted and shook his head. “Bells is going to kill me.”
“I’ll protect you.”
Another snort that made her smile.
“I need to get to the kitchen,” she told Nickelback. “We’re going around the far side of the house to the back door, got it? Once we’re inside, we head straight for the kitchen.”
Daniel stood waiting for her to emerge, her cane in hand as his gaze trailed across the street to the empty house.
“You’re the boss,” Nickelback said.
The phone Megadeth had given her buzzed in her back pocket and Shelby pulled it out to see Unknown Caller on her screen.
Beatrice. The woman had not called her back after Shelby had hung up on her in Colton’s room. Unfortunately, now wasn’t a good time to chat.
Theo appeared on the porch and waved.
All clear.
“Remember,” she told Nickelback as she swung her legs out. “Get me to the kitchen.”
“I’d rather haul your ass back to the hospital.”
“Fat chance.”
“Daniel,” she grabbed his hand with one of hers, the cane with the other. “You have to see my grandpa’s fields behind the house. They’re beautiful this time of night.”
He looked surprised but she didn’t give him a chance to argue, tugging him behind her.
Over the grass, along the unharmed side of the house, she passed by the porch.
“Where are you going?” Theo asked.
“Steps are hard for me,” she answered, nodding at the stairs. Nickelback was beside her, scanning the area and looking quite lethal in his all-black attire that blended with the shadows. “The back entrance only has one.”
Her phone buzzed again. Not now, Beatrice.
She pointed to the field, lying frosty and undisturbed under the moon. “See, Daniel? This would be a great place for the church fall festival, don’t you think? You could have hayrack rides and make a maze with pumpkins and cornstalks for the little kids.”
Daniel sounded confused but humored her. “Um, sure, Shelby. I think that’s a fine idea.”
Theo met them at the back door. That was quick. Or maybe she was moving slower than she thought.
“I’ve got it,” she said when all three men reached to help her up the step and into the house. Using her cane, she forced Theo to back up. “No lights?”
He had a flashlight in hand, trying to illuminate her way down the hall. “The blast must have shorted something. None of them are working.”
Shelby’s pulse skipped erratically. Nothing like confronting a serial killer in the dark.
Maybe I’m wrong. Please, Lord, let me be wrong.
“Could you run upstairs and see if you can find a dark blue sweater in my closet?” she asked Theo. “I think that’s where I left it.”
He frowned. “Shelby…”
“I’m fine. Just see if you can find it.”
Nickelback produced a small flashlight as Theo’s reluctant footsteps sounded on the stairs. She made her way toward the dark kitchen, Nickelback leading the way with Daniel following behind.
Her phone buzzed again. Dammit. “Daniel, will you see if you can find me a different pair of shoes? There should be some in the closet under the stairs. You may have to walk past some of the bomb debris, so be careful.”
“You really think it’s safe in here?” he asked.
Air from the dining room hole blew through the house and Shelby felt a real chill. Of course it wasn’t safe. “I just want to grab my ID from the kitchen and then we’ll go. But I really need a fresh pair of shoes.”
He hesitated a moment, then acquiesced, disappearing into the shadows of the hallway once more.
The kitchen was only slightly in shambles and she skirted an upended kitchen chair and the toaster lying on the floor. Broken glass crunched under her feet from the carafe that had been thrown to the ground in the blast.
“What are you really looking for?” Nickelback asked under his breath.
She reached into an overhead cabinet and felt around. “My weapon.”
A buzzing sounded, but it wasn’t her phone this time. Nickelback pulled out his and tapped the screen. “Yeah, boss.”
Where is it? Her fingers touched fragments of the strapping tape she’d attached the gun to the paneling with. Dammit. Had she moved it and forgotten?
Had the killer stolen it?
Shelby headed for the pile of rubble that had once been her dining room, using her cane to knock a piece of ceiling out of the way. Nickelback followed, asking a question of Beatrice and listening as his flashlight skimmed over torn plaster where her wedding photos had once hung.
“She’s right here.” He touched Shelby’s shoulder, stopping her. “My boss needs to speak to you.”
Shelby stepped around her hall table, now lying on its side. “I’m kinda busy here.”
Nickelback grabbed her arm, halting her, and handed her the phone. “Now.”
Tucking the phone between her ear and shoulder, Shelby kept moving. “Ma’am, I don’t mean to be rude, but I really can’t—”
Beatrice’s voice cut her off. “Get out of that house now. Nickelback will take you somewhere safe. Do not go with anyone else. Do you copy?”
Her dining room was a complete disaster, looking even worse in the night shadows. The hole in the wall revealed the driveway, and beyond that, the skeleton of the two destroyed trucks. As Shelby shifted, she saw the house across the street. “Afraid I can’t do that. I have a case to solve.”
Above her, she heard the creak of the stairs. Theo.
“I have the results from the partial fingerprint on that wrapper Colton found,” Beatrice said. “And I’ve found a new connection between Lt. Moore and your current ASAC. You’re in imminent danger, Agent Claiborne. Your case can wait.”
“You got a match on the fingerprint?” Shelby felt a rush of adrenaline, like the warm spike of caffeine in her blood. Was she right? Was the killer here with her?
“If you had answered your phone earlier, I could have warned you. You need to leave now. The fingerprint is a match for—”
“Stop!” Nickelback said to someone behind them. “Put the gun—”
Bam!
The sound reverberated in the hallway, drowning out Beatrice and making Shelby drop to the ground.
On her knees, she whirled, cane in hand. Nickelback was down, his flashlight pointed at the opening to the kitchen. The silhouette of a man, holding a weapon, was illuminated by the back door window.
Daniel?
She heard a voice, but it wasn’t Daniel’s. “What are you doing?”
It came from behind her, from the bottom of the stairs. One so familiar it made her blood run cold.
She heard the cock of a gun as she turned back to face the man now behind her. In the filtered moonlight, she saw a second one pointing at her as well.
Beatrice was yelling from the phone, her voice fierce but far away. The name of the killer echoed in the space as she repeated it.
“You,” Shelby said as she looked into the eyes of the man she’d been hunting. The man who’d stood over her just hours before, ready to take her life.
No glasses.
Theo had tucked his glasses in his front pocket.
Earlier, he’d been wearing contacts. They’d changed his eye color from blue to brown.
No wonder I didn’t recognize him under the mask.
She’d guessed wrong. Either that, or Jaya was right and there were two killers—who at that moment both had her in their sights.
“Tell Colton I love him,” she said to Beatrice, letting the phone fall to the floor.
Then Shelby made a Hail Mary play her dad could be proud of and prepared to meet her Maker.