AllFreeNovel
Share Us
A sigh. A faint clacking sound again. Brady said, tight-lipped, “I can neither confirm nor deny... But...”
Her heart skipped in anticipation.
“What Icansay,” Brady continued, “Is that if it was handed to our department, it would likely languish. Especially if what you say is true.”
“So, they handed it off to Bevens? Right? What’s his new partner’s name? The third one in the last two years? Christ—they’re not going to do it. It’s trash duty. And you know it, Saul. Help me out here, and I can help you. Something is going on here. Something big.”
“Cora, I say this as politely as I can, but it isn’t any of your business, is it? Leave it up to the cops.”
“The cops who are denying Janice Lochhead’s connection to the mayor? She’s been missing a week, Saul. Her boat was found in the Keys, abandoned. We all know what that means.”
A sigh. “So, what do you need to know?” Hastily, he added, “Not that I’m saying I’ll be able to share. But...looking. Well, anyone can look.”
Cora snapped her fingers in excitement. “There we go. Atta boy. Okay, so the mayor was scared. Like ghostly. But he did seem to have an idea about this killer. He mentioned he’d killed before, but it was sort of like...as inbefore.Like this guy had a history of these sorts of hits.”
“A professional serial killer?”
“Maybe. But the daughter was drowned. And the mayor’s adviser was killed in the Keys. Something about the water, you know?”
“Hmm...Well...” A sigh.
“What? Are you looking at something.”
“Cora...I really can’t.”
“Saul! Youcan! What’s more important? Catching this guy or playing footsie with red tape?”
“Colorful. I’m not sure quite what that means. But I’d like to thinkbothare possible. Do you know what a false dichotomy is?”
“Nah. Probably get it checked out. But Saul, just say what you found. Spell it if you need to. Whatever works.”
She hung on the line, pushing away from the cold stone wall now, and turning up the tunnel. Another car passed by. The swish of the vehicle resounded in the tunnel as the headlights spun past her. The vehicle slowed temporarily, then sped up again.
Cora frowned, glancing after it, but it looked as if the driver had simply been attempting caution while she moved along the sidewalk.
Cora used a final piece of leverage. “You should’ve seen the Lochheads, Saul. Both of them broken. Their daughter dead, and everyone pretending like they don’t think she is. No one deserves that, do they? And this guy, by the sound of things, isn’t done. So, what’d you find?”
A muttered comment beneath her old partner’s breath that she couldn’t quite make out.
“What was that?”
“I said fine!” Saul snapped. Normally poker-faced and patient, Cora found herself smiling at the flicker of temper. But as quickly as it had come, Saul composed himself once more. “Three months ago, a similar spree of murders.”
“Oh?” her heart picked up the pace.
“Yes. Drownings in the ocean, not far from the mayor’s home. About fifteen miles away. A private resort—someone was attacking tourists.”
“Drowning though?”
“Yes.”
“Three victims.”
“Just like this one,” Cora said, excited. “Any suspects?”
“Yes. The man they arrested for it looked guilty but was released because of tampering. Someone on the force down there was overly confident they had their killer and failed to follow proper chain of transmission.”
“They had the guy and let him walk?”
