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It was also whyshehadto do this job. Why she couldn’t just go back to being a puzzleeditor, the way Joseph wanted her to. Solving puzzles competitively was a rush,but this had the potential to make a real difference.
“Have our techslooked at the website and tried to trace it back to an IP address?” Simonasked, obviously thinking of the quickest potential way to get to the killer. TheFBI had plenty of resources, and if the killer was setting up websites to allowhim to play his sick game, then maybe that gave them a way to catch up to him.
“It’s anon-starter,” Palliser said, shaking her head. “The trace got bounced allaround the world. The techs say anyone savvy enough to do all that won’t haverun the website from their home address. They’ll have set it up from a dummycomputer somewhere else.”
Meaning that theyweren’t going to track the killer down that simply. They would have to find thekiller using more conventional means.
“What’s our nextmove, ma’am?” Amber asked, her voice steady despite her worries about what thekiller had done.
Amber couldn’thelp but feel a chill run down her spine as she looked at the image on thescreen again. The puzzle, the website, the elaborate system of pulleys andcables—it all seemed so calculated, so deliberate. Whoever this killer was,they weren’t just a murderer. They were a sadistic puzzle master. They didn’tjust want to kill; they wanted to humiliate the police and assert some kind ofsuperiority over everyone involved. They wanted to show that they were better,while forcing the police to kill his victims for him.
“I want you andPhelps in Westford as soon as possible,” Palliser said. “I have you both bookedon a late flight tonight. You’ll get there, grab some sleep, and meet up withthe local PD first thing tomorrow.”
Amber nodded,knowing that this was going to be a long and difficult case. But she was determinedto catch this killer no matter what it took.
Her mind wasalready racing with ideas. She would need to brush up on her hangman skills,making sure that she understood the specific tactics of the game as well as shecould, and start thinking about how to go about finding specific locations in atown she didn’t know.
“Understood, ma’am,”Simon said, standing up from his chair. “We’ll make sure to keep you updated onour progress. Who’s our contact in the local PD in Westford?”
“That’s arobbery/homicide detective there, Detective Angelique,” Palliser said. “She wasthe one who found the second body. It looks as though she took over the runningof the case a day or so ago, when the news of the second murder came in.”
“Any chance thatwe’ll meet resistance from her about coming in on the case?” Simon asked.
Palliser shook herhead. “No, she’s been more than happy to have us involved. She seems torecognize that this killer is beyond her and her team’s ability to catch. She’sbeen asking for help from the Bureau since she took over the case. Sheunderstands the value of collaboration. And this isn’t just any case. We’llneed to give them all the help we can out there.”
Amber nodded, gladthat there wouldn’t be any trouble from the local cops. She was alreadymentally preparing herself for the flight and the case ahead. She would need tofocus all her efforts on solving this puzzle before the killer struck again.
Palliser just gavea curt nod before turning to leave the room. Amber and Simon exchanged a lookbefore following her out, already starting to plan their next move. Amber wasmaking mental lists of the things she would need to do to be ready for this.
As they walkeddown the hallway, Amber couldn’t shake the feeling of unease that settled in hergut. She had seen some twisted things in her brief career, but this wasdifferent. There was something planned and vicious about this.
“Do you haveeverything you need, or are you going to have to head back to your apartmentbefore the flight?” Simon asked. “I can drive you back if you like.”
Amber appreciatedthe offer of assistance, but in this case, she didn’t need the help. She’dlearned how suddenly cases could come up. She’d learned to be prepared.
“I have a go bagin the car,” she said. “I grabbed it before I drove out. You?”
Amber saw Simonshrug.
“I keep what Ineed here, just in case. Palliser has a habit of sending agents out on cases withno notice, so I want to be ready for the possibility when it comes up.”
Amber nodded,understanding the need for preparedness. Their last few cases had all come atshort notice, had all required them to get to the crime scene as quickly aspossible.
They reached theparking lot, and Amber unlocked her car, pulling out her go bag from the trunk,feeling the weight of it in her hand. In a way, it was a reminder of theseriousness of everything they were about to do.
“I’ll drive usover to the airport,” Simon said.
Amber nodded. Thatwould make things easier, and it made sense for the two of them to travel overtogether. It also meant that she had enough time to call Joseph and tell himwhat was going on. She didn’t want to run out on him again without letting himknow where she was going.
Yet she didn’tcall right then, because calling might mean continuing the argument that they’dalmost had earlier, might mean him trying to tell her that she shouldn’t do herjob. Amber didn’t want that right now. She had a case to focus on, and shecouldn’t allow Joseph’s fears for her to distract her from what needed to bedone.
She needed to stayfocused, to keep her emotions in check to be able to do her job. She couldn’tafford to make a mistake. That meant that she couldn’t get caught up in anemotional tangle with Joseph right then, one that might make it harder to thinkstraight right at the moment when Amber needed to be her sharpest.
Amber settled formessaging Joseph instead, because she still wanted to let him know what washappening.
The call I gotabout a case is going to take me out of town for a few days. Agent Phelps and Iare hunting a killer over in Westford, Oregon. I can’t say much more than that.I enjoyed dinner. I’ll talk to you soon.
It sounded tooterse, too brief. Amber thought about puttingI love youat the end ofthe message, but she hadn’t even said that aloud yet, and a message like thisdidn’t seem like the right place to begin.
