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Colm was doneholding back. He went over to a desk on which he had set out plans, scraps ofpaper, blueprints. At the heart of it all sat a simple, leather-bound diary.Amber’s diary.
No, not just adiary. That would not have been enough to hold Colm’s attention, and franklywould have made him think less of Amber. This was a workbook. A workbook inwhich Amber kept track of her puzzles, her strategies, her progress. It heldideas for puzzles she was planning to set as the former editor of theWashingtonNews’puzzle page. It contained ideas for things that she was still workingup to constructing. The kind of puzzles that would stump most people, but notColm.
Colm picked up thediary and opened it to a random page, scanning the puzzles and notes Amber hadmade. He began to formulate a plan in his mind, anticipating the thrill of thechallenge.
Colm had beenstudying this diary since he took it from Amber’s apartment, learningeverything he could about her. He knew her routines, her habits, her friends.He knew her fears, her doubts, her secret desires. He knew the way her mindworked.
He had to admit,Amber was a fascinating puzzle. He had always enjoyed studying people,analyzing their behavior, understanding their motivations. Empathy might be alie, but understanding people made it easier to manipulate them.
Colm wondered idlyif Amber had realized that the diary was missing yet. He smiled at the thought.Of course she hadn’t. Amber was too busy with her cases, too preoccupied withsolving puzzles of a different kind. He knew that it was only a matter of timebefore she did. But Colm wasn’t worried. He had already planned for thateventuality, and he was confident that he could stay ahead of Amber and thepolice.
Colm closed thediary. He knew all there was to know about Amber Young now. Soon enough, hewould be able to construct the perfect puzzle for her. The perfect game, for aworthy opponent.
CHAPTER SIX
“This is theplace.”
Amber looked oneagerly as Detective Angelique drove her and Simon to examine the warehousewhere Emily Chen had died.
As they approachedthe building, Amber could feel her excitement building. She couldn’t help butwonder what kind of evidence she would encounter there. She had studied thecrime scene photos and reports, but she knew that seeing it in person would bean entirely different experience. It might be enough to let her see something new,something that wasn’t in the reports, to let her find a way into this case.
Amber felt a noteof unease in among the excitement at the potential to make progress with thecase. The warehouse was dark and ominous, and the yellow police tape only addedto the eerie atmosphere, providing a tangible reminder of the horrific crimethat had taken place within.
Amber’s nervesbegan to settle. She jumped out of the car and made her way to the entrance,taking note of the surrounding area. The warehouse was located in an industrialarea, with a few other similar buildings nearby.
Francesca led theway as they entered the warehouse, her flashlight casting a beam of light infront of them. The walls were lined with shelves and crates, arranged seeminglyat random.
Amber’s focus wason looking for anything that might relate to the murder. She shuddered,thinking about what Emily must have gone through before her death.
Simon’s handbrushed against Amber’s arm, bringing her back to the present. She looked up athim, grateful for the support. He gave her a reassuring smile before turninghis attention back to the warehouse.
“Is this a placethat Emily Chen had any connection to?” Simon asked Francesca.
The detectiveshook her head. “Not that we know of. We’re exploring all possibilities, butright now we don’t have any leads that connect her to this warehouse. Nothingthat makes any sense.”
“She was amarketing consultant, right?” Amber said.
“That’s right,”Francesca said. “But if you’re thinking that she might have done marketing workfor this place, there’s no connection there. It’s an abandoned warehouse that’sbeen used as a dumping ground for stolen goods and drugs. It’s not the safestof places and definitely not somewhere Emily would have been if she had achoice.”
“So she wassnatched elsewhere and brought here, right?” Simon asked. “Do we know exactlywhere she was grabbed?”
Francesca shrugged.“We’ve been able to trace her movements up until about half an hour before herdisappearance. She was last seen leaving a coffee shop about a block away fromher office building. We’re still trying to piece together what happened in thattime gap, but it’s likely that’s when the killer snatched her.”
“And brought herhere,” Amber said. She tried to steel herself for the part that she knew had tocome next. “Can you show us the spot?”
Francesca nodded.They continued to move through the warehouse as a trio. They came to a set ofsteps leading down to a basement level, and Francesca led the way. There waslight down here, so Francesca no longer needed her flashlight.
“It was dark whenI reached this point,” Francesca said. “The forensic team seems to have leftlights on down there, but I had to look using my flashlight.”
Amber could hearthe pain there. She wondered what it had been like for the detective, coming inhere alone, trying to find the victim of a serial killer. Had she been hopefulthat she would be in time? Had she known in her heart that she was going to betoo late? Had she been afraid of what she would find?
Amber listenedintently as they descended into the basement. The air was musty and damp, witha faint scent of decay. The space was large and open, with no walls to separatethe various areas. Crates seemed to be arranged in clumps, some opened,presumably as the local PD checked on what had been left there if it was thedumping ground for illegal goods that Francesca suggested.
As they walked,Francesca pointed out the area where Emily Chen had been found. It was in thefar corner of the basement, in a small, separate room, the door to which nowhung open.
The three of themstepped inside. That was when Amber got her first sight of the pulley system.It was a complex mechanism, rigged with servos that seemed to be connected totransmitters, all within a large metal frame. There was no body there now, buteven so, Amber could feel her revulsion at the sight of it.
“The forensicpeople think that this was connected to the website where the killer sent us toplay his twisted game of hangman,” Francesca said, with a note of anger. “Theyanalyzed the pulley systems we recovered. They think that every time we took aguess, the pulley lifted the noose slightly higher. Every time we got onewrong, it was worse.”
