Page 43 of Deadly Designs

“Good choice.”

He tapped keys and then held the screen so she couldwatch. It allowed her to scoot closer to him, and his body heatsucked her in. She’d never fully understood the phrase, but she didnow—her head swam. Oh, my, the man was potent.

“We don’t know the timing, so I’ll fast forward untilthere is action.”

He was talking, but she had a better idea for thosekissable lips.Pull yourself together, Aja Blue.What waswrong with her? She focused on the computer as the video sped up.Car lights flashed in a long blur, and Christian stopped the feedeach time a person came into view.

“There.” Aja Blue pointed to the edge of the screen,almost out of camera range.

A person with a black hoodie, mask, and sunglassespropped a scooter against a trash can. He might as well have heldup a sign that read: bad guy. He’d undoubtedly dressed the part.Who wore shades in the middle of the night?

Christian paused the film and zoomed in to get thecompany’s name from the scooter. “The QR code is too small to read,but I’ll have my office see if they can enhance it to get theidentification number. Then I’ll have them trace who rented itduring that hour.”

He captured a still shot of the scooter and thenopened an email program, where he typed the request and attachedthe photo before hitting the send button.

Once he finished, he returned to the video and tappedplay. The person glanced around and took out a can of red spraypaint. He kicked over both potted ferns, causing them to crash tothe ground and break. Then he ripped the wind chimes proclaimingpeace and love from a hook and threw them to the concrete,shattering them. Another glance around, then he shook the can andbegan to leave his vile messages.

Christian stopped the video and zoomed in. “Look athis hand.”

The guy had thought to camouflage his facecompletely, but not the rest of him. The letters e, v, i, and lwere inked on his knuckles. Classy. “That should make it easy toidentify him.”

“Yeah, especially if we get his name from the scootercompany.”

Christian took more still shots of his hand and thenresumed the tape. The guy finished and scurried back to thescooter, disappearing from view.

“He was in and out in less than five minutes,”Christian noted.

“That was so much destruction in a short amount oftime.”

Christian agreed. “It makes me think he’d scoped outthe place or executed a dry run.”

“You mean he’s tried it before?”

Christian shook his head. “Not necessarily. I thinkhe’d driven by your office enough times to know where totarget.”

It repulsed her to know he’d been stalking herworkplace. “What about the footage from the parking lot?”

“Coming up next.”

#

Christian switched to the other video and rewound towhen they had arrived at the store. Aja Blue parked and walkedinside, and then he was there to pick her up and wait for the perp.Fifteen minutes later, Johnny Cash would roll up. Christian checkedthe time on the video. “Look for our guy any minute now.”

“There.”

Aja Blue pointed to where Johnny was getting out of ablack sedan. Christian couldn’t tell the make, but he thought itmight be a Lexus. Another car rolled to a stop nearby, eerilysimilar to the first one.

“It’s the nurse,” Aja Blue realized.

“And the vic,” added Christian.

“Vic?”

“Sorry. Victim.”

Aja Blue shook her head. “I knew that. I watch a tonof police dramas.”

Christian clenched his jaw when Aja Blue slid out ofthe vehicle. The kidnapping might not have happened if she’d stayedput like he’d told her to, but he didn’t blame her. Her actions hadbeen noble, thinking she could help him.

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