Page 62 of Seeking Evil

“It would be awfully boring if we were all alike, don’t you think?”

“Yes, I guess it would.” They reached the fork in the tunnel and went left this time.

“What happens when we find our way out of here?” Dawn said as if there wasn’t any question about it.

“Well, we try to find the closest house and call for help.” Sierra stopped periodically and listened for any sounds to indicate they might be nearing the end of the tunnel.

Dawn stopped suddenly.

“What? Did you hear something?” Sierra searched her face. It was almost pitch-black where they were but she could make out Dawn’s fear.

“No, it’s not that. What if the second killer lives close by? We could be walking right into the arms of our killer.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

“What do you mean he’s not arrested?” Cooper asked in disbelief as the news from Patrick had them all stunned.

Yet that little niggling at the back of Zeke’s brain told him Flannigan wasn’t their guy.

“We had to let him gobecause there wasn’t enough evidence to hold him.” Patrick shrugged. “You may not like it—I certainly don’t—but that’s our judicial system. You can’t arrest people without sufficient evidence.”

Cooper ran his hand through his hair. “Unbelievable. How can they let a possible serial killer go?”

“He has no priors, babe,” Hannah told her husband. “He’s in good standing in the community, and a lot of the evidence we have against him is circumstantial.”

Cooper held up his hand. “I understand why. I just don’t agree with it. We need to follow him. If he’s panicked, he could want to tie up loose ends. Maybe he’ll lead us to his victims.”

“That’s actually not a bad idea.” Jack tossed Zeke the keys to the Tahoe he’d been driving. “You and Cooper. Keep a safe distance so that he doesn’t spot you, and if anything comes up, you call us before you act.”

“Got it.” In Zeke’s mind, tailing Flannigan was a waste of time, but Jack was the boss. “Do we have any idea where he’d go?”

“I’m guessing he won’t be treating patients any time soon.” Cooper quirked a grin. “How about his ranch outside of town where we found the tow truck?”

“Hannah and I can stake out the apartment near his office,” Megan told them. “He’s never seen us before.”

Patrick dug into his pocket. “Take Deb’s Explorer. It’ll be less conspicuous.” He tossed Megan the keys.

“You got it.” Before Megan reached the door, Jack clasped her hand and tugged his wife closer.

“Be careful, my love. If this is our guy, he’s gotten good at hiding his dark side. He’s highly functional. No one would suspect the kind, elderly doctor of being a serial killer.”

She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. “Don’t worry. I know how to handle myself.”

He reluctantly let her go. Their eyes lingered on each other before she and Hannah left the room.

“Ready, buddy?” Zeke asked his partner.

He checked his phone briefly before pocketing it. “Yep, let’s do this.”

Zeke got behind the wheel and waited for Cooper to say goodbye to his wife. The two couples he admired the most were also a constant reminder of what was missing in his life. He grabbed his phone and brought up a photo of Sierra smiling at the camera. Her dark eyes shining. Raven hair blowing in the breeze. He’d taken it while they were out sailing last summer.

“I love you,” he whispered. “I’m ready now. I’m sorry it took me so long to get there.”

He wasn’t really sure what kept him from committing other than memories of his father and the destruction his dad had rendered their family.

He reached inside his pocket and pulled out the square-cut sapphire ring. He knew they were Sierra’s favorite. She’d told him many times that she wasn’t a diamond girl. In her opinion, sapphires were the stones with souls.

Zeke wasn’t sure why he’d waited.

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