Page 38 of Shattered Sanctuary

“Then there was Tillie Perez who tried to run her husband down with her car.”

Lisa grinned. “Sorry, not funny, but Louis ran so fast I think his legs caught fire. I hate divorce, but frankly, I was relieved when she left him and moved to Cincinnati.”

“Louis was even more relieved.” He sighed. “Why don’t you make up a list of...”

Someone knocked on the door and Adrian called out, “Come in.”

Officer Lee stood there. Lonzine Lee was a terrific cop. She was unflappable, someone he depended on. The look of excitement on her face surprised him. Not a look he saw often.

“Just got a call from a state trooper, boss,” she said. “They found Chloe Banner’s car.”

“Where?”

“Pulled off on the side of the road between here and Townsend.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” he said slowly.

“She had a flat tire,” Lonzine said. “Looks like someone slashed it. There were tracks behind it. Pretty sure someone stopped to help her.”

Adrian and Lisa looked at each other.

“Our killer,” Lisa said.

“So, he cuts her tire and waits for her to pull off the road,” Adrian said. “Then he picks her up. But how did he drug her? Wouldn’t she have called a tow truck? And why would she have left with him if she didn’t know him?”

At that moment, he had more questions than he had answers. But if they were going to stop the killing, that had to change. And fast.

TWENTY-SEVEN

Erin was up before Kaely. She was still thinking about the nightmare she’d had. She finally knew why she was waking up at the same time every night. Now that she understood why it was happening, would it stop?

Although she appreciated Kaely’s help, she was a little embarrassed. Talking to Kaely on the phone was different than having her here. Seeing the reaction the nightmare caused in person.

She brewed a cup of coffee and then sat down at the kitchen table. She needed to eat breakfast, but she wasn’t really hungry. After downing her coffee, she got up and found a box of cereal. She poured some in a bowl, added milk, and made a second cup of coffee. She was halfway through her cereal when Kaely came into the kitchen. She looked well rested, as if last night hadn’t happened. How could that be?

“Good morning,” she said.

“Good morning,” Erin echoed. “I’m sorry about...”

Kaely held up her hand. “Don’t you dare apologize again. I’m here to help you, remember? When we get back from town today, we’ll talk more about what happened, okay?”

“All right, but... it’s hard for me.”

Kaely smiled. “I know, and that’s okay. You can trust me, Erin. I’ve had my share of hurt and confusion. If there’s anyone who understands, it’s me.”

“I realize that. I appreciate that you’ve been open with me and shared the difficulties you’ve had. It helps, it really does.” Erin sighed. “I guess that’s the one saving grace we have when life has been challenging. It makes us more understanding of others. Still, I think I’d rather be clueless and happy.”

Kaely grinned. “Me too.”

“At least I know why I’ve been waking up at the same time in the morning, although I can’t understand how my mind knew what time it was when I’m asleep.”

Kaely shrugged. “Trust me, I’ve heard stories stranger than that. Our minds are capable of a lot more than we realize.”

“I guess so. I can’t believe it’s taken this long for me to remember. I go through that night in my mind, again and again, but until last night, I didn’t remember seeing the clock. All I could recall was seeing Scott down. I’d just gone to check on him when a man came out of the building next to the street where he lay. He was yelling and screaming about his daughter. I didn’t want to leave Scott, but another officer said he’d stay with him, so I followed the man inside. I was actually angry with him. We went into his apartment and into his daughter’s bedroom. She was... she was lying in her bed, across the room. A bullet had come through the wall and hit her in the head. She was dead. He screamed and yelled at me to help. I called for a bus, but I knew it was too late. The father blamed me. He called me a murderer. Said I killed his daughter. At first, I thought he was wrong.I was certain it was a bullet from one of the gangs. But later when they examined the bullet... I guess I’ve told you this before.” She stared at Kaely.

Kaely reached over and covered Erin’s hand with hers. “I’m so sorry. You’re going to find a way to deal with this, Erin. It won’t go away, but you’ll be able to get past it. Tonight, we’ll talk about it. I really want to help you.”

“Thank you.” Erin sighed. “I’m sure you’re getting tired of listening to this over and over.”

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