Page 327 of Cold Case, Warm Hearts

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Wade followed John past a corn crib and a barn. A door was built into the side of a hill about thirty yards from the house. Before they could take another step, Emily hauled herself out of the hole in the ground. She seemed dazed, but quickly regained her wits and ran as fast as she could away from him. Wade called after her, and she turned. He covered the distance in seconds and wrapped her in his arms. Then held her away from him a moment to inspect her for injuries.

“Are you hurt?”

“I’m fine.” She laughed, but it was a broken sound. “I’m alive.”

“You are. Thank the good Lord above, you are.” Out of the corner of his eye, he saw someone else exit the root cellar.

She dropped to her knees. “Pete’s following me.”

“You stay here. John will get you to safety.” Wade took off after the park ranger who made a beeline for the trees when he spotted them. It would be challenging to find the other man when he knew the area better than Wade. When he reachedthe tree line, he took a chance and glanced back to find John running toward him.

“You’re supposed to be with Emily,” Wade shouted.

“The paramedics have her. She’s fine,” John said when he reached him. “You’ll never find him on your own.”

Wade snapped. “He needs to be caught.”

“Let me help.” John shrugged. “I played in these woods with him as a kid. If anyone can find him, it’s me.”

“Mac would have my head if he knew I sent you in after your own cousin.”

“I have the best chance of catching him.”

“But do you have the motive?”

“He butchered women for amusement! You think I want his crimes to be my family’s legacy?”

“I hadn’t thought of it like that.”

“Let me get him. The news can report how I worked on the team to bring him down.”

“You have my full support.” Wade rubbed his temples. “I’m staying with you though.”

Pete slidinto the crevice on the side of the hill overlooking the creek. He’d used it to hunt deer. Now it would serve him just as well for hunting state cops. They thought they were better than law-enforcement rangers. Their job was no different than his except he had the added responsibility of protecting wildlife and park resources.

Those guys thought they were so smart. They might’ve figured out he was behind the killings, but they wouldn’t catch him. He’d start over someplace new. Get a new name and find more women. Until that summer, he’d never taken awoman home against her will. They’d always come willingly. Easy women who didn’t think they needed a man to offer them security. The women whose lives he took were on some kind of power trip. They took jobs that should’ve been held by men. Then they prowled the internet or the bars looking for men who could satisfy their cravings. They were looking for one-night stands or week-long flings. They weren’t good girls with values.

Jamie and Emily weren’t much different than the harlots he brought home. He met the rest of them at his mother’s galas. It was his way of getting even with her for his father’s suicide. He’d meet a pretty girl, get her number and meet her for dinner and drinks. He’d ask her to come home with him. If she did, she got to stay for a week. Then he disposed of her and started over the following year.

Everything had gone smoothly until that irksome hiker got lost in the woods, and Emily discovered the skull. It all began to unravel with the finding of the skull, and when they brought in the cadaver dogs, he knew it was all over. It had been a huge risk to take Jamie Strauss, but the temptation was great. Brunner kept Emily out of his reach, so he’d gone for Brunner’s friend. The fact that she was a cop added excitement. He’d known he wouldn’t be able to convince the newlywed to go home with him willingly, so he’d had to change his methodology, but he didn’t regret it.

His mistake had been taking Emily. He’d tried to cover his tracks and make it look as if Emily had left on her own. Once he’d secured her in the root cellar, he’d delivered the owl to the wildlife rehabber. Then he’d tossed Emily’s service weapon into Sandy Lake. It turned out Emily was too conscientious. Nobody believed she left the park without reporting in.

If only he had a rifle he could use to shoot the state cops. Preferably one with a scope. Unfortunately, they were locked inthe gun cabinet inside the house. All he had on him was his service weapon.

The shadows grew longer, and darkness descended on him.

“Why haven’t we found him?”Wade whispered the words so as not to be heard by the man they sought.

“The property is 300 acres bordering the creek, and we’re surrounded by similar properties. He could hunker down in the meadow or hide in a tree. You can’t expect finding him to be simple,” John said.

“Let’s regroup for a minute.” Wade sighed. “See if you can come up with a list of likely spots and we’ll check those.”

“We’ve checked most of them already.”

“There must be more.”

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