Page 27 of Just Right

Cami felt her stomach churning. "I know. But there must be action we can take?" She stared at him angrily. Was he refusing to hear her again? Was this what this was about? Were they going to have another fight?

She saw him frown back and she felt ready. Ready for the fight. Even though she wasn't sure what she could do.

But it seemed Connor was on her side after all. "There are a few options open to us. Apart from physically being there to prevent another kill, which is impossible, there's plenty we can do. So let's go into the meeting room and get it done."

Cami headed up the stairs behind him, holding her room key tightly. She felt exhausted to the bone. Going through such a long day on two hours of sleep had left her feeling shattered. But at the same time, she wasn't ready to quit. And she didn't feel like it was right to sleep.

The killer was out there, speeding through the night, cutting through the map coordinates like a blade as he headed to . . . to what? That was what she didn't know.

They walked into the small meeting room that Connor had booked for an hour, because this motel was beds only, small and basic, no workspace available in the bedrooms.

The blinds in the meeting room were still open. She gazed out at the parking lot, seeing the lights of the cars, the beams swinging around as they departed. She stared into the darkness where she knew the killer was.

Connor strode over and closed the blinds. He sat at the small wooden table and opened his laptop. Then he got on the phone.

"Ethan," he said.

"Here, boss. Just got back from a long day’s stakeout and finished planning with the team. We’ll be ready to do the traffickers’ takedown tomorrow. What’s happening there?" Ethan's voice, cheerful and sounding amazingly wide awake, made Cami feel better.

"We've identified a pattern to the killer. He seems to be working his way south. Based on this, we need to alert all police departments south of Milwaukee, and on the routes heading to Chicago."

"What are they on the lookout for?"

Connor sighed. "There hasn't been enough camera evidence to identify this guy's car. But undoubtedly, he has a car. So, most likely a single male, driving alone. He may have a weapon of some kind in the car with him. A stick, perhaps. They need to set up roadblocks and be on high alert. They need to be wary of men on their own traveling at night. So far, he seems to have targeted women on their own."

"Blonde women," Cami said.

Connor nodded. "Blonde women."

Ethan sighed. "That is something, but it doesn't give us a whole lot to go on."

"No, it doesn't. Acknowledged. But at least it's something. It's the most we can do."

"I'll get the word out," Ethan said, sounding resigned.

“There’s something else,” Cami said. Connor looked at her curiously.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Cameras,” she said. “We had the camera footage from the aquarium’s parking lot sent to us. I’m sure there were no cameras out on the hiking trails, but it’s possible that there might be a camera somewhere close to the third victim’s house? She lived in a suburb. Maybe a security camera, a traffic camera, something nearby?”

“Good idea,” Connor approved. “Ethan, get the team to have a look and see if we can track down any cameras. If we can get two sets of camera footage, we can start to narrow down if the same car was in the right place at the right time.”

That was great for the future. But what about now? Wasn’t there more to be done? It didn’t seem so, because Connor was wrapping up with Ethan, concluding the call.

Cami felt appalled that there wasn't more they could do, but at the same time, when she looked at the map, she saw the harsh reality of what they were up against. The area south of Milwaukee was huge. They were looking at a network of routes between two major cities. Yes, the killer was out there, without a doubt. Most likely he was heading south. But beyond that, the parameters were way too frustratingly broad to be able to pick anything else up.

"Get some sleep," Connor said, packing up his phone and laptop.

He'd stopped at a grocery store on the way to the motel and had bought some supplies. Sandwiches, chocolate bars, bottled water, and sodas, easy food to eat on the go. He'd divided it into two bags, and one of those he now pushed over to Cami.

"Have some food, and get some rest," he told her. "You look as if you're ready to pass out from tiredness. We start again at six a.m. Or earlier if the situation changes."

He didn't need to spell that out for her. It would be earlier if another murder was called in.

"Okay. See you at six."

There was no point in arguing further because she now accepted there was nothing they could do. Cami turned and headed out of the meeting room, walking up the stairs to her bedroom, which was a floor above.

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