Joint Investigation

TWO

After donning a glove to keep his prints off the evidence, Drew studied the credit card for a moment before lifting his gaze to Sami. She stood stiff as a board with her fists at her side. Though she tried to hide it, he could see she was wigged out by this turn of events. Her face had gone pasty white. She sucked in air, in and out, in and out.

Unexpected empathy twisted in his gut. The last thing he needed was for her to pass out in the middle of a crime scene and contaminate the evidence. Taking her by the elbow, he propelled her out of the motel room, away from the grisly scene and the eerie drawing on the wall.

“We’ll turn the card over to our forensic team when they arrive to process the room and handle the victim,” he said once they were on the balcony.

He tucked the credit card inside an evidence bag. According to Sami, the killer’s MO was evolving. Birdman, as she’d called him, was becoming more comfortable, more confident. Ready to add men to his repertoire.

It wasn’t unusual for a serial murderer to make subtle changes to their form of homicide as they grew more adept at killing, but a sudden change in gender? That was uncommon, though not unheard of. Was there more than one killer? Were the deaths Sami was investigating even related to the one here?

He couldn’t discount the bird image. She believed the bird was the killer’s signature. But Drew didn’t know what the symbol represented to the murderer.

“We need to run the name on the card.” Her terse tone matched the rapid clip of her stride. “Find him. Though it’s probably too late.”

“The credit card could belong to the victim in this room. Her husband’s?” Drew offered, though he doubted his own speculation.

She didn’t say anything. She didn’t have to. Her certainty wouldn’t be swayed. Not that he blamed her. She was obviously committed and passionate about finding this murderer. He appreciated that. Police work took dedication and perseverance. Sometimes to the detriment of everything else in one’s life.

He should know. He didn’t have much beyond his work. Which was fine with him. He didn’t need anything or anyone else. It was simpler not to have a personal life, because outside the job, it was too easy to let his guard down as he had with his ex-wife. He had no intention of letting anyone else rip his heart to shreds.

Once they were in the parking lot, Drew headed for the American agents, Border Patrol Agent Wellborn and ICE Agent Fallon. They gathered with the rest of the IBETs team at the back of a van that housed their equipment. Only a few other cars dotted the parking lot. The motel didn’t do a huge business, it seemed, just enough to stay solvent.

Justin’s nose no longer bled and thankfully didn’t look broken. Drew led Sami to the group of men.

“Did you catch him?” Sami asked Luke, clearly finding him more approachable than Agent Fallon. Drew didn’t blame her. Fallon could be intimidating, but Drew also knew he was a good man to have watch your back. Fallon knew how to get a job done.

“No. He escaped,” Luke replied, frustration evident in his voice.

“He jumped into a sedan and took off,” Canadian Border Services agent Nathaniel Longhorn offered. A First Nation descendant, Nathaniel kept his black hair long and tied back with a leather strap. He was lean, muscular and deadly with a knife. Drew was glad to have him on his team. “I’ve radioed in the license plate to the Vancouver police and to the border crossing.”

“Secure the scene and wait for Forensics to show,” Drew instructed. Then he handed the evidence bag containing the credit card to Justin. “Run the name. Find out where this was last used and see if you can track down the man.”

Justin peered at the credit card. “Will do.”

“Whoever that card belongs to is a potential victim, if not dead already,” Sami interjected.

Blake slid his gaze to her. “You sound sure, Special Agent Bennett. And yes, I did check on your credentials.” He smirked. “Your boss is eager to talk to you.”

Sami glanced at Drew, then back to Blake. “I am sure.”

Interesting that she didn’t elaborate or acknowledge Blake’s remark that her boss wanted to talk to her. She’d indicated that no one took her claim of a serial killer seriously. Was her presence here unsanctioned?

He wasn’t sure if he was on board with the whole serial-killer angle either but he did have a dead body to contend with.

To the men, he said, “Call me when you know anything. I’m taking Special Agent Bennett to headquarters.”

At Sami’s questioning look, he added, “You can call your boss from there. The IBETs team works out of the consulate general’s building on West Pender Street here in Vancouver. The consul general along with US Homeland Security provide oversight for IBETs as well as other binational interagency task forces.”

“So I was right. You are working together as a joint team,” she murmured, her gaze raking over the men.

“Yes. We’re part of the Integrated Border Enforcement Teams—IBETs. There are several such task forces across the shared border between our two countries. Need to keep everyone safe, eh?”

A faint smile touched her lips. “Yes, I’m aware. Can I have my gun and ID back?”

Blake removed the Glock he’d tucked into the waistband of his jeans. “Here you go, princess.”

Her lip curled.

Drew suppressed a smile, though he didn’t condone the rudeness of his fellow team member. Blake handed over her ID and Drew gestured for Sami to follow him to where he’d stashed his vehicle. “This way.”

He opened the passenger door to his twenty-year-old Land Cruiser.

“Sweet ride,” she said as she slid inside.

He wasn’t into fancy and new. “I like vintage.”

When he climbed into the driver’s seat, she said, “I have a 1964 Chevrolet Corvair convertible that was my father’s. It runs but needs an overhaul. One of these days I’ll have the car restored.”

“Nice. What color?”

“Baby blue.”

Like her eyes. “Pretty.”

“It was Dad’s pride and joy back in the day.”

He didn’t miss the note of pride and affection in her tone. “Where’s he now?”

“He and Mom live in Seaside, Oregon.”

“Your hometown?”

“Yep. Born and raised Oregonian.” She described the beachside town in great detail while drumming her fingers on her knee. He sensed her monologue stemmed from nervous energy. Her words made him curious enough to want to visit the ocean town. If only to see it the way she did. She obviously loved her parents and the community she grew up in.

When she fell silent, he asked, “How did you decide to become a federal agent?”

She didn’t immediately answer. As the silence stretched, he figured she wasn’t going to respond. Then she said, “I have this deep-seated need to see justice done.”

Her answer resonated within him. He, too, felt the same drive. He slanted her a glance. Her face was turned away, and she stared out at the passing city. A clear signal that she was done with the conversation. He decided to honor the unspoken request.

When they arrived at the consulate building, Drew parked in his usual spot. They entered the skyscraper and took the elevator to the fifth floor. Drew ushered Sami to the IBETs offices. Few lights glowed in the quiet building. The cubicles and offices were empty. In the corner office where he had his desk, he gestured for her to take a seat in one of the two red upholstered chairs facing the desk. “You can use the desk phone to call your boss.”

She didn’t sit. Instead she produced a cell phone from one of her pants pockets. “I’ll step out into the hall.”

Nodding, he rounded the large oak desk to sit in the leather captain’s chair. “I’ll take you to your hotel after I write my report.” And put her on the next plane back to the United States. He couldn’t have her running around messing up any more operations.

He watched her silently leave the office, her back straight, her chin level. He wondered what shade of blond her hair was underneath the dark stocking cap. Giving himself a mental shake, he opened an email window and copied the people in charge of the IBETs program—the consulate general, the deputy director for US Homeland Security and the RCMP deputy commissioner of federal policing.

He quickly detailed the events of the evening, as well as his assessment that there might be a potential serial killer on the loose but that he had to do further research before moving on this information. He wasn’t ready to buy into Sami’s claim yet, despite the sincerity of the pretty agent.

* * *

“You are supposed to be on vacation, Agent Bennett.” Special Agent in Charge Rob Granger’s voice boomed into Sami’s ear. “Why are you in Vancouver, interloping on an IBETs investigation?”

Sami rubbed the bridge of her nose with her free hand while she stood in the hallway a few feet from Drew’s office. The carpet beneath her feet had a dizzying geometric pattern that added to the headache brewing behind her eyes.

She turned her back to Drew’s open door while she quickly explained to her boss her theory that Birdman had set her up. “There was no drug deal going down. It was a trap.”

“If that is true, Agent Bennett, all the more reason for you to back off.”

“Sir, he’s escalating.” She told him about the credit card. “Something has changed. If I stop now, how many more people will die? I can’t let this go.”

Granger’s voice dropped. “You’re a good agent, Samantha. With a promising career ahead of you. I would hate to see you throw all that away on a personal vendetta.”

“This isn’t a vendetta.” Personal, yes. Lisa was like a sister. But Sami wanted to see justice done, as she’d told Drew. She didn’t want any more lives lost. “Sir, please, let me follow the clues where they lead.”

“You really do believe there’s a case here?”

“I do, sir. And it’s within the purview of our office.”

“Then we need to assemble a team. Get a profiler involved. Go through the proper protocol. I’ll contact the Legat there in Vancouver and get the ball rolling.”

The FBI had sub offices located in various parts of the world. The Legats—legal attachés—liaison with the governing authorities. Canada had three sub offices operating in Vancouver, Toronto and the main sub office in Ottawa. Though Sami would appreciate any help they could provide it would take time. Time that James Clark might not have. Or the next victim and the next.

“That sounds great, sir, but in the meantime this unidentified subject is free to continue to kill.” Why didn’t he understand that she needed to move now, not wait for an official task force to be formed? “Sir, I’m close. I can feel it.”

He heaved a sigh. She could picture him rubbing a hand over his jaw the way he did when he was faced with a decision. She sent up a quick prayer he would see the logic in her request. She liked and respected her boss. He and his family were good people.

“I suppose what you do on your own time is none of my business.” He paused, then added, “Until it is.”

She smiled and leaned back against the hallway wall. “I have two weeks of vacation time accumulated.”

“Indeed. I’m giving you some leeway, Agent Bennett. As long as you are an agent of the FBI, you will act accordingly. Check in with the local police and keep me apprised of any and all developments at all times. That means you don’t act until you’ve talked to me. Follow, survey, observe. Gather information. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.”

“I hope I won’t regret this, Agent Bennett.”

“You won’t, sir.”

“Don’t do anything stupid, Samantha. If you so much as get a whiff of danger, call for backup. Tonight could have gone horribly wrong.”

Her insides twisted with the truth of his words. “Yes, sir.”

After hanging up, Sami found the restroom, where she rinsed her face with cold water. The white tiled sink and chrome faucet gleamed in the overhead fluorescent lights. A large rectangular mirror covered the wall behind the sink and her reflection stared back at her.

Tonight could have gone horribly wrong.

The words rang through her head. If Drew hadn’t stopped her from entering that motel room, what would have happened?

But he had and now she was in the Canadian Consulate General’s headquarters. A place she’d never imagined she’d end up tonight. But then again, she hadn’t known what to expect. Certainly not being detained by a handsome Canuck with control issues.

Her hands shook. A normal response given the adrenaline letdown. She needed to pull herself together.

But the frustration from not catching Birdman tightened her shoulder muscles. She should have been used to disappointment by now, but pessimism wasn’t normally her bag. Lisa would say Sami was a discouraged optimist. An oxymoron for sure.

A knock on the door startled her. Her hand went to her holstered gun. “Yes?”

“I’m finished with my report. Are you ready?” Drew’s muffled voice eased the spike of anxiety.

“Be right out,” she called.

She removed her stocking cap and let her hair fall to her shoulders. She finger combed the long strands as best she could then tied them back with a scrunchie she’d found in a pocket. She pinched her cheeks to give her face some color, but the dark circles of fatigue rimming her eyes were a lost cause. What did it matter, anyway? She wasn’t trying to impress Drew.

She stuffed the cap into her pocket before opening the door. Drew stood with one shoulder propped against the wall, his tall, lean frame relaxed. Handsome. The thought invaded her mind. The man was definitely good-looking, even with the signs of fatigue around his eyes and the day’s growth of beard shadowing his strong jawline.

He’d changed into navy khakis and a collared shirt beneath a jacket with the letters RCMP on the breast pocket, and on the back, as she’d seen earlier. Like hers. Only she had no jurisdiction here.

Despite her badge, at the moment she wasn’t acting as an agent of the United States but as a woman obsessed with finding a killer who’d murdered her best friend.

Drew pushed away from the wall. “Where are you staying?”

She gave him the name of a popular hotel chain in downtown Vancouver, then followed him to his vehicle where she settled into the passenger seat and let her curiosity about the man driving prompt her to ask, “How long have you been with the RCMP?”

“I was born into it,” he said with a grin.

She made a face. “What?”

“My dad’s a retired Mountie. For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to follow in his footsteps.”

She wondered what Drew had been like as a kid. A strange tenderness filled her as she imagined a dark-haired boy hero-worshipping his father.

For the next ten minutes they chatted, keeping the conversation light and discovering similar tastes in movies and book genres. Drew followed the National Hockey League, while she could recite pro-football stats. She found him to be engaging and easy to be with. Strange considering their meeting. She’d have guessed they wouldn’t find so much to talk about. But when it came right down to it, they were more alike than was comfortable but for some reason she didn’t mind.

Drew pulled up in front of her hotel. Sami opened her door, grateful that for a few minutes she’d let herself be normal and been able to push thoughts of Birdman to the back burner. She had this man to thank. He’d made it easy to take a moment to breathe before she rushed back into her investigation. “Thank you for...well, everything.”

“My pleasure, Sami.”

When Drew turned off the engine, tension rushed into tight a knot in her tummy. It was one thing to let down her guard for the drive over but another completely for him to come to her hotel room door. “You don’t have to walk me up.”

“I don’t have to but it’s the polite thing to do.” He climbed from the vehicle before she could protest further.

Nerves on the edge of snapping, she decided not to fight him on this. She wanted to hang on to the last remnants of peace in the hope she might sleep tonight. She’d heard Canadians were super polite and friendly. He was living up to the reputation.

The doorman opened the glass door to allow them entrance. Sami smiled her thanks. Soft classical music played in the lobby. The polished marble floors gleamed and teakwood accents added texture, while plush, comfortable seating arrangements invited private conversations.

After nodding a greeting to the concierge, they took the elevator to the second floor. She slid her electronic key in the lock, waited for the green light, then pushed open the door. Darkness lay within.

Confusion made her hesitate. The overspill of the hallway light reached a few feet in front of her. She frowned and hovered on the threshold.

Drew stepped close, so close she could feel the heat from his body battling the sudden chill chasing down her spine. “Something wrong?”

“I left a light on when I headed out.”

“Most likely the maid turned it off after cleaning your room.”

Though that sounded plausible, the need for caution didn’t ease. She stepped inside the room and groped the wall for the light switch. When she flipped it, nothing happened. Her stomach knotted. She withdrew her sidearm.

Drew’s hand on her shoulder gently nudged her aside so he could step past her and move farther into the darkened room. Normally, she’d balk if a man took the lead away from her. She wouldn’t let anyone view her as less because she was a woman. But since she had no jurisdiction here and, frankly, was a little freaked out, she allowed him to enter first.

The curtains were drawn; however, a little light from the parking lot outside slipped through the edges, enough to cast gray shadows. Sami’s breathing slowed as she strained to listen. Was someone in the room?

She followed Drew deeper into the gloom. Heard him try the table lamp. But the room remained dark.

When she felt the air move, she whipped toward her left. A hissing sound filled her head and something hit her in the face, stinging her eyes, her nose, her mouth.

Pepper spray!

She gagged and spit. Fear fisted in her chest.

Drew’s guttural growl said he, too, had been squirted with the offending substance.

They were both vulnerable and the thought terrified her.

Suddenly, the floor-length curtains on the other side of the room were yanked aside. Light from the hotel’s back parking lot filled the room. Sami blinked back the tears of stinging pain. She could make out a dark figure at the patio door. She raised her gun but the intruder slid open the glass door and escaped over the balcony and into the night before she could sight down the barrel.

Drew gave chase, disappearing behind the assailant.

She stumbled forward intent on pursuit but she made it only to the sliding door before Drew returned.

He wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket and growled, “I couldn’t see which way he went.”

A sense of urgency gripped her. “Come on—we need to wash this stuff off.” She groped for his hand and latched on to lead him to the bathroom.

Thankfully, the light in the bathroom worked. She turned the cold water on, grabbed two washcloths from the rack and drenched them before handing one to Drew and using one herself.

After a few minutes the burning from the pepper spray was relatively under control. Drew found a pile of lightbulbs on the bed. He screwed one into the table lamp and turned it on. The warm glow expelled the shadows.

Sami’s gaze caught on the wall above the king-size bed. Her heart slammed into her ribs so hard she put a hand over her chest to protect herself.

Drew’s shocked hiss echoed in the stillness of the room.

Her mouth went dry.

WATCHING YOU

The words were scrawled in bright red letters on the beige-colored wall.

She gasped for breath, but her lungs refused to cooperate. Dark spots danced at the edges of her mind. She fought for control, hating the violated and vulnerable feeling invading her. Only one other time in her life had she felt this way and she’d vowed to never be a victim again. “No!”

So much for her vow or her determination. This situation was out of her control. She mentally scoffed. Of course she wasn’t in control. Only God was. Her fingers curled into fists. But where was God when Lisa was being murdered?

Forcing back the searing question, she concentrated on the current situation.

Birdman had been here. In her room. The sense of violation permeated through her like a virus, making her stomach roll.

“How did he find out where I was staying?” Her shaky voice echoed in the silent room. “I let him slip away again!”

And now the hunter had become the hunted.

* * *

With a lump of rage lodged in his chest at being caught unaware, Drew called hotel security. He wanted to view their video surveillance. He needed to catch a glimpse of the killer because he hadn’t caught sight of the perpetrator’s face before he’d vanished in the dark like a wisp of smoke.

No go.

Unfortunately, the security system had suffered a power failure and they were working on getting it back online. Coincidence? Not likely. This killer was savvy enough to down a sophisticated security system. Of course he’d knock out the hotel’s video surveillance before infiltrating Sami’s room.

Drew’s nerves jumped to think what would have happened had he not walked Sami to her room.

What was the guy’s plan? To pepper spray her and then...kill her or kidnap her?

Either way, Drew wasn’t going to let the guy have another chance.

“Pack your bags,” he said.

She turned from inspecting the writing on the wall. “This is paint, not blood.”

“The crime scene technicians can try to find a match to the color and brand and see who bought some recently.” He picked her suitcase up off the floor and put it on the bed. “I need to take you someplace safe.”

Pensive, she nodded and retrieved her clothing from the drawers and the closet. Once she had everything stowed in the suitcase, he grabbed the bag and urged her out of the room just as the local authorities arrived. He ran down the incident. He didn’t expect them to find prints; the guy had worn gloves. That much Drew had seen.

“Where are we going?” Sami asked minutes later as they settled in his Land Cruiser.

Good question. There was only one safe place he could think of on short notice. “My place.”

THREE

“Are you sure this isn’t an inconvenience?” Sami asked. She didn’t feel right about intruding on his personal life.

“Not at all.”

She followed Drew up the walkway of a well-lit two-story house at the end of a quiet tree-lined street on Vancouver’s east side. Fancy sconces were mounted on either side of the rust-colored front door. The house itself was painted a pale yellow with white trim. Empty window boxes created a lonely feeling in the pit of Sami’s stomach.