Serial Games (Virginia Justice Book One) (17 page)

Maggie let the hot water flow over her skin. She didn’t want to think about what an ordeal the day promised to be. The estimated number of people to attend the day’s events numbered well into the thousands. The height of the Civil War reenactments would be performed, which would have a lot of agents spread thin across a significant amount of land. Finding Burrows would literally be the proverbial needle in a haystack.

When Maggie entered command and control, she sought out Brandon and found him in conversation with another deputy she recognized from the night shift. Apparently, it had been another uneventful night, or she would have gotten a call. Maggie squelched the disappointment and reminded herself that today was another day, and another opportunity to catch a killer.

As she slowly walked across the room toward Brandon, her lips fought a smile. Brandon had opened up to her the other day. Ever since, their conversations were not just professional, but pleasant. Even though they shared an unspoken agreement to remain professional, her feminine ego wouldn’t be satisfied until she knew more…had more. She knew what propelled him into the fugitive recovery business — an attack on a dear friend. Who was this friend? Was he or she okay? Why did he continue to hold on to his anger?

“Good morning.” The smile won out, and she couldn’t help sounding as bright as she felt.

Brandon turned his gaze to her, but instead of returning the greeting, he finished what he was saying to the other marshal and handed her a packet. “Here’s the list of cell phone numbers, call signs, and positions my team will be in today. Also, you’ll find some references concerning the Culpeper police and the sheriff’s department. A map of the fair layout includes the locations of the Civil War battlefield sites and where the reenactments will take place. I’m about to go brief the force on Burrows. Is there anything you want me to emphasize?”

Maggie clenched a fist and bit her tongue. She refused to allow the unexpected wave of frustration to suffocate her good mood…a terrific mood he had caused. She was wrong about the tone of his earlier text. It wasn’t playful at all. What had changed since last night?

Yesterday evening, after most of the fair participants had packed away their goods for the night, Brandon and Maggie walked around the Burrows property near the edge of the woods. The marshals conducted a grid-pattern search of the woods surrounding the residence the first day Brandon arrived in the area. The woods appeared undisturbed, but Maggie was confident Burrows remained in the area.

Then later in the evening, they conducted more surveillance. At first, Brandon resisted her attempts at conversation, but later relented. Maggie discovered a wounded heart and possibly spirit as well. A part of her pitied him. For the last five years, he could find no happiness in life; he constantly chased criminals and the next case needed to be more exciting than the last…like an addict. Maggie’s heart went out to him, but his moods left her female ego bruised.

“Um, I don’t think so. Nothing has changed. If there is anything to emphasize, it’s the picture of his mother. Have the officers focus on women who resemble her, as they will be the most likely targets.”

“Fine. I’ll meet you at the corner of Main Street and Davis at noon.”

“Fine.” She watched him walk away quickly. He called someone over and they left together.

Maggie heaved a few breaths and then let out a frustrated groan.

“It isn’t you. It’s him.”

Bernie stood beside her. “Bernie, sometimes I don’t know how to prepare. His moods are so unpredictable.” Maggie dragged a hand through her hair. “I thought yesterday we had made some progress on, well, our communication. The other night during our surveillance, he opened up a little about why he joined the Marshals. He said a friend — or someone he knew — had been attacked. Those flashes of anger and the walls he puts up have me worried.”

Bernie gave her a friendly smile and picked up a box of radio equipment. “Grab that other box of batteries and follow me outside, will you? I’ll clue you in.”

The skin on her forearms raised in expectant goose bumps. They stepped out of a back exit and Bernie popped the trunk of a Dodge Charger. He placed his box down inside the trunk and turned to receive Maggie’s.

“I know Brandon’s behavior with you has been a little inconsistent.” Bernie closed the trunk and leaned against it. He folded his arms across his chest. He sighed and then gave her a sad smile. “I want you to know his moods have nothing to do with you. At least, not directly.”

Maggie rubbed the skin on her arms. “I don’t know, Bernie. At first I thought I did, and then I didn’t, and now…” She threw her hands up, exasperated.

Bernie chuckled softly.

Maggie smiled in return. “I’m sorry. I know I sound like I’m all over the place, but—”

“But so is Brandon.”

Maggie nodded.

“Brandon was engaged once.”

Engaged!
So it wasn’t just about his friend who was attacked. A woman had hurt him.
I should have known
. There were times she was sure of his interest in her, times they had clicked but he wouldn’t let her in. He saw her as someone who could hurt him, and he refused to know any more pain.

Maggie asked after silence had settled between them, “So, she hurt him? You know I always thought it might have been because of a woman—”

“She was murdered.”

Maggie gasped. A chill swept through her and caused her to tremble. She moved toward him and leaned against the vehicle. “Murdered? What…what happened?”

Bernie raised his eyes heavenward and sighed. “She was walking home and a petty street thug snatched her purse. She had it wrapped well around her arm so when he pulled, she went with it. We supposed the guy thought she was fighting back and he pulled a knife. She bled out right there on the sidewalk.”

“Oh, no. Oh, Bernie.” Maggie placed a hand on his arm.

“She had her phone in her hand so she was able to call the police, and afterward she phoned Brandon.” Bernie’s sullen gaze held hers. “She died while on the phone with him.”

Maggie closed her eyes. Her heart shuddered and she shook from the anguish she knew Brandon must have felt as he heard the woman he loved fade away. How could a man overcome such a tragedy? “So, that’s why he’s so…” She let her voice trail. Brandon wouldn’t let his heart open again.

Bernie nodded. “I knew Emily, his fiancée, for years and Brandon for much longer. Emily’s death was a hard blow to him. He couldn’t understand why God took her. He just never reconciled himself to the fact that sometimes we can’t understand why the people we love are taken away before we think it’s their time. Instead of fighting through the grief, he’s allowed his anger to fester. It has alienated most of his friends, and his family. His father is a pastor, and it pains him he can’t reach his own son.”

Maggie didn’t respond. She had never known the sorrow Brandon continued to live. She hoped if she ever did experience a loss as deep as Brandon’s, she wouldn’t shut out her family. Her thoughts drifted to Emily. “The cross Brandon wears…was it hers?”

Bernie nodded. “She was wearing it when she died. Brandon never takes it off. I suppose it’s so he never forgets.”

Maggie frowned as she recalled how often he actually fingered the cross. He would never forget, but he would also never get past the grief.

“Was she, um…” Maggie couldn’t quite articulate the words.

Bernie’s keen gaze studied her. “Yes, she was very beautiful.”

Maggie nodded and bit her lip.

“I know what you’re thinking, and I wouldn’t worry about it.”

Maggie’s head came up. She straightened her shoulders. “Worry about what?”

Bernie laughed. “Whether or not you measure up.”

Maggie’s jaw slacked. She really must practice her poker face. “Bernie, I don’t think—”

“Truth is, you’re not Brandon’s type.”

Maggie’s head jerked as if she’d been slapped. “Really?” Maggie pondered a few moments about Brandon’s “type.” “He gave me the impression I was,” she muttered half to herself, half to defend her own ego.

“What?” Bernie’s eyes narrowed.

“Nothing.” Maggie dipped her head. If only Brandon’s kiss had meant nothing.

Bernie threw back his head and laughed. “No, I mean personality-wise. You and Emily couldn’t be more opposite.”

Maggie blinked rapidly. “Opposites?”

Bernie straightened and walked slowly back to the hotel, and Maggie followed. “She was quite bold, aggressive, with a very fiery temper. I suppose Brandon was always attracted to someone who challenged him. You’re much different.” He looked back and studied her with a critical eye. “More reserved. Cool and collected.”

Maggie smarted. “I can be aggressive,” she mumbled.

Hearing her, Bernie laughed. “I didn’t mean your nature is in any way less attractive, just it’s interesting he has taken notice of you, let alone any woman.” Bernie turned back to her before he entered the building. He smiled again. “He always said there would never be anyone else after Emily, and here he is completely undone by you.”

Undone? Completely? “What do you mean?” Maggie knew what he meant in theory, but to hear the words…

“His moods. Part of him feels he’s betraying Emily’s memory by even thinking of another woman, and the other part—” Bernie stopped and smiled knowingly. “The other part can’t stop thinking of you.”

Maggie flushed fire. “I’m not his type, right?”

Bernie’s eyes twinkled. “Well, he did always prefer blondes.”

Maggie rolled her eyes.

Bernie chuckled. “Who’s to say who our soul’s types are? If you are someone’s match, you’re their match.”

Maggie didn’t know where to look. Her cheeks still burned as Bernie’s words soaked in. How a man knew which woman was his missing rib, and how a woman knew she belonged to the man always left Maggie curious. Men and women were drawn to each other like magnets, and those whose love was true possessed an unbreakable force. But Brandon was fighting hard — and Maggie could do nothing about it.

Maggie sighed wearily. At least she knew the reason behind his moods now, and why he snapped at the woman who thought they were married. He would be married if Emily had lived; perhaps they would’ve had children. Maggie imagined he relived Emily’s last moments every time someone reminded him of what he’d lost. Brandon’s anger wouldn’t allow his pain to heal, nor permit him to move on in another relationship. Until he resolved his anger, Maggie would fight to keep her own distance.

“Let’s get to the fair.” Maggie moved past Bernie and into the hotel. She refused to dwell on someone whose heart clearly belonged to another woman.

****

Maggie stood at the corner of Main and Davis. Normally a very busy two-lane street, Main was shut down to allow pedestrians to roam freely, and daily traffic had been re-routed to the surrounding east and west streets. She scanned the crowd for Brandon but didn’t see him. All around her, residents and visitors milled about and looked at the various displays. Down the street from Maggie and across from the courthouse, the fire station had one of the trucks parked outside. Firemen gave tours of the large red engine to eager children who climbed up and down the massive vehicle. To the left of Maggie, owners of specialty shops stood outside and oversaw tables of their finest goods. Maggie hesitated to move. She agreed to meet Brandon at this spot, but she’d been standing here for twenty minutes and started to look out of place. Maggie glanced at her watch before she moved into the current.

Burrows’s mother had been a lovely woman. A dated photo of her reminded Maggie of old Hollywood elegance. Blonde hair, light eyes, and high cheekbones; she mirrored Grace Kelly, as did all of Burrows’s victims. Since Maggie had arrived, the handful of local residents Maggie’s team had deduced would be high on Burrows’s list of targets still went about their daily routines with nothing strange to report. Agents assigned to their protective details tailed them during the day’s events, while extra agents from the Richmond office conducted surveillance of the entire fair. She deftly fingered her earpiece and heard slight static. If she needed anything, another agent was sure to be nearby.

A wisp of blonde hair caught Maggie’s attention. She strained her neck to look past the many short-haired, dark-haired people who blocked her path. The head returned into view. The woman stopped at a local vendor’s table. Maggie casually walked forward, and when the crowd thinned, she could see the woman possessed a curvier stature. The lady turned and the wrinkles on her face betrayed advanced years.

Maggie let out a quick breath and about-faced directly into Brandon.

“I thought we agreed to meet at the corner.” His eyes mirrored a thunderstorm.

Maggie changed course, and crossed the street. “I was there. But I can’t wait forever.” Maggie pulled her lips in and tried to still the rapid pulses of her heart. After Bernie’s earlier admission, Maggie had spent every moment she could focused on any task, no matter how trivial. She pledged not to allow Brandon to toy with her emotions any longer. “Besides, I needed to fit in. I wasn’t far away.” Maggie looked back to gauge his response. His eyes were downcast, lips in a slight frown. Perhaps he’d read her emotional frustration with him in her subtle rebuke. She stopped and waited for him to approach. “Is something wrong?”

He looked up and stared at her for a few moments. Then his expression hardened, his gray eyes still storming. “No. Let’s keep moving.” This time, he moved past her.

Maggie fell into step with him and kept her eyes on the throng. In the distance, the soft boom of a cannon could be heard over the crowd. The reenactment of the Battle of Brandywine had begun. Growing up in Virginia, Maggie had toured several of the Civil War battlefields and famous sites around Richmond and northern Virginia. The reenactments fascinated her and Maggie pitied not being able to enjoy them today.

After an hour of fighting the heat from the sun, Brandon and Maggie ducked underneath the overhang of a burger and ice cream shop. Brandon walked in to purchase two lemonades while Maggie kept her eyes glued to the crowd. A voice in her ear piqued her attention. Someone radioed Brandon, and gave a negative status update. Maggie blew out a breath, her nerves fraught with tension and anticipation. “What’s going on?”