Vile (2 page)

As she and Harper exited the building, her fury built until she was scarcely able to contain it. She refused to be a prisoner of this SOB. She would not live in constant fear as he wanted. He relished the terror his victims experienced. It made him stronger.

She would not give him the satisfaction.

Sixth Avenue Flower & Gifts, 12:01 p.m.

Both ends of the block on the street in front the floral shop had been cordoned off. Three BPD cruisers, as well as an ambulance, lined the curb in front of the shop. Dan’s SUV was parked between two of the cruisers. Another car Jess didn’t recognize sat amid the fray.

“What the hell happened here?” Jess shook her head. Harper hadn’t been told any specifics, only the location.

Harper eased to the curb a good distance behind the ambulance. “We’d have more units on site if there’d been a shooting.”

Absolutely. Jess surveyed the official vehicles. “No coroner’s wagon, so I’m assuming we don’t have a body.”

Harper hummed his agreement. “No crime scene unit either. But we have a crowd of curious folks along with your rabid media fans.” He sent Jess a smile that didn’t quite make it to his eyes.

Jess groaned. A dozen or so people waited outside the police perimeter hoping for a chance to see the show. Testing the boundaries of that same perimeter and the patience of the cops vested with the duty of protecting it, reporters and cameramen from the local stations shouted questions and Jess hadn’t even opened her door.

“Lucky me,” she grumbled as she reached for the door handle.

Harper was out of the SUV and at her door before she had it fully open. He shielded her from the crowd as they rounded the vehicle and crossed the sidewalk.

“Were you and Eric Spears lovers?” one of the newshounds shouted.

Standing in the vee made by Harper’s body and the open door to the shop, Jess stalled.

“Ignore him, ma’am.”

It took about five seconds before she could act on Harper’s sage advice, but she managed. When the door closed behind them with a jingle, she dismissed her annoyance with the media to focus on the place and whatever trouble lay within these walls.

Inside, a lone uniform was stationed at the door. Green potted plants and artificial flower arrangements lined the shelves of the shop. Ceramic crosses along with a few angel statues provided other gift options. Behind the counter, an officer was taking the statement of a young woman. Her back was turned to the door and she didn’t bother looking to see who had entered. The officer nodded to Jess, but quickly shifted his attention back to the woman in the white blouse. Apparently, everyone else was in the rear of the shop. There was probably a storeroom and a walk-in cooler for the fresh flowers.

Floral shops always smelled like funerals to Jess. It wasn’t that she didn’t love flowers. She did. Yet there was something about the scents in a floral shop that she would always associate with death. Like the peace lilies she truly disliked. Vivid memories of standing in a shop very much like this one while her Aunt Wanda haggled with the owner for a wreath were forever etched across Jess’s psyche. Their parents had just died and she and Lil were in a daze. Wanda hadn’t been able to afford a decent wreath for her own sister’s funeral.

“This way, Chief.”

Jess hauled her head out of the past and belatedly wondered if they needed shoe covers and gloves.

Evidently, Harper saw the question in her eyes since he added, “No need for shoe covers or gloves. Nothing happened inside the shop.”

That explained everything, she mused. Dan hadn’t given her any details either, but then she had ended the call rather abruptly. “Thank you, Sergeant.”

Harper escorted her across the retail space and through a door that opened into a short corridor. Another door marked “cooler” was to her left. On the right was an employees’ restroom. Beyond those doors, the corridor opened into a storeroom. Shelves packed with floral supplies flanked the large room that appeared to be about twice the size of the front retail space. Dan and two more officers were huddled around a large worktable in the center of the room.

Dan met Jess’s gaze and motioned for her to join them. As she moved closer, Jess could see that one of the officers, a woman, was talking to… a
child
seated on the table.

Jess moved into the huddle. The little girl had long blond hair. She couldn’t have been more than four or five years old. Her cheeks were rosy and her brown eyes looked red from crying. She seemed relatively calm now. A pink dress with a white lacy collar and matching white sandals had Jess picturing her own child at that age. If the baby turned out to be a girl, there would be plenty of lace and pink dresses. Lil would see to that.

Not the time, Jess
.

“Carry on, Officer Rice,” Dan said, drawing Jess’s attention to him. He ushered Jess into the farthest corner of the supply room.

“What’s going on?” This was a crime scene but not really? The area had been cordoned off and cops were everywhere but no crime scene techs and no protective wear. Didn’t make a lot of sense. “Is the woman out front the mother? Where’s the father?”

Dan shook his head. “We don’t know who the parents are. We don’t even know who the child is. She hasn’t said a word.”

Jess frowned, scrubbed at her furrowed forehead with the back of her hand. “Did she just wander into the shop?” If that were the case, there was probably a dead body around here somewhere after all, or a missing person at the very least. Her frown deepened. This wasn’t Spears’s MO. This couldn’t be him. Even as the words filtered through her brain, the knowing look in Dan’s eyes chilled her blood.

“She was waiting on the sidewalk outside,” Dan explained. “The clerk noticed her and went out to see if she was okay. There was a note pinned to her dress.”

Jess didn’t need a crystal ball to predict the rest. “I take it the note was addressed to me.” Outrage rushed through her.

Dan reached into the pocket of his elegant silk suit jacket. No matter that it was hot as blazes outside, the man always dressed impeccably. Even with all that was going on, Jess resisted the urge to smile. He was ever the statesman. The charcoal suit looked good on him. A blue shirt and darker blue tie set off the color of his eyes. From the moment she’d first met Daniel Burnett at seventeen she had been mesmerized by him. He was handsome, charming, and so very kind. How could she have been so fortunate to have him still waiting for her after all this time? His three failed marriages notwithstanding, of course. To be fair, she had a failed marriage of her own.

He passed her the evidence bag. Part of her didn’t want to look. It was easier not to see, but that choice wasn’t hers to make. She accepted the piece of paper enclosed in the plastic evidence bag. She read it twice, the words stealing away the warmth and hope being near Dan always prompted.

Take me to Deputy Chief Jess Harris
.

Jess turned to look at the little girl.
Please don’t let this be a sign that he knows
. If Spears had learned of her pregnancy, he would use that vulnerability against her.

Her second thought was the child’s mother could be the third hostage being held by the monster. The child might very well be the notification he loved providing to rattle the family and friends of his latest victim.

“A representative from Child Services in on the way.”

Dan’s words nudged her from the painful musings. Jess nodded before moving back to the worktable where Officer Rice spoke softly to the child, reassuring her with kind words. Jess took a picture of the little girl with her phone. She stared at Jess but didn’t seem to mind.

“Hello,” Jess said. The little girl looked up at her and Jess smiled. “I’m Deputy Chief Jess Harris. What’s your—”

The little girl abruptly held out her arms toward Jess.

Startled, Jess looked to Dan.

“Excuse me, Chief.”

Jess turned to the officer.

“I think she wants you to pick her up.” Rice shrugged, embarrassed or uncertain if she’d overstepped her bounds. “I have a three year old at home.”

“But I…” Jess hoped she didn’t look as startled by the suggestion as she felt.

“Something about you makes her feel safe,” Rice suggested.

Feeling way out of her comfort zone, Jess’s attention settled on the little girl whose arms were still outstretched. Jess smiled, shifted her bag higher on her shoulder, and tentatively scooped the little girl into her arms. Her small legs went around Jess’s waist, and her little head went against Jess’s shoulder. With the emotional vise that had clamped around her chest, it was all Jess could do to draw in her next breath.

Someone somewhere would be frantically looking for this child.

Unless they were missing… or
dead
.

3

Jess tried three times to hand the little girl over to Officer Rice. The child was having no part of it. Each time Jess attempted to put her down or hand her off, she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Harper stood by stoically, but Jess didn’t miss the amusement glittering in his eyes. Like the officer, Harper had a three year old of his own. Not that his experience was helping in the least little bit right now. Dammit.

Desperate, Jess turned to Dan with a questioning look. He shrugged and reached for the little girl.

She whimpered and held onto Jess more tightly.

Jess sagged with defeat. “Fine. I’ll just hang onto her for now.”

As if the good Lord decided to take pity on Jess, a woman entered the storeroom, the heels of her leather pumps clicking on the tile floor. Before she said a word, her stiff posture and polyester blend suit announced she was from Child Services. Or maybe it was the stern expression.

Considering a woman in her position witnessed all manner of child abuse, who wouldn’t wear some form of armor?

“Lois Wettermark, Jefferson County Child Services investigator.” She looked from Dan to Jess and then to the child. “We still don’t have a name?”

Jess shook her head. “She’s not talking.”

Wettermark walked straight up to Jess and reached for the little girl. The moment Wettermark’s hands landed on her, the child started to wail. The investigator manufactured a smile about as fake as the one Jess had been shoring up all morning. “This sort of reaction isn’t unusual. No need to be concerned, Chief. She’ll be fine. You can let her go now.”

“Okay.” Despite the child’s desperate attempts and the wailing, Jess relinquished her hold on the little girl. Oddly, her entire being felt bereft somehow at the loss. Maybe it was just the little girl’s obvious unhappiness. More likely, it was hormones. If Jess survived the first trimester, she might make it through this pregnancy.

“If someone can bring my car around to the back,” Wettermark suggested, “perhaps I can avoid the prying eyes of the press on our way out.”

“Sergeant, would you see to that, please?” Jess instructed.

“Right away.” Harper took the woman’s keys and headed out.

Jess wished she were going with Harper. The way the little girl looked at her, reached for her was tearing at her heart. Jess scrubbed at her brow again and looked away. Dan appeared as unsettled as she felt. Though she doubted either of them felt as unhappy about this as the little girl did.

Focus, Jess
. “I’d like to interview the clerk when… this is finished.”

Dan nodded.

Wettermark’s efforts to cajole the child continued to fall on deaf ears. Jess hated to stand here and do nothing.

Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore. She walked over to the other woman and reached for the child. The little girl’s wails quieted as she stretched toward Jess, making her heart ache all the harder. “Why don’t I hold her for a minute?”

Wettermark shook her head. “That’ll just make leaving more difficult for her, Chief Harris. It would be best if you went into the other room. You may remind her of someone she knows and that could be upsetting her.”

Jess didn’t see how her presence would be upsetting since the child stopped crying whenever she held her. Then again, she had little or no experience with children. What did she know? Obviously, everyone in the room, except maybe Dan, knew more than she did about the subject. “Well, all right then.”

As wrong as it felt, Jess made her way to the front of the shop. Every step was a monumental exercise in self-control. She didn’t dare glance back. Apparently, she had a lot to learn when it came to children.

If this was any indication of her nurturing side, she was doomed.

“It doesn’t get any easier.”

“Excuse me?” Jess turned to the officer who’d followed her. She hadn’t realized Rice was right on her heels.

“Whenever a child is involved in something like this it’s hard.” She hugged herself as if she felt a sudden chill. “I’ve been a part of dozens of situations where kids are abandoned or left behind after a tragedy, and it doesn’t get any easier.”

“I don’t usually work with children.”
And I’m pregnant
, Jess wanted to shout. Her emotions were untrustworthy. Everything felt personal and too difficult. She was used to analyzing the details of a killer’s work. Her job rarely involved children unless they were missing or deceased. She’d had a case a few weeks ago involving a young boy but not this young. This was uncharted territory on more than one level.

“I’ve been watching you on the news,” Rice said. “Your story is very inspiring. It’s an honor to have the opportunity to work with you.”

The smile Jess managed this time was genuine. “Thank you.”

Maybe Gina Coleman was right when she said the world needed to know the whole story about the past few months. Jess had given that interview over the weekend. For the first time since returning to Birmingham, she’d told someone besides Dan the story of how her life had come to be entangled with a serial killer.

Rice hitched her thumb toward the storeroom and the still wailing little girl. “I’ll just make sure everything’s okay in there.”

Jess gave her a nod and shifted her attention to the clerk. Ellen Gentry sat on a stool behind the counter. She had wrung her hands until Jess was reasonably sure the skin was chapped.