A Killer Among Us Read online

  Melanie met her father’s eyes and opened her mouth for one last plea. “Please, Daddy,” she whispered.

  “Get out of here, girl.”

  Kit pushed her on out the door. Keeping one eye on Virgil, she watched Melanie race down the steps of the porch and across the gravel drive. One of the SWAT members grabbed her and hauled her behind a protective barricade. They would make sure she was physically unharmed, then pump her for any information she could give about her father. Kit’s second would send the information into her ear.

  Kit turned back to Virgil and Anne. Now, it was time to get serious.

  “You think she’s going to be able to talk him down?” Noah asked.

  Chad reached around Charlie to grab his water bottle. “She’s got a good track record. One of the best I’ve seen. If anyone can do it, she can.” He studied the conversation being typed out by Charlie.

  Noah lifted a brow at that. “Really?”

  “Yeah, hadn’t you heard?”

  “No, I missed that tidbit.”

  “Talked a guy into letting his wife and son go her second day on the job as a rookie street cop.”

  “What? Where was the negotiator?”

  “On his way. Kit got there first on the domestic disturbance call—realized the guy was escalating and took charge. When the negotiator finally got there, the hostage taker wouldn’t talk to anyone but Kit. She handled it like a pro and it all ended peacefully.”

  Noah pondered this as he listened to the silence coming from the house. What was she doing now?

  The cell phone next to the computer rang. Chad pressed a button and Kit’s voice filled the van. “I need the DA on the phone.”

  “What?”

  “The district attorney, folks. Get me the DA, please.” A pause. Virgil mumbled something, but Noah missed it. Then Kit. “Virgil’s ready to cut a deal, but he wants some answers.”

  Noah’s lip curled. “Just what kind of answers does this guy think he’s going to get?”

  Chad ignored him as he dialed the number that would put him through to the district attorney’s office. Within two minutes, he had District Attorney Stephen Wells on the other line. Chad’s rapid-fire explanation brought the man up-to-date on the situation.

  His voice filled the van as he promised to be there within ten minutes. “Although, we can’t make a habit out of this. I can’t start showing up and cutting deals for everyone who decides to take a hostage.”

  “Yes sir, we realize that. Nobody’s ever asked for you before. But, I’ll just warn you that the media is here covering this, so if you’d rather not . . .”

  A pause.

  “No, I’ll come.”

  Chad hung up and connected back to Kit. Noah marveled at the man’s proficiency. A professional through and through. A man Noah wouldn’t mind calling partner.

  Not bothering to dwell on what he couldn’t change, he listened to Kit soothe the still agitated man. Watched her on the large screen in the corner. Someone had managed to slide a camera through a vent for video feed. Her blonde curls looked dark and were plastered to her head. Sweat stood out across her forehead. He watched her rub her cheek on a shoulder as Virgil hauled his wife by the hair to the kitchen.

  Kit stayed put, talking softly.

  A knock on the door brought Chad’s attention around even as Charlie’s fingers flew over the keyboard, recording everything said between Kit and Virgil.

  Stephen Wells stepped inside followed by a young man in his early to midtwenties. A clean-cut fellow, his eyes took in the van and the occupants.

  The DA was a smooth-looking man, who no doubt would end up in Congress before too long. From what Noah knew, Stephen also seemed to genuinely care about the little people, the underdog.

  “All right,” he said, “tell me what to do.”

  Noah offered a hand. “Hey Stephen, thanks for coming out.”

  Stephen shook it. “No problem.” He gestured toward the other man. “This is Edward Richmond, my intern.” Noah shook Edward’s hand and the young man gave him a slight smile. “A brilliant kid who gets to follow me all over for the next few weeks. Now, let’s get those women out of there and Virgil behind bars.”

  Noah looked Stephen in the eye. “Are you prepared to say what it takes to make that happen?”

  “You bet.”

  Edward slipped to the side. “I’ll just hang out over here out of the way.”

  Noah nodded his appreciation.

  Chad went to work, filling the DA in on every detail he considered important while his fingers flew expertly over the gadgets in front of him. After about a minute, he said, “Okay, I’m putting you through now. I’ve got you hooked up. Our guy with the gun will only be able to hear you. I’ll be right here coaching you in what to say if you need it. Offer him respect, understanding, compassion—even if you don’t feel it. Can you do that?”

  “Yes.” A short nod accompanied the word.

  “And you feel comfortable using the information I just shared? You remember everything?”

  “Yes.” The man drew in a deep breath and looked as though he were mentally preparing for battle.

  “If you have a question about a name or something, lift your right finger and I’ll switch screens and bring it up for you to read.”

  “I’ve got it.” A hint of impatience.

  “Great. Now, this is the line you’ll use to communicate with Virgil. Can you hear me?”

  “Loud and clear.”

  “All right, you’re through.”

  Stephen cleared his throat, then said, “This is District Attorney Stephen Wells, Mr. Mann. How can I help you, sir?”

  Chad looked at Noah and gave a thumbs-up for the DA. Respect all the way.

  Noah’s stomach curled at the DA’s conciliatory tone, and he suppressed the desire to rush the house and take care of it his way. Beating the guy to a pulp would be so satisfying. But like always, he called on years of self-control and forced himself to be still, to listen.

  Forty-five minutes later, with assurances of the best deal he could do for the man, Virgil’s wife burst from the door. A SWAT member grabbed her in the same manner he’d done the daughter and pulled her to safety.

  The family was out.

  Now it was just the man with the gun—and Kit.

  Noah prayed she was as good as Chad and Charlie seemed to think she was.

  Kit stared at Virgil. Feeling a little light-headed from the heat, she blinked hard. Sweat poured from Virgil’s brow and he gulped heaving gasps of air. The gun wavered.

  “Clear shot, Kit,” came the voice in her ear.

  A tap on her leg told the shooter “No.”

  “All ready, Virgil?” she asked. Please be ready, she pleaded silently.

  “You sure you trust that DA dude?”

  “I’m sure. You fulfilled your part of the deal, he’ll keep his, I promise. Now, lay the gun down.”

  Virgil’s eyes twitched, his hand trembled. He was tired. “I . . . I don’t know. I don’t know if I can go to jail again.”

  Kit’s stomach twisted. “Virgil, we had a deal. Have I broken any promises I’ve made to you today?”

  “No. No, you haven’t. But not all cops are like you. What if they lied?”

  “Nobody lied to you, Virgil. Now put the gun on the floor, okay?”

  “I can’t. I don’t . . . What if . . .” Again his Adam’s apple bobbed, but the gun lowered. Sweat dripped into his eye and he lifted his gun hand.

  Bright red blossomed from the center of his forehead.

  As though in slow motion, Kit watched his eyes flutter in surprise, swore she saw a flash of wounded betrayal, then they blanked as he dropped to the floor.

  4

  The door to the trailer ruptured open as Kit flew out. “Brian!”

  Noah exited the van to intercept her. “Kit.”

  She ignored him. The fury on her face sent chills through him.

  Her eyes roved until they lit upon the SWAT member stretched o
ut on top of the van. She raced for the ladder and grasped each rung with a slap that brought her to the top in a flash. “Are you crazy?” she screamed. “Why did you shoot? I signaled for you to stand down!”

  Noah hastened up the ladder, not so much worried about Kit as the damage she might do to Brian.

  And the fact that the dead man’s daughter had broken away from her mother to race to the now silent trailer.

  Torn between wanting to go after the girl and rescue Brian, Noah motioned for one of the other SWAT members to go after her. Then Noah turned to watch the action before him.

  “He raised his gun, he was going for you!” Brian yelled back.

  “He was not! I’d talked him down. He was going to place the gun on the floor.” Fists clenched by her sides, she glared daggers at the man.

  “Kit . . .”

  She whirled. “Stay out of this, Noah.”

  He held up his hands in the gesture of surrender. Back to Brian, she hissed, “You didn’t have to shoot.”

  Then she did a one-eighty, shoved past Noah, and made her way back down the ladder. He saw the subtle tremble in the fingers that gripped the rail.

  He shot a look at Brian. The man stared down at Kit, his fury almost matching hers. Then he brought his gaze back up to Noah. “I couldn’t let him shoot her.”

  “Yeah. I know.”

  Something else flickered in his gaze and he looked away.

  Noah stared at Brian.“You care about her as more than a professional, don’t you?”

  Guilt flashed for a nanosecond, then the man shoved his rifle into the case. “He was raising his gun, man, not lowering it. My feelings don’t matter.”

  Noah hesitated, then shook his head. “Yeah. Just tell it like you saw it.”

  “He raised it, I swear.”

  “I wasn’t there, I don’t know. Like I said, just tell it straight in the debrief and everything will be fine.”

  Brian blew out a sigh and scrubbed a hand down the side of his face. “Right.”

  Noah climbed down and went to find Kit, trying to make up his mind whether to wait and let her cool off or approach her while she was still all emotional. With his last partner, he knew how to handle her. At least for the most part.

  With Kit . . . not so much.

  “Why did he shoot him?”

  The tearful question came from his left. He spun and saw Melanie. Blood covered her hands. Grief twisted her young features and Noah felt his compassion level register off the charts. She hadn’t deserved any of this.

  Before he could answer, Melanie’s mother pulled the girl into her arms and led her away.

  Which left him to deal with Kit.

  He pictured putting his arms around her and letting her have a good cry on his shoulder. Slamming the brakes on that line of thought, he stepped back into the van where he found her talking to the DA and his intern.

  “You did a great job, Kit,” Stephen offered.

  “Fat lot of good that did Virgil.” Suppressed fury made her words tight, forced out between stiff lips.

  “That’s a shame, Detective. Your shooter should have trusted you.” This came from the intern.

  Kit shot him a grateful look and swallowed. “Finally, someone with some common sense. Too bad you weren’t there to help Brian do his job right.”

  The intern flushed. A small smile played around the corners of his lips before he raised his fingers to cover it.

  “Kit . . .” Noah placed a hand on her arm, and she dropped her chin to her chest as she sucked in a deep breath. Noah’s fingers tingled at the feel of her bare skin under his and he gave a slight jerk in surprise.

  A curse sounded from behind him and they all turned as one to see Brian standing there, listening in on the conversation.

  Regret sliced across her face. “Brian, I’m—” Noah watched her face harden as she cut herself off. He knew what she was thinking. She wouldn’t say she was sorry. She believed Brian was wrong. He’d killed a man against her orders.

  With a defeated sigh and one last look at Brian that was a cross between a glare and an apology, Kit opened the door and left. Once again, Noah followed, wondering if this was going to be a pattern. He took a deep breath and hoped Kit cooled off fast. They had a case to discuss.

  Three hours later, Kit slammed her locker. The debrief had gone the way she thought it might. Everyone agreed Brian had done what he needed to do to keep her safe.

  Everyone except her, that is. A knock on the door made her jump. “Yeah?”

  His voice came through the cracked door. “Kit, you decent? Ready to discuss this case?”

  Noah. She pulled her tank top over her head and walked over to the door. Swinging it open the rest of the way, she looked up into her partner’s tired eyes and wondered if hers reflected the same fatigue. “Hey.” A glance at her watch nearly made her groan, but she nodded. “Sure.”

  “Come on, let’s grab a bite to eat while we discuss.”

  Relief flooded her. She was starved. “Great. Let me just grab my purse.”

  She snatched it from the bench and met Noah just outside the glass doors. “I snapped at you today. I’m sorry.” Surprise shot his brows north and Kit flushed. “What, you didn’t think I knew I needed to apologize?”

  “Oh, I knew you knew, I just didn’t know if you would do anything about it.”

  His snappy comeback had her sputtering. Then laughing. He grinned and she shook a finger at him. “Okay, you got me.” Then she sobered. “But Brian didn’t need to kill that man and I’ll never be convinced otherwise.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  She shrugged. “I suppose I need to apologize to him too. Not for biting his head off about shooting Virgil, but just . . . in general maybe. I don’t know.” Noah stayed quiet and she grimaced. “He thought he was doing the right thing . . . at least I hope so. We all make mistakes, I guess.” She ground her molars, then sighed. “I’ve just got to put it behind me. It’s the only way to move on.”

  “Been there.”

  His soft look of understanding made her stomach jump in surprise—and her toes curl with attraction. Hello? She mentally smacked herself. What was she doing? Feeling?

  Not that.

  Attraction between partners didn’t mix. But this was the first time they’d laughed together and it felt good.

  Too good. “Yeah, I’m sure you have.” She swallowed hard and changed the subject. “So, what’s to eat around here?”

  Noah led the way down the hall. “We’ve got some good choices. The hospital cafeteria is within walking distance. And so is Flannigan’s. It’s just around the corner.”

  “I’ve heard about Flannigan’s. Let’s go there.” Her sisters, Jamie and Samantha, had mentioned the restaurant, but Kit had yet to eat there.

  “Flannigan’s it is then.” Noah pushed open the double glass doors and they stepped out onto the sidewalk.

  Kit gasped as the heat sucked the air from her lungs. “I’ll never get used to this heat. I mean, it got hot in Raleigh, but somehow, it just feels hotter here.”

  “How did you stand it in that trailer earlier?”

  Kit thought about that. “I don’t know. I was hot and sweating like crazy, but I guess it didn’t register. I didn’t think about it. All of my senses were focused on Virgil and his family. Everything else just kind of wasn’t important.”

  Sadness flickered through her at the reminder.

  Then they were there. Noah opened the door and she slipped ahead of him into the restaurant’s blessedly cool interior.

  Once seated, Kit ordered a double cheeseburger, large fries, and a milkshake.

  Noah stared at her.

  “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

  “I just realized we haven’t eaten many meals together. I figured you for a salad and smoothie kind of girl.”

  Kit laughed. “I like those too, but after my day I need something a little more fortifying. I want grease, fat, and carbs—and a lot of ’em.”
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  He shook his head. “Looks like I’ve got a lot to learn about you.”

  She let the smile slide south. “Oh, there’s not so much to learn.”

  Shrewd eyes narrowed. “Hm. Somehow I doubt that.”

  Once again, she felt a flush rising to the surface and counteracted it by asking, “Okay, I have a question I haven’t asked yet, but I think now’s the time.”

  “Shoot.”

  “What do you have against female cops?”

  Noah sputtered, nearly choking on the sip of tea he’d just taken. Grabbing a napkin, he wiped his mouth and looked into knowing brown eyes. “Excuse me?”

  “You didn’t like me from the get-go. I thought now might be a good time to find out why.”

  Observant and pretty. Great. “Uh, yeah. I mean, no.”

  A tilt to her head brought her blonde ponytail swinging around. Her eyes stayed glued on his, nailing him for an honest answer.

  With a sigh, Noah leaned back and looked out the window, then back at her. “Look, it’s not you. I had a female partner once. It didn’t work out so well.”

  “What happened?”

  “She was killed.”

  Kit’s brows slammed together. “How?”

  “On a case.”

  No judgment on her face. “Okay. So, what happened?”

  “She made a dumb decision and paid for it.”

  “Where were you?”

  He scanned her expression for any condemnation. None yet. “I was there.”

  “Doing what?”

  Noah wanted to groan. “You’re like a dog with a bone, aren’t you?”

  “Yeah, a pit bull. So, what were you doing?”

  Surrendering to the inevitable, he propped his elbows on the table and rubbed his eyes, buying time, trying to think. Finally, he said, “There’d been a kidnapping. A five-year-old kid. We’d gotten a tip saying the child was being held in an old abandoned house on Spring Street. My partner and I were the closest ones available, so we headed over there immediately to check it out. Backup was on the way, but we got there pretty quick.”

  Kit’s brow furrowed. “Seems like I heard something about this. Your partner ran in without waiting on backup?”