with that. I’ll see you in the morning,” said Grey, ending the call.
“Chief Hill from the Sugarloaf Police Department would like to stop by and see Kate in the morning. He was one of the first responders at the villa. Would you and your family mind?”
“No, of course not,” replied Abby.
“The chief and I are going to spend some time together tomorrow talking about the case. I may not be back before my flight home.”
Abby stood, walked over to Grey, and took his hand in hers. The gesture surprised him, and he looked down at her fingers wrapped around his. He raised his eyes to hers when she spoke. “I want you to promise me you’ll come back as soon as possible. If she wakes up, I want you to be here when I have to tell her.”
“I promise I’ll try, Abby.”
14
The Boot
CHIEF TONY HILL SAT QUIETLY behind the wheel as Grey typed a message on his phone. Today was the first time Chief had seen Kate since the day of the attack. When the medics had passed him with Kate on the stretcher at the villa, her face was covered by trauma dressings. In her hospital room, the dressings had been removed and the full impact of the damage was startling. Grey finished his message and noticed the car was running, but Chief Hill hadn’t put it in gear.
“It’s hard to believe she survived,” said Grey, reading his thoughts. “But you’ll learn soon enough she’s as tough as they come.”
“I’ve been a cop for a long time, Grey. I’ve seen some pretty horrific things in my time, but this one I can’t shake. I’ll do whatever it takes to find the sonofabitch who did this.”
Chief Hill handed Grey a thick folder. It contained photos and reports from the motel where Gregory Kirsk was found dead. “How did you…never mind.”
“Thanks for not asking,” said Chief Hill. “You can keep that. They’re all copies.”
Grey flipped through a few of the photographs until he saw one that piqued his interest. It was the photo of Kate and Caleb’s fingers in the music box. “Did they find her wedding ring?”
“No, they didn’t,” answered Chief. “But I figured we’d hit a few of the pawn shops along the route he took to the motel.”
“Don’t bother,” said Grey. “We won’t find it in a pawn shop.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because the unsub still has it.”
“Unkown subject, right?”
“You do pay attention to me,” said Grey.
“Only when I’m interested,” said Chief Hill with a smile.
“He took it as a trophy,” explained Grey. “He wanted us to believe the fingers were the real trophies. So when they were found with Kirsk, it would guarantee he’d fit the profile. Throw in the murder weapons, Taser, and bloody trooper uniform, and they have everything they need to close the case.”
“Everything but the guy who did it,” said Chief Hill.
“What I don’t get is why it’s so hard convincing everyone else.” said Grey.
“Tourism,” said Chief Hill. “Plain and fucking simple. Tourism.”
“So the faster Sheriff Doyle closes the case, the faster the fat wallets return to the beaches,” said Grey. “What a dick.”
“He has his moments, that’s for sure,” said Chief Hill. “But I have to give credit where it’s due. He’s not the only one looking to put this thing in the rearview mirror. He’s as much of a puppet as I am. The only difference is, the people pulling his strings can end all of our careers. Sheriff Doyle is an effective cop. If he wasn’t under their thumbs, he’d be in the car with us right now.”
“You know him that well?” asked Grey.
“Yeah, I do. But that doesn’t mean he’ll cut me any slack when he finds out what I’m doing.”
“What are you doing, Chief?”
“Not giving a shit anymore.”
“I can respect that,” said Grey. “I do, but I need you to at least act like you give a shit. You get yourself pinched for running around with me and we’re both done with this case. What you’ve given me so far is
“Chief Hill from the Sugarloaf Police Department would like to stop by and see Kate in the morning. He was one of the first responders at the villa. Would you and your family mind?”
“No, of course not,” replied Abby.
“The chief and I are going to spend some time together tomorrow talking about the case. I may not be back before my flight home.”
Abby stood, walked over to Grey, and took his hand in hers. The gesture surprised him, and he looked down at her fingers wrapped around his. He raised his eyes to hers when she spoke. “I want you to promise me you’ll come back as soon as possible. If she wakes up, I want you to be here when I have to tell her.”
“I promise I’ll try, Abby.”
14
The Boot
CHIEF TONY HILL SAT QUIETLY behind the wheel as Grey typed a message on his phone. Today was the first time Chief had seen Kate since the day of the attack. When the medics had passed him with Kate on the stretcher at the villa, her face was covered by trauma dressings. In her hospital room, the dressings had been removed and the full impact of the damage was startling. Grey finished his message and noticed the car was running, but Chief Hill hadn’t put it in gear.
“It’s hard to believe she survived,” said Grey, reading his thoughts. “But you’ll learn soon enough she’s as tough as they come.”
“I’ve been a cop for a long time, Grey. I’ve seen some pretty horrific things in my time, but this one I can’t shake. I’ll do whatever it takes to find the sonofabitch who did this.”
Chief Hill handed Grey a thick folder. It contained photos and reports from the motel where Gregory Kirsk was found dead. “How did you…never mind.”
“Thanks for not asking,” said Chief Hill. “You can keep that. They’re all copies.”
Grey flipped through a few of the photographs until he saw one that piqued his interest. It was the photo of Kate and Caleb’s fingers in the music box. “Did they find her wedding ring?”
“No, they didn’t,” answered Chief. “But I figured we’d hit a few of the pawn shops along the route he took to the motel.”
“Don’t bother,” said Grey. “We won’t find it in a pawn shop.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because the unsub still has it.”
“Unkown subject, right?”
“You do pay attention to me,” said Grey.
“Only when I’m interested,” said Chief Hill with a smile.
“He took it as a trophy,” explained Grey. “He wanted us to believe the fingers were the real trophies. So when they were found with Kirsk, it would guarantee he’d fit the profile. Throw in the murder weapons, Taser, and bloody trooper uniform, and they have everything they need to close the case.”
“Everything but the guy who did it,” said Chief Hill.
“What I don’t get is why it’s so hard convincing everyone else.” said Grey.
“Tourism,” said Chief Hill. “Plain and fucking simple. Tourism.”
“So the faster Sheriff Doyle closes the case, the faster the fat wallets return to the beaches,” said Grey. “What a dick.”
“He has his moments, that’s for sure,” said Chief Hill. “But I have to give credit where it’s due. He’s not the only one looking to put this thing in the rearview mirror. He’s as much of a puppet as I am. The only difference is, the people pulling his strings can end all of our careers. Sheriff Doyle is an effective cop. If he wasn’t under their thumbs, he’d be in the car with us right now.”
“You know him that well?” asked Grey.
“Yeah, I do. But that doesn’t mean he’ll cut me any slack when he finds out what I’m doing.”
“What are you doing, Chief?”
“Not giving a shit anymore.”
“I can respect that,” said Grey. “I do, but I need you to at least act like you give a shit. You get yourself pinched for running around with me and we’re both done with this case. What you’ve given me so far is
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