Redemption is Here (An FBI/Romance Thriller Book 9) (51 page)

He was going to lose Jaxon.

“I see. What’s your plan?” he asked, trying to remain calm.

Jaxon waited for him to say anything else like, ‘
you can’t go. We just found each other’
, or ‘
you have to stay’
, but he didn't. Her heart dropped in her chest.

Yes, she knew it was only one night together, but she’d felt something.

Obviously, he hadn’t.

Her heart actually hurt.

So, this was part of having a boyfriend. Now, she wasn’t sorry she’d never experienced it before.

“I’ll finish this job up, but when I go back to Quantico, I think I’m going to resign.”

He bit his tongue, knowing he had no right to demand she stay. In fact, he almost wanted to offer her a place to live in his home. There were plenty of universities and jobs nearby.

Then
, it was clear. She was going to run, and he was helpless to stop it.

“I’ll call Elizabeth and see what she wants us to do,” he said, releasing her hand. If he stayed, Tony knew he’d beg.

In fact, he’d crawl after her.

“Okay, Tony,” she said, watching him leave. Jaxon wanted to cry. Rolling onto her side, she thought about her brother’s advice.

Suddenly, spending half her day among the living didn't seem all it was cracked up to be.

At least with the dead, they didn't break your heart.

             
                  *     *     *

Once they entered the hidden space, they found a bunch of battery operated lights. One by one, they were turned on until the entire area was illuminated.

“Holy hell!” muttered Callen, looking around.

The place was creepy. In the shadowy area, there were bottles upon bottles of frankincense lining the shelves. Staring down at the floor, there were dried brown stains.

Blood.

“Well, we definitely found his workshop,” stated Elizabeth, looking around.

“I think it looks more like a mad scientist’s laboratory,” added Callen. “Some sick, twisted, screwed up nutjob.”

Ethan felt the need to warn them. “He’s going to be pissed about this,” he stated. “We’ve desecrated his workspace. He didn't kill Jaxon for a reason. Whether it be because he didn't have time, or God didn't tell him to, this is going to put him right over the edge.”

All around them, there were religious icons watching them, from statues of the Blessed Mother, to ones of a crucified Jesus. They all faced the metal table in the middle of the space.

“Exactly how unhinged is this going to make him, Ethan? Are we talking about him randomly killing people out of anger, or following up with his plan?”

“He won’t deviate much from his methods, but le
t’s just say that I want to pack you up and send you home. We’d be right behind you.”

“
So the mummification will continue?”

Callen wanted to be sick. Yeah, he really freaking hated Devil’s Lake.

“Most likely. He’ll stick with how he kills, but who he takes might be escalated. We may be playing a whole new game. He was sticking to sins before, but this could push him over the edge. We just walked into his ‘home’ and took his most cherished possessions. We have his Jesus, Mary, and all his tools,” he said, pointing toward the shelf. “And we found his safe place.”

Elizabeth began weighing it all in his mind.

“We don’t have much time, Lyzee. Think of this as a tit for tat game. He killed, we found his hole, and now…”

She glanced up at the men in her life. “You aren’t to leave my side. I’m going to have the team double up. They’ll be safe in the hotel, and Tony is with Jaxon, but neither of you are to wander away.”

They started laughing.

“Us?” asked Ethan.

She wasn’t even messing around with this one. “Listen. If he’s watching us, he knows who’s running it. In fact, I want Callen out of that suit and back into normal clothes. You’re not to draw attention to yourselves.”

“And you?” Callen asked, getting angry. “Will you be wearing the bull’s-eye, Lyzee?”

“Fuck no! But if I am, you two have to watch my back. I need to get the interviews done today, and we have to move on.”

Callen tried to breath. When Ethan put his hand on his shoulder, it offered him reassurance.

“Okay, so, we found his base. What’s he going to do now, Cowboy?” she asked, hoping he could give her something.

Ethan focused on the surroundings. “He’s going to find a new place. He won’t come back, because he’s smart enough to know
it’s been compromised.”

“Where would he go?”

“It’ll have to be private and secluded. He won’t risk getting caught. This is his mission from God. I don’t know how he found this place, but he’s going to want to go somewhere peaceful. His primary mission is going to be to carry on.”

“Could he use his own home?”

Ethan thought about it. “It’s going to depend on how far he is into this fantasy of his. In his mind, he really must believe he’s one of God’s angels. Look at the location. He’s bringing justice and death in the midst of the cemetery. The glass windows tell the story of one of God’s fallen.”

Callen spoke up, “The one tile had the hand of god. It was his right hand. He’s doing God’s work and thinks he’s pretty high up there on the Almighty’s list.”

She closed her eyes. “Tonight, I need the whiteboard. I’m going to have to start piecing this together.”

Ethan would try and help her.

“How much danger is Jaxon in?” she asked.

“I think that’s going to depend on how much he thinks she saw. If he believed that she was out cold, she might have a fighting chance. In his mind, if he even believes that she may be able to ruin his plan, he’s going to make an attempt at her.”

“Shit,” she muttered.

“You know
that Tony can’t defend her, right? He’s just an anthropologist,” Ethan said. When it came to their doctors, none were really adept in the defense department.

Elizabeth was torn. If she placed one of the men in her life over with them, she was painting the bull’s-eye on them now too. Then again, it was possible Jaxon wasn’t the target, she was.

Shit!

Shit!

Shit!

This was one hell of a mess.

“One of you is going to have to play watch dog. At night, someone needs to go over there and play babysitter. I can go, if you both want.” Yeah, she knew the response that was going to get. It wasn’t going to be pretty either.

“I’ll go,” Ethan offered.

“No, I’ll go,” stated Callen.

“How about you switch it up?” she offered. “Tony may not like someone crashing there, but what choice does he have?”

“I’ll take tonight,” stated Callen. “I’m a little better at keeping people at ease. Tony will need a dose of humor. Besides, Ethan has to do the profile for you. Just send me the abridged version, and I’ll catch up.”

Ethan was appreciative of his brother’s sacrifice. His willingness was one of the reasons they could share Elizabeth. Each man had her well-being in mind, not their own.

“Why do you look confused, Elizabeth?” asked Blackhawk. The look on her face was troubling.

“There is something that’s driving me absolutely insane, and I can’t quite put my finger on it,” she said.

“Talk it out. It might help you,” he offered.

“Okay
. So, he hits Jaxon on the back of the skull. She said she fell, and from the blood trace we know where. Then, he opens the marble top and pushed her down the steps.”

They were with her so far.

“He closes her in and escapes, but then how did he get back in here to tie her up? There was no way he would risk getting caught.”

“You’ve got a point. He’s a watcher. It would mean that he would want to do the deed and escape. Dragging her all the way over here
to tie her up would take time. The lid would be open. If he watched her come in, then he knew Tony wasn’t far behind.”

“I questioned the grounds crew. They didn't notice anyone, but they weren’t exactly looking for someone.
They work in a cemetery. People mill around all the time, and they may not be focused on one person.”

“
So, he came back?” she asked, not seeing how it was possible.

“Maybe he did,” Callen offered. “Tony was in a panic
. When we pulled up, he was running around like a madman, screaming for her.”

Ethan saw where she was taking it. “If he came back, he had to open the lid and
go back down.”

“I can see him opening it, but would he have time to hit the tiles in the right order to close it, then race into the closing space? That would have to be done pretty damn fast. The top opened quickly, and I’m guessing it would have closed
at the same speed too.”

Callen saw where they were heading with it.
“If he closed the lid and tied her up, then he would have to hide.”

All three of them stared at each other
, and then their surroundings. If the killer was down there, he wouldn’t have had time to escape.

Immediately, they pulled their guns. There were enough dark corners
to bed down in and lay low.

“Ethan, get the techs out of here,” she whispered, motioning toward Callen to follow her.

He didn't hesitate. In fact, he moved so close to her side, she barely could move.

E
lizabeth gave him a look.

From her peripheral, she could see Ethan moving
toward the other side of the enclosed space. The room had to be build hundreds of years ago.

“How old is Saint Mary’s?” she asked.

Callen wasn’t going to pull out his phone and check. He was too busy keeping her safe. If anyone were to jump out, he was going to put his body between them and Elizabeth.

“Old,” stated Ethan. “I think there was a stone on the front of the
church. Maybe it said the early eighteen hundreds?”

“So that means this cemetery is
just as old, if not older. What if there’s some secret hiding spot down here?” she asked.

Ethan began pulling on the wood ledges which held all the killer’s tools. With a flashlight
that he absconded from a tech, he stared around at the floor.

“Which direction is the church?” Elizabeth asked, trying to get her bearings.

Callen thought about it. “I believe toward Ethan. We’re facing the reservation.”

“You two may want to come over here,” he offered. “I think I found something.”

“What?” she asked, closing the space between them.

“One of these things doesn’t belong here. Anyone want to guess?” he asked, shining the light down onto the floor and back up again. The carved out wall held a bookshelf, but behind the jars and frankincense it appeared to be wood, not stone.

“It’s a door,” she said, holstering her Glock. “It’s hidden in plain sight.”

The three of them began moving the jars, hoping one would trigger something. When that didn't work, she whistled. Meredith stuck her head down into the opening. “Yeah, boss?”

“I need a crowbar, and fast.”

“We better move the jars. I don’t want them to break
. The last thing I want is to have to go back to the cabin tonight smelling like this shit,” stated Ethan.

“Good, because I happen to like your cologne,” she said, waiting for her tech to return.

When she raced down the stairs, she had another request. “I need gloves too. Once we go through that door, you and the agents get down here. Make sure it doesn’t close. Who the hell knows where it leads.”

“Yes,
boss,” she said, handing her gloves from her pocket.

“
Print that door and all the glass bottles,” she said, gloving up. Both men did the exact same thing before they began transferring the glass from the shelf to the countertop. When they were done, Ethan took the crowbar.

“You have better aim, Tex. I’ll pry it open
, and you shoot the killer if he’s waiting to hack out my heart,” he said.

Even though he was kidding, it still made her sick.

Watching the wall, she waited until Ethan got into place. With the tip of the crowbar, he wedged it into the back of the shelving and put all of his weight into it. When he couldn’t get it to budge, Callen holstered his gun and joined him. Together, they pulled, and then pushed until they heard a snap.

Well, the mechanism was never going to be the same again.
If you were going to defile a nutjob’s hidey hole, you might as well go all the way and trash the place.

Cautiously, they pulled the door
open. Elizabeth held her flashlight and gun as she headed toward it. It was pitch black and at that moment, she wished she was wearing her vest.