Page 58 of Nora
“Be safe,”he wrote back.
She paused before responding, unsure if his sign-off was a generic comment or an admonition. Rather than think too hard about it, she sent a quick response saying she would. Then, setting her phone down, she clicked on Sabina’s file and dived feet first into the lives of the victims.
CHAPTERTWENTY-TWO
Nora sat backin her chair and rubbed her eyes. She’d been going through Sabina’s notes for nearly three hours. Sabina’s summary had been accurate, but there were a few other interesting findings. Many of the victims worked with children—a retired teacher, a Sunday school volunteer, a coach. And many held a position of power—a principal, a retired mayor, a former police chief. She wasn’t a profiler, but she was leaning toward thinking the killer had a grudge against the Church. A grudge based on something that had happened when he was a child—at a point in his life when someone in a position of authority should have stepped in.
She stared at her screen for a moment longer, then closed the device down. Having turned off the lights earlier, the room was lit only by the dancing glow of the flames from the fireplace. Eyeing her phone, she debated calling Lucian but then decided not to. The group hadn’t returned yet, but likely would soon. If she was still up, she could talk with him then.
Rising, she switched the fireplace off as she walked to the window and pulled the heavy curtain back. The night was clear and the temperature so cold that she could feel it radiating through the double-pane windows.
She was about to drop the curtain back into place when a flickering shadow caught her attention. She stilled and watched. For several seconds she saw nothing. Acknowledging that she might be jumping at shadows, she considered climbing into bed. She couldn’t quite get herself to step away, though, and she remained standing. Looking.
There it was again!
Her eyes adjusted to both the night and the shadows as she watched. When she caught sight of movement again, she recognized the form. It was definitely human. Dressed all in black, it blended well into the darkness.
Without conscious thought, Nora reached for her heavy winter boots. Keeping her eye on the person, she pulled them on. The shadowy form slipped across the edges of a pathway, using shrubs and trees to hide his movements. It was possible it was a woman, but Nora was certain it wasn’t. In fact, she was certain she was watching the killer, and she was nearly as certain about where he was headed.
Not wanting to waste any more time, she dropped the curtain back into place and grabbed her scarf, hat, and jacket. Sliding her key into her pocket, she reached for her phone and paused. She had a pact with the club to not go alone. The only problem was, her friends all had people to go with them. Nora had no one. Not with Lucian gone.
Making a snap decision, she called Lucian as she donned her winter gear and checked her weapon.
“What’s wrong?” he answered.
“Someone left the residence hall. I’m going after him. I’ll share my location with you. I’m pretty sure I know the direction he’s going, but not the exact spot. When you get here, find me. Not sure if you will need my car, but I’ll leave you my key just in case.” As she spoke, she opened her door and checked the hallway. She wished she had time to look at the video feeds and see who her quarry was, but that wasn’t in the cards.
“Wait,” he said. “I’m ten minutes away.”
“I can’t, Lucian. You know I can’t.” Her door shut behind her, and she crossed the hall to his. Dropping to her haunches, she shoved her key fob through the small gap between the carpet and the solid wood. “I think he’s headed to the hole in the fence on the southwest side. If you look at the perimeter fence from above, it’s the one at about ten o’clock.” She’d reached the side stairwell, the one that would open up right near the main door, and she hurried down. “If he keeps heading southwest, he’ll hit a small town. The kind of place where most of the houses are far enough apart that if something happens in one, no one will know.”
“Wait. Nora, please,” Lucian said.
“Can’t, Lucian. Please understand. I’m going to hang up now because I’m stepping outside, and I don’t want my voice to carry. Can you see my location?” She quickly enabled the app and a few seconds later, he confirmed. “Find me, Lucian. I know you will.” And with that, she hung up and took off.
Jogging toward the perimeter path, Nora was grateful she’d started running with Andrew and his team. If she hadn’t been on the trails almost every day, there was no way she’d be as familiar, or as comfortable, with where she was headed.
Despite the weight of her winter boots, she made good time. Slowing to a stop about a hundred yards from the break in the fence, she cocked her head and listened.
An icy breeze ruffled the bare trees, and Nora lifted her shoulders to keep the tendrils of air from snaking under her scarf and down her back. An owl hooted in the distance, a sound she hadn’t expected this time of year. And then she heard it. A loud crack of a branch from the forest on the other side of the fence.
Both relief and trepidation flowed through her. She’d been right, but now she was on the trail of a killer. On her own.
The way sound carried on nights like these, she estimated—hoped—he was at least a half-mile away. Even so, she wasn’t going to take any chances and text Lucian as she wanted to. Pushing that pipe dream down, she made her way to the break in the fence.
This gap was a little bigger than the other, and she easily ducked beneath it. Picturing the map from her room, she mentally traced the trails visible in the satellite image. There were two that were more or less direct routes to the small town she’d mentioned to Lucian. The others tended to wander around. If the killer needed to get the job done quickly, and make it back to the residence hall without being gone for too long, one of the two direct ones was the best option.
But which one?
Nora made her way into the woods, keeping her footfalls light on the frozen ground. When she reached the first fork, she turned left. At the second fork, she paused. If she stayed to the right, she’d end up on the west side of the small community. If she took the left branch, she’d end up on the east. She slowed her breathing and listened again. Unfortunately, this time she wasn’t so lucky. The man she pursued didn’t oblige her by tripping or stepping on a broken branch.
With a sigh, she mentally flipped a coin, then headed left. Picking her way along the poorly maintained path, she kept an ear out for any sound that would let her know she’d chosen the right trail. But as the minutes ticked by, the only sounds she heard were her own footsteps. And the occasional rustle in the woods of an animal. At least she hoped it was an animal, and not the human kind.
Thirty minutes later, she estimated she’d covered three miles and was near the town she’d mentioned to Lucian. A few minutes after that, she reached the edge of the woods, where she paused.
The small town was centered on a large triangular-shaped green. To her left was a post office, country store, and café. A couple of houses were clustered on decent-sized lots on the far side. But on the side where she stood, there were only two homes, both large and, like the others, historic. In fact, she’d place the whole village as being built sometime in the mid to late 1700s.
Dismissing the houses clustered together, she turned her attention to the two closest to her. Hoping none of the owners had perimeter security alarms, she stayed in the shadows as she edged her way through the woods and along the back of the first property. She didn’t pause until she was halfway between the two homes and could surveil both.
