Page 58 of Dangerous Secrets
She disconnected, fingers shaking asshe pulled up Walker’s name on her favorites list.
***
Walker entered Easy Money and stood inthe doorway.Long ago he’d gotten into the habit of checking outthe scene before entering any room.Getting a call from Sawyer tomeet him had kept him from doing what he’d been contemplating:heading to the big house to have it out with Delaney.
It nagged at him to think she’d beenright, that letting her go so she could get on with her lifewithout him, making that decision for her, had been arrogant.Ithadn’t felt like it at the time, but he could see why she saw itthat way.
What they’d experienced two nightsbefore had proven they belonged together.He’d never stopped lovingher.It was just a fact of life.But the reasons he’d had forstaying away now seemed less valid.
He spotted Sawyer sitting at a table,beer in front of him and his back against the wall in a positionthat gave him a good view of the room.Walker stopped at the barand Owen tipped his head in his usual greeting.
“Beer tonight.”
“Local brew?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Owen pulled the tap and filled aglass, leaving an inch of foam for the head.Two stools down, BobbyFinley stared glassy-eyed at ESPN playing on the TV screen, theonly other patrons a couple of guys at the other end of thebar.
Walker paid for his beer and movedacross the room.He sat, leaning back in his seat, and watched hisbrother over the rim of his glass as he sipped his beer.“You’vegot something on your mind.”
“And they say I’m theinsightful one.”
“That’s only because I’mthe good-looking one.I can’t have it all, bro.”
A comment like that would usuallyloosen Sawyer up, but it didn’t put a crack in his grimexpression.
“Why’d you want to meetat—” Walker looked at his phone, “nearly eleven atnight?”
Sawyer leaned forward and took histime before answering, his voice pitched low enough it wouldn’tcarry beyond their table.“Last night another woman was raped,similar MO as the previous assaults we think are connected.Detectives got a call this morning from the hospital where she wastaken.”
“Shit.”Walker scrubbed ahand over his face.“Where?”
“Pine Cove.”
“That’s just down thehighway.The fucker’s getting awful close to home.”At Sawyer’snod, Walker asked, “How’s the woman?”
“In the hospital.Cut uppretty bad, but she’ll survive.She’s a known sex worker and theassailant approached her as a client.If it’s the same guy, that’snew, but carving ‘Whore’ into her skin isn’t.But this time thefucker left evidence behind.”
Walker caught the seething anger underhis brother’s restrained demeanor.Sawyer was slow to rile, butwhen he got there, he burned hot.“What evidence?”
“He left a knife at thescene.Maybe got spooked, maybe got sloppy, but he left it.Mighthave his DNA on it.It’s at the lab right now.Sheriff Carlisle puta rush on it so we might get preliminary information in the nextday.One of the detectives in charge is a friend.She’ll send mewhat she knows when she knows it.”
“Did the victim give adescription?”
“Big guy, dark hair,beard.She thinks white but could be Latino.They met up through anapp that’s known to be used in the sex trade.He met her at a moteland brought liquor.She thought the bottle was unopened so didn’tthink it could be laced with roofies.She drank, doesn’t rememberif he did, and that’s the last she can recall anything.”Sawyersipped his beer, frowning as he set his glass back on the table.“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.We have a map up in the officewith pins for each assault.They look like a slowly closing circlewith Sisters dead center.”
“You have a psychprofile?”
“FBI’s working on it.”Which meant it could take months.
“I want another beer, goddammit.I can pay.”The surly voice brought Walker’s attention towhere Bobby leaned forward on his barstool.He slapped his hand onthe bar.“Give me another beer.”
Owen stood on the other side of thebar, his arms braced on the edge as he leaned forward.“You’re donefor the night, Bobby.”
“You’re an asshole, OwenHardesty, thinking you can tell me I can’t drink.I could take careof you, take care of your bar.You ought to think about that beforeyou tell me I can’t drink here.I got friends who can mess you up.”Bobby’s tirade ended with a hiccup.
“Sounds like a threat tome,” Walker observed.
