“Harvey ruthlessly killed a lot of innocent people, sweetheart. He damn near killed you, too. Not to mention the threats he made that day, and the shit he put you through after the fact.” A muscle bulged at the side of his jaw. “Far as I’m concerned,anyonewho comes at you like that…any asshole stupid enough to put their hands on you with the intent to harm…they deserve the exact same fucking fate, I don’t care who they are.”
The fierceness in that statement—and his tone—left Ellie feeling a bit out of sorts. There was a lethal edge in his voice that hadn’t been there before, and she couldn’t help but wonder if the sudden change had anything to do with the time they’d spent together…in his bed.
His bed. The shower. His bedroom floor…
Her gaze remained locked with his, and for a second, she forgot they weren’t alone. But then Detective Knox cleared his throat, breaking whatever spell she’d just been under.
“I’m not sorry he’s dead, either,” she made that perfectly clear. “But as a member of the court, I can’t openly condoneanykind of killer. Vigilante or otherwise.”
Internally, well…when it came to this particular victim, that was a completely different story. Not that she viewed Harvey as a victim. Hell, no. The son of a bitch was dead as a direct result his own evil, murdering design.
May you rot in hell, asshole.
“Is that even a possibility?” Lucky’s attention shifted back to Knox. “That this was some lone wolf looking to rid the world of a monster?”
“That’s a possible working theory, yeah,” Knox confirmed. “But honestly, the whole thing screams suicide. They’re bringing the landowner in for questioning, but the man’s in his seventies and, from what we’ve been told, not in the best of health.”
“So…not a person of interest,” Lucky mused.
The handsome detective shook his head. “We’re just hoping to find out as much as we can about the cabin and surrounding properties, just to make sure we cover all the basis. Make no mistake, Brandt and I will work Harvey’s death same as all the rest. But unless or until evidence points to the contrary, I’d say this one’s pretty open and shut.”
“But why?” The question was gnawing at Ellie’s gut. “Why go through the trouble of escaping if he was just going shoot himself?”
“Why did the sick fuck stalk, kidnap, and murder those four girls?” Knox shrugged. “He was a serial killer, Ellie. You and I both know logical thinking doesn’t apply to guys like that.”
She supposed he was right, but something about the whole scenario just felt…off.
“There’s, uh…there’s more.” Knox’s expression turned grim as he began swiping along his phone’s screen. “This part hasn’tbeen released to the media, and the number of people who’ve seen it has been kept to the bare minimum.”
“Okaaay…” Ellie let the word trail as she waited.
As if sensing her unease, Lucky’s thumb brushed back and forth across her lower back. It was amazing how comforting the simple gesture was. Because it washishand on her back. And it washisthumb offering the gentle, caring caress.
“I know you had your doubts where Harvey’s role in everything was concerned.” Knox’s . “The shooting…the fire. But after what we found in that cabin, I think you’ll both agree the bastardwasthe one behind it all.” He handed her back the phone. “Feel free to scroll through them. That’s the south wall of the cabin’s only bedroom.”
It was a picture of a wall. Wooden. Decrepit. Just like in the photo with Harvey’s dead body. Only instead of a dead body covering the weathered and splintered wood, the slats in the photo she was staring at now had been papered in image after image. Printed photos, each one with the same, unwitting subject.
Me.
The cabin wall was covered in what looked to be at least thirty pictures ofher.And in each and every one, it was clear that she’d had no idea she was even being watched.
Ohmygod.
A string of deeply growled curse words sounded from beside her. Contradictory to Lucky’s furious tone, he gently took the phone from her frozen hand. Removing the hand from her back, he used it to swipe through the other images Knox was more than willing to share.
Surprised by the sizeable void the absence of his touch had left in its wake, Ellie stood woodenly beside him as they took each of the disturbing images in. It didn’t take long forthem both to realize there were more than pictures in Harvey’s makeshift room.
“That piece of shit son of a bitch.” Another angry rumble. “A bullet to the head was too fucking easy.”
As she examined the blow torch and small jar of what was clearly some type of accelerant, she didn’t have to guess its importance to the case. And when Lucky swiped the phone’s screen once more, and the final image in the disturbing collection appeared, Ellie realized she’d been very, very wrong.
“It really was him.” Ellie gave a slow shake of her head as she stared at the evidence marker next to a long, black rifle. The movement was hesitant, almost if she didn’t quite believe her own words. “I watched the security footage from my apartment building, and I thought…I thoughtmaybeit could be him. But deep down, I never really believed Harvey was the real perpetrator.”
Even now—with mounds of evidence right there, in all its captured glory—she was still having a hard time digesting the facts as they’d been presented. Despite what she was seeing with her very own eyes, Ellie still felt a sliver of doubt that the serial killer had been the one to try to shoot her before burning down her home.
The guy risks being recaptured or even killed only to end up saying to hell with it all and putting a bullet through his sinister brain? It just didn’t make any sense.
“We all had our doubts, El.” Lucky handed Knox back the phone a final time. “But from what those pictures show, it’s pretty damn clear it was him.”