The Last Move
Page 74
“What are you going to do?”
“Take a vacation,” she said.
He leaned against the edge of her cubicle, fumbling with a rubber-band ball. “And then what? You’ll miss the work.”
“I’m taking a leave of absence, not retiring.” She took the ball from him and put it in the box. “You’re the one who has been after me to take time off.”
“Yeah, but like a week in Cabo or a hike in the Catskills. Not a year off. You’re too good at what you do.”
“You might be right. I could get very bored. But I want to see what it feels like.”
He shook his head. “You won’t like it.”
“I’ll always be available for a consult. And you’ve got my number.”
He took the ball out of the box and tossed it in the air. “It won’t be the same.”
She snatched the ball in midair. “Nothing stays the same. It’s the one constant.”
He grinned. “Ah, Yoda, you’re so deep.”
She smiled. “Yoda. That my new code name now?”
“Seems fitting. Yoda is almost as smart as you.”
She reached for the box, but he took it. She followed him to the elevators and down to the lobby. The last time she’d left her home for college she’d known her life would never be the same. She had that same feeling now.
It had been three weeks since she’d left San Antonio, but in many respects it felt as if it were a lifetime ago. She and Nevada had searched Bauldry’s house the night he died. After Mazur took Alyssa to her mother and she’d fallen asleep, he had joined the search team in the house adjacent to the large metal shed.
In the third room they’d found a room filled with computer monitors that showed not only her mother’s house but also Rebecca’s apartment and Isabella’s room. William had been watching all the locations for months. They’d assumed it was all William’s plan.
And then she’d found the small yellow notebook on William’s desk. Nearly every page was filled with scrawled notes. She’d recognized immediately that the handwriting was not William’s but belonged to a woman.
When love is betrayed, there is nothing to contain the demons.
The pills make the days’ oppressive routines possible.
The bait will be too enticing to resist. Get more flies with honey than vinegar.
Her smile is sweet, and she thinks her sins are a secret. But I know them all.
Later, forensic analysts identified the handwriting as that of Gloria Sanchez. William had told the truth. She had planned all the killings out of revenge. On the heels of finding out she was dying, she’d also discovered Martin’s affair with Rebecca was more than a passing romance. He was in love with Rebecca and wanted to marry her. She’d recruited William, enticing him with a dual plan to bring Kate back to San Antonio.
Though the Sanchez dealership had no record of Gloria checking out the white four door she’d been driving when she died, Calhoun had taken apart the backseat of the vehicle and found a gas receipt for a station near Westin’s Dallas office. The receipt backed up Westin’s claim she’d retrieved the locker key where Richardson had most likely stashed his murder weapon.
Gloria had mapped out the steps in her notebook, and William agreed to follow them. He’d written in his journals he didn’t want to kill Gloria, but she’d insisted. She was leaving this world on her terms.
What Gloria had never anticipated was that William would deviate from the list. He’d not killed Isabella as he’d promised, but had shifted his attention to Alyssa when Kate slept with Mazur.
Other pieces of the puzzle had tumbled into place. One of the police sketch artist’s drawings given by a woman who’d reported being spared by the Samaritan looked remarkably like William. The DNA pulled from hair fibers found on Gloria’s and Rebecca’s bodies matched Bauldry, and the semen sample in Rebecca’s apartment matched Martin.
After Kate’s and Mazur’s final report to the chief and the bureau had been made, they’d slipped away for a night. He’d driven her to the airport the next morning, they’d kissed, and she’d flown to Salt Lake to attend Sara Fletcher’s funeral, which had been held on a mountaintop where her parents had spread her ashes.
Kate had given Mrs. Fletcher the broken bracelet and told her Drexler was dead.
Mrs. Fletcher hugged Kate. “I am grateful to you. Without you, I would never have seen my little girl again.”
Kate had relaxed into the embrace, accepting her gratitude. She’d left the bracelet in the mountains with Sara.
Neither Kate nor Mazur had reached out to the other in the last couple of weeks. She’d been caught up in a whirlwind of paperwork and debriefings, and she guessed he’d been pulled back by the demands of his own life.
All her life she’d enjoyed solitude, but for the first time, she felt alone.
Now, crossing the lobby, she was surprised when she looked up and saw Mazur. He was wearing jeans, hiking boots, and a thick winter jacket. His hair was a little longer, and he looked thinner. His expression was unreadable, but his gaze was locked on her. She tucked a curl behind her ear and smiled. He winked and moved toward her.
Nevada leaned toward her. “Want me to run interference?”
She shook her head. “Thanks, I got this.”
“You sure?” Nevada asked.
She took the box and winked at him. “I can handle it.”
Nevada smiled. “See you soon, Yoda.”
“I’m on leave.”
“Won’t last.”
She moved toward Mazur. “You look good.”
“So do you.” His voice was deep, ripe with emotion. “Bruises are gone.”
“Right as rain. How’s Alyssa?”
“The kid is amazing. She bounced back and is now talking about being an FBI agent.”
“Really. Good for her.”
“God help me.” He glanced at her box. “Where are you going?”
“Don’t know. I have a year’s sabbatical.”
“You quit?”
“Just taking an extended break.”
“Let me at least hold the box.”
Their fingers brushed when he took the box. Electricity snapped up her arms. “Thanks. My car is this way.”
He followed her out the front door to her silver two door. She popped the trunk, and he set the box inside. “I’m out here for a job interview with a security company. Sounds promising.”
“So you’re going to move?”
“I go where my daughter goes.”
“That’s great, Mazur. She’s lucky to have you.” She fished her keys out of her purse.
“I’m sorry I haven’t called,” he said.
“You have your hands full.”
“That’s no excuse. You saved Alyssa.”
“I brought the monsters into her life.”
“Maybe, or maybe they’d have come anyway. The point is that you saved her.” He shook his head. “How was Sara Fletcher’s funeral?”
Her throat tightened with emotion. “Heartbreaking.”
“I read Drexler’s file. You were right. If I’d known all that before Alyssa’s rescue, I’d have lost it.”
“You’re a good father.”
“Can I take you to dinner tonight?” he asked. “Or if you have plans, another time when it works.”
“Take a vacation,” she said.
He leaned against the edge of her cubicle, fumbling with a rubber-band ball. “And then what? You’ll miss the work.”
“I’m taking a leave of absence, not retiring.” She took the ball from him and put it in the box. “You’re the one who has been after me to take time off.”
“Yeah, but like a week in Cabo or a hike in the Catskills. Not a year off. You’re too good at what you do.”
“You might be right. I could get very bored. But I want to see what it feels like.”
He shook his head. “You won’t like it.”
“I’ll always be available for a consult. And you’ve got my number.”
He took the ball out of the box and tossed it in the air. “It won’t be the same.”
She snatched the ball in midair. “Nothing stays the same. It’s the one constant.”
He grinned. “Ah, Yoda, you’re so deep.”
She smiled. “Yoda. That my new code name now?”
“Seems fitting. Yoda is almost as smart as you.”
She reached for the box, but he took it. She followed him to the elevators and down to the lobby. The last time she’d left her home for college she’d known her life would never be the same. She had that same feeling now.
It had been three weeks since she’d left San Antonio, but in many respects it felt as if it were a lifetime ago. She and Nevada had searched Bauldry’s house the night he died. After Mazur took Alyssa to her mother and she’d fallen asleep, he had joined the search team in the house adjacent to the large metal shed.
In the third room they’d found a room filled with computer monitors that showed not only her mother’s house but also Rebecca’s apartment and Isabella’s room. William had been watching all the locations for months. They’d assumed it was all William’s plan.
And then she’d found the small yellow notebook on William’s desk. Nearly every page was filled with scrawled notes. She’d recognized immediately that the handwriting was not William’s but belonged to a woman.
When love is betrayed, there is nothing to contain the demons.
The pills make the days’ oppressive routines possible.
The bait will be too enticing to resist. Get more flies with honey than vinegar.
Her smile is sweet, and she thinks her sins are a secret. But I know them all.
Later, forensic analysts identified the handwriting as that of Gloria Sanchez. William had told the truth. She had planned all the killings out of revenge. On the heels of finding out she was dying, she’d also discovered Martin’s affair with Rebecca was more than a passing romance. He was in love with Rebecca and wanted to marry her. She’d recruited William, enticing him with a dual plan to bring Kate back to San Antonio.
Though the Sanchez dealership had no record of Gloria checking out the white four door she’d been driving when she died, Calhoun had taken apart the backseat of the vehicle and found a gas receipt for a station near Westin’s Dallas office. The receipt backed up Westin’s claim she’d retrieved the locker key where Richardson had most likely stashed his murder weapon.
Gloria had mapped out the steps in her notebook, and William agreed to follow them. He’d written in his journals he didn’t want to kill Gloria, but she’d insisted. She was leaving this world on her terms.
What Gloria had never anticipated was that William would deviate from the list. He’d not killed Isabella as he’d promised, but had shifted his attention to Alyssa when Kate slept with Mazur.
Other pieces of the puzzle had tumbled into place. One of the police sketch artist’s drawings given by a woman who’d reported being spared by the Samaritan looked remarkably like William. The DNA pulled from hair fibers found on Gloria’s and Rebecca’s bodies matched Bauldry, and the semen sample in Rebecca’s apartment matched Martin.
After Kate’s and Mazur’s final report to the chief and the bureau had been made, they’d slipped away for a night. He’d driven her to the airport the next morning, they’d kissed, and she’d flown to Salt Lake to attend Sara Fletcher’s funeral, which had been held on a mountaintop where her parents had spread her ashes.
Kate had given Mrs. Fletcher the broken bracelet and told her Drexler was dead.
Mrs. Fletcher hugged Kate. “I am grateful to you. Without you, I would never have seen my little girl again.”
Kate had relaxed into the embrace, accepting her gratitude. She’d left the bracelet in the mountains with Sara.
Neither Kate nor Mazur had reached out to the other in the last couple of weeks. She’d been caught up in a whirlwind of paperwork and debriefings, and she guessed he’d been pulled back by the demands of his own life.
All her life she’d enjoyed solitude, but for the first time, she felt alone.
Now, crossing the lobby, she was surprised when she looked up and saw Mazur. He was wearing jeans, hiking boots, and a thick winter jacket. His hair was a little longer, and he looked thinner. His expression was unreadable, but his gaze was locked on her. She tucked a curl behind her ear and smiled. He winked and moved toward her.
Nevada leaned toward her. “Want me to run interference?”
She shook her head. “Thanks, I got this.”
“You sure?” Nevada asked.
She took the box and winked at him. “I can handle it.”
Nevada smiled. “See you soon, Yoda.”
“I’m on leave.”
“Won’t last.”
She moved toward Mazur. “You look good.”
“So do you.” His voice was deep, ripe with emotion. “Bruises are gone.”
“Right as rain. How’s Alyssa?”
“The kid is amazing. She bounced back and is now talking about being an FBI agent.”
“Really. Good for her.”
“God help me.” He glanced at her box. “Where are you going?”
“Don’t know. I have a year’s sabbatical.”
“You quit?”
“Just taking an extended break.”
“Let me at least hold the box.”
Their fingers brushed when he took the box. Electricity snapped up her arms. “Thanks. My car is this way.”
He followed her out the front door to her silver two door. She popped the trunk, and he set the box inside. “I’m out here for a job interview with a security company. Sounds promising.”
“So you’re going to move?”
“I go where my daughter goes.”
“That’s great, Mazur. She’s lucky to have you.” She fished her keys out of her purse.
“I’m sorry I haven’t called,” he said.
“You have your hands full.”
“That’s no excuse. You saved Alyssa.”
“I brought the monsters into her life.”
“Maybe, or maybe they’d have come anyway. The point is that you saved her.” He shook his head. “How was Sara Fletcher’s funeral?”
Her throat tightened with emotion. “Heartbreaking.”
“I read Drexler’s file. You were right. If I’d known all that before Alyssa’s rescue, I’d have lost it.”
“You’re a good father.”
“Can I take you to dinner tonight?” he asked. “Or if you have plans, another time when it works.”
