The Escape (John Puller, #3)(55)

His plan was to give it some time and see if she came out, and then he would follow her. If she didn’t come out he was going to conduct another interview with the woman with the goal of making her as uncomfortable as possible.

He waited an hour, but Macri did not leave her unit. He was about to get out of the car when another vehicle pulled in and parked next to Macri’s ride.

Puller’s eyes widened when he saw the person get out of the car and head up the steps to Macri’s home.

Veronica Knox was obviously no longer cooling her heels at the cemetery.





CHAPTER





29



PULLER WATCHED AS KNOX rapped on the door and then rang the bell when no one answered. She looked around and Puller saw her hand dip into her jacket. She withdrew something he couldn’t see but assumed it was a lock pick. Her hands moved around the knob for a few seconds and then she opened the door and stepped in.

As soon as the door closed behind her Puller was out of his car and hustling down the street. He passed by the side of Macri’s house and went around to the back. It was a three-level structure with a deck above and a walk-out basement door below. The door was a slider. There were no curtains on it so Puller could see right inside. It was not built out; concrete foundation walls stared back at him along with stacked cardboard boxes.

The lock on the slider was a simple one and Puller was through the opening and over to the bottom of the stairs in a few seconds. He could hear footsteps above him, probably Knox looking around. And where was Macri? Her car was out front. But she had’t answered the door. Was she here or not?

The familiar firecracker pops signifying gunshots caused Puller to pull his M11, crouch down, and pause, listening. There had been two shots, along with other sounds. He had heard the first shot, then a crash of something hitting something, then the second shot, then a scream and finally a thud. Someone had gone down. Was it Knox? Or Macri, if she was even here?

He took the steps three at a time. There was a door at the top of the stairs. Puller eased it open and did a turkey peek.

He saw no one. He sight-cleared the room behind him and then headed forward. He eased around the corner, his gun straight ahead.

Then he stopped.

Knox was kneeling over Macri, who was sprawled on the floor, blood pouring from a wound in her chest.

Knox still held her gun in her right hand.

“Don’t move, Knox,” Puller called out, but he was prepared for her to move fast, turn, and fire at him.

Instead she held her gun up, her finger clearly off the trigger, the muzzle pointed down. She was surrendering.

“Put it down on the floor and kick it toward me,” ordered Puller.

“She needs an ambulance.”

“I’m sure she does. Kick the gun to me and then I’ll call one.”

Knox did as he instructed. He picked the gun up by the muzzle and laid it on the hall table. He punched in 911 on his phone and ordered an ambulance.

“Step away from her,” he said. “Lie down on the floor, hands behind your head and your legs splayed.”

“Puller, she tried to kill me!”

“I’m sure we’ll sort it all out. But for now, just do as I say.”

Knox got on the floor with her hands behind her head and her legs spread wide.

Puller knelt next to Macri, who was sprawled on her back on the floor next to a chair, her arms up around her head. He spotted a small bullet hole in her dark blouse, and saw the spread of blood across the cloth. He took her pulse at the neck and found none. Her eyes were open and frozen. Her hands were already starting to cool just a bit.

“She’s dead, Knox. Looks like the shot hit her square in the heart.”

“I thought she was dead.”

“What happened? Why are you even here?”

She started to rise but he barked, “Stay down. I won’t tell you again.”

She froze and then settled back down on the floor.

“I came to interview her. I was going to do it with you, but, well, you know how that turned out. I had to hike back to my car from the cemetery thanks to you.”

“Why interview her?”

“Because she didn’t search the guards.”

“Explain that.”

“I read your interview notes last night. She told you she didn’t search the guards for a device that would have made the noise. She said it was because she couldn’t believe any of the guards would have been involved. But of course she should have, regardless of that. There would have been no reason for her not to do so. Except for one.” She turned her head to the side and looked up at him.

“Which was?” he asked.

“If it wasn’t found on the guards then suspicion would have shifted to her. But if she didn’t search them, then—”

“It was like she’d provided an alibi for herself,” said Puller.

Knox said, “So you thought that too. Is that why you’re here?”

“I saw you pick the lock and go in. I went in through the basement. Then I heard the gunshots. Two of them.”

“She fired at me first,” said Knox. “Look at the wall over there.” She pointed with her right hand to the far wall.

Puller looked in that direction. The round had struck the dry-wall and driven into it, exposing a bit of the stud behind it.