It's One of Us(103)

“Stay. We’re all good.”

“We found Jillian Kemp,” Moore says, but before Darby’s next, horrible heartbeat, the cop smiles. “She’s alive.”

They detail what’s been happening—finding Kemp, her health status, her information about where Peyton took her, developing the maps, taking the chopper, the overflight throughout the farmland and hills near Waverly.

“We found the barn where he’s been living. Found all his things.”

“But Peyton?” Darby asks, voice barely a whisper.

Osley steps in. “Ms. Kemp was positive she killed him, but we found no sign of him other than a pretty extensive blood pool. She caught him in the head with a chisel. Either an animal got him, which is possible, or—”

“He’s alive,” Darby breathes. “Thank God.”

“Have you seen him?” Osley asks sharply, and she shakes her head.

“Nor heard from him. But I’m his mother. Of course I’m relieved he’s not dead.”

“So where is he?” Scarlett asks. Her eyes are filled with terror, and pain, and it kills Darby to see her upset like this.

Osley clearly recognizes the look, speaks as gently as Darby’s ever heard him. “We don’t know, honey. But if he’s out there, he’s wounded, badly. We’ve got a BOLO out for all the hospitals, but you’re a nurse, Ms. Flynn. If he’s injured as badly as we think, and he’s able, chances are he’s going to come home to you.”

Darby looks to Park. The cops don’t seem surprised to see him, which tells her they’ve been watching the house and know he’s been here before. He nods encouragingly.

“I promise I’ll call if he comes home. He needs help. I want to get him the help he needs, and I don’t just mean stitches for a wound. He needs to be in the hospital. Not jail,” she finishes, voice growing louder. “You can’t arrest him and send him to prison. Please. He needs psychological help.”

“That’s not up to us, Ms. Flynn. There’s more. We’ve been doing some pretty intense work these past few weeks, and we got confirmation tonight that his DNA has matched to three more unsolved homicides. One dates back two years. I’m afraid your son has been keeping some pretty heavy secrets from you.”

Darby feels faint. This can’t be happening. “Beverly Cooke isn’t the first?”

“No, ma’am, she wasn’t. There will be a lot more information coming out in the next few days, but we wanted you to hear it from us first.”

Darby sinks onto the couch by the fire, and Scarlett cuddles next to her.

“It’s okay, Mom. It’s not your fault.”

Moore agrees. “It isn’t something you’ve done. It’s what he’s chosen to do. Just promise me you will turn him in if he shows up, and be very careful around him. He won’t have much to lose if he knows you’re aware of the extent of his crimes.”

Osley glances over at Park. “Any word from Mrs. Bender?”

Is Darby imagining it, or was there a slight emphasis on the word missus?

“Other than assurances from her client that she is alive and well and hasn’t seen Peyton, no. She won’t talk to me.” He shrugs. “Is what it is. She’ll come back, or she won’t. Personally, I don’t care. It’s more important for me to be here right now. Especially if Peyton might come home.”

Darby wants to interject that’s not true, he cares, he cares so much it’s eating him up inside, can’t you see how deeply she wounded him? but she doesn’t. Things are complicated enough without her getting involved.

“I’m sure Ms. Flynn appreciates the bodyguard services. I hear you’ve met a few of your kids.”

Park’s face lights up despite the terrible news they’ve just received. “I have. Scarlett’s been managing getting everyone together. And Winterborn has offered a mediation, too. They don’t want to get sued, have made it clear they are sorry for what’s happened, are changing all their protocols. They’ll settle with us, with the kids. I think it’s important for the families who feel betrayed to get some sort of compensation. Me, I’m feeling pretty blessed right now. We’re up to thirty-two.” The note of pride in his voice makes Darby want to smile, but this isn’t the time for it.

“Peyton,” she says, pulling them back. “Did he hurt Jillian Kemp?”

Moore slaps her hands together over the fire. “Well, that’s up for debate. He drugged her, and while she doesn’t have any obvious physical wounds, there’s some confusion as to whether he assaulted her or not. When she was awake, he talked. Mostly about his life, and Olivia Bender.”

She addresses Park again. “We really do need to have some idea where Mrs. Bender is, sir. She’s in danger until we can get our hands on Peyton. He’s obsessed with her, and we don’t want anything bad to happen.”

“I honestly don’t know exactly where she is. She had my car shipped back to me from Florida somewhere. But the client is one she’s worked for before. Annika Rodrigue. I’m sure you could reach out to her and see if she’ll share. She won’t tell me, but you’re different.”

Osley brushes his hands along the front of his jeans, a sign Darby’s grown to recognize as a signal to his partner that it’s time to leave. “We’ll do that. Thank you. We should be off, lots to do. We wanted to give you the heads-up though, ma’am, that your son is still out there, and we need everyone to stay on high alert. If you hear from him, you gotta call us right away. Okay?”