Into the Night(39)

But this was the second time, the second fucking time, that she’d come close to dying on his watch. “I’m sorry.”

“For what? Saving us both?”

“For not doing a better job of keeping you safe.”

Macey shook her head. “Don’t give me that line of bull, Bowen. You’re the reason we’re both walking around right now. And you’re the reason Curtis won’t ever hurt anyone else.”

His lashes flickered. “The perp found him first.” He rocked back on his heels and considered the scene around him. “He found them all first. We’re dragging behind him, and the guy knows it.”

“Bowen—”

“Thirteen men died, and we didn’t even realize a serial was hunting here. Curtis Zale had the perfect killing grounds up here. But someone, this perp—he figured out what was happening. He found Curtis Zale.” And that just begged the question... “Who the hell will he find next?”

*

WHEN THEY FINALLY got back to town, Bowen and Macey stopped by the police station. A weary-eyed Henry Harwell stood on the front steps, staring into the night. When he saw them, he motioned them forward. Captain Harwell had been out at the crime scene, but the guy had been running around like mad. They hadn’t exactly had time for a chat.

Harwell took them back to his office and shut the door. “You were right.”

Macey sat in one of the chairs near the captain’s desk. Bowen stood. “Right about what, exactly?” Bowen asked the guy.

“A serial was hunting here. Right under my nose. And I did nothing.” His face was pale. “Now I have to live with that shit. I didn’t know.”

“Serials can often go undetected,” Macey murmured. Dark shadows were under her beautiful eyes. “Especially the organized ones. Curtis Zale had a very distinct MO, and a very specialized hunting ground. He planned his attacks. There was never a reason to suspect foul play. Just that—”

“That amateur hikers got lost on a trail.” Harwell’s smile was humorless. “I should have investigated more. I should have seen this.”

“You aren’t the only one,” Bowen muttered. He was still wondering just how the perp had found Curtis. The guy’s knowledge of profiling was damn good. He’s showing us the killers he’s found. The ones we’ve missed. He’s showing us that he’s the better hunter.

Bowen’s phone rang, and he pulled it from his pocket, frowning. He figured it would be a call from Samantha Dark, telling him to take a back seat in this investigation because of his involvement in the shooting.

But Samantha wasn’t calling him. It was the same number that had called him before. A number routed from within the police station. His gaze shot to Macey. “It’s him.” In the next breath, he growled, “Search this fucking station... The call is from the same number.” They’d thought the number had just been routed through the station before, a trick, but they couldn’t overlook any possibility.

His fingers slid over the screen and he tapped to receive the call. “Murphy—”

“I beat you to him.” It was the same robotic voice as before.

“The guy had been there for days—of course, you fucking beat us.”

The captain had rushed out of the office, no doubt going to get his staff to search the building, but when Macey moved to follow him, Bowen’s hand flew out and curled around her arm. Stay, he mouthed to her. He wanted her to hear exactly what the guy had to say.

“You stacked the deck,” Bowen continued grimly. The FBI was monitoring his phone. After the last call, he’d made sure they would be keeping tabs on his callers. The longer he kept the guy on the phone, the better. The captain can search the building and the FBI can wade through your tech tricks to find you. “You had Curtis Zale all along. Trapped up in that cabin, hungry, dehydrated...”

The perp’s laughter came again. “I thought that was fair, considering what he’d done to his victims. I mean, you know he starved them for days, right? Denied them food, made them piss themselves. Until they were so desperate at the end that they were ready to slit their own throats.” He paused. “Not that they did, Curtis was the one to use his knife on them. He told me all about it...when I had him tied up in the cabin.”

“You could have just called the police and told them about the guy.”

“Not my fault the police were too blind to see what was happening. The dead are on them. On the inept captain who couldn’t get shit done.”

Bowen forced his teeth to unclench. “You keep calling me—why not just tell me what’s happening—”

“You liked killing him, didn’t you?” the distorted voice demanded. “Come on, it’s me. You can be honest with me.” More laughter. “Was it just like old times for you?”

Bowen’s hand fell away from Macey’s arm.

“Bet you loved pulling that trigger. I’ve got to know...was it a head shot? No, no, I’m guessing heart. You shot that bastard right in the heart, didn’t you?”

Macey was texting on her phone. Contacting Samantha? The others at the FBI so they could give them the trace?

“Did it feel good, seeing him die in front of you? Did it make you feel...like the monster I know you are?”

Macey’s head whipped up. Her eyes locked on Bowen.