Chapter 12

Lynch didn't arrive at the ER until over two hours later and Kendra was filled with relief when she saw him get off the elevator and come toward her. "Pauley is going to be fine," she told him quickly. "Though they're not going to let him leave here for a few days. I tried to reach you but you weren't answering your phone."

"I was doing a little research," Lynch said. "Something occurred to me that I'd run across a couple of times in the past and I decided I had to check it out."

She was frowning. "That had to do with what happened to Pauley?"

"Probably not. But one thing led to another." He took a step closer and examined the bandage on her throat. "And this?"

"Just a bruise."

"You've been taking a beating on this case."

"I'm still standing."

"Has Perry or Breen been here?"

"Yes, I called Perry as soon as I got here and gave him a complete report… just as I told you I would. That garage should be crawling with the police as well as FBI by now."

He touched the bandage. "What did Perry say when he saw this?"

"What could he say? I survived it, didn't I?" She shrugged. "Did you expect him to assign one of his men to permanently follow me around? He's already gone that route. Not at all practical." She suddenly grinned. "Much more reasonable for us to bring the bastard down ourselves, don't you think?"

"Do you expect me to disagree with you?" Lynch asked.

"Anyway, Perry is here right now. I'm giving him a few minutes alone with Pauley before I go in."

"Good. I saw a coffee machine down the hall. I think we could both use some." He went to the machine and got them each a cup of coffee. "Shall we go for a stroll?" He handed her a cup. "Because I was dead serious about not being able to go through a day like this again."

She took a sip of her coffee. "So you're all set to give me hell?"

"I'm all set to find a way to stop that agony in its tracks no matter what it takes. As you know, I can be very innovative."

"Yes, you can. I've seen you in action." She took another sip of coffee. "But you told me there would be no more threats and I trust you. So it would be interesting to see how you're going to accomplish it."

"With a good deal of trepidation." He was scanning her face. "And I'll have to be very clever."

"More than you know. But you're lucky I'm feeling very mellow at the moment. If you'd have let me speak rather than jumping into battle, you wouldn't have had to go into all this stern crap. I fully intended to talk to you. When I was crawling around in that garage, I thought I might not ever see you alive again." She looked down into her cup and said simply, "And I thought that if I didn't, it would break my heart. You might have noticed I have a few problems with maintaining my independence."

"What, you?" he said gently. "Say it isn't so."

"I don't promise I'll change. I don't know if I can. I don't know if I'll even want to." She stared him in the eye. "But I'll never do anything that will put you in danger or do anything that will give you reason to come after me as you did today. That's all I could think of. When I was trying to get away from that bastard, I realized you'd probably come after me. I should have thought longer and harder before I went down there without calling you. It won't happen again because I won't risk your life as well as my own. That's as much as I can promise you. Is it enough?"

He brushed his lips across her nose. "That was very generous. Yes, for the time being. We'll work on the rest later."

She looked teasingly up at him from beneath her lashes. "I thought it was exceptionally generous. Don't be selfish, Lynch."

He sighed. "Never satisfied." He took her hand. "Take me to Pauley's room. I know he'll be glad to see me."

"Maybe." Her hand tightened on his. Together. And he felt so alive that she didn't ever want to let him go. "We'll have to talk about that bastard who hurt him after he sees that I'm safe and sound."

"Kendra! Lynch!" Pauley was elevated in his hospital bed and looked surprisingly spry considering what he'd just been through. His face was bruised, and his neck was wrapped in a white bandage much like Kendra's. His face fell when he saw her throat. "Oh, God. I'm so sorry. I didn't know what I was bringing you into."

She approached the bed and rubbed his arm. "Are you kidding? You're a hero, Pauley. You warned me about that psycho, and you almost got yourself killed doing it."

Perry stepped out from a corner. "That's what I told him. I haven't been able to get much from this guy. All he wanted to talk about is you and how you were doing."

Kendra's hand went to her neck bandage. "I'm fine, Pauley. I'm already up and around, and they're letting me go home."

Pauley clicked his tongue. "Which is more than I can say. I'm stuck in here for another couple of days, at least."

"We heard. I'm sorry, but this is the best place for you right now."

Pauley turned toward Lynch. "I'm glad you're here to look after her, Mr. Lynch."

Lynch smiled. "You know Kendra. She's pretty good at looking after herself. She got in some licks with that rebar leaning against the wall of the garage."

Pauley chuckled. "I've been on those construction guys to get that stuff the hell out of my garage. I'm sure glad they didn't."

"Me and you both," Kendra said. "Listen, Pauley… you're the only one to have gotten a good look at this guy. This could be a killer that's been wanted for over fifteen years. I'm sure Detective Perry has told you all this."

Pauley nodded. "He did. It scares me to think what could have happened today."

"We're going to make sure it never happens again. Can you give us a description?"

Perry raised his notebook. "I got one from him. Dark hair, brown eyes, bushy eyebrows, full lips, chiseled cheekbones, dimple in his chin. He says he's sure he can ID the guy if he ever sees him again. A sketch artist is already on the way."

"I've got a better sketch artist," Kendra said.

Perry put away his notebook. "Are you talking about Bill Dillingham? He's, what, a hundred years old now?"

"He's eighty-eight. Don't be ageist. I guarantee you that he's a better sketch artist than whoever you're bringing in."

"Well, our department is going to want our guy to do a sketch no matter what."

"Fine." Kendra turned to Pauley. "You won't mind working with my friend after the police officer comes up with a sketch, will you?"

"Nah, it's fine. Not like I got anything else to do in here."

"We don't want to tire him out," Perry said. "The FBI may want to have their own sketch artist come here."

"No, they won't." Kendra shook her head. "Not after they've seen Bill's sketch. They'll know they can't do any better."

"You're pretty sure of yourself," Perry said.

"I'm sure of Bill Dillingham. And you should be, too. But in the end, it may be tough to get a usable sketch no matter who draws it."

"What makes you say that?" Lynch said.

Kendra stepped back so she could speak to all three men at once. "The guy in the garage was wearing a disguise."

"How do you know?" Perry said. "You said it was too dark for you to see him."

"It was."

He smiled. "I'm starting to get the hang of this now. I take it that you heard or smelled something."

"Smelled."

"And what, exactly, did you smell?"

"Ben Nye prosthetic adhesive. When he had me in that choke hold, I was close enough to get a good whiff. It's used by everybody from high school drama clubs to Broadway stars to attach fake noses, chin pieces, ears, you name it. That guy was wearing a facial disguise, and it was good enough that Pauley saw him from a couple of feet away and couldn't tell." She turned back to Pauley. "Could you?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Do your best with the sketch artists anyway," Kendra said. "Bill is especially good at coming up with alternatives that account for disguises the perps may have used."

Pauley looked slightly dazed. "Will do."

She patted his knee. "Take care, Pauley. We'll be back to visit you soon."

Kendra and Lynch hadn't quite reached the elevator when Perry called from down the hall. "Kendra?"

They both turned.

"There's something else I wanted to talk to you about," he said. "We extracted a good DNA sample from that tooth you knocked out, and we ran it through CODIS."

Kendra looked at him excitedly. "Did you get a hit?"

"Of sorts."

"What does that mean?"

Perry glanced around to make sure they were out of earshot of the workers and visitors. "The sample came back as ‘expunged.'"

"Expunged? As in deleted?"

"Yes. It happens occasionally."

Lynch nodded. "Often for juvenile offenders who have finished their sentences, or for innocent suspects in closed cases. Sometimes law-enforcement agencies remove it automatically, sometimes people have to petition to have their DNA samples removed from the database."

"Well, who pulled it?"

Perry shrugged. "We have no way of knowing that. We tried running it again, and this time it didn't come back at all. So it looks like someone just deleted the record in the past few days. Our people did some searching to see if any petitions for removal were filed and executed recently, but so far we haven't come up with anything. We'll keep looking, though."

Kendra bit her lip in frustration. "Thanks, Perry."

"Sure. I'll be in touch." Perry headed back to Pauley's room.

Kendra turned to Lynch. "That isn't the news I was hoping for."

"Well, there's still hope. The vast majority of our citizens don't have a DNA record at all. This guy, whoever he is, has one somewhere."

"Who do you think would be able to pluck it out of the database?"

Lynch thought for a moment. "Someone in law enforcement would have the easiest time. There are all kinds of ways that DNA and biometric records can be erased. When I worked for the FBI, my DNA and fingerprints were on file. But when I started doing my special projects…"

"That sounds so much nicer than black ops assignments."

"Thanks, I'm glad you approve. Anyway, my DNA and biometric records were immediately deleted from every database. There are all sorts of reasons why it can happen. But I'm willing to bet they're still on file somewhere at MI6 and Mossad. I'll ask around and see what I can find out about this DNA profile that was just deleted."

Kendra nodded. "Listen, maybe we can go talk to Todd Williams again."

"You think he has more to say?"

"Maybe. Let's tell him about this and see if it shakes any more thoughts loose."

"One thing," Lynch said. "We'll have to do something with Harley."

"What do you mean?"

"I picked him up on the way to the hospital."

"He's here?"

"Yes. It's cool out, so I figured there would be no harm. There's something vaguely sacrilegious about a hundred-pound dog slobbering in the backseat of a Lamborghini, but I promised Olivia we'd take him with us as your personal protector."

"Hmm. I guess she thought you weren't enough."

"Apparently not."

They walked to the hospital parking garage, where Harley seemed perfectly content in the backseat of Lynch's car. After Kendra and Lynch climbed inside, the dog happily lapped up the fresh water Kendra poured for him. Kendra then called Williams. After a one-minute conversation, she hung up and turned to Lynch. "He wasn't exactly cordial, but he didn't seem to be surprised to hear from me. I told him we'd be bringing Harley and be knocking on his door within fifteen minutes." She turned to the backseat and patted Harley's head. "You remember your manners, young man. I'd like to make a good impression. He's been trying to help us find the sisters. We definitely need some answers." She glanced at Lynch. "And we may need all the help we can get. When I mentioned I was bringing Harley with me, Williams said it sounded like an excellent idea."

Lynch nodded. "Another person who probably thinks this animal will help keep you safe."

She nodded. "Well, a man with Williams' contacts should have an idea what was going on in the local law-enforcement community."

"Perhaps not only in this city," Lynch said. "Do you want me to do the questioning of Williams?"

She shook her head. "When we spoke to him, I had a feeling that Williams trusted me. I think I'd have a better chance of getting information. But you're welcome to come along and chime in if you like."

He shook his head. "I've never been good at chiming." He grinned. "But it was a generous offer and I'm duly appreciative."

She made a face at him. "At least I'm making the effort to keep my promise."

He nodded gravely. "And with practice it might even come naturally to you. I look forward to it. But until that happy day, I don't want to put any undue stress on you. So Harley and I will sit on his front porch and wait until you finish your discussion with Williams while keeping a watchful eye on you in deference to our Olivia. Okay?"

She nodded. "Except I think you're enjoying this a little too much."

"Possibly."

They parked in front of Williams' home, and Lynch sat in a porch rocking chair and pulled the dog down beside him. "I feel I deserve this considering the morning I had. What do you think?"

She nodded slowly. "Don't rub it in. I told you it's not going to happen again."

"Absolutely not. So run along and grill Williams. Harley and I will be fine dozing here on the porch."

"I shouldn't be long." She was already heading for the front door. "I'm sure Harley will keep you entertained. But neither one of you really likes to do much dozing, do you?"

"Life's too short," Lynch said quietly. "I hate to waste the time. But then I've noticed, neither do you." He waved her toward the door. "Let's get this over with. Harley is getting restless."

"Heaven forbid," she said as she knocked on the door. "We wouldn't want that to happen."

Apparently it wasn't going to happen, because Todd Williams was impatiently throwing open the door. "Ah, there's the dog," he said as he peered out on the sunporch. "Rather strange-looking creature, isn't he? One blue eye and one brown eye? Is he a competent guard dog?"

"My friend believes he's very competent, and I haven't heard any complaints," Kendra said. "He's very loving, and that's what is important to her."

"But it might not be the most important thing for you to consider," Williams said grimly. "In the brief time I've known you, you've appeared to be surrounded by violence. That was why I asked a few of my friends in the police force to keep me informed if you appeared to be having any more problems. I admit I was relieved when you told me about the dog."

"Relieved?" Kendra repeated. "Lending me Harley was my friend's idea, but it's not as if I go around asking for trouble. It's just been a very upsetting time in all our lives. But while we're talking about it, when I first met you it was clear that even you were frightened by the fact that Chloe and Sloane Morgan were missing. Isn't that true?"

He didn't answer for a moment. "I can't deny I was concerned."

"Why should you deny it?" Kendra asked. "You cared about them. They seemed to be wonderful young women. I wanted to do everything I could to bring them home to the people who cared about them. I thought we were on the same page."

"We were," Williams said. "But you can understand that I didn't want to involve anyone else in my personal business. I certainly didn't want to involve you in that madness, too. Particularly when you were displaying signs that you might be a little too impulsive for my taste. I was beginning to feel guilty."

She shook her head in bewilderment. "Why? I'm a professional. I've made it my job to try to find them. My problem was that I wasn't sure you were telling us all we should know about their disappearance." She looked him in the eye. "Were you?"

Williams hesitated. "I tried to keep you safe just as I always tried to keep them safe. I learned from experience that that sometimes means not telling quite everything I know. It's not always safe." He shrugged. "Because it's a world full of secrets and you don't want to try to look too deep into them. You can never tell when you'll stumble over one that's particularly dangerous."

"That's not really an answer."

"That's all you're going to get from me right now." He smiled. "I'll let you know more when I believe it's safe. I like you and I trust you. I promise you'll be one of the first I'll go to."

"I don't like this." She was frowning. "I want to know more and I don't like the fact that you're not really telling me anything." She had another thought. "Will you be safe?"

He chuckled. "I've spent most of my life taking care of myself. Yes, I'll be safe."

"One more question."

"Yes?"

She told him about her attacker's deleted DNA file, and he suddenly became very quiet. "What do you think of that?" she finally asked.

"Don't know," he said, obviously still thinking about it. "That might be something for your friend Mr. Lynch to look into."

She wrinkled her brow. "What makes you say that?"

He opened the front door. "Now go out on the porch and collect your dog and Lynch and take care of both of them. That's the only thing you have to worry about at the moment." He gave her a gentle push toward the porch. "And tell Lynch to keep an eye on you and not rely solely on that huge dog."

"This isn't the end," she said impatiently over her shoulder. "I'm going to get those answers, Williams. It's not fair for you to keep silent. Once you think about it, I hope you'll agree with me."

"Well, I know you'll persist until I don't have a choice." He added gently, "Be safe, Kendra." He shut the front door.