Chapter 18

18

Dev rested his hand on the doorknob and continued to look at Kinsley, whose expression was opposite of her words. "Are you sure you're okay with me going over to Reid's place? I could do a video call if you prefer."

"Go." She waved her hand.

"I'll try to make it quick. If I walk, I can take a shortcut by the lake and get there and back much faster." He checked for his sidearm, then opened the door. He peered at her to make sure her tension had seemed to disappear. She'd relaxed back in her chair and didn't look concerned, so he stepped out into the night.

He stopped on the porch next to Hayden. "Everything okay out here?"

"Nothing moving nearby but the bugs buzzing by the lights." Hayden looked bored out of his mind by the lack of excitement.

"I know you were hoping for some action, but I still need you to be alert."

"Oh, I am. Even if I don't look it."

Dev had to hope he wasn't just telling him what he wanted to hear. "I'm heading over to Reid's lodge. You have my number. Call me if anything out of the ordinary comes up. And I mean anything."

Hayden's gaze sharpened, and he gave a crisp nod, now looking like he had the situation under control. "You can count on me."

Dev liked seeing the change in the man's appearance. Feeling more confident in going, he charged down the steps, and took the path toward the lake. He didn't like leaving Kinsley in anyone else's care, but he had to take the emotions out of it, exactly as she said. Their suspects were under surveillance, and two trained protectors like Colin and Hayden were in charge of her close protection. She didn't need Dev to be present.

He kicked up speed into a jog, using his flashlight to cut through the increased smoke and to keep from tripping over any protruding tree roots. Normally the light glinted off the lake making a beautiful picture. He could easily imagine taking a moonlight boat ride with Kinsley once this was all over.

Don't get ahead of yourself. You have to find and bring in the shooter, and then talk things out with your sister. So pay attention and safely get to the lodge for Russ's update.

He made a sharp right and climbed a small hill up to the large lodge with light gleaming through the windows. Another picturesque scene that he tuned out to circle around to the front and the wide steps. He took them two at a time and pounded on the door.

Reid opened it within moments and stood back. "Russ is chomping at the bit to give us his news and get home. His baby is due soon, and he's afraid Sydney's going to go into labor."

"You could've called," Dev said as he passed by.

"I thought you'd want to hear this in person," Russ said, standing in front of the large stone fireplace, "so you could figure out the best way to tell Kinsley."

Dev didn't like the sound of that. Not at all. He joined Russ near the dancing fire that was crackling and spewing out heat. Reid followed and perched on the arm of the sofa.

"So go ahead," Dev said. "I'm here now. What do you have to tell us?"

Russ planted a hand on the rustic wooden fireplace mantle. "I just got word on Porter Mooney. They found his partner buried in a Persian rug on his hunting property."

A murderer! Dev's heart fell to his stomach. "Seriously? So he is a murderer for sure."

Russ nodded. "You know Sierra recovered fibers at Mooney's home, and she's comparing the fibers recovered in the water to the rug to confirm it's a match."

"We can pretty much assume they'll match," Dev said. "But why didn't they check the property where they found the body before?"

Russ shook his head. "Mooney registered it through a shell corporation that detectives never attached to his name."

"So how did they find it then?" Reid asked.

"They got an anonymous tip. They still haven't been able to work out the caller's identity, but ground-penetrating radar located the body." He tightened his grip on the mantle. "You can thank your Veritas team friends for this one. They have GPR and their forensic anthropologist agreed to search at no cost, so PPB didn't have to wait for an assist from the state police."

"Have they acted on it?" Reid asked.

"An arrest warrant has been issued."

"Issued? Not good enough." Dev was surprised at the vehemence in his own tone. "When are they going to serve it?"

"As soon as they finish assembling their arrest team. You'll want to give whoever we have watching him a heads up." Russ's eyes narrowed. "But before you make that call, you should know, they also found a second body on the same property. A woman."

Dev's brain raced with the information, trying to process it. His thoughts came to a screeching halt. "Luongo's wife?"

Russ nodded. "The woman's clothing matched what his wife was wearing when she disappeared. The ME also confirmed that the decomposition is consistent with the time she's been missing, but the police can't act until the ME makes a positive identification."

Likely the reason Sierra hadn't gotten back to Dev when she had said she would. This murder investigation would take top priority and, in a way, helped Dev by putting two suspects behind bars where they couldn't get to Kinsley.

"So Luongo and Mooney knew each other?" Reid asked.

Russ nodded. "Looks like they were partners in the shell corporation that no one discovered. Neither of the detectives had seen them together or found any communications with each other in the phone records. They believe they had burner phones and made sure they didn't meet in public."

Dev shook his head. "What are the odds of solving two murders like this in one place?"

"It only seems high because we didn't know the men were connected," Reid said. "But now that we know the connection, the odds are probably not out of order."

"Yeah," Dev said, but he still couldn't wrap his mind around it. "And an arrest warrant for Luongo? Where do we stand on that?"

"Once they have the positive ID, they'll be bringing him in for questioning and holding him for as long as possible." Russ looked from one to the other with raised brows, as if waiting for further questions. No one spoke, and he pushed away from the fireplace. "Okay, that's it. I'm out of here. Be sure to get on the horn to our guys and tell them these men will be taken into custody soon."

Dev dug his phone from his pocket and called Gabe first. These calls weren't difficult to make. Not difficult at all. Both Gabe and Micha would likely be happy to come back home. The hard part would be telling Kinsley that one of these two murderers could be their shooter. Thankfully, by Russ requesting to meet over here instead of making a call that Kinsley could listen in to, he had given Dev the chance to think about it before he had to explain it to her.

Gabe answered at the same time Dev's phone alerted him to an incoming call from Sierra. He was tempted to take it, but he would finish up with Gabe, then call Sierra right back.

"Any action with Luongo?" Dev asked.

"Nah." Gabe didn't keep his disappointment out of his voice. "For such a notorious man, he leads a pretty boring life and looks like he's in for the night."

"He won't be for long." Dev shared the recent development.

"Whoa, seriously?" Gabe fell silent. "That's shocking news."

"It is," Dev said as his phone dinged a voicemail alert. "I need you to stay there until the police pick him up, and then you can head back here. Text me when you leave."

"Will do."

"Thanks for your help, man."

"Of course, but I have to say I was hoping to catch the guy up to no good." Gabe laughed and disconnected.

Dev wasted no time but tapped his voicemail to play Sierra's message.

No luck in lifting complete fingerprints from the drone, but the drone operator filmed himself and left the footage in the camera like I thought he might do. His photo matched in facial recognition. I called Russ with the details. He said he just left you at Reid's place and wants you to meet him at your place ASAP because he's headed there to share the info with Kinsley.

Why hadn't Nick given them that big piece of news with the information about the drone? Could be Sierra asked him not to until she could run the photo against the database. He would have to ask her when they talked.

He fired a look at Reid. "Can you call Micha? I have to go. Looks like we have a facial recognition match for the drone operator."

"To who?"

"I don't know yet. Sierra's voicemail said Russ is sharing the details with Kinsley."

Reid made shooing motions with his hands. "Then go, but call me when you know which suspect we're dealing with."

"You got it." Dev raced out into the night. He stopped on the porch to text Hayden and alert him to his and Russ's upcoming arrival so it didn't spook the guy and cause him to draw down on either of them.

He bolted down the steps and the hill. Good thing he'd walked. This was the fastest route, and he was dying to know who the photo matched.

The smoky night obscured his path and irritated his lungs as he raced for his cabin. At his full-speed press, he quickly reached the lake. Movement in the water caught his attention, but the smoke stopped him from clearly making it out. He slowed and inched closer. Something black and small moved toward the shore. Definitely not a watercraft but a human. A human in a dive suit approaching Dev.

Was it their suspect, coming to hurt Kinsley? Dev couldn't let that happen. He charged down the beach to the water. Kicked off his shoes and socks. Slipped his belt with his sidearm out of the loops, buckled it, and dropped the belt over his head.

He waded in. The biting cold water took his breath. As a former water-rescue professional with Clackamas County Sheriff's Office, he knew that going into this water without a wetsuit at this time of year could result in death in a very short period of time. He had to be careful not to submerge his full body and not stay in the water too long. But he wouldn't risk waiting for him to swim to shore. The intruder could turn and swim off faster than Dev without fins could catch him, and Dev would lose their suspect.

He panted a few times to catch his breath, then moved ahead.

The dark figure inched closer and closer, slickly gliding through the still water, leaving ripples behind. He suddenly stopped. He'd likely made out Dev's approach.

Good. Now Dev could take him down.

The black head didn't surface, leaving the slick top of his skull unmoving and just cresting the water.

Dev waded in closer, readying himself for an assault. The water gently lapped at his waist, and the cold numbed his legs.

Something whooshed through the water, aiming directly at him. A sharp barb pierced his hip. Severe pain stabbed him, radiating up his body. He fought through the pain to stay upright.

He reached down. Found a spear from a speargun piercing his hip. He let his fingers trail around to the back. The sharp spearhead had gone straight through. He knew enough first aid and anatomy to know this could've ripped through his femoral artery. He could be bleeding out. He would check, but it was too dark to see if blood filtered through the water. If he was bleeding out, he would soon lose consciousness.

Get out of the water. Now. You can't do battle with this guy until you assess your wound.

He started to back up, his bare feet sinking in the silt and slowing him down.

The spear on his hip was ripped forward. Dev stifled a shout of pain.

His assailant must have left the line attached to the spear and was jerking him into the water. Dev stood his ground, but the pain threatened to take him down. Bury him in the water.

Another jerk of the line. Another wave of excruciating agony. Injuries that contacted both muscle and bone created the worst kind of pain, and extreme anguish told him the spear put him in that category.

The assailant pulled again. The pain consumed Dev. He reached for his sidearm. The area spun around him, and he lost his balance, falling. The water slapped into his face. Cold. Numbing.

His assailant lunged out of the water. Muscular. Moving fast. He flipped Dev over. Dev saw black with the pain, and his sidearm slipped from his hand. The assailant shoved his arm under Dev's shoulder, then wrapped the line from the spear around his neck.

He tightened the hold, cutting off Dev's oxygen supply. Dev had no weapon. No defense. He clawed at the line but couldn't get his hands under the cord. A jerk of the line from the assailant, tugging on the spear froze Dev's muscles, and he couldn't continue to fight.

The area around him turned black. He was losing consciousness.

Please don't let this happen. Please don't let this guy kill me and get to Kinsley. Please protect her, Lord, please.

And with that prayer, the night went black.