“Assuming you’re right, I would say the killer is planning another pay-per-view, and he will need time to set up the location. So once he is sure of the couple’s destination, he will go on ahead.” Wolfe’s lips formed a thin line and worry creased his brow. “It’s risky. We have to assume this man has considerable IT skills. If I planned this, I would set up a hidden camera in the hallway outside their room and maybe place a tracker on their vehicle.” He glanced at Jenna. “That’s another thing, we are assuming this is a single killer yet he manages to kill, clean up, and dispose of the victim’s vehicles before we find the bodies.”
“Yeah, but in the first murder, the wildlife took care of the bodies.” Rowley lifted his chin and looked at Wolfe. “He was expecting the same thing for Bailey Canavar and John Doe. I figure he has gotten rid of their cars after the murders to give the impression they left the area. From what we know, most of the tourists rent a car from the airport. He probably leaves the car at the drop-off point and cabs it back to town.”
“That would work as the vehicl
es are cleaned and sent out again.” Wolfe rubbed his chin. “All trace evidence is destroyed but that situation wouldn’t apply if we catch him this time.”
Jenna leaned back in her chair and ran the scenarios through her mind. Kane had tactical experience and so did Wolfe as both had served in the marines. “Okay, so we wear the Kevlar vests; that’s not going to help if he decides to take a headshot, is it?”
“Nope.” Kane shrugged. “But it’s not his MO. From what we’ve seen, he disables the male victims with a lower lumbar shot to paralyze him. My vest will cover me and we will deploy the rest of the team in high positions. With everyone dressed in camo, we will look like a normal hunting party, but we will all be carrying concealed weapons. Wolfe, Rowley, and Webber will be carrying rifles, and they’ll look legit if they are seen by the killer.” He leaned back and stretched out his legs. “Look at the area we have to work with; it’s close to the mountain and we get to choose the location. We will have the advantage. We will know he is coming so he won’t have the element of surprise. We will be armed and highly trained. It should be a walk in the park.”
“I’ll set up a few trail cams of my own as well.” Wolfe looked at her. “You’ll have trackers and coms just in case anything goes wrong.”
“I don’t think Jenna and I can risk trail cams or use coms.” Kane turned his head to speak to Wolfe. “If he sees them, he’ll smell a rat. He will likely be using a scope to bring down the guy, and from what we have seen so far, he is not careless.”
A wave of dread closed in around Jenna; her deputies were talking as if this was a military mission: no emotion, no worries they might die. Kane and Wolfe threw ideas back and forth, and she listened, intrigued. Unlike her, they had been deployed overseas during their time in the marines. Kane and Wolfe had gained more experience in the field than she had. What they had planned was potentially a life-threatening situation, and when dealing with a psychopath anything could go wrong. She offered up a few of her own ideas but decided to take a small step back and defer to their skills.
“Okay. I want Kane to take the lead in planning the tactical, and Wolfe you’ll lead in the field.” She looked at him. “Make sure everyone is on the same page; our lives are on the line.” She scanned the faces before her. “I’ll speak to the couple by phone; we can’t risk being seen with them. If they agree, we will arrange to switch places with them in the clothing store, Dowy’s, the expensive one. It won’t be busy early in the day. I’ll send Maggie in with uniforms well beforehand, and Mr. Dowy will cooperate.”
“It could work.” Bradford wet her lips nervously and her eyes darted to Kane then back to Jenna. “Where do I fit in?”
Jenna smiled at her. “You’ll be the lookout, and if Wolfe is busy, you’ll be able to relay messages to the team via your com.”
“What if we have to stay up there overnight?” Bradford picked at her fingernails.
“Then Wolfe will organize sentry duty.” Kane’s look was direct. “It’s going to be cold and you’ll be sleeping rough. Say now if you want to stand down; we’ll understand.”
“No, I’ve slept rough before, I’ll be fine.” Bradford lifted her chin. “I’m part of the team.”
“And me, ma’am.” Webber straightened and looked at Jenna and his eyes sparkled with excitement.
Jenna waved a hand toward Kane. “Kane will organize tactical.”
Kane’s chair creaked as he turned to look at Webber. “You and Rowley will join Wolfe as our sharpshooters. You’ll be positioned up high to scan the immediate area for the killer.”
“Roger that.” Webber looked suitably impressed. “Who will take care of things in town?”
Jenna sighed. “Colter Barry will be in the safe house by the weekend. So I’ll have Walters and Maggie here. They are quite capable of holding the fort at the weekend.” She rubbed her hands together. “Okay, now all we have to do is convince Crane and Benton to set up a serial killer.”
Kane’s almost blank combat expression remained set in place. “And we have to hope the murdering SOB takes the bait.”
49
Thursday, week two
The outdoors store was busy and he waited in one of the lines to the counter, arms piled high with spare camo, two new pairs of hiking boots, and spare ammunition. He glanced sideways and straight into the eyes of Mariah Crane. She lifted her nose as if he smelled like old socks and turned to her companion. The same older man he knew as Paul Benton. As they shuffled to the counter, he could hear Mariah as clear as if she was speaking to him.
“For once I agree with you, Paul.” Mariah fingered the thick hoodie over one arm. “We do need warmer clothes for the mountains. I’m so glad you persuaded me to go up to Bear Peak; that old Native American trail leads right to a plateau. I’ll get some wonderful shots of the valley from there.”
“Look here.” Benton maneuvered his shopping cart to one side and took a map from his pocket. “We can drive here and leave the car. See – there are three trails: The one on the left is the old one; the other two lead to the falls. So if we take this one that follows a trail to a canyon with a spectacular ravine, it will be amazing to view from the top.” He smiled at her. “I spoke to Nigel at the hotel; he told me it’s colder up there at this time of the year. Most visitors take the trails lower down the mountain and visit the rock pools and rivers. It’s well away from the designated hunting areas and the chances of us running across anyone from the conference will be remote. In fact, darn near impossible. I asked around and no one is heading up that way this weekend.”
“I hope you didn’t tell anyone where we’re heading.” Mariah pouted. “I don’t want another day ruined.”
“I’m not a complete idiot.” Paul touched her cheek. “This weekend will be one to remember, I promise.”
I promise too. He pushed the graphic images he’d conjured of Mariah’s body after he’d finished with her to the back of his mind and focused. He waited a beat to present a calm exterior, dropped his purchases on the counter, and smiled at the sales clerk. “Great weather for hunting.”
“Sure is. I think this has been our busiest season this year. Tons of new faces in town as well, and everyone is spending big. It seems like Black Rock Falls is becoming a top tourist destination.” The man dropped the goods into a paper bag and gave him the total.