Page 41 of Condor’s Vow

“I think it’s shock.” Clay quickly explained what he had told her and saw the fireman raise his eyebrows.

“Yeah, that’ll do it.” He focused on Hattie again as she sipped the water. “Slow breaths, Hattie. In annnnd out. That’s it.”

After a few minutes she looked much better and Squirrel moved on to other patients.

“Let’s get you home.” Clay took her arm as his phone rang. He saw it was Omega and answered. “Yep?”

“I got a hit two blocks over. No facial rec, but the build is the same as Malone Clark and I got a plate number on the car. It’s registered to a Debbie Brewer, who also happens to be a nurse at the veterinary clinic where he works.”

“Send me an address.”

“Sure thing.”

Clay hung up and for the first time ever felt torn between his personal life and his job. He needed to find this asshole, but his need to make sure Hattie was okay was winning.

“I can handle this on my own, boss,” Sandstorm offered.

Hattie grasped his arm tightly and he crouched close to her. “No, you have to go and do your job. I can call my brother.”

“No, I can take you back to where Callie and I are staying, and you can hang with us or you can show us the gorgeous house Clay told us about and show us your plans? He has no style so it’s best I check it out for you first.” Reid winked at her and Clay felt relief move over him.

“Are you happy to go with Reid and Callie to your place until I can get home?”

“Yes.”

Clay nodded once and kissed her softly, not taking the time he needed or wanted to reassure himself she was safe because he had a job to do.

“Don’t leave her side.” He warned Reid who saluted him and smirked. “Come on, let’s go pay Malone Clark a visit.”

Sandstorm was walking to the car with him when he spoke. “I could have handled this.”

“Oh, I’ve no doubt about it, but you shouldn’t have to. We’re a team and it’s too dangerous to question him alone. In fact, we should probably call Hawk and Lyric and have them meet us there.”

“You think he’ll be there?”

“No idea but I won’t take chances with this. Have them send SWAT to Debbie Brewer’s place too.”

When they got to the two-story brownstone property, Hawk and Lyric were waiting a few houses down. Donning vests, they agreed Hawk and Lyric would go around the back and he and Sandstorm would take the lead.

Clay knocked on the door. “Malone Clark, it’s the FBI. Open up.”

They waited and when there was no answer, they called in back up and waited some more. Rose had the judge sign off on the warrant verbally so they could go in by force.

Clay stepped back and waited as the SWAT guys broke the door down and he went inside with Sandstorm covering his back. He cleared the front living space and the kitchen and let Hawk and Lyric in through the locked back door.

He heard someone call clear from upstairs and knew they had missed him.

Clay donned a pair of gloves and looked through a few cupboards before heading upstairs with Hawk. The master bedroom was a mess with clothes strewn all over the place, but it was the things that were missing that told the story. An empty picture frame on the bed, no charging cables plugged in beside it. The bathroom was empty of the usual toothbrush and shaving stuff, and when he checked, a lot of the drawers were empty of clothes.

“He’s in the wind. Let’s get a BOLO out on the car. Sandstorm, talk to his colleagues, find out where he has been and with who. Hawk, speak to Stephanie Clark. She knows something, I’m sure of it.”

Clay continued to look around the scene, his mind taking in every detail and cataloging it for reference. He knew the crime scene techs would take pictures but there was nothing like being at the scene.

Heading back to the office, he went through everything they knew about Malone Clark. He fit the profile physically, mentally, and emotionally but his alibi was solid—unless it had been faked somehow.

Striding toward Omega, he told him to cue up the footage from the vet clinic for the nights of the murders. “Is it possible this has been tampered with?”

Omega tilted his head as he looked at him. “Possible, yes. But in my opinion not likely.”