Page 11 of Coordinates of Death

“Of course. Can you send him the police files you have? With your sergeant’s permission, of course.”

“Yes, we’ll ask in the morning. I’m sure he will give his approval, as he gave me special permission to bring information home with me as I need to solve this case. I want closure for these families. It’s been two years since SBK’s last kill.” She paused. “Until today.” Aurora tapped on the picture of a villain’s silhouette. Shadow Box Killer was written beneath, along with an enormous question mark. “We have no idea of the killer’s identity. We’re not even sure if they’re male or female.”

“Tell me what happened two years ago, before the trail went cold.”

She puffed out a sigh. “I failed. That’s what happened.”

“What do you mean?”

“I got distracted for a quick second and failed to see a figure dressed in an oversize hoodie before it was too late. Their face was concealed, but it was his—or her—mannerisms that pushed my alert button. At the same moment, the suspect must have spotted me analyzing him. I approached, but he pulled out a gun and began shooting. I returned fire and chased him, but he lost me in an alleyway. We found blood droplets, so I’d obviously wounded the suspect. Forensics took samples, but the DNA results were inconclusive due to contamination. After that, SBK went dormant. Until today.”

“And that’s why you feel it was SBK at the scene two years ago?”

“Yes, and why my sergeant blames me for letting the killer go. He’s regretting his decision to recommend me for the corporal position.”

“Why did he?”

“I saved our staff sergeant’s daughter Isla after a serial rapist abducted her.”

Kordell shifted in his seat, his face contorting.

Aurora didn’t miss his furrowed forehead. What about Isla’s abduction had sent him into panic mode? “What is it, Kord?”

“Nothing. Can you take me to the car rental place? Then I’ll head to my Airbnb. I think we both need a good rest before the clock starts ticking.” He rose to his feet, shutting off further conversation on the matter.

“Of course.”

Why had her childhood friend’s previously warm demeanor suddenly shifted into avoidance and panic?

An hour later, Aurora climbed under her buffalo plaid comforter. Kordell had remained quiet on the drive to the car rental, even after she had tried to continue their conversation. Something about Isla had spooked him, but what? He didn’t know Staff Sergeant Hill’s family. She finally gave up drilling him and arranged to pick him up in the morning. They’d travel together to Alaska.

She plugged her cell phone into its charger and set it on her nightstand. An object caught her eye.

Her mother’s black Bible lay open.

The one Aurora cherished after her death years ago but normally kept on the bay window ledge in her living room. How did it end up here? Was she sleep-deprived and forgetting things? Possibly. She’d been on double shifts lately, so she might have brought it to her room, as she often liked to study the words her mother had written throughout the pages.

She looked at the passage. Proverbs 3:33.

And the first half was underlined.

The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked.

Angst crept over Aurora’s body. Had her mother marked that passage for a reason? If so, why?

Her mother had been what her church friends called a godly woman, so what was she saying about their home?

Kordell followed Aurora into her police station the next morning after they’d picked up survival gear. He had hated how he’d reacted last night, but the mention of a rapist threw him back to a secret he had held from everyone all these years. A secret that haunted him constantly, even when he had battled to put it behind him.

A secret about her.

Only the narcissistic Roche family were aware of what had happened the night of Aurora’s rape, and Kordell couldn’t tell her without revealing a side of him he wanted to remain buried.

A side he himself hadn’t totally grasped.

All because of Cain Roche—Kordell’s foster parent from when he was fifteen. After being bounced around multiple foster homes, he was placed with Cain and Melissa Roche along with their two biological children, Sebastian and Sheldon. Kordell quickly discovered the entire family was toxic, but no one would listen to him. The brothers bullied Kordell at school, and it intensified when he started hanging around Aurora. They were jealous as they hadn’t been able to catch the pretty teen’s attention, and the kicker came when Sebastian saw Kordell kiss Aurora.

A few days later, Cain had drugged Kordell and taken him to an abandoned house where he bound and muzzled him, making him watch as his sons raped Aurora. Kordell had closed his eyes when Cain held his head in a vise grip in the direction of the attack. He couldn’t watch. Wouldn’t defile her in that way, even though he knew what was happening. Mortified, he confronted his foster father, but the man had only smirked and said, “I’ll kill her if you go to the police or say anything to her. Let this be a lesson to you.” Unsure of what to do, Kordell had panicked and run away, not wanting to put Aurora in any more danger. He left without saying goodbye.