Page 71 of Coordinates of Death

Chapter Thirteen

Aurora sipped her second double espresso as she sauntered through the station door early the next morning. After her conversation with SBK, her body had refused to shut down, and she’d only slept for two hours before her alarm shrieked at her. She hit Snooze twice but finally got out of bed after Lady Grey’s constant talking.

“Wait up!” Kordell’s voice startled her from her dazed stupor.

She turned and held the door. “Morning.”

“Hey, you. I need to talk to you right away.” He gestured toward the lunchroom. “Maybe in there?”

“Let’s hurry before shift change, because after that the place will be busy.” She raised her mug. “Cops and their coffee.”

“I could use another cup.”

They entered the empty room.

Aurora set her backpack and mug on a table. This morning she had struggled with whether to share the journal pages and necklace but had put them in her bag. She still didn’t know what to do. Was it truly evidence or just SBK’s way of taunting her? One thing she knew was she had to surrender her cell phone to Dirk and the team.

She approached the countertop. “I’ll make a pot. The others will be here shortly.” She filled the carafe with water and poured it into the coffeemaker, then added the grinds to the basket. “Hazelnut today. One of my faves.” She hit the button. “What did you want to talk about?”

Kordell brought out a plastic bag from his backpack and held it up. “This.” He placed it on the table.

Aurora leaned over and gazed at the newspaper page, her heartbeat pounding. She plopped down into a chair. “It can’t be. How did Sebastian get released?”

“Says he served his time and got out on good behavior.” Kordell huffed and crossed his arms. “Unlikely. Good behavior is not something I’d ascribe to Sebastian or Sheldon.”

Aurora read the rest of the article. “Oh my. Says that Sheldon hung himself in prison a year ago. I’m surprised I hadn’t heard that before now.” Aurora had sensed from the moment the Roches moved in that they were bad news, and she hadn’t been surprised when they were arrested for taking part in a human trafficking ring. Truth be told, she’d put the Roches and that life behind her long ago. She refused to go there again.

Except now she didn’t have a choice. It seemed SBK wanted her to travel back to Ontario, where she grew up.

She tapped on the bold words the killer had left for Kordell. “You got the same message. What does SBK think we did?”

Kordell shrugged but averted his gaze. “Who knows?”

Interesting. What are you hiding, Kord?

The pages and necklace in her bag reminded Aurora of her darkest secret. The one that almost put her in the same institution as her mother. Focus. You need to catch a killer, not rehash that part of your life. “I know Cain died in prison, but where do you think Melissa Roche is now?”

“No idea, and I don’t want to know.” He tapped on the page. “Hopefully, Dirk or Nadine can get prints off this?”

“Somehow I doubt it. SBK hasn’t left prints. He’s too careful. When did you get this?”

The coffee machine sputtered its final percolation, indicating the fresh brew was ready.

“Someone knocked on my door around eleven thirty last night. This was all I found on the step.” Kordell rose and poured himself a cup of coffee. “Why do you ask?”

“Cream is in the fridge.” Should Aurora show Kordell what SBK had left for her? Lord, do I open myself up for more hurt? She was a cop and had to share the evidence. She steeled her jaw and brought out the items. “Because I also received a special gift from him last night.”

Kordell finished mixing cream into his coffee and brought it back to the table. “Coincidence?”

“Something tells me SBK doesn’t believe in those.” She brought gloves out of her bag and put them on before showing him the padded envelope. “The return address is the psychiatric institution my mother was in when she died. But as you can see, there’s no postage, so that was a special message from SBK telling me he knows all about my past.” She only prayed he didn’t know all. But how could he when most of her secret remained buried within the darkest corner of Aurora’s mind?

“What’s inside?”

She brought out the contents. “These pages are from my mother’s journal.” She opened the box and lifted out the cross necklace. “This was buried with my mother.”

“What? Did SBK rob her grave?”

“That’s what I intend to find out. I put in a call earlier to an Ontario constable I know. I’m waiting for him to call me back.” She unhooked her cell phone from her duty belt and swiped, bringing it to life. “Plus, I had an interesting conversation via text.” She shoved the phone across the table.