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"She had her claws out, all right." Berry gave another dry, mirthless laugh. "I wonder. If Oren had shot me instead of Ben, would I have been considered a heroine? Or would I still be looked upon as the attempted home-wrecker who got her comeuppance? That's a good topic for debate, don't you think?"
"What I think," Dodge said, "is that your bosses at this outfit are lily-livered assholes.You're better off never darkening the door of that place again."
"I agree with you, and I'm sure that's the position Delray predicted and hoped that I would take," Berry said. "The concern for my well-being that the boss so effusively conveyed was in actuality his safety net. He wants my resignation. He just needs the decision to be mine so that his hands can stay clean. I left it open-ended for now. Let them sweat it for a few weeks. But I already know what my final decision will be."
"My two cents' worth," Ski said, "you're too good for them."
She looked up at him with watery eyes and said hoarsely, "Thanks."
"You're welcome."
For several seconds they seemed to forget that Caroline and Dodge were still in the room, then Ski pulled himself into the here and now. Duties awaited him.
"I'd better shove off."
"There's an extra bed in my room next door," Dodge said. "You're welcome to it."
Ski thanked him but declined the offer. "Sally Buckland's murder case belongs to the Houston detectives. I've got Davis Coldare's to deal with."
"Last we heard from Starks, he was here in Houston."
"Yeah, Dodge, but I can't help thinking..."
"What?"
Ski ran his hand around the back of his neck. "Oren wanted to thumb his nose at me and everyone else who was searching for him. That's why he came back here to place that call to Berry today. He knew we'd beat it here, try and chase him down. He wanted to cause confusion and make us look and feel inept." He smiled crookedly. "He succeeded."
" 'Spinning Wheel.'"
All of them looked at Berry, who'd whispered the words.
"Blood, Sweat and Tears," she said. " 'Spinning Wheel.' That's the tune he was humming during our phone conversation."
"Dammit, you're right," Ski said.
"Well, ain't our boy cute?" Dodge said. Then he dropped all traces of humor, sarcastic or otherwise. "I gotta kill this son of a bitch. I really do."
"He raped Sally, didn't he?" Berry asked, directing the question to Ski.
"I don't know about penetration," he said evasively. "Maybe he just..." He let the statement trail off, for which Caroline was glad. "I won't know till I get the autopsy report from Detective Allen."
Thoughts of what that young woman might have suffered subdued them for several moments; then Caroline addressed Ski. "You were theorizing on his motive for calling Berry."
"Yeah. What really worries me is that he might have had something else up his sleeve when he got us out of Merritt."
"Like what?" Dodge asked.
"I don't know. That's why I need to get back." He looked down at Berry. "I assume you're returning in the morning?"
"I've got nowhere else to be."
"Okay. I'm going to keep the guards at the lake house. But I'm going to make it appear I've pulled them off. They'll still be there when you get back. Just invisible."
"Laying a trap for him?" Dodge asked.
"Oren won't fall for it," Berry said.
"I don't think so, either," Ski said, "but it doesn't hurt to keep some people in place, just in case."
