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“Really? Hmm, I must be losing my edge.” He sipped his soda and his blue gaze slid over her face. “Bradford rode shotgun with me today to question a few suspects. She did very well for a rookie.”
“That’s good.” Jenna smiled. “So, let’s cut to the chase. What did you discover?”
“Not much.” Kane shrugged. “Truth is I wanted to discuss the interview with Lizzy Harper with you.”
“Then discuss it before you blow a gasket.”
“First of all, her mother mentioned she was out for some time on Friday evening, apparently getting takeout. We’ll need to check with Davis at the real estate office and find out where the pair of them were working this week.”
“Okay, so what did Lizzy Harper say?”
“She didn’t say much at all, mainly put all men down as pigs, but she did let it slip that more men were involved.” Kane’s lips curled into a satisfied smile. “I didn’t push for more information but now she has given us a motive to obtain a court order for her son’s DNA results. We’ll be able to discover if one of our victims is his biological father.”
Jenna leaned forward. “Really?”
“Yeah, and her mother identified Stewart Macgregor as a friend of her husband as well, so likely he was involved.”
“Great, I’ll get the paperwork underway for the court orders. I hope that’s all because my brain needs a rest.” She sighed. “Dinner with you tonight is a luxury; I hardly get time to eat lately.”
“It’s good to take an hour to think; we’re not machines.” Kane huffed out a sigh. “These cases are horrific and you’ve covered every angle for now. The suspects in the girls’ abductions are dead and we have little to go on to find their killers. If the DNA profile from one of the victims matches Lizzy’s son, we’ll have a motive.”
“Okay, I’ll delegate. Rowley’s on duty with Webber on Monday. They’ll keep searching for associates of our murder victims, and providing we get the court order, I’ll ask Wolfe to run a check of the boy’s DNA against our DNA database as well. There was a rape case before I arrived here and many of the men volunteered their DNA. We might fluke a match.”
“Let’s hope so.” Kane grimaced. “I’m convinced the group of predators is bigger than we thought. We need to catch these assholes.”
Disturbed by the implications, Jenna placed her glass on the table. “I’ve seen terrible things in my life but this beats all.” She lifted her chin. “It plays on my mind twenty-four seven. I can’t sleep so it makes it difficult to follow the shrink’s recommendation and turn off for a while to prevent the flashbacks kicking in again. This information is so disturbing. Have any feel-good movies at your place to lull me to sleep?”
“Yeah, I’ll find something to cheer you up.” He waved at the waiter for the check. “If you want to get away for an hour, I’m going to see a couple of horses in the morning. I said I’d try and drop by around ten unless we get dragged out to another damn murder.”
The one thing she liked about David Kane was his gentle side. When they were alone, his tough persona relaxed and she could laugh with him. It was nice to put the job aside for a few minutes and be herself. She smiled. “We should be on the case but unless Wolfe and Rowley come up with anything new, I guess we could grab an hour. I do need time to clear my head.”
“It’s harder when kids are involved. Trust me, Wolfe will be working on those laptops all night and you deserve a time out.” He handed the waiter his credit card and signed the bill then looked at her. “We’ll have fun tomorrow but I guess we’ll have sore muscles on Monday. I haven’t ridden for years.”
She laughed. “Me either. Maybe you should add a hot tub to your list of essentials.”
“That’s a thought.” He took the credit card from the waiter and pushed to his feet. “I’ll look into it.”
Jenna gaped at him. Just how rich are you?
They walked out into the balmy night and made their way to the parking lot. A light breeze carried the scent of roses from the tubs set each side of the entrance to the hotel. When his warm fingers cupped her elbow, the small touch surprised her, as he had not touched her intimately since the night he cuddled her a few months ago. She doubted anyone would see them as they walked between the rows of parked cars, and she leaned into him, enjoying the hard muscular arm pressing against her bare flesh. The comfortable friendship they had established suited her well. He complemented her in so many ways, respected her at work, and understood her demons.
As they reached the car, Kane’s cellphone rang. He gave her an exasperated look and reached inside his pocket.
“David Kane.” His expression changed to alarm and he held up one finger then put his phone on speaker. “Who is this?”
A distorted voice came through the speakers, sending Jenna’s teeth on edge.
“Why do you protect pedophiles? Don’t bother making up excuses. I know getting all the dirty little details from their victims turns you on.”
“I can assure you—” Kane flicked Jenna a worried glance.
“Sure you can. Men like you ‘love’ kids, don’t they? Love them to death most times. I am ridding the world of the scum and you are protecting them. Stop getting in my way or you’ll be next.”
The line went dead.
“Oh my God.” Jenna stared at his cellphone in disbelief. “How the hell did the killer get your number?”
“I give out my cards all the time and Maggie has a pile at the front desk, along with yours.” He ran his fingers though his thick hair and grimaced. “All the suspects I interviewed today have cards as well. As the caller electronically disguised their voice, I don’t know if it was a man or woman. Damn it, I haven’t activated the record call app on this phone and now we have zip.”
