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Beau scrubbed at his tired face and stretched, his arms lifting high above his head as he arched his back. “I’m beat, Lori. Can we go get some food and then hit the sack?”
“I couldn’t eat. Not real food. Maybe some toast.” Lori’s head was in her arms on the table, her bloodshot eyes at half mast, and her body limp from exhaustion. She checked her watch and dropped her head back down. “It’s after midnight. I guess I’m too late to go to work at the bar.”
Beau chuckled. “Did you call in to let them know you weren’t going to be there?”
“No. I texted I’d be late, and they sent me a thumbs-up, so guess they got my message. I hate letting them down like that, but I couldn’t just leave tonight. Not when so much is going on.” She followed Beau’s example and stretched her body too. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Beau watching, his face closed, secretive, but his hands had clenched, and his avid gaze was telling.
When he saw she’d noticed his reaction, he changed the subject. “How is it that no one else at the school recognized this kid? He had access to a locker for Chrissakes. We showed the video to all the staff, right? And to the students? No one stepped forward.”
“It didn’t help that he wore a mask.”
“That’s true but you’d think his eyes and hair might have tweaked someone’s recognition.”
“Could be he’s a stranger who doesn’t even go to that school and got the locker info from a student who does. Let’s face it, with the mask covering half his face, it’s hard to make out any features other than he’s white, young, and has dark eyes and dark hair. There were no recognizable marks or tattoos. ”
“True. But you’d think some of the older faculty and students who’ve been there a while would have recognized him if he’d attended in the past.”
Lori grumbled her agreement. “One would hope. And how did a stranger to the place know about the locker, that it would be open, and hold a rifle? The person who put it there had to have told him, given him directions. We’ve been over this a thousand times.”
“I know and I agree with your assumptions. Unless someone else pulled the puppet’s strings, it doesn’t make sense. We both know he had a voice in his ear. It’s plain to see on the tape. It’s not just our imagination.”
“Right. That’s what we all believe. The kid listened to orders until faced with the outcome. He even retrieved the gun when told to do so. Then he broke and ran.”
“I’m still questioning how the voice knew he’d dropped the gun? All I saw was his shock after he saw the teacher go down.”
“I’m thinking the noise.”
Lori stiffened, her attitude changing from weary to excited. “Hold it. What if JR had eyes on him? A camera pinned to his chest like one the cops use. Wouldn’t he want to be in on the action if he could?”
“None of his other killers wore one.”
“True, but he’s escalating, wants in on the fun, wants to be more personally involved with the action now.”
“Kind of makes sense.” They reran the video with an eye for anything that might look like a lens, and sure enough, Lori made out the extra button on the shooter’s shirt that glinted strangely for a second before movement stopped it’s glow.
Just then a call from the front desk put an end to their discussion. “ Hey, Beau. Glad we caught you. Look, I have a paramedic here who needs to talk with someone working the case. Seems the injured teacher recognized the boy and shared this news with the medic who’d worked on him as they transported him to the ER.”
Annoyed, Beau shot to his feet. “Why the hell is he just coming forward now to give his statement?”
“Don’t know. I’ll send him along.”
In minutes, one of their agents stood in the doorway of the mostly empty office, getting their attention. “Did the front desk let you know that a guy just arrived who says he needs to talk with you, Beau?”
“Yeah. Thanks, Joyce. How come you’re still here?”
“Got a case that’s ended and had to finish off the reports, boss wanted them by morning.”
“Lucky you. Wish our mess was over.”
“Maybe this man will have some answers. By the look on his face, he’s got something juicy. Want him here or in an interview room?”
“Here’s fine. Thanks.”
Lori massaged her cheeks, pushing hard, trying to wake up her brain cells. Tiredness had claimed her hours ago, and she just kept forcing it away. Now wasn’t the time to slow down. Not when a killer was loose with a rifle meant for utter destruction to whoever stood in his path.
Beau picked up the ringing phone. “Walker here. Okay. Right. Thanks.” He put the receiver down and turned her way. His face registered anger. “It was the ER doctor from the hospital. The teacher passed away. That makes another dead body.”
Before Lori could reply, Joyce showed a large, uniformed man into their office and Beau stepped forward with his hand extended. “Agent Beau Walker, thanks for coming forward.”
