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“She didn’t sound as if she’d be easily frightened. I think we have to know how Barrett got those goggles. We can’t ignore that she and Barrett evidently had a connection.”
“Of course we can’t,” Kendra said. “I’d just like to find out more about that connection before I spring any of this on her. The Bureau will have someone checking her out, but I don’t want to wait around for them. I think I’ll do a bit of research on her myself and see what I can find out.”
“May I help?”
She shook her head. “This is just preliminary. I only want to try to get to know her. But you can go with me to see her tomorrow at the university.”
“You might have to make an appointment. It sounded as if she was pretty busy with her training.”
“If we have trouble, I’ll see if I can get my mother to pull rank. She teaches at the university, and she might be willing to help me influence Tricia’s coach.”
“I’d forgotten Diane still teaches. I thought she was going to take a diplomatic post in South America.”
“She decided she’d get too bored. She loves to interact with those college kids.”
“And keep an eye on you?”
“I’m the one who has to keep an eye on her,” Kendra said. “I was relieved when she decided not to go down to Chile. I could see her demonstrating in the streets with the entire student body.”
“And you would have gone down to bail her out when they threw her in jail.”
“Of course. If I couldn’t get her out any other way. I’d prefer to negotiate. What’s a daughter for?” She was already thinking ahead. “Maybe I’ll call my mother tonight and see what she knows about the swimming team. She follows most college sports, and she likes swimming. Maybe she’s even met Tricia.”
“Aren’t you becoming overinvolved?” Lynch asked. “All we wanted to know was why Barrett had her goggles.”
“‘Overinvolved,’” she repeated. Then she shook her head vehemently. “You didn’t smell Barrett’s scent on those goggles. And you just told me that it could have been someone else who brought the damn things to Barrett and gave them to him as a present.”
“I didn’t exactly use those words.” He got to his feet. “I don’t know what happened, and I certainly don’t have your nasal sensitivity. So, I’ll get out of here and let you run your own show. I still have some more checking to do on how Barrett got hold of those goggles while he was in solitary.” He smiled down at her. “But I want to know. Will you call me after you do your research on Tricia Walton and fill me in?”
She nodded. “Yes.” She paused and then said, “She might have been even younger than eighteen when he went after her, Lynch. I can’t stand the thought of anyone victimizing kids.”
“I know you can’t.” He leaned forward and brushed his lips across her cheek. “I’ll be waiting for you to call and tell me what’s been happening to Tricia. Then we’ll decide what to do about keeping her safe.” He headed for the front door. “If I can do anything before tomorrow, let me know. I’ll be here for you.” Then he was gone.
She knew he’d be here for her, but she was feeling a responsibility to do everything she could herself. She’d felt almost as helpless in that cell as she had when she’d been at the hospital. There’d be no way to escape that feeling until she felt totally in charge of the situation. She just didn’tknowenough. Not enough about Tricia Walton, and not enough about Barrett. She hadn’t researched Barrett as much as she could, because the bastard was dead, and she’d instinctively thought good riddance. But the minute she’d had a hint that he wasn’t a suicide she should have explored his death the way she would have anyone else’s.
So, catch up, call the Bureau and get to know as much as they did about James Michael Barrett. Then call anyone at the university, including her mother, who could tell her anything about Tricia Walton.
Kendra sat down at the table, took out her phone and notebook, and punched in the number for the FBI.
***
“I’m reporting in as ordered, Lynch,” Kendra said when she phoned him over three hours later. “The good news is thatnot only is Tricia Walton alive and well, she’s a champion swimmer. Not that I learned all that much about her. I got hung up finding all I could about Barrett. Tricia is from a solid upper-middle-class family who brought her up in Seattle, Washington. She has excellent academic grades and won an athletic scholarship that enabled her to get into one of the best colleges in the country for her swimming specialty. She may even be Olympic-caliber.” Kendra grimaced. “But Barrett’s career was every bit as twisted and ugly as I’d heard.”
“You dove into Barrett’s past, too?”
“I had to do it. It wasn’t fun. But since he had her goggles, I had to explore how he’d gotten them.” She paused. “And the son of a bitch had to have been practically drooling over them. He was treating them as if they were his toy.”
“And did you find out how he got them?”
“Not yet. I suppose Tricia might have given them to him, but I doubt it. And I wasn’t able to get through to her to question her. I’ll have to try to do it tomorrow,” she said. “But I found out why he might have been obsessed with her.”
“Ahh, now we get to the twisted and ugly. How bad was it?”
“It was bad, but not as terrible as it could have been. Though she must have been terrified, and he must have been really pissed off.”
“Kendra.”
“I’m getting to it. Barrett attacked her when she was living down here with her parents at their lakeside summer home when she was only fourteen. Evidently, he’d been stalking her for some time because he waited until her parents had gone to town one day and left her at home alone. She was working out when he showed up and attacked her. He was clearly trying to rape her, but she put up a hell of a fight. She hit him in the balls with a hand weight and broke free. She got to the fire alarm in the house and set it off. When he caught up with her, she hit him again with the weight, this time on the head, then ran out and hid in the hills. He was gone when the cops and fire trucks showed up a short time later.”
