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She was doing it again. Block it out for now.
When Kendra came back into the living room twenty minutes later, she’d taken a quick shower and slipped on the terry-cloth robe she kept in the bathroom.
“That’s better.” Lynch was standing at the bar, shirtless, naked to the waist, and looking tanned, powerful, muscular, and vaguely like an ancient Roman warrior. “Got anything for me? I had to get rid of my shirt. It was splattered with blood when I tried to stop her bleeding.” He poured her a cup of coffee and handed it to her. “But if you don’t mind, I don’t.”
“You didn’t leave any of your clothes here when you left last time. But I notice you used your key to open the door tonight.”
“I was only concerned with getting you inside as soon as possible.”
“I don’t give a damn about that blasted key. And I don’t care if you want to stride around buck naked.” She took a sip of coffee. “I didn’t even notice your shirt was spattered. I was a little upset.”
“I’m aware of that.” He poured himself coffee. “And you should have been. It was a particularly brutal murder.”
She nodded jerkily. “He stabbed her in her lower back, and then he manacled her in place and let her bleed to death. And it was aimed at me, wasn’t it?”
“According to Jackie Gabert. Though some of it might have been directed at Jackie. We don’t know what transpired that brought him to her apartment. She obviously had known this Alpha in the past. She might have contacted him because she was angry at Barrett’s death. Or he might have been monitoring your movements and it led him back to Jackie. It could have gone either way.” He smiled sardonically. “And I suppose we should stop calling him the Alpha. We can ask Griffin to do a trace on Jackie’s past and see if a Milo pops up. It’s about time we had a break. Plus, there could be DNA evidence in her apartment.”
“That bastard’s very careful. They didn’t find anything at that construction site,” Kendra said. “And he had time to clean her apartment before we got there.”
“Everyone makes mistakes,” Lynch said. “And if anyone could spot one, it would be you. Are you ready to give it a try?”
She tensed. “What do you mean?”
He leaned closer to her. “Make that woman’s death mean something. Think about what you just saw in there.”
Dear God, she didn’t want anything to do with the scene she’d just witnessed. It seemed as if the agony and blood was still right there before her.
She looked away. Well, that might not be bad. It might bring it closer, clearer. What was she thinking? There was no way it wasn’t going to be bad. She braced herself. She knew she’d have to face this sooner or later. It was one of the things that only she could do.
And shecoulddo it.
Close your eyes. Concentrate.
Lynch was right. She had to make it count.
Kendra’s eyes suddenly sprang open. “The killer wore gloves. Disposable.”
“Latex gloves?”
“No. Nitrile. The kind that medical personnel use. Or law-enforcement officers at crime scenes. We should tell Griffin to search dumpsters nearby. I might even be able to tell him what color to look for. I need to send a couple of texts first.”
Lynch nodded. “This is good. What else?”
“She may have opened the door for him, but she didn’t invite him in.”
“Are you sure?”
She closed her eyes again, picturing the scene. “Yes. He stabbed her in her foyer, then dragged her into her living room. Quickly, before she really started bleeding out.”
“Anything more?”
“When the police and Griffin’s agents do their canvass, they should concentrate on the apartment beneath Jackie’s.” She frowned. “Maybe even more than the apartments next to it.”
“Okay…”
She thought for another moment. “The killer may have some military training, possibly special forces experience.”
“I concur. You’re referring to the kidney stab wounds?”
