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"I know the risks, Chief, but this is the best way to catch the killer. We need to take a risk if we're going to solve this case."
"You're asking me to put my officers in harm's way," he said, his tone firm. "I can't do that."
Amber felt a pang of frustration. She understood Chief Williams' concerns about the dangers of this plan, but they were running out of time. They needed to catch the killer before he struck again.
"I understand your concern, Chief," Amber said, trying to stay calm. "But this is our best chance of catching this guy. If we don't act soon, another woman might die."
"And what about any woman the killer might target while you have us playing wait and see with the bridges?" the police chief asked.
Simon answered then. "Your men will still be there to spot any women approaching the bridges, but our best chance to save more lives is to catch this guy."
"So, what do you want us to do?" Chief Williams demanded. "Sit there until some woman walks out onto the bridges? Wait for the killer to attack, then hope that we're fast enough to save her and that a single officer can take down this psycho?"
Amber could understand his concerns. None of them knew who this killer was or how dangerous he might be. So far, he'd killed the women via strangulation, but that didn't mean he wouldn't be carrying another weapon as a backup in case anyone found him.
But that wasn't the plan, either.
"The idea isn't for your men to engage unless they absolutely have to," Amber explained. "They're there as spotters for the killer if they can see him, but more likely, they'll spot a woman trying to cross the bridges one by one first. When they spot that, they need to call me or Agent Phelps so that we can provide backup. Then they need to pull back."
"So you're using our citizens as bait?" Chief Williams said.
Simon shook his head. "Not as bait. They’re going to be out there anyway. We're trying to save them. If the killer truly doesn't believe that the bridges are an option for him, he won't stop. He's already shown that he's prepared to kill women in their own homes. This is our best chance."
Given that Simon had already raised his own reservations regarding this plan, Amber felt grateful that he was prepared to back her up in front of the police chief. It was good to know that her partner had her back. Amber just hoped that she would be able to justify his faith in her.
Chief Williams let out a deep sigh, his expression showing a mix of frustration and concern. "I don't like it, but I can see the logic behind it. If we can catch this guy before he strikes again, it's worth the risk. I'll have my men set up undercover on the bridges, but I want to make it clear that if anything goes wrong if another woman dies, I'm holding you responsible, Agent Young."
"I understand," Amber said, relieved that they had gotten the go-ahead.
"Good. I'll have my officers positioned within a half-hour. But you and Agent Phelps better have a solid backup plan in place in case something goes south."
"We will," Simon promised.
With that, Chief Williams walked off, leaving Amber and Simon to finalize their plan. They knew it was risky, but it was their best chance of catching the killer before he could claim another victim. They just had to hope that their plan would work and that they would be able to take the killer down without anyone getting hurt.
"Do you think that this will work, Amber?" Simon asked, not sounding as certain as he had when the police chief was there in front of them.
Amber could see the tension in Simon's face, and she felt it too. It was a huge risk, and she couldn't guarantee that it would work, but it was their best chance.
Amber knew that Simon was questioning the plan's effectiveness. But she also knew that it might be their only chance at catching the killer. "I don't know," she admitted. "But I think we have a better chance of catching him this way than just trying to track him down after he kills."
"I hope you're right."
So did Amber. The hardest part was that there was nothing to do now except wait. They had to trust that Chief Williams' officers would do their jobs and that, sooner or later, the killer would show his hand in this.
***
"Why hasn't one of them called?" Amber wondered aloud, pacing the office that she was sharing with Simon. "How long has it been now?"
She saw Simon check his watch. "A couple of hours. We still have time for this to work."
Amber hoped so. "What if he was never planning to kill tonight? What if I'm wrong, and itisProfessor Arran, after all?"
"Then we still have him in the cells, where he can't hurt anyone, and we can question him in the morning," Simon said.
Amber nodded, knowing that Simon was right. They had to be patient and let their plan play out. But the longer they waited, the more her anxiety grew.
She paced the office, trying to burn off some of the anxiety she felt. Trying to give herself to keep her mind occupied, she even sat down with the image of the professor's not-quite-impossible puzzles, working through them again in her head. The problem was that she could work out the answers to them relatively simply now, she had already worked out the answers to most of them.
