“You’re welcome. But he was only on loan, you’re not allowed to keep him.”
He had said something like that before and he seldom repeated himself. She found her lips curving with catlike amusement.
“Pity…”
* * *
IT WAS PITCH DARK IN THE room when Kendra next opened her eyes.
“It’s about time,” Olivia said from the seat next to her bed. “You’ve been restless for the last hour. I was tempted to shake you and wake you up. I was afraid you might be dreaming.”
“No, I don’t think so. I don’t remember. I guess I was just restless. Where’s Lynch?”
“I kicked him out,” Olivia said. “Which is hard to do. From the minute I called him here, he took over and wouldn’t let go.” She shrugged. “Not that I didn’t want his help. I was feeling pretty helpless and panicky when they told me you could be dying.” She paused and then said fiercely, “I really wanted to shake you then. How dare you even get close to that, Kendra? You’re my best friend. That’s not allowed.”
“Sorry.” She reached out and took Olivia’s hand. “It came as something of a surprise to me, too. But at least I came to you to set it right. Lynch told me that you probably saved my life.”
“What else could I do? You were lying there all crumpled up and I thought you might already be dead.” Her hand closed on Kendra with a force that was almost painful. “I couldn’t think. I was so scared. I’m real cocky about being the blind person who doesn’t need her sight to battle anyone toe-to-toe. But I couldn’t even remember my first aid training to find out if you still had a pulse. Isn’t that funny?”
“No. Not funny at all. But you still managed to do what was needed to get me to the hospital and keep me alive. Thank you, Olivia.”
“It was purely self-defense. I couldn’t lose you.” Her voice was shaking. “I didn’t know what I was doing most of the time, and I sure as hell didn’t know what was wrong with you. Neither did the doctors at this hospital and that terrified me even more. So I called Lynch. I thought if anyone would know how to keep you alive he would. And he had a vested interest.”
“He says you’re the one who saved my life.”
“He’s right, because I knew where to go to make it happen. I went to Lynch and he went to Fletcher. Though I wasn’t sure about Fletcher; he’s a bit quirky. But Lynch told me that he’d make you well and that was enough for me. I would have let Bugs Bunny treat you if Lynch said it would give you a chance to live.”
“Bugs Bunny?” She smiled. “You were upset.”
“You bet I was. And that’s why you can’t let this happen again. You were at the condo for heaven’s sake. You were home. That attack came out of nowhere. Am I supposed to worry about you whenever you leave there? Stop it!”
“I might be able to do that if I knew what I was doing to warrant an attack. I don’t, Olivia. I told you the truth. I have no idea why that woman who was killed had my name.” She was silent a moment. “But now I’m beginning to believe that it’s more dangerous not to know. I have to have answers. Who the hell knew a little old lady and a cute pooch would try to poison me?”
Olivia didn’t speak for an instant. “I think you can rule out the pooch.” Her lips were quirking slightly. “He was only an accessory.”
Kendra gave a sigh of relief. “You’re smiling. Thank goodness. I’m not used to you chewing me out.”
“Get used to it. I’ve been too easy on you. Seeing you in that vestibule croaking was a wake-up call for me. I feel like rigging you up with one those emergency call buttons they advertise.”
“Please don’t. I’ll be very careful.” She didn’t tell her how handy one of those emergency buttons would have been when she was trying desperately to reach out to push Olivia’s doorbell. “It won’t happen again. Will you stop yelling at me now? I’d like to just lay here and be with you in the dark. It reminds me of when we were kids and shared everything, even the dark.”
“We still share it. You just have to close your eyes.” She paused. “I wanted to see so badly last night. Not for myself this time. I wanted to see for you. So I wouldn’t screw it up. I felt helpless and I never feel helpless.” She drew a shaky breath. “But I’d never admit that to anyone but you. I’m Queen of the World, right?”
“Right.” Kendra felt as if she were bleeding inside. She had caused this moment of weakness in a friend she had loved since childhood. Strength was important and you had to win it every day, every way, when you had to face the darkness. “And you still reign supreme. You proved it to everyone by getting me through this.”
She lifted her chin. “Yes, I did. Those idiots think it was that medical genius, Fletcher, but he was only a tool in my hands. I’m glad you realize that, Kendra.” She added, “And, of course, Lynch had a little to do with it. He brought that Brad Pitt look-alike into the mix.”
Olivia was back to normal, Kendra realized with relief. “Brad Pitt? I thought he looked more like that guy Chris Hemsworth, who plays Thor, the Avenger.”
“Maybe. I had to rely on what I overheard from those silly nurses who were swooning over him. Sometimes I’m glad I’m not affected by appearance. I did like his voice and he seemed intelligent.”
“When he wasn’t being quirky.”
“Some people would say I’m a bit quirky.”
“I’ve noticed. But only when you’re not being Queen of the World.”
“It’s good you made that distinction.” She paused. “You’re not going to back off from this madness, are you?”
“It’s not backing off from me, Olivia. Did Lynch tell you that the bride in that video has disappeared, probably kidnapped?”
“Yes, I made him tell me everything. You said she was very pretty and she seemed so happy.”
“Yes, she did. A wedding day is supposed to be one of the happiest days of a woman’s life. Yet something must have happened there that caused all this horror to begin.”
“It had already begun,” Olivia said. “We heard it. And now you’re chasing after it.” She held up her hand. “Don’t say it. I know I can’t convince you. But in my august position as the Queen of the World, I’ll designate a lowly knight, Lynch, to make certain this foolishness doesn’t cost you your life.” She added grimly, “And if he doesn’t, I’ll behead the son of a bitch.”
“Poor Lynch.”
“Neither of us would ever in a million years feel sorry for Lynch. You must not have come to your senses yet. I think I should let you go back to sleep.”
“Or just stay awake and be with my friend Olivia, without talking at all.”
“That would work, too. Remembering that wedding video put me distinctly on edge. I don’t want to think of bouquets and wedding cakes and a love that should last forever ending like that.”
“We don’t know it ended. Elizabeth could be alive. I hope she is.”
“So do I. But I don’t want to think about it now. And I particularly don’t want to think about you trying to find out if she’s alive or dead. So just lie there and we’ll think about Fletcher and how pissed off Lynch must have been to have to bring him in to rescue you instead of doing it himself.”
“That seems to be a plan. Though not without faults. Lynch never lacks confidence.”
“We can but hope.” Olivia leaned back in her chair. “And if you drift off, it will give you pleasant dreams and get you away from that damn wedding video. Right?”
“Absolutely.” Yet when Kendra closed her eyes, it was to see that video as if it were there before her. All the gaiety and joy, the lame jokes, the beauty, and the not so beautiful.
The darkness that hovered over the scene that no one had known was there.
And in the center was the radiant bride, Elizabeth, who also had no idea that darkness was closing in on her.
Or did she?
When the darkness finally came, were you expecting it, Elizabeth?
* * *
“LIZ, I THOUGHT WE’D never get rid of you!”
>
Derek sat in the shadows, watching the wedding video for what had to be the thousandth time. Maybe the five thousandth.
All those happy, insipid people.
No one could really be that happy. They were obviously pretending.
Pretending to be happy. Pretending they could actually stand being surrounded by all those other despicable people.
They didn’t know what it meant to be truly alive. Not really. But he would show them.
Aah, there was the pretty bride, so stunning in her shimmering white dress. Every hair in place, laughing and crying through Daddy’s speech.
So different from the slobbering mess she’d become in her house that morning, begging and pleading for him to spare her miserable life.
Don’t worry, dear Elizabeth, the game isn’t finished just yet.
CHAPTER
5
“THE CHAIR SUITS YOU,” Lynch called out from his car in front of the hospital.
Kendra made a face and stood up from the wheelchair being pushed by the orderly. “Not my choice. Probably more to do with the hospital’s liability insurance coverage than anything else.” She climbed into Lynch’s car and pulled the door shut. “Thanks for picking me up.”
“Sure. What took so long?”
“The doctor took his sweet time making his rounds. They wouldn’t discharge me until he saw me. I almost made a break for it.”
“I’m glad you didn’t.” Lynch pulled onto Delmar Boulevard. “So where are we headed? Collins, Collins and Levinsky, Attorneys at Law?”
“I just got off the phone with them, and Dale Collins is the only one who can talk to us about Elena Meyer.”
“Dale Collins. As in one of the Collins’ names on the door?”
“Yes. No one else is authorized to speak about her.”
“So let’s go talk to him.”
“He isn’t in the office today. He’s at the construction site of their new headquarters downtown. It’s going to be in the new Pinnacle Building.”
“That chrome and glass monstrosity on C Street?”
“That’s the one.”
“It’s not even finished yet and the neighbors are screaming bloody murder. I’ve seen it in the news. It’s reflecting a nasty glare in offices and storefronts all over downtown.”
“Well he’s there today and I don’t feel like waiting for a spot on his calendar to open up. Let’s go to that big, ugly building and ask him some questions.”
* * *
THE UNDER-CONSTRUCTION Pinnacle Building was visible from all over the greater downtown area, if not the structure itself, then the two massive yellow cranes towering on either side. Mirrored windows covered the lower forty floors, but the upper dozen or so levels were still little more than iron frames open to the elements.
They parked a block south of the building and walked toward the busy construction site. Barriers were plastered with large posters selling the new building as a mixed-use facility featuring high-priced condominiums, offices, and ground-floor retail shops. The sidewalk was closed on all four sides of the structure, but Lynch pulled open one of the barriers and ushered Kendra through.
Kendra looked up at the glass panels. “It’s pretty hideous all right.”
Lynch pointed to one of the posters. “But it’s ‘Downtown’s Most Exciting New Destination.’”
“We’ll see about that.” Kendra motioned for Lynch to join her at a construction trailer where there was a small pile of battered hard hats on the ground outside. She picked up two and tossed one to Lynch. “Not sure if it will fit on that big head of yours.”
He popped the hat on and smiled. “How does it look?”
Damn it if he didn’t look like a ruggedly handsome model out of every cologne ad she’d ever seen. “Disgustingly good. Great even.” She put her own hat on. “How about me?”
“Like you have no business ever visiting a construction site.”
“Wonderful.”
“Consider that a compliment. Do you have any idea where we’re heading?”
“The firm’s new offices will be on the forty-fifth and forty-sixth floors.”
“The firm told you that?”
“No. Google.”
He glanced around and adjusted his hard hat. “There’s probably a cargo elevator running somewhere. Let’s find it before someone throws us out of here.”
They quickly found the large open-air construction elevator, which they were forced to share with a half ton of ceramic floor tiles. Lynch grabbed the control box dangling from a yellow cable. He punched a button and the elevator lurched upward. Within seconds they could see the entire downtown and the San Diego Bay.
The sight literally took her breath away. “Beautiful.”
“Stunning.”
The elevator stopped, and Lynch guided her off. “Floor forty-five.”
The unfinished floor appeared to be deserted. Only a few of the rooms had been framed, and the perimeter was still open to the wind, which whistled around them.
Lynch glanced around. “Maybe one floor up?”
Kendra pointed to a footprint in the sawdust in front of them. “That’s a dress shoe. Collins has been here recently. Otherwise the wind would have disturbed it by now. And there are no footprints back to the elevator.”
“Very good.” A man stepped out from behind a pillar. “I take it you’re not architects or designers.”
Kendra recognized Dale Collins from her online search. He was a round-faced man who actually looked younger than he did in the photos she’d seen, although his hairline had receded a bit. “Mr. Collins, I’m Kendra Michaels. This is Adam Lynch. We’re investigating Elena Meyer’s murder.”
Collins stepped closer to them. “Elena Meyer. Very sad. But she wasn’t based here in San Diego. You’d probably do better to talk to her colleagues in Connecticut.”
“She was killed here. And we know she was out here quite a bit for her work.”
“Not this trip.” Collins turned and stepped toward the gaping hole at the end of what would soon be the corridor. “Whatever brought her out here, it wasn’t the job. I talked to the head of her office yesterday. He had no idea she was here.”
“Who would know?” Lynch said. “Did she have friends in your office she may have been visiting?”
“I don’t think so. Every time she was here, she was with her team from Connecticut. She stuck pretty close to them. I don’t think I ever heard of her socializing with anyone from my group.” He looked behind them as the cargo elevator returned with a group of well-dressed men and women in hard hats. “Speaking of whom, here are some of my colleagues now.”
Kendra turned toward them. Four men and two women, all dressed in expensive suits and shoes.
“In less than four months, this will be our new West Coast headquarters. I’m giving some of our partners a first look at their new home.” Collins motioned toward Kendra and Lynch. “Ms. Michaels and Mr. Lynch are investigating Elena Meyer’s unfortunate death. There’s some question as to why she was even in San Diego this week. Do any of you have any idea?”
Collins’ colleagues shook their heads.
Kendra studied the group. One of the men and both women were clearly disturbed by the subject of their colleague’s death, the others showed no concern. Kendra kept her eyes on them as she spoke. “What case brought her out here?”
Collins shrugged. “We represent a technology company on the East Coast. A major defense contractor. They were being sued by a company here in San Diego. It looked like we were going to trial, but our client eventually settled.”
“Any lingering bad blood there?” Lynch asked.
“Like something that could have gotten a young woman killed?” Collins shook his head. “It was a routine case and it’s over. And in the end everyone came out of it with a lot of money. Including this firm.”
“Which companies were involved?” Lynch asked.
Collins shrugged. “It’s in the public record. We represent Maritech Industr
ies. They were being sued by The Philby Group. Ms. Meyer was a paralegal. She had very little direct contact with the principals in this case. She mainly just supported her team when they were out here formulating strategy with us and working through mounds of memos and emails.”
Kendra’s eyes narrowed on one of the young women she’d targeted for extra attention. She was an attractive redhead whose facial expression had changed from sadness to one of slight annoyance. She was reacting to her boss’s words. What was going on here?
Kendra nodded. “Or does anyone know of friendships or possible romantic relationships Elena may have formed during her times here?”
Again, there was no response from the group besides shaking heads and vague shrugs.
The redheaded woman was now typing something in her phone.
“Okay. Thanks for your time,” Kendra said. “I’m sure SDPD will be talking to you. Naturally we’ll do everything we can to find who did this to Elena.”
She and Lynch moved toward the elevator. But as the group of attorneys separated to clear a path, the redhead discreetly flashed her phone screen at Kendra.
The screen was blank except for block letters which read: BROCK LTD.
The woman pressed the phone’s side button and wiped the screen clean. She didn’t look at Kendra as she moved past her to keep pace with her colleagues.
* * *
“BROCK LIMITED?” LYNCH ASKED as they approached his car. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. Brock L-T-D.”
“Hmm. Interesting.”
“Why? Does that mean anything to you?”
“Brock Limited is a private security company. A lot of ex-law enforcement and ex-military. They have contracts all over the world.”
“Corporate security?”
“Government contracts, too.”
“Sounds like your line of work.”
“They’ve tried to hire me several times and I’m sure they’ve reached out to some of your FBI buddies. They pay extremely well.”
“Then why haven’t you joined them?”
“They can’t afford me. And they have a reputation I really don’t want tainting me.”
“Surely it can’t be worse than the ‘taint’ you’ve already acquired over the years. Your own reputation is lethal.”