CHAPTER 43

    Dylan arrived at the store almost at the same time  as the chief. She hadn't had much time to tell him about everything but here he was. She was determined to arrest Peterson first and afterwards she would be happy to answer his questions about not informing him earlier as he had asked her to. She knew she would be lucky if he allowed her to continue working. She took her gun without wasting any second and joined him outside.

             "You sure are stubborn goddammit. This better be worthwhile,"the chief said as they walked towards the store. "And you better be right."

The officer who had been assigned to watch Peterson joined them in alarm.

                "Unless his neighbor has a memory impairment or is suffering from delusion, I'm fairly certain that Peterson is our guy or if not he will lead us to the one responsible. Also he really looked suspicious when I last talked to him which was yesterday." She went ahead to lead the way into the store. It was open but when they got in,there was no one. She called him once then even louder for the second time. There was still no response. She walked to a back door and pushed it open. She called again. Still silence.

                  "Has he by any chance left the store?" she turned and asked the officer.

                  "No,I haven't looked away even for a second. Just customers coming in and out."

                  "He must be in his house in the back then,"the chief contributed.

Dylan didn't wait for permission to go ahead in the back. She went through the door,her gun poised in front of her on the ready. Once she stepped in the back yard which was actually Peterson's homestead, she was surprised. The place looked clean and splendid for a drunkard like him. She could hear the footsteps of the chief and the other officer following behind her,all cautious. She walked up to the door and knocked, identifying herself. When no answer came after a few minutes, she furrowed her eyebrows, questioning and suddenly beginning to feel that something wasn't right. Everything was quiet, disturbingly quiet. Not for the first time but this time it felt more strange,more intense and deadly.

                 "That's weird,"she said. "Where could he have gone and left his house and shop unattended?" She paused there going over the question in her head. There was no way she was going to turn and leave just like that. Where was he? She had no idea. Or had he somehow known that they would go after him and fled? "Alright, I'm going in,"she announced and even before her boss could react, she had pushed the door open and was already halfway inside. The house felt like there had been a sign of life some minutes before they got there so,most probably he had seen them and fled. She turned down a hall. Another door stood at the end,half open but standing at an awkward angle. She took her steps more carefully and headed there. However when she got to the door, she froze,her eyes and mouth wide open in horror. It only lasted a few seconds before dizziness took over. Her feet trembled while a very familiar feeling of shock took over her body. A rather distasteful feeling rose up her throat and into her mouth. She gagged. There was her only chance to get to the truth, lying naked in his bathtub, lifeless in a pool of blood which probably had been water some minutes ago. The scene felt so familiar in her head. And then she remembered,it wasn't just a feeling. Peterson was lying there in the same position her mother had been two years ago,his eyes wide in shock as if he had been taken by surprise and now, what she had tried to avoid to remember came back to her clearly, pasting a more horrid image in her mind but it was as if she could see it again right in front of her. She staggered back but by good luck, the chief caught her before she could hit the wall.

                   "Jesus Lewis!"

The other officer rushed inside and knelt next to the tub. He quickly pressed two fingers on his neck to feel his pulse. He looked up, defeated and almost apologetic. Dylan knew what he was going to say even before he could say it.

                     "We are too late, he is gone."

   Right at that moment, Dylan wanted to break down or just hit the ground and die. She had been so sure that finally she would know for sure who had killed her mother. That her death would be avenged and maybe she would then manage to embark on that journey towards healing or at least coping. That she would finally find peace within her haunted life. Now all that had gone down the drain in one gush. The loud voice of the chief yelling at the officer brought her back to focus and to the painful reality.

             "How could you not have noticed that he wasn't in the shop for this long? The only entrance back here is the shop,the murderer passed right under your nose! Were you sleeping on the job?"

              "No sir,I..."

                "Chief,it could have been anyone. Customers were getting in and out all the time. He couldn't possibly have known who was the murderer and who wasn't,"she finally found her voice, though weak and almost whispering. She stood up straight from the wall she had been leaning against and took a step forward and back to the door half-heartedly. "Yelling is pointless. We will only be lucky maybe if he installed any security cameras as he told me he would. If that was actually what was in his mind and not anything else,that is."

Her gaze shifted aimlessly around the room but tried to avoid his eyes. She was afraid that they would follow her everywhere she went. That's when she saw it,a small note placed at the edge of the bath tub. She walked inside and picked it up, carefully trying not to touch anything else. The same scrawny handwriting that had written the first note filled the small piece of paper. She read it out loud without realizing it.

               "He knew too much and I couldn't risk him exposing me. At least not just yet. He was my weakest link and I had to get rid of him."

                 "What is that?" the chief asked.

                   "It's the same handwriting as the first one,"she said absently.

                    "The first one?"

 Oh yeah, she hadn't mentioned the little presents she had received. She looked at him and right then she knew she had a lot of answering and explaining to do. He was furious. She could see the anger rising in his face, she could almost feel his hot breath washing over her even though they were inches apart. His Adam's apple rose and fell and she knew he was struggling with the words to say to her. She knew there would be only two choices; either fire her or force her into protective custody and none of those were  pleasant. Either way, she would have to tell him the truth.

                  "Yes, the first one,"she replied then added,"I will tell you everything back at the precinct."

                    "You better!" he replied sternly then turned to the other officer. "Connor,call this in."

                      "Yes sir."

                      ★★★

    Carly stepped onto the pavement to avoid getting hit by a car as she spoke on the phone. She had just come from the hospital where she had gone to collect her son's medication together with signing some paperwork for his scheduled heart surgery. It was Saturday morning around nine,three days since the day Dylan had half dragged her out of the bar in their town. Up until now, she'd had no explanation about what was happening. In fact, Dylan hadn't talked to her ever since that day. No one suspicious had approached her or threatened her through the phone. She almost felt as if it had just been a false alarm but the look she had seen on Dylan's face that day led her to believe there was danger indeed. So, she heeded to the advice saying it was better to be safe than sorry.

  Her mother's voice on the other end cut off the thoughts. She only wanted to confirm if a certain type of medicine she had been instructed to buy could be found in her mother's pharmacy and after confirming that, she ended the call. She was about to step back into the street when someone tapped her shoulder. She jumped then turned around quickly. She sighed and smiled when she recognized the face.

                "Sorry,I didn't mean to scare you," Kelley said flashing a huge smile.

                 "No,my thoughts were elsewhere,just got a bit surprised,"she replied and pulled her handbag over her shoulder. "How have you been?"

                  "Me? Good, really good,"she paused,"But still waiting for your call. I was passing by and when I recognized you I decided to come over and say hi and to see if we still get to have the coffee."

  Carly chuckled nervously, "Oh yeah I was supposed to call." The words were already out of her mouth before she could realize that they sounded a bit rude and dismissive. Truth was, she didn't even know where she had placed the card. She remembered twirling it around her fingers that first day while contemplating whether it would be a good idea having coffee. Where she had placed it after that was completely wiped out of her memory. "It's just that I can't remember where I put your card?" It was more questioning. Kelley raised an eyebrow.

                 "You know it's okay if you don't want to have coffee with me. You barely know me, it's understandable."

Carly shook her head quickly, "Of course I want to have coffee. That's what people do while getting to know each other,right?"

                  "Yes that, among other things,"Kelley replied with a grin which made her stand there speechlessly not sure what 'among other things' stood for because that grin wasn't just any grin. "But for us,we get to have coffee,"she added when Carly delayed to reply.

                  "Right, the coffee."

                  "So, should I give you another card or should I write the number on your phone?"

She laughed somehow feeling relaxed,"There is no guarantee that the phone won't get lost too. I have a tendency to lose things,both literally and metaphorically and it is not a joke."

Kelley laughed along with her,"Okay but that does sound like a joke if you ask me.  So, when do you think you can be free for the coffee?"

                "Um... how about now since I am here?" she asked making the decision right there. "I can't stay long though, I've got to be back home before noon to take my son's meds."

                   "It's just coffee,I promise I won't keep you."

       She nodded then followed her back to the shops. They took a turn around a block then towards another. Right then she wasn't thinking about what Dylan had told her until when she realized that they had gone past several coffee shops without even stopping for a quick glance. Her heart began thudding as Dylan's cautionary words came back to her. What if this was the person Dylan was so afraid of? What if she was being led to her own death and she was following knowingly and foolishly? What would she do? No one knew about this and she had also not mentioned that she had made a new 'friend' and was planning on getting coffee. She was a grown woman though, she didn't have to report to anyone about all that. Only that in this case, someone knowing about where she was likely to be would help them find her,or her dead body anyway. That thought sent a cold shiver through her body. She needed to act and to act quickly before the thoughts turned out to be the reality. The only question was, how?