Free Faces of Evil [2] Impulse by Debra Webb Page A

strategy with an ultimate goal and getting caught wasn’t it. He would never allow anyone to see him, as he had with Detective Wells’ family, unless it was part of his plan. He wanted Jess to know it was him.
    “I need to take a walk,” she told Burnett before he could inquire about her conclusions. She needed to breathe in enough of the humid summer air to force the last of the lingering stench of blood fully from her lungs.
    Any neighbors who happened to be home were likely now peeking between special-order blinds and designer drapes, curious about the number of official vehicles fronting the property. Jess doubted this kind of circus toured the neighborhood very often.
    Deputy Chief Black was taking care of notifying the Howard family. Jess didn’t envy him the task. She stalled at the end of the drive and took another long look around the quiet cul-de-sac. What did you say to the family in a situation like this?
    That Belinda, wife and mother, had been taken by a sadistic sociopath who would torture her until he was done. But not to worry because then he’d dump her body in the open for easy discovery.
    It’s a killer deal, Jess .
    If it was her he wanted, why not just come after her?
    The answer was one stamped on far too many memory cells. Because it wasn’t the kill, the final step, that drove him. It was the hunt. . . the torture and all the steps in between. His pleasure came from the victim’s terror.
    As his ultimate victim in this game, he wanted Jess to be afraid.
    Burnett strolled up beside her. She blinked back the emotions, kept her face aimed away from him. Going all overprotective was his MO without any additional evidence from her. He already hovered on that annoying edge. Allowing him to see even a glimmer of uncertainty would make bad matters worse.
    She had noted the way all those other division chiefs had eyed her this afternoon. The news hadn’t been announced but the gossip was already taking on a life of its own. It was a common human reaction. Fallen federal agent blows into town and takes the spot that would have been a promotion to one of their people – the ones already on staff with BPD.
    Oh, and she couldn’t leave out the old lover label. She and Burnett had been a couple all through high school and college. Since Jess would be the only female deputy chief, she had unquestionably gotten the job by sleeping with the boss. Didn’t matter that the last time they had succumbed to that particular weakness was ten years ago.
    That she had helped find those girls had earned her Sheriff Griggs’ respect if no one else’s. Then again, he and the others would in all probability see her as responsible for this .
    She was responsible.
    Guilt and fear coiled more tightly, separating her from everyone around her with those invisible yet fierce emotions.
    The Player never took a second victim until he was finished with the first.
    Twenty-four hours . That cold, harsh reality echoed in her brain. That was the approximate amount of time Lori Wells had left to live.
    “Twenty-four hours?”
    Jess started at Burnett’s question. Didn’t realize she’d spoken aloud. Just another reminder of how easily she drifted into one distraction or the other these days. “Nothing.”
    Maybe he would change that aspect of his MO, too .
    If they couldn’t find him fast – and they wouldn’t unless he wanted to be found – Detective Wells’ only hope was a shift in his well-documented MO.
    “This isn’t one of his typical crime scenes, is it?”
    Jess braced, focused on ensuring her voice was steady when she spoke. One more excuse was all he would need to yank her off this case for her own protection.
    “Not at all.” Get that quiver out of your voice, Jess . “There’s generally no indication anything untoward happened. Certainly no evidence of any kind.” With effort she pushed aside the memory of the blood on the floor and the wall and concentrated on what she knew, what she could do for Lori