Free Kill for Me by Karen Rose Page B

anything.”
    “Not yet,” Luke admitted.
    “Garth Davis might not know anything about Granville’s side business. If he does, I’m expecting that his attorney will want to cut some kind of deal on the thirteen-year-old rapes.”
    Luke had thought the same thing. “And will you?” he asked, mildly.
    She shook her head. “I sure don’t want to. And I won’t even consider a deal without knowing what information he has and if it’s genuine. I’ve got a dozen victims to consider here. They deserve their day in court. But . . .” She let the thought trail.
    Thirteen , Luke thought, but didn’t correct her. Susannah’s name hadn’t been on Daniel’s original list because he hadn’t known at the time. Luke decided to let Susannah contact Chloe on her own. One more victim would not make Garth Davis any less guilty. “But you might have to cut him a deal.” The thought made him sick. “We can search his house, his office. Find out if he had any dealings with Granville.”
    “That’s the kicker, Luke,” she said. “And that’s why I’ve worded these warrants so carefully. I can only include on the warrant evidence you find relevant to the rapes unless I have probable cause to link Davis to the trafficking. If you find anything in your search that implicates him, I can’t use it otherwise.”
    “At least we’d be a step closer to finding the girls.”
    “That’s true, if he has something incriminating in his home or office. You’d have to find it first. And I know I don’t have to tell you this, Luke,” she added gently, “but the clock is ticking. We’re in a damned if we do, damned if we don’t position.”
    “I don’t want this bastard to walk, Chloe. I don’t care what he knows.”
    “You won’t know what he knows until you ask him,” Germanio inserted reasonably.
    Chloe adjusted her briefcase strap on her shoulder. “Also true. So let’s ask, Papa.”
    Garth Davis waited until Luke and Chloe sat at the table before opening his mouth. “This is a ludicrous charge,” he said. “I raped no one. Not now, not thirteen years ago.”
    Luke said nothing, simply sliding a folder across the table. It contained only four of the photos graphically implicating a teenaged Davis. Davis took one look at the pictures, drew a breath, and closed the folder, stone-faced and pale.
    His attorney scowled. “Where did you get these? They’re doctored. Obviously.”
    “They’re genuine,” Luke said. “These were the first I came across while sorting through the several hundred we have in our possession.” He picked up one of the pictures and studied it. “You’ve aged well, Mayor Davis. Some men might have developed a gut in thirteen years. You’re in as fine a shape now as you were then.”
    Davis’s stare was hate-filled. “What do you want?”
    “Garth,” his attorney cautioned.
    Davis ignored him. “I said, what do you want?”
    Luke leaned forward. “To see you rot in jail for the rest of your miserable life.”
    “Agent Papadopoulos,” Chloe murmured and Luke sat back in his chair, still staring Davis down. “We have fifteen victims here. Fifteen counts of your client engaged in nonconsensual sexual relations with minor females, drugged and helpless. At a mandatory ten a pop, that does equate to the remainder of your natural life, Mayor Davis.”
    “I said,” Davis said through his teeth, “what do you want?”
    “Tell him what you want, Agent Papadopoulos,” she said.
    Luke watched Davis’s face. “Tell me about Toby Granville,” he said, and for an instant saw a flicker of fear. Then it was gone, replaced with contempt.
    “He’s dead.” His smile was smug. “Kind of bad for you.”
    Luke’s smile was congenial even though he wanted to knock the smirk off Davis’s face. “One could say that. One could also say that Granville’s death concentrates the venom of your surviving victims. More hate to focus on you. You’re the only one left of the seven. You’ll be taking