Amanda hesitated for a moment, then followed the path that Tony had taken to the rear of Justine's house, crouching low and listening for any sound. Just as she reached the backyard Amanda heard a shot. She froze, terrified. A second, louder shot followed. Amanda edged along the side of the house until she was able to see through the windowpanes into a large, modern kitchen. Vincent Cardoni was sprawled against the wall next to the refrigerator. Tony stood over him, gun in hand. Amanda opened the door. There was a smell of gunpowder in the air. Tony swung the gun toward her, his eyes wide with panic.
It's me, Amanda yelled, thrusting her arms toward him, hands out.
Jesus! Tony lowered the gun. I told you to stay in the car.
I called nine-one-one, but I didn't want to stay alone.
I could have shot you.
Amanda remembered the first shot. Are you okay?
Tony nodded.
What happened?
He tried to kill me, Tony said, pointing to a head-high hole in the wall next to the back door. He was in the kitchen. He fired when I stepped through the door. Tony shook his head. He looked dazed. I shot him.
Amanda flipped on the kitchen light and knelt beside Cardoni. There was a gun lying near his hand, and blood was spreading across his shirt. Cardoni's eyes were closed, and his head lolled to one side. He was alive, but just barely. Tony took a handkerchief out of his pocket and picked up the gun. Amanda looked at him quizzically.
Cardoni's prints will be on the gun. I don't want the police thinking that I shot him in cold blood.
Amanda suddenly remembered the reason they' d driven to the house in the middle of the night. She took Tony's hand.
It's okay. It was self-defense. Now we've got to check on Justine.
Amanda pushed through the door that led to the living room. As she groped for a light switch she could see a figure silhouetted against the shaded window, and she could smell the rustlike scent of blood.
Amanda stopped searching for the light and crossed the room. When she drew closer, she saw that Justine's arms and legs were secured to a straight-back chair with thick strips of masking tape in a way that made the front of her naked body vulnerable to assault.
Justine, Amanda whispered in a trembling voice.
Justine's head was down and her chin rested on her chest. A lamp sat on an end table near the chair. As Amanda switched it on she noticed a blood-smeared hunting knife resting next to the base.
Weak yellow light illuminated the room. Amanda's back was to Justine, and it took all her courage to turn around. A sob caught in Amanda's throat, and her stomach clenched. She wanted to turn away, but she' d lost control of her body and could only stare with horror at what had once been a beautiful woman.
Tony knelt beside Justine and checked for a pulse. Then he turned to Amanda with sad eyes and shook his head.
Chapter 59
They waited in the kitchen for the ambulance and the patrol cars that were coming in response to Amanda's 911 call. While Tony watched Cardoni, Amanda phoned homicide. Sean McCarthy arrived soon after the ambulance and the first patrol car. While the medics were loading Cardoni onto a stretcher, McCarthy took the couple into the den where Amanda had watched the videotape of Mary Sandowski's torture four years before. The TV and VCR were still there. Amanda could not bring herself to look at them.
McCarthy could see that Amanda and Tony were emotionally drained and made arrangements to talk to them at the Justice Center. Amanda's father arrived soon after the police. Frank insisted that Amanda spend the night in her old room. He also offered to put up Tony for the night.
Amanda was in bed by three. For the first time since she was a little girl, she kept a light on. The horror of what she had seen and her guilt at suspecting Justine tormented her every time she shut her eyes. When she did drift into sleep she found herself in a pitch-black room. She tried to sit up, but her body was secured by leather restraints. As she struggled to get loose a door opened, admitting a bright, blinding light. When her eyes adjusted, Amanda saw that she was strapped to an operating table.
Who's there? she called, her heart beating faster.
A bare lightbulb dangled from the ceiling over Amanda's head. A face covered by a surgical mask suddenly moved between Amanda and the light. A cap covered the doctor's head. In one of his hands was a shiny scalpel, in the other a coffee mug.
I see our patient is awake, the surgeon said. Then the mug slipped from the doctor's fingers and fell in slow motion, spilling its contents. Blood, not coffee, flew through space. The mug smashed against the concrete floor and exploded into ceramic shards. Amanda lurched up in bed, her heart pounding. It took her half an hour to fall asleep again.
Amanda was up by seven-thirty, feeling ragged and bleary-eyed but unable to get back to sleep. Through the front windows she saw a crowd of reporters massing near the curb. Frank had taken the phone off the hook and asked McCarthy to send an officer to keep the mob off his lawn.
Tony was very subdued when he came downstairs. No one had much of an appetite. Frank had put up a pot of coffee, and the couple carried their mugs onto the back porch where the reporters could not see them. The shade trees in the backyard were denuded of leaves, and the gray weather had bleached the color out of the grass and hedges. It was cold and blustery, but it was not raining.
Couldn't sleep? Tony asked. Amanda shook her head.
Me either.
They were quiet for a moment.
Whenever I closed my eyes I saw myself shooting Cardoni. Tony shook his head as if to clear it of the image. I don't know why I feel bad. I mean, the guy was a monster and I stopped him. I should feel great, but I don' t.
Amanda laid a hand on his arm.
That's only natural, Tony. Cops who shoot criminals in the line of duty feel guilty even when they know they've done the right thing.
Tony stared straight ahead, nodding bravely.
He would have killed again. Amanda put her hand over his. Think of the lives you've saved.
Tony looked away.
Amanda grabbed him by the chin and forced him to look at her.
You're a hero, do you know that? Not everyone would have gone into Justine's house knowing that Cardoni might be inside.
Amanda, I
Amanda put her finger on his lips. She kissed him, then laid her head on Tony's chest.
Amanda, you don't still think that Justine killed all those people, do you?
No. I feel terrible for suspecting her.
Amanda remembered what Cardoni had done to Justine. She fought back tears. After a moment, she took a deep breath and pulled away from Tony.
We should get ready, she said, wiping her eyes. We have to go downtown and talk to Sean McCarthy.
McCarthy had instructed Frank to park under the Justice Center in the police garage so they could avoid the media. As soon as they arrived at the homicide bureau, Alex DeVore escorted Tony into one interrogation room and McCarthy escorted Amanda into another. McCarthy was kind and his questions were gentle. Three-quarters of an hour after he started, the detective told Amanda that he was done. As he opened the door for her, Mike Greene stepped into the room.
Can we have a minute? Greene asked.
Sure, I' m done. Thanks, Amanda, he said closing the door behind him.
Am I going to need an attorney? Amanda asked with a weary smile.
Yeah, I' d get the Dream Team on this, right away. He smiled. How you doin' ?
I' m okay.
You have no idea how horrible I felt when Sean told me what Cardoni did to Justine Castle.
Why should you feel responsible?
I' m the one who decided that we didn't have enough evidence to hold that lunatic.
