toilet. I aim to please, so please aim.”
“Sounds like you had a strange childhood,” Dixon said.
“You don’t know the half of it.”
“Give it another thirty,” Burden said to Allman, “then head on up with Sanchez. Sanchez,” he called to the cop standing at the building entrance. “Thirty minutes, take Clay Allman up to the crime scene. And don’t leave his side.”
Sanchez raised a hand in acknowledgment.
“How about you come by after, walk us through those cases you dropped off.”
Allman consulted his watch. “I’ve gotta file a story, but I can come by tomorrow morning, spend a little time.” He backed away, then said, “Good?”
“That’ll work,” Burden said.
“If it isn’t my new favorite asshole,” Vail said.
Pulling up to the curb was Stephen Scheer. He shoved the gearshift to its endpoint, and then got out of his Honda.
Burden extended an arm to block Vail’s path. “I think I’ve gotten to know you pretty well, Karen. Leave him alone. Let me handle this.”
Vail kept her mouth closed, but the firm set of her jaw and narrowed eyes spoke volumes.
Dixon came up beside Vail. “Think he’s gonna look at us?”
“I wouldn’t invite eye contact if I was him.”
“Inspector,” Scheer said, doing as Dixon had predicted and behaving as if the two women were not present. “I’m told you’ve got a new body.”
“I can’t confirm or deny,” Burden said.
Scheer’s gaze flicked over to Allman, who was standing thirty feet away, beside Officer Sanchez.
“So is that how this is going to be? Silent treatment and a barrage of ‘no comments’?”
Burden cocked his head. “What do you want me to do? You’ve put us in a very, very tough spot. But yeah, there’s a new body. That’s all I’m gonna say.”
“And get this, dickhead,” Vail said. “Your bullshit article might be responsible for her death. Print that.”
“Don’t give me that,” Scheer said.
“We warned you,” Dixon said. “Did you think we were bullshitting you?”
Allman was standing by the doorway, his chin tipped back, watching the scene play out. Vail figured he must be enjoying it, though he displayed no overt signs that it brought him any pleasure.
“You still have a chance to make this right,” Dixon said.
“It’s beyond fixing,” Vail said. “But you can prevent the guilt from keeping you up at night. Tell us where you got that info. Who’s your source?”
Scheer poked his tongue against the inside of his cheek. He looked at Allman and held his gaze, then turned and stormed back to his car. A moment later, he burned rubber away from the scene.
Vail watched him peel away and began to wonder if they would ever learn who was sabotaging their case. If he didn’t reveal himself soon, she was going to have to quit being so nice and do more than merely ruffle a few feathers.
MacNally had finally fallen asleep. He was dozing and dreaming of Henry when he felt a firm hand clamp down on his mouth. His eyes shot open-but before he could react, two arms swung him onto his stomach and his head was buried in the pillow. A heavy weight climbed on top of his legs.
A hand grasped the waistband of his pants and yanked hard, nearly ripping the fabric and pulling them down. His legs were pried apart.
MacNally tried to twist his neck, to free it, to call out, to bite- something defensive-but whoever had a grip on the back of his head had his face pressed so firmly into the pillow he had tremendous difficulty breathing. His attacker’s other hand was applying such a powerful downward force between his shoulders that fighting back was impossible. He was, essentially, locked down in place.
Voorhees’s words echoed in his mind, and he instantly knew what was coming. A second later, he felt something hard penetrate his anus. And it hurt, ripping pain as he tightened and tried to fight it-but with his legs splayed apart, he couldn’t muster any strength to keep the sphincter closed.
MacNally swung his elbows back, hoping to make contact with something, to just get him to stop, but he struck hard objects-muscle, he figured-and the attack continued. Finally, minutes later, the rapist shuddered and his body stiffened, and then all movement ceased. The man pulled out and the weight lifted from MacNally’s body.
He was able to lift his head-but a different set of hands immediately took over, shoving his face down into the pillow.
No air, can’t breathe-
And another body mounted him from behind.
This time the rape was more forceful. MacNally now had a sense as to whom had gone first-Carl-and now hard-bodied Kurt was taking his own ride.
MacNally was as Voorhees had predicted. A lop.
Carl and Kurt were predators. And he was locked in a cell, imprisoned in more ways than one, with no end in sight.
In fact, it was just beginning.
Vail had an idea, and acted on it swiftly. “Get in the car, Roxx. Burden-your keys.”
“My- For what?”
“Quick,” Vail said, running over to the driver’s door. “I’m going after Scheer.”
“For what?” He tossed her the keys. “You sure that’s smart?”
Vail didn’t answer. She was busy turning over the engine. Dixon was pulling on her seatbelt when Vail peeled away from the curb.
She leaned forward as she accelerated, struggling to keep an eye on
