The Crucifix Killer - Chris Carter [146]
As fast as he could, the STU leader used his own knife to cut Hunter free who immediately fell to his knees, his body shivering.
‘Are you OK, sir?’ the officer asked.
Hunter didn’t respond. His eyes were fixed on Brenda’s limp body. An STU agent was now holding her head in his hands. Hunter could sense the life draining out of her. The look on the agent’s face told him what he already knew.
Seventy
Four days later.
Hunter slowly opened the door to Garcia’s room and peeked inside. Anna was standing next to his bed, her hand gently stroking his arm.
‘Is he awake?’ he whispered.
‘Yes, I’m up,’ Garcia replied with a frail voice, turning his head to face the door.
Hunter gave him a wide smile and stepped into the room. A box of chocolates under his right arm.
‘You’re bringing me presents?’ Garcia asked with a worried look.
‘Hell no . . . this is for Anna,’ he replied, handing the chocolates to her.
‘Oh! Thank you very much,’ she said accepting the gift and giving Hunter a peck on the cheek.
‘What’s going on here?’ Garcia asked. ‘Chocolates . . . kisses . . . next thing you know you’ll be coming over to my house for dinner.’
‘He will be,’ Anna confirmed. ‘I’ve already invited him. As soon as you’re back home.’ She smiled a sweet smile that seemed to light up the room.
‘How’re you feeling, partner?’ Hunter asked.
Garcia lowered his eyes to his bandaged hands. ‘Well, apart from the unwanted holes through the palms of my hands, the deep scratches on my head and feeling like I’ve been dropped from the top of the Golden Gate Bridge I feel peachy, how’re you doing?’
‘Probably as good as you,’ he replied without much conviction.
Garcia shifted his stare towards Anna who understood the signal.
‘I’ll leave you two alone for a moment. I wanna go down to the cafeteria anyway,’ she said, bending down and giving Garcia a soft kiss on the lips. ‘I’ve got some chocolates to attend to,’ she teased him.
‘Save me some,’ Garcia said, giving her a quick wink.
After she left, Garcia was the first to speak.
‘I’ve heard you caught her.’
‘I’ve heard you don’t remember much,’ Hunter replied.
Garcia slowly shook his head. ‘I have no recollection of anything concrete. Little flashes of memory, but I wouldn’t be able to identify the killer if it came to that.’
Hunter nodded and Garcia noticed a hint of sadness in his eyes. ‘I figured it out, but I didn’t catch her,’ he said, taking a step closer to the bed.
‘How did you do it?’
‘Joe Bowman . . .’
Garcia frowned, trying to remember the name. ‘The gym manager? Steroid man?’
Hunter nodded. ‘I knew I’d seen him before, but he’d convinced me that it’d been in some fitness magazine. It didn’t really click until D-King mentioned something about being the jury, the judge and the executioner.’
‘D-King?’ Garcia said with surprise. ‘The drug dealer?’
‘Long story, I’ll tell you later, but that’s what revived my memory about John Spencer’s case. Joe was one of the jurors. He looked pretty different then. No steroids, a lot smaller, but I knew it was him.’
Garcia’s facial expression urged Hunter to carry on.
‘From that, I found out all the victims were linked to the jurors, some of them family, some of them lovers or affairs, just like Victoria Baker was. She was Joe Bowman’s lover remember, he’s married.’
Garcia agreed in silence. ‘And George Slater?’
‘He had a gay lover. Rafael, one of the jurors. We talked to him yesterday.’
‘Does his wife know?’
‘I don’t think so. I don’t think she needs to know. It would only sadden her further.’
‘I agree. And we were right about him having a lover.’
Hunter nodded. ‘My problem was figuring out the killer. It was obvious that this had all been about John Spencer’s case, about revenge, but who?’
‘Family,’ Garcia said.
‘There’s no love stronger than family love,’ Hunter agreed. ‘But a further check revealed that the only family