QR Code Killer (7 page)

Erik couldn’t help but laugh. He had enjoyed
this evening more than any other in a very long time. Zach and John
were best friends and John’s wife, Mollie, was just about as sweet
as they came. They all sat around the table long after the dishes
were done and the food put away, laughing and visiting.

John stood and pulled Mollie to her feet.
“Come on, Mollie, girl, it is past time for us to head home.”

After thanking Lena for dinner, they all
walked outside to say goodbye. Maddie followed him around to the
driver’s side door after he held the passenger door for Mollie.

“It’s great to see you Maddie,” John said,
giving her a careful hug. “It’s nice to have you home.”

“It’s nice to be home, John,” Maddie said
sincerely. “I was wondering if you’d have a few minutes to meet
with me tomorrow. About some business.”

John cocked an eyebrow, but nodded his head.
“Come by my office about ten in the morning.”

Maddie squeezed his arm and smiled. “I’ll see
you then.”

When John opened the pickup door, Maddie
stuck her head in and smiled at his wife. “Mollie, I don’t know how
you put up with him, but I’m glad he found you. Thanks for coming
out tonight.”

Mollie laughed as John climbed in the pickup
and shut the door. Rolling down the window, he gave a final wave
and headed down the drive.

<><><>

Maddie was at John’s office ten minutes early
and had to wait for him to come back from a meeting. She pretended
to read a magazine while her thoughts whirled at break-neck speed.
Now she wondered if she had left her family open to Zeus by coming
into town and not warning them. She didn’t want them to be
frightened, but she didn’t want them to be caught unaware,
either.

Zach had grilled her about what she was doing
today and all she would tell him was “running errands.” She had to
drive Aunt Lena’s car because she couldn’t hold onto the steering
wheel and shift the manual transmission in her dad’s or Zach’s
pickups.

When John came in the door a few minutes
later, Maddie sighed in relief.

“Hope you weren’t waiting too long, Maddie,”
John said as he guided her into his office and closed the door.
Sitting down at his desk, he leaned back and waited for her to tell
him what was going on.

“Have you heard anything about a guy named
Zeus?” Maddie asked, deciding to get right to the heart of the
matter.

“Yeah, I have. He’s trouble and then some.
Doesn’t he base his operations out of Seattle somewhere?”

“Yes, he does. At least we’ve tracked him to
several deals in the Seattle area. He comes and goes. Impossible to
catch. But I know what he looks like.”

John sat up. This was news. He liked to keep
up on who was at the top of the wanted list and Zeus was
permanently there. Illusive and careful, no one had ever come up
with a likeness of Zeus. “How do you know what he looks like?”

“Because he’s the one who gave me this,”
Maddie said, nodding toward her sling.

“I think you better start from the
beginning,” John said, leaning forward and grabbing a pen and
notepad. Maddie gave him the details, starting with her first QR
code from Zeus to the one she received yesterday.

“So, I wanted to see what you think,” Maddie
studied John’s face as he sat looking at her, not saying anything.
“Should I tell Dad and Zach or just keep on letting them think
everything is fine.”

“First of all, I can’t believe you didn’t
tell me Zeus killed your Mom. We never found any evidence that
could be linked to anyone, and you’ve known all along who it
was.”

“I wasn’t at liberty to share that
information before,” Maddie explained. The chief thought the less
publicity Zeus received the less harm he would inflict. Maddie
agreed to some degree. “Now that it looks like he plans to come
back, I was given the okay to fill you in.”

“I can understand that, Maddie, but why is
this guy making it so personal against you?”

“I almost had him, John. Not once, but twice.
The first time I was within inches of bringing him down and he got
away. Just disappeared. The second time, I could have blown a
bullet through his skull and I didn’t. I just couldn’t bring myself
to shoot him point blank when I thought he was unarmed. That’s when
he pulled the knife on me. I’ve never come across someone as sick
and twisted as him before. I hope I never do again. He killed Mom
and sent me a warning to back off or else. Then he killed Devin.
Now he’s threatening to come after Aunt Lena.”

“I really think you should tell your Dad and
Zach. Lena, too. It’s better for them to be informed and aware than
to blindly walk into a dangerous situation.”

“Aunt Lena is going to be terrified. I just
don’t want to take away her sense of safety and security.” Maddie
sighed and rubbed a hand across her eyes.

“It’s a false sense, Maddie, and you know it.
You need to tell them. At least tell Zach. And you said Tom is
sending someone right away, so that will help. What about Erik? He
seems like a guy you could count on in a pinch. What’s your vibe on
him?”

“He’s solid. I don’t know if he can shoot a
gun or how he feels about working somewhere that a wanted killer is
staking out, but I don’t think he’ll go anywhere.” Maddie hoped he
wouldn’t. She was starting to like having Erik around way more than
she should. He gave her a sense of peacefulness that she couldn’t
remember experiencing before.

“I think you need to go home, talk to your
family and Erik, wait for backup to arrive from your boss and then
make sure you keep me informed. I can help you much better when I
know what is going on,” John said, rising from his chair and
walking around to lean against the desk. “You know my cell number,
Maddie. Call me anytime if you need help. I’ll also send patrols
out your way a little more frequently. Not enough to be noticeable,
but you at least know someone will be driving by a few times a
day.”

“Thanks, John. I knew I could count on you.”
Maddie gave her friend a hug and walked with him to the door.
Before turning the knob, she offered John a teasing grin. “I still
don’t know how a loser like you talked someone as nice as Mollie
into being stuck with you for the rest of forever.”

“It was my good looks and undeniable charm,”
John said, batting his eyelashes at her.

Maddie laughed. “She’s a great girl, John.
You couldn’t have picked any better.”

“I know. Thanks, Maddie. Be safe and I’ll
check in with you in a few days.”

As Maddie walked to the car, she felt better
for having shared some of her concerns with John. She would go
home, sit down with Zach and let him know what was going on. They’d
decide together about telling everyone else.

<><><>

“Zach, do you have a few minutes to take a
walk with me?” Maddie asked after lunch was over and the dishes
were done. Zach and her Dad usually took thirty minutes to rest
before heading back out to work. Erik seemed to like to spend that
time sitting on the porch with Boone. She knew sometimes he did
some wood carving and other times he used a laptop computer. Today,
he was reading a farming magazine.

Looking at his sister, Zach was about to make
some smart-aleck comment until he saw the pleading look in her
eyes.

“Sure, Maddie,” Zach grabbed his hat and put
it on. “Let’s go.”

They wandered away from the house toward the
barn, walking slowly. When they were out of ear shot of the porch,
Maddie filled Zach in on the briefest of details.

“So your shoulder wound wasn’t just in the
line of duty?” Zach asked. “This guy is really out to get you.”

“It would seem that way,” Maddie said,
stirring circles in the dirt with the toe of her sneaker. “I don’t
know why he has such a personal vendetta against me, but he does.
It looks like he plans to hurt Aunt Lena next. I’m scared, Zach,
and I’m worried. I’d leave if I thought it would keep you all safe,
but look what he did to Mom. I was in Seattle then.”

Zach pulled her into a hug and held her
there, offering what comfort he could. He couldn’t wrap his head
around the information Maddie just shared.

“I just can’t understand any of it. What does
he have to gain by hurting you? Hurting those you love?”

“Nothing,” Maddie said, trying to think of a
way to explain so Zach would understand. “There are just some
people who derive pleasure by hurting others. You remember that kid
in fourth grade who used to pull the wings off butterflies?” When
Zach nodded his head, she continued. “He took pleasure in bringing
pain to something else. Zeus is like that. I’ve been leading the
charge to track him down and arrest him, so that is why I’ve become
a target. A very personal target.”

“How long has this been going on,
Maddie?”

“Three years.”

Zach exploded. Throwing his hands in the air,
he stomped a circle around her, yelling. “You’ve been living with
this fear, never knowing who or where he’d strike next for three
years? Why didn’t you tell us, Maddie? Why didn’t you back off from
it? Why did you let Mom get killed?”

His words couldn’t have hurt Maddie more than
if he’d raised a knife and stabbed her through the heart.

At the look of raw pain that ripped across
Maddie’s face, Zach took a step toward her and placed a hand on her
back. “I’m sorry. That was totally unfair. It’s not your fault what
he did to Mom.”

The tears prickling Maddie’s eyes trickled
down her cheeks and a sob ripped from her throat. Burying her head
against Zach, she finally allowed herself to cry out her grief and
fear. “It is my fault. If it wasn’t for me, if it wasn’t for my
investigation, Mom would be here right now. Aunt Lena would be
safe. Devin would be alive.”

“Maddie, you don’t know any of that. You’re
not God, you don’t control who lives or dies. It isn’t your
fault.”

“But Zach…”

“No, Maddie. I’m sorry. I don’t blame you.
You need to get it through your head that it isn’t your fault. This
guy sounds like he’s a psychopath. Nothing will change that. You
were just doing your job.”

Zach continued to hold her while she cried.
When she stopped, he pulled out his bandana and handed it to her to
mop up her face.

Looking at her brother she offered him a
watery grin. “This clean?”

“Clean enough,” Zach smiled. “Now, tell me
what we need to do. You said Tom is sending in someone undercover
soon. What else can we do?”

She and Zach discussed some options, decided
not to worry their dad, Lena or Erik yet and see what happened in
the next few days. Maddie had a doctor’s appointment the next day
and she was hoping she could start regaining use of her left arm.
Right handed, it hadn’t slowed her down much, but she wanted to get
in some shooting practice. She would fly to Seattle in the morning
for the appointment and be back in the afternoon.

Maddie borrowed Lena’s car and left bright
and early to catch her flight. At Sea-Tac she caught a cab and went
directly to see her boss. Tom was surprised but glad to see her. He
ran over details of a plan with her, gave her a file of info to
study and told her to expect someone to show up that afternoon to
fill the position of ranch hand.

The doctor’s appointment went very well. She
would no longer have to wear the sling and would slowly regain use
of her arm. The exercise regimen would start with some basic
strengthening moves then each week she would add more until she was
back at one-hundred percent. Anything less was unacceptable to
her.

Arriving back home mid-afternoon, she pulled
up at the house to see a cowboy sitting on the porch swing. As she
walked up the porch steps, the stranger stood and grinned at her. A
hay stem hung out of his mouth and he looked the part of a cowboy
from his dusty boots and snug fitting Wranglers to his snap-front
western shirt and straw hat.

Staring at him a moment, Maggie felt a grin
tugging at the corners of her mouth. Standing before her was none
other than her partner Danny.

“Hello,” Maddie said sticking out her arm.
“I’m Maddie.”

“I’m Dan, the cowboy man,” Danny whispered,
giving her hand a shake and sending her a wink. Speaking louder he
nodded his head toward the door. “The nice lady inside invited me
to wait in the kitchen for you to get home, but I told her I’d sit
out here. I heard from a friend in town that ya’ll were hiring some
help and I thought I’d mosey on out and apply for the job. They
said to speak with you directly.”

Maddie was biting her cheek to keep from
laughing. She knew Danny grew up in a small town in central Oregon,
but he was acting like he’d been born and raised in Texas, complete
with a twang.

“Come inside,” Maddie said, opening the door.
“You have to complete an application and my dad and brother will
need to give their stamp of approval.”

Walking into the kitchen, Maddie set her bag
on a chair, poured Danny a glass of tea and instructed him to wait
at the table. Aunt Lena was nowhere to be seen, which immediately
caused Maddie to panic.

“Aunt Lena, I’m home. Where are you?” Maddie
called as she walked down the hallway to the office. Removing an
application from a file, she walked back toward the kitchen,
calling for her aunt. “Aunt Lena? Are you here? Aunt Lena?”

Ready to give in to her fear, Maddie turned
when she heard Lena stomp down the stairs. “Good gravy, kiddo. I
was changing the bedding upstairs. You were shouting loud enough a
deaf man could hear you a mile away. Did you see the handsome
cowboy on the porch?”

“I did, indeed,” Maddie said, hugging her
aunt as they walked in the kitchen where Danny sat, looking
charming and quite like a rodeo star from his handsome smile to the
hat tipped back on his head. Sliding the application across the
table, Maddie handed Danny a pen. “You need to fill this out then
I’ll discuss the possibility of you filling the job with my brother
and dad.”