The Seventh Victim (Texas Rangers 1)

“I spent many a long hour trying to crack this case. More sleepless nights than I could count.” He hesitated for a moment. “In the end it was too much. I retired from the force.”

“Yes.”

After a pause, Raines said, “I’m a private detective now, and I make my own hours. I’d like to come down to Texas and help you with this case. Unofficially, of course. Before I die, I want to see this guy caught.”

“That’s mighty generous of you, Mr. Raines, and if I need you I’ll be sure to call. But we got the resources here in Texas to catch this guy.”

“He’s a smart one, Sergeant Beck. I can help you.”

“Well, sir, no disrespect, but you had a couple of years to catch this guy, and you didn’t. Now it’s my turn.”

Another hesitation. “I’ve got information that might help.”

“Such as?”

“Count me in, and I’ll tell you.”

Laughter rumbled in Beck’s chest. “Why don’t you let me have a crack at the case, and I’ll be sure to call if I need you.”

“I want to help.”

“I’ll call if I have a question.” He hung up. Raines could be a resource, or he could be liability. And until Beck got to know his cases and the Seattle cases he had no intention of reaching out blind to Raines.

As Beck reached for the front door he heard, “Sergeant Beck.”

Beck turned to see a lean, muscular man walking toward him. The guy was in his mid-forties and had blond short-cropped hair, a strong jaw, and a straight-backed posture that suggested a stint in the marines or army.

The man tucked a cell phone in his breast pocket before he extended his hand. “Sergeant Beck, I’m Mike Raines.”

Beck took his hand, not sure if he should smile or have the guy escorted to the nearest airport. “When did you arrive in Austin?”

“A half hour ago. I booked the red-eye as soon as Cannon called me.”

Beck didn’t like being hoodwinked. “You might as well turn around and head on back to Seattle. I got this covered.”

Dark circles smudged the skin under his eyes. “I’m here to stay until this killer is caught.”

He shook his head annoyed that this guy was pushing. “No, sir.”

“I can help.”

“You got information, then give it to me. Otherwise, move along, or I’ll find an officer to help you.”

A faint smile tipped the edge of Raines’s mouth as if the threat amused him. “Did you know the Strangler’s lone survivor lives here in Austin?”

That caught Beck short. He’d given Lara Church more than one or two fleeting thoughts since he’d first heard her name, but had dreaded the search to find her. “What?”

Raines grinned. “That’s right. She lives in town. Has for the last eight months.”

Beck’s gaze narrowed. “And how do you know that?”

“I’ve kept tabs on her. She was my only witness, my only link to a killer, and I wasn’t going to let her slip through my fingers.”

“Where is she?”

Raines scowled. “I want in on this case, Beck. I want this guy caught.”

He paused, letting the air hum with anger. “I want him caught too. But this is my case now.”

Raines muttered an oath. “You’ve never had a case that dogged you or got under your skin?”

Misty Gray. Beck didn’t answer.

“So you do understand.” Raines nodded. “If you were me,” Raines said, “what would you do?”

A smile tugged at the edge of his lip. He’d have gone to the ends of the earth to catch Dial. “I’d be here dogging your ass.”

Raines shoved out a breath. “I don’t want to get in the way, and I don’t want credit. I want this guy caught. Then I’ll go back to my life.”

“Tell me where I can find Lara Church, Mr. Raines. She might have been your witness in Seattle, but in Austin she’s mine.”

He shoved his hands into his pockets and rattled change. Finally, he said, “She lives outside of Austin. In a small place she inherited from her grandmother.” He supplied the address. “She wasn’t much help after the killings in Seattle. She didn’t remember her attack or her attacker.”

Beck set his coffee on a ledge, pulled a notebook from his pocket, and scribbled down the address. “You think she was telling the truth?”

“At first, no. I thought she was scared and might have even known her attacker. But as the weeks went on and she still had no memory, she agreed to hypnosis, hoping it would help.”

“Did it help?”

“No. We kept coming up empty-handed. I had an army of forensic psychologists who worked with her. Toward the end she was pretty sick of dealing with cops and doctors.”

Beck checked his watch. He could clock in and be at Church’s place within the hour. “She’s gonna have to deal with another cop.”

“I’d tag along, but I think you’ll get more out of her if you see her alone. She was pretty angry with me toward the end. I’m not good at letting go.”

“Really? Never would have thought it.” Beck shifted his stance toward Raines. “Let me make myself clear, Mr. Raines. She is my witness now, and I want you to stay away from her.”

Raines smiled. “I’ll stay clear for now. You have my word.”

“What does ‘for now’ mean?”

“You get the job done, and we won’t have an issue.”

Beck didn’t like threats, even sugarcoated ones. “You don’t lift a finger on this case, period, while you are in Texas.”

“If you were to ask my former commanding officer, mother, or wife, they’d tell you I could be stubborn.”

“I intend to place a call to your commander.” He tucked his notebook in his side pocket.

“I would too. Like I said, you don’t know me from Adam.” He opened a small briefcase and removed a thick, weathered file. “My case notes on the Strangler case. I’m giving you what I have because this guy needs to get caught. I don’t give a shit about my ego anymore.”

The file, now pressed against the Fisk file, felt heavy in Beck’s hand. “Thanks.”

Raines smiled. “I suspect we’ll get to be good friends before this is over.” He removed a card from his breast pocket. “Call me anytime. I’m in town for a while.”

Beck glanced at the card made of a nice thick white stock. Embossed in black and gold was RAINES SECURITY and below it a P.O. Box and a phone number. “Stay out of my case, Raines.”

The first call Beck made when he got to his desk was to Seattle. Cannon was not on duty this early, but after fifteen minutes of introducing and reintroducing himself, he got Captain Ron Grayson.

“What can I do for you, Sergeant Beck?” Grayson, who’d be ending his night shift soon, sounded tired and annoyed.

“I got a visit from one of your former detectives this morning. Mike Raines is in Austin, Texas.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Grayson sighed into the phone. “He called in yesterday out of the blue and asked me and Cannon to lunch. We said yes and your call came up during the meal.” A chair squeaked in the background. “Him showing up in Texas ... that’s classic Mike. He always was like a dog with a bone.”

“It’s one hell of a bone for him to get on a plane and fly down here to see me.”

“That case got to him. Hell, it got to us all. Six women strangled in six months. The press ate us alive and the public was furious. But no matter what we did, we couldn’t catch the guy. Drove Mike nuts more than any of us.”

“Why’d he leave the force?”

“The job had drained him, and yet it still wanted more. He just didn’t have more to give. And he’d pissed off too many higher-ups. He was offered early retirement and he took it. His security business is one of the best in our area, and he’s done real well for himself. I was kidding him yesterday that he didn’t look like a beat cop no more. Mr. Fancy Pants, I called him.”

Beck tried to picture himself if he’d not cracked the Misty Gray case. Would he still be parked outs

ide Dial’s apartment? Yes. Would he have been driven to retire?

“He wants in on my case.”

“He could be a resource. He was one hell of a cop.”

“Is he going to be a problem for me? Is he going to start stirring shit up?”

Grayson choose his words carefully. “He’ll give you some rope, but if you don’t deliver he won’t remain on the sidelines.”

If Raines had still been with Seattle Police, Beck would have demanded Grayson bring his man home. But Raines was a private citizen, and until he broke a law there wasn’t much he could do.

Beck thanked the man and hung up. He found his commanding officer and gave him the rundown.

“Go see this Lara Church,” Captain Penn said. “This Raines guy has given you a real nugget.”