Die For Me: A Novel of the Valentine Killer (For Me 1)

“Yes, Dr. Knight—”

“Evelyn,” she murmured, cutting through his words. “At this point…” Her smile was tired. “Just call me Evelyn.”

“Savannah Slater was killed last week.”

“In a manner very similar to your ex-wife’s murder,” Mac added, his gaze ever watchful.

Trent’s shoulders sagged. “I knew her. And I knew Amy.”

It was exactly what Dane had been hoping to hear. His gaze cut to Mac.

Mac’s right eyebrow lifted.

Dane’s gaze slid back to his suspect.

Trent licked his lips. “Savannah and I went out a few times. Nothing serious.”

“When was this?” Dane kept his voice expressionless.

“About six months ago.” Trent’s hands pushed against the tabletop. “Maybe seven. We met in a club. She was smart and pretty.” He paused, then added softly, “A long-legged brunette.”

“Just your type,” Evelyn whispered. “Just like Katherine.”

“What is it that you’re saying here?” Trent asked as he leaned forward. There was a harder intensity entering his voice.

Evelyn put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Are you telling me,” Trent continued, eyes glinting, breath coming faster, “that you suspect Katherine was involved in these crimes? That she killed these women?” His eyes widened. “Why? Because she was jealous?” He looked around the room. “Okay, I did hook up with Savannah while Katherine and I were dating, but Katherine never really seemed to care that much what I did or who I did it with.”

The guy was such a charmer. And he was sure doing a whole lot of talking.

Evelyn bit her lip. Oh, yeah, that lady had things she was dying to say. But probably couldn’t, thanks to good old doctor-patient confidentiality.

Evelyn’s fingers tightened around Trent’s shoulder. “Are you going to question Katherine?” she asked.

Dane nodded.

“I should have stopped her.” Now Evelyn’s eyes were haunted. “When she told me about the nightmares and the blood she kept seeing, I should have stopped her.” Her breath rasped out. “But I was too worried about my career, about losing everything that I’d built if I didn’t keep my mouth shut.”

Trent turned his head toward her and frowned.

Evelyn’s shoulders straightened. “But I don’t care what I lose at this point. I can’t let anyone else get hurt.”

Dane waited. Even Mac had taken a step closer to the table.

“I’ve spent hours with Katherine. Many hours…” Evelyn’s words were soft. “She can seem so normal, but there were times I’d catch her watching me. She’d give me responses she thought she was supposed to give. All she was doing was pretending.” Her voice was now a stark whisper. “When I told her what I suspected, Katherine stopped therapy.”

“And you suspected—what, exactly?” Mac asked.

“That Katherine Cole has sociopathic tendencies. Her emotional responses are stunted, if they are there at all. She mimics the behavior of others, but…” Evelyn shook her head. “I’m not sure if she feels anything at all.”

Dane maintained his expressionless mask. “So you think Katherine is as crazy as Valentine?”

Evelyn licked her lips. “I think she is just as dangerous as he is.”

“But you didn’t think she was an immediate threat to anyone, right? Because if you had, then you would have been obligated to report that to the police.” Dane knew how doctor-patient confidentiality situations worked. He’d handled cases before in which a breach had been necessary. If there was no specific threat…

“Katherine never said she was planning to hurt or kill anyone.” Evelyn’s voice was still soft, but her shoulders straightened and she met Dane’s stare head-on. “But I’ve been working with troubled patients my entire professional career. I know what I’m talking about here. I know that Katherine is a threat.”

A threat who had an alibi for Amy’s murder.

Trent swore.

“I warned you,” Evelyn snapped at Trent, sounding both defensive and scared. “You didn’t listen to me. The woman is dangerous, but you looked at her and saw some kind of broken damn princess. You always do that. You always go for the weak ones.”

“Why was she even in therapy?” Mac asked quietly. “Why go to see you in the first place if she was just going to pretend with you?”

Her smile was sad. “Because Katherine knows that something is wrong with her. She knows that the impulses she has are bad. I honestly believe that she wants to stop herself, but she can’t.”

Not what Dane had been hoping to hear during this little talk. “Don’t we all have the capacity for violence, though, Doc? Deep inside, just waiting to come out?”

“Well, yes,” she admitted, “under the right circumstances, I suppose, but—”

“It’s all about motivation, huh?” Dane asked, struggling to keep his voice mild. “I mean, it’s about the trigger. And I’ve sure seen lots of triggers during my years in homicide.”

Evelyn’s frown had deepened.

“People can kill because of jealousy, lust, greed…” His gaze returned to Trent. “They can also kill because they’re damn pissed off at an ex who cleaned them out. And maybe—just maybe—one night during a chat with a coworker, the perfect opportunity presented itself.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Trent demanded as he surged to his feet. His chair flew back and slammed into the floor with a crack.

“Easy.” Mac was there instantly, locking a hard hand around the guy’s arm. Mac could always move so much faster than people realized. The quiet, deadly type. One of the reasons he made such a great partner.

Dane also rose to his feet. “I’m saying to drop the act, Doc,” he snapped as he dropped his own mild veneer. “You’ve known about Katherine’s past for quite some time, so stop acting like you’re shocked to discover her real identity.”

Trent’s gaze flew from him to Mac and then to Evelyn. Dane could almost see the wheels turning in Trent’s head as the guy tried to figure out his next move.

Figure faster, jerk.

“Trent?” Evelyn whispered.

Trent gave a grim nod. His shoulders thrust back even as his chin jutted up in the air. And damn it all, he even gave that arrogant-ass sniff again as he said, “Hell yes, I knew. So what?”