Beverly Connor - The Night Killer

Diane washed her face, wetting her shirt again after it had almost dried after the drenching rain. She ran her fingers through her hair, trying to get the tangles out and to get her hair to do something besides lie flat. Tammy, apparently, had also taken her comb. She examined herself again in the mirror. She didn’t look great, but she wouldn’t scare children now. She cupped her hand and rinsed her mouth out with tap water.

When she finished, she bought a cup of black coffee, two Milky Way candy bars, a tube of Neosporin, a box of Kleenex, a small bottle of mouthwash, a pocket comb, and a tire gauge.

“Looks like you’ve been out in the rain,” said the clerk, a girl who looked too young to be working at night by herself. “I hate carrying umbrellas too. I’d rather just get wet.”

But an umbrella could make a great weapon in a pinch , Diane thought. “The rain kind of messes with your hair, though,” she said, smiling. She paid for the purchases and walked out to her car.

She scanned the parking lot, particularly the shadowy places, looking for a vehicle that might be waiting for her. Paranoid , she accused herself. But she wasn’t altogether confident that Slick hadn’t followed her. She shivered and got in her SUV, thankful for the people who were coming and going from the store, despite the hour of the night.

First, she rubbed the Neosporin into the scratches on her arm with a tissue, hoping they weren’t going to get infected. After the first aid, she used the mouthwash to rinse the stale taste of twenty-four hours away from a toothbrush from her mouth and return her taste buds to normal. Much better. She ate the candy bars and drank her coffee. The coffee was old and bitter, but the hot liquid felt good going down her throat, and the caffeine would have a welcome kick. Then she combed her hair. That would have to do.

She got out and measured the air in her tires. Just the thought of a flat tire put her stomach in a knot. Shit , she thought, as she checked the last tire. She hadn’t looked, but she’d bet Slick and Tammy had stolen her spare tire. “Of course they did,” she said out loud. “Why wouldn’t they have? I was lucky they hadn’t completely stripped the vehicle.”

She opened the back and looked in the spare-tire compartment. It was there. “I guess I owe them an apology,” she muttered.

Diane got back in the SUV and drove out onto the road, glad to be on her way again. The coffee and sugar were already revving up her system. She felt better.

As she drove, she checked and rechecked her rearview mirror, looking for headlights that came too close, or a truck silhouette she might recognize. But the headlights were always too bright for her to make out anything. And nobody tailgated.

She wanted to call Frank back and talk with him the remaining way to Rosewood. That would make her feel safe, but she would be focused on the conversation and not on the road in front of and behind her.

“Stop it,” she said out loud. “Just stop. What has happened to you? You’ve been through worse and come out better than this.” She pressed the gas pedal and accelerated as fast as she dared on the dark two-lane road, relieved that it was paved, always watching the headlights behind her. There weren’t many cars out on the road between Rendell and Rose counties that time of night. It was a lonely stretch of road. She accelerated again, leaving the headlights behind her.

Diane breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the Rosewood city limits sign-and the lampposts that lined the streets. She was so tired of the dark. She looked in the rearview mirror again, still seeing only headlights, not the vehicles behind them. Several cars were behind her, more than had been behind her most of the way. She was back in civilization.

Diane made the turn onto Museum Road. She was starting to feel relaxed. It was a pleasant drive-rolling and twisting through the wooded property. Frank would be there waiting on her. She was sure he had left the minute he’d hung up the phone with her. She thought about food, a bath, and sleep; and just as she came out of a dip and over a rise in Museum Road, she almost missed seeing the vehicle that had made the turn off the main road behind her.

Diane hit the accelerator and flew over the rise and around the curve, heading for the museum. The trees lining Museum Road seemed to fly by as she sped to the building, hoping Frank was there, hoping he wasn’t late.

Calm down; even if he’s not there, the museum night security will be just inside the building.

Damn, how did she miss him? She really sucked at detecting a tail.

Maybe it’s not him. How silly. It could be David or Jin, or Frank, for that matter. It’s just headlights. Damn it, get a grip.

The immense Gothic edifice that was the museum came into view, well lit by the lights in the parking lot. She could see Frank, David, and the others sitting on the steps waiting. Well, hell. Who was following her? She slowed down and pulled in beside Frank’s Camaro in front of the right-hand entrance to the museum. She jumped out of the SUV and ran to Frank.

“Diane. .” he began, putting an arm around her waist.

“I think someone is following me,” she said.

A set of headlights came over the rise and into the museum parking lot, heading straight for them. Frank, Izzy, and a museum security guard all drew their guns, but held them pointed downward.

It was Slick’s primer-colored Chevy truck.

Damn him. Diane started marching toward it. Frank pulled her back.

The truck skidded to a stop and Slick rolled down the window. He threw out a plastic grocery sack that broke open on the ground, scattering the contents of Diane’s purse and glove compartment onto the pavement. He glared at Diane.

“I found these in a ditch. You leave me and Tammy alone. We got nothing more to talk about.”

With that, he hit the accelerator and screeched away, leaving black rubber marks on the pavement.

Frank and the others stared after him for a moment. A sound from the pavement attracted their attention. Diane’s lipstick was rolling toward them and stopped at David’s feet.

“Well, that was weird,” said David. He reached down and picked up the lipstick, turning it over in his hand as if it might be something other than what it appeared to be. His dark eyes looked quizzically at Diane.

The others turned to her, obviously expecting some explanation that made sense. She noticed that Hector was with them too. He was in a lab coat. He must have been working late. He and his twin brother, Scott, were technicians Deven Jin had hired for the DNA lab.

“What is this stuff?” Hector asked.

“Things from my purse and glove compartment,” Diane told him.

“How did they end up in a ditch?” he asked.

She smiled grimly. “They didn’t. Look, I’m sorry to drag all of you out of bed.”

“We weren’t in bed,” said David. “We were up worrying about you. Are you all right? Where have you been?” He bent down and picked up the rest of Diane’s things.

“Trying out for a part in the remake of Deliverance ,” she said, as Frank hugged her close.

He smelled like aftershave. It was a comforting aroma.

“I’m relieved you’re back,” he said. “You want to tell us what happened?”

“In my office. I need to shower and change clothes. First, I need to get these boxes of artifacts to Jonas Briggs’ office. Please, I’ll tell you everything, but I need to get this done first.”

“Sure,” he said. “Whatever you need.” His blue-green eyes looked dark under the parking lot lights, but she could still see the concern in them. The others were relieved-and bewildered, but she could see that Frank was still worried.