Brenda Novak - The Perfect Murder

A door slammed shut the same second he found the warm metal of his pistol. With his chest rising and falling as if he was in the middle of a marathon, he grabbed it and turned to fire. He was a good shot. He could still solve this.

But he was too late. The old lady’s taillights glowed through the rain, but she was already half a mile down the road and racing away faster by the second.

Undeterred, he fired several shots. This couldn’t be happening, he told himself. No way had he just allowed Latisha and a witness to escape!

But that was exactly what he’d done. Far as he could tell, he hadn’t even hit the damn car.

After emptying his gun in the direction they’d gone, he sank to his knees. “Son of a bitch! I’m going to kill you for this. I’m going to kill you both!” he screamed. But when the rage receded, he knew there wasn’t a thing he could do to either of them. They were gone. He had to go to the house, pack his belongings and get the hell out. Maybe Latisha wouldn’t be able to lead the police to this place. But he was fairly certain the old lady could pinpoint exactly where she’d been accosted.

“What is it?” Sebastian murmured. Like Kate, he’d heard the phone ring. They both stood at Jane’s bedroom door, listening to her talk to David.

“Latisha escaped,” she told him.

“Is she okay?”

Brushing her hair out of her face, she sat up. She’d answered the phone automatically and hadn’t really comprehended the first few words. But the meaning of what David had told her, what she’d just repeated to Sebastian, was beginning to sink in, and she could hardly believe it. Latisha was alive-alive! Thank God! “She’s been shot, but the bullet passed through her arm and didn’t cause any lasting damage.”

“Does Gloria know?”

Jane repeated the question to David, a question she would already have asked if she’d been coherent. It was barely an hour before she had to get up, but with Sebastian in the living room, she’d spent another sleepless night. Although she hadn’t been with him physically, she’d tossed and turned, thinking about him.

“She was pretty delirious when the doctors first saw her,” David said. “An older lady brought her in-a Louise Stetzel.”

“How did Mrs. Stetzel find her?”

“I’m still piecing that together, but I wanted to give you a heads-up. I thought you might like to call Gloria while I deal with the situation around here.”

That was sweet of David. He understood how personally invested she’d become in this case. Maybe they’d been enemies six years ago, but he was now one of her favorite people. “Of course.” Imagining Gloria’s relief, Jane felt her eyes swim with tears. “I’ll call her right away.”

A click signaled that he was gone. After returning the phone to her nightstand, Jane focused on Sebastian and Kate.

“Who’s Latisha?” Kate asked.

“Remember that person I told you about after the last time we got a call in the middle of the night?”

She came into the room. “The one who needed help?”

“Yeah.”

Hope filled her innocent face. “She’s okay now?”

“She’s okay.”

Kate walked around to give her a hug. “I knew you could do it, Mom!”

Jane laughed weakly. “I did my best, but I don’t get the credit for this.” It could easily have gone the other way; she was surprised it hadn’t.

Sebastian stood by the door. He was wearing a pair of pajama bottoms and a T-shirt.

“Did you find out if Gloria knows?” he asked. He was relieved, too. She could hear it in his voice.

“I’m about to tell her.” She nudged Kate, who’d plopped down beside her. “Will you run out to the kitchen and get my cell phone, sweetie? Gloria’s number is in my address book.”

Kate jumped up and, squeezing past Sebastian, hurried out of the room. She returned seconds later and handed Jane her cell. “Who’s Gloria?” she asked.

“Latisha’s sister,” Jane explained.

“She’s going to be happy, huh?”

“Very.” Holding up a hand to forestall any more questions, she made the call.

Gloria answered on the third ring, sounding a bit disoriented. “Hello?”

“They’ve found Latisha,” she announced. “Your sister’s alive.”

Silence, then muffled weeping came across the line. “Thank the Lord.” She cried some more before controlling her tears. “Where she at now?”

“Sutter Memorial Hospital. She’s been shot in the arm, but the doctors have assured Detective Willis that she’s fine.”

“Do they have him? The man who did this? The man who killed Marcie?”

Jane’s elation dimmed. “Not yet. At least, I don’t think so. I don’t have any of the details.”

“Okay.” She sniffed. “I’m headin’ down there right now.”

“Gloria, I’m…” Jane didn’t know how to describe what she felt. Realizing, once again, how little power anyone had to overcome another person’s evil intentions was frightening. It was humbling, too. Everything she’d learned in the past few months, all the bravado that swelled inside her when she talked about fighting back, had done nothing to bring this girl home. Yet, somehow, Latisha had survived. “Relieved and grateful,” she finished.

“Me, too,” Gloria said. “Will you be there, at the hospital?”

“Of course. I’ll be over as soon as I shower.”

“See you there.”

As Jane hung up, she dashed a hand across her wet cheeks. Slightly embarrassed, she swallowed the lump in her throat and smiled at Sebastian. “Hearing she’s okay feels so good.”

His nod said he understood; Kate gave her another hug. She started to get out of bed-then remembered that there was another person she should contact. Once again searching her cell phone’s address book, she called Luther.

He didn’t pick up. Keeping one arm affectionately around Kate, she waited for the beep that would signal her to leave a message.

“Luther, it’s Jane Burke.” She allowed herself a watery smile. “Latisha’s safe. I just…I didn’t want you to worry about her anymore. So call me when you get a chance-or talk to Gloria if you prefer,” she said and disconnected.

Folding his arms, Sebastian leaned against the doorjamb. “That was Latisha’s father?”

Jane nodded while reaching for her robe.

“You didn’t tell him where she is.”

“I think I’ll leave that up to Gloria. She might want to spend some time alone with her first.” She addressed Kate. “Try to get some more sleep while I take a shower. I’ll drop you off at school on our way to the hospital.”

Her face fell. “Can’t I go with you?”

Latisha’s story wouldn’t be pleasant, and Jane wasn’t about to have her twelve-year-old in the room when she heard it. “Not today.”

“Why not?” Kate whined. “It’s Friday. We don’t do a lot on Fridays. I could miss school.” The oblique glance she cast over her shoulder told Jane that Sebastian was part of the attraction. Seeing her mother in a romantic relationship was exciting and new. Interrupting that kiss last night had ignited her daughter’s imagination.

“You can’t miss school,” Jane said. “There’s no need for that.”

“One day’s no big deal. I want to be with you guys. Please, Mom?”

Sebastian interceded. “How about if we take you ice-skating tonight instead?”

Jane watched her daughter struggle to rein in her reaction. She could tell that Kate wanted to continue pleading. On the other hand, she didn’t want to make a bad impression on Sebastian. Finally she backed off and sent him a grateful smile. “That’d be fun.”

The image of her late husband creeping down the hall with a knife suddenly appeared in Jane’s mind. She was so used to protecting her daughter, so used to protecting herself. It wasn’t easy to lower her guard. Not after what Oliver had done. Not even for Sebastian. Especially for Sebastian. She wasn’t just tempted to sleep with him, to love him-she was tempted to trust him.