Of course, Kim thought. Smart, savvy, and egomaniacal as all get out. She tried to steady her breath as she stumbled down the path. “Did the poker group know the reason that you brought them together? The real reason, I mean.”
“Oh, no! Of course not. The gentlemen were only interested in the usual things dandies like – spirits, a game of cards, and a pretty thing to look at. I offered my services as the broker of an exclusive and highly private poker circle where vices could be indulged with complete confidentiality. What happens in the room stays in the room, so to speak. My contacts, unfortunately, mostly extend to the business world, so I had to turn to your Dr. Sampson to provide the female element. I’d heard that he was a bit of a scoundrel, so I hoped he might provide just the sort of lady I desired – young, desperate, and not quite right in the head. He most definitely delivered.”
“So why kill her?”
The killer was silent for a moment. “It’s hard to say, Miss Daniels. I suppose a gentleman sometimes requires an alibi for the thing he most desires. He’s afraid of what he wants and the strength of his need. Company makes it bearable, sanctioned. I may be an intelligent man, but when it comes to my emotions, I suppose I am as common as they come.”
This made a twisted kind of sense. Maybe you’re becoming as crazy as him, Kim thought. Keep sharp, Daniels. He’s trying to lure you in, just like he did with Virginia Winters.
Then Kim had a brainwave. So that’s why the perps were acting so squirrely during their poker game. They didn’t want her to lose the game, because they already knew the consequences. It was all coming together.
“So the first time you surprise them. Then you lure them back for round two. They can’t say no after the great blackmail material you have on them – New York’s most powerful, witness to a killing. It’d be so easy to implicate them, or at least tarnish their reputations. But instead of getting a pretty so-so player, you get a cop who knows her stuff. She doesn’t lose like she’s supposed to. And to lose is to die, isn’t it?”
The killer chuckled again. “Very pert, Miss Daniels. I’d scold you, but I have a feeling you’ll get your due soon enough.”
Kim ignored him, intent on pursuing her line of thought. “You see yourself as a fair man. So you prescribed a loophole: if the woman won, she got her freedom. But the game was specifically designed to avoid that possibility, wasn’t it? You chose instead the weak, the desperate, the defenseless. The question now is: why? Why kill these women, especially in a manner so brutal?”
They entered a small clearing. Kim could hear the rushing of water. The moon filtered through the shifting clouds. She could barely make out a small waterfall surrounded by smooth paving stones. But that isn’t what caught her eye. The killer flipped on a small floodlight, illuminating a neat circle of King of Spades cards. He then pressed a button on a small device next to it. The smooth sound of the Chairman filled the night air.
I’ve got you under my skin.
I’ve got you deep in the heart of me.
Kim’s teeth set on edge to hear the song that had so sufficiently creeped her out at the crime scene. This can’t happen, she thought fiercely. I’m the person who puts this creep behind bars, not another of his victims.
She shot a look at Alex, who was looking paler by the minute. She couldn’t expect any help from him. The only thing to do was buy time, more time.
“Well, this is fancy. You didn’t happen to bring champagne and truffles, did you?”
“In the circle, Mr. Kane,” the killer said, his voice suddenly icy. He untied his captives and deftly knocked Kim to the ground, quickly tying her feet in the process. He then withdrew his sword slowly out of its long cane case and nudged Alex with it into the center. He delivered a swift kick to his back, and with a grunt, the actor fell face-first into the grass.
Kim’s breath caught. She felt horribly powerless.
The killer leaned down and grabbed Alex’s hair from behind while resting the tip of his sword against the middle of the actor’s back. Alex made a strangled sound through his gag.
“This is what happens to little girls who don’t play by the rules,” the killer breathed.
Kim braced, panicked, not ready for what had to be next. It couldn’t end like this, it just couldn’t…
Gunfire erupted through the trees. The killer jerked, stiffened, and then collapsed.
There was complete silence for one moment. Kim could hear her blood pounding in her ears as she stood, rooted to the spot. Her brain refused to accept what she’d just seen. Alex must have felt the same way, as he remained crouched, waiting for that fatal blow.
It was only a moment, though. Common sense kicked back in, and Kim struggled to get to her charge.
“Kane! Are you alright?” she shouted. She managed to inch herself closer. He looked terrified and confused, but everything seemed to be in working order.
The underbrush crackled as footsteps approached. The detective and the actor braced themselves.
“Detective! Kane! Everything OK over there?” came the voice of Officer Phillips. Nothing had ever sounded more sweet than those six words. Detective Newport came up behind him. They were white-faced, expecting the worst.
“We’re fine, guys. Not a scratch between us,” said Kim. “Man, am I glad to see you two. Things were getting a little heavy.”
Phillips untied them and pulled out Kane’s gag. He began to gasp for breath, hyperventilating from his brush with death.
“Is he dead?” he wheezed. “Tell me that smug SOB is gone, or I will personally make a satay out of him with that sword.”
Jacob knelt by the killer, who was splayed out, blood slowly pooling beside him and oozing into the ground. He checked his pulse. “He’s gone.”
“Guys, all I wanted was a few tips on how to play detective, not get kidnapped by some psycho, trotted out to the middle of Central Park, and made into a human skewer!” said Alex, still panting.
“Relax, Kane, you’re in one piece,” said Kim, patting him lightly. “No harm, no foul.” She surveyed the body beside them. “Now we just have to explain to the Captain how we ended up offing a guy in Central Park who we weren’t even technically investigating.”
Jacob allowed himself a small smile. “We just proceed like we always do – we call Maria Langley. She’ll get us the answers we need.”
Craig whistled slowly. “Boy, she is not going to like this one.”
Chapter Twenty
The officers crowded into the diner booth. The Upper West Side retro joint was a favorite of Phillips’, who packed them all into his car and drove them over.
The body had been called in to Langley, who had nearly blown Newport’s top off for dragging her into Central Park in the middle of the night. Still, she must have sensed something bad had gone down. She’d shut up pretty quickly and waved them off, promising to take over the crime scene from there. Weary and still scared, it was time for a round of hot food and cold drinks.
Phillips called for a round of beer that they sucked back lustily. The frumpy waitress came back soon after with platters stacked high with french fries, club sandwiches, bacon cheeseburgers, and chicken strips. The crew attacked the food, licking fingers clean of ketchup and plum sauce. There wasn’t much conversation until they’d finished their meals and leaned back, sighing happily. The horror of the night had been at least partially erased.