She was crying harder now, burying her face in her hands, shoulders beginning to heave.
“Told her what?” I prodded anxiously. “Come over where?”
“To my house,” she whimpered. “I told her Devon was on his way over and that I couldn’t reach Detective Storm, so she came over to my house.”
Ben, ever the cop, immediately pulled out his notebook and flipped to a fresh page in preparation for taking notes. I strode the few steps between Cally and myself and then took her gently by the shoulders.
“Easy Cally, calm down.” I slowly guided her back into the chair then retrieved a small packet of tissues from the table and knelt beside her. “Now, take a deep breath, ground and center. I know you can do it.”
A hot, tingling sensation washed over me, and I instantly realized that I needed to heed my own advice. I placed my hand on hers and continued to soothe her with calm encouragement, easing her-and myself-into a relaxed breath. When her shuddering stopped, and she dabbed the last of the tears away with a tissue, I continued. “Now, tell me what happened.”
“Like I said,” she outlined, watching my face studiously, “I couldn’t reach Detective Storm, so I tried to call you. I wanted to tell someone that Devon called me and said he was on his way over. He knew the police were looking for him because of his neighbor or something. Felicity said you were with Detective Storm, so I told her about it. She took down my address and told me to just stay put. She said she would be over in a few minutes and not to worry about anything.”
Ben was scribbling rapidly when I looked over at him. Allison, having already heard the story, was dutifully tending to Felicity, checking her IV and pulse.
“Go on,” I urged.
“Well, Devon got there before Felicity did,” Cally continued. “He was acting pretty wired, like he was scared and all. He kept asking me if the police had talked to me.”
“What did you tell ‘im?” Ben questioned.
“I told him no,” she turned her face to him, “but I don’t think he believed me. He kept asking if I was lying.” She turned back to me. “Anyway, when Felicity got there, she rang the doorbell, and Devon went crazy.”
“How do you mean?” I demanded. “What did he do?”
“Just spastic, you know,” she went on. “He accused me of calling the cops and started yelling a lot. He wouldn’t let me answer the door.”
Ben’s voice came from behind me. “Did he attack you?”
“No,” Cally told him. “Not really. He just stayed between me and the door and kept yelling about the cops and the ASPCA, and all.”
“So, I’m still not clear on what happened to Felicity,” I expressed, biting back my growing impatience.
“I guess she could hear Devon yelling and got worried or something,” she ventured, “because all of a sudden she came through the door. I guess it was unlocked, and she just decided to try and help me, you know. Devon thought she was a cop, and I guess he was trying to get away because he just took off for the door. He ran right into her and slammed her into the wall real hard.” She started slowly weeping again, sniffling as she spoke, “It’s my fault. If I hadn’t called her, this never would have happened.”
“No, Cally.” I forced my voice to remain calm. “It wasn’t your fault. You did the right thing by calling.”
Ben’s practiced voice came again. “Did anyone else show up? Any cops?”
“Yes,” she answered. “They chased after Devon. I don’t know why they came. I guess Felicity called them.”
By now she had returned to fully involved sobbing, and no amount of reassurance from me was going to convince her that she was not to blame. I glanced back at Allison and motioned for her to trade places with me, which she did assiduously. This done, Ben and I quietly retreated from the room.
“I thought Felicity knew we had the place covered,” Ben stated low-voiced once we were in the hall. “Why the hell did she go over there?”
“I don’t know,” I puzzled. “Maybe she forgot? Maybe she just wanted to help Cally. Only she can answer that. Do you think they caught the bastard?”
“I’ll call in and find out,” he replied. “He couldn’t get far if he was on foot. Whaddaya make of that bit about the ASPCA?”
“Yeah, I noticed that. The ASPCA,” I echoed, “like maybe he thought the police were after him because of the whole incident with sacrificing the dog.”
“My thoughts exactly.”
“If he committed the murders, it seems like that would be the furthest thing from his mind,” I ventured.
“Yeah, I think you’re right,” Ben agreed. “We’ll still talk to him though.”
“You still think R.J. did it, don’t you?”
“I think I’ve got a lot of evidence that points straight at ‘im. A lot of it is circumstantial I admit, but there’s the fingerprint on the candle, the blood type, and the hairs. DNA test’ll show for sure if he was with Ellen Gray.”
“But that’s just on the latest victim, and we know he was having an affair with her,” I maintained.
“He never admitted to that.”
“Come on, Ben. You saw how he acted when you mentioned her name,” I pointed out.
“What I saw him do was clam up and ask for a lawyer.”
“I would have too,” I contended. “Besides, you still can’t connect him with Karen Barnes.”
“I can connect him with Ariel Tanner,” he shot back angrily. “Shit, we’re obviously dealin’ with a psycho, maybe the kid’s got a fuckin’ split personality or somethin’!”
I stared back silently, stunned by his sudden outburst. I knew this case was wearing on him, but something else was there too. His hand went up to his neck, and he let out a heavy sigh.
“Listen,” Ben’s voice was much calmer. “I’m sorry, man. I shouldn’t be snappin’ at ya’. It’s just that…”
Ben was unceremoniously interrupted by the shrill tone of his beeper as it demanded his attention. He automatically pulled it from his belt and quickly perused its liquid crystal face.
“It’s a call from the coppers I had sittin’ on Cally’s house,” he told me. “I’d better get in touch with ‘em.”
“Go ahead,” I urged. “I’ll be with Felicity.”
“Look, Rowan…” Ben struggled with the words as he wagged his finger back and forth between us. “Are you and me okay?”
“Yeah,” I reassured him. “We’re fine. Go make your call.”
“How’re you feeling?” I whispered as I leaned forward and brushed the hair from her face.
“Aye, tired,” she murmured, “and sore.”
I returned a half-hearted smile. “I’ll bet.”
“Rowan…Has anyone told you…About, you know…”
“Yeah, I know about it. Allison told me. I’m sorry.”
A small teardrop glistened in the corner of her eye and slowly rolled across her cheek to wet the pillow.
“I’m the one who should apologize, then,” she returned. “I never should have gone over there. Cally just sounded so frightened…”
“Shhhh.” I brushed away the next tear as it began to journey down her face. “It’s all right. You did exactly what I would have done. It’s okay.”
She blinked rapidly then took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. She lay there in silence, just looking back at me for a few short moments as she regained her composure.
“Is Cally okay, then?” she finally asked.
“Physically, she’s fine. He never laid a hand on her,” I answered. “Mentally. About as well as can be expected. She blames herself for what happened to you. Allison took her down for coffee a little while ago.”
“It wasn’t her fault.”
“I know,” I assured her. “I know.”
“Aye, what about Devon? Did they catch him?”
“Ben went to check on that. The officers that were watching Cally’s place just beeped him.”
Watching her face, I could see that the tranquilizer had not worn off and was creeping up on her once again. Her breathing became easier, and she began sliding backward into relaxation.