Page 5 of Tyler's Rule
If Dixie accepted my reasons, then I could explain myself to others. Until then, she was the secret I’d take to the grave.
Arran gave gruff acknowledgment, then Shade appeared through the doorway, Cassie and Manny following. All had a bandanna on them, Cassie’s tying up her black curls.
The leader of the skeleton crew didn’t waste any time. “I wanted you all in the room so we’re on the same page. This is regarding the most recent murder and the fact we now consider there’s a pattern to the killings.”
The murder was of a lass called Karla. She was a dancer from another club who had come in for an interview then been found the following morning on the banks of the river across from the warehouse, a rope around her neck. The previous victim, Esther, had been strangled and dumped in Deadwater Harbour a few weeks back.
Then there was one before that.
The blue-eyed bombshell I’d turned captive.
A muscle ticked in Cassie’s jaw. “In other words, there’s a new serial killer in town. They’ve murdered twice, and I’m so fucking scared that they will make another attempt on Dixie. Look how close to home they were with Karla. Right on our doorstep.”
Emotion rippled through me. Not a hint of it showed on my face.
A few months ago, Dixie had been attacked, her throat cut. She’d been left for dead, and the pattern was undeniable after Esther’s and Karla’s deaths by the neck. No determined killer would be satisfied with a job half done.
Fear for Dixie’s life had driven me almost to distraction.
When she’d been here in the warehouse, I’d handled it. Once she’d left, I’d lost my shit.
At murmurs from everyone around the room, Cassie continued. “It’s such fucking bullshit. Lovelyn and Kane saw her this afternoon. Tyler, chime in if ye want.”
My heartbeat stuttered.
She held her gaze on me. “They were so close, but by the time they got off the ferry and onto the island where she’s been hiding, she’d vanished. No one knows where she’s gone.”
Well, one man did.
I forced myself to breathe normally. Cassie wasn’t accusing me, only including me as Kane was my direct report. I’d ignored messages from him all day.
Manny lifted a screen, footage playing. The sea. A distant beach. “We have CCTV from the ferry. Dixie can be seen on the shore before she goes out of sight around this outcropping of rock.”
The tiny, slender figure held still on the sands then backed away before disappearing. Right behind the rocks Manny indicated where I lurked. I was so fucking close to being busted, all the crew around me ready to take me down for what I’d done.
But the camera view swung away, the boat coming into the harbour. Manny lowered the device.
“No cameras on the island?” Shade asked.
Manny twisted his lips. “None. It’s a backwater. Little infrastructure.”
Ah, fucking hell.
“They were so close,” I couldn’t help saying.
Cassie gave an unfunny laugh and pushed back a lock of hair that had escaped her bandanna. “So close. Kane and Lovelyn were able to track down where Dixie’s been staying. Her mother rents a small bungalow on the north of the island. But she hasn’t returned all evening, and she isn’t answering her phone, either from Lovelyn or her ma. Seems she saw the ferry then disappeared.”
“She got spooked and ran again,” Shade offered. “If she had a boat, she could be anywhere. We need more resources.”
Collective agreement rumbled across everyone. Except me.
I cleared my throat. “We need to focus on finding the killer.”
Cassie scowled. “No, Ty. Dixie is the priority.”
I’d asked her not to call me Ty. Cassie didn’t understand boundaries. Which was one of the reasons I wouldn’t tell anyof the crew about Dixie until she was ready. “The best way to protect her is to take out the aggressor.”
“Sure, and usually I’d agree, but I believe she’s actively being hunted. And not only by us.” From her pocket, she took out her phone. Found a picture. “This is her apartment.”
