Page 209 of Broken
The following morning, while working in Prescott’s home office, Jacqueline read through Terrence Maul’s career history. He was a police officer with the Roanoke PD before moving on to Fredericksburg. From there, he was promoted to county SWAT. There were no complaints in his file, nothing negative that would ever lead law enforcement to suspect he was a cold-blooded killer.
Her mind was blown as she learned about the man who wreaked havoc on so many families, and preyed on trusting, young women.
But the killing spree stopped after Jacqueline escaped, and the case went cold.
After working with the SWAT team, Maul then earned a coveted spot as an ALPHA Operative. It was during a mission with Gloria Whelan and Bert Grimes that he lost it. Years of pent-up hostility, and the unrelenting urge to kill again, became too much and he unleashed his bloodlust on everyone in the house. A total of twenty-two women and children were savagely murdered.
From there, he was convicted and sentenced. Three years into a life sentence without the possibility of parole, he staged a prison riot, snatched a guard’s gun, and shot his way out. From that point, he vanished, until he resurfaced with Sally, then posing as Lou, and finally at the rehearsal dinner.
Jacqueline pushed out of her chair and rubbed her aching shoulder. Tight muscles screamed back. As she made her way onto the back porch, Loki barked.
Outside, in the pool, Prescott was giving Ethan a swim lesson. Watching those two together made her heart happy. Loki, desperate to join the fun, was trotting around the pool in the hopes of being invited in.
She made her way down the stairs and into the backyard where she picked up one of Loki’s toys and tossed it for him. Off he bolted, excited for the attention. Sitting at the edge, she dipped her bare legs into the heated water.
“Come on in, babe,” Prescott called.
That morning, she’d put on her bathing suit, but had gotten diverted by work. She slid into the water and dropped below the surface. The water was heated to perfection, and she swam until she ran out of breath.
“Where’ve you been?” Prescott asked.
“Reviewing Maul’s case.”
“I’m taking an entire day off from reality,” he said. “And we’re going to have fun, right Ethan?
“Jack, watch me,” Ethan said.
After an adorable display of Ethan’s ability to blow bubbles and float on his back while Prescott supported him, Jacqueline applauded his efforts.
“I’m going to swim,” she said. “Are you guys staying in the pool?”
“Not going anywhere, ” Prescott replied.
Jacqueline swam back and forth as she burned through her frustration. On one hand, she was ecstatic. The case had been solved, the killer eliminated. She’d fallen madly in love, gotten engaged, and might even get transferred back to the DC region.
Though she’d been more shaken than she’d let on, she didn’t want to burden Prescott with her anxiety. If it turned into PTSD, especially when she walked back into the barn that evening for the wedding, she’d talk to a therapist.
She wanted to put the nightmare behind her and move forward with a sense of hope and excitement for the future. As if Prescott sensed her uneasiness, he waited for her to finish her laps before he asked her if she was okay.
“Still processing,” she replied.
“Don’t shut me out.”
“I won’t,” she promised.
* * *
Prescott
Prescott was concerned about Jack,but he wanted to give her plenty of space to digest what had happened. Not wanting to pressure her, he kept the conversation light and the activities fun.
In the late afternoon, they left for the wedding.
Addison and her bridesmaids were upstairs in the master suite. Hawk and his groomsmen were getting ready in the newly-designed lower level in-law suite.
He spotted Stryker pulling his hair into a bun.
“Hey, bro, you made it,” Prescott said.
