Previous Chapters:

A truck driver had an unfortunate encounter with the mysterious Lilith. She killed three men the year before while Greg was dealing with the hag. Now she is back with a vengeance and Wolf Bend Chief Greg Harsen is called to the scene by FBI Agent David Harkins, a man who really dislikes him. What Greg finds awakens him to the realization that more bad things are coming for him and his little town. Further, Harkins managed to wrangle him into Task Force Ash, which was created to capture the killer.

A county wide call-out for a jail riot interrupted the hunt for Lilith. At the riot, Greg finds out that Jenny's violent ex-husband, Lenny Benslow, has escaped from the jail. They race to his cabin, but Greg's beloved wife had been taken. Through good investigation techniques, they may have found the bad guys' hideout. A shootout ensues, with Jesse getting shot while they rescue Jenny. When Greg went after Lenny to finish him, Sheriff Watson convinced him to take the felon back into custody. Batty Betty Benslow was taken into custody for assisting with Lenny's escape.

Greg thought he was in for a rest, but another Lilith victim, 'Satin Shorts' had been found revealing new clues. Then Greg and Jesse found Lilith's lair, getting closer to the killer. Then Greg had a meeting in the alley with Lilith where he barely escaped with his life. At the same time, the taskforce has been getting nowhere. Finally, Lilith revealed herself as Officer Katie Kelsey when she killed FBI Agent Kenneth Lee. An unaware Greg walked into her trap.

New Chapter:

Jesse and Jenny stopped at the Stonefish Bar first, since it was just down the street from the station. They recovered Greg’s badge, which had been found on the floor near the bar, as well as the flannel shirt which had been laid over a stool. Jesse recognized it as Katie’s  immediately. He liked the way she looked in it.  

A quick study of the bar revealed no further clues. Just a bunch of used shot glasses all over the counter. Whatever had occurred here, it involved a lot of heavy drinking. Oddly, there were no empty bottles or cans visible. 

Jesse found himself doubting what he had told Jenny. With this amount of drinking, anything could have happened. Perhaps they would find answers to their questions at Kelsey’s place. 

Five minutes later, they pulled into Officer Kelsey’s apartment complex. She drove a small Chevrolet Metro which wasn’t there. When they made their way to her front door, Jesse pulled out his 9MM Beretta and shoved Jenny behind him. 

“Central Dispatch, Bravo Two. Send any available backup to 2431 Woodgreen Drive, Apartment number 33 at the Woodgreen complex.”

“Good copy, Bravo Two.” He turned down his belt radio, but could still hear dispatch relaying his request and Coleville officers responding that they were fifteen minutes away. His attention wasn’t there. His primary focus was on apartment 33. 

Jesse pointed with his left hand at blood on the doorknob. Without hesitation, Jesse kicked in the front door, the cheaply constructed door frame splintered and gave way with his powerful strike.  

The man quickly cleared the living room, then the kitchen. He astutely observed Kelsey’s purple apple phone sitting on the counter. Next came the bathroom, which was also empty, although there was some blood around the sink. That left just the bedroom. Jesse looked at Jenny and frowned, not liking that the door was closed. 

A bloody handprint on the door, as well as dried blood caking the doorknob, foreshadowed what horrors they might find inside the room. Both siblings were hoping and praying they didn’t find a dead Greg. 

Opting for a more subtle entry, Jesse reached out and slowly turned the knob. When he pushed open the door, he heard Jenny gasp behind him. The smell alone was horrendous, but that was minor compared to the bloodbath they were observing. 

Red splatter covered the walls, dresser, mirror, closet doors, and even the ceiling. Lying in the center of the bed was the bloody corpse of FBI Agent Kenneth Lee. He was lying face up, naked, with his dead eyes staring at the ceiling. His chest was torn wide open. 

Jenny couldn’t take the macabre scene and bolted out of the room, heading for the bathroom, where Jesse could hear her vomit in the toilet. The cop steadied himself, and cautiously proceeded into the murder scene. He thought he could barely discern sirens in the distance.  

Once he reached the bed, he saw a small pile of ash sitting on the blood covered pillow beside the man’s head. Definitely the work of Lilith, not that there had been any doubt after he opened the door. 

Then he froze, several emotions tearing into him at the same moment. Anger, fear, and betrayal. Written in blood on the sheet beside Lee’s cold dead hand was a message. The dying man had managed to identify his killer in his last moments. There was a scribbled drawing of Lilith’s tattoo with one word. Katie.

The sound of sirens pulling up ripped Jesse from the emotional hurricane that was raging inside him. He went outside, followed by Jenny, and got on his handheld radio. “Central Dispatch, Bravo Two. Back-up on scene. We have a homicide victim at my location. Alert the State Troopers that we’ll be needing their mobile crime lab at this address.”

“Good copy, Bravo Two.”

Two young Colleville officers came running up. Jesse turned to them. “We have one deceased murder victim inside. He’s one of us. Tape it off. Nobody get’s in until the State Troopers’ crime lab arrives.” 

Both men nodded and went to work, setting up yellow crime scene tape. Jenny grabbed her brother’s arm. “What’d you find in that room, Jesse? I can see the pain written all over your face.”

“The dead man is FBI Agent Kenny Lee, Officer Kelsey’s boyfriend.” Jesse took a deep breath. “It’s Katie. She’s the killer. She was right under our noses the entire time. She fooled us all.”

“And she has my man.” Jenny grimaced, fear gripping the pit of her stomach. 

Jesse’s phone rang and he stepped aside, answering it. Jenny heard several ‘okays’, then her brother hung up.  

She didn’t wait for him to speak. “What?” 

“That was Harkins. They got nothing on Katie’s phone, but Greg’s phone is firing on a little used back-up tower just to the west of here.”

“Okay, what does that tell us, Jess?” She looked hopeful.

“There’s only one thing out there, sis. The Grayson’s Lumber complex. Harkins said he’s already there. He must have waited to call me. We gotta get out there.” Jesse was already heading for his blazer. “Let’s go get our boy back.”