Sight Unseen(114)

“Pralgo?”

“The physician was in charge of administrating the fatal dose and declaring the criminal dead. He’d be the one to switch the doses. The tetrodotoxin would do the rest.”

“This is all supposition.”

“Until we find Pralgo. That may be difficult. My guess is that Maria Pralgo was kidnapped by Chatsworth and held captive to force Pralgo to do what Colby wanted. After the fake execution, Pralgo would have cleaned up any evidence of what he’d done and gone to a meeting place where he’d been promised that his wife would be released.” She shook her head. “Pralgo must have been desperate to believe that anything he could do could keep his wife from being killed.”

“You think they’re both dead?”

She nodded. “Chatsworth killed Dean, then had time to fly up to San Quentin and take care of Pralgo and his wife. I doubt if we’ll ever find them. Colby would have told Chatsworth that no one could know that he wasn’t dead.” She smiled bitterly. “And Chatsworth was always very efficient obeying Colby.”

“Colby’s body?”

“Probably cremated. Why don’t you check with Salazar?”

“I will.” He moved a few feet away and dialed his phone.

Kendra didn’t bother listening to him. She was only aware of the whistle of the wind through the canyons and the yawning cavity of the gully only yards away.

Are you out there, Colby?

“Immediate cremation.” Lynch was back. “And the remains tossed in the Pacific Ocean off the Oregon coast early this morning.”

“Chatsworth probably substituted bodies. And the funeral director will also have an unfortunate accident.”

“But Chatsworth is dead now.”

“That only means Colby will have to take care of his own dirty work.” She shuddered. “And he’s much better at it than Chatsworth.”

“You can’t be sure of any of this. No proof. Griffin would say that it’s your imagination brought on by stress.”

“And what do you say?”

“I say that you’re the smartest woman I know, but I hope to hell you’re wrong.”

“So do I.” She slowly got to her feet. “But I don’t believe that I’m that lucky.” She moved closer to the gully. There were rocks along the edge. She half expected to see one stained with blood, Colby’s blood. Crazy. She bent over and picked up a good-sized black rock and looked down at it. No blood, of course.

Not yet. That was in the next act, the next story.

She closed her eyes and listened. Was that the wind … or something else?

“Kendra.” Lynch’s hand was on her shoulder. “Why are we here? Why were you determined to come to this godforsaken place?”

“Not because I wanted to be here.” Her eyes opened. “But Chatsworth said that Colby was always talking about me … and the gully. Always the gully. And I remembered when I was Skyping with Colby he mentioned the gully and said it was important.”

“And you thought that Colby might be here?”

“I didn’t know. It might have been some kind of twisted message to me. It’s not really reasonable. Colby wouldn’t have had time to be running all over the state. And tetrodotoxin has a lingering effect in most cases. He probably wouldn’t have the strength to even get out of bed for a little while. If I’d reasoned clearly, I wouldn’t have panicked and come here.”

“But you did panic.”

“Because he’s not like anyone else.” She moved still closer to the rim of the gully. “He’s Satan Incarnate. And he might force himself to get out of a sick bed and come down here to torment me.”

That sound …

It was the wind. It had to be the wind.

But that wind breathed of Colby and carried the scent of death and those kills that had been here in this foul gully.

“He’s not here,” Lynch said. “You’ve gone through hell for the last few days, and I don’t want to see you hurting like this. Let’s go home, Kendra.”

She nodded. “In a minute.”

“Now.” His hands fell on her shoulders, and he turned her to face him. “If Colby wanted you to come here, we’re not going to satisfy the bastard by staying and brooding.” He cupped her face in his two hands and looked her in the eyes. “We’re going to ignore him until we’re ready to go after him, then we’re going to skin him alive. Okay?”

“How … violent.” Yet his harshness was sending a surge of warmth and comfort through her. She was not alone. If Colby was out there, she would not have to face him by herself. She dropped the rock on the ground. “But then it’s natural that you would be ready to confront anyone who—”