Deceptive Truth: Cowboy Justice Association (Serials and Stalkers Book 4) by Olivia Jaymes (psychology books to read .TXT) 📗

Tears spilled from her eyes, her lashes spiky and wet. "He has her sweater. It doesn't belong to him. What else does he have? Did he stalk her? Does he have some sort of shrine to her in his house that we didn't see? My God, does he–"

Jenna broke off as she began to sob but Knox had a decent idea what she was about to say.

Does he have her body buried somewhere?

Hedgcock was a strong suspect. From what Knox could see, the sweater could be a "trophy" that helped Hedgcock relive Lori's death over and over.

Or it could be part of an elaborate fantasy on his part but it wasn't violent or deadly. It might be completely creepy but also innocent.

Knox was determined to find out which. In the meantime, he needed to be there for Jenna. All of this was simply too much. She'd been strong for so long. He picked her up and lifted her onto his lap, running his hand down her back in a soothing motion while she cried, her body wracked with sobs.

"Just let it all out, baby. Just cry all you want. You'll feel better afterward."

He wasn't the greatest at comforting a person. It wasn't his strong suit. But there was something that he was good at...something that might make her feel better.

Find the son of a bitch responsible. He could do that.

And he would. For Jenna.

20

After arriving back at the safe house and meeting up with his teammate Eli, Knox excused himself and went out into the backyard to call Logan. The whole meeting with Hedgcock had been creepy as shit and Knox had some serious concerns.

"First and foremost, we need to somehow get a search warrant for his home and property," Knox said to Logan. "I have visions of Lori Waters being held against her will in a shed in the backyard, for fuck's sake. If I'm thinking it, then I bet Jenna is too. It's a grisly thought. Just as bad would be that he hid her body on the property, buried her under a flowerbed or something like that. This guy isn't dealing with any sort of reality at all."

"I'll talk to Jason," Logan assured him. "He can talk to his brother West and see if he knows the sheriff or chief of police in that town. If not, we can always do some covert operations of our own. We can at least make sure that there are no other heat signatures on the property."

If they couldn't get a warrant, it would have to do. It would at least confirm that Hedgcock wasn't holding Lori Waters at his home. But that's all it did.

"We'll dig into his background and see if he has any other properties," Logan said. "We'll also try and look into his family a little more. See if they've had any problems with his rejection of reality. We'll check the towns he's lived in, including where he went to school. See if they had an issue with disappearing girls or if he had any run-ins with the local police."

"I doubt this is his first fantasy about a female."

"It probably isn't but this could be the first time he's taken it to these extremes. Lori's disappearance could have sent him spiraling."

"I've got a bad feeling about him."

"Don't worry, we'll find out everything about him, including what laundry detergent he uses." There was a long pause before Logan continued. "We had an interesting phone call yesterday. I didn't mention it until now because so much was going on. A man saying he was your father called the office. He asked to leave a message."

Fuck. Knox had never thought his dad would call his workplace.

"What was the message?"

"He asked if you could call him back. He left a phone number, but I have a feeling that you already have it. Am I right?"

"You are," Knox confirmed. "He's left me several texts and voicemails. I've honestly been avoiding them. I'm sorry that he bothered you at the office."

"It's not a problem. He talked to Carrie and she took the message. I just wondered if everything was okay."

Was it okay? The answer was complicated.

"I don't have any desire to talk to him. He's told my siblings that he's changed."

"And you doubt that."

It wasn't phrased as a question.

"I can't even imagine him changing. Why would he?"

"He was in prison. That might change a man."

"If he wanted to change."

"That's true. I find that few people truly have it in them to make great changes. Small ones? Maybe. Big ones that require work and sacrifice? Rare as hen's teeth."

"I am sorry that he called the office," Knox apologized again. "He shouldn't have done that."

"Like I said, it's not an issue. I just wanted to make sure that you knew."

Knox couldn't seem to stop himself from asking the next question. It was stupid, but he respected Logan's opinion. The man had more family shit to deal with than anyone else Knox knew.

"Do you think I should talk to him?"

Logan chuckled, and Knox could almost see his boss shake his head. "I don't have an opinion here. It's not my dad and it wasn't my childhood."

"You've had family issues too."

"True. What I think you need to do is ask yourself if talking to your father is something that you want to do. Is it? Because you don't have to no matter what your brothers and sisters say. They can't make that decision for you. A lot of people will tell you that he's getting old and he might not be alive for much