“You and I have a call with Tristan in thirty minutes,” Nikolas told me. “He’s speaking with the governor now.”
I picked up the tablet I’d left on the couch. “Better him than me.”
“Is there anything we can do to help?” Sara asked Nikolas.
“We’ll work out a plan of action after we talk to Tristan,” he said. His expression told me he still had no idea what that would be.
The call with Tristan went pretty much as I’d expected.
“The latest kidnappings have everyone on edge from the mayor of Los Angeles to the governor,” Tristan said with the weariness of a man with far too much responsibility on his shoulders. “They’re thinking of warning the public that we have a possible serial killer targeting young women in California.”
“They must know that would only cause a panic,” I said.
Tristan sighed. “I pointed that out, along with the fact that it would make our job a lot more difficult. It took some convincing, but I think I managed to put them off that idea for now.”
Nikolas leaned back in his chair with his arms across his chest. “Do they know that the Lilin will soon have all the girls he needs, if he doesn’t already?”
“Yes, but that did little to appease them, especially when I told them none of the missing girls would be recovered if we don’t find the Lilin before it’s too late. A rash of unsolved missing persons cases doesn’t look good on a mayor’s record when re-election time comes around.”
I shook my head. I’d never understand how humans could put politics above lives. There was some politics around the Council, but in the end, our governing body always worked together to serve one purpose – protect our people and humanity.
Tristan’s chair creaked, and I knew he’d gotten up to walk around his office, something he did when he was agitated.
“I assured the governor that we have our best people on this, and we are sending every available warrior to California. Although, at this point, I’m not sure how much can be done.”
Nikolas and I shared a look because Tristan was right. The Lilin must be getting close to breeding, which meant we were running out of time and so were the girls he’d taken. Once he started breeding, he wouldn’t emerge from his lair until after his offspring were born. Our window to find him was growing smaller with each day that passed.
Someone rapped sharply on the office door before it flew open and Beth rushed in, her face flushed. I was on my feet in an instant.
“He didn’t get them all,” she cried, waving a piece of paper.
“Get what?” I asked.
Beth could barely contain her excitement. “The girls. Last night, he took five girls, but he went after six. One got away.”
Nikolas stood. “How do you know that?”
She held up the paper. “A student at UCLA was attacked walking to her sorority house last night. She tasered the guy and managed to get away.”
Beth’s smile grew. “She told campus police her attacker had a flame tattoo on his wrist.”
I looked at Nikolas. “If the Lilin wants her, he’ll come back for her like he did for Mei Lin.”
“Yes.”
Tristan cleared his throat. “I’ll let you get to it then.”
Beth’s startled eyes darted to the phone on the desk and then back to me. “I’m so sorry. I barged in here without thinking.”
“You had a good reason,” Tristan said. I could hear the smile in his voice.
“Beth, I don’t believe you’ve met Tristan.”
Her eyes widened, and she shook her head mutely. Then, as if realizing he couldn’t see her, she blurted, “No.”
She was adorably flustered. I didn’t think it was in my best interest to laugh, so I hid my smile.
“It’s nice to meet you, Beth,” Tristan said warmly. “Hopefully, next time we’ll meet in person.”
“I’d like that,” she managed to say.
Tristan said goodbye, and Beth relaxed when it was just the three of us. She didn’t say much as Nikolas and I discussed the best way to handle the UCLA attack.
“We’ll need to put someone on her in case he goes after her again,” I said.
Nikolas nodded. “I’ll set up twenty-four hour protection. And one of us should talk to her.”
“Beth and I will go see her.”
Beth’s head swiveled in my direction. “We will?”
“It’s your lead. I figured you’d want to be involved.”
Her smile lit up the room. “I do.”
I waved a hand at the door. “Alright. Let’s go.”
Beth
“I was at the library with my study group until nine, and I went straight home from there. I walk that route all the time, and nothing’s ever happened before. I still can’t believe it.”
I studied the slender brunette girl sitting next to me in the living room of her sorority house. Paige Collins was remarkably composed for someone who had been attacked less than a day ago. Except for the bruise on her cheek, you’d never know she’d just been through a horrible ordeal.
“Tell us about the attack,” Chris urged lightly, ignoring the group of girls whispering and ogling him from the kitchen. It had been like that since we’d arrived ten minutes ago, passing ourselves off as the police.
I brushed off my flash of annoyance at the girls and returned my attention to Paige.
“I was only a few hundred yards from the house when he grabbed me from behind. He was so quiet for a big guy, and I didn’t even hear him coming. He wrapped an arm around my throat before I could scream.”
Paige shuddered and went on.
“My father made me promise to always carry my Taser when I walk alone. Thank God I had it in my hand. That guy was so strong I had to shock him three times before he let go of me. I think he must have been on drugs or steroids.
“As soon as I got away, I screamed and ran to the house. The guys in the house across the street came out to see what was going on, and the man ran away. They called the campus police for me, but the man was long gone.”
“Did you see his face?” I asked her.
“No. All I saw was his arm. As soon as I broke free, I ran.”
Chris leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. “You told the campus police you saw a tattoo on the man’s wrist. Can you describe it for us?”
“It looked like flames. I think there were words too, but everything happened so fast I didn’t read them. I’m sorry.”
I smiled to reassure her. “You got away, and that’s all that matters.”
“Have you noticed anyone hanging around campus lately who seemed out of place?” Chris asked.
Paige blanched. “You think he’s been following me around campus?”
“For all we know, this was a random attack, but we have to cover all our bases. It’s just procedure.”
“Oh.” She visibly relaxed and thought for a moment. “I did see a man in the dining hall yesterday who looked wrong, if that makes sense.”
Chris met my gaze before he asked, “Wrong, how?”
“He was sitting at a table alone, not eating or reading. Just sitting there. I was eating lunch with my friend Jenny, and she noticed him, too. It was just kind of odd, you know?”
Chris nodded. “Can you describe him?”
“He was good-looking with short, dark hair, and I could tell he was tall, even though he was sitting. He looked to be around twenty. If it wasn’t for the strange way he just sat there, I’d say he was like every other student.”
Paige looked from Chris to me. “Does that help?”
I smiled. “Yes.”
“Good.” She let out a breath. “I wish I could tell you more. It all happened so fast.”
“You’re doing great.”
Chris gave her an encouraging smile, and I heard a chorus of sighs from his new fan club. Good grief. He should come with a warning label.
Looking directly at the smile may cause swooning and temporary loss of intelligence.
“Thanks,” Paige replied, looking at ease for the first time since we’d started questioning her. “You’re a lot easier to talk to than the other officers who were here earlier.”