CHAPTER 4
"And how long were you unconscious?" Dr. Lavonda Chessman shone a light in Houston's eyes and then checked his ears.
"I don't know…not long. Look, can we just slap a Band-Aid on this and be done? I've got things to do." The grumpy PI stared at her as she added to his record.
"No, first we're going to get some x-rays." She continued her work, ignoring him as he rolled his eyes and pulled out his phone. "You need to put that away for right now, Mr. Houston."
"I just…"
"Now." She turned and glared at him. "This is my house; we play by my rules." The two stared angrily at each other as a nurse came in with a wheelchair. "Cindy here will take you to x-ray." She started out the door and then turned back as he began to argue. "If he gives you any problems call me. Now get in the chair, Mr. Houston." Looking between the two women he thought of his promise to CJ and had a seat in the chair and remained quiet as he was rolled down the hallway.
Out in the lobby, Bateaux was talking to Wally Simmons. "So far there hasn't been any sign of him, Alex." The detective was sitting in his SUV parked under a tree just off of Van Loon Lane in Bishop. He had a clear view of the cemetery entrance. "I've got two of my guys over at the airfield."
"Sounds good. I really appreciate your help."
"Not a problem. I just hope when we catch him this time he stays caught. Talk to you later." Wally hung up and watched for the serial killer. They were about an hour away from sunset. As a precaution, he had put Corporal Evan Banks out in the cemetery to keep an eye on the mausoleum.
Back in Ridgecrest, Matt was sitting on the exam table waiting for Dr. Chessman to return. He checked his watch. It had been almost two hours since the last sighting of King and Alsup. He closed his eyes and wished the headache would let up. Once again he wondered why a woman would be interested in a serial killer.
"You doing alright there?" Lavonda Chessman had walked in with his x-rays in hand.
"Yeah, fine. So can I go now?"
"Soon enough." She popped the x-rays on the light box and flipped on the switch. "Right here is where you received the blow. I don't see any fractures but I do want you to take it easy for a few days. We're going to have to take a few stitches on your temple and then you can leave." His reply was a sigh. As she quickly gathered the supplies that she needed, Chessman looked back over her shoulder at him. "Why are you in such a big hurry – got a date?"
"No…" Matt rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm trying to track down a serial killer."
"That King guy?" There was a look of surprise on her face as he nodded. "Is that how you got injured?"
"Yep. He shot at the patrol car I was in and it ran off the road. One of the shots hit the officer driving." Matt decided that nodding wasn't in his best interest – it just made his head throb even more.
"So you were with Deputy Parker?" She began going to work, injecting lidocaine around the area.
"Yeah." He winced as the needle went into the skin. "How's he doing?"
"He's in surgery." She began stitching up the wound. "So you're the guy that caught him the first time – the one they were talking about on TV."
"Not just me – there were three of us who brought him in." Both remained quiet for the next few minutes as she finished with the stitches and then applied a bandage. "Okay, you're all set." She took off her gloves. "I just need you to sign this." She handed him the clipboard. "I would tell you again to get plenty of rest but that would be a waste of breath, wouldn't it?" She gave him a smile.
"We need to get this guy locked up." He slid down off of the table. "He's already killed five people today."
"Just be careful out there and get as much rest as you can, okay?" She led the way out of the room and watched as Alex handed him his gun belt.
He looked up as he fastened the strap around his right leg and then took the vest from the agent. "Thanks, Doc. Sorry about being a grouch."
"Just catch the guy." She gave him another smile and then went back down the hallway to the next patient.
"Heard anything new?" Houston started to put his cap on and quickly regretted it. The two walked out of the ER and to a waiting SUV parked outside.
"Not a peep." Bateaux got behind the wheel as Matt entered the passenger side. "We've got CHP roadblocks up."
"Surely to God there aren't that many roads he could have taken." The PI pulled out his phone and pulled up Goggle Maps. "We were on 14 when he went east into the desert. We know he got back on 14 at the same place. From there he had two choices: north or south. If he went back south, which I doubt given the amount of cops on the road, he could have headed east on Redrock Randsburg Road. If he went north he could have turned off on Abbott Drive, or…any number of dirt roads going through the desert." He tilted his head back and sighed.
"We've done what we can do for right now. I got us a room for the night."
"Alex, we need to …"
"We need to rest up and think this situation over." The agent pulled into the parking lot of the inn and they headed up the steps to room 211. "I didn't think it would make sense to get two rooms since we're probably going to be talking about this deal."
"Yeah, I guess." Houston walked in and sat down on one of the beds, rubbing his neck as his head throbbed. Pulling out his phone he dialed CJ. "Hey…how ya doin' Lil Mama?" Bateaux went to answer a knock at the door.
"I'm okay. What did the doctor say?" CJ was curled up in the recliner that they shared so often.
"That I'm a hard-headed jerk who owes his wife a big apology. I'm sorry, Babe."
"I'm sorry, too…I shouldn't have gotten so upset with you. So what did they really say?"
"I got a few stitches on the right side of my head. It hit the door frame. I'm okay."
"Uncle Roy called a few minutes ago. He thinks he may be close to solving the problem."
"Well that's some welcome news." He sighed.
"You'll catch him, hon."
"Sure of that are ya?"
"Yep. By the way, Vince called earlier. It seems your incident with the helicopter made the national news. And a guy with the FAA wants to talk to you. I think he might be just a little miffed that you left it on Highway 14." She started giggling.
"Great – that's all I need."
"No, I told him to call the FBI office. He called back thirty minutes later and apologized. You're not in any trouble with them."
"Thanks, Babe. Look, I'm gonna get off of here now. Can you give Lady Bug a kiss for me?"
"Yep, already did. Get some sleep, Cowboy. Love you."
"Love you, too. 'Night." He hung up and looked over at Alex who was now standing with Blake Walters, a pilot that worked for the Houstons on occasion. "Hey bud – what are you doing here?" The PI stood up as the pilot handed over his bag.
"CJ asked me to bring this to you after Agent Bateaux here told her where you would be staying. I heard you had a little excitement this afternoon." The pilot gave Matt a big grin. "From what I saw on TV you did a hell of a job. Way to go." The two shook hands.
"Too much excitement – and that wasn't the end of it. Thanks."
"Not a problem. Good luck."
"I think we need all the luck we can get. Thanks again." He tossed the bag on the bed as Bateaux closed the door. "That takes care of me – what about you?"
"I'm about to run to WaldoMart and get a pair of jeans."
"No…a Fibby in jeans? You can't be serious." He gave Alex a big smile.
"At least I'm not a damn Fibby now. Be back in a little while."
"Okay. Think I'm gonna get cleaned up." After collecting a pair of shorts and a t-shirt from the bag, he went in the bathroom and started the shower. Once under the hot water, he thought back to what CJ had said earlier that day: You aren't the only one looking for him. That much was certain and another thought occurred to him. The cops on King's tail were highly motivated after the injuries and deaths that he had caused. CJ had commented that Walter King was a sociopath when he and Alex had been tracking him the first time the previous December. He completely believed it and it brought to mind the nagging question that had been on his mind all day – why would a woman be attracted to a serial killer? Maybe if they knew, they might be able to use that to catch the pair. He walked back out and sat down on the bed, his head still throbbing as he picked up the phone and ordered a pizza.
A few minutes later Alex entered to find him flipping through the TV channels. "I called Manuel Garza while I was out. He's been keeping track of it on TV and the scanner - and wanted me to tell you that he almost needed a clean pair of shorts when your chopper took that hit." The agent started laughing as did Matt.
"Almost, huh?" He chuckled again. "I ordered a pizza – hope you like olives and green peppers."
"Anything but anchovies." The agent made a face and then got serious. "Did you have any hunches or visions while I was out?"
"Mmph…I wish I would. Do you know anyone at the BAU?"
"I do – David Rossi. I put in a call to him right after we got to the hospital."
"Good." The PI got up as there was a knock at the door and paid the delivery girl for the pizza. "Too bad they don't have…"
"Beer? Got you covered." Alex pulled a six pack out of one of the bags.
"Guess I shouldn't have called you a damn Fibby. I'll take it back…for the time being, anyway." Matt pulled the small table over between the beds and the pair started in on their dinner. While on his second slice, the PI stopped suddenly. "Would you want to be driving an Altima through the desert?"
"No, although it did pretty good today…but an SUV would be better."
"We need to find out if there have been any stolen nearby recently."
"I'll check it out." He pulled out his phone, made the call and after a couple of moments gave Matt a thumbs up. "A 2010 black Jeep was stolen on Cow Heaven Canyon Road. There's a BOLO out on it."
"When?" Houston watched as the agent hung up his phone.
"They aren't sure." Alex stood up and walked over to the windows and looked down at the swimming pool. "The owner was killed. CHP found the Altima burnt up not far from where they found the body." He shook his head and turned back to face the PI.
"Do they have any idea which way they went?"
"No."
Houston put his head in his hands. "We've got to catch this guy."
"You're telling me."