Chapter 15

Fred remembered that he and Daphne had bought pizza at the convenience store the other day and he found it in the back of the freezer.

Fred enjoyed making pizza at home, he would usually make a large one which he and Daphne would share and watch a movie.

Maybe after they had done more research before dinner was ready, they could eat the pizza and watch a movie later. If they could find a good one.

He removed the pizza from its packaging and looked over the cooking instructions but was interrupted by the sound of his phone vibrating loudly on the kitchen table.

He thought maybe it was Daphne, she had found her phone and she was on her way home.

But no, it was Fischer, 'Hello.' Fred answered.

'Oh, Detective, I thought I'd never get an answer. I got a call from Tom.' Fischer said.

'Oh yeah?' Fred asked, 'What did he say?'

'Fred. He said he tracked the email address to someone inside Sandpoint.' Fischer began.

Please be Quinny, Fred thought.

'And he traced the email to a computer located at the home address of Michael Quinny.' Fischer said.

Fred felt his heart pounding and a lump formed in his throat.

'Where's Detective Blake? I've been trying to contact her too.'

'She left her phone at the station, she went back to get it.' Fred explained, as Fischer mentioned Daphne, Fred stared at her notepad and the papers on the table. Casually, he glanced over her notepad before singlehandedly opening the papers.

'I tried her a few times before I called you.' Fischer said, 'There was something else I wanted to tell you as well. About Quinny.'

'What's that?' Fred asked.

'I've been keeping my eye on him, there was an attack that occurred a little while after Quinny made the comment to the mother at the park. But this happened in Sandhurst.' Fischer said.

'An attack?' Fred asked.

'Yeah, a woman was walking home from work and she was attacked from behind by a man. She was lucky that there was a couple out walking their dog and they intervened before things could get worse but she said the man said to her "you're lucky they're here because I would have killed you", and when she was brought in to give her statement, she said the man freaked out when the couple came and ran to a car and fled. But it was dark and she couldn't get the number plate.' Fischer explained, 'However, the couple who witnessed the attack say they saw part of the man's face when he ran under a street light and described him as probably being in his early-mid 40's and he was fast. They said he was of average height for a man, muscular and what they believed to be dark hair.'

'It could be a co-' Fred had to stop himself, something had caught his eye.

The papers that Wheeler had printed for Daphne were not just a sign-in sheet for the officers, but also a schedule. Michael Quinny is scheduled to work the late shift tonight, and he is at the police station right now.

'Shit.' Fred muttered, and he went to grab the keys but remembered that Daphne had taken the car.

'Detective? What's wrong?' Fischer asked.

'Daphne's at the station, alone with Quinny.'

'I'm coming to get you.' Fischer said and she ended the call.

Fred threw on his coat, he was aware that he hadn't turned the oven on so he didn't need to bother with it. Not that he would have anyway.

He made a decision to call Wheeler. He explained to him what was going on and asked him to get to the police station because he had no car. Wheeler had jumped into his car when he ended the call.

As Fred waited for Fischer, he continued to remind himself that Daphne had her gun on her and she could hold her own.

'What are you talking about?' Daphne asked, 'Why is the door locked?'

Quinny rolled his eyes, 'I told you. You're going to die.' He said it as if it were obvious. He stepped out from behind the desk and Daphne saw that he was holding a gun in his hand. She reached for hers in the holster against her thigh.

Pulling it out, she pointed it at Quinny, 'Don't come any closer.'

But Quinny laughed, 'Funny how when you try not to be scared, you just end up being more scared.'

Daphne was scared, she was scared for her life. Quinny was a killer and she knew it, but she didn't know what he would do to her if she let her guard down.

She kept her gun pointed at him.

'You know what I did, don't you.' Quinny began, 'You know that I killed those boys. Bet you're wondering why?'

Daphne remained focussed, keeping the gun pointed at Quinny, but he stepped closer to her. And it was then that she realised, he wasn't scared of her, he wasn't scared of dying either, but she needed him alive. She needed him to confess to the crimes, and she needed him to be punished for them.

'It goes back a little over 30 years ago when I was Luca Pablo.'

'I knew it.' Daphne said through gritted teeth.

'Duh, that's why I'm gonna kill you.' Quinny smiled. He reminded Daphne of the Joker, but this was real. This wasn't a cartoon or something from the pages of a comic book. And she wasn't a superhero in a cape. No, she was a detective who was going to do her job.

'Tell me then.' She said.

Quinny smirked, 'Milo – my dear brother – and I went to the park on a lovely June afternoon. And I killed him.' He shrugged. He was 9-years-old when he killed his twin brother, and for what reason?

'What did do to you to make you want to kill him?' Daphne asked.

Quinny shrugged, 'I dunno but once I had done I, I loved it. I hid his body. Dragged it a little bit away from where he "went missing",' he made a quotation gesture with his fingers, 'and I told the police someone took him. I can't believe it took the whole town over a week to find him.' He rolled his eyes sarcastically.

'I wanted to kill again, I knew I did and I wanted to scare the townspeople into believing there was a child napper/killer among them. Or a visitor who may or may not return. So fast forward a few years, my family and I are living in Sacramento, I still hadn't been found out. My sister marries and I decide to leave town.'

'Why did you come back here?' Daphne asked, 'You killed your brother here.'

Quinny laughed, 'Well obviously, why wouldn't I come back? I studied and trained as a police officer and started working here, and this way I could get all these great tips on how to murder and not get caught.'

'What's your deal with twins?' Daphne asked.

'What is this, Question Time?' He asked sarcastically, but then he sighed, 'I guess you could sat that my fascination with killing twins was…mocking my family.'

And Daphne realised what he was talking about, 'You killed twins, leaving one surviving sibling…you knew if you got caught your mother would only have Willa left. You knew you were gonna get caught eventually.'

Quinny shrugged, 'Well, they don't call you and your boyfriend two of the greatest for nothing.'

'Do you know your mother is dead?' Daphne asked, she had hoped this would throw Quinny off, and that would surrender upon learning the death of his mother, but he didn't seem to be affected as Daphne had hoped.

'My dear sister told me.' Quinny replied.

'Your sister?' Daphne asked thinking back to the conversation she and Fred had with Willa Pablo, she told them she hadn't spoken to her brother, 'That doesn't make any sense.'

'It does. And now you're going to die.'

Daphne's attention snapped back to Quinny, and just before he could raise his gun to her, she lowered hers, aiming it at the ground near his feet, and she pulled the trigger. She had a very good aim and knew she would not shoot Quinny, she only wanted to scare him and throw him off guard.

The bullet was fired into the ground a few inches away from him and Quinny squealed like little a girl who had just seen a big spider.

'Alright, that's how you wanna play, Detective.' He spat pulling the trigger.

She didn't have enough time to react and she suddenly felt the bullet tearing through the skin on her left thigh, and screamed.

She was aware that the bullet had exited her leg, she could feel it on the back of her thigh. The pain searing through her leg was too much and dropped her gun.

Before she could reach down for it, she heard footsteps coming to her and Quinny kicked the gun away from her.

Shit, she thought.

Quinny smirked, and Daphne knew she had to get away from him.

Trying her hardest, she kicked Quinny's leg with her good one. He cried out and double over when her boot came in contact with his knee, she took his opportunity to knee him in the face and he fell to the floor holding his nose.

She grabbed her gun and hurried away from Quinny, though she was slowed down by her wounded leg, she hoped that she could lock herself in one of the rooms. She knew Fred would come for her, or someone nearby would have reported the gunshots. But to who? She was at the police station.

Suddenly she felt someone grab her arm. She turned around, expecting it to be Quinny, but it was Tom.

He dragged her into the technician's lab and locked the door. Bringing a finger to his lips and he shushed her.

He led her over to the desk and made her sit in the chair to rest her leg.

'Are you ok?' Tom whispered and Daphne nodded.

Her body felt warm and she knew she was sweating, her hands were shaking and her heart was racing too.

'Just be quiet.' Tom whispered.

'H-how long have you been here?'

'I never left. I was about to leave a few minutes ago but I heard the gunshot and knew it was safe to stay hidden.'

'Detective!' Quinny screamed from outside the lab.

Daphne and Tom could hear him stomping around, clearly, Daphne hadn't kicked him hard enough.

'Come out come out wherever you are!'

The footsteps stopped outside the door, 'Tommy are ya in there?'

Gunshots hammered against the lab's door, splintering the wood. When the shots stopped the door was kicked open.

'There you are.' He smiled.

Daphne aimed her gun at Quinny and pulled the trigger, but her hand was shaking so much, she missed and a bullet struck the surface.

'Now I think you can do better than that, Detective.' Quinny smirked, 'Let me show you how.'

He aimed his gun at Tom and pulled the trigger.

Tom didn't scream but he collapsed to the ground holding his side, then Quinny snatched Daphne's gun and removed the bullets. Dropping it on the floor in front of her feet.

Daphne stood from the chair. She had no idea what she planned to do, she had no gun, nothing to defend herself with.

'Anything to say before I kill you?' Quinny asked raising the gun and aiming it at her face.

Daphne stared at him, holding back the tears that threatened to show Quinny how scared she was. She clenched her teeth. The pain in her thigh was unbearable and she just wanted to cry and scream.

She shook her head, Quinny smiled.

'Drop the gun!' Wheeler shouted.

Quinny turned around and saw Fred, Wheeler and Fischer standing close behind him, guns pointed at him.

'Drop the gun!' Wheeler shouted again, 'Drop the fucking gun!'

Quinny pointed his gun at Wheeler, then at Fischer and then Fred.

'You're outnumbered. Drop the gun.' Fischer said.

Fred took a step closer to Quinny, his gun still pointed at him. Quinny quickly moved the gun back to Fred.

Fred glanced over Quinny's shoulder, he could see that Daphne was hurt and blood was seeping through her jeans. He saw Tom lying on the ground, blood spreading around him. And his eye's shot back to Quinny, who just stared at him.

He was sweating and he knew he was outnumbered, 'I ain't going down without a fi'-

Quinny fell to the ground, unconscious. Daphne stood behind him, holding the barrel of her gun. Wheeler and Fischer saw that she had knocked Quinny out with the handle of her gun.

She dropped her gun and collapsed to the floor, not able to stand any longer.