Kenzie, LaRoche, and her team stormed into the hallway, where a woman sat at her desk.
"Where is she?" asked Kenzie.
"Over here," said Van Pelt.
They walked to the woman.
"You saw the suspect?" asked Teresa. "Where? When?"
"I was coming out of the elevator after lunch," said the woman.
"Where was the suspect headed?"
"Up the stairs, which was strange. That leads to the roof."
"Not just the roof. It's where Patrick works. Anybody seen him?"
"Not since this morning," said Cho.
Teresa let out a small gasp. Kenzie turned to her.
"What?"
"Nicole was talking to Jane."
Kenzie's shoulders slumped.
"Cover the exits, all of them. Use whoever you have to out here," said LaRoche.
Kenzie walked up the stairs with her gun raised, with her team following behind her.
"Hasten slowly," cautioned LaRoche. "The target will be armed."
They reached Patrick's office. She cautiously reached for the door and tugged it.
"It's locked," said Kenzie. "Patrick? Nicole? You guys in there?"
"Yeah, we're coming out," called out Patrick. "You're gonna have to stand back, and if you're bearing firearms... please lower them. Please?"
Kenzie raised an eyebrow. The lock clattered, and the door slid open. Kenzie's face dropped in horror. Patrick and Nicole walked out of the office with Madeline behind them. Patrick was holding a gun to Nicole's spine. Hightower had a rifle attached to his neck by duct tape.
Kenzie, without any hesitation, raised her gun at Hightower with the safety down.
"Stand back, or they die," Hightower said calmly.
🙂
36 Hours Before...
Kenzie walked into the North California Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, glancing at the different displays. She places her hands in her pockets to keep them warm. She walked up to the team.
"Anything missing from the display?" asked Teresa.
"Yeah, a Mayan figurine," said Cho. "Gold. Valued at 200 grand."
"We get an ID on the victim?" asked Kenzie.
"Manuel Montero," said Rigsby. "He was a professor at the university. Ancient Art. Security cameras show him entering the museum alone at 10:25 pm. Then he turned off the cameras."
Kenzie looked around and found Patrick looking at a dinosaur statue.
"Hey, Kenz," said Patrick. "Look at this." Kenzie walked over. "Meet Caroline. One of the most well-preserved tyrannosaurus rex ever discovered." He turns to her with an excited grin. "Isn't she awesome?"
"There's a dead person over there," said Kenzie.
"Dead men I've seen. But this–"
"Can we get back to work, please?"
"Must I justify my every action?"
"Well, you can observe the rib cage of our smaller friend here."
Kenzie tilted her head in astonishment as she looked up at the T-Rex.
YOU ARE READING
I Bet on Losing Dogs - Patrick Jane
Fanfiction"I bet on losing dogs, I know they're losing, and I'll pay for my place by the ring, Where I'll be looking in their eyes when they're down, ...
