Gonzo met them, his usually calm demeanor rattled. “I got here as soon as I could after Cruz called to tell me you wanted her picked up. The door was open. I saw him lying in the foyer and immediately called it in. We’re getting some shit from Alexandria, so you’ll have to talk your way in.”

Calling on every ounce of patience she could muster, Sam explained to the Alexandria Police that the Jordan murders were possibly tied to Senator O’Connor’s killing. After some territorial squabbling and just as she was about to get ugly with them, they agreed to let her view the crime scene. They made Nick wait outside.

Noel had been taken quickly in the foyer. Sam deduced that he’d opened the door and was shot before he had time to even say hello to the caller.

“He’s the number two guy at Justice,” she said with a smug smile for the cocky Alexandria detective who’d tried the hardest to keep her out. “You might want to let the attorney general know that his deputy’s been murdered.”

Flustered, the young detective said, “Yes, of course.”

Pleased to have defused some of his arrogance, she went upstairs to see what had been done to Natalie. She’d been bound in almost the exact same fashion as Tara. And like Tara, the blood between her open legs told the story of sadistic sexual torture. “Is that a hairbrush?” Sam asked, staring at the object that had been left in Natalie’s vagina.

“I think so,” the medical examiner said.

Sam grimaced. Judging from the ligature marks on Natalie’s neck, she too had been strangled after suffering through a prolonged attack.

Patricia was exacting revenge, one woman at a time.

The Alexandria Medical Examiner estimated time of death at about three hours prior. Sam’s gut clenched at the realization that Noel must’ve just gotten home from the polygraph when they were attacked. If she’d only pieced this together a little sooner, she might’ve been able to save them.

Since it wasn’t her crime scene, she stepped outside after asking the detectives for a courtesy copy of their report.

Nick was once again leaning against the car, waiting for her.

“Same thing as Tara.”

“Christ,” he whispered. “I didn’t like Natalie, but the thought of what she must’ve gone through…”

Sam ran her fingers through her long hair, fighting off exhaustion that clung to her like a heavy blanket. “I know.”

“I’ve been thinking…”

She glanced up at him to find his face tight with tension and distress. “About?”

“Graham and Laine.”

The statement hung in the air between them, the implications almost too big to process.

Sam tossed the keys to him. “You drive while I work.”

As they flew across Northern Virginia, Nick’s big frame vibrated with tension. “You don’t really think…”