Hunter didn’t shy away from her stare.

‘But you ran away from romance like the devil from a cross,’ she continued in a calm voice. ‘You couldn’t see how special she was, could you? Were you too good for her? Is that what you think? The great Robert Hunter was too good for little, fragile Isabella, is that it?’ she said, mockingly putting on a sad child’s face.

‘That was my mistake. I should’ve spent more time with Isabella.’

Brenda looked deeply into Hunter’s eyes and held them for a while. ‘I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking that if you had spent more time with her you would’ve figured her out.’ She laughed. ‘I’ve got news for you, Robert. You could’ve spent months with her and you still wouldn’t have a clue. Isabella was perfect. I made her perfect. I spent over a year creating her and living her life before finally approaching you. I acquired new mannerisms and habits. I started from scratch. New life, new apartment, new job, new everything. Psychological immersion. You know what that is, don’t you, Robert? I actually became two different people. Nothing linked Isabella to me.’

Hunter could see she was right. The way she walked, her gestures, her posture. Everything was different.

‘No matter how good you are Robert. You’re no clairvoyant. You can’t see what’s not there. No one can. Isabella gave nothing away. No mistakes, no slip-ups. As I’ve said, I made her perfect.’ She allowed Hunter to dwell on it for a few seconds before continuing. ‘Anyway, I was running out of time. I had to adapt my plan. Since you didn’t fall for Isabella, I had to find someone to take her place. Someone you’d risk your life for. Someone who you cared about, but there’s no one, is there, Robert? The closest person to you was your new partner, so he became the obvious choice. I had to act quickly.’

Hunter thought of Garcia lying in a coma. His only fault had been being assigned Hunter as a partner.

‘I have to admit I had my doubts. I didn’t think you’d risk your life to save his. I didn’t think you were capable of such an act. I thought you’d walk away and leave him to die alone. I was sure you’d protect your own skin and that’s all.’ She paused and gave Hunter an irreverent shrug. ‘Robert the martyr, huh? What a fucking joke.’

Brenda was so different from Isabella it was frightening. Hunter studied her for a few seconds, analyzing her movements. She was getting agitated.

‘But somehow you managed to beat the clock twice and still save your partner. You did well, but did you think you’d beat me?’ she asked with a farcical smile as she bent down and stared into Hunter’s tired eyes. ‘You’ll never beat me, Robert. I’m better than you. I’m more intelligent than you. I’m quicker than you and I don’t make mistakes. You are no match for me. My plan was perfect. I’m perfect.’

Hunter lost sight of her as she walked around his chair. The unmistakable sound of a blade being sharpened came from behind him and his heartbeat peaked. He knew he’d run out of time. She was getting ready for the last kill.

Sixty-Nine

‘And now it’s time you finally paid for what you’ve done. For your incompetence, for all the pain you’ve given me, Robert. I figure I probably have a couple of days alone with you. After what’s happened today, I’m sure your captain told you to take a day or two off. No one’s expecting to hear from you so soon. Your partner is out of action. No one will miss you, Robert. By the time they come looking for you…’ She didn’t have to finish her sentence.

‘Let me give you an idea of what’s gonna happen to you. First, I’ll put you to sleep so I can operate on your throat. Nothing fancy. Actually, it will be pretty rough. Just enough for me to sever your vocal cords. I can’t have you screaming in here for two days.’

Vroooom. Hunter heard the piercing sound of an electric drill come from behind him. He took a deep breath, but he could feel the fear taking over.

‘Then,’ she continued. ‘When you are awake again, I’m gonna drill holes through your kneecaps, your elbow and your ankle joints. That will shatter the bones into hundreds of little sharp pieces. Any tiny movement, even breathing will cause you incredible pain. I’ll savor the moment for a few hours before moving on.’

Hunter closed his eyes and tried to control the shudder spasms that had started running through his body.

‘After that, I’ll start experimenting with your eyes, your teeth, your genitals and your exposed flesh.’ She grinned. ‘But don’t worry, I’ll keep you alive and suffering until the last second.’

Hunter twisted his neck, but he couldn’t see her. Doubts were flooding his mind. Fear had settled in and he started to regret his decision. Maybe his plan wouldn’t work out.

‘But there’s something I need to do first,’ Brenda whispered.

Unexpectedly he felt his hair being grabbed from behind with tremendous force. His head violently jolted forward. He tried fighting back but he simply didn’t have the strength, the energy. The steel blade against the back of his neck first felt cold as ice, then it burned like volcanic fire. Not a deep cut, he sensed. Just enough to scar the flesh.

The double-crucifix, Hunter thought. I’m being marked for death.

‘Wait…’ he called. His voice was still fragile, his throat still too dry, burning with a feverish heat. He had to do something. Buy some time. ‘Don’t you wanna know where you made your mistake? Don’t you wanna know how you’re gonna lose?’

He felt the blade moving away from his neck. Her unsettling laughter echoing throughout Hunter’s small living room. ‘You don’t even know how to bluff, Robert. I never made a mistake. I never left anything behind. My plan has always been flawless,’ she said with patronizing arrogance. ‘And I think you’re starting to go delusional. Let me describe the situation for you. I’ve got you tied up, alone and weak as a wounded animal. I’m the one holding all the knives and you think I’m gonna lose?’

‘See, you’re almost right,’ he said, moving his head back up. He could feel the sting of the flesh wound she’d made on his neck. ‘But earlier tonight, when I found out about your revenge, about the jurors, about who you really were, I also found out that today would’ve been your brother’s birthday.’

Brenda had moved from behind his chair and was facing Hunter once again. A glistening blade in her right hand, an intrigued look on her face.

‘So I figured out you wanted it that way,’ Hunter continued. ‘The final revenge on your brother’s birthday. The perfect finale.’

‘Very good, Robert,’ she said, clapping her hands. ‘Too bad you decided to start doing all your detective work on the day of your death.’

‘So…’ Hunter quickly carried on, ‘before I left the RHD, I placed a call to my captain explaining what I’d found out and he placed a watch on me.’

Brenda frowned. A speck of doubt in her eyes.

‘When I got home, I knew something wasn’t right, I knew someone had been here. That someone had to be you. You knew I’d have a drink or two tonight, so you drugged every bottle of whisky I have because you didn’t know which one I’d go for. But you should’ve placed them back in the correct order.’

Brenda’s eyes moved from Hunter to his small bar and then back to him.

‘They’ve been in the same order for years. I never move them.’

‘If you knew the bottles were drugged, why drink it?’ she asked insolently.

‘Because I knew you wouldn’t poison me to death. It’s not your style. It wouldn’t be revenge if I died without knowing why.’

Hunter could sense Brenda was getting agitated. His heart was in overdrive but he kept his voice calm.

‘I knew you were in my apartment, I could feel your presence. I knew you’d be watching me so I pretended to check my phone by pressing a few keys when in reality I was dialing my captain. If you look inside my pocket, you’ll find that my cell phone is still on. If you look out the window, you’ll find that the building is surrounded. You can’t get out of here. It’s over.’