The Night Stalker

Eighteen

Whitney Myers drove through the tall iron gates of the sumptuous mansion in Beverly Hills just forty-five minutes after she had received the call. She parked her yellow Corvette C6 at the far end of the wide cobblestone courtyard, took off her dark glasses, and placed them on her head like an arc to hold her shiny, long black hair back. She grabbed her briefcase from the passenger’s seat, checked her watch and smiled to herself. Considering LA’s afternoon traffic and the fact that she had been in Long Beach when she got the call, forty-five minutes was lightning fast.

She was greeted at the steps that led up to the mansion’s main entrance by Andy McKee, a short, overweight, brilliant attorney-at-law.

‘Whitney,’ he said, using a white handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his forehead. ‘Thank you for coming so quickly.’

‘Not a problem,’ she smiled as she shook his hand. ‘Whose house is this? It’s gorgeous.’

‘You’ll meet him inside.’ He looked at her appraisingly and the sweat returned to his forehead.

Whitney Myers was thirty-six years old with dark eyes, a small nose, high cheekbones, full lips and a strong jaw. Her smile could be considered a weapon with the power of turning steady legs into gelatinous goo. Many strong and eloquent men had babbled incoherently and giggled like kids after she hit them with it. She looked like a model on a day off, even more beautiful because she wasn’t trying.

Myers started her career as a police officer at the age of twenty-one. She worked harder than anyone in her bureau to move through the ranks and make detective as quickly as she could. Her intelligence, quick thinking and strong character also helped push her forward, and by the age of twenty-seven she finally received her detective’s shield.

Her captain was quick to recognize that Myers had a gift when it came to persuasion. She was calm, articulate, attentive and extremely convincing when putting her point across. She was also good with people. After six months on an intensive and specialized course with the FBI, Myers became one of the chief negotiators for the West and Valley bureaus of the LAPD and the Missing Persons Unit.

But her career as a detective with Los Angeles’ finest came to an abrupt end three years ago, after her efforts to negotiate a suicidal jumper off the roof of an eighteen-story-high skyscraper in Culver City went terribly wrong.

The aftermath of what happened that day put Myers’ entire life under severe scrutiny. An investigation was launched into her conduct, and Internal Affairs came down on her like a heavy downpour. After several weeks, the IA investigation was inconclusive and no charges were brought against her, but her days with the LAPD were over. She’d been running her own missing persons investigation agency since then.

Myers followed McKee through the house, past a double staircase and down a hallway lined with pictures of famous movie stars. The hallway ended in the living room. The room was so imposing it took Myers a few seconds to notice a six-foot-two, broad-shouldered man standing at an arched window. In his right hand he held an almost empty glass of Scotch. Despite being in his mid-fifties, Myers could see he had a boyish charm about him.

‘Whitney, let me introduce you to Leonid Kudrov,’ McKee said.

Leonid put his glass down and shook Myers’ hand. His grip was tense and the expression on his face was the same she’d seen in every face that had ever hired her — desperation.