Last Light

12 Beast Awakens

Rainer Sparks woke refreshed at midnight, having breathed the scent of Makani through all his dreams of her.

He withdrew her clothes from under the pillow. He fingered them in the dark. Draped selected items across his face. Breathed deeply.

Naked, he went into her study. Switched on a desk lamp. Fired up her computer.

He had decided not to set her house on fire.

He would set her on fire. After he was done using her.

Bringing forth the blood of his victims was an art. He had created many masterpieces.

Flames, however, were also a worthwhile medium.

Online, he accessed public records to determine who owned the house at the address in Laguna Beach that he had gotten from the GPS with which he’d tracked her.

Maybe she parked at that residence but didn’t enter. It was a place to start.

The city directory listed the owner as Oliver Bertram Watkins.

Ollie to his friends. A visit to Facebook produced a photo of Ollie. He was sixty-one.

He was a venture-capital executive. Liked antiques shopping. Fine wines. Playing competition bridge.

No more dangerous than a five-year-old girl.

Considering the expensive neighborhood, the house would have a security system.

Rainer was a most professional assassin. He didn’t rely solely on his paranormal powers.

He had long ago hacked Central Station, the alarm-reporting facility that served all the private security companies in the county. He’d built a back door for himself. Quick, easy access.

Ollie Watkins contracted with Worry Free Security. Competent company. But ignorant of the hyphen needed in their name.

For alarm purposes, the house had nine zones.

Three keypads. Front door. Back door. Side garage door. There were no cameras tied into the system.

Rainer exited Central Station.

He went to a celebrity gossip site. Just to see what was up.

It must be hard to be Tom Cruise.

He took a quick shower in Makani’s bathroom. Used her soap.

Her roll-on deodorant. Her toothbrush.

At 1:02 A.M. he set out for Laguna Beach.