Lilith: a novel by Edward Trimnell Read Free Book Online Page A

fee. That would have necessitated a credit card; and that would have meant another complication. In other words, another way to get caught. But there are plenty of places for her to hunt while avoiding those sites. Assuming it's a her, that is.”
    Alan allowed himself a moment to ponder all that Dave had just said. This wasn't going to end the easy way, with the techies tracking down Lilith via an IP address.
    “It might be a her,” Alan said. “Maribel thinks so, and I’m inclined to agree with that theory, though I still think there’s a man involved. A single individual, either male or female, couldn't pull off both the deceptions and the murders. These men were shot without a struggle, which means that they were distracted while the gunman—or gunwoman—walked up behind them.”
    “Not necessarily,” Maribel said. “Suppose a man trusts a woman, and he becomes comfortable with having her around. She could easily walk up behind him with a concealed pistol, and shoot him in the head without him ever realizing it.”
    “It’s possible,” Alan allowed. In fact it was more than possible, but his gut told him that ‘Lilith’ was not a woman acting alone.
    “You don’t think a woman could be that cold-blooded?” Maribel challenged, sensing his doubt of her hypothesis.
    “It’s not that,” Alan replied. “But given the degree of organization that these crimes required, it would be difficult for anyone—man or woman—to pull them off single-handedly. We’ll see, though. Did you have a chance to check with the bank, Dave?”
    Dave nodded. “Yes. I also followed up with the bank where Robert Billings kept all of his money. Three days ago he made a withdrawal of fifteen thousand dollars.”
    “How much did he have in his combined savings and checking accounts?” Alan asked.
    “Just shy of sixty grand,” Dave said. “Do you want me to look up the exact amount for you?”
    “No, that’s close enough.”
    Billings had been a bit thriftier than his mother had predicted him to be—though not by much.
    “So Billings withdrew about a quarter of all the money he had—to give to Lilith,” Maribel observed. “A man in love—or headed that way.”
    She and Alan exchanged meaningful looks, both recalling their conversation in the Explorer.
    “What?” Dave asked.
    “Nothing,” Maribel said. “We were discussing the way Lilith operates. We both agreed that a man wouldn't put that much money on the line for sex—but he might for love.”
    Dave squirmed uncomfortably in his chair. He might have been wondering if Maribel’s remark had been intended as a question about the nature of his own vulnerabilities.
    “Anyway,” Alan said. “Did you get a report back from the crime scene team, Dave?”
    Dave sighed. “Yeah. Just like the two earlier murders. No fingerprints that don’t belong there. No fibers, either. The murder scene was clean.”
    That much made sense. A killer who was that thorough in cleaning up the electronic trails wouldn't be likely to forget to wipe down doorknobs and other surfaces.
    “So what’s next?” Dave asked, looking pointedly at Alan. Although they all reported to Lieutenant Seeger, Alan was the detective first grade of the group, and he had a degree of authority, both formal and informal.
    “The first thing I want to do is drive up to Columbus and meet this Lorelei Monroe.”
    “Do you really think that she could be Lilith?” Maribel asked.
    “No, of course not. But I think there is a good chance that she has some kind of a connection to the real killer or killers—probably unwitting on her part. The other fake photographs that Lilith used were all Ukrainians, obviously grabbed at random from the Internet. But Lorelei is local—and from the same city where one of the killings occurred. That can’t be a coincidence.”
    “If you’re right,” Dave said, “the next question is: Why would the killer be so obvious? Lilith has been so careful with everything else. A