Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 108849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 544(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 363(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108849 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 544(@200wpm)___ 435(@250wpm)___ 363(@300wpm)
Laurel sighed. “No. Let him up.”
“I guess.” Kate clicked off.
Minutes later, Sheriff York walked into Laurel’s office. “I figured I’d update you in person on this fine Saturday since neither one of us is getting a day off anytime soon.” He had dark circles under his eyes.
“Hi, Sheriff,” she said. “I assume you’ve found the Bearing men?”
He wiped a hand across his brow. “No. I thought they’d headed out to a friend’s cabin near Snowblood peak, but I was wrong. Saul owns a private plane, and I checked, and it’s gone.”
Laurel blinked. “You allowed the husband of a murder victim to fly out of town?”
His face reddened. “No. I thought they needed a day or two in order to grieve, which is what I’m sure they’re doing.”
She reached for her phone and texted Nester to track Saul Bearing’s plane somehow and then search outlying states for property owned by the Bearings. “When you did speak with the mayor, did you get any information?”
“They all thought Mrs. Bearing had headed out to a spa vacation in Seattle the night she went missing. We’re trying to track down any spa where she might’ve had a reservation, but so far we haven’t found anything.”
So perhaps she’d lied to her family about her whereabouts, which made sense due to her alleged affair with Pastor John. “What about dumping her phone?”
“We’re working on the warrant now.”
Laurel took another sip of the bubbly soda, noting her stomach starting to settle. “Did you bring up any alleged affairs to the mayor in those brief moments you spent with him before allowing him to leave the jurisdiction?”
“Are you being sarcastic?”
She stiffened. “No.”
His gaze narrowed. “No. We didn’t have much time to talk.”
She’d prefer to speak with Pastor John before Mayor Bearing, but at this point, she just wanted to find her damn witnesses. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to sound anything but sarcastic. “I appreciate you initially providing the notification of death to the Bearing family. I know how difficult that can be, and you’ve been helpful since we’re down two agents right now.” She required his continued assistance right now, so she forced herself to say the words.
“No problem. I’m sorry we haven’t found Pastor John Govern yet. They stupidly didn’t take radios with them, so they could be anywhere in the mountains.”
Heat clashed down Laurel’s throat. How frustrating. She wanted to interview him before the mayor. “Keep the BOLOs on everyone active.”
“You got to know Pastor John a little bit, didn’t you? During your first case here?”
She thought back. “I interviewed him a few times and he invited me on a date that I refused, but I wouldn’t say that I know him.” He was a charismatic leader, and the person responsible for securing the TV deal for the church.
York glanced down at the stacks of paper in front of Laurel. “You think Jason Abbott’s responsible for these newest killings?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I can envision him trying to play games with us by switching his MO. Drowning and leaving a victim covered in ice is similar to strangling and leaving a victim in an ice block.” But she worked with facts and not conjecture.
York patted his belly. “I was studying the two recent deaths and noticed something interesting. Your first case, when you arrived in town, had crime scenes at Snowblood Peak, where the first victim in this case was found. We also found a victim in our latest case at the church.”
Laurel straightened. “You’re correct. We should see if Fish and Wildlife cameras can be set close to areas where we’ve found the victims of recent cases, especially those near a body of water.”
York nodded. “I’ll talk to Fish and Wildlife, but the new bodies weren’t exactly where the earlier crimes took place. Nobody has that many cameras.”
He made a good point. “Let’s have Fish and Wildlife place the cameras on roads leading to former dump sites,” she said thoughtfully. “Then if we get a body, at least we’ll have a photo of the vehicle the killer is using.”
York straightened. “Do you think we’ll get another homicide?”
She looked out at the gray day outside. “We need to proceed with that probability. We have two kills within, what? Three days. That’s quick, Sheriff York. That’s a very fast turnaround.”
“Do you think we’re looking at another one tomorrow?”
“I hope not. Both of our current victims were blondes, in fairly decent shape, and found frozen. Your investigators need to search for any commonalities between them, especially if their lives intersected at some point.” She had Nester doing the same.
York nodded. “Got it. You know, there’s another connection they have.”
Laurel looked up. “What’s that?”
“Huck Rivers. The first vic was his mom, and the second was filmed hitting and threatening him.”
Laurel blinked. The sheriff was correct.
Chapter 15