21
“It’s Tara Tilson.”
Evan lowered himself to a squat; his gaze locked on the face of Sophia’s business partner.
It’d taken him a moment to recognize her. It’d been several years since they’d last met, but Noelle had pulled up the woman’s driver’s license photo as he’d talked with Tara on the phone.
I spoke with her yesterday.
He struggled to wrap his brain around the fact that the woman he’d talked with was now dead. Relief had swamped him that it wasn’t Sophia but then had been instantly replaced with heavy guilt about feeling relieved. A woman was dead; it didn’t matter who it was.
But why Tara?
Rowan spoke from behind him. “I don’t understand. Tara’s involved somehow? Was it because of the ten thousand dollars?”
Evan said nothing. He had no answers. Looking at his phone, he saw he also had no bars. “I need to call Noelle. Maybe she’ll have an idea how Tara is involved in this.” His brain was spinning rapidly. “Did Tara drive Sophia’s car here? If not, where is her car?”
“Her killer took it,” Rowan suggested. “Maybe he drove Sophia’s car to the trailhead and left in Tara’s.”
“Could be. Would make sense if he set up a meeting with Tara—but I don’t know why they would have a meeting. We’ll get fingerprints from Sophia’s car. If it wasn’t wiped down, maybe we can at least confirm if it was Tara.”
“I suspect the car was left on purpose and whoever did it knew the police would examine it,” said Rowan. “I’ll be surprised if prints were left behind. And even if you do find Tara’s fingerprints in it, it’s possible Sophia loaned her the car for some reason in the past.”
“Correct.” Possibilities were evaporating as quickly as he could think of them. “If Tara did drive Sophia’s car up here, then she knew what Sophia has been doing.” A wave of anger went through him. “And she lied to me on the phone yesterday.”
Rowan touched his arm. “From what I understand, these women were close. Maybe Tara thought she was protecting Sophia.”
“It doesn’t make sense,” Evan said, hating that he was stating the obvious. He studied the body and then carefully used a pen to check Tara’s pockets. They were empty. “No identification.”
“Most likely in a purse,” said Rowan.
Evan stood and twisted to study the ground. Where Tara lay, there was dirt for a few yards in every direction. “Do you see any tracks besides Charity’s and Kerrie’s?” He didn’t want to take any more steps than he had to.
“I’ve been looking for a while. I haven’t seen any,” said Rowan. “There have to be some.”
“Unless our killer ran a branch of pine needles over them as they left, but I’d think that would be obvious too.”
“It’s hard to tell in the dirt in this light. I don’t think that would work if they tried it in the snow. It’s too crusty to be changed with the sweep of a branch,” said Rowan. “It’s practically packed ice. Can you tell if Tara was killed here? I’d think someone walking with a body over their shoulder would be noticed. But a gunshot would be heard too.”
Evan had already noticed the pinkish purpling on the side of Tara’s face closest to the ground. After her heart stopped pumping, the blood had succumbed to gravity. “She died here. Livor mortis is light, but I can see it.”
“Then she hasn’t been here that long. I think it starts to appear around an hour after death. Although the cold temperatures might slow it down.”
“I need to head back to the trailhead,” said Evan. “I’ll send a couple of deputies up here to cordon off the scene and keep people out. Then I’ll start making my phone calls.”
“I don’t mind staying until the deputies arrive,” said Rowan. “Thor and I can wait on the path and show them where she is.”
Evan nodded. But his feet wouldn’t move. Part of him didn’t want to leave the dead woman. She seemed vulnerable and abandoned in the quiet and cold woods.
I’ll get help for her.
“Go. I’ll stick around,” said Rowan, as if she picked up on his reason for hesitating.
He finally moved and Rowan followed. When they reached the path, Evan gave her a long hug. “It’s Rod that’s bothering me,” he finally said quietly next to her ear. “I told you the medical examiner believes he was tortured.”
Rowan pulled back and studied him. “There’s more?”
“They cut out his tongue.” Bile burned in his throat.
Horror and sympathy filled Rowan’s eyes. “I’m so sorry, Evan.”
“Yesterday was a spectacularly shitty day. I couldn’t bring myself to talk about it this morning. We had enough going on with the fire and getting settled.”
“Yes, it was a lot. I’m glad you did tell me.”
“I do feel better,” he admitted. “Not sure why I feel I have to shoulder certain things alone.”
“You’ll get better,” she said, a sad smile on her lips. “We both will.”
Should I tell her about the mess-up with my fingerprints?
Not until it’s confirmed. She doesn’t need more on her plate right now.
Evan looked at her as if seeing her for the first time. Dark eyes that reflected her moods, a light scattering of freckles across her nose, and long, blonde hair that her sisters fussed over more than she did. It was a fact that she was a lovely woman, but the most beautiful thing to him was the empathy and kindness that radiated from her.
How did I get so lucky?
He’d always felt as if a piece of himself were missing. For fifteen long years, he’d attributed it to the loss of his sister, Bridget. But now that Bridget was back and he’d met Rowan, he realized that Rowan filled the rest of the void.
He’d met a rare woman.
Thor huffed, and Evan glanced down to find the dog studying him, his tongue hanging out, his eyes cheerful. “I swear sometimes your dog can read minds,” he said.
“Definitely,” said Rowan. “Well ... maybe not minds, but he certainly reads the slightest change in body language. What were you thinking?”
Evan smiled. “That I’m fortunate to have you in my life. Thor was letting me know that he was lucky too.” He gave her a kiss on the forehead. “I’ll be back in a bit.” He reluctantly left her and headed down the path, his mind shifting back into work mode.
It took several hours for the forensics team and a medical examiner to arrive at the trail to investigate and document Tara Tilson’s scene. They’d just begun their work when Evan received a call about a truck found in a lake that matched the description of Rod’s. Rowan and Thor had already left, and Tara’s site was crawling with law enforcement. He struggled for a long moment, mentally pulled in two directions, but then admitted to himself that the team would have Tara’s examination and removal well under control. They didn’t need him peering over their shoulders.
But as he drove away, he still felt as if he’d abandoned Tara.
Now Evan stood on the boat ramp watching two divers investigate the truck in a lake several miles outside of Bend. His stomach churned. He’d already dealt with one dead body today and didn’t know if he could handle another.
Could Sophia be in the truck’s cab?
His gut told him it was Rod’s truck. The roof barely showed above the water, but he didn’t think that many black trucks of this specific make and model had gone missing recently.
“This is insane,” said Noelle at his side. “I’m glad things are happening and moving forward with our cases, but now it’s going so fast I can’t keep up.”
“I feel the same,” said Evan. The discovery of Tara Tilson’s murder had expanded two cases that were already complicated. Once the truck was removed from the lake, they’d have Sophia’s Subaru and the truck to search for evidence. “I don’t know what sort of information we’ll get from Rod’s truck. Being underwater could really screw things up.”
One of the divers made his way up the boat ramp, moving his mouthpiece so he could speak. “There’s no one in the truck,” he said to Evan and Noelle. “Ready to haul it out?”
Relief flowed through Evan.
Sophia’s not in there.
“Yes, let’s get it out,” said Noelle. She gestured at the tow truck driver, who’d already backed his rig down the boat ramp. The diver conferred with him on how to attach the cables and chains to pull the truck out of the water.
Evan had already spoken to the fisherman who’d called it in. When the man had fished at the lake the day before, there’d been no truck.
“Why ditch the truck now?” asked Noelle. “Are they worried we’re getting close?”
“They clearly knew about the camera at the fire last night. They made certain their identities couldn’t be seen on video but knew we’d suspect it was Rod’s truck,” said Evan. “So they decided to try to destroy any physical evidence by dumping the truck in the lake—we’ll see if that worked. Although I can’t decide if it was cocky or stupid to use Rod’s truck to start the fire.”
“We don’t know that it was his truck for certain,” said Noelle in a tone that clearly indicated she believed it was.
Evan did too.
The truck slowly emerged from the water, its tailgate coming into view.
Evan cursed. “They removed the plates.” He had Rod’s plate number handy for an immediate identification. “We can use the VIN.”
“The missing plates will only slow us down for a minute,” said Noelle.
Water gushed from the truck as the rear wheels came into view. Evan crouched to look at the wheels and pulled up a screenshot he’d taken of the truck’s wheels in the fire video.
Same.
He’d already verified that the wheels shown in the fire video weren’t from Ford; they were custom.
Evan moved to the corner of the windshield the second it was accessible. He motioned for the tow truck driver to pause as he snapped a picture of the VIN.
He followed a sheriff’s deputy to her patrol vehicle and watched as she popped it into the vehicle’s computer. “Rodney McLeod,” Evan stated as the name showed on the screen.
I knew it.
“At least we’ve got both missing vehicles now,” said Noelle as she peered at the screen over Evan’s shoulder. “Between the two of them, there has to be some evidence to lead us to Sophia or to find Rod’s killer.”
Evan made a noncommittal noise. Even with all the blood evidence left behind in Sophia’s home, they were at a standstill. But they had the blood of a mystery person, and they had a bullet from the autopsy. When they found their suspect, they’d be able to build a case, but for the moment they needed more evidence.
Evan’s brain wandered down a tangent where he wondered if it had been intended for the police to find those two pieces of evidence. They’d practically been gifted to the investigation.
Is someone trying to mislead us?
A suspect could try to alter evidence in a home, but Evan doubted anyone had the skill to purposefully leave a bullet under a scalp.
His phone rang. Maxine.
“Bolton.”
“I’ve found something interesting in Rod’s location history from his cellular provider,” Maxine said in greeting.
“What is it?”
“He made a trip to Deer Ridge ten days ago.”
The state prison just north of Bend.
Where Sophia’s ex served his time.
“Did you contact the prison?” asked Evan.
“I did. I knew it’d be the first thing you asked. Rod visited an inmate by the name of Damian Collinson—who I believe you’re familiar with. Or you’re at least familiar with his case.”
Collinson’s file had been in Rod’s filing cabinet.
“Armed robbery from about fifteen years ago,” said Evan. “It was Sam Durette’s case.”
“Correct.”
Evan tried to recall the details. Collinson had been linked to a string of jewelry store armed robberies. From what Evan had read, it’d been a cut-and-dried case. Plenty of evidence and even a confession from his partner. Collinson should have been out by now but was still in prison because he’d stabbed a guard and attempted to stab another inmate.
I need to read that case file again.
“I’ll call—” Evan started.
“I got you an appointment at the prison tonight,” said Maxine. “I explained who Rod was and what had happened, and they said they’ll get you in to talk to Collinson. They’re bending a lot of rules for you.”
“Bless you, Maxine.” He was serious. She’d paved the way, making his job easier.
Only hearing Evan’s side of the conversation, Noelle raised an eyebrow, curiosity in her eyes, but she waited patiently for him to end the call.
“When is the appointment?” asked Evan.
“Eight p.m.”
Evan checked the time and saw he had an hour. It was doable. “I’ll leave right now,” he told Maxine. “And thank you again.” He ended the call.
“Want to take a drive to Deer Ridge?” he asked Noelle. “I need to review a case, and it would help if someone drove while I looked at the file.”
She lifted one shoulder. “How can I refuse a vague offer like that?”
“Rod visited Damian Collinson at Deer Ridge ten days ago.”
Her eyes lit up. “One of Rod’s purloined case copies.”
“It was Sam Durette’s investigation.”
“Sam is a legend,” said Noelle. She and Evan had met the retired detective last summer on a consult for an old case. The three of them had become fast friends and met for coffee once a month along with Rowan.
“I need to be there by eight.” Evan studied the black truck, which was now fully out of the water. The tow truck driver was about to pull it onto the flatbed of his truck, but it appeared he was waiting for the lake water to stop running from every cranny. “Is there anything else we need to do here?” he asked Noelle.
“Looks good to me. Let’s go for a drive.” She headed toward her SUV.
Evan sent a text to Rowan to update her on his whereabouts and another to Deputy Coates, the deputy on light duty who’d been meticulously going through the files from Rod’s office, asking him to email a copy of the Collinson file. “I’ll grab my laptop and be right there,” Evan told Noelle.
He jogged to his vehicle and noticed his pulse was racing.
This feels like a good lead.