Chapter 27
Dungar
Ihad never seen my office so completely transformed.
Papers, files, and color-coded index cards covered every surface, even the spare table we’d dragged in from the storage room.
A timeline stretched across the east wall, each incident marked with red pins, while the west wall held a map of Lonesome Creek with blue and yellow markers indicating security breach locations.
A comprehensive matrix documenting every person who had been in Lonesome Creek during each luminook disturbance lay in the middle. Names filled the vertical axis while dates ran horizontally, creating a grid.
“This is impressive,” Riley said, standing beside me, leaning over my shoulder. Her scent, something floral with hints of honey, wrapped around me like a caress. “How many people are we tracking?”
“One hundred and seventy-three.” I ran my finger down the column of names. “Every tourist, staff member, and delivery person who’s been in town during at least one incident.”
She whistled, straightening to stretch her back. “And you’re cross-referencing all of them?”
“It’s the only way to find the pattern.” I carefully aligned my pen with the edge of the paper before turning to face her. “Someone has been here during every incident. We just need to identify who.”
Riley’s fingers lay on my shoulder, absently stroking the muscle where it met my neck.
“If anyone can find the pattern, it’s you.”
The confidence in her voice warmed me from the inside out.
Ruugar opened the door and stepped inside, Jessi with him. “We’ve got the visitor logs from the past month.” He held up a thick binder. “Becken brought the trail ride records too.”
“Perfect timing.” I cleared a space on my desk, arranging the previous documents in neat stacks to make room for the new information. “Are the others coming?”
“On their way.” Ruugar’s gaze moved between Riley and me, a smile tugging at his lips. “Sel and Holly are bringing breakfast.”
“Perfect.” Riley smiled at Beth who grinned back and started clearing a spot for a small buffet on a table stretching across the back of the room while Riley cooed at baby Noma riding in the pack on Beth’s back.
“Did you find anything unusual in the records?” I asked Ruugar.
Ruugar shook his head. “Nothing obvious, but there are some repeating names, tourists who’ve extended their stays or returned multiple times this month.”
“Those are our priority.” I opened the binder, already scanning the neat columns of signatures and dates.
By the time the rest of my brothers and their mates arrived, I’d already identified twenty-seven individuals who had been present during at least three incidents. Riley sat beside me with Noma on her lap, her own list growing as she sorted through delivery logs and maintenance schedules.
“The luminook tour has been especially popular,” Sel said, placing a box of pastries, bread, and condiments on the back table, Holly adding carafes of tea and coffee, Allie unloading mugs. “The same group keeps coming back to see them.”
“Which group?” I asked, lifting a cinnamon roll off the plate Holly had handed me without looking up from my work.
“Mostly older women,” Tark said. “Retirement-age humans fascinated by the bioluminescence. They call themselves the ‘Glow Getters’.”
Hail snorted. “Tour-tourists and their puns.” He shared a smile with Allie.
I added the information to my matrix, creating a special notation for repeat luminook tour participants.
For the next several hours, we worked through the mountain of information, each brother taking responsibility for a different aspect of the investigation.
Hail left to interview the saloon’s gift shop staff and Aunt Inla about who on our list had purchased luminook merchandise.
Gracie and Tark checked with the photographers who documented tourist activities for suspicious behavior.
Carla and Becken spoke with tour guides and activity leaders.
Meanwhile, Riley and I refined our matrix, eliminating names of people who couldn’t have been present for certain incidents. A pattern began to emerge.
Riley tapped her finger on a particular section of the matrix, Noma following the movement with her dark eyes while Beth stood nearby, ready to take the youngling if she started getting fussy. “These three names appear at every major incident.”
I leaned closer, studying the highlighted rows. “Franklin Prescott, Andrea Wilkins, and Peter Morgan.”
“Franklin Prescott is the name on the delivery receipts for the specialized cage,” Riley said. “Does anyone remember him enough to describe him?” she asked the group gathered round.
My brothers and their mates shook their heads.
I frowned, a theory forming in my mind. “What if he doesn’t exist? It could be a false identity created to receive something like this.”
“There was no packing material,” Riley said. “For all we know, they ordered the cage on and had it shipped overnight.”
“I don’t remember anyone at the hotel receiving a large package,” Greel said. “But I’ll ask Lavon and his kitchen staff. They cover the desk if I or Jessi aren’t around.”
“And Aunt Inla,” I said.
Jessi left to grab the hotel register, returning quickly, showing that there hadn’t been anyone named Franklin Prescott staying at the hotel.
“He could’ve stayed nearby,” Riley said. “And driven to town each day.”
It wasn’t that uncommon, especially if the hotel was full. But if someone was that excited about what we had to offer, enough to visit more than three times, they tended to stay in town to have access to all the events.
I made notes about Franklin.
“Do any of us know anything about Wilkins or Morgan?” I asked.
We combed through the visitor information and did some searching online, creating detailed profiles of both suspects.
Ashley Wilkins was a retired biology teacher from Seattle who had visited Lonesome Creek three times in the past month, each time participating in the luminook tour.
Peter Morgan worked as an influencer, and we discovered he had an associate’s degree in biochemistry.
“Either could have the knowledge to understand our luminooks,” I said, adding notes to each profile. “Both have been present during every incident.”
“The gift shop records show Peter Morgan purchased several luminook souvenirs, including crystal pins.”
“So do a lot of people,” Jessi said. “They’re quite popular.”
My brothers left and returned throughout the day, each bringing new pieces of information that we carefully integrated into our analysis. By late afternoon, we’d narrowed it down to three suspects, Ashley, our mysterious Franklin, and Peter Morgan.
“I believe it’s Morgan,” I said, standing back to survey our work. “He’s been using tourist activities as a cover to scout the luminook pens and test our security.”
Riley traced the evidence chain we’d assembled. “He signs up for tours to gain legitimate access to restricted areas. He studies everything. And he’s extended his stay three times, always after we’ve adjusted our surveillance.”
“The timing is too perfect to be coincidence,” Ruugar said. “He arrives the day before an incident, participates in tourist activities near the target area, then the breach occurs that night.” He leaned against the wall, crossing his arms on his chest. “Is he working alone or for someone else?”
“Maybe he works for Sillavar Research,” Riley said. “The pharmaceutical company that’s developing bioluminescent compounds. He’s got a biochemistry degree, and I imagine someone with that skillset would be in demand in that industry. They’d have the resources to fund this kind of operation.”
I aligned a stack of papers. “If he’s their field agent, he could be here to collect samples for their research. The specialized equipment, the careful planning, and the professional approach all fit.”
“So what’s our next move?” Becken asked, Carla nodding from her chair beside him.
“We set a trap.” I reached for a fresh sheet of paper to draft the plan. “Our suspect would expect us to follow our usual patrol patterns. Tonight, we’ll give whoever they are exactly what they expect to see.”
“While secretly positioning ourselves where they won’t be looking,” Riley said, the smile she shot my way making my heart stumble.
The plan came together quickly. We would maintain our visible security measures while hiding our real surveillance in unexpected locations.
My brothers would position themselves at key points around the property, communicating through encrypted radio channels.
“What about the luminooks?” Allie asked. “We don’t want to stress them any more than they already are.”
“We’ll relocate the most vulnerable ones to the secure holding area in my barn,” Ruugar. “The rest will be left behind with additional security that our suspect doesn’t know about.”
As the sun began to set, my brothers departed to finish their day’s work and prepare for the night’s operation. Riley and I remained in the office, finalizing details and checking equipment.
“You’re amazing, you know that?” she said, stepping close to me as I double-checked my utility belt. “The way your mind works, how you see patterns others miss.”
“We make a good team. Your investigative instincts complement my organizational approach.”
She brushed her fingertips along my jaw. “That’s one way of putting it.”
I caught her hand, kissing her palm, then to the golden mark on her wrist. “I’m grateful for you, Riley. Not just as a partner in this investigation, but as my mate.”
Her eyes softened. “Even when I complicate your carefully ordered world?”
“Especially then.” I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “You don’t disrupt my systems; you make them better. You help me see patterns I might’ve missed, approaches I wouldn’t have considered.”
“We’re stronger together.”
“Always.” I leaned down, capturing her lips in a kiss that started gentle but quickly deepened, her body pressing against mine as her arms wound around my neck.
When we pulled apart, both breathless, the setting sun had painted the office in shades of gold and amber. It was almost time.
“Ready to catch our luminook thief?” she asked, her eyes bright with determination.
“More than ready.” I straightened my uniform. “By this time tomorrow, our suspect will be in custody.”
“And then?”
“Then we celebrate,” I said. “Properly.”
The heat in her gaze told me she understood exactly what I meant.
We left our office.
The trap was set, our team would soon be in position, and the luminooks would soon be safe.