Chapter 5
Olivia huddled tighter in the blanket she’d been given, although it didn’t make a difference.
The chill had settled deep into her bones and numbed her fingers.
She lifted her face to the gray skies as the first pale, ghostly rays of sunrise dawned through the trees, illuminating the bustling crime scene.
It was Samhain, although ironically, it was the one day of the year where the veil between life and death was at its thinnest. Olivia had imagined herself rising with the fiery rays of dawn and lighting the balefires, not standing in the cold, damp woods wrapped in a police issue blanket surveying a murder scene.
Yellow and black crime scene tape flapped in the breeze around a white tent that had been erected over the grisly remains to hide them from view. Not that it mattered much now; she’d never be able to erase that image from her memory.
Olivia shuddered as she fought down another wave of nausea, trying desperately to ignore the stench of what she now knew was human decomposition.
It clung unpleasantly to her making her feel like her skin was crawling.
She was desperate to go home and shower but couldn’t until the cops allowed her to leave the scene.
It felt as if they were keeping her there on purpose even though she’d already given her statement along with Jake and Louise.
The image of what she’d seen was seared into her mind and no matter what she did she couldn’t stop thinking about it, she’d never seen anything like it before.
It was like a puddle of human goo. If it hadn’t been for the tatters of clothing and the remnants of fingers and hair, she wouldn’t have even known it was human.
Swallowing hard against the bile rising in her throat, she really regretted the alcohol from the night before.
It churned unpleasantly in her belly. The sudden flood of saliva in her mouth had her swallowing again as she tried not to vomit.
Turning her back deliberately on the white tent and the hive of uniforms bustling around it she tried to stay upwind of the rotting stench.
The wind suddenly rippled through the sparse branches above her, drawing her attention.
The tiny hairs on her arms rose, the air charged.
She could hear a low, persistent buzz in her ears as she tasted something strange and metallic on her tongue.
She glanced around the scene, a frown marring her brow.
Someone had used magic there, very recently.
“Hell of a way to sober up.” Louisa appeared next to her.
“No kidding,” Olivia murmured. “You thinking what I’m thinking?”
Louisa gave a nod. “They’re being pretty tight-lipped, but it’s obvious they think it’s Adam.”
“Shit.” Olivia released a breath. “What could even do something like that? The guy looked like roadkill.”
“A wild animal, maybe?” Louisa frowned. “I mean, judging from the state of him.”
“A wild animal?” Olivia repeated, unconvinced. “A wild animal wandered into town, dragged him from his car and miles out here before what? Running him over with a road roller?”
“I don’t even want to think about the alternative.” Louisa shook her head. “Once they’ve finished up with the crime scene, his remains will be taken to Doc Hughes for the autopsy. I’ll see what I can find out from there.”
“I don’t think there’s much left of him to autopsy,” Olivia observed grimly. “I can’t believe that this whole time he was only a hundred yards from my house.”
“It was probably just an animal attack.” Louisa tried to sound confident. “Let’s wait until the autopsy comes back. Until then, stay out of the woods, and if we need to, we’ll call in animal control.”
“I suppose.” Olivia watched an older cop break away and approach them both with a guarded expression.
“Ladies.” He gave the barest tip of his hat.
“Chief Walcott,” Louisa replied.
“Dr. Linden, I believe Jake would like to speak with you.” His cool gaze swept past Louisa and latched onto Olivia.
“It’s fine,” Olivia assured her, seeing the concern in her friend’s eyes.
Louisa threw a distrustful glare at the Chief before walking away,
“Miss West, I presume?” the Chief said once they were alone.
He was an imposing figure. Broad-shouldered but slim, he stood over six feet tall, and his austere face bore deep creases. His eyes were dark, and beneath the wide brim of his hat, the hair at his temples was peppered with gray.
“I believe you discovered the body?”
“More like tripped over it in the dark.”
“Miss West, what were you doing in the woods so late at night?”
“Louisa and Jake were over,” she replied. “We had a few drinks and were reminiscing. We decided to head out into the woods to see if the den we made when we were kids was still there.”
“In the dark?” he said slowly. “In the rain?”
“Technically, it wasn’t raining at the time.” She shrugged. “And like I said, we’d been drinking.”
“But it was your idea to venture into the woods?”
“Actually, I think it might’ve been Louisa’s idea, I don’t really remember.” Her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
“Miss West, you arrived in Mercy three days ago, is that correct?”
“Yes, but I fail to see what that has to–”
“And you’ve just received a substantial inheritance from your late great-aunt, is that correct?”
Olivia’s brow crinkled in confusion. “I really don’t see what this has to do with the body we found.”
“Just being thorough,” he replied, but his tone made Olivia uneasy.
“As I’m sure you’re already aware, I inherited my great-aunt’s house after she passed away,” Olivia stated flatly.
“Convenient,” he muttered under his breath.
“Excuse me?”
“Did you know Adam Miller?” He changed the subject, throwing her off-balance.
“Adam?” she repeated. “I met him once, at the pub the day before yesterday.”
“Then you admit you saw him the night he disappeared?” The Chief’s hawk-like gaze narrowed.
“There’s nothing to admit,” she snapped. “I was in the pub where he worked, and he served me a drink.”
“What time did you leave?”
“I don’t know.” Olivia blew out a frustrated breath. “Nine, maybe? I didn’t exactly look at the clock.”
“And what did you do after you left?”
“I went home.”
“Alone?”
“Yes,” she replied irritably. “Alone.”
“Is there anyone who can vouch for your whereabouts that night?” His lips thinned as he stared at her.
“You’re asking if I have an alibi?”
“Well, do you?” he pressed.
“Do I need one?” Her jaw clenched.
“You tell me. You were one of the last people to see Adam the night he disappeared.”
“Yeah, me and the thirty other people in the pub,” she snapped.
“The remains were found a stone’s throw from your property, on grounds that you own,” he pointed out.
“You know as well as I do that there aren’t any fences.
Anyone could’ve dumped a body in here without my knowledge,” she answered, her tone glacial.
“Leaving aside the fact that I’m sure as hell not dumb enough to brutally murder someone and dump them on my own doorstep.
Besides, what possible motive could I have? ”
“Some killers don’t need a motive.”
“Oh my god.” She exhaled with sudden understanding. “This isn’t about whether I have an alibi at all, is it?”
“Isn’t it?” His dark eyes glittered.
“This is about my father. This is about what he did,” Olivia said tightly. “You want to know if the apple fell far from the tree.”
Chief Walcott leaned in, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper. “Well, did it?”
“You’ve got some nerve.” Olivia’s eyes flashed in fury. “You can go to hell.”
“Is that what you told Adam Miller?” he goaded, his voice low enough that no one else could hear.
“You don’t even know if that puddle of fingernails and goo is Adam,” she replied coldly.
“I’m fairly confident the autopsy will confirm his identity.”
“Let’s just say you’re right and that is Adam.” She glared. “You and I both saw his remains. There is no way a human being could’ve caused that level of damage. You’re looking at an animal attack and you know it.”
She could tell even as the words left her mouth that he didn’t believe an animal was responsible any more than she did.
“Well, we’ll just see about that, won’t we?” His threatening tone set all of Olivia’s warning bells ringing.
“If that’s all, Chief.” Olivia stepped back, her voice cool and detached. “I’m going home, it’s been a long night, and I need a shower.”
She turned and stalked away, getting no more than a few steps away before his cold, disdainful voice stopped her.
“Unfortunately, that’s not all, Miss West,” he answered with just a hint of smugness. “We’ll need your clothes.”
She stared at him for a moment. “Are you fucking kidding me?” she replied flatly.
“I suggest you watch your mouth, Miss West.” His gaze flickered back to the white tent. “Animal attack or not, it’s still a crime scene until I say otherwise, and as you yourself pointed out, one you fell into. Therefore, you could have evidence transfer to your clothes.”
“Fine,” she hissed. “I’ll bag them up and give them to Jake.”
“Deputy Gilbert is being assigned elsewhere this morning.” He beckoned another deputy forward.
A tall, slim, fair-haired woman stepped up, and Olivia found herself blinking in surprise.
The deputy looked like a Valkyrie. She stood nearly as tall as the Chief, with long white-blonde hair wound tightly at the nape of her neck.
Her pale skin was flawless, her blue eyes so pale, they looked like arctic ice.
It was strange, Olivia thought, there was something familiar about the deputy, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
“This is Deputy Helga Hanson,” Walcott said. “She’ll accompany you back to the house and bag your clothes for evidence.”
“Fine,” Olivia gritted between clenched teeth. Turning sharply, she stomped toward her house.
“Olivia!” Louisa called as she hurried to catch up with her. “That looked a little intense. What did he want?”
“What do you think?” Olivia muttered angrily. “To accuse me of murdering Adam.”
“He said that?” Louisa’s eyes widened in shock.