Chapter 21
Twenty-One
Before returning to the office, Kane stopped at Aunt Betty’s Café, jumped out, and dashed inside to grab whatever sandwiches and pastries they had available to go.
He headed back to the Beast carrying a cardboard box filled with food.
Jenna hadn’t needed to tell him that she was exhausted.
He could see how much weight she’d lost in the short time he’d been away and the dark circles under her eyes.
She never complained, not once, about him leaving to go on missions but he could plainly see the toll it was having on her.
He would explain to Wolfe that any overseas missions must be seriously considered in the future due to the obvious toll it had on his family.
He’d never tell her that he ached all over and his shoulder hurt from carrying the pilot.
It had been a grueling mission and one he never wanted to repeat.
Escaping from that madness had been a miracle, but he’d survived and now he owed it to his family to be there when they needed him.
As they entered the office they stopped briefly at the counter.
He waited for Jenna to ask her deputies to meet in the conference room.
When she got to the top of the steps, he pushed the cardboard box under one arm, took her elbow, and guided her into her office, shutting the door behind them.
It was a rule they didn’t show any affection toward each other at work—it would make the other members of their team uncomfortable—but this time he made an exception.
He placed the carton on the table, pulled Jenna into his arms, and hugged her close.
“I’m so sorry I put you through hell this time.
I had no idea where I was going or how long I’d be away.
I can tell just by looking at you that you haven’t slept or eaten since I left.
I’ll speak to Wolfe. He’ll explain the situation because, as sure as hell, I can’t possibly go on an OS mission when I’m worried about you and the kids at home.
It’s not as if you live in suburbia or we live on base somewhere where it’s safe.
We live in Serial Killer Central and I’m needed here to protect my family. ”
“It’s what you do, Dave.” She lifted her head and tears glistened on her cheeks.
“I know many lives depend on you sometimes. I knew at the start I’d need to share you and I’m good with that, but this time it took so long and you out there somewhere in the world alone.
I was waiting for Wolfe to come by and tell me you wouldn’t be coming home.
I’m sure that’s what every wife feels when her husband is deployed, and I can handle it, but somehow this one felt different. ”
Kane kissed her tears away. “It was different, but I thrive in situations like that. I’m better alone, safer.
I’m like a shadow. No one sees me. This time the traveling took a long time, and then when my part was done, all hell broke loose and I needed to help.
I was the only boots on the ground and you know we never leave a man behind.
Wolfe risked everything to get us out. I owe him big-time.
It’s over and I’m home—Wolfe is home. It’s all good.
” He noticed the pride in her expression—pride for him—and swallowed the lump in his throat.
“Now, let’s find out what everyone has discovered this afternoon and then we can go home.
” He gently allowed her to slip from his arms and smiled. “Feel better now?”
“Yeah.” Jenna let out a long sigh. “As usual, you know how to make things right. You’re a very special person.”
Kane chuckled and picked up the carton from the desk. “Now you’re making me blush.” He opened the door and walked right into Carter. “Ah, good, you’re back. Discover anything interesting?”
“Yeah. We found a suspicious bunch at the Old Mitcham Ranch.” Carter indicated to the carton. “There’s one thing I can always rely on working here and that’s a steady supply of food.”
“That’s for sure.” Jenna chuckled. “It sure beats trying to concentrate with the noise a roomful of hungry men makes. Some days I figure I’m sitting at a teddy bears’ picnic.”
“I’ve never been called a teddy bear before.” Carter grinned around his toothpick. “It sounds kinda nice.”
Kane shook his head and handed him the carton. “Leave it there, Ty.”
“Okay, where is everyone?” Jenna walked past them and headed for the conference room.
“Ah, there you are. I smell coffee brewing and we have supplies. Just a few snacks to get everyone through until dinner.” She walked to the whiteboard and stared at it.
“Oh, good, progress. That’s great, Rio. Bring us all up to speed. ”
“I’ll grab the coffee.” Jo stood and Kalo followed her. They returned with the coffee, cups, and fixings.
As they all dug into the carton of food and helped themselves to coffee, Rio stood by the whiteboard. Kane turned in his chair to look at him. “It looks like you’ve been busy.”
“We struck gold when Rowley called the forest warden’s station.
The warden was able to give us the locations of hunters camps in the immediate area.
” Rio indicated to a list on the whiteboard and turned back to the group.
“We were able to find some of them without too much trouble. Three groups had their camps close to the fire roads and were heading out from that direction. We took the trail bikes and it wasn’t too difficult to find them.
We just followed the sound of shots. Two more are deeper in the forest and we’ll hunt them down in the morning.
Two of the three groups we spoke to noticed the same old white pickup moving along the fire road overnight. ”
“There was an old white pickup in the alleyway beside the Haunted House.” Jenna waved a pastry in the air.
“It wouldn’t normally have caught my attention, only the man was delivering wood and had access to the Haunted House cellar.
I didn’t go downstairs but I would assume they would store excess items down there.
Upstairs seems to be packed with displays and equipment.
” She took out her notebook and read out the license plate, which Rio added to the whiteboard along with the details that Jenna gave him about Caleb Durnell. “He might be a person of interest.”
Kane finished an egg salad sandwich and looked at Kalo. “Can you run his plate and see if we can find where he lives? A cabin in the forest doesn’t tell us anything.”
“Okay.” Kalo went to work on his laptop. “He has a cabin some ways from one of the fire roads. I’ll upload the coordinates to your phones.”
At Jenna’s nod, Kane gave a rundown of their interviews at the Haunted House attraction.
“No one really stands out in particular but in our opinion, Richards and Kitteridge are closest to the profile. In the control room, they had axes that could be easily used for decapitation. They are heavy and not props. It would be interesting to see if any inconsistencies in the blades match the wounds on the bodies of the victims. That is something that Wolfe and Emily will be looking at closely. Any potential murder weapons we discover need to be bagged and taken to the morgue for examination.”
“Is there any reason you didn’t confiscate the axes while you were there?” Kalo looked at him over his screen.
Kalo’s mind was working on overdrive all the time and had been since the moment he started with the FBI at seventeen.
As a hacker who broke into the Pentagon’s secret files, he was recruited rather than sent to jail.
Kane met his gaze. “We need a reason to confiscate items. It was a friendly interview, and before we go doing that, we’d need to speak to a judge and give him probable cause why he should issue a search warrant. ”
“We just go and feel them out first.” Carter licked powdered sugar from his fingertips and sighed.
“Which brings us around to our group of people. We dropped by the Old Mitcham Ranch and spoke to the attraction manager and various other people. They are a very close-knit group, and we believe they’re hiding something, but they do have a young man who has been volunteering to learn the ropes.
He lives in town. I believe if we apply the right amount of pressure, he will flip on his workmates. ”
“Did you notice anyone particularly suspicious?” Jenna leaned back in her chair and stared at him.
“Cal Woodman and Jonah Pike.” Carter wiped his hands on a paper towel and lifted his coffee cup. “There is an undercurrent there. I figure the kid, Marty Flynn, is our best chance to discover what’s going on.”
“Any other ideas?” Jenna swept her gaze around the table. “Rowley, didn’t you go looking for people who work with wood?”
“I called the forestry and no one is working in the local area.” Rowley checked his notes.
“They have crews out but they stay in camps. They don’t drive home each night, so I figure we can count them out.
One thing, the local blacksmith would be someone to visit.
He’d likely be sharpening axes for the locals.
He might notice if some of them are bloodstained. ”
Raising his eyebrows, Kane wondered if a killer would be stupid enough to take a bloodstained ax to be sharpened.
He shrugged. “It’s worth a visit. What about the town’s decoration committee?
I know they have one. I’ve seen them hauling decorations back and forth from the town hall for years.
” He noticed the blank faces looking at him.
“Think about it. They must have someone who has the skill to set up projectors and other exhibits that appear all over town. They’re local, likely know the forest and the best places to abduct and murder people. ”
“Most of them are elderly.” Rowley blinked a few times. “My mom’s on the committee. I’ll ask her tonight who’s the person in charge. I’m sure they would have a few able-bodied men around to haul some of the heavy stuff.”
Kane turned to Jenna. “It’s getting late.”
“Okay, that’s all for today.” Jenna glanced around the table. “Anything else before we call it a day?”
“Yeah.” Rio checked his watch. “The media release is going out on tonight’s news. I’ve set up the hotline to a recorded service and have two deputies from Louan dropping by first thing to take the load.” He sighed. “Nothing else from Wolfe.”
Kane looked at Jenna. “We’ll drop by and speak to him before we head home. I need to see him anyway.” When Jenna gave him an inquiring look, he shrugged. “Let’s go.” He looked at Carter. “We’ll see you guys at home. I’ve steaks in the refrigerator. It won’t take long to prepare dinner.”
“I’ll help.” Jo smiled at him. “I can peel potatoes and make the salad.”
He grinned. “Thanks, that would be neat.”