Betrayal with Murder (A Rilynne Evans Mystery, Book Three) (4 page)

“Would it be possible to go out where he was found?” she asked a few moments later.

He didn’t answer immediately, but instead looked at her with the closest thing to a fatherly look she had ever received. “We can,” he said cautiously. “I don’t know what good it would do, though. The crime scene investigators should be just about done and on the way back with all of the collected evidence. There’s nothing out there for you.”

Rilynne wanted to argue, but she knew there would be no way of convincing him that it was a good idea. If she needed to, she would just have to drive out herself. She wouldn’t be able to concentrate on getting a vision otherwise.

“You never did tell me how he was found,” she said when the wave of frustration passed.

“A man was camping out in that area a couple weeks ago and lost his keys. He went back out yesterday with a metal detector trying to find them, and instead found the body,” he replied. “He was still throwing up when the first responders arrived.”

Rilynne chuckled as she gently shook her head. “Some people just aren’t cut out for this kind of stuff. Has he been looked into?” she asked. “Is there any possibility that he’s connected to Mifflin?”

Wooldridge’s face twisted with contemplation. “His record is clean, and by all outward appearances, he seems to have just stumbled on him. I’m having him looked into more thoroughly, but if I had to guess, I’d say he’s in the clear.”

They sat in the booth looking over every page of the file for nearly two hours before finally heading back to the office.

“Are we going to need to stop by the forensic lab?” she asked as they approached the front doors of the station house.

Wooldridge shook his head. “I called everyone this morning and informed them to have everything brought to the homicide office instead of the lab,” he explained. “I want as few people as possible listed on the chain of custody. The last thing we need is for anyone to try and claim that the evidence has been compromised.”

“Another good reason to send it to an outside lab,” she said as she reached out for the handle on the door.

“If it were anyone other than Ben Davis, I wouldn’t even consider it,” he said.

She looked up at his quizzically, trying to make sense of his statement.

He seemed to anticipate her question, because he gave her an answer before she had the chance to ask it. “You’re the wife of the victim, and you’re in a relationship with the forensic tech processing the evidence; any defense attorney worth anything will claim ‘conflict of interest.’”

“Why are you taking the chance then?”

“Because Davis is one of the top forensic techs in the country. They can make any claims against him they want, but his reputation speaks for itself,” he replied.

Rilynne felt a wave of pride growing from the level of respect that Wooldridge had for the man she had grown so close to. In a way, she had been nervous about the reactions she would receive from the news she was dating again. She never imagined they would be as good as this.

The homicide office was crowded when they walked back in. Her arrival seemed to have spread through the ranks, because no one seemed to be surprised by her presence. Instead, their expressions ranged between joy from seeing her and sympathy for the situation surrounding her visit.

“Where’s your cowboy hat?” a tall man on the opposite side of the room called out.

Rilynne chuckled as a smile crept across her face. “I left it in the stable next to my horse, along with my boots and newly acquired rifle collection.”

Laughter filled the room as the detectives rotated around so each could give her their own greeting.

“Okay, okay,” Wooldridge spoke up after everyone had their turn. “Don’t you all have work to do? Sibrian, I have a special task for you.” Rilynne followed him into his office, closely followed by the detective who had been seated just inside the door.

Rilynne and Sibrian had only just managed to lower themselves in the chairs across from his desk when Wooldridge quickly turned and left the room again.

“How have you been, Lori?” Rilynne asked as she turned toward her. “I’ve been meaning to call you. How’s your little one?”

Lori Sibrian was made a homicide detective shortly after Rilynne. Her long blonde hair and vibrant blue eyes, along with her tall and slender physique, left her with the nickname ‘Detective Barbie’ by the other detectives. Only the second female detective on the unit, the men seemed to have set their opinion on her solely based on her appearances. Despite her near genius I.Q. and her photographic memory, the nickname stuck for the first several months. It wasn’t until she single-handedly took down a murder suspect that had over fifty pounds on her, walking away with only a bloody nose and a busted lip, that she seemed to have earned the respect of the men in the unit.

Just over a month after she made detective, she had been called out to a shooting that took place in a frat house. Upon searching the scene, she had discovered a nineteen-year-old student curled up in the bottom of the closet, barely clinging to life. When Lori rolled her over to assess her injuries, she found the young girl to be pregnant, and pretty far along. The paramedics immediately rushed her to the hospital, but she didn’t survive her injuries. However, they were able to perform an emergency cesarean and saved the baby.

Lori had taken it upon herself to track down any family that the girl had, but was unable to find anyone. She did manage to find the father of the baby girl, but he didn’t want to take responsibility for her. When she had been unable to find any family for the child, she decided to adopt her.

Since she was a single woman, the entire homicide unit became, in a way, a surrogate family for the little girl, who she named Kim after her teenage mother. The unit even petitioned the department to set up a nursery at the station for all of the parents with young children, so Lori was able to bring Kim to work with her.

“I can’t believe she’s already three,” Lori said as she reached for her phone. “I wish you could have come to her party, but it was so sweet of you to send a gift. She plays in that ball pit everyday. I’ve even caught her sleeping in there a few times.”

“Good,” Rilynne grinned. “I’m so glad she likes it. I’m going to have to make sure I can get out here more often. I really miss you two.”

Lori gave her a friendly smile, which was quickly overshadowed by a look of sorrow. “I’m so sorry that we had to see each other again like this. Part of me always held out hope that he could still be out there somewhere. I can’t imagine how hard this is for you.”

“He was declared dead in October, but it’s different when there’s an actual body.” Rilynne felt herself zoning out, and quickly pulled herself back. “I guess it hasn’t completely sunk in yet.”

Lori opened her mouth but before she could get a word out, Wooldridge walked in with an evidence box in hand. Lori’s eyes followed the box as he carried it across the room and sat it down on his desk.

“Sibrian, I need you to catch a flight in two hours to San Antonio. From there, we’ll have a rental car waiting for you to use to take the evidence from the Christopher Parker case to Addison Valley,” he said.

“Actually,” Rilynne interrupted. “I talked to Ben last night and he said he would meet the evidence at the airport, so you won’t have to do anything but get off the plane to sign over the evidence, then get on a return flight.”

“And before you ask,” Wooldridge added, “I’ll personally get Kim from daycare when it closes, and we’ll meet you at the airport when you get back. I’ll take care of booking the flights now.” He left the box sitting on the desk in front of them when he walked back out of the room.

As soon as he rounded the corner, Lori shifted her gaze to Rilynne. “Explain,” she said simply.

As hard as she tried, Rilynne couldn’t keep the childish grin off of her face. “Explain what?”

The confusion in Lori’s expression was joined by a note of amusement. “Well, I was just wondering why all of the evidence is being sent to Addison Valley, but now I think I’m more interested in whatever is making you grin like a school girl with a crush. It’s this Ben, I’m guessing?”

“Ben Davis is one of the top forensic investigator in the country. The chief thinks very highly of him, and recommended that we send all of the evidence out there for him to analyze,” Rilynne explained.

“And the grin?”

Rilynne knew that nothing she could say would make Lori let it go without an answer. “Ben and I have become very good friends,” she paused for a moment as she watched the excitement build on Lori’s face, “and actually were out on our first date when Wooldridge called to tell me that Christopher’s body had been found.”

“How does the chief know your Ben Davis?”

“He apparently goes to a lot of forensic conferences and has followed his work,” she said.

Rilynne could tell by the look in her eyes that there was a list of questions she wanted to ask. She didn’t have to wait long to hear the first.

“So,” Lori started, leaning forward. “Is he cute?” The grin on her face seemed to give Lori an adequate answer. “Well, then when all of this is done, we’re going to need to have a nice little chat so you can get me caught up on everything that’s been going on.”

“That sounds great,” she replied. “Since he’ll be meeting you at the airport, you can also give me your honest opinion on what you think about him.” Something about her statement hit her with a wave of guilt that knocked the smile quickly off of her face. Lori seemed to have sensed her train of thought, because she placed her hand gently on Rilynne’s and gave her an understanding smile.

“It’s been over a year and a half,” she said. “It’s okay for you to be happy that you’ve met someone else. Christopher wouldn’t have wanted you to mourn him forever.”

Rilynne nodded. “It’s just bad timing.”

R
ilynne had Wooldridge drop her off at a car rental lot on the way to the airport. After grabbing a quick lunch, she drove back to the station. She was still sitting at the desk surrounded by the case file when Wooldridge walked back in an hour later.

“Why don’t you get out of the office for a while,” he said as he sat down on the corner of the desk. “I’m sure you have quite a few friends who would love to see you. We won’t have anything new to look at until at least tomorrow.”

“Not today,” she replied. “I’m not really in the mood to be sociable.”

He looked at her with an almost fatherly concern before nodding and walking to his office.

She worked her way through the files, studying each page carefully. She didn’t stop until her phone rang two hours later.

“Are you at the airport?” she asked as she pulled the phone up to her ear.

“Sure am,” Ben replied. “It looks like her plane is running a little late, so I may be here for a bit.”

“Well, thank you again for meeting her there,” she said as she sank down into her chair. “She was a little worried about getting back so late.”

“She’s the single mom, right?” he asked.

Rilynne nodded before quickly remembering he couldn’t see her and giving a quick ‘yes’. “She’s actually the best girl friend I’ve had in years. I bet you’d like her.”

“I’m sure I will,” he replied. She could hear the grin in his voice. “So what are you up to today?”

She replied, “I’m sitting in my old desk, combing through the case file for the hundredth time. I think I might make a trip out to the scene tonight to see where he was found.”

“Are you sure you want to do that?” he asked after a brief pause. When she didn’t respond, he continued. “After Laney was killed, I went out to the dumpster she had been found in. I don’t really know why I did it, but honestly I wish I hadn’t. It isn’t really a memory you want to keep.”

She let out a deep sigh. “I know. I have to make sure they didn’t miss anything, though.”

He let out a slight chuckle. “Now, why doesn’t that surprise me?”

“Oh, hush. I know the team out here, and would trust them to process a scene. The local officials, however, I know nothing about,” she explained. “They had the majority of the area processed by the time our team went out there. Something might have slipped through the crack when the scene was handed over.”

She could tell that he didn’t like the idea, even without him saying a word. She had to, though. Even if the evidence helped them to track down Mifflin, she would never feel satisfied unless she at least attempted to see what happened in those woods. If Ben wanted to try to talk her out of it, though, he chose not to.

“So do you miss being out there?” he asked with a cautious note.

“I do, in a way,” she responded, looking around the room at all of the familiar faces. “I miss my friends out here, and I miss little things about the city. They still haven’t filled my desk yet,” she said with a grin. “Chief Wooldridge said they’re holding it for me until I decide to come back.”

“Oh yeah?” he asked. He spoke in a casual tone, but she could tell it was forced.

“Yep,” she replied. “I don’t know how to convince him that I’m very happy where I am now. I guess it’ll eventually sink it. Knowing him, he’ll just be stubborn and keep the desk open indefinitely.”

“Well, it looks like the flight isn’t going to be delayed after all,” he stated a few moments later. She could hear the grin on his voice. “Just promise me that you’ll take care of yourself. I’ll let you know as soon as I have anything.”

Rilynne let out a low sigh as she placed the phone back on her desk. While she knew it was ridiculous, she still felt like it was wrong to allow her self to be happy with everything that was going on. She couldn’t talk to Ben without a surge of excitement and glee passing through her. All that left her with in the end, though, was even more guilt.

Despite the crowded office, everyone left Rilynne alone with her thoughts. Occasionally someone would walk over to check on her, but despite wanting to hear about her new life, they seemed to all know it wasn’t the right moment for socializing.

“I’m on my way to pick up Sibrian from the airport,” Wooldridge stuck his head into the office door a few hours later, Kim sound asleep in his arms. “Would you like to come along?”

“No,” she replied as she looked over to the clock hanging on the wall. “I have some stuff that I need to take care of. I’ll see you two in the morning.”

She watched him walk toward the elevator, thankful that he didn’t press her about what she would have to do so late at night.

When the doors closed behind him, she gathered the files off the desk and dropped them into her desk drawer before locking it. On her way out, she grabbed a large light out of the storage closet.

Her head was so cluttered that the drive to Madison seemed to take no time at all. After stopping to grab something quick to eat, she climbed back into her rental car and drove the remaining half hour to the crime scene.

Although she knew it wasn’t far from the park road, she hadn’t expected it to be so close. She only had to drive about twenty feet off the main road before the police tape stopped her.

She could just make out the hole in the ground where Christopher had been found, so she positioned her car where the headlights would provide the most light. Unfortunately, the clouds were covering what little light the crescent moon was providing, so she had to pull out the large light she had taken from the station just so she could see the entire taped-off area.

Surprisingly, it was almost exactly as she had imagined it. The hole, which was just over six feet long, was sitting at the base of a large birch tree. She started toward it, but only made it two feet before stopping. As much as she tried to push herself to continue, she couldn’t make her feet move any further.

Instead, she turned and looked around the rest of the scene. Christopher’s wallet was discovered about fifteen feet from where the body had been found, stuffed into a hole at the base of a tree and covered in about three inches of dirt. Had a design crafted out of metal not been on it-which the metal detectors pinged on-it might have been overlooked.

She walked over to the tree and dropped down to her knees. Sliding the glove off of her hand, she reached out to touch the hole.

The small clearing was suddenly so bright that she had to shield her eyes. When they adjusted, she found that the thin layer of snow had vanished and been replaced by patches of vibrant green grass.

She turned hesitantly back to the grave, but was relieved to find that it had already been filled back in. She looked down to her hands, which were beginning to feel warm, and found them wrapped in black gloves. In her right hand sat the wallet she had bought Christopher the prior Christmas.

She looked around the clearing before her eyes landed on a hole at the base of a large tree. She made it over to the tree in just two long strides and shoved the wallet into the hole. After making sure it was in as deep as it would go, she walked back over to the fresh grave and grabbed the shovel. Using it, she threw three shovels full of dirt over the hole and packed it firmly down.

She tossed the shovel up on her shoulder and looked around the entire area. As she did, an overwhelming feeling of pleasure swept over her.

When her eyes opened, Rilynne felt like she was going to be sick. She considered grabbing the light and heading back to the car, but after taking a deep breath to pull herself together, she sat down in the middle of the clearing and closed her eyes again.

“Where are you?” she demanded aloud. “Show me where you are.”

She concentrated harder than she ever had before, and nearly toppled over when the images started slamming her, each one feeling like she had been slapped across the back of the head.

A tree, a wooded hiking trail, a snow covered cabin with smoke billowing from the chimney, and a large wooden sign that was covered in snow, leaving only one word visible: ‘Welcome.’

When she opened her eyes again, she let herself fall backwards and land hard on the frozen ground.

Her breathing was hard, and the cold air began to sting the back of her throat. She laid on the cold ground for what felt like an hour as tears rolled freely out of the corners to her eyes. It wasn’t until snow started to drift down on her that she decided to get back up.

The drive back seemed to take three times as long, which she attributed to her eagerness to get back to her warm hotel room and the bed that awaited her.

It was just before four in the morning when she finally stepped into her room. She glanced over at her bed, but despite how tired she was, she knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep until she had made sense of what she had seen.

“Okay,” she said aloud. “Tree-well, that one’s pretty common, along with the hiking trail. What else was it?” She thought back. “Oh yes, the cabin. It was distinctive in a way, but nothing about it will help me actually find it. That just leaves the sign.”

She pulled out her computer and typed ‘snow covered wooden welcome signs’ into the search bar. She sifted through the countless pages of pictures, examining each of them to see if she could find the exact sign she had seen. After an hour of searching, she gave in to her frustration and closed the computer.

When she finally climbed into bed, she glanced over at the clock and let out a groan when she realized just how late it was.

Waves crashed in front of her, causing her to jump. She looked forward to find a white sandy beach stretching out in front of her. The warmth of the sand on her feet seemed to stretch through her, bringing with it an intense feeling of joy.

“What am I doing here?” she asked, though no one was around to answer.

She walked slowly out toward the water, letting her feet sink down in the sand with every step. By the time the waves swept over her toes, all of the anger and sadness she had been feeling was gone. Instead, she felt more relaxed than she ever had before.

She leaned down and rolled up the legs of her pants before making her way down the beach toward the rock formation in the distance. Every time a wave tickled at her feet, she was met with an almost elated sensation. By the time she reached the giant, tree shaded stones, she had decided never to leave. It was the perfect place, she thought. Nothing would be able to touch her as long as she stayed.

She leaned back on the towel that was sitting on the rock behind her, and watched the clouds in the sky. They seemed to be dancing to the sound of the waves, moving forward with every crash.

Suddenly, something else appeared in the sky; it was a kite. She sat up and looked around, trying to see who else was on her beach. She followed the string of the kite, just visible against the bright blue sky, and found a figure standing at the other end of the beach. She watched it curiously for several minutes before sliding off the rock. Something about the appearance of the figure made her angry; she didn’t want anyone else on her beach.

The waves splashed over her feet as she slowly made her way toward the intruder, which she could now see was a man. He was tall, close to six feet, with neatly combed brunette hair. Her heart leapt as her feet began moving faster.

“Christopher!” she yelled out. He didn’t turn.

When she was about ten feet from the man, still holding the string from the kite above his head as he stepped slowly forward, she stopped dead in her tracks. Something was not right.

“I know that walk,” she said aloud.

Her inner peace was swiftly replaced by a blinding rage. She looked around, unsure what she hoped to find. To the ground at her left, a shovel was sticking out of the ground. It was the same shovel; she knew it was. She stepped over and pulled it out of the sand, holding it firmly in her hands.

“I trusted you with my life!” she yelled, taking a step forward. “You were closer to me than almost anyone in the world, and you betrayed me. How could you do that?” She swung the shovel with all of her might, hitting the man over the side of the head. Though the string of the kite fell from his hand, he seemed uninjured by the blow. Rilynne’s hands stung from the vibration as she picked it back up, ready to deliver another swing. Before she could, he turned slowly around to face her.