Page 51 of Justice for Samara

“And did you camp?”

“No. We were supposed to have a camper, but since the guy who owns it didn’t come, I had to get a motel room.”

“And the motel?”

“The Ramada Inn in Tell City. There really isn’t much around there.”

“Isn’t that close to Santa Claus, Indiana?”

“Yeah. Kinda.”

“I remember my parents taking me there when I was a kid. So, when did you get there and when did you leave?”

“I got there on Friday night. Supposed to come back Tuesday, but then I got the call about the house.”

“So you just fished and ate and stayed at the hotel?”

“Yeah. That’s about it.”

Michael wanted so badly to say,Yeah. I fish. With the KSP commissioner.But he didn’t. He couldn’t. “I think that’s about all I need. If you’ll just have your wife give us a call when she gets back into town, that would be great.”

“So you have no idea who was in the house?”

“Probably the person who set the fire. That’s what we’re thinking.”

“And you don’t know who it is?”

“No. And the body was so badly burned that we may never find out.”

“Wow. That’s a shame. Well, let me know if you figure it out. I’ve got to talk to the insurance company about it.”

Stadler stood, so Michael did too. “Thanks for coming in.”

“Yeah. No problem.” With that, Stadler stalked off up the hallway and out the door.

When Michael stepped into the front lobby, Carlin handed him a piece of paper. “Here ya go.”

“Thanks. Good work.” In his hand was a slip of paper with the make and model of Stadler’s truck, as well as the VIN and the license plate number. Running a plate would leave a record of their inquiry, but having Carlin get the info had left no trace. Stadler would never realize they had the information.

Now to acquire some video footage and look for a truck at the Ramada Inn in Tell City, Indiana.

* * *

The day was windingdown when Carter stopped at Michael’s door. “How’s it going?”

Michael looked up from his desk at Carter’s question. “I’m going in so many different directions that I really don’t know which way to go next.”

The sheriff sat down in the chair beside Michael’s desk and leaned in. “I may have a little help for you.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. You remember CruzLivingston, right?”

“Of course! How could I forget Cruz?”

“I started thinking about our DNA and some of the other forensic aspects of the case, so I gave him a call. Turns out that he was about to call me. He’s working on a case that has some ties to St.Louis, so he was thinking about trying to get together while he’s already headed this direction, since we aren’t that far away. I told him what’s going on, and he said he’d be glad to look at some of the information and maybe even see if their lab could do some work. I mean, he’s no forensics guy, but he’s seen a lot of evidence from all kinds of cases, so any help he could give us would be great.”

Michael threw his head back and sighed. “Damn, that would be such a big help, Carter. This is going in so many different directions and I’m feeling a little overwhelmed.”

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