Page 36 of Good Girls Don't Cry

Hand trembling, she wrote the message and then handed him back the lipstick. What did the message mean? What was going to happen to her? Hot tears streamed down her cheeks as he ushered her into the shower.

“Take a hot shower and wash your hair.” He leaned against the counter watching her. “Shut the shower door.”

She complied with his wishes, closing the shower cubicle behind her. With the steam billowing all around her she couldn’t see him through the glass. She washed her hair with the fragrant shampoo and matching conditioner. The soap was wrapped in paper and she removed it and sniffed at the lily of the valley fragrance. Everything suddenly seemed surreal, as if living in a nightmare that changed every few seconds. She finished and slid open the door to a wall of steam and she stepped out, seeking one of the big white fluffy towels piled on a shelf beside the shower, to dry herself.

The man came at her in a naked blur. Something thumped hard into her chest in a painful rush of heat. Uncomprehending she stared at him. The silver blade of a knife flashed and she grasped her chest, horrified to see blood spurting from between her fingers. Why was he doing this to her? She tried to cry out as the room spun around her. Dizzy, she couldn’t catch her breath as the bathroom grew fuzzy at the corners of her vision. Her knees folded under her and she crumpled to the cold floor. Blood spread out around her, spoiling the pristine white tile. Confused, she blinked to bring his smiling blood-spattered face into focus.

“Goodbye, Chloe. The pleasure was all mine.”

Forty

Wednesday

Details of the murder cases ran around Jenna’s mind all night. She hadn’t slept well and no matter how she tried, she couldn’t get a grip on who’d murdered the students in the limo. The wait for Wolfe’s associate to send results on the sample of moss taken from the last victim was driving her crazy. She’d reviewed the suspects’ interviews and tried to match them against what Jo had told her, but she couldn’t make a case for either of them so far. She’d read a brief report from Rio about the interview with Ben Holloway, but would chase that up after she’d spoken to her deputies this morning.

It was fortunate that Carter had decided to stay around, he didn’t have any cases to work in Snakeskin Gully and his superior officer had given him the green light to stay for as long as necessary. With her team in the office all seated in front of her desk, Jenna leaned against the pillow supporting her back and placed her feet on the footstool under the desk. Resting her hands on her belly, she glanced at all of them. “First of all, I’d like to inform you that I will be remaining in my office for the next few days at least. If we have any breaks in the case, you can do a live feed to me via video call, if it is safe to do so. I need to consider the risk to my baby. I hope you understand.”

“We’ll handle things just fine.” Rio met her gaze. “Do you want me to update the whiteboard now?”

Seeing the understanding in Rio’s eyes, Jenna smiled. “I would like your personal opinion of Ben Holloway.” She looked from him to Raven. “How did he seem to you?”

“Angry and he hates women.” Raven rested one hand on Ben’s head. “He has an attitude. Well, I guess you might call it a chip on his shoulder. What I didn’t see in him was the usual charismatic personality we see in serial killers, but as you know, they’re very smart and that could have been an act.”

“I agree.” Rio ran his fingers around the rim of the hat on his lap. “He took offense at us being there and refused to answer questions about his whereabouts. I guess when we ask questions it’s up to the people we’re interviewing to agree to give us information. Remaining silent is their right. So this man comes into the same category as the other two, in that he is a possible but there’s no proof.”

“It’s a shame we couldn’t get a bullet from the kid who was shot.” Kane sighed. “It was a through-and-through wound. I guess I could put on diving gear and go down and see if I can find a bullet in the wreck.”

Jenna nodded. “If we need a bullet to prove who killed him, you can go by all means, but I recall Wolfe saying that he’d searched the inside of the limo for bullet holes and found nothing other than a small hole in one of the windows. He was unable to determine whether the hole was from a bullet or had been there previously or had happened when the limo was driven into the river.”

“It’s deep and very dark down there.” Carter peered at her as he chewed around a toothpick. “The current is exceptionally dangerous. There’s no way Kane should go alone. If you need a second diver, I’m available.”

Jenna shook her head. “I’ll consider all the other evidence before I put you both at risk. It’s likely long gone.”

“One more piece of information we need to discuss.” Rio stood and went to the whiteboard. “Kalo called early this morning. He has located Jasper Montgomery. We can take him off our list. He’s been held in remand at County awaiting a court hearing since Wednesday last, so it can’t possibly be him.”

Twirling a pen in her fingers, Jenna watched as Rio added notes to the whiteboard. “The short list of suspects. This case is becoming a nightmare.”

The phone on her desk rang and she picked it up. “Sheriff Alton.”

“I figure someone has been murdered, Sheriff. There’s so much blood. We all ran out and jumped in my car and drove away. I’ve left the house open.”

Writing notes, Jenna quickly put the phone on speaker so the others could listen. “Okay, you’re safe at the moment. Take a few deep breaths. What is your name and what exactly happened?”

“My name is Barb Furlich, I’m a Realtor. I was showing a house in Bison Ridge. I was there only yesterday making sure it was perfect for the showing this morning. I had two clients with me, Monique Webby and Donna Tesman Bihn. We looked at the ground floor first and then went upstairs. When we went into the master bedroom, it smelled terrible and I’d cleaned it only the day before. You see, the owners are living in another state.”

Casting a glance at Kane, who stood and pulled on his jacket, she held up one finger. “Okay, what did you see?”

“Blood everywhere, massive amounts of blood.” Barb sucked in a shuddering breath. “I didn’t go all the way inside, but I couldn’t see anyone. There’s a message on the mirror. It says: This one is mine.”

Jenna remembered the case and her stomach clenched as a wave of fear rushed over her. No one was safe. Writing frantically, Jenna cleared her throat. “Okay, I’ll need the address of the house and I’d like you to bring the other two women to my office immediately. You can give a statement at the front counter. I’ll need all of you to give us details of exactly what you saw.”

“We’re on our way.” Barb disconnected.

Jenna scribbled the address on two pieces of paper and handed them to her deputies. “Okay, Carter, you’re with Kane. Rio and Raven, you too. It’s a very secluded area, so watch your backs.” She pushed a hand through her hair. “If this is the same as the Freya Richardson murder, don’t waste any time, grab the trail bikes, and head out to the grave site we discovered at Halloween. If the old graves we found belonged to this killer, it’s likely he’ll take the body back there.” She looked from one to the other. “Video the crime scene and upload it so I can see what’s happening. I’ll call Wolfe to meet you there. Go!”

Jenna wanted to go with them so much, but common sense prevailed. She had faith in her team. She called Maggie on the front counter and asked her to take the statements of the women who discovered the crime scene. “When they’re done, send them up here and I’ll talk to them. Thanks.” She hung up.

She looked down at Duke, who never left her side now and scratched his silken head. “I’ll pull up the files on the Freya Richardson case.”

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