Page 34 of Gone in the Night
Morgan arched an eyebrow at him. ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
‘It’s got all sorts of outdoor equipment, paddleboard, canoe, climbing gear, outdoor clothing, wetsuits, camping stoves, tables, tents, you name it she has it stacked out there and most of it is brand new.’
‘Did Sharon have another job, or do you think the bank of mum and dad have paid for all of this?’ asked Cain, and it was a legitimate question, but Morgan still found it a little rude.
‘She’s a YouTuber, some of them make a lot of money from the ads on their vlogs.’
Ben shrugged. ‘I have no idea about that, but we need to speak to someone to find out more of her background.’
‘Where is her camera stuff? Wouldn’t she have that with her if she was wild camping and filming it? I didn’t see it in that roof tent. Has the car been searched yet? Was it inside of there?’
Ben took out his phone. ‘Hang on, let me ring Wendy.’
‘Wendy, have you found any phone or cameras in the tent or car?’
He paused whilst she answered then replied. ‘Nothing like that. Okay, thanks.’ Pushing his phone back into his pocket, he said, ‘The killer must have taken them.’
‘There’s only one reason they took her phone and equipment; she must have them on camera. So, she either knew who they were, or she caught them when she was filming and they’re not taking any chances. Find the equipment and we’ve found the killer. We can get her phone number off her parents or Jack and run a cell site analysis.’
Marc came down the stairs with the MacBook in an evidence bag and the journal in another. He passed them to Cain. ‘Yes, Morgan, get onto Jack or her parents, please, and get her number, then get that rolling. Stan, show me the shed. Is there any camera equipment out there?’
Stan shook his head. ‘Not that I could find.’
Marc said, ‘I think you’re right; we find the camera we find the killer. I also think this is a very good point; we’ve made a great start. I would have liked to have had the suspect locked up by now, but this case has more complications than my grandad’s heart bypass so let’s finish up here, get the evidence booked in and call it a day. You’re not going to be any good tomorrow if we keep on until the early hours, is that agreed?’
‘Whatever you think, boss,’ replied Ben.
Morgan went outside to phone Caroline, the FLO, and passed on what Marc had suggested. Caroline replied immediately and said she’d get the number from Beth who she was sitting with and get the cell site analysis started. Morgan leaned her forehead against the cool brick wall and sighed. She knew that they would keep on working all through the night if they had a definitive lead they could follow up on and have the killer in the cells, but Marc was right, there were far too many complications and different strands, and she was tired. Her head was banging with a lack of either caffeine or water, probably both. She was also on the verge of having a bit of a meltdown over everything because emotionally she felt wrecked and overwhelmed beyond belief. Not that she was going to go home and switch off, it just wasn’t possible.
TWENTY-THREE
Morgan slept through Ben’s alarm. It was only when he was standing at her side of the bed with a mug of coffee and plate of toast in his hands did she open her eyes.
‘Argh, what time is it?’
‘Seven.’
‘How are you up so bright and early?’
‘I didn’t spend hours watching Sharon Montgomery’s YouTube channel like someone I could mention.’
‘True, I couldn’t stop though, I just kind of got sucked in. She was good, really good, in fact she was a natural; she could have been a TV presenter. You know how some of those YouTubers are just awful, she wasn’t and I’m not just saying that. Everything was really professional, the sound, the music, the camera work.’
‘Did you find anything useful?’
‘Unfortunately, no. I took screenshots of the comments under her most popular vlogs to check the names out with the ones on her Instagram account. I did find some beautiful spots to go wild camping though. She had some amazing recommendations.’
‘And will you be going wild camping anytime soon, Morgan, that’s the question?’
She paused, took the mug of coffee from him and sipped at it. ‘Absolutely not, I’d be terrified after seeing her body in that tent yesterday.’
Ben smiled at her, then leaned down to kiss her forehead. ‘Good, I thought that might have put you off. Let’s stick to nice hotels in the States for now if that’s okay with you. What’s the one in Salem you booked us into?’
‘The Hawthorne, it’s a historic hotel and right in the heart of downtown. It has a tavern inside and it’s all wooden panelling, it’s beautiful. Oh, Ben, it looks so amazing. I can’t wait to visit, and apparently it’s haunted.’
‘Is it? No campsites over there you want to try out?’
‘Probably, but I’m more of a flushing toilet kind of gal anyway.’
