Page 24 of Run for Her Life
“He’s a fabulist. Either way, Ethan told me that the court order for Annabelle’s work laptop should come through today.”
“Why do you think that lock of hair was sent to me if it isn’t Annabelle’s?” she asked.
A realization crossed Aiden’s face. “Get the hair tested for Jackie’s DNA. She has straight, dark hair.”
“Jackie’s? But the poem that came with it led us to Annabelle’s body in the woods.”
“What was sent to you might have been a clue totwovictims, Storm.”
Pangs of unease spread through her. How far would this go? Was Jackie already dead after being tortured like Annabelle?
“This is interesting,” Aiden said, reading a report.
“What’s that?”
“The neighbors reported hearing shouting and loud voices two days before she went missing.” He read aloud. “They didn’t see who it was but there was a red Prius parked outside.”
Zoe was on the computer, looking up Annabelle’s and Trevor’s cars. “Did they call the cops?”
“Before they thought about it, the car left. What car do the Stevens have?” He tipped his chin.
“Neither of them has a Prius registered to them,” she said, disappointed.
A sharp knock on the door startled her.
Adam poked his head into the room, his unruly hair all spiky, wearing a beige suit with a red tie falling too long. “Oh, don’t mind me. Just here to ruin the mood.”
“Why are you here, Adam?” Zoe asked.
“I enjoy the art of conversation and this place happens to be my favorite canvas.” His eyes darted around the room like he was hunting another story. Zoe had met people like Adam before. People like him were anarchists deep down. They were desperate for something to shock or unsettle them. The messier, the better. And in this depraved town, Adam had found the perfect supply.
“There is an empty holding cell here if you want to sit down and chat properly,” Zoe joked.
He smirked. “You can dismiss me all you want, Agent Storm, but you won’t be able to solve this case without me. I’m resourceful.”
“Aiden?” Zoe feigned puzzlement. “Is resourceful a synonym for opportunist?”
“I’m doing this town a service by giving them something to talk about. How much longer can we ride the coattails of the big fire?”
Zoe and Aiden exchanged a quick glance.Pineview Falls Big Firewas written in bold all over the back wall of Jackie’s closet. When Zoe had asked Lisa about it, she had brushed it off, saying it had happened almost thirty years ago.
Aiden got to the point. “What is this event that everyone keeps talking about?”
Adam’s eyes nearly popped out of his head he was so excited. “You don’t know?”
When they shrugged and shook their heads, Adam pulled out a chair, his cocky demeanor shifting to conspiratorial. “You’re in for a treat. There is an annual carnival that takes place on Founder’s Day in November. One of the attractions is a haunted house called Fun House. It wasn’t the most popular attraction but proved very popular with teenagers. Thirty years ago, something happened. Something terrible.” A dramatic pause. “The controls in Fun House failed. It was a mechanical failure. A chain reaction that led to props misfiring, exposed wires, overloaded sound system, malfunctioning trapdoor, uncontrolled animatronics, includingtotal blackout, you name it. Imagine being trapped in a house like that, running around blindly with sounds loud enough to make you go deaf, tripping over your own feet. No one could hear their screams because of the carnival outside.” He weaved a disturbing picture that seemed to delight him. “And the final straw was the fire. A short circuit in the lighting sparked a fire and six teenagers died from smoke inhalation. The biggest tragedy of that has haunted Pineview Falls for decades… until this latest tragedy of a murdered woman, and from what the deputies are talking about outside, another woman has gone missing.”
Zoe’s pulse quickened as she pondered Adam’s words. It was like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle that didn’t quite fit. The Pineview Falls Fire was the biggest historic event in this town. Now that she replayed the last three days in this bleak, haunting town—it existed all around her in the form of a weight in the air that never quiet lifted.
Jackie Fink had an unhealthy obsession with the incident. Did the big fire have anything to do with Annabelle’s death?
SIXTEEN
Dawn twisted open the cap of the bottle and shook out two red pills. She drew a trembling breath. Pain pulsated behind her eyes. Before she could convince herself otherwise, she swallowed the pills dry.
“Did you read this article?” David strolled into the kitchen, holding an iPad. “It says ‘was she another loose end in a company desperate to keep its skeletons in the closet?’” He looked at the bottle of pills Dawn quickly pocketed. “What’s that?”
“None of your business.” She picked up a knife and began chopping some tomatoes. There wasn’t a domestic bone in her body. Growing up, she’d spent more time playing ball with her brothers and trying to prove to them that she could run as fast as them, while her mother lamented the fact she wasn’t more “feminine.” She had spent years mourning her mother but now there was only person she mourned.
