Page 17 of Watch Me Burn
The last of Ricky’s popsicle disappears with a satisfied pop of his lips. He wipes his sticky palm on his fur before seizing his monkey, his claws working to separate one of the arms from its fabric body.
“At least the monkey seems to be working.” I nod toward Maren’s chest. “I need to order more of those. Maybe a whole case.”
“Yeah, he’s hardly noticed my boobs at all today. It’s almost insulting.” She captures another of Ricky’s paws for trimming.
Footsteps echo in the hallway outside. Then, Sarah, one of our young volunteers, pokes her head through the door. Her usually cheerful expression looks strained.
“Luna? The sheriff is here to see you.”
Maren scowls. “I’m over her showing up here unannounced all the time.”
“You and me both.” I turn to see Karen standing in the doorway behind Sarah.
Shit.
I need to remind the staff of the visitor protocols, but given recent events, Karen showing up unannounced has become the norm.
“Hey, Karen. What’s up?”
Her gray eyes take in Maren’s nail polish operation with amused bewilderment.
“Luna. Maren. Sorry to just drop by and interrupt… whatever this is.”
“Just Ricky’s spa day.” I rest the bank statement on the counter and lead her into the hallway. “How can I help you?”
“Have you ever had a case that dealt with Vance Krueger, an animal abuser down in Walsenburg?”
The name sends a chill down my spine. Vance Krueger—even his name sounds like something that would crawl out from under a rock.
“No, Walsenburg is outside my jurisdiction. There’s a sanctuary in Trinidad that’s closer, but I’ve heard of him. A friend in animal services down there told me about him. Why?”
“He’s disappeared. Didn’t show up for a parole hearing. Been missing for weeks now.”
I process her words, bewilderment giving way to a creeping sense of dread that makes it hard to breathe.
“What does that have to do with me? Criminals failing to show up for hearings happens all the time.”
“It just got me thinking. About the bodies that were dropped here on your property and around the county. We have absolutely nothing to go on in our investigation. So I started looking into other cases of animal abuse in the state.” Karen’s voice shifts to the animated tone I often heard growingup, when she’d tell Grandpa about cases she was working on. “Over eighty suspects have gone missing in the last two years. So, I went wider and checked nationally. In the past four years, over three hundred animal abuse suspects nationwide have disappeared without a trace. And that’s only the ones that were reported.”
Blood drains from my face, taking with it all the warmth. Could my wolf have killed all of them? No… that’s impossible. Isn’t it?
“That’s unbelievable,” I force out, my voice sounding distant. “But I still don’t understand what it has to do with me. You’re not here to question me about Damien again, are you?”
“No. Something still doesn’t sit right about his arrival coinciding with all these bodies, but there doesn’t appear to be any connection I can find.”
Relief hits me hard. Her previous suspicion of Damien had turned my blood cold, because he’s not the killer. My wolf is.
“Okay, so, again, what does Krueger’s disappearance have to do with me?”
“Can I get a list of every perpetrator you’ve dealt with on all your cases, whether or not they went through animal services or the courts? I know some come in without county or law enforcement involvement.”
My pulse hammers against my throat like it’s trying to escape.
“Why?”
“I want to see if there are any missing persons who have a connection to your sanctuary so I can get a sense of the bigger picture.”
Karen’s request sends panic shooting through me.
